Mask Episode 3 - Let's Play a Twisted Game of My Fair Lady

Who knew that surviving the crash would actually be the easy part of Ji Sook's week?  As Ji Sook is saved and then awakes in Eun Ha's hospital bed, so begins her portrayal as Eun Ha (hmmm... I think I will continue to call her Ji Sook since that is easiest to remember.).  Now she has to just convince everyone else that she is the dead socialite.  But no worries, Seok Hoon will be by her side, like an evil Henry Higgins,  forcing guiding her every step.

Seok Hoon tells Ji Sook "I will do all the thinking now.  You just do what I say."  I have to admit that if I was to cast a person to play a Korean portrayal of Satan.... Yeon Jung Hoon would have the job.  He has charismatic evil vibes up the wazoo. Is it wrong that I still find him really sexy?  So evil yet so hot.... It is a quandary.

First step is to fool the parents.  Not as hard as you would suspect considering that they rarely see each other.  Eun Ha is the daughter of a famous congressmen and his mistress, so while officially on the family registry, she is not the wife's biological child.  It is only in the car ride to the airport that Eun Ha's father comments that it did not seem like that was Eun Ha.  A statement that his wife quickly squashed saying that this was a good thing (her memory loss) since they could now build good memories forward.  Hmmmm makes you wonder what bad things they want hidden?

Just when you think that Ji Sook will have a chance to catch her breath, Seok Hoon shoves some high end clothes into her hands and tells her to dress.  He then tells her to not scream as his minion rolls out Eun Ha's corpse from under the bed.  OH MY GOSH THEY WERE HIDING THE BODY UNDER THE BED!!! Daebak... That is some messed up writing right there.

The scariest part is that the dead Eun Ha is wearing Ji Sook's clothes which means that Seok Hoon and minion undressed both women and played dress up while JI Sook was passed out.  Evil induced shivers are racking this bloggers body just thinking of how twisted this is.

They load up Eun Ha's body onto a wheeled gurney with the sheet pulled up over her face.  Poor Ji Sook looks like she is being walked to her death as she shuffles along.  But our heroine is not as weak as she appears.  Faking a stomachache Ji Sook goes into the woman's bathroom and drinks a bottle of perfume.  This allows her to realistically throw up in the hallway forcing Seok Hoon to let her be readmitted.

But Ji Sook's escape plan from Seok Hoon's schemes has already failed.  Seok Hoon is already a mile ahead of our damsel.  Previously he had her write out a note stating that if the creditor dies then the debt is clean.. He also planted blood (from the thug that died from her car) on her house key ring.  With the two combined Seok Hoon can easily spin the situation that Ji Sook killed the money lender to get out of her families debt.  OOooh, that girl is caught well and good.

While this is going down in the hospital, evil minion is busy transferring the body to a van in the hospital parking lot.  Or at least he was until Min Woo arrives a few cars away.  Min Woo sees the edge of the gurney and moves forward to investigate.  ACK  So close to discovering his fiance's corpse in the parking lot (that is a phrase you don't get to say every day). But once again Seok Hoon saves his plot from discovery thanks to a conveniently timed phone call.  I thought would be impossible to be more impressed than I was with the mall scene in episode 2, but this (parking lot corpse scene) blows that one out of the water.

And here starts the segments that I think will cause the most uproar.  It is no secret that this writer is not adverse on using physical violence to up the feelz.  His choking scene in "Secret" was wildly talked about when it aired, and many people were highly upset that their leading man would do something like that to a woman he is going to fall for.  I personally did not have issues with it (if anything I thought the fact that he was an all out stalker was creepier..... in an eventual good way), but I know that it was controversial. 

Well gear up your loins and prepare for some viewers screeching to high heaven since our leading lady not only gets manhandled once, but four times, this episode. 

Manhandle #1 
Min Woo has arrived at the hospital intent on asking his fiancee what really happened during his blackout (remember he had a hypnotist induced dream that he choked her).  He stares down on Ji Sook who is fake sleeping.  Min Woo tries to pull down the blanket (so he can look at her neck for bruising), but Ji Sook holds on tight.  He realizes that she is faking and when she ignores his request to say it wasn't him (poor Ji Sook has no clue what he is talking about) Min Woo grabs her and starts shaking her while screaming "Say it... Say it.."

Manhandle #2
After this wonderful incident Ji Sook decides that it is better to go with Seok Hoon to Eun Ha's her new "apartment".  Seok Hoon leads her inside and gives her a list of things that Ji Sook will need to "become" Eun Ha. 

Ji Sook is no dummy and asks  "How do you know so much about Eun Ha?  Even her code for the apartment?"  BWHAHAHA because he is her secret lover of course.  Not that the show has told us that, but you would have to be blind and stupid not to see the writing on the wall.  Seok Hoon just evades her questions and tells her to learn enough English and French to fake that she is competent.  He goes to leave, but stops when Ji Sook demands he take his minion with him.

Holy crap on a cracker!  Seok Hoon is giving Min Woo a run for the title of most crazy. Upon hearing Ji Sook assert demands,  Seok Hoon pushes her against the wall and starts choking her with Eun Ha's purse.  The same purse that we had seen Min Woo choking her with at the pool.  We viewers of course know that he is just creating the bruises on Ji Sook's neck for authenticity.  But I still can't help but be shocked at Seok Hoon's ruthless side.

Quick side note.......ACK I knew it.  Seok Hoon was behind poor Min Woo's attack memories and the hypnotist doc is morally corrupt (even worse is the realization that the words hypnotist doctor instantly brings me into a Jekyll, Hyde, And Me flashback.  Hmm can a blogger have PTSD from reviewing a bad drama?)

Ji Sook is an awesome kick ass heroine.  Instead of staying trapped in her apartment (evil minion is outside her house watching)  she climbs down some bedsheets to freedom.

Ji Sook quickly runs to the police station, only to find out that the body of the lone shark thug had been found and she was missing/considered the killer.  To make matters worse, Seok Hoon is there to intimidate her back into line.  I swear that man truly is the devil.  He is always at the right place at the right time to scare her.

Manhandle #3
Dejected and coming back from the police station, Ji Sook's night is still not over.  In her parking lot is a loitering Min Woo who is still trying to confirm whether or not he choked his fiancee. He barely says hi before he is grabbing at her throat, tearing off her scarf to see the bruising.

You can almost forgive his brutish behavior, as a devastated Min Woo gently reties her scarf and apologizes.  SIGH... Poor boy needs to learn how to use his words and not just act on the crazy.

Which brings us to our final manhandling moment of the episode.

Manhandle #4
It is the official meeting of the families that is held prior to a Korean wedding.  Min Woo steps up and declares that he can't marry Ji Sook.  I have to really respect his integrity that he would cry off of the wedding, even though his father threatens to disown him.  Unfortunately for all, Ji Sook does not have the luxury of taking him up on his offer and instead declares that she will learn to love her new husband so she won't have to wear a "mask" in their marriage.  Have I mentioned that I adore how this character is written?

After the family disperses and the couple have some alone time.  Min Woo is drunk while Ji Sook is of course timid.  He begins telling her a parable of a frog and scorpion in which the scorpion kills the frog since it is in the scorpion's basic nature.  Min Woo pushes Ji Sook down and declares that he is the scorpion and will kill her if she doesn't run.  "Don't show up at the wedding" he firmly tells Ji Sook, before leaving.  

Is there such a thing as a sexy manhandle?  If there is, than this would be a prime example.   So messed up that I find this kind of hot.... please tell me I am not the only one.

We do finally see a moment of humanity from our evil mastermind.  Seok Hoon and his minion take Eun Ha's body and dump it into the ocean where the car had crashed.  Before shoving the body over the cliff Seok Hoon took a moment to fondle her face on last time and take back the necklace he had given her.  Flinching as Eun Ha's body bounces down the cliff, Seok Hoon finally looks somewhat human.

 

And we finally arrive at the wedding.  The big question is will Ji Sook really take that final step?  Will she walk down the isle?  And the answer is.......................

YES!  We have achieved super complicated OTP.  Amnesia, manhandling, and even a crazy leading man, will not prevent this ship from sailing.  I especially like when Ji Sook tells Min Woo why she did it.  "Sometime even if you know that you will die from the sting of the scorpion, you go on the journey anyway.  Sometimes you just don't want to be alone."

Bonus Comment
Hahahaha the servant couple are adorable.. I thought it was funny last episode when they took a selfie with their nicely organized fridge.. And now they are back, both being noble and taking the blame for spilled wine on the carpet.

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