May Queen Episode 17

You can watch May Queen over at Viki.

 

Chang Hee breaks up with Hae Joo. Frankly, she takes it way better than he does. He's just bawling his eyes out while she says not to worry about it. Sometimes I just want to shake Saint Hae Joo.

 

When she returns to the office, Il Mun starts asking her questions about her past, like why her family came to Ulsan in the first place all those years ago. What - or who - is Hae Joo after? Kang San, who never knocks, comes into Il Mun's office and takes her away, announcing to the production team that she'll be working exclusively for him from now on. Singling her out like this isn't helping Hae Joo's relationship with her co-workers and she takes Kang San up to the roof to tell him just that (because DramaKoreans love to talk on top of a roof.)

 

Jang Do Hyun drops in on Yoon Jeong Woo. He reminds the prosecutor they have ties from way back, so how about leaving him alone? Jeong Woo refuses to give up, saying he's got the goods on Il Mun.

 

Speaking of which, Il Moody returns home early. Geum Hee comes out to ask if he's not feeling well. He cuts her off, accusing Geum Hee of plotting to get rid of him and In Hwa and taking the company for herself, or to give to someone else. (Don't tell me he thinks Geum Hee has been hiding Hae Joo all these years and is planning to give Cheonji over to her?!)

 

Bong Hee overhears Il Mun speaking disrespectfully to his "mother" and she beats the crap out of him. It's quite enjoyable. Geum Hee falls to the floor crying. (She does that alot, even though there are chairs nearby. We're having great fun with that over at Viki.)

 

Hae Joo returns home where her family greets her with party hats and a birthday cake. That's right: Chang Hee broke up with her on her birthday. Class act all the way.

 

Chang Hee is out at a restaurant trying to get drunk. He overhears a guy at the next table breaking up with his uneducated girlfriend. Chang Hee ends up beating the stranger up and getting arrested. (There are a lot of beatings in this episode and it's not even the halfway mark yet. I suspect there will be more.)

 

Kang San learns from Sang Tae that it's Hae Joo's birthday. The next day he comes over with loads of beef for her and her family. (Is beef really that hard to get in Korea?) Dal Soon tries a wrangle a job for her son out of Kang San.

 

Do Hyun orders Chang Hee to do something to stop Prosecutor Yoon from going after Il Mun. Bong Hee tries to give Jeong Woo some files on the situation but he gives them back, warning her to stay out of this so he won't end up hurting her. She smacks him around a bit. (This is the most violent episode of the series so far! There seems to be a beating every ten minutes.)

 

Il Mun meets with Young Joo again. He offers her an expensive watch and asks when Hae Joo was adopted into the family. Young Joo surprisingly refuses the watch and stomps on Il Mun's foot. More violence!

 

Do Hyun finds his wife downstairs drowning her sorrows. He demands to know what the problem is. During her tearful soliloquy we learn a little bit more about their past relationship. If I'm understanding this right, Do Hyun and Geum Hee were together years before but he cheated on her with Il Mun's mother. (So was Yoon Hak Soo a rebound relationship? More importantly, is there a chance that maybe, just maybe, Do Hyun is Hae Joo's biological father? I've learned you can't count out anything in a kdrama.)

 

Only now, as he sees how miserable Chang Hee is, does Gi Cheol change his tune. He begs his son to run off with Hae Joo and escape the evil clutches of Do Hyun.

 

Kang San asks Do Hyun if the elder ever knew his father, Kang Woon. Do Hyun says he believes the man became a Japanese citizen since his family didn't approve of his marriage.

 

Sang Tae heads down to the shipyard in his all white suit. He looks like a Korean Mr. Roarke. Smiles, everyone. Smiles. He's given over to Grandpa Dae Pyung. More violence ensues as Grandpa kicks and smacks Sang Tae a bit, ordering the young man to get into a welder's outfit and get to work.

 

Chang Hee is transferring some files from his laptop to a USB stick as dramatic music plays. Unfortunately I have no idea what the files are because I don't read Korean. Gi Cheol packs him a suitcase and advises Chang Hee to disappear somewhere like Seoul. He should never call or write back as this may give his location away to Do Hyun.

 

Kang San has showed up at Hae Joo's place to whisk her away when Chang Hee drives up and does the whisking instead.

 

Do Hyun returns home intent on finding Chang Hee only to learn the kid has flown the coop. He demands a cringing Gi Cheol tell him where Chang Hee went. Somehow Gi Cheol finds enough backbone to stand up to his boss, threatening to reveal everything to the world if Do Hyun doesn't leave Chang Hee alone. When Do Hyun doesn't take him seriously, Gi Cheol snaps. The two old men wrestle, with Gi Cheol screaming like a banshee. Alas, Do Hyun's goons come to his rescue and he pummels a bleeding Gi Cheol. Again he demands to know where Chang Hee is. Gi Cheol will only say his son is probably on a plane by now.

 

Um, no he isn't. He's just now showing up at the airport with a confused Hae Joo in tow. She demands to know what's gotten into him. He asks that she just trust him on this and go with him abroad. In the middle of their argument Chang Hee's cell phone rings. It comes up a call from his father, yet when he answers it, it's Do Hyun on the line. He warns Chang Hee that he sent a message to Hae Joo and how the young man should reconsider his next move. Hae Joo's phone alerts her to an incoming message. When she opens it, it's a picture of the bloody license plate.

The Great Seer Episode 2

You can watch The Great Seer at DramaFever.

 

I'm not really sure why I'm watching the second episode, but here I am.

 

The episode opens with a rather nifty action sequence as Lee Sung Gye and his men have fun storming the castle. (I thought the Wooly Boolies had wild hats. Then I saw the headgear of the lead man of the Moodi's.) Since the -- say, who are these people again? Anyway, since the Not-Moodi's win, Sung Gye keeps his promise and lets Dong Yoon and Young Ji go. He also releases the villagers they had captured earlier but Dong Yoon doesn't find his younger brother amongst them.

 

In the morning as our pair are preparing to leave, Lee In Im and his men show up and try to take them. Sung Gye and his men interfere, allowing Dong Yoon and Young Ji time enough to escape. That night Dong Yoon, knowing she'll never be safe as long as she's with him, urges Young Ji to return home. She agrees to on the condition they have one hot and heavy night together.

 

The next day In Im finds their camp. There's Young Ji but Dong Yoon doesn't appear to be around. The princess tells him Dong Yoon gave her a map to the legendary Ja Mi Won and she's willing to return with In Im back to the palace. As they're all riding away, In Im tells his right hand man to go back and kill Dong Yoon.

 

Being chased by the bad guys, Dong Yoon is scrambling down some rocks to the river when Right Hand Man shoots him in the back with an arrow. Dong Yoon struggles on and the river current carries him away from the baddies. He washes up farther down the river where he's found by two men. Luckily Hyo Myung (played by Lee Young Bum) is a doctor and he recognizes Dong Yoon as the prophet who was sent to find Ja Mi Won. The other guy is a monk named Moo Hak, played by Ahn Kil Kang. (I think we're going to have a Great Queen Seondeok reunion here.)

 

Meanwhile, In Im and Young Ji stop somewhere to rest for the night. He drugs the princess in order to steal the map off of her person. He remembers his orders to kill Young Ji but he just can't bring himself to do it. They continue traveling on and are met on the road by an eager King Kongmin. Turns out Young Ji knew In Im stole the map from her, yet she tells the king she had given it to In Im since it was so valuable.

 

Now that he believes he has the key to Ja Mi Won, King Kongmin declares Goryeo's independence from the Chinese empire. Sourpuss Lee Ga No is kicked out of the court. Everything Chinese is to be banned. Ah, but the head shamaness has another vision and knows the map is a fake. She tells this to the high priestess (the one who's secretly having sexy times with In Im on the side and working with Lee Ga No) yet she doesn't want to tell the king because she doesn't want to stop the momentum of the revolution. The high priestess wants to tell the king and she kills the shamaness. She also reveals she's pregnant with In Im's child. Now if only I knew what her character's name was. Is it Soo Ryun Gae? I dunno.

 

Lee In Im confronts the princess about the map being a fake. She bargains with him that if he won't reveal the fraud then she'll marry him and he'll be part of the royal family. However, Young Ji reveals she's pregnant with Dong Yoon's child, so In Im will just have to get over it.

 

He doesn't get over it. In Im goes to talk it over with his pregnant mistress. She reminds him that not all babies live, so there's no reason that this baby will live.

 

The wedding day arrives and Young Ji is going to go through with it. She and In Im are having tea and he slips a drug into her drink to cause her to lose the baby. Before Young Ji drinks it, Pregnant Priestess barges in and stops her just in time. The princess is indebted to the priestess - a debt I'm sure will be called up sometime in the future. In Im, meanwhile, is upset that Young Ji is not upset about him having a pregnant mistress. (Get a clue, In Im. Young Ji doesn't care about you.)

 

Amidst all the celebrators, Dong Yoon has come back and tries to get Young Ji to run away with him. She insists she has to stay and makes him leave before he's caught. In Im suspects Dong Yoon is around here somewhere and sends his men out to find and kill him. They don't succeed.

 

The wedding night doesn't go as In Im plans. He's all ready to jump her bones. She manages to fend him off for now, asking for him to wait until after the baby is born. In Im storms off in frustration. Young Ji isn't alone for more than a second when she's joined by Dong Yoon, who is just now learning he's going to be a father. In Im goes to spend the wedding night with Pregnant Priestess. She advises him to wait until the baby is born, for surely the father will come for his child and then In Im can kill two birds with one stone.

 

Time skip ahead several months. Both princess and priestess are in labor at the same time. Young Ji, however, is going to great pains to hide her pains. She fears that if its known she's in labor then Dong Yoon will return and her husband will kill him. Just after she gives birth, Young Ji has the baby spirited away. By the time In Im bursts into her quarters, Young Ji is calmly working on her embroidery, acting like nothing extraordinary has happened.

The Great Seer Episode 1

It's 1342, the third year of King Chunghye's rule. The head shamaness has had a vision that it's the dawning of the age of Aquarius or something like that. She announces it is time to find Ja Mi Won, a legendary sacred site. It is decided to send young Mok Dong Yoon alone on this quest.

No quest is ever easy. He goes down swift flowing rivers, up sheer cliff sides, through the Blair Witch forest to Mount Doom. Finally he reaches the hidden valley, and from the looks of the CGI creatures running around, someone appears to be playing Duel Monsters. Yet he keeps getting messages that the time is not right, everyone needs to wait another fifty years. So Dong Yoon turns around and returns home, refusing to reveal where Ja Mi Won is. The head shamaness ain't happy about it and has him tortured and blinded in one eye.

Jump ahead ten years to 1352. Brutal soldiers are beating up village men and rounding up the young village women to send them to the Chinese empire. This is overseen by Lee In Im (played by Jo Min Ki), who is disgusted to be serving such a weak king. Back at the palace, however, King Kongmin (played by Ryu Tae Joon) is throwing a swinging party, with acrobats a-flippin' and a-flappin' all over the place. The guest of honor, Chinese/Mongol ambassador Lee Ga No, is not entertained and ends up killing the lead dancer. (Perhaps he's in such a bad mood because of his awful haircut.)

Only the women have the balls to stand up and say anything. First, Queen No Gook threatens to kill Ga No. Her husband sends her back to her quarters. Then another princess, Young Ji (played for now by Lee Jin), stands up and chastises the foreigner. King Kongmin orders her taken away to be executed.

That was just a show for Lee Ga No. Young Ji has a private meeting with the head shamaness and the king. They know she used to be very close with Dong Yoon and urge her to convince him to reveal where Ja Mi Won is.

Dong Yoon has been imprisoned all these years, honing his skills and eating bugs. Young Ji promises him if he shows her the way to the sacred site, the king will release him and shower him with riches. Dong Yoon, Young Ji, and a group of soldiers ride out to that waterfall that appears in every Korean sageuk ever made. Dong Yoon makes his move and escapes his captors. The soldiers think he'll go one way, but Young Ji knows he'll be heading for the nearest river to make his escape. Alone she catches up to Dong Yoon and handcuffs herself to him.

When word reaches the palace of what happened, Kongmin orders Lee In Im to find the pair and follow them, but not to interfere with their quest. Once Ja Mi Won is found, the two should be allowed to go their own way. This is the king's orders. Yet later In Im is contacted by a head priestess (and woman he's been having some hot and spicy time with even though she knows he's in love with another woman) and Lee Ga No. The ambassador makes a better deal with In Im: let him know where the sacred site is and he'll introduce the Goryeo general to the Chinese emperor, a much more powerful man than the wimpy Kongmin. Oh, and while In Im is at it, Dong Yoon and the princess should both meet with an "accident" and never come back.

Our doomed pair are heading for where Dong Yoon's young brother, Dong Jin, lives. Yet when they get there all they find is a burned out village. The only living person they find is a scared little girl. She claims a "monster" came down from the mountain and took everyone away to eat them. Naturally, Dong Yoon and Young Ji (who are no longer chained together, I should mention) head towards the danger.

They go up into the mountain and straight into Eaters of the Dead territory. They're captured by a group of wild men who wear animal skulls for hats. They think the pair are spies for the "Moodi" and prepare to kill them. Young Ji speaks up and promises to help them find the base of their enemy, just don't kill them. Using basic sense (which these wild men seem to lack), Young Ji and Dong Yoon figure out where the best place would be to set up camp.

Sure enough, there are the Moodi. The head warrior (that we'll learn later is Lee Sung Gye, played by Ji Jin Hee) reckless steps out alone into the open and starts shooting off arrows at lightning speed. With the guards at the camp gate dead, the rest of the wild men emerge from the woods and begin to attack.

Kinda confusing. Who are these Clan of the Cave Bear people? Who are the Moodi? What's this got to do with anything? Still, the episode at least held my interest until the end.

May Queen Episode 16

Wow, we're already to the half-way mark in this series. Time sure does fly.

 

Now that Do Hyun has Chang Hee's attention, the two men return to the villain's office where Nameless Minion (wearing white gloves) awaits with The Box. He opens it to reveal the license plate, claiming Gi Cheol's fingerprints are on it. Chang Hee doesn't believe it, this is all a trick. Time for the next trump card. Nameless Minion pulls out a pocket recorder and plays the audio of Gi Cheol tearfully confessing that he killed Chun Hong Chul. (Would this be admissible as evidence? In DramaLand it is.)

 

Geum Hee takes Hae Joo out for a cup of coffee. Neither woman seems to notice Il Mun sitting right there at the very next table. (DramaKoreans have no peripheral vision.) He's listening in as Geum Hee explains how her daughter had a scar on her neck just like Hae Joo does, and for a while there she thought Hae Joo might be her daughter, but now she knows better as her girl's and Hae Joo's blood type are different. (I suspect sometime in a future episode Hae Joo will require a blood transfusion and they'll discover her blood type is wrong.)

 

When Hae Joo returns to work, In Hwa confronts her in the lobby with a big ol' slap. She accuses Hae Joo of stringing both Chang Hee and Kang San along. Hae Joo denies leading San on and agrees to try and talk some sense into him.

(Ya know, this reminds me of an old The Facts of Life episode. Bear with me. So Natalie is eager to try out for the lead of the school musical. Everyone thought Tootie would be a shoe-in for the part, but because of her friendship with Natalie, Tootie wasn't going to audition. However, at the last minute she's talked back into it and Tootie gets the part. Natalie is angry and hurt and accuses Tootie of stealing her part. Tootie points out that even if she hadn't tried out for the musical, there was no guarantee Natalie would have gotten the leading role. Same thing applies to In Hwa, Hae Joo, and Kang San. Now, back to our regularly scheduled Korean program.)

Chang Hee goes home to get the story straight from the horse's mouth. Too bad the horse is lying through his teeth. First Gi Cheol claims it was all an accident, he was just trying to avoid Hae Joo on the bicycle. Then he changes his story to make Hong Chul the bad guy, threatening to kill Chang Hee if Gi Cheol didn't get him some major money. Chang Hee doesn't believe any tale his father spins (he's probably too upset over his old man dropping his pants) but the end result is the same: he and Hae Joo can never be together.

Kang San gets a surprise visit from Geum Hee. She's there to try and talk him into at least giving In Hwa a chance. He politely refuses. As she's starting to leave, Geum Hee makes the comment of how different San is from his parents. He starts asking her all sorts of questions. She explains she knew them slightly, had a few meals with the couple. His father had been in Japan to study shipbuilding when he and his wife were killed in a car accident. She can't answer much more as they were more associates of Dr. Yoon Hak Soo. (Oddly, she doesn't identify Hak Soo has her husband but just someone she knew. Why the secret relationship? And yes, I also suspect bastard Do Hyun may have had something to do with San's parents deaths. He's involved in so many deaths, why not theirs?)

Young Joo is out shopping for clothes (and she needs some new clothes. I do not like her outfit) when she's approached by Il Mun. He takes her out to a fancy restaurant (with plastic chairs?), orders weird-looking pizza, and offers her a designer purse. Surprisingly she refuses it all, including his offer to date her (I thought she wanted to hook up with a rich guy?) and exits the restaurant. Il Mun follows after her and grabs her wrist, asking if Hae Joo is really her biological sister. Not following his train of thought, Young Joo starts crying out for help. A crowd gathers and Il Mun is forced to let her go without getting his answers.

Music video time as Chang Hee cries over his lost love.

The next day a somber Chang Hee breaks it to Jeong Woo that the case against Do Hyun has been dropped. He also delivers his letter of resignation. His next stop is Do Hyun's office. Chang Hee reveals he's resigned from the prosecutor's office and that he and his father will be moving out of the house. Do Hyun explains to him what the situation really is. Now Chang Hee must take his father's place at Do Hyun's side, to be the bastard's slave dog for the rest of his life. (Anyone else having a Return of the Jedi flashback? No? Okay.)

Il Mun invites Hae Joo in for a cup of coffee and asks if she was able to get Chang Hee to drop the charges against his father. What Il Mun is really after is the slobbers she leaves behind on her cup, because unlike anyone else in this drama, he wants to do a DNA test.

Kang San meets again with Jeong Woo to ask more about Yoon Hak Soo. Jeong Woo tells how his brother died under mysterious circumstances and how he used to think Jang Do Hyun was the culprit. But Geum Hee had testified that Do Hyun tried to save Hak Soo. (Quick cut showing Do Hyun in his office, retrieving the little plastic film capsule from Episode 1 from his safe. Really? Dude, it's been nearly thirty years. Time to get rid of the evidence.) San asks the prosecutor if he ever knew Kang Woon, San's father. Jeong Woo says he's heard the name before but never met the man.

Just as I expected. Now that Chang Hee has been enslaved by Do Hyun and has lost the only woman he loves, he's going to turn evil.

Seeing Chang Hee's car in the driveway, In Hwa goes into the little big house (girl, don't you know how to knock?) and finds a drunk Chang Hee sulking in his bed. She orders him to defy his father and run off and marry Hae Joo. You need money? I'll give you money. Chang Hee yells at her to leave him alone. She runs into Gi Cheol in the living room and tells him to allow his son to marry Hae Joo, and don't get any weird ideas that she will ever be his daughter-in-law. Gi Cheol makes faces.

Il Mun gets back the DNA test results. There's no doubt Geum Hee is Hae Joo's mother. The question is, what will he do with this knowledge.

Hae Joo, unable all this episode to get a hold of Chang Hee, learns from Jeong Woo about her boyfriend's resignation. She finally tracks her man down to the seaside and asks what's going on. This time it's Chang Hee's turn to do the "This is for your own good" breakup speech.

Revenge Season 2 Episode 2

Resurrection

 

While Daniel is going through company accounts, wondering why the numbers aren't adding up, he gets a call from Emily. She tells him what Charlotte had whispered in her ear was her fear of her doctor, so Emily says she did some research on him (which she really did do) and found out his shady and corrupted past. As Emily is talking to him on her cell phone, Brit Guy watches her from the dunes.

 

As Declan is messing around on the boat, he's approached by some new character called Trey Chandler, a guy who claims to know Declan from study hall. He asks after Charlotte and then invites Declan along for a boat party. Declan declines and as he's walking away we see the affable expression on Trey turn all serious.

 

Nolan is having a virtual board meeting with his staff over the company being audited. Another new character, Padma Lahari, is introduced. She's wanting him to hire a new C.F.O. Nolan doesn't even know who she is and logs off.

 

Amanda/Emily meets with Emily/Amanda, and I've got to figure out an easier way to tell these two apart. Fake Amanda admits she did have a one night stand along the way but truly believes the baby is Jack's.

 

Conrad is signing some papers. With the help of the crooked doctor, Conrad had Charlotte declared incompetent and he took over all her money and assets. Just then Ashley stops by to report on what Daniel is up to. I still have the suspicion that she's also doing the dad.

 

Daniel storms into the rehab clinic, threatens the crooked doctor with a lawsuit, and then goes to fetch his sister. Charlotte is happy to get out but since her father has already drained her bank account, and Daniel did nothing on the boat when she was dragged away, she doesn't trust him. Emily conveniently shows up to bring Charlotte some things and the young girl leaves with her.

 

Amanda ordered Nolan to keep watching Victoria on clam cam, but here comes that annoying new character, Padma, which he takes out to lunch. Surely she's not going to be his new love interest. I kind of think he has a thing for Jack, which would make a really interesting love triangle -er, quadrangle.

 

Charlotte wants Emily to take her to her mother. First, though, Emily tells her about Amanda being pregnant and arranges a meeting between the two. Charlotte seems thrilled she's going to be an aunt (pronounced ah-nt.) Meanwhile, White Haired Guy brings Victoria two fake passports - one for her and one for Charlotte. But since Charlotte's money is all gone and Victoria can't pay him yet, he decides to keep Vicky's fake passport. When Charlotte does show up at the cabin, she tells her mom she'd rather stay here for the baby.

 

Conrad is in the middle of an investors meeting and hey, there's Brit Guy. He's representing Mr. Takeda. Daniel storms in and demands to speak with his father, meeting be damned. The two men step out in the hallway (but not far enough that Brit Guy can't eavesdrop on their conversation) and argue over Charlotte's money. Conrad says it's too late to do anything, what's done is done, so Daniel needs to get over it. Daniel leaves in a huff. Before he can get back to the meeting, Conrad gets a call on his cell phone. It's Victoria.

 

She tells him where to find the secluded cabin where she's been hiding. Conrad hasn't come empty handed. He's brought a bag of stuff, like handcuffs. Victoria gives him permission to hit her, which he thoroughly enjoys.

 

Jack and Fake Amanda get the paternity test results back. Jack IS the father. [Insert Maury Povich voice.] He leaves the room and Fake Amanda calls Fake Emily, asking her if she had to fix the test or not. Emily tells her sorry, but yes she had to fudge the results. Yet later we learn that no, she didn't have to fix the test results. It really is Jack's baby. Don't get confused now.

 

White Haired Man returns to the cabin to find Victoria beaten and tied up. He realizes he's been set up just as the cops arrive. He escapes into the woods. Conrad is with the police acting all, "Victoria, darling!" as they spin the tale that Victoria had been abducted and held for ransom the entire time everyone thought she was dead. Victoria returns home, whispering to Charlotte this was the only way she could come out of hiding so don't tell anyone the truth. Daniel, that dupe, thinks this is why his father emptied Charlotte's bank account, to pay the ransom. Daniel, why so stupid? Good looking, but stupid.

 

Declan is emptying the garbage out back when once again he's approached by shady Trey. Trey asks Declan to do him a favor and hold on to a (cheap-looking, if you ask me) necklace he stole off his stepmother. If Declan will keep the necklace for a few days, Trey will pay him $500. With money tight, especially with the baby coming, Declan agrees.

 

White Haired Man calls Amanda. He knew the clam was a cam and that she would have the video to exonerate him. Amanda expects tit for tat. For the video, he must tell her what happened to her mother. We get a flashback of Mom in the mental ward being visited by Victoria and White Haired Man, who is introduced as Agent Gordon Murphy of the F.B.I. Victoria tells Mom (what was her name again? Kara?) about David Clarke being a murderer and a terrorist and that Kara's life is in danger unless she goes with "Agent Murphy".

 

Amanda asks if he killed her mother. White Haired Man reminds her he doesn't always do what he's told to do. Then he attacks, holding a knife at Amanda's throat. As she struggles against him a shot rings out. Whitey falls the floor. It's Brit Guy!

Three Kingdoms Episode 31

In the middle of the night, Liu Qi goes to warn Liu Bei about General Cai. He urges the imperial uncle to flee right now and head back to Xinye. Liu Bei, that twerp, claims it would be rude to leave in such a hurry without giving proper goodbyes to Liu Biao. (Liu Bei, sometimes I wish you would just get killed. This is no time for manners! Haul ass!)

 

By the time Cai Mao and his men surround the guest house, Liu Bei had finally wised up and made himself scarce. As Cai looks through the empty building he hits upon an idea. He writes a seditious poem on the wall, something about a dragon shouldn't be confined in a small pond. When Liu Biao comes to see what all the fuss is, Cai Mao shows the old man the poem and swears it was written by Liu Bei. Liu Biao isn't buying it. There's a telling moment when the old man orders the troops to return to camp but no one makes a move until Cai Mao says to return.

 

The old man is so angry he makes himself sick. Lady Cai plots to keep her husband alive yet sick enough, long enough, until she can gain complete control of the province.

 

Liu Bei made it back to Xinye. Liu Qi stops by with a request from his ailing father that the imperial uncle accompany the young man to a harvest festival at another town. Zhang Fei is totally against it but Liu Bei is back on the etiquette bandwagon, saying it would be rude to refuse Liu Biao's request.

 

As Liu Bei and Liu Qi are moving through a crowded marketplace, they're accosted by a strange man by the name of Xu Shu. This man warns Liu Bei to not ride his horse any more as the animal will bring his bad luck. Instead, he should give the horse to his enemy so the animal can harm them instead. Liu Bei seemed spooked by this strange fellow.

 

While everyone is wining and dining inside a building, outside Cai Mao and his men ride up and surround the place. Liu Qi again urges Liu Bei to discreetly slip away through a side door. Liu Bei hems and haws a bit, claiming he's been running away most of his life, he's tired of it, but at last Liu Qi manages to talk his elder into leaving. (Liu Bei sure has changed since he hit the big 5-0.)

 

Riding the bad luck horse he was warned not to ride, Liu Bei is chased by Cai Mao and his men. He finds himself trapped on the banks of a wide river, Cai Mao closing in. The horse jumps into the water, swims across the river and jumps up the impossibly high bank on the other side. Who said this horse was bad luck?

 

Tired, dirty, and alone, Liu Bei comes across the hovel of an old man known only as Water Mirror. Things get a little metaphysical as Water Mirror explains the river Liu Bei just crossed was the sight of a great battle many years ago. The river is filled with the souls of heroes and the unavenged, and that must be why Liu Bei and his hexed horse were able to make it across.

 

Over dinner, Liu Bei and Water Mirror discuss life, the universe and everything. Water Mirror tells Liu Bei that his brothers (the Musketeers) are great warriors, but he has no worthy advisers for civil matters. But don't worry, one day Liu Bei will meet the man of his dreams (Zhuge Liang).

 

Later that night the two men are joined by that strange man from earlier, Xu Shu. He explains the thing about the bad luck horse was a test to see how virtuous and compassionate Liu Bei is. Liu Bei begs the man to become his right hand advisor. Xu Shu at first claims he's not worthy of the position. Water Mirror convinces him to take it.

 

Back to Xinye, which appears to be an awfully dusty place. Xu Shu knows Cao Cao will need at least a year to rebuild and re-equip his army after battling with Yuan Shao. After that, the enemy is sure to come here to conquer Jing Province. As Xu Shu lays out his plans for action, Guan yu and Zhang Fei start to itch with jealousy. You gotta hand it to Xu Shu, though, that since he joined the rat pack, Liu Bei seems more energetic and decisive.

 

There's a quick shot of Cao Cao announcing his plans to attack Liu Bei, then the show ends abruptly mid-scene. (What am I going to do with you, Chinese TV? What am I going to do with you?) 

May Queen Episode 15

The gimp, Gi Cheol, is down on his knees begging his son not to go arrest Jang Do Hyun. However, Chang Hee is playing hardball and has a couple of his minions hold Dad back while the rest of them pile into a couple of black vans and drive off.

 

Chang Hee struts his stuff into Do Hyun's office and presents the search and seizure warrant. Here come the Men in Black (with blue boxes) and start packing everything up. (This happens so much in Kdramas I have to wonder if this is really how it is in Korea.)

 

Hae Joo arrives at the police station where slutty sister Young Joo has been busted for using the money she stole off Il Mun to buy designer clothes. Hae Joo begs Il Mun to let her sister off this one time. Il Mun refuses, delighting in sticking it to Hae Joo, when he receives a phone call informing him of his father's troubles and he leaves. Hae Joo calls around for help and the only man she can get to come to her rescue is Kang San.

 

Geum Hee attempts to have a woman-to-woman talk with In Hwa and explain how San is just not that into her, but In Hwa only believes what she wants to believe.

 

Do Hyun rips into Gi Cheol for not stopping Chang Hee. With an evil smile on his face, Do Hyun advises Gi Cheol to do something about his son or just think how awful it would be for Chang Hee to have to prosecute his own father for murder. Gi Cheol goes over to the prosecutor's office to try and see Chang Hee, but once again the Men in Black (without blue boxes) prevent him from getting in.

 

Kang San tries to get Il Mun to drop the charges against Young Joo. It's only after San drops large hints about letting the authorities know about the embezzlement and secret Indonesia project that Il Mun finally gives in.

 

After Bong Hee and Dal Soon verbally spare again (please don't ever become friends! I enjoy your fights so), it's time to get serious. Dal Soon asks some questions about Bong Hee's sister, Geum Hee. Specifically, who was the father of the baby she lost. Was it a guy who works on boats (Hong Chul)? Offended, Bong Hee abruptly leaves. Dal Soon at least concludes her late husband would never have a chance with such a lady as Geum Hee, so he must not be Hae Joo's birth father.

 

Young Joo is released from jail and there's a few minutes of hilarity as different people try to beat some sense into her. Hae Joo gets felt up by Kang San. Sang Tae loses his bowl of rice in the ruckus.

 

Bong Hee asks Geum Hee why she's been talking about her dead baby to Dal Soon of all people. Il Mun overhears. (Again I have to ask why keep this a secret from Il Mun and in Hwa? Why not tell the kids that Geum Hee was married before and lost a child?)

 

Hae Joo finally gets around to introducing Kang San to Jeong Woo. San starts asking about Yoon Hak Soo and his research and why was he murdered. Before he can answer, Jeong Woo is called away to the office. This is all surprising news to Hae Joo and she asks San what happened. San says it's still a mystery, that some stories claim Yoon was killed by gangsters, others it was the Japanese intelligence.

 

With enough evidence of tax evasion and stock manipulation, Chang Hee gleefully presents an arrest warrant for Do Hyun and slaps the cuffs on the old man. Do Hyun laughs evilly.

 

In Hwa is having a fashion show for her outdoor wear. She's asked Hae Joo to drag Kang San to the event. In Hwa pulls him aside and claims one of the male models didn't make it, can San fill in? Against his better judgment, Kang San walks down the runway with In Hwa. With all eyes on them, In Hwa grabs Kang San and lays a big ol' wet one on his mouth. Everyone hoots and hollers. San, afraid of what Hae Joo will think of this, barges off the stage in embarrassment. After the show he lowers the boom on her by letting In Hwa know he's in love with Hae Joo. He tells In Hwa to find a man who will love her as she deserves to be loved. (So true.) In Hwa tells him to stop loving a woman he'll never have. (Again, so true.)

 

Down at the station (or wherever they're at), Chang Hee faces off with Do Hyun. He's trying to get a confession out of the old man. Do Hyun pulls out his trump card - he has the evidence that Gi Cheol is the one who killed Chun Hong Chul. There's just enough time left in the show for one more evil chuckle from the bastard.