The Del Monte Sons Episode 1

It's that time again. Time to expand my horizons. (Of course it's also time for me to fold my laundry, but let's get priorities straight here.) This will be my first TV show from Chile and you can catch it over at DramaFever.

 

 

 

As peppy Latin music plays we are introduced to the Del Monte sons one by one.

 

Juan (played by Jorge Zabaleta and looking a lot like Luke Wilson)

Jose (played by Francisco Perez-Bannen)

Pedro (played by Cristian Arriagada)

Gaspar (played by Matias Oviedo)

Lucas (played by Andres Reyes)

 

They're all riding their horses back to the big house so they can get cleaned up for Juan's engagement ceremony. Elsewhere we see the bride, Juliet, and her family getting ready. Man, fashion sense in Chile is way different than 'round here. Juliet's sister, Consuelo, looks more like she's dressed to work the street corner than to go to a wedding. Thank goodness her father feels the same way and orders her to change.

 

(I'm not five minutes into the show and the music is already getting on my nerves.)

 

The bride and her family arrive to the poolside where all the guests are waiting. This must be an informal party as most of the guests have on jeans. Even the bride is wearing boots and jeans. Juliet's mother infodumps to the audience that the boys are all the adopted sons of the late Emilio del Monte who died in an accident. The rings are exchanged and more peppy music is played.

 

We switch to a private jet coming in for a landing. Wow, look at those mountains in the background. Onboard is Don Gustavo, a lawyer, here to read the will of the late Emilio. Along with him is Sofia Cananda (with hella cheekbones) and her daughter Paula (played by Maria Elena Swett). The trio crash the party and introduce Paula as the daughter of Emilio that he had with his mistress.

 

This is the first time the brothers ever learn they even had a sister and the camera zooms in on all their blank-but-supposedly-shocked faces. The group leaves the wedding party to watch a video left by their father. Dead Dad pleads with his sons, especially Juan, to accept Paula into the family and allow her to live in the house with them. The sons are not pleased.

 

Gustavo explains how Emilio divided up his wealth equally among his children, both biological and adopted. The portion of land that Paula inherits includes the large house. Once again the camera zooms in on all their blank-but-supposedly-shocked faces. Really wish the cameraman would stop doing that.

 

Mama Cheekbones insists Paula get the entire inheritance since she's the only blood related child of Emilio's, unlike the adopted boys. Paula feels the boys were very rude to her and so she also plans to take everything.

 

Juan, who appears to be the oldest son and therefore in charge, has a meeting with Paula where he offers to buy her out. More camera zooming. C'mon, Chile - you can do better than that. And stop that horrible porn music playing. Anyway, Paula is insulted he would offer her money and she starts to slap him. Juan grabs her wrist and the two exchanged heated looks when Juan's fiancée, Juliet, walks in and breaks things up.

 

Young and sensitive brother Lucas wants to welcome Paula into the family. Broody brother Pedro seems to have a thing for Juliet. Hot-headed brother Jose suspects Dad's accident wasn't just an accident and perhaps these women had something to do with it. Brother Gaspar blames Mama Cheekbones' existence for making his adoptive mother sicken and die.

 

Paula asks Juan to show her the land. Against his better judgment he takes her out for the horse ride around. They continue to exchange long looks while porn music plays.

 

Gaspar tries to spend some time with his girlfriend, Lupe, but her father does not approve of their relationship. And can someone please shut that barking dog up?

 

Jose is messing around with a married woman.

 

Gaspar warns Pedro not to be lusting after their brother's future wife. Someone should warn Gaspar not to be always standing in the background as next he notices the long stares and porn music between Juan and Paula. Get a life, Gaspar.

Scandal Episode 12

I know this is going to sound strange, but ever since all this bad stuff has happened to Woo Ah Mi and she's not half as annoying as she was in the beginning, I'm totally rooting for her. This girl needs revenge!

 

 

We backtrack a bit to when Hwa Young received the phone call from the most inept private dick ever. This time we see the conversation from his end. As he tells Hwa Young he found her son, nearby sits Fake Eun Joong who has told the private dick what to say.

 

As Real Eun Joong is leaving his house he can't stop thinking about the conversation he overheard between his not-father and Joo Pil. Specifically he keeps thinking of the comment of how Jang Tae Ha has killed before.

 

Soo Young continues to plummet in my regard. Even though Eun Joong tells her about Ah Mi losing her child, Soo Young doesn't act empathetic at all. Boo, Soo Young.

 

Hwa Young waits anxiously in the café for her visitor to appear. The door opens and... in walks Fake Eun Joong. She asks why he's doing this to her. Fake Eun Joong says he wants her to feel the kind of pain he's been feeling, knowing he's not her real son, she's never considered him her son, and not knowing who he really is. All valid points, I must say.

 

At a bar (with customers!) Real Eun Joong meets with Jang Joo Ha. She's heard about the fire at Gi Chan and Ah Mi's apartment and she's concerned. Real Eun Joong pulls out the little plastic evidence envelope with the cuff link and asks Joo Ha if she's ever seen it before. She starts to react before she catches herself but Eun Joong knows Joo Ha recognizes the cuff link as belonging to her father. Joo Ha tries to backtrack and say the cuff link looks similar to one she's seen before. Why does he ask? Real Eun Joong floors her when he explains the fire at the apartment wasn't an accident, it was arson, and this cuff link was found at the crime scene.

 

Hwa Young and Fake Eun Joong have a very painful but at least honest conversation about the situation. Fake Eun Joong says there's not enough room in the house for two Eun Joongs so either throw him away or stop looking for her real son.

 

Random white guy alert: as Joo Ha and Real Eun Joong are waiting for the elevator, out of it steps Jo Jin Woong and some foreigner who quickly leaves the scene and had no purpose whatsoever. Joo Ha tries to use her real half-brother to make Jin Woong jealous. Eww. Jin Woong tells Eun Joong he can still mess around with Joo Ha until the wedding in September, then it must stop. Eww. When Jin Woong simply walks away to join the random white guy in the bar, Joo Ha asks Real Eun Joong to mess around with her for a month in an effort to get Woong to end this engagement. EWWWW.

 

(Dangit, this Windows 8 keeps getting on my nerves.)

 

Anyway, Real Eun Joong tells her he doesn't have time for her petty love problems because he's too busy investigating a murder. But then he realizes he can use Joo Ha to get closer to Tae Ha so he changes his mind.

 

Back at home, Hwa Young packs up all her Real Eun Joong material and hands it over to Fake Eun Joong for him to continue the search. She agrees to settle for just knowing if her real son is alright, if he's happy and healthy, and won't try to claim him. Hwa Young asks about the security camera video and when Fake Eun Joong claims this is the first he's ever heard of it, she quickly figures out that Joo Ran must have gotten her sticky fingers on it. She tells Fake Eun Joong they have to get that tape back before Joo Ran shows it to Tae Ha.

 

The next morning as Tae Ha is getting dressed, Joo Ha stops by to talk with him. The dude's got a table full of cuff links and yes, Joo Ha takes a peek at them. Ah, it turns out those particular cuff links were a gift from her and Joo Ha asks where they are. Tae Ha is like, "Oh yeah, I gave those to Kang Ho. Because I trust him more than I will ever trust you, flesh of my flesh and bone of my bone." (So screw you, daughter, and screw your thoughtful gifts to me.)

 

Real Eun Joong borrows a suit (probably the first one he's ever worn) to go to a high-end men's shop. He pretends to be on an errand for Tae Ha to replace a lost cuff link. The shop owner recognizes the one cuff link Eun Joong has and corrects the cop in that it was Joo Ha who purchased the cuff links to give to her father.

 

To protect her father, Joo Ha warns Kang Ho about the cuff link being found at the fire so he'd better make up some story about losing both cuff links or else take sole responsibility for his actions. And here I thought Joo Ha was on the cusp of being a good girl. Ah Mi, you have officially become the only female character I like on this show. All the others can go to hell.

 

While Real Eun Joong is already at the police station trying to get fingerprints off the cuff link, he decides to start digging into his not-father's past and find out why Myeong Geun suddenly resigned from the force in 1988.

 

Ack, Gi Chan's bitch mother makes a return appearance. Where's the Truck of Doom when you need it?

 

Myeong Geun goes to see Hwa Young at her law office. He shows her the evidence he has of the unsafe conditions at her husband's building site. He hopes Hwa Young will somehow convince her husband to do the right thing concerning safety.

 

Fake Eun Joong asks Joo Ran to allow him to see the video tape. Once he sees it he recalls that day and how the other boy introduced himself as Ha Eun Joong, the same name as the detective. I thought the similarity to the sketch was enough in Fake Eun Joong's mind but I guess now this solidifies it.

 

Real Eun Joong returns home to find that bitch mother dumping seaweed soup all over Ah Mi and telling her to die. Eun Joong yells at Ah Mi to stand up for herself and tell her mother-in-law where to get off. Bitch mother starts asking what kind of relationship does Ah Mi have with Eun Joong. Eun Joong drags Ah Mi out to his car and drives her away (leaving Bitch Mother alone in his house).

 

Tae Ha has driven up to the law office to meet with Fake Eun Joong. He's sitting in his car waiting when he sees Hwa Young escorting a man out of the office. It's Myeong Geun but all Tae Ha can see of him is his back. What he can see is Hwa Young smiling and laughing with another man. Tae Ha is consumed with jealousy.

Scandal Episode 11

It's not been a good day for me. I need to keep reminding myself that it could be worse. At least my fiancé wasn't murdered on our wedding day, my mother-in-law is a bitch, and my apartment was just blown up.

 

 

Oh no, Ah Mi lost the baby! Now I really feel bad for complaining about my day.

 

Ha Soo Young invites Fake Eun Joong into her home under the pretense of him needing to use her bathroom. Fake Eun Joong and Myeong Geun are both shocked to see the other one.

 

Jang Joo Ha and her potential husband jibber jabber. Now that Go Joo Ran has seen the old security tape of the real Eun Joong she plots her revenge. I can't believe I ever thought I would say this but I wanna get back to Ah Mi!

 

Fake Eun Joong starts to ask Myeong Geun about Real Eun Joong when Soo Young interrupts to offer refreshments. Since his moment has slipped away, Fake Eun Joong excuses himself and leaves.

 

As the Jangs are seeing the Jos to the door they all unfortunately run into Joo Ran. She makes a total ass of herself. Not that that's anything new. Joo Ran blames Hwa Young for keeping her out of the marriage talks for her own daughter. This strengthens Joo Ran's need for revenge.

 

Oh Lord, Tae Ha and the menfolk are hitting the karaoke club. Hmm, but this is interesting. As Tae Ha drunkenly sings (oh Lord), Jo Jin Woong watches with a hard gleam in his eye. What's his story? Is he out for his own revenge? Or does he just not like Tae Ha's singing?

 

Fake Eun Joong returns home and starts snooping around his mother's study. (He won't find the security tape because Light Fingers Joo Ran has already taken it.) What he does find is the old mini tape with the recorded message from the kidnapper telling the family not to look for their kid. Does Fake Eun Joong recognize Myeong Geun's voice?

 

Hwa Young catches Fake Eun Joong coming out of her study. Curious as to what he was doing in there, Hwa Young looks around and that's when she discovers the security camera video tape is missing, only she thinks maybe her not-son has taken it.

 

The private dick is taking pictures of Real Eun Joong as the cop investigates the cuff link Ah Mi saved from the explosion. He already suspects it somehow belongs to Jang Tae Ha, he just needs to find the solid connection. The private dick is terrible at covertly taking pictures and Real Eun Joong catches the guy. After some roughing up, the private dick spills the beans that he was watching Real Eun Joong for Fake Eun Joong. Real Eun Joong checks the digital camera and sees not only pictures of himself but also of his not-sister and not-father in front of his home. Real Eun Joong tells the private dick it's gonna be like this: dicky can take all the pictures of Real Eun Joong he wants but he's not to bother Soo Young or Myeong Geun any more or there will be hell to pay.

 

Fake Eun Joong receives paperwork on Real Eun Joong. It shows Myeong Geun appears to have changed his son's name from Geon Young to Eun Joong. So now Fake Eun Joong is starting to have doubts that Real Eun Joong is the real Eun Joong. Does that make sense?

 

Hwa Young is in her office and is beginning to think perhaps Fake Eun Joong knows he's a fake. To make matters worse, here comes Joo Ran barging in. Fake Eun Joong overhears the two women talking. Joo Ran discloses that she knows Fake Eun Joong (she keeps calling him Geum Man Bok, the name he had at the orphanage) is not really Hwa Young's real son. Joo Ran wants Hwa Young to disappear out of Tae Ha's life. If Hwa Young leaves quietly, Joo Ran won't say anything to Tae Ha about his son not being his son.

 

The Ha's take Ah Mi home with them since she doesn't have anywhere to go. The authorities are saying the explosion was caused by a gas leak.

 

Long musical interlude.

 

Joo Ha and Kang Joo Pil fight over the empty president's position at work.

 

Soo Young is a total bitch and won't share her room with a woman who just lost her fiancé, her baby, and her home. Real Eun Joong gives up his room to her and gives her a motivational speech not to do anything stupid (as in kill herself) because she needs to live to clear Gi Chan's name.

 

Joo Pil makes an unexpected and unwanted visit to the Ha household. The Ha's make it a point not to let someone from Taeha Construction know Ah Mi is here. Myeong Geun stays outside with Joo Pil to talk. Eun Joong gets a phone call and is leaving when he overhears the two old men talking. Joo Pil brings up the story of Dad #1 supposedly changing his son's name from Geon Young to Eun Joong. Rather fishy, don't you think? Myeong Geun counters with what is Joo Pil going to do about the dangerous condominium building and the fact that Jang Tae Ha has killed again.

 

Hwa Young receives a call from the private dick. He claims he's found her abducted son and asks for her to meet him at a restaurant. Hwa Young goes dashing off to the restaurant (empty, as restaurants usually are in Kdramas) and anxiously waits for her son. We see someone open the door and Hwa Young looks up with wide eyes.

Scandal Episode 10

As Myeong Geun is leaving the hospital, Hwa Young comes running after him. She tries to give him money as a thank you for returning her medicine the other day. Myeong Geun declines saying if the medicine helped her that's thanks enough for him. She does talk him into letting her take him out to lunch. (Yep, I definitely believe the writers are trying to pair them up only to set them up for major heartbreak when Hwa Young learns the truth. Makjang!)

 

Fake Eun Joong is at home looking at the aged picture of Eun Joong when Joo Ha and Real Eun Joong arrive. Real Eun Joong is now investigating Gi Chan's death as a homicide and he wants to check Tae Ha's alibi up against the house's security camera video. Joo Ha brings Fake Eun Joong in to try and get him to lawyer the cop out of the house. Once he sees Real Eun Joong, Fake Eun Joong slowly starts to make the connection between this guy, that picture... this guy, that picture... this guy, that picture.

 

Hwa Young and Myeong Geun make awkward small talk. They ask each other about their kids. At first Hwa Young says she has one son, then she backs up and says she has two.

 

Jang Tae Ha comes home and demands to know what Real Eun Joong is after. Real Eun Joong puts down the note with the name of the guy who is currently in Hawaii. Ah, it makes sense now. The guy in Hawaii was one of the names on the list on the USB. When Gi Chan was trying to see Tae Ha before, he wrote the name down on the paper and ripped it out to send up to boss as a means to get Tae Ha to take him seriously. Real Eun Joong brings up the point of why would the head of the company deign to meet with a lowly assistant unless it was because Gi Chan knew something important.

 

Real Eun Joong again asks to see the CCTV of the house. Fake Eun Joong kicks into lawyer mode and reminds Real Eun Joong he needs a search warrant, and he'd better hurry up and get one as soon the videos will automatically delete themselves to be ready for the next cycle. I get the feeling Fake Eun Joong is afraid of losing his place in this family and so wants to get the real deal as far away as possible. Good thing Hwa Young was out having lunch as she would probably have recognized Real Eun Joong from the sketch. How long can the show keep these two characters from meeting?

 

Hwa Young comes home (just missing Real Eun Joong, of course) and Tae Ha is jealous that she was out eating and drinking with someone else. Hwa Young tries to talk to Fake Eun Joong about what's wrong but he still won't give her a clear answer. Joo Ha asks her father if there really was a construction problem with the condominium they're building.

 

Myeong Geun again begs Real Eun Joong to take himself off the case and to let some other detective handle it.

 

Gi Chan's bitch mother continues to need a boot upside the head.

 

Real Eun Joong figures Gi Chan must have stored the list on a USB and hid the flashdrive somewhere. To his surprise Eun Joong learns he's being transferred to another department (probably done by Myeong Geun's old boss) so the case will be closed as a suicide.

 

Soo Young and Fake Eun Joong are working together on a case. She accidentally spills the contents out of Eun Joong's bag and she sees the sketch. Soo Young mentions the man in the sketch resembles her older brother.

 

Kang Ho is doing his usual lurking, this time around Taeha HQ, when Ah Mi arrives. She wants to meet the company people who were investigating Gi Chan. She's handed over to Joo Ha. Ah Mi threatens to stir up a stink if she doesn't get to see the file on her fiance. This wouldn't be a good time for a scandal (ha) as the company is just about to start selling spots in the condominium. Joo Ha learns for the first time about the autopsy being denied and the mysterious money in a suitcase found in the couple's apartment.

 

Kang Ho reports back to his boss about Ah Mi being by. Although he doesn't come right out and say it, it sure sounds close enough to me that Tae Ha gives Kang Ho the go-ahead to do something with Ah Mi since she's a potential threat.

 

Joo Ha has found a button in her car. It fell off of Real Eun Joong's shirt when he was having her drive him to her house. She's come all the way to the police department to return the button. Yes, many of us are worried about what exactly this means.

 

Ah Mi has come to the police department to gather up Gi Chan's bicycle (with the hidden USB) and his personal effects. Real Eun Joong offers to take her and the stuff back to her home (which won't be her home for long because bitch mother wants to throw her out). Joo Ha comes over to his car to returns the button. She seems just a tad bit snippy seeing Eun Joong with another woman. Yes, many of us are very, very worried.

 

Real Eun Joong drops Ah Mi off at her apartment building. He asks if Gi Chan ever received or talked about a USB. Ah Mi doesn't recall but she'll go in right now and start looking for one. Eun Joong is heading back to his parked car when BOOM! There's an explosion inside the apartment building, fire spewing out of the windows.

 

Eun Joong goes running into the smoke-filled building, passing by Kang Ho in the confusion. I must make note that Kang Ho is missing a cuff link. A cuff link that was given to him by Tae Ha when he received his new suit. The eye candy scene for today comes when Eun Joong must take his shirt off to wrap around his hand to turn a red-hot doorknob. If there's one thing this show has gotten right it is to supply at least one eye candy scene per episode.

 

Eun Joong finds the unconscious Ah Mi and carries her down to a waiting ambulance. Kang Ho, watching from the crowd, realizes he's missing a cuff link.

 

Tae Ha is welcoming Minister Jo Chi Gook to his home. Oh, Minister Jo is the father of Jo Jin Woong, Joo Ha's future love interest. Joo Ha is all sweaty from working out when Hwa Young comes to tell her stepdaughter that her prospective husband is here. Joo Ha intends to go out as she is but when she spots Jin Woong she does this hilarious little shuffle backwards around the corner.

 

After recovering from the shock, Joo Ha comes forward to tell the menfolk that she's not going to do the marriage. Jin Woong says he will do the marriage. Hwa Young sees Joo Ran is heading this way and cuts her off at the pass before causing any scene inside. Joo Ran goes to the guest house to await her daughter since no one bothered to celebrate Joo Ran's birthday.

 

Minister Jo and Tae Ha have a private meeting about the missing list and the destruction of Ah Mi's apartment. Jo brings up the point of what if the list wasn't in the house?

 

Bored of being alone, Joo Ran starts to wander around and ends up in Hwa Young's study. She picks up a remote to see what's playing on the VCR and wouldn't you know it, Hwa Young left the security tape in it of the two Eun Joongs. As Joo Ran watches, she somehow recognizes the other boy as the real Eun Joong even though she only met the five-year-old version a couple of times.

 

Fake Eun Joong is giving Soo Young a lift to her house. He asks to use her bathroom as an excuse to go inside.

 

Real Eun Joong is at the hospital at Ah Mi's bedside. Ah Mi wakes up and unclenches her hand to show the missing cuff link that Kang Ho lost.

Scandal Episode 9

Despite looking right at Ha Myeong Geun (at least that's how it appears to me), Jang Tae Ha doesn't see his old enemy as he invites Real Eun Joong up to the office to continue discussing the money found on the dead Gong Gi Chan. Who does spot Myeong Geun in the lobby is Kang Joo Pil.

 

Tae Ha spins the story that Gi Chan had come to  his office to beg forgiveness. Tae Ha had his secretary (whose fingerprints are also on the paper) hand the money to the dead man as a sign of forgiveness/wedding gift. The secretary naturally goes along with this story.

 

A frustrated Eun Joong runs into a mouthy Jang Joo Ha. He wants to ask her about the internal investigation on Gi Chan. She's like, "What internal investigation?" Eun Joong tells Joo Ha her name was listed on the committee heading the investigation. She does a terrible job of trying to cover up and is like, "Oh yeah, that internal investigation. I know all about it." Eun Joong is not fooled.

 

Downstairs Eun Joong is surprised to find Dad #1 in the lobby. Myeong Geun grabs his not-son's hand and practically is dragging Eun Joong out the door. Joo Pil couldn't help but overhear Eun Joong calling Myeong Geun "Dad" and the former reporter starts putting two and two together.

 

Per his father's request, Fake Eun Joong goes to Gi Chan's funeral as a representative of Taeha Construction. The lawyer is surprised to learn his foodcart client, Woo Ah Mi, is the chief mourner.

 

Myeong Geun tells Eun Joong how he was working with Gi Chan to expose shoddy and dangerous work being done on the building being constructed. Specifically the eighth floor. Concerned for his not-son's safety, Myeong Geun begs Eun Joong to remove himself from the case. And so he should be concerned as at that moment Tae Ha is tasking Joo Pil to take care of that irritating cop. Joo Pil runs into Kang Ho who is wearing an expensive suit, a gift from the boss. Let's hope Tae Ha doesn't throw this one off the roof. Joo Pil and Kang Ho seem to have rivalry vibes between them. Or that may just be me.

 

Real Eun Joong finally gets a shower (and we're reminded of the scar on his ankle) as his lawyer sister goes over the suit Ah Mi has filed against him. Soo Young has this weird habit of wearing her hoodie backwards so she can use the hood to carry her snacks around and leave her hands free. She can't represent her brother since her boss is the one handling the woman's case.

 

Myeong Geun goes to the funeral home to pay his respects. When he sees the giant floral display from Taeha Construction, he gets that crazy look again and stomps all over the flowers. Fake Eun Joong comes out and asks why this nutcase is destroying the flowers his father sent, so now Myeong Geun knows what the grown-up Fake Eun Joong looks like.

 

Real Eun Joong goes through Gi Chan's personal effects once again. He finds a small notebook and notices a page has been torn out. Using a pencil, Eun Joong is able to do a rubbing on the writing indention on the next page. He comes up with some guy's name that has something to do with Hawaii. 

 

Since Fake Eun Joong has agreed to help Ah Mi concerning her dead fiancé, Myeong Geun talks to the young lawyer about the situation. He then dares to ask Eun Joong about the incident when he disappeared. Eun Joong says it's an open secret that he was kidnapped as a child and lived at an orphanage for three years before his mother, Hwa Young, found him.

 

Gi Chan's bitch of a mother blames Ah Mi for his death and attacks the pregnant woman. I do hope poor Ah Mi doesn't have a miscarriage. The bitch mom throws Ah Mi out of the funeral home. Eun Joong takes Ah Mi out for a long musical interlude.

 

Eye candy time (always a good time) as Fake Eun Joong and Tae Ha hit the sauna. Afterwards Eun Joong arranges for his not-parents to at least have a drink together. Tae Ha wants to marry Joo Ha off. Unable to resist his curiosity, Eun Joong calls to make a late night appointment with the private detective his mother hired.

 

Myeong Geun has dinner with his old boss from the police force. The boss has been promoted and is second in command over the police. Myeong Geun asks the boss to take Eun Joong off the Gi Chan case as this will make the young cop encounter his real father. Um, does this mean the boss has known all along that Eun Joong is Tae Ha's son?

 

Fake Eun Joong offers the detective a lot of money to find out who Hwa Young is looking for. The detective, easily swayed by money, breaks the client confidentiality and tells the lawyer his mother is looking for her real son. Fake Eun Joong just sits there. I think he's supposed to be in shock but really he just sits there. Eye Candy is for the eye, not for the acting skills.

 

Joo Ha runs into that Jo Jin Woong again. This time we learn he used to be her private tutor during that time span we didn't get to see. Seems Jin Woong has gone through the Charles Atlas program for the 97-pound weakling as both Joo Ha and her mother, Joo Ran, talk about how much he's changed from the scrawny chicken he used to be.

 

Hwa Young can tell there's something wrong with her not-son but Fake Eun Joong won't tell her what it is. The crappy private dick gives Eun Joong a copy of the aged picture of Real Eun Joong.

 

Real Eun Joong is back at the construction site working with a crash test dummy dropping from the eighth floor like Gi Chan supposedly did. Each time the dummy lands at a place different from where Gi Chan ended up if he had been jumping. It looks like he had to have been violently pushed to get him over to where he landed.

 

Myeong Geun is back at the hospital waiting room (I still don't know why he's there) and again encounters Hwa Young. (I'm still getting the feeling the writers are going to pair these two up.)

 

Jang Joo Ha had come down to the station to co-operate with the police. Real Eun Joong has her drive them back to her house since he needs to check something out. Then he falls asleep in her car and that's how the episode ends, which is kind of weak.

 

I have no problem with Kim Jae Won. He's Kangyver after all. But in this role it's like he's sleepwalking through the drama. I want to express mail him some supplies of Five Hour Energy.

Scandal Episode 8

A shocked Woo Ah Mi, still in her wedding dress, asks to see Gong Gi Chan. They've already taken his body away so all that's left for her to see is the chalk outline of his body and a big puddle of blood. Ha Eun Joong, not one for sensitivity, starts asking her questions. Ah Mi does manage to mention the text she received supposedly from Gi Chan saying he was sorry. Eun Joong's partner (does this guy have a name) easily writes this off as a tragic suicide.

 

A dazed Ah Mi tries to take the service elevator up to the floor where Gi Chan fell/jumped from. Eun Joong sees what she's wanting and wordlessly operates the elevator for her. Ah Mi refuses to believe this could be suicide and Gi Chan knew this construction site like the back of his hand so it couldn't have been an accident. The only option left is murder. Eun Joong asks for the names of any close co-workers and Ah Mi thinks of only one name: Ha Myeong Geun.

 

Kang Joo Pil thinks he's breaking the news to Jang Tae Ha about Gi Chan being dead. Tae Ha is like, "Oh my goodness, how horrible!" He asks Fake Eun Joong to represent the company at the man's funeral, and to keep the family quiet if they start to make a fuss.

 

While Real Eun Joong's partner (what is his name?!) and other cops are searching the couple's apartment, the suitcase of money (planted by Kang Ho) is found.

 

Ah Mi has to go to the morgue to identify her fiancé's body.

 

Fake Eun Joong returns to the office to learn his mother is in a private meeting. Hwa Young is talking to a private detective about finding the Real Eun Joong. When the detective is leaving, nosey Fake Eun Joong introduces himself and tries to fish for answers.

 

Real Eun Joong asks Myeong Geun to come down to the station to answer some questions since Dad #1 knew the victim. Eun Joong actually shows he has a brain when, going through Gi Chan's personal effects, he finds the large bills that were Tae Ha's wedding present. Eun Joong wonders why these bills were stuffed into Gi Chan's pocket instead of being put in his wallet. The detective figures Gi Chan may have received the money right before he died and orders the bills checked for fingerprints.

 

Nameless Partner brings the suitcase of money to the station. He thinks he's got it all figured out. Gi Chan was taking bribes from subcontractors, was about to get caught and so threw himself off the building.

 

My beloved ahjumma <3 <3 <3 has a name: Mrs. Ansung. I miss you, ahjumma. You need more scenes. Anyway, Tae Ha is watching the news. Remember that Jo Chi Gook guy from a couple of episodes ago? Well now he's a minister in the government. Meanwhile Go Joo Ran hasn't been getting any from Tae Ha and she wants some now! Tae Ha's like, "Ewww."

 

Thank goodness: another Eun Joong workout scene. He thinks back to when he was a child and worked so hard to try and draw penguins.

 

Joo Pil comes down to the police station to testify that Gi Chan was being investigated by Taeha Construction for embezzlement and was about to be fired. Just as Joo Pil is leaving is when Myeong Geun is arriving. In front of Real Eun Joong, Joo Pil boisterously greets "Detective Ha" and asks where Myeong Geun has been all these years. Dad #1 quickly hustles Joo Pil outside.

 

The two men go to have a drink together. Joo Pil brags about being so high up the ladder at Taeha Construction. For some reason Myeong Geun discloses that he's working as a foreman at the new Taeha Construction project.

 

Ah Mi still insists the text message she received wasn't from Gi Chan. The message called her 'honey,' something Gi Chan never called her in life. She demands an autopsy.

 

Joo Pil reports to his boss how Ah Mi wants an autopsy. Tae Ha pulls some strings and gets the autopsy request rejected. Joo Pil also starts to tell about running into Myeong Geun but Tae Ha gets all assholey so Joo Pil decides to keep this little tidbit to himself.

 

Ha Soo Young puts on her shortest, tightest skirt for her first day at work at the Cheonha Law Firm.

 

Jang Joo Ha gets to box with a man. It should be no surprise she gets her butt kicked. She gets knocked so hard she starts speaking Engrish. When her opponent removes his protective gear, Joo Ha recognizes him as Jo Jin Woong, played by Park Jung Chul. Just who is Jo Jin Woong? I have no idea but Joo Ha does. Perhaps he was a professional boxer who has fallen on hard times. Whoever he is I do know he's probably Joo Ha's future love interest.

 

Tae Ha's been all over the tv lately as he's donating a huge amount of money to charities and going on about humanitarian work. Myeong Geun is watching and getting that crazy look in his eyes again. At the police station Real Eun Joong gets the results back on the fingerprints found on the large bills in Gi Chan's possession. (They're really checks but I've been calling them bills so I'm going to stick with bills.) Anyway, Jang Tae Ha's fingerprints were found on the paper.

 

Myeong Geun has gone down to Taeha Construction headquarters to confront his nemesis. Tae Ha is coming out of the elevator. Myeong Geun starts to step forward and make himself known when instead it is his not-son, Real Eun Joong, who gets to Tae Ha first. Eun Joong tells Tae Ha about his fingerprints being found on the money in Gi Chan's pocket.

Scandal Episode 7

Jang Joo Ha tries the "Do you know who I am?" play in order to get released from police custody. Ha Eun Joong is not impressed. Her lawyer, Jang Eun Joong, threatens to file suit for human rights violation and asks that the case be transferred to another (upscale) police department. Ha Eun Joong is not impressed. Everyone shoots daggers at each other.

 

I like Gong Gi Chan but that Woo Ah Mi is annoying the total crap out of me. She suggests they get rid of Gi Chan's old bike and get a newer one. Gi Chan gets upset at the thought then tries to explain he really likes the bicycle and has grown attached to it (and the secret USB stick hidden in the handlebar). Ah Mi doesn't like getting yelled at.

 

Upstairs in their surprisingly nice apartment for people claiming to be poor, Kang Ho is searching the premises for any sign of the missing list. He has to quickly hide as he hears the young couple coming home. Kang Ho picks a really bad place to hide, out on the balcony. Gi Chan can see him and recognizes the goon from earlier but doesn't say anything because he doesn't want to frighten Ah Mi.

 

Released from custody, Joo Ha hits the gym and is looking for a male partner to box with to show how bad-ass she is to the world and especially to her father.

 

Since he's already at the right police station, Fake Eun Joong goes to the Missing Children department to ask about the fax sent to his mother. To his and my surprise he encounters the one DramaCop who refuses to break police/client confidentiality.

 

Myeong Geun is at the dry cleaners to pick up his suit for Gi Chan's wedding. He's surprised when the manager also hands him his old police uniform. Unbeknownst to Dad #1, Real Eun Joong has been taking care of the uniform and having it cleaned for years. Deep in thought, Myeong Geun returns home to find Gi Chan waiting for him.

 

Up on a very windy roof, Jang Tae Ha (looking more blond than gray now) looks over the info on Gi Chan that Kang Ho has collected. Because Kang failed to retrieve the list, Tae Ha orders his minion to strip off his expensive suit (all the way to his underwear) and throws the clothing over the side. Kang Ho must now go downstairs and through the crowded lobby (in his briefs) to retrieve his suit. Why do this, you may ask? Well, why did Tae Ha smash the hell out of that glass display case in the first episode? He's one of the weirdest villains I've so far seen.

 

Gi Chan reports back to his foreman that the building is to be looked at by some independent safety inspectors. He also tells Myeong Geun about Kang Ho being in his apartment. Myeong Geun entreats Gi Chan to keep the USB safely hidden. As long as the young man has the USB, Jang can't touch him. Or so they think.

 

Soo Young is on the phone trying to whine Eun Joong into attending Gi Chan's wedding. Geez, are all the women on this show going to be annoying? Is it really that hard to write a decent female character? Dad #1 comes in and Soo Young tells him the good news that she's been accepted into a law firm and will be making (compared to my income) a hell of a lot of money. Myeong Geun is pleased until he hears it is Hwa Young's law firm where his daughter will be working.

 

We get a musical interlude as Hwa Young takes out the old video tape from the security camera and re-watches Real and Fake Eun Joong meeting in front of the old house.

 

Never mind that, we get some eye candy time as Fake Eun Joong does a workout. Thank you, Korea! But darn that Joo Ha for interrupting this very important scene. She's really wanting that vacant president spot in the company and worries this little scandal with the car today will be a problem. Joo Ha asks Fake Eun Joong to do what he can to squash this bug, and that pesky cop (Real Eun Joong).

 

Woo Ah Mi (and her mouth) are asleep as Gi Chan gets a phone call. He's been summoned for a late night meeting with Tae Ha at the construction site. No, this isn't a good idea, but Gi Chan has to be this stupid so the writers can kill him off.

 

The two men meet on one of the upper floors of the unfinished building. Tae Ha gives several large bills to Gi Chan as a "wedding present." Gi Chan thinks they're here for him to show Tae Ha the problems they were discussing earlier. After the inspection, Tae Ha shows his true colors by offering the young man a higher position, a house, a car, all sorts of stuff if only Gi Chan will be his man and return the list. Gi Chan refuses, thus signing his own death warrant.

 

Tae Ha takes the service elevator down alone. Once he reaches the ground he is joined by Gi Chan - the hard way. Splat.

 

The next day Myeong Geun shows up to the wedding and is concerned to hear the groom is nowhere to be found. You should be concerned, Myeong Geun. In a way this is all your fault. You're starting to become a worse villain than Tae Ha.

 

Real Eun Joong is ordered by his superiors to drop the case against Jang Joo Ha and erase the records completely.

 

While everyone is still waiting for Gi Chan to show up for the wedding, Kang Ho (in booties) is at the dead man's apartment to plant a large amount of money. They're setting Gi Chan up to make it look like he was accepting bribes and working for a rival company.

 

In Tae Ha's office, Kang Joo Pil reels off the things he's done to frame Gi Chan as an embezzler and a crook. Interestingly, Joo Pil still refers to Gi Chan in the present tense so I take it he doesn't know and wasn't involved in the young man's fall at the construction site.

 

Ah Mi receives a text message on her phone from "Gi Chan" apologizing and asking for forgiveness for what he has done.

 

Real Eun Joong can't let the case go and he storms into Joo Ha's office, almost getting kicked as she's doing her tae bo workout. Eun Joong says she may have gotten away this time but he's keeping his eyes on her. Joo Ha is like, "Yeah, so what? I'm rich." Eun Joong gets pulled away when he gets the call about the body discovered at the construction site.

 

Gi Chan's phone seems to have survived the drop. After checking the contacts on it, Eun Joong calls the first one on the list - Ah Mi. He has to break it to the bride that Gi Chan is dead. Still in her wedding gown, Ah Mi rushes down to the construction site.