Rani Episode 1

So I was perusing though Viki's archives when this French costume drama caught my eye and I decided to give it a try.

 

 

 

The year is 1743. Phillipe de Valcourt is riding in to join his father the marquess for dinner. He thinks he brings good news when he announces he's been promoted to the rank of colonel and an aide de camp to a duke. Dad is not impressed as he sees this as just another way for his ne're-do-well son to stay as far away from any fighting as he can. There's a good reason why Dad is displeased with Phillipe. While getting his will in order, Dad has discovered Phillipe has been forging his name in order to get large loans so he can pay for favors at court. Therefore Dad has decided to leave the bulk of the family estate to his daughter, Jolanne.

 

Phillipe can't believe it. Jolanne is a bastard daughter Dad fathered on his native housekeeper from Macao. Dad has legally recognized Jolanne and hopes she has inherited all the good genes he apparently hasn't been able to pass on to Phillipe.

 

Jolanne is off at a convent getting schooled. That night she sneaks into the bed of her very good friend, Laure. And when I say good friend I mean really, really, really good friend. It just so happens the tall Laure is also engaged to be married to the slightly shorter than she Phillipe.

 

Back home, Phillipe helps his father go to sleep - the Big Sleep - with a pillow over the face. With the will not scheduled to be read until Jolanne is present, Phillipe attempts to bribe the notary who has the document in his possession. The notary just barely stays straight and refuses the bribe. Thwarted.

Phillipe's next evil step is to try to marry Jolanne off to some old baron he owes money to. Jolanne is less than thrilled at the idea and refuses the proposal. (Perhaps she doesn't want to leave her really, really, really good friend Laure.) While the family is hosting the funeral at the castle and feeding all their guests, a messengers races in to report the shocking news that the notary's house is on fire. A-ha: no will is good will.

That evening Jolanne and Laure have a lover's spat when Jolanne tries to convince her really, really, really good friend not to marry Phillipe. Laure doesn't care what kind of scoundrel Phillipe is. She wants to be a marchioness and go to Paris and not have to smell peasants!

The notary tells Phillipe that the house and all the important papers (wills, land deeds, etc.) are a total loss. However, since he was about to read it to the public, the notary just happened to have the late marquess' will safe at another location. Phillipe simply rips the will out of the notary's hands and throws the guys out the front door.

Phillipe goes to Jolanne's room and starts feeling her up! Jolanne knees him in the balls and takes off, grabbing a horse and riding willy nilly into the woods. Good thing she was dressed in male clothing (although I don't know why she was dressed this way). She nearly runs off a cliff. When she dismounts her horse is like, "I'm outta here!" and runs away. As Jolanne is standing near the edge of the cliff, thinking back to her loving father, a man rides up. He thinks she's a young man about to throw himself into the river below so grabs Jolanne from behind.

After realizing his mistake our mystery man gives Jolanne a ride back. Along the way he explains he's from Ireland (or so he says) and is secretly working for the French while they're at war with England. He's not wearing a uniform because he's on a secret mission to meet with Phillipe. (Remember, he's a colonel.)

Mystery Man takes Jolanne to an abandoned church where we get the obligatory flash of female nudity as Jolanne changes into some dry clothes. Mystery Man uncovers a secret passage that leads from the church to the chateau. Before they part ways he grabs her for a long kiss goodbye. Probably her first kiss. From a man, that is.

Up at the chateau, Phillipe turns a candelabra in order to open the secret passage door. Mystery Man (sure would like to know your name) delivers a large amount of gold in exchange for a map and battle plans. These plans are overheard by Isabelle, mother of Laure and secretly one of Phillipe's lovers. She kind of makes me think of Vanessa Redgrave.

After Mystery Man leaves, Isabelle enters the room to confront Phillipe for being a traitor to France. He assures her he has plans to have the mystery man killed and the map retrieved so no one will ever know about this. But Isabelle knows. In return for her silence she wants Phillipe to marry her instead of Laure. Phillipe doesn't want her saggy breasts. She slaps him. When he slaps her back Isabelle falls and hits her head on the corner of the desk. Looks like there's going to be another funeral.

When Mystery Man returns to the abandoned church he's surprised to find Jolanne is still there. She begs for him to take her with him but of course he can't do that. Suddenly Phillipe's men attack. Jolanne helps to run interference so Mystery Man can escape.

With the help of Laroche, a crooked policeman on his payroll, Phillipe sets about to frame Jolanne. Planting some money in her bedroom, Phillipe accuses Jolanne of having told the spy about the secret passage. When the spy came into Phillipe's office to steal the military plans, Isabelle discovered him and the spy murdered her. Laroche arrests Jolanne for treason as well as being an accomplice to murder.

Jolanne is rushed through a trial and sentenced to be beheaded. Laroche is transporting her to her execution in Paris. As a dejected Jolanne rides inside a big cage she catches sight of Mystery Man riding past their cavalcade. They have to stop for the night at an inn and a filthy Jolanne is brought o Laroche's room for "interrogation." Jolanne pretends to go along with his "interrogation" in order to get her shackles off. Once she's free she slugs Laroche in the face with her chains and then jumps out of the first storey window.

With soldiers firing at her (and missing) as she runs through the courtyard, Mystery Man rides up like the romance hero he is and lifts Jolanne up onto his horse. Once they get away safely to a friend's farm, we get some explanations as well as another obligatory nude shot. Mystery Man's name is Craig Walker. He's tells Jolanne he's really English, he had nothing to do with the death of Isabelle and it was Phillipe who truly committed treason by selling the battle plans. Craig plans on taking Jolanne to his mother's place in Ireland until the war is over, then he'll testify to Phillipe's perfidy and clear Jolanne's name.

Now it's time for sex. Probably her first time. With a man, that is. 

Le Jun Kai Episode 1

Wow, this looks pretty popular over at Viki. I'd better jump on the bandwagon.

Okay, we start with a violent opening (with a very Kdrama feel to it) where Le Jun Kai (played by Peter "You'll always be Lu Bu to me" Ho) is getting the crap beat out of him. A woman being held at bay cries out for the beating to stop. The greasy guy in charge throws down a paper and orders Jun Kai to sign it. Jun Kai says he'll give up everything if they'll just let the girl go. Greasy Guy makes the dramatic announcement that Li Ye (played by Janine "I speak friggin' German, y'all" Chang) knew Jun Kai had killed her father but she still married him anyway. Jun Kai can't believe what he's hearing.

Enough about that, let's flash back to a month ago. Jun Kai is trying to read a magazine when Greasy Guy and his gang show up and attempt to talk business. Jun Kai breaks the finger of one of the thugs. Do NOT interrupt him when he's reading Vogue! Greasy Guy (who I must point out is wearing one of the Ugliest Jackets Known To Man) makes reference to Jun Kai's divorce from Li Ye and the problems he had with her father. Jun Kai can't be pulled away from his reading and Greasy Guy leaves in frustration.

Out in the hallway one of Greasy Guy's minions tells how Jun Kai has been searching for Li Ye for years but she's managed to avoid him. We now go to Li Ye's hovel. She can't go in to work today because her son isn't feeling well. As chubby Tian Tian eats some porridge mom made, Li Ye pulls out a gold lighter and has a flashback to better times. The lighter belonged to Jun Kai who gave it to her to hold to show he was serious about quitting smoking. 

Li Ye has no choice but to go to work albeit late. I'm not totally sure where she works as all I see is her and her co-worker folding lots and lots of towels. The boss lady calls out that Li Ye has a customer. Li Ye goes into a room to greet a man. He asks if she doesn't remember him; he works for Director Le. This causes Li Ye to have yet another flashback to when Jun Kai has her by the throat and is yelling about his wife, Xiao Cai. (Are you confused yet? I sure am. Perhaps Xiao Cai was his first wife.) Coming back to herself in the present, Li Ye takes off running out of the shop. 

As she's returning to her hovel, a couple of guys throw a bag over her head and attempt to abduct her. Luckily the guy from the shop shows up just in time to stop them. Li Ye doesn't stick around long enough to thank him or anything and runs on home to her tubby kid who is all alone. The guy, I think his name is Ah Wen, reports back to Le Jun Kai about finding Li Ye and the fact that she has a kid. This is news to Jun Kai.

And that's it. That's Episode 1. It's only sixteen minutes long. I've never encountered such a short drama before. Apparently this is a "web series" which is something I'm not familiar with. Perhaps I should stick Episode 2 here on the end just to make this post worthwhile.

Li Ye and Tub Tub I mean Tian Tian are sharing a sparse meal. He asks to go to kindergarten because at least there they have a heater. Now that's just sad. Li Ye promises that when she gets paid she'll take him somewhere special like McDonald's. That's also just sad. 

Greasy Guy - who has a name! He's Lei Lun. Anyway, Lei Lun is upset that the kidnapping last night didn't go as planned. He wants to use Li Ye as a tool against his most hated enemy, Jun Kai.

Li Ye goes to work, which I see now is a hair salon. I was confused because I'm not used to hair salons being open at night. We quit early 'round here. She's told she has a customer up in the private spa room and again she goes up there. Did she not learn anything from her reaction to the last "customer" who was waiting for her in this room?

So she opens the door and there's her ex-husband, appropriately dressed in a wifebeater. Since he's a customer she has no choice but to give him a massage. He reveals that he knows she has a kid and he starts offering her money. Li Ye continues to deny she knows what he's talking about. What kid? 

Jun Kei slowly gets up from the bed, picks Li Ye up, throws her down on the bed, straddles her, chokes her and then starts to kiss her. We're in Bodice Ripper territory, folks! Li Ye goes running downstairs to be comforted by her co-worker. Jun Kei ambles on downstairs like he didn't just brutalize his ex and throws her money, warning Li Ye not to try and run from him.

Back at home Jun Kei's (kinda ugly but her heart's in the right place) sister Yi An confronts him about bothering his ex-wife. She points out how he he's kept all of Li Ye's things she left behind. Obviously he still has feelings for Li Ye so he should stop lying to himself. He should also move on from his first wife, Xiao Cai. At this Jun Kei blows up, reminding his sister of how Li Mo Hui (Li Ye's dad) was responsible for Xiao Cai's death.

This calls for another flashback. Jun Kei searches through an abandoned building, calling out Xiao Cai's name. He finds her obviously pregnant body with a big knife stuck in her chest. 

Next, not to get you too confused, is yet another flashback only of a slightly happier memory. Jun Kai has come to watch Li Ye practice for a play. He seems really touched by her performance and is a totally different guy from the ass hole we've come to know. This is the time when he started to light up a cigarette and, seeing her coughing from the smoke, hands her the gold lighter and promises to quit. And now it's time to swap slobbers.

EDIT: Paullie over at Viki was kind enough to clue us in as to the name of the opening song. This video has nothing to do with the show, BTW.

EDIT EDIT: And then there's this one that I can't seem to get right so I'm just giving you the link.

Wild Cat Episode 18

Eduarda offers to move in with Luis Mario and Maribella so she can take care of the blind model. Eduarda do something nice? I sense Evil.

 

Crooked Nurse (I have no idea what her name is) goes to the spa and tells Patricio how she has Rosaura's missing baby. Patricio is so shocked it looks like his skull is trying to pop out of his head. Crooked Nurse offers to keep the child hidden as long as Patricio pays out. He accepts.

 

Just like that Maribella's eyesight returns. Eduarda advises her to keep this a secret and keep acting blind.

 

Luis Mario and Rosaura make out like nobody's business before they say their final goodbyes (again).

 

There's an extremely brief shot of Ivan (who is walking again BTW) with some dude who is taking a bat to the windshield of a Mercedes Benz. I have no idea what is going on.

 

Carina is found unconscious on her bedroom floor. When she comes to she claims she fainted from the stress of Max's death. You mean Max who jumped out of a helicopter is dead?! What happened? Damn you, Editing Gods! You can't just leave something like this out. And how the heck is Ivan walking again?! I demand to know!

 

Luis Mario breaks into Rosaura's bedroom so they can make out again.

 

Silvano takes Rosaura to a romantic mall food court so he can pressure her to marry him.

 

Rosaura's annoying little sister just happens to be friends with Leonardo, the son of Crooked Nurse. One night he takes the baby and flees his abusive mother, finding shelter with his friend at her house.

 

Carina is diagnosed with leukemia.

 

Rosaura and Luis Mario just can't keep their tongues away from each other as Maribella spies on them through the window.

 

Rosaura also has a breakthrough when she remembers the crooked nurse who helped her give birth when she was imprisoned in the attic.

 

Eduarda comes up with the idea of Maribella giving her the money to pay back the loan on the estate so they can kick Rosaura out of the house.

 

Once again Luis Mario has mysteriously hurt his arm and is wearing a sling but that doesn't stop him from making out with Maribella after learning she helped to regain his house.

 

Patricio gets Rosaura to move back in with him (in her grandma's old mansion which he stole) by promising he'll retrieve her missing daughter.

 

As Rosaura is driving down the street she sees and recognizes Crooked Nurse walking down the sidewalk.

Wild Cat Episode 17

Patricio, emotional tears in his eyes, explains to Rosaura how he hopes if she gives him one night of exchanging bodily fluids she'll come to view their marriage in a different light. You'd better be damned good, Patricio. 

Whiplash back to Luis Mario telling Gabriel that the test results are in and Gabriel is the father of Eva's baby. Gabriel goes over to Eva's mansion to bitch slap her around (to be fair she bitch slapped him first) and to take his baby away. Eva is just fine with that as she didn't want the kid in the first place, she just needed him to trap Luis Mario into marriage. 

Panchita, that gossipy maid with a fruit basket on her head (I'm not lying), calls Luis Mario to tell him Rosaura has left for a 9 p.m. appointment at a hotel for a night of passion with - Silvano. Only Rosaura is really with Patricio. He's begging her to give herself freely while she's crying and telling him to just get this vile business over with. Suddenly Silvano bursts into the room and decks Patricio. Downstairs in the lobby the ever-late Luis Mario is trying to catch an elevator so he can also come to Rosaura's rescue. 

Patricio gives up and leaves the room. Weak with relief, Rosaura falls into Silvano's arms for comforting. This is what Luis Mario sees when he finally arrives on the scene. They don't even know he's there in the room with them. He leaves in disgust.

Patricio goes home to Camelia where they discuss making Rosaura "disappear" as Patricio would rather have her dead than for anyone else to have her. 

Luis Mario, on the rebound, thinks about marrying Maribella once his divorce with Eva is final. This would make, what - wife #4? 

Time skip ahead and now Rosaura is in the last months of her pregnancy. She's leaving the mansion to hit the mall and doesn't realize she's being followed by Thug-For-Hire (in a VW Cabriolet!) We don't get to see what happens next, only that Rosaura wakes up to find herself imprisoned in an attic by Patricio. And just to make it even more dramatic, she goes into labor.

Luis Mario decides to forgive his birth mother, Mercedez. (I still don't know why she abandoned him in the first place.) 

Rosaura gives birth to a baby girl. Luis Mario, who has just found out the baby his ex-wife was expecting is his, now learns that Rosaura has gone missing. The strain of giving birth seems to have short circuited Rosaura's mind as she refuses to believe the baby girl is hers. The maid who was originally helping Patricio and Camelia has now had a change of heart and helps Rosaura escape with the baby. A confused Rosaura, still not believing the baby is hers, dumps the child off on an old woman and then takes off. 

Sometime later Rosaura seems to have come to her senses and now she wants her damn baby back! The police arrive to take a hysterical Rosaura to the hospital. She has no memory of what she did with the baby or where she gave birth. Maribella doesn't believe it and thinks this is all a lie so Rosaura can win back Luis Mario.

As can only happen in a soap opera, the old lady who has the baby just happens to be the mother of the crooked nurse who helped Rosaura give birth in the attic. Recognizing the child, the crooked nurse plans to keep the baby and use her to extort money.

As Luis Mario is driving Maribella away from the hospital he tells her their marriage is off as he needs to stay by Rosaura's side. Distraught, Maribella physically attacks him while the vehicle is moving. As Luis Mario tries to regain control of the truck, Maribella (who wasn't wearing her seat belt) is thrown out of cab and up against the curb. At the hospital Maribella awakens to discover she's lost her eyesight. 

Hmm, or has she? Is this an act to get Luis Mario to stay with her? Stay tuned.

Scandal Episode 18

As Ha Eun Joong introduces himself, both he and Soo Young wonder why Hwa Young is dissolving into tears.

 

Fake Eun Joong meets with Kang Ho (at the river, natch) and hands over to the minion a second pair of the same cuff links. Kang Ho is to turn them in as the hard evidence against himself.

 

Tears still spilling from her eyes, Hwa Young allows Real Eun Joong to question her about the case. As he looks through his notebook she can see where he's doodled penguins on the pages. She offers to take him out to lunch but he opts out of it. Instead, Real Eun Joong takes Soo Young and Ah Mi out to lunch. Hwa Young runs out a side door (that I didn't even know the building had) in order to secretly watch her son as he walks down the crowded sidewalk.

 

Soo Young asks why her boss was crying earlier and had asked to see a picture of Eun Joong. Ah Mi, who knows everything, says nothing. Back at the office Hwa Young is putting everything together at lightning speed. She goes into Fake Eun Joong's office and breaks into his desk where she finds the evidence that he's known all along who Real Eun Joong is.

 

As Ah Mi and Eun Joong are walking back to the law firm there's some guy on a bike who is out of control and about to run over them. Ah Mi leaps to pull Eun Joong out of the way. Eun Joong ends up pushing her out of the way. There's some skinship whichever way you go. Eun Joong, who's probably never been manhandled by a woman before, starts yelling at Ah Mi for putting herself in danger. Ah Mi goes to help the guy on the bike which gives Eun Joong time to do the Stare of Burgeoning Love.

 

Myeong Geun is off somewhere trying to donate his corneas after he dies.

 

At home, Joo Ha tells Hwa Young that Myeong Geun was the kidnapper from years ago. Of course Hwa Young isn't surprised by this news. What does shock her is hearing it was Kang Ho who told Joo Ha about Myeong Geun.

 

Meanwhile in another part of the house, the menfolk are having their own meeting about what to do about Real Eun Joong. At least I learn what Fake Eun Joong was doing on the computer in the last episode. He was transferring a large amount of money from Kang Ho's account into Real Eun Joong's account. This will make it look like the reason Real Eun Joong released Kang Ho was because he had been bribed.

 

Hwa Young overhears this dastardly plan against her son. Fake Eun Joong catches sight of her eavesdropping and he slips away to speak with her. Hwa Young speaks with her hand, smacking him several times upside the head. Since the cat is out of the bag, Fake admits he had found his mother's real son and now he's going to destroy Real Eun Joong. Hwa Young tells him, "Don't touch my son, you understand?" This gets Fake in the heart the way she said "my son." He screams at her, "I'm Jang Eun Joong! Jang Eun Joong!" (Is no one in the house hearing all this yelling?) Hwa Young again begs her not-son to stop what he plans to do to Real Eun Joong or else she'll go to Tae Ha and tell him the truth.

 

In the other part of the house that can't hear all the Jang Eun Joong shouting, Kang Ho tells his boss that Ha Myeong Geun is the Other Man.

 

Joo Ha "breaks up" with Real Eun Joong (and thank goodness for that).

 

As usual with this show, we get a musical interlude.

 

Using the address on the legal paperwork, Hwa Young is tracking down where Ah Mi lives. She doesn't realize she's being followed by Tae Ha. Outside the front door Hwa Young is shocked to see the Ha Myeong Geun nameplate hanging by the gate. Tae Ha is about to get out of his car when he notices his nemesis/real son, Eun Joong, walking up. Real Eun Joong keeps asking Hwa Young why she's here. She wasn't expecting Eun Joong to be here but since he is it's a good time to warn him about the set-up.

 

Neither one sees Tae Ha sitting in his car. After his wife leaves and Eun Joong goes inside, Tae Ha sprints up the steps to confront the cop when he notices the nameplate. Only now does he realize that Ha Myeong Geun and Ha Eun Joong are related (not).

 

The next morning at the breakfast table Tae Ha is giving everyone a lecture on secrets and lies before he asks Hwa Young why she was meeting with Real Eun Joong last night. She lies that she was telling him about her car's black box being reset. Tae Ha doesn't believe her and starts yelling about her meeting Myeong Geun, the kidnapper of their son. Joo Ha intervenes and explains Hwa Young has been meeting with Myeong Geun because he's the whistle blower. Tae Ha has another one of his throw-everything-on-the-floor fits.

 

Real Eun Joong makes an appointment to meet with Kang Joo Pil. There's stuff about Joo Ha and Jin Woong but you know what, I don't care. Plus Viki has been giving me a pain. Internal Affairs, following an anonymous tip, start their investigation of Detective Ha Eun Joong.

 

Myeong Geun gets an unexpected visit from Hwa Young. She doesn't say anything but spits in his face.

Eva Luna Episode 1

It's all about the Venezuelan telenovelas, baby. Although this one is also not filmed anywhere near Venezuela. Is there a reason Venezuelan dramas aren't made in Venezuela? Anyway, you can watch Eva Luna over on Viki.

 

 

The story takes place in California (although the end credits give much thanks to Miami). Our two main protagonists live lives polar opposite of each other. Poor yet hardworking Eva Gonzalez works alongside her beloved father in the apple orchards. Handsome and successful Daniel Villanueva drives sleek sports cars and works in an air-conditioned office at Arismendi Advertising. (Any relation to the Arismendi clan in Wild Cat?)

 

Eva loves her father but he drops many hints that there is a big secret in the past. His wife abandoned him and their two daughters. Recently he received word that his errant wife might be living in Los Angeles and so he packs up Eva and sister Alicia to head off to the big city. (He hasn't told the girls yet just why he wants to suddenly move to L.A.)

 

Now lets see what Daniel's world is like. It's pretty good from what I can see. At the advertising agency he works alongside his best friend, Leonardo Arismendi. Leonardo is tall, dark, and mmm-mm. His beautiful sister Victoria has been dating Daniel for five long years. She's hoping that he'll finally be over his dead wife and get around to asking her to be Mrs. Villanueva 2.

 

The president of the company is Marcela Arismendi. You can tell she's evil because she's lathered in makeup, fires a single mother, and wears one black glove. I'm not sure if something has happened to her hand or if she's simply a big fan of Michael Jackson.

 

The owner of the company, Julio Arismendi, is ill and stuck at home. He drives around in a Hoveround, wears silk pajamas from the Hugh Hefner collection, and hangs around with a mean dog. Speaking of dogs, Julio wants to divorce Marcela but she keeps slipping him drugs in order to keep control of him.

 

The Gonzalez clan is now in Los Angeles and Eva is looking for a job. A neighbor helps her get one as a masseuse (something Eva has never done before) and that's how she meets Daniel for the first time. Eva does a terrible job on him. He complains to the owner and Eva is fired.

 

Dad thinks he's found his wife's location. He asks Eva to accompany him, saying only he'll explain everything when they get there. They're walking along the road when Dad is run over and killed by a red sports car. The driver is tall, dark and Leonardo who quickly leaves the scene of the accident.

 

When next we see Daniel he and Leonardo are attending a car show. One of the models is Eva who recognizes Daniel as the man who got her fired. They fight in between giving each other long and deep stares. Once again Eva gets fired and blames Daniel.

 

Leonardo, partly feeling guilty and partly wanting to work his way into her pants, offers Eva a job as a personal assistant to his ailing father. Marcela is at first not at all happy that this strange girl has been hired without her permission. She changes her attitude once she comes up with the plan to frame Eva for Julio's death.

 

As Eva is leaving the big house for the evening the head housekeeper (who doesn't like Eva at all) let's Julio's mean dog loose to chase the new girl. Eva runs like the dickens, scrambles over the high fence, and stumbles into the road, nearly getting hit by Daniel's car.

Scandal Episode 17

Real Eun Joong makes arrangements to meet with (his real mother) Hwa Young at her house to talk about Gong Gi Chan's death. After that, Myeong Geun makes arrangements to meet with her on Thursday to have a lengthy chat. They discuss his health crisis and how he plans to not tell the kids since there's nothing they can do to about it. Hwa Young offers to be Myeong Geun's friend since she's the only one who knows about his terminal disease. Ooh, and then she reaches over and holds his hand.

We'll see if she still wants to be his friend after Thursday.

Crap, I forgot about Kang Ho hanging out in the bushes with his camera. He takes several shots of Hwa Young comforting Myeong Geun. As he looks back through the pictures he's taken, Kang Ho appears to just now recognize who the other man is.

Real Eun Joong drops by the Jang estate. Joo Ha thinks he's here to see her. Eun Joong suggests they hold hands like a real couple to continue fooling people with their relationship. Tae Ha (who has finally gotten his roots touched up) blows a gasket and orders the young siblings to stop touching each other this instant. Hwa Young isn't home yet so it's up to Tae Ha, Joo Ha and Fake Eun Joong to give an uncomfortable welcome to their unwanted guest and his talk about evidence and murder.

Tae Ha starts overacting and shouting "I'm Jang Tae Ha! King Kong ain't got shit on me!" Real Eun Joong keeps his cool and reveals he does have shit on Tae Ha: a photo image of him and Kang Ho in Hwa Young's car near the construction site. Fake Eun Joong can do nothing but squirm in his seat.

Myeong Geun and Ah Mi are at home waiting for the others to show up for dinner. She lets Dad #1 know she overheard the conversation between him and Fake Eun Joong. Ah Mi urges Myeong Geun to tell Real Eun Joong the truth. There's a long flashback (AKA padding) as Myeong Geun explains what happened with the building collapse, the death of his real son Geon Young, and the eventual kidnapping of Eun Joong. 

Hwa Young, with Kang Ho driving, has just arrived home. She doesn't even have time to get out of the car before Fake Eun Joong suddenly jumps behind the wheel and speeds off so she's unable to meet Real Eun Joong face to face. Man, how long are they going to drag this out? Real Eun Joong tries to call Hwa Young but Fake Eun Joong begs her not to answer her phone. 

Tae Ha goes to his office and has the mother of all crack ups: throwing things around, shouting Real Eun Joong's name, and even beating the crap out of Kang Ho. Joo Ha and Real Eun Joong don't hear any of this because they're outside in his car. Joo Ha conveys her worry for Real Eun Joong because he's dared to tangle with her rich and powerful father and the lowly peasant is doomed to failure. It's just the way of the world. Nice morals you got there, Joo Ha.

Fake Eun Joong has taken his not-mother back to their law office where he explains his strange behavior. He claims Real Eun Joong is a delusional cop who is trying to pin a murder on Tae Ha. Fake Eun Joong pleads with Hwa Young to never ever ever meet with Detective Ha Eun Joong ever. Oh, and can he have a copy of her car's black box? Hwa Young hesitates for a moment before claiming the contents of the black box have already been deleted. They're both lying to each other and they both know they're lying to each other.

Next up we have a painful scene. After the Ha's and Ah Mi have dinner, they all pile up and go out to a noraebang. Must. Hit. Mute. Button. As Myeong Geun is singing, we get a brief glance of his pain-riddled face that he's hiding from his kids. 

Joo Ran is upset that Hwa Young hasn't stuck to their agreement and divorced Tae Ha. In fact, Hwa Young is sleeping in the same bedroom as her husband, just not the same bed. Joo Ran is back to threatening to tell Tae Ha the truth about Fake Eun Joong. Out in the reception area Joo Ran has a run in with Ah Mi. My girl holds her own against this old hag. 

Joo Ha and Kang Joo Pil are shocked and displeased to see the coveted president's position has been filled by Jo Jin Woong. 

Joo Ran meets with Fake Eun Joong and proposes they work together to find the real Eun Joong (not realizing Fake already has) before Hwa Young does. Joo Ran preys on Fake's weakness, saying both Tae Ha and Hwa Young will immediately abandon Fake for the real deal. 

Tae Ha is up on the incredibly lime green roof having a meeting with Joo Pil. He orders the ex-reporter to do something, anything, to get rid of that annoying Detective Ha. Joo Pil thinks to himself how if he does do anything to Tae Ha's real son then he's up Shit Creek without a paddle. Suddenly they're interrupted by Fake Eun Joong who asks for the responsibility of taking care of Real Eun Joong. (Does Joo Pil know that Fake Eun Joong knows that Real Eun Joong is real?) Anyway, they're going to sacrifice Kang Ho and have him turn himself in claiming he acted alone without his boss's knowledge or consent. 

(I have to wonder about these DramaMinions and how willing they are to do anything and everything for their employers like going to prison and/or murdering people. Has there ever been a drama told from the minion's point of view? I think that would be more interesting. Look into that, Korea.)

Real Eun Joong (in uniform!) meets with Deputy Chief Whatshisname to request being reinstated to his old position. He's reunited with his slacker partner whose name I still don't know.

Kang Ho, his head bandaged up from his last beating, is waiting in Tae Ha's home office to show the pictures on the camera. Instead in comes Joo Ha who insists on seeing what Kang Ho has been taking pictures of. When she sees the pictures Joo Ha orders Kang Ho not to show them to her father or he'll have a hissy fit. Kang Ho explains that the man in the picture is the kidnapper from 1988. Joo Ha asks for time to think about this and to not tell Tae Ha anything for the moment. 

Now that he's short on time, Myeong Geun starts having a warmer and closer relationship with Real Eun Joong. 

Tae Ha apologizes to Kang Ho for beating the stuffing out of him. In the next breath he throws Kang Ho under the bus and orders his minion to go to prison for thirty or so years. 

Real Eun Joong is shocked when Kang Ho calmly walks into the police station and fesses up to everything he really has done so far: killing Gi Chan, blowing up the apartment, attacking Eun Joong, and littering. Real Eun Joong refuses the accept the confession siting some legal stuff about there being no hard evidence. Eun Joong wants Tae Ha, not little fish like Kang Ho.

Fake Eun Joong is doing something on his computer but I don't read hangul so I have no idea what he's doing. It's not good whatever it is.

At the law firm, Hwa Young has asked Soo Young if she has a picture of her brother. Soo Young brings in a family photo she keeps on her desk. Just as Hwa Young is staring at the picture, Real Eun Joong has come to the office to have that meeting they didn't get to have the other night. Real mother and real son are finally face to face.

Wild Cat Episode 16

I am such an addict. I need an intervention.

Camelia runs straight to Eva to tell her frenemy the "good news" about Rosaura being pregnant with Luis Mario's baby. Eva threatens the wild cat with telling Patricio about what his wife has been up to. 

Eduarda tells Luis Mario about him being abandoned in a box on the beach by his birth mother and he's not really a high-falutin Arismendi. Eduarda quickly forgets all those decades she thought of him as a brother and wants Luis Mario to vacate the premises immediately. 

Aunt Claudia advises Rosaura to disappear until she has her baby before Patricio finds out and has one of his patented freak outs. Rosaura doesn't want to tell Luis Mario about the baby. Luis Mario goes to confront his birth mother, Mercedez. She says she has an explanation but argh, I don't get to hear it. Camelia tells Patricio about Rosaura's pregnancy. He has one of his patented freak outs. Luis Mario packs his bags and goes to crash at Gabriel's place. (Luis Mario also makes some reference to his arm being hurt although I don't know how it happened.)

When Rosaura hears about Luis Mario being kicked off the estate, she plans to do her own eviction of Eduarda. Remember, the estate is technically Rosaura's until the family pays the loan back. She throws Eduarda out and moves herself and her annoying little sister in so they can get away from Patricio. However Patricio finds his runaway bride and tries to force her to come back with him. She's rescued by a gun-wielding (and buff) field hand who orders Patricio to unhand that maiden! 

Rosaura hires Bruno the Lifeguard to be the new manager of the Arismendi ranch. Luis Mario is involved in an automobile accident so the show can introduce a new character, Maribella Tovar, a professional model. It's not long before they're making out. Patricio gets Thug-For-Hire to capture Rosaura and tie her to a tree. 

You're not going to believe this. Well, yeah, it's a telenovela so you probably will. As Rosaura is left out in the wilds tied to a tree, a parachutist drops down from the sky and frees her. (So far she's had a man delivered to her by a plane crash, jumping out of a helicopter, and now parachuting down. I can only surmise that a UFO will beam down her next macho love interest.) 

Gabriel finally confesses to Luis Mario that he is probably the real father of Eva's son. Luis Mario insists on a paternity test but Eva screeches that she won't have it and that Gabriel is lying. Valeria, some girl I've never seen on the show before, suggests to Eva to pretend to have a nervous breakdown to distract Luis Mario from going after the test.

Rosaura's savior, Silvano, is the owner of a modeling agency. Ah, I can see where this is going. He invites Rosaura to a party he's throwing for one of his models. Maribella is Silvano's ex-wife as well as his model but they seem to have had an amicable split. Luis Mario and Maribella make out at the party while Rosaura once again swears vengeance against him. 

Eva is out on a balcony with the baby, acting all crazy like she's about to toss the little tyke over the side. (I'm actually quite nervous about this scene as I don't know if Venezuelan TV will go that dark or not.) Thankfully the baby is retrieved from her and a psychiatrist is called in. Luis Mario is smart enough to wonder if this whole crazy act is just that - an act. 

Patricio offers to give back the spa and the mansion to Grandma Cruz if Rosaura will give herself to him.

Wildcat 11 - 15

Rosaura finally tells Grandma Cruz the truth about who she is so Grandma won't sell the spa to Patricio. Luis Mario wakes up naked in Eva's bed with her claiming they had wild and unprotected sex. She's hoping Gabriel's little swimmers were powerful enough to get her knocked up so she can claim the child is Luis Mario's. Diego, the fake psychiatrist who helped Camelia fake her amnesia, has come to town and is demanding money to keep his mouth shut. He and Camelia fight over a gun with Camelia being shot and her life now hanging by a thread. Luis Mario's youngest sister, Jimena, has run off with Rosaura's ne'er-do-well brother Ivan. Luis Mario is able to track the couple down and force his underage sister back to the house where she discloses she's pregnant. Ivan needs money to get Jimena back so he's easily talked into pulling a robbery on the spa. Eva's father, Rafael, joins the spa and keeps flirting with Rosaura. Seeing how this is driving Eva crazy, Rosaura encourages the flirtation.

(I'm going to digress here for a moment because this reminds me of a real life telenovela moment from the past. A friend of mine who was married at the time was having an affair with this loser. As soon as she got a divorce from her husband, the loser started two-timing on her by seeing the mother of one of his children. (He had numerous children by numerous women and paid for none of them. Thus a loser.) To get back at the other woman, my friend then started to date the woman's aged father. Things went sour fast until one night the old man tossed my friend out of his house with only the clothes on her and her kid's back. So let this be a lesson to you, kids. If your life starts to resemble a telenovela, you need to back the hell up and get some kind of control over yourself. Now, back to the soap opera.)

At Rafael's birthday party, Eva announces to the guests that she and Luis Mario are to be married and are expecting a child. Through the miracle of modern medicine and editing, Camelia, who was barely alive last episode, is now healthy and living with Gabriel. She and Rosaura become allies. That thug-for-hire that's always doing the dirty work in this show has now been hired by Camelia to destroy the crops so that the Arismendi's are once again facing a financial crisis. Rosaura offers to loan Luis Mario money but insists the estate be put up for collateral. The planned robbery of the spa goes terribly wrong. As he's fleeing the scene of the crime, brother Ivan is run over (and I do mean over) by a Land Rover and he may never walk again. Sister Carina is being harassed by Julio, the inept hitman Patricio hired earlier. Julio corners Carina and attempts to rape her. She does put up quite a fight, I will give her that, and ends up killing the guy. Rosaura takes the blame to protect her sister and goes to jail for murder.

Don't get too stressed out by this storyline as almost immediately afterwards, at least by this editing, Carina can't take the guilt and confesses she is the real killer. Rosaura quickly puts her prison time behind her and gets back to forcing Luis Mario to accept a loan from her. Surprisingly it is Patricio who tries to stop his brother-in-law from signing the papers, pointing out that it was more than likely Rosaura who was behind the destroyed crops. They need the money, though, so Luis Mario reluctantly signs the legal papers.

Luis Mario's divorce from Camelia is finalized so he faces getting married to Eva. They're having a small ceremony at the estate when Rosaura bursts in. She interrupts the proceedings by telling Luis Mario that is was Eva who caused the accident that made her miscarry their child. Still believing the baby Eva is carrying is his, Luis Mario chooses to go through with the wedding.

Somewhere along the way (must be on the cutting room floor) Patricio and Camelia have started hanging out again. What happened to his revenge on her? Was that also edited out?

Time skip six months. The due date of the loan. Luis Mario is unable to pay her back so Rosaura is now the owner of the Arismendi estate. In triumph Rosaura goes to the big house and offers Eduarda a deal: she'll give it all back if Eduarda gets down on her knees and begs. Eduarda gives a half-hearted attempt at begging. Rosaura simply laughs and refuses to honor the bargain. She's keeping the house and they all have to go. For the final icing on the cake, Rosaura delights in telling Eduarda how her husband has a lover. Eduarda admits she's known for six months that Patricio has been cheating on her. Ah, but Rosaura can put a name to the other woman: Camelia.

Rosaura has a private meeting with Luis Mario where she backtracks on everything. She's not going to throw the Arismendi's out on the street and she's going to give him two years to pay back the loan. So all this was just to get Eduarda down on her knees?

Eduarda demands a divorce from her cheating husband. Patricio is like, "Fine, I was thinking of divorcing you anyway (slap slap)." But when Luis Mario returns with the good news that the estate is still in the family, Patricio thinks perhaps he was a little too premature with those slaps.

We whiz through Carina's trial (thank goodness) where she's found innocent. She's not out of trouble for long, though. Patricio (newly divorced) plants some evidence in Carina's purse and frames her for stealing from his office. He'll drop the charges against Carina only if Rosaura agrees to marry him.

(In another sacrifice to the Editing God, somewhere along the way Jimena has lost Ivan's baby.)

Rosaura reluctantly flies to Las Vegas so she and Patricio can have a quickie wedding. (If the producers wanted to make this look a little more authentic they should have had someone dress up as Elvis to marry the couple.) Patricio moves himself and his lover, Camelia, into Grandma Cruz's mansion. 

A new character is introduced, Mercedez Salazar. She's an older woman who will be the tutor to Rosaura's annoying little sister. Mercedez's has a young niece, Adrianita, who can barely keep her shirt on. Mercedez infodumps to her niece about how her first born son was taken away from her and her second son she abandoned on the beach. You sound like a peach, Mercedez.

Patricio forces Grandma Cruz to sign over the spa and the mansion to him. Mercedez continues her hunt for the son she abandoned. She claims she only wants to know if he's alive and well. Cue dramatic music: Mercedez is told her son is now called Luis Mario Arismendi. Mercedez has no plans to spring the truth on Luis Mario but her sister Marcela has other ideas.

While Rosaura and Luis Mario are off making sweet love in the outdoors (look out for that cactus!), Eva is going into labor. Somewhere between trying to have her killed and forcing her to marry him, Patricio is shocked to realize he's fallen in love with Rosaura and swears she will be his. Rosaura learns that romp in the hay with Luis Mario has gotten her pregnant. Camelia overhears this news and runs straight to Eva.

Scandal Episode 16

After a moment of leaning on Myeong Geun for support, in more ways than one, Hwa Young gets a hold of herself and decides to get some fresh air. Myeong Geun at least sees her to the door. Joo Ha catches sight of the couple and wonders to herself how Mom #2 knows Dad #1. Real Eun Joong also sees his not-father and wonders why Dad #1 is here. Jeez, everybody comes to this hotel. It's so fancy it even has vases in the elevators. Poor people like me aren't used to that.

 

Anyway, Myeong Geun goes back up to meet with Joo Pil and shows the ex-reporter the notebook with the bribery list written in it. Joo Pil isn't satisfied and demands the USB. Myeong Geun cagily doesn't say he doesn't have it, just that he doesn't trust Joo Pil with it, which is also the truth. He asks Joo Pil for a little more time so he can tell Real Eun Joong the truth about not being his son. Until then, Myeong Geun warns no harm should come to Eun Joong or Ah Mi. As Myeong Geun leaves the room he's surprised to find Real Eun Joong outside. I don't know why he's surprised. The door is made of glass. He should have clearly seen Eun Joong standing on the other side.

 

Jang Tae Ha is beginning to suspect that his wife is meeting another man at the hospital. (Which is actually kind of smart. No one would suspect lovers hooking up in a hospital waiting room. Or even better the pharmacy. Remember this, kids, next time you're stepping out on your Significant Other.) Tae Ha orders Kang Ho to be extra vigilant at the hospital.

 

It's an awkward drive back home to the Ha House. Real Eun Joong proclaims he'll sleep in the car. He asks if the grave next to Mom's is Myeong Geun's real son. Oh, so he heard part of the conversation through the glass door. So now he knows Dad #1 isn't biologically his dad, but he doesn't know yet about the whole kidnapping story.

 

Myeong Geun is sitting dejected on the front steps when Woo Ah Mi and Fake Eun Joong come home. Fake asks Ah Mi to allow him to have a word alone with the old man. Ah Mi is just barely inside the gate when Fake starts shouting about how he knows Myeong Geun is the kidnapper and that Real Eun Joong is the real Eun Joong so what is the old man going to do? And Ah Mi (and probably half the neighborhood) is hearing all this.

 

It's an awkward morning at the Ha House. Myeong Geun has been up all night. Ah Mi doesn't know what to say or do about what she knows. Soo Young simply continues to be annoying and wondering where her not-brother is. At least Real Eun Joong has been at the office checking out the contents on the USB that cost Gi Chan his life. And now the Prodigal Son has returned.

 

Over at the Jang House Joo Ha is still trying to break up her engagement by insisting on dating Real Eun Joong. Fake Eun Joong blows a gasket and yells at her he told her to stop seeing that guy so she'd better stop and I mean now! Tae Ha thinks its just the pressure of the case getting to his not-son. Oh, look who has returned to the fold - it's Hwa Young moving back in. Once she's able to get a word in edgewise, Hwa Young lets Tae Ha know she's still going to handle the case against him. It's for his own good.

 

Myeong Geun doesn't know where to start with this hard talk but that's okay as Real Eun Joong is the one who does all the talking. He confesses that he's known since high school that he wasn't really Myeong Geun's son. Still thinking he's simply been adopted, Real Eun Joon assures Dad #1 that he's not going to look for his birth parents and wants to continue being Myeong Geun's son and Soo Young's older brother. Myeong Geun is overcome with emotion and doesn't tell the full story.

 

Joo Ran shows her daughter the picture on her cell phone of Hwa Young and Myeong Geun, asking if the two are having an affair. Joo Ha instead realizes Myeong Geun must be the whistle blower her father is so anxious to find.

 

Fake Eun Joong is back to begging Hwa Young to stop looking for her real son. She correctly assumes this means Fake must have found the real son although Fake lies and says he hasn't. Fake quickly calls the Dick Detective to tell him that if Hwa Young calls to ask (and she does) to lie and say the search is still on.

 

Real Eun Joong is at his office checking out video of all the vehicles that were near the construction site at the time of Gi Chan's death when he receives a surprise visit from Fake Eun Joong. Naturally they can't stay in the office and talk. I figure this means another trip up to the roof (it's a Kdrama after all) but no, they simply go outside.

 

Fake first hints that Real doesn't know his father (Myeong Geun) as well as he thinks he does, then Fake asks the odd question of does Real still draw emperor penguins. Real is like, "Penguins? What the hell are you talking about?" So therefore Fake changes the subject and warns Real to not allow Myeong Geun to meet Tae Ha as that will put Dad #1 in danger since he's the whistle blower.

 

Speaking of Myeong Geun, the doctor confirms he's got terminal cancer and has about three months to live. Out at the pharmacy Myeong Geun figures why bother to get his prescription filled since he's dying so he stuffs the paper in the trash basket. This is the time when Hwa Young happens to see him but he doesn't see her. She pulls the paper out of the basket and wonders why he didn't get his medicine filled. Being a Nosey Nellie, Hwa Young easily convinces a nurse to tell her all about Myeong Geun's terminal diagnosis.

 

Myeong Geun is sitting outside on a bench, his shoulders bent in weariness, which is where Hwa Young finds him. She doesn't alert him to her presence as she only wants to look at him with concern.

 

At the same time Real Eun Joong has made a breakthrough with all the videos. He's spotted a car with a license plate that is registered to Yoon Hwa Young. He calls her cell phone. The ringing is what causes Myeong Geun to look up and see her standing nearby. She hurriedly answers the phone and gets that wide-eyed look to hear the caller identify himself as Detective Ha Eun Joong. She keeps asking, "You're name is Eun Joong?" He tells her he's calling about a case she may have a connection to and he needs to meet her.

Three Kingdoms Episode 46

We're back to the touchy alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan. (Or rather Zhou Yu and his insane obsession with Zhuge Liang.) The Southland party all figure Liu Bei is preparing to attack Nanjun which is the key to the entire Jing province. Zhou Yu wants Baby Bouncer to attack. There's no way Liu Bei will win as he doesn't have enough men or materiel. What he will do, however, is soften up Nanjun's defenses, allowing Zhou Yu to sweep in and seize the day.

 

Zhou Yu orders a generous supply of grain to be sent to Liu Bei's camp. They are indeed preparing for an attack on Nanjun. Zhang Fei has his shirt off to show off his shoulders as he works with the other men on ladders. Zhao Yun is there but once again he only has one line and that is to tell Liu Bei and Zhuge Liang about the grain being delivered. Baby bouncer is immediately suspicious and orders all their preparations to be hidden so he can be like, "What attack? We're not getting ready to attack anything except some peaches ready to be harvested."

Just then one of those anonymous soldiers runs up shouting, "Report!" He tells Liu Bei about Liu Qi being ill and thinking about going back home. Zhou Yu's man returns to tell the general that if Liu Qi and his forces are there with Liu Bei this could change everything. Zhou Yu decides to go see for himself and makes a formal visit to the Baby Bouncer.

Liu Bei has to put on a big production to welcome the visitors. Zhou Yu inquires as to why Liu Qi isn't here to meet him. Liu Bei explains the other man is very ill and is unable to leave his bed. Zhou Yu was ready for this and points out he's brought one of the foremost physicians with him; they'd better go check Liu Qi out and now.

Whaddya know, Liu Qi is there and he is quite ill. As they leave the young man to rest, Liu Bei, Zhuge Liang and Zhou Yu have a private dinner together. Of course the subject is going to touch upon Nanjun. Zhuge Liang, knowing how to push all of Zhou Yu's buttons, claims they had been thinking of attacking Nanjun no matter what the cost in order to create a buffer for the Southlands. Zhou Yu boasts that he will attack the city and take it in thirty days or his name is mud.

Of course this is all a trick. Liu Bei wants Zhou Yu to attack first and soften up the city's defenses so he can be the one to swoop in and take the day.

We now switch to outside the gates of Nanjun as 5,000 of the enemy are forming up. Cao Ren has one of his subordinates take out 500 of their men to meet the enemy. Alright, action time! I've missed these battle scenes. Ooh, somebody lost a foot. The subordinate may be fat but he's got some moves in him. While these 500 men are eventually wiped out, Cao Ren has the fever now to get out there and fight. He believes the enemy are exhausted and can be easily defeated. He orders up his entire force of men to go outside the gates and engage in battle.

This works the first time and Cao Ren is victorious as he returns to the city, the grounds around the walls littered with dead bodies of men and horses. However here comes Zhou Yu with reinforcements to lay siege. More battle scenes. I believe these are re-runs but I'll take them. Launch those fire balls!

Cao Ren reluctantly orders his forces to abandon the city once night falls. Zhou Yu orders his men to capture Cao Ren alive.

Scandal Episode 15

(I'm not going to bother with Joo Ran and Joo Pil as they're just a pair of drunken idiots. Although at this point I do ship them.)

 

Fake Eun Joong, his cell phone secretly recording, asks Myeong Geun if he really is Real Eun Joong's father and for Dad #1 not to use Cheonha Law Firm for the case against Taeha Construction. Myeong Geun doesn't say much so I'm not sure if Fake Eun Joong got enough sample for a voice test. As Fake is leaving he runs into Ah Mi and invites her out for a walk. (At last I get my answer about what ever happened to the lawsuit Ah Mi was bringing against Real Eun Joong over the food cart.) They run into Real Eun Joong and as Ah Mi rambles on and on and on the two men engage in a staring contest. Fake tells Real not to be dating Joo Ha. Real tells Fake neener neener I'll do what I want.

 

Those two drunk buffoons end up in a hotel room and sleep together, and I mean that literally. They both pass out on the bed.

 

The next morning Real Eun Joong gives his family their own little mace canisters and gives them basic self defense lessons, which makes sense after his own attack. Something tells me this will come in handy later on.

 

Entirely too much time is spent with the drunk fools.

 

Real Eun Joong offers to go pick up Ah Mi's husband's bike from the apartment (it was down in the garage and safe from the fire). She's thinking of selling it. Eun Joong reports how he's going to start up the investigation again and that the only reason he's dating Joo Ha is so he can get closer to Tae Ha.

 

Tae Ha has sent Kang Ho to be Hwa Young's personal minion/spy. Ah Mi mails off several copies of her findings on the unsafe building conditions. The subs aren't too clear but I think she's mailing them to higher ups, including (maybe) the Blue House. As Tae Ha has a photo op with some underprivileged kids, Minister Jo gossips with Joo Pil that he's already figured out Tae Ha is hoping Fake Eun Joong will be president one day. Fake Eun Joong is at a sound lab having the audio tape and the cell phone recording tested.

 

Myeong Geun has a notebook with the bribery list written on it. (So why hasn't he used it before?) He calls Joo Pil and asks for a meeting. Joo Pil was just on the verge of unveiling the paternity test to Tae Ha but after the phone call from Dad #1 he decides to hold off on that bombshell. What Joo Pil does do is offer to arrange for Tae Ha to meet with Myeong Geun.

 

And now it's that time in the show for a musical interlude.

 

Well, I wasn't expecting this. Real Eun Joong tells Joo Ha he knows she's the one who ordered the attack against him to get the cuff link back. He doesn't think she meant for him to be so seriously injured, though. He even offers to continue the boyfriend ruse so Joo Ha can get rid of Jo Jin Woong.

 

Ah Mi has been looking for work so Hwa Young offers to hire the girl as a secretary at the law firm. Fake Eun Joong gets confirmation from the lab that Myeong Geun is the guy on the tape from 1988.

 

Tae Ha follows Hwa Young to the hospital. She's so hoping to run into Myeong Geun but instead gets this guy. At least Tae Ha breaks down and apologizes for his freak out from the other night. Hmm, we get a quick look at Myeong Geun having a MRI or CAT scan (it's a big machine but I can't tell the difference). Anyway, Tae Ha takes his wife out for a romantic dinner where he asks for a fresh start. Hwa Young says she won't give up the lawsuit against the company. Tae Ha responds with he'll simply have Fake Eun Joong handle their defense, thus pitting not-mother and not-son against each other in court.

 

Eye Candy Time. Better late than never. Real Eun Joong and Joo Ha are at the gym working out. He suggests Joo Ha introduce him to her mother so he can help speed up this breakup. Since she has two mothers, Joo Ha chooses Hwa Young as the one to meet.

 

Ah Mi comes home to find Fake Eun Joong sitting on the steps. He's wanting to meet with his counterpart but fears he doesn't have the courage yet. He asks Ah Mi to grab a beer with him. Ah Mi talks about her dead baby making Fake Eun Joong think about his own situation. He starts blubbering right there in front of her.

 

Myeong Geun is arriving at the hotel where he's supposed to meet Joo Pil. When he gets on the elevator it is to find Hwa Young, in a sort of daze, already on it. She starts to cry and falls to her knees. You can see Myeong Geun is just itching to reach out and touch her but he restrains himself. Hwa Young tries to stand back up and ends up falling into Myeong Geun's arms. You know how that happens. She asks for him to allow her just a moment to cry on his shoulder.

 

Joo Ha and Real Eun Joong are also at the hotel waiting for an elevator. Conveniently he remembers he left his wallet in the car and goes back to get it. In the back seat is Gi Chan's bicycle that Eun Joong has been carrying around. He notices something has fallen off the handlebar and when he goes to replace it Eun Joong pulls out the USB that had been hidden.

 

Finally.

Wild Cat 6 - 10

Rosaura/Gabriela's Aunt Claudia, who doesn't know she is her aunt, takes it upon herself to teach the new maid how to be a lady. Sort of a Pygmalion thing. Eva knows Camelia is faking her amnesia but decides to keep the secret for now until the time is right. Luis Mario confesses to Camelia how he has suddenly discovered he's in love with Rosaura. Camelia and Eva join forces to destroy the "Wild Cat." Not that anyone knows where the Wild Cat is. Patricio is back in town and has sworn to avenge himself on Camelia. He resumes a secret love affair with Eduarda. While working out in the fields, Luis Mario is stung by a scorpion. He's rushed to the hospital where he's at death's door.

At the same time Rosaura's annoying little sister collapses with an appendicitis and is rushed to the same hospital. Rosaura has a tense run-in with Eduarda and Eva in the hallway which is how she learns her (ex?) husband is ill. (If Eva is so rich, why does she continually dress in cheap fashions from the Eighties?) Patricio returns to his job at the spa owned by Grandma Cruz and plots to bilk the old woman out of her fortune. Rosaura makes a visit to her perhaps/perhaps not husband. Luis Mario blubbers like a baby and confesses his love for Rosaura and looks like there's going to be a reconciliation. This calls for the three villainesses to come barging in and force the lovers apart.

The three witches hire a thug to grope Rosaura while another man takes pictures so it will look like our heroine was a willing participant. The always gullible Luis Mario now thinks the worst of Rosaura after seeing the photos and not hearing her side of the story. Rosaura learns that it was Eva and Eduarda who were behind her horse-riding accident that led to her miscarriage. Claudia finds evidence that Gabriela is her real niece while the other Rosaura is a fake. She decides to keep her discovery to herself for the moment.

Luis Mario takes Camelia out for the evening to an art gallery. Claudia also attends with her secret niece, Rosaura, who has been given a make-over (albeit she's wearing a hideous dress). The other women fume with jealousy as Luis Mario drools over his (former? never was? spare?) wife. Rosaura rejects him.

Luis Mario asks Camelia for a divorce. Patricio calls Camelia to let her know he's back in town and out for vengeance. Rosaura learns Grandma Cruz really is her Grandma Cruz and that her evil step sister has been assuming her identity. Eva makes an anonymous call to Luis Mario to tell him Camelia has been faking her amnesia. Oh no, Grandma Cruz is down! While the family matriarch stays home to recover, Claudia sends Rosaura to work at the spa and sniff out what Patricio is up to.

You're not going to believe this. Well no, this is a telenovela so you probably will believe this. Rosaura is strolling along the poolside at the spa when her attention is caught by a low-hovering helicopter. It's a thwarted kidnapping attempt. A young man beats off his kidnappers, leaps out of the helicopter into the pool below, and surfaces to immediately start flirting with Rosaura. This is Max, cousin of the evil Eva and now competition for Luis Mario.

Evil step mother and her daughter, Fake Rosaura, have finally returned from Disneyworld. Real Rosaura delights in confronting the two imposters. She throws evil step mother out but decides to allow step sister Carina to stay (which you know she's gonna regret).

Now that the Arismendi estate is making a comeback, Patricio pops the question to Eduarda. Camelia can say nothing without exposing her own bigamy. Luis Mario decides to fight fire with fire and starts hanging out at the spa pool with Eva and her gravity-defying breasts. Rosaura, trying to deny she's jealous, slaps Luis Mario. He grabs her in that manly man way and they succumb to their fiery Latin passions right there in front of Eva and everybody.

Luis Mario hears about Rosaura's time in the pen and tries to find out the truth behind story. Eduarda and her new husband Patricio plan to work together to destroy Rosaura. Somehow slutty step sister Carina is working at the spa now and also knows Max (must have been edited out) as they're stepping out together. Patricio puts a hit out on Rosaura but the hitman is an amateur.

Rejected by Rosaura, Luis Mario goes out and gets drunk. He makes his way to Eva's house where she's all set to take advantage of him only to have Luis Mario pass out stone cold. Eva runs right out to seduce Gabriel in hopes of getting pregnant and passing the child off as Luis Mario's.

Wild Cat 2 - 5

I have a guilty pleasure confession to make: I'm still watching this train wreck. I don't know why. It's like junk food. I know it's bad for me and it doesn't really taste very good, yet I keep on snacking. At least I've finally learned that the show is supposedly set in Florida, USA. Everyone just happens to have Venezuelan accents.

 

Against his evil sister Eduarda's wishes, Luis Mario (who is kind of an ass, let's be honest) marries poor girl Rosaura. He doesn't love his new wife as he's still longing for his dead wife, Camelia. Only she's not dead and has been running around with her new husband, Patricio. Therefore Luis Mario and Camelia are both bigamists. Camelia and her new hubby have lost almost all their money and things are going sour between them.

 

When Eva lays a big wet one on Luis Mario (which he does nothing to fight back against), Rosaura loses control and launches into a hair-pulling cat fight. Eduarda tries to convince Luis Mario that Rosaura is lovers with her friend Bruno. Bruno is in love with Rosaura but she sees him as only a friend. Rosarua's evil step mother has her evil daughter pose as Mrs. Cruz's long lost granddaughter. The gullible (and rich) old woman's other daughter, Claudia, remains suspicious of the evil interlopers. This doesn't stop evil step mother and her evil daughter from living it up at Disneyworld.

 

Eduarda and Eva plot to drive the newlyweds apart. At a swanky birthday party for Eduarda (where all the swanky women dress like cheap hookers) another female friend of Luis Mario's lays a big wet one on him. He again does nothing to fight back against it. Rosaura loses control again and launches into a hair-pulling, cake-throwing, pool-dunking cat fight with the woman. Luis Mario threatens to divorce Rosaura but she cries and cries and cries for another chance.

 

Luis Mario is unable to get a loan to save the family estate so he returns to New York to work at... say, what does he do? He's got an office and he wears a suit but I have no idea what he's doing. Anyway, he and Gabriel go back up to New York to earn money. Rosaura believes she is pregnant. Eduarda arranges it for Rosaura to be accused of theft. While our heroine is in jail, Eva and Eduarda run over Rosaura's drunk dad and kill him. Bruno pays to get Rosaura out of jail. After her stint in the cooler and the death of her dad, Rosaura swears revenge against the Arismendi family.

 

Eduarda and Eva successfully cause Rosaura to fall from a horse and have a miscarriage. To put icing on the cake, Eduarda also has her sister-in-law's home trashed. Changing her name to Gabriela, her dead mother's name, Rosaura takes what is left of her family and flees. With the help of a priest, she's able to get a job as a maid at the home of the woman she doesn't know is her grandmother. 

 

Not wanting to be a pauper, Camelia plots to leave Patricio and reunite with Luis Mario. She reappears in her first husband's life acting like she's had amnesia for the last couple of years. Luis Mario totally falls for this. One person who doesn't fall for this act is Eva.