May Queen Episode 8

Housework is like a Hydra. You get one job done only to have two more pop up it's place.

 

Hae Joo is trying to deal with the wailing morons she calls her family when suddenly Bong Hee appears. (You may be tempted at this point to ask, "How did Bong Hee know where to find the family sheltering in the underpass?" Bong Hee explains herself that she saw the handcart up on the bridge. "But how did she know the handcart belonged to Hae Joo's family? How did she know what direction they had taken when leaving town?" Stop asking logical questions! She's there, she found the family, let it go.)

Bong Hee takes the clan back to the big house where she shames big sister Geum Hee into helping them because it's Do Hyun's fault that they're homeless. Pregnant Bitch Mom has transformed into Whiny Useless Mom. Neither Geum Hee, nor especially Gi Cheol, are pleased to have them there. Chang Hee speaks up and offers his and Gi Cheol's house which Whiny Useless Mom immediately accepts. Gi Cheol is so not happy now.

Grandpa Kang is arrested for all the trumped up charges from last episode.

Geum Hee storms down to her husband's office and demands he do something to get Jeong Woo out of jail. Oh, and while he's at it, Do Hyun needs to get Hae Joo's family a house. Geum Hee wants rid of them.

Hae Joo is trying to hang up some laundry but the line is a bit high for her. Enter taller Chang Hee who offers to help. They grab a sheet and are violently shaking it out when Chang Hee pulls too hard on his end, making Hae Joo stumble forward... into his arms. There's just a brief moment of Chang Hee holding her when everything is ruined by the arrival of bastard-in-training Il Mun. He starts picking on them both but mostly on Chang Hee. Hae Joo grabs a nearby broom and starts whacking Il Mun with it. (Go, Hae Joo, go!) Unfortunately this is the moment when Geum Hee gets home. She harasses Hae Joo for daring to strike her son with a broom. Feelings get worse when Geum Hee asks where the nice dress is she gave the girl. Hae Joo admits she had to sell the garment, although Geum Hee doesn't give her time to explain it was sold in order to buy food.

Later in bed Whiny Useless Mom is sighing and sighing. Hae Joo rolls over and says she'll quit school if she has to and get a job so the younger kids won't starve. Whiny Useless Mom tells the girl not to quit school as she'll never get a decent job if she doesn't graduate. Hae Joo rolls back the other way to go to sleep. Mom reaches out a hand and almost... almost... touches Hae Joo's hair in a loving gesture. She stops herself just before making contact.

The next morning Bong Hee waits outside the police station as Jeong Woo is released. She literally jumps on him she's so happy. He's embarrassed. I've learned that in Korea it's tradition to feed tofu to someone who has gotten out of jail. Bong Hee presents him with a huge brick of the stuff. He balks at it, claiming he was in for just one day. She shoves the tofu into his face, forcing him to eat some. He grabs a piece off of the brick and shoves it into her mouth.

Grandpa Kang tries to call in favors from all his powerful "friends", but suddenly nobody knows him. Acknowledging that he's been beaten, Dae Pyung offers to give up the pear orchard to Do Hyun. The cops just slap him around a bit. This has gone beyond the pear orchard. Dae Pyung could be looking at 10 years in the slammer. Think about his grandson. If the old man wants to get out, he'll have to give up the shipyard.

After being released from the station, Dae Pyung tells his grandson to go to the States, work hard to get a doctorate, and then come back home and take back everything the family has lost today. Kang San quickly figures out it was Jang Do Hyun who was behind their troubles. San swears to take the shipyard and more away from the bastard.

San goes up to the big house to see Hae Joo and encounters Il Mun first. Il Mun is his usual self (a dick) and taunts San about the recent arrest of Dae Pyung. San gets one good punch in and is about to deliver another when he's stopped by Hae Joo. (Boo, Hae Joo. Let the boy finish!) San pulls her aside and tells her how he's leaving for the U.S. As a parting gift he gives her a model of a drilling ship, supposedly the most expensive ship in the world. He says since she loves ships and is so good at welding she should strive to make this ship one day.

Hae Joo worries that San gave her a present yet she has nothing to give him. He reaches up and removes her ever-present hair band. She still worries that this will not be enough, so San pulls her in for an embrace. Naturally this is when Chang Hee walks by. San tells his friend about leaving for another country. As a last bit of advice, San tells Chang Hee to get out of the big house. It doesn't have to be now, but as soon as he can. Because when Kang San comes back he's going to make war on everyone in the big house.

Kang Dae Pyung signs over his company to Do Hyun. He goes to look one last time at the company he built up from the ground and breaks down crying. Naturally this is when Kang San walks up.

Kang San is at the train station when In Hwa comes running through the door. They have a brief goodbye with San wishing she grows up well and meets a nice guy.

Hae Joo is doing chores around the big house to earn her family's keep. She's cleaning in Do Hyun's study, which is full of model ships and books on shipbuilding. She recognizes one of the models as a drilling ship, like the one Kang San gave her. Do Hyun walks in and asks what she's doing in here. They end up talking about shipbuilding and such and Do Hyun is almost nice. Not enough to make you forget he murdered her father, but still nice.

In Hwa has given Hae Joo some of her old clothes and is making Hae Joo model in the living room. Do Hyun comes in to have a gentle laugh at the girls. In Hwa goes to pull Hae Joo's hair up. Unlike Geum Hee, Do Hyun recognizes the burn scar on Hae Joo's neck right away. He goes outside and runs into Whiny Useless Mom. (I really need to use her character's name - Jo Dal Soon.) Do Hyun asks her if Hae Joo is not her biological daughter. Was the girl adopted? For once Dal Soon does something right and emphatically insists she gave birth to Hae Joo. Gi Cheol, who was standing nearby and quaking in his shoes, breathes a sigh of relief.

He doesn't have much time to feel relief. Do Hyun pulls him aside and orders Gi Cheol to get rid of this family by tonight. Gi Cheol goes back to his house and pulls out the piece of paper with the loan shark's number on it. Ah, and he also pulls out the wad of money he said he had given Hong Chul. He makes a phone call to the loan shark.

That evening the thugs arrive and start to harass Hae Joo and her family. Chang Hee tries to call the police when the much bigger men throw him to the floor. Gi Cheol comes in and makes like he's the hero, willing to pay off the family's large debt. In return the family must leave and go back to where they came from originally and never come back to Ulsan.

Another truck is called in and the family is packed up and hauled off. They left a box of stuff behind and the maid is trudging around with it when Do Hyun and Geum Hee come home. As the couple pass by, Geum Hee spies the yellow baby top in the box and recognizes it as the homemade top she made for her daughter, Yoo Jin. She has Gi Cheol called up to the house and asks how that family had her daughter's top. Could Yoo Jin have survived? Was Hae Joo actually her daughter? Both Gi Cheol and Do Hyun try to convince Geum Hee that she's wrong and that Hae Joo is Dal Soon's biological daughter. Geum Hee still wants to know why the family would have her child's clothing. Do Hyun orders Gi Cheol to go to Hae Nam (where the family is returning to) and find out the answer. Geum Hee insists on going as well.

Panicking (like he usually does), Gi Cheol stumbles back to his house and calls the loan shark, telling him to make sure the family doesn't show up in Hae Nam. The thugs intercept the poor family and lock them up in an abandoned building. The thugs leave for awhile and the womenfolk get to work on escaping (because Sang Tae is an idiot). Thanks to little Young Joo they get the door open and get out. Alas, the thugs are coming back. The family ducks behind the building as the bad guys discover the door is open. Hae Joo overhears the men and how they just want her. Just like her biological dad, Hae Joo runs off to lead the villains away from her family.

Geum Hee is desperately combing Hae Nam for any sign of Hae Joo or her family. The clan make it to the bus terminal, the place Hae Joo said they would meet, but there's no sign of her.

The bad guys have caught Hae Joo and start to put her on a small boat when she manages to escape from them once again. They're in hot pursuit, though, and corner her on the edge of a cliff next to the sea. Hae Joo chooses to jump.

The next episode is when we do a time jump and the adult actors take over the roles. I'm going to miss the wonderful kid actors we've had so far.

 



May Queen Episode 7

How frustrating. Vampire Prosecutor has started a new season and I can't find it anywhere. Dramabeans has a recap of the first episode. Trying hard not to read it until I see the show.

 

Meanwhile, here's a show I know I can find at Viki.

 

Violin music plays (which is never a good sign) as a weak Hong Chul attempts to tell Hae Joo who her real mother is. Geum Hee walks into the room to see how he's doing. Hong Chul spends his last bit of strength and points at Geum Hee - then he dies. Hae Joo cries inconsolably at his bedside. (I still want to just shower Kim Yoo Jung with awards. She cries so convincingly.)

 

Geum Hee steps out into the hallway where she left In Hwa, Chang Hee, and cringer Gi Cheol. They can all clearly hear Hae Joo's cries from the other room. Geum Hee asks Gi Cheol to take care of funeral arrangements for the man (that he killed!) since she figures the family is not in a financial state to take care of it themselves. Gi Cheol is so crushed by guilt he's even limping.

 

He informs his boss, bastard Jang Do Hyun, about Hong Chul's death, conveniently leaving out the part that he was the hit and run driver. Do Hyun orders Gi Cheol to retrieve the yellow top from wherever Hong Chul had it stashed. Just then Nameless Minion enters the office to inform them about the men being caught at the pear orchard. Do Hyun throws papers around and blames Yoon Jeong Woo for this. (I'm constantly distracted by this television set he has in his office. On top of the set are some large horns of some animal. A longhorn? A water buffalo? What the hell are they?)

 

As Hae Joo spreads her father's ashes on the ocean waves, she flashes back to all the sweet father/daughter moments they had. Meanwhile, back at their hovel, Gi Cheol is desperately searching for the baby clothes. He doesn't find it but he does find the piece of paper with the loan shark's bank account number written on it. Just then the grieving family wearily trudge back home. Gi Cheol explains he was kindly organizing their father's things for them. For the first time in his life idiot Sang Tae is right about something - he's suspicious of Gi Cheol's presence in their house when they weren't home.

 

That evening the police stop by to question Hae Joo further about the accident. She has to explain how the truck was swerving to avoid hitting her on the bicycle. Pregnant Bitch Mom does her thing and promptly throws Hae Joo out of the house, ordering her never to return. And of course it starts to rain on the girl as well.

 

Geum Hee is puttering around the house when her sister, Bong Hee, stops by for a visit. Do Hyun pulls his sister-in-law aside for a talk. He tells Bong Hee how her sister hasn't been acting right lately and she reveals the recent and painful run in with Jeong Woo at the graveside of his brother. That's another black mark in Do Hyun's book. I'm seriously getting worried for Jeong Woo.

 

Chang Hee and Kang San find an unconscious Hae Joo the next morning. She's burning up with fever. They carry her back to what they think is her home, only to have Pregnant Bitch Mom refuse to take her in. Kang San (my hero) says to take her back to his house where they'll report Pregnant Bitch mom to the authorities for child abuse. Hae Joo wakes up long enough to apologize to Pregnant Bitch Mom and plead not to be kicked out, then she collapses again. Pregnant Bitch Mom finally gives in enough to order the boys to put Hae Joo in Sang Tae's room.

 

Once in his room, Kang San (again my hero) jumps Sang Tae's case. How could he allow Hae Joo to be kicked out of the house? Why didn't he go looking for her when he saw it was raining? What kind of brother is he? (Ya know, this is probably the most lines Sang Tae's character has had in the entire show so far.)

 

That evening a feverish Hae Joo hallucinates seeing her father at her side. Even in death they have sweet father/daughter moments. He gently urges her to get better and stronger, and to not think Pregnant Bitch Mom hates her. (She does, but never mind.)

 

Speaking of Pregnant Bitch Mom, she finally goes into labor. While Sang Tae runs to get help, a quickly recovered Hae Joo goes to the woman's aid. The boy doesn't get back in time so it's up to Hae Joo to help Mom give birth. It goes quickly and well from what I can tell. It's a girl, BTW.

 

Do Hyun is holding a board meeting where they discuss the much coveted pear orchard. He wants the illegal village (where Hae Joo's family lives) to be torn down and the villagers forced out, by violence if necessary. To make his point, Do Hyun throws a glass ashtray at one of his employees. Meeting is adjourned.

 

Out in the hallway Gi Cheol reports back to his boss that he was unable to find the yellow baby top. He tells Do Hyun that perhaps Hong Chul threw it away after he received the money (that Hong Chul ended up not accepting. Hmm, what did you do with that money, Gi Cheol?) Anyway, Do Hyun is satisfied that the business with the baby clothes is over. He orders Gi Cheol to be in charge of demolishing the illegal village.

 

Grandpa Kang Dae Pyung's business is being investigated for tax evasion, stock market manipulation, and embezzlement. Do Hyun is hanging out in Grandpa's office and isn't a bit ashamed to admit he's behind all this. Grandpa swears to fight back. Kang San witnesses all this.

 

Chang Hee stops by Hae Joo's house to drop off some rice. Suddenly Sang Tae comes sliding in (I don't know if that was intentional or not but it was funny) to warn her that their village is going to be torn down. A crowd including Jeong Woo and Bong Hee gathers in front of the big demolition equipment. A hard hat yells at the villagers they have only one hour to pack up and get the hell out of Dodge. Jeong Woo, Bong Hee and Hae Joo lay down in the road right before the excavator. A fight breaks out between the villagers and the hard hats.

 

In the background, unnoticed until now, is a cringing Gi Cheol with his own little yellow hard hat on. Suddenly he loses touch with his sanity. Grabbing a sledge hammer he screams at the mob to back off or he'll kill them all. They back off. He screams (well, it's more of a high pitched squeal) and uses the hammer to attack a wall. Chang Hee runs over and grabs his father, who now collapses into tears. Oh yeah, somebody is heading for the funny farm.

 

Later, at another location, Chang Hee is asking his father how he can destroy the village. Hae Joo happens upon them and eavesdrops. Gi Cheol orders his son to never associate with Hae Joo again. Chang Hee refuses, prompting Gi Cheol to slap him.

 

Bong Hee goes to confront Do Hyun about what he's doing to the poor villagers. She makes the mistake of mentioning Jeong Woo's name and Do Hyun gets that look on his face. I continue to be worried over Jeong Woo.

 

Jeong Woo goes to tell Geum Hee what her beloved husband is up to. She had no idea what was going on.

 

Hae Joo fixes Pregnant- whoops, she's not pregnant any more. She also doesn't seem to be as bitchy as she was. Perhaps it was the baby making her the evil hag she was. But I digress. Hae Joo fixes Mom some food to eat as she explains her plans to get a job, any job, to support the family. Mom worries where they will go if the village is torn down.

 

Il Mun dares to ask his father if they can go to their mother's grave to pay respects. They haven't been in so long. Do Hyun immediately jumps down Il Mun's throat. He tells the boy that Geum Hee is the only mother he has and to stop thinking about that other woman. (Several over at Viki theorize Do Hyun probably offed his inconvenient first wife.)

 

Geum Hee confront Do Hyun about the pear orchard business and they argue. Do Hyun relents and, with Geum Hee listening, he calls someone and orders the villagers to be compensated for their homes.

 

Jeong Woo stops by Hae Joo's house to drop off some food for the new mom. He sees that the girl is having to sleep outside. She says it's because of the baby waking up at all hours. He offers her a warm, dry place to sleep at his house. (I know he's her uncle, but I'm still not comfortable with this.)

 

He goes to make some ramen noodles as Hae Joo straightens up his very small living quarters. As she moves a book an envelope falls out of it. She notes the letter is addressed to Yoo Jin from Dad. After she wolfs down all the food, Hae Joo asks him who Yoo Jin is. Jeong Woo tells her his brother, Hak Soo, wrote this letter the day his daughter was born. Jeong Woo allows her to read the letter, which mentions queens and the month of may, hence the title of the show. Suddenly Bong Hee rushes in to tell Jeong Woo the good news that Do Hyun has agreed to compensate the villagers for their land.

 

A table has been set up where the money is being doled out. Hae Joo's mom is practically drooling at the sight of all the money being handed out to the villagers. She eagerly gets into line for her piece of the pie. Ah, but there's a catch. Only people who have lived on the land for twenty years or more are getting paid. Hae Joo's family has been there for only a month. No soup for you!

 

Guess who also hasn't lived in the village for more than twenty years? Jeong Woo and Bong Hee come back to find his teeny tiny house is being demolished. Not only that but the police are there to arrest him for instigating violence. As he's being dragged off to jail, Jeong Woo calls back to Bong Hee to take care of Hae Joo's family.

 

She'd better hurry as Hae Joo and the clan are leaving town. They have just a handcart to carry their belongings and no real plan of where to go. Then wouldn't you know it, somebody turns on the rain machine. The destitute family seeks shelter beneath an underpass. The kids start whining about being so hungry. There's just a little bit of rice left and Hae Joo tries to cook it over a campfire when idiot Sang Tae knocks the pot over. Everybody starts bawling their eyes out.

 

What kind of ending is that?

Three Kingdoms Episode 29

When Cao Cao hears that his childhood friend Xu You has come to visit, he abandons his pedicure and rushes outside without even bothering to put his shoes on. Xu You is trading sides, which, come to think of it, was exactly what dead man walking Tian Feng warned Yuan Shao would happen. So score one for the dead.

 

Xu You tells how Yuan Shao has all his foodstuffs stored at Wuchao and suggests Cao Cao make an immediate night raid on the badly guarded supply depot. The two men talk strategy and at one point Xu You basically asks, "How do you know I'm not setting you up for an ambush?" Cao Cao claims he can tell when someone is lying to him. Myself, I'm a little suspicious of Xu You.

 

Cao Cao takes a small contingent and raids Wuchao. Many stuntmen are set on fire.

 

A sleeping Yuan Shao is woken up and told about Wuchao. His grown sons urge him to muster the army and go defend the granaries. The old man has a better idea. He figures Cao Cao must have taken his entire army to attack Wuchao, meaning his main camp is practically empty. That's where Yuan Shao is headed.

 

It just so happens Cao Cao was expecting the Spanish Inquisition. As Yuan Shao's cavalry ride into the empty-looking fort, the men and horses immediately disappear down into deep holes that had been covered with hay. Numerous archers suddenly pop up out of nowhere and starting shooting down at the fish in a barrel. Yuan Shao tucks tail and orders a retreat.

 

As they're running away, a soldier intercepts them to report that Cao Cao had just attacked Yuan Shao's main camp. Now he and his men have nowhere to go. This makes Yuan Shao so mad he spits up blood. Once again his sons urge him to fight Cao Cao to the death. Instead, Yuan Shao insists they continue the retreat and return to Jizhou.

 

Riding through a canyon they hear flute music. Up there on the cliff is Xu You come to play and gloat. He shouts down to Yuan Shao's generals and urges them to abandon their foolish lord and his useless sons. Yuan Shao orders his men to ride up the hill and hack the traitor to pieces. One of the generals warns there must certainly be an ambush up there but Yuan Shao isn't hearing any of it.

 

The men follow the old man's orders and ride up. Sure enough it is an ambush. Once again the paper mache boulders and logs are thrown around. Yuan Shao orders yet another retreat.

 

They stop for a rest and he asks how many men he has left. His once great army of 700,000 troops have been reduced to a mere one hundred. Finally acknowledging the Will of Heaven is against him, Yuan Shao attempts to cut his throat with his own sword. His sons manage to stop him but that doesn't keep Yuan Shao from spitting up blood. He falls back into his sons' arms and dies. (At least I think he's dead.)

 

The Four Musketeers hear about Yuan Shao's catastrophic defeat. They have only 3,000 men themselves and are worried about Cao Cao's forces. They need to get out of here fast. They were on their way to join up with Liu Biao but now Liu Bei is starting to have second thoughts. Still, they need to get somewhere so Liu Bei sends his aide-de-camp, Sun Qian, on ahead to sound this Liu Biao out and see if he's receptive to taking them in.

 

Sun Qian arrives in Jingzhou and puts his master's case before old man Liu Biao. Biao's son, Liu Qi, advises his father to accept Liu Bei and the others into the fold. General Cai is totally against it. Look at what happened to the other warlords who allied themselves with Liu Bei (like Lu Bu and Yuan Shao. You know, he's kind of got a point there.) In the end Sun Qian is able to talk Liu Biao into welcoming the Four Musketeers and their troops.

 

At a welcoming feast, Liu Bei tries to light a fire under old man Liu Biao's butt and get him to rally his forces and attack Cao Cao's main city of Xuchang. Liu Biao sees no reason to start trouble when he's had no trouble and advises Liu Bei to settle in. You can tell Liu Bei is disappointed but what can he do but smile and thank his benefactor.

I Need Romance 2012 Episode 9

Yeol Mae and Ji Hoon start dating. While she admits to herself she's enjoying the fun and laughter in this relationship, she's honest enough to recognize there's no real spark. (When it's not there, it's not there.) This calls for a slumber party with the girls. As they all lay in Ji Hee's bed, Yeol Mae regales them with a story Ji Hoon told her from his days at the orphanage. It puts Ji Hee and Jae Kyung to sleep. (I'm not going to regale you with his story from the orphanage because it is rather boring.)

 

Ji Hee, Kim Tae Woo and another woman from where they work are out at a restaurant. They hear a string quartet playing to a table nearby and guess that a marriage proposal is being made. The quartet finish and leave, giving us our first glimpse of the couple in love. Thanks to the comments over at Viki I learn these two are characters from the first season of the show. The man is Kim Duk Soo, Ji Hee's first man. The woman, Kang Hyun Joo, has something to do with Tae Woo.

 

Ji Hee and Tae Woo hide behind one menu as they eavesdrop on the first season couple. It's actually Hyun Joo doing the proposing, but Duk Soo is worried about his situation (I don't know what it is - I guess he's poor) and doesn't feel he's worthy enough to marry her. Hyun Joo insists she doesn't care about that and believes they can make it together. Then she and Duk Soo both turn and stare at Tae Woo and Ji Hee. Our season two couple quickly make excuses and leave the restaurant.

 

Outside the restaurant Tae Woo talks about what a good woman Hyun Joo is. Ji Hee talks about what a good man Duk Soo is. They decide to go to another place and drink copious amounts of alcohol. Seriously, there's like twenty beer bottles on their little table. I don't know what I admire more - Korean livers or Korean bladders. Ji Hee is the calmest drunk I've ever seen. She starts crying over the bones of the chicken they just ate and insists on giving the bird a proper burial. Also Peru is somehow involved in this. It makes perfect sense when you're drunk. Tae Woo follows after her until she passes out (neatly, on top of newspapers) next to the river and stays to watch over her.

 

Jeong Min asks Jae Kyung to live with him but she turns him down. In the next scene we learn she's actually homeless and having to live down at the warehouse where her shoes are stored. Yeol Mae offers to take her in but again Jae Kyung refuses. She feels she needs to make her own comeback without any help.

 

Seok Hyun and Na Hyun are going to see a movie together. Yeol Mae starts pining for him again so she goes to the theater as well, totally forgetting she was supposed to meet Ji Hoon at a coffee shop. Only hours later does she remember him. She runs to the shop and can see from outside that he is still in there, patiently waiting for her. Yeol Mae checks her cell phone and sees a message from him saying it's alright if she's late, he'll just read a book. (Ji Hoon, you so need to get away from this woman. She is useless.) He sees she's outside and goes out to see if everything is all right. Yeol Mae calls him a fool for waiting for her. He replies it doesn't matter how long it took for her to arrive, she still came. (Run, Ji Hoon, run. She does not deserve you. I am so anti-Yeol Mae by this time.)

 

The two go for a bit of moon watching and finally Yeol Mae's heart begins to thaw a bit. Meanwhile, Na Hyun works up the courage to confess to Seok Hyun. He carelessly deflects her affections. She asks if he's still in love with Yeol Mae and he doesn't come right out and deny it. Ji Hoon drives Yeol Mae home and before she gets out of the car he pulls her in for a nice long kiss. Just then Na Hyun and Seok Hyun drive up. He's asleep in the passenger seat and doesn't see the other two kissing. Na Hyun quickly turns off the car lights. When Seok Hyun wakes up, Na Hyun grabs his head to keep him from looking forward. She apologizes for what she's about to do and then she kisses him. One of her hands presses against the car horn which makes Ji Hoon and Yeol Mae break apart to see what all the commotion is about. In this short amount of time Na Hyun manages to keep blowing the horn, hold Seok Hyun's face in her hands, and turn the inside light on so Yeol Mae can clearly see them kissing. (This girl can do some serious multi-tasking. That or she's got several arms.)

May Queen Episode 6

You can watch May Queen over at Viki.

 

I'm a bit more sober today.

 

Hong Chul is standing at the edge of the cliff (like a ninny) as behind him cringer Gi Cheol tries to work up the courage to push his old army buddy over. This is when Hae Joo comes upon the two men. She calls out to Gi Cheol and asks what he was doing with his hands. He just says it was nothing. Hae Joo attempts to warn her father about the thugs but she doesn't want to come right out and say anything in front of Gi Cheol. Too late, as the mountain won't come to the thugs, the thugs go to the mountain.

 

They once again demand their money and interest from Hong Chul. Dad explains it will be a couple more weeks before he gets a paycheck. (What, is he paid once a month?) Disgusted, one of the thugs grabs Hae Joo and swings her up over his shoulder to carry her away. Hong Chul tries to intervene but is restrained by another thug. Gi Cheol just stands there like a bump on a log.

 

The loan shark shoves a piece of paper into Hong Chul's shirt pocket. It's the shark's bank account number. He's giving Hong Chul one more week to pay back the money he owes. The first thug then puts Hae Joo down and she runs to her dad. Before the thugs all leave they demand Hong Chul pay for their gas back to town. Dad doesn't have any money. Only now does Gi Cheol involve himself and he offers to give the thugs some money for gas.

 

Gi Cheol goes back to bastard Do Hyun's office. Do Hyun asks why he didn't bring back Hong Chul as instructed. Gi Cheol lies and says he tried but Hong Chul refused to come. Cringer goes on to tell how Hong Chul is in debt and maybe if Do Hyun paid it off then this troublesome man would finally leave. Do Hyun refuses, for the very good reason that once you start paying someone to stop being a problem then you get sucked in to continually paying them and the problem never goes away.

 

Hong Chul runs into Yoon Jeong Woo and he asks about the history of Do Hyun and his dead daughter. Jeong Woo explains the dead baby girl wasn't Do Hyun's daughter but the daughter of his second wife. With this new information Hong Chul goes back to connecting the dots.

 

As Do Hyun and Geum Hee are getting ready for bed, she mentions how her sister, Lee Bong Hee, stopped by for a visit. Do Hyun says he's been wanting to recruit Bong Hee into his own petroleum business. He tells his wife he has to go up to Seoul for one day to do something and not to worry about him. He starts to get frisky and interestingly Geum Hee freezes up. She wishes him a safe trip and leaves the room. Possibly she sleeps in another bedroom? I've been wondering if they have a true marriage or have been platonic all these years.

 

Hong Chul is thinking the family is going to have to skip town again in order to evade the loan shark when Gi Cheol shows up. He's got a satchel full of money, enough to pay off the debt as well as buy another boat. All Hong Chul has to do is take his family and leave Ulsan once and for all. Oh, and he has to give Gi Cheol the little yellow top of Hae Joo's. Hong Chul holds the money and is sorely tempted when in his mind he hears Hae Joo tearfully asking him who her birth mother really is. He put the money back in the satchel and starts asking Gi Cheol some hard questions. Is Hae Joo really Yoo Jin? Was she in the way of Do Hyun marrying Geum Hee and that's why he wanted rid of the baby? Gi Cheol tries to deny it all. Hong Chul says fine, he'll just go speak with Geum Hee and get the story from her.

 

Gi Cheol starts to panic and even thinks of taking a rock and bashing Hong Chul's head in. Thank goodness Cringer is a coward and doesn't follow through on this. Instead he offers to help Hong Chul get to Geum Hee, but they have to do this without the boss man knowing about it. Gi Cheol tells Hong Chul to meet him tonight at nine down by the docks.

 

As Hae Joo is cleaning the house she comes across the little yellow top. She thinks it's for the coming baby and shows it to Pregnant Bitch Mom. Mom recognizes the top and orders Hae Joo to throw the thing away. Privately Pregnant Bitch Mom fumes that her husband kept the top all these years.

 

We see Gi Cheol renting a truck. As he's driving it away he passes a man in a black suit. The Man In Black seems to recognize Gi Cheol. Now I'm not 100% sure of this but Man In Black may be Nameless Minion, the one who got slapped around a couple of episodes back. I'll have to keep watching.

 

Gi Cheol takes the truck to a secluded area and changes license tags on the vehicle. He does a piss poor job of it which may be important later. He starts up the truck and purposely rams it into a metal barrel to make a large dent in the grill.

 

Hae Joo is out gathering food for her family. Chang Hee rides by on his bike and offers to give her a lift back to her house. In return she invites him to stay and eat with the family. Pregnant Bitch Mom-- you know, at this point I don't have to go into detail with what bitchiness is coming out of her mouth. I just have to say Pregnant Bitch Mom and you automatically get the idea. Hae Joo wants to take some food to Dad and Chang Hee jumps at the chance to give her another bike ride. Partly to get away from Pregnant Bitch Mom and partly to have a legitimate excuse for Hae Joo to put her arm around his waist and hold on.

 

They have a bike wreck and Change Hee does the old Korean Drama "I've accidentally rolled on top of you" move. As they're picking themselves up, neither one notices Gi Cheol driving by in the Truck of Doom. When the kids reach the dock, Chang Hee offers to let Hae Joo have the bike for tonight so she can get back home to start dinner. He smiles and waves goodbye and Hae Joo wonders why her heart is beating so fast.

 

Hae Joo gives her father the food and he insists she stay and eat with him. This is so The Show can give us one last sweet father/daughter scene before our hearts are torn in two.

 

Jeong Woo and Bong Hee go to visit his brother's gravesite and pay their respects. Interestingly it is Bong Hee who swears to uncover what really happened to Hak Soo. I thought it would be Jeong Woo swearing eternal vengeance but he's rather blase about the whole thing. That is until Geum Hee shows up to also pay respects. She's happy to see Jeong Woo but he's not of her. In fact he orders her to never speak to him again and to never come to Hak Soo's grave again. I guess Jeong Woo didn't take her quickie remarriage to Do Hyun too well.

 

In Seoul Do Hyun meets with a Director Ahn, a colleague from his days in the Korean CIA. He wants Ahn to help him out with the Kang Dae Pyung problem. To help convince Ahn to help, Do Hyun presents him with a briefcase filled with American money. (The briefcase is brought in by Nameless Minion. Yeah, I'm pretty sure he's Man In Black.)

 

Lee Bong Hee gets back the chemical analyses on the pear trees. The report shows a strong herbicide with a long name I'm not going to attempt has been used on the trees. Just to make sure, Jeong Woo and Bong Hee go stake out the pear orchard at night. Sure enough three of Gi Cheol's men are sneaking around. Bong Hee immediately calls them out and gives chase. Did I mention I love her? She tackles one guy (almost pulling his pants off) but he kicks her in the face. He gets up to run off and instead runs into Jeong Woo. They grapple a bit but the bad guy throws Jeong Woo aside. Jeong Woo does the old Korean Drama "I've accidentally rolled on top of you" move on Bong Hee. He also manages to include the old Korean Drama "My hand is accidentally on your breast" move as well.

 

Jeong Woo reports back to Kang Dae Pyung. Although the culprits got away and they have no real proof Do Hyun is behind it all, Dae Pyung still wants to go to the media with the story.

 

Gi Cheol sits in the Truck of Doom. He's waiting in the dark, watching the entrance to Hong Chul's workplace. Hong Chul starts to come out alone and Gi Cheol takes off the emergency brake. But then the repair dock boss comes out as well and has Hong Chul go back in for something. Gi Cheol puts the brake back on.

 

Hae Joo and her family are at home eating dinner. Pregnant Bitch Mom wonders where her husband is, among other things she bitches about. Hae Joo excuses herself and gets on Chang Hee's bike to go find her father. I know what's coming but I can't help still feel bad about it.

 

Finally Hong Chul comes out alone and is walking up the street. Gi Cheol starts the Truck of Doom and starts driving towards his old army chum. Just then Hae Joo on the bike (and not even looking) practically rides out in front of the truck. Hong Chul fears she'll be hit and he runs into the road to stop the vehicle. Gi Cheol swerves this way and that but still manages to slam into Hong Chul, right in front of Hae Joo. The cringer drives off as Hae Joo cradles her bloody father and screams for help. Kim Yoo Jung's acting here and in the next scene at the hospital is just absolutely amazing and heart wrenching, and she's only thirteen-years-old. Somebody give this child actress an award! Wait, she already has awards. Well she needs another one for this scene alone.

 

Gi Cheol drives to the seaside, gets out, cries over what he's done and repeatedly hits his head against a rock.

 

Pregnant Bitch Mom and the kids arrive at the hospital. They all wait anxiously as Dad is in emergency surgery. Finally the doctor comes out and being a typical Drama Doctor tells the family he did all he could but they had better prepare for the worst. (Drama Doctors have no bedside manner at all.)

 

A bloodied but still alive Gi Cheol stumbles back to his house. Chang Hee sees his father's injuries (not realizing they are self inflicted) and thinks Do Hyun has been beating his father again.

 

The next day word spreads about Hae Joo's father being in an accident. In Hwa insists Geum Hee take her to the hospital so In Hwa can be with Hae Joo. In another scene Chang Hee also wants to go to the hospital but Gi Cheol stops him. This surprises Chang Hee. He thought his father and Hae Joo's father were friends. Doesn't Gi Cheol want to go to the hospital as well? In the end Gi Cheol is forced to drive all of them to the hospital. He looks to be in a bit of a daze himself and shouldn't be operating heavy machinery. In fact he nearly runs over some pedestrians before Chang Hee shouts for him to stop.

 

Hae Joo is at her father's bedside, begging him to wake up. Sure enough he does open his eyes. With labored breath he apologizes to her, saying he only wanted her to have the best life. He then starts to tell her who her real mother is when, whaddya know, in walks Geum Hee. Hong Chul weakly points at the lady.

May Queen Episode 5

I just watched my first Filipino drama.  Lots of singing.  On the plus side there were lots of half naked men running around. On the negative side many of those men didn't need to be half naked. Hit the gym, boys! What's this got to do with a Korean drama? Nothing. I'm just a little bit buzzed at the moment. Listen, kids: don't drink and blog.

 

Hae Joo asks who her birth mother really is. Hong Chul tries to bluff it off, claiming she misunderstood what she overheard. Pregnant Bitch Mom is her mother.

 

Gi Cheol helps Chang Hee home when bastard-in-training Il Mun physically attacks the boy, blaming Chang Hee for In Hwa still not being awake. Gi Cheol manages to pull Il Mun off and begs Il Mun not to blame his son for what happened.

 

The next day Chang Hee goes to his favorite brooding spot, the one that overlooks the ship yard, only to find Hae Joo is already there brooding herself. The two talk and Hae Joo ends up asking where his mother is since she never came to the hospital. Chang Hee confesses that his mother abandoned her family. Hae Joo confides that despite what her father tells her, she still feels that Pregnant Bitch Mom is not her birth mother. The two kids pinkie swear to keep each other's secrets, which leads to some accidental hand holding.

In Hwa finally wakes up. When she hears her parents are blaming Hae Joo for the incident and are thinking of suing Hong Chul, In Hwa explains what really happened and how it was all her fault.

Yoon Jeong Woo and Lee Bong Hee are investigating the pear orchard and why all the trees are getting sick and dying. Bong Hee doesn't eat anything but she does do a lot of sniffing. They take some samples and plan to do some analyses on the roots. As they're heading back to Jeong Woo's place they run into Hae Joo who has brought him some potatoes. Hae Joo and Bong Hee sort of clash, probably because they're so much alike in personality. Later, Bong Hee invites Jeong Woo to go with her when she visits her unni. This makes Jeong Woo defensive. Why would Bong Hee even think he would want to see her unni? Obviously there's some history here.

Now that they know the truth, Geum Hee feels bad about how she's treated Hae Joo. So they throw a cookout and invite all the families over. Hong Chul, who mistakenly thinks bastard Do Hyun is Hae Joo's biological father, sees how warm and loving a father Do Hyun is to his kids. Do Hyun can be a nice guy when he's not beating you with a golf club.

Do Hyun pulls Kang Dae Pyung away to his study to try and get the old man to let him have the pear orchard. The two men end up arguing with Dae Pyung throwing a drink in Do Hyun's face. Dae Pyung drags Kang San home early from the party, which means they get to miss Pregnant Bitch Mom make a complete ass of herself and embarrass her entire family.

Pregnant Bitch Mom takes her other kids and goes home. (Sigh of relief.) Hong Chul privately asks Gi Cheol if Hae Joo is a twin. The way he figures it, In Hwa and Hae Joo are about the same age. So why keep one kid and get rid of the other?

Geum Hee, feeling guilty about slapping Hae Joo earlier, gifts the young girl with a pretty dress. Hae Joo asks to try it on right there. Hong Chul can see how pleased Hae Joo is to be wearing nice clothes. Enjoy it while it lasts, Dad, because once they get home Pregnant Bitch Mom demands Hae Joo take the dress of. She wants to sell it. Husband and wife get into an argument with Hong Chul falling to his knees and crying over why poor Hae Joo has to suffer so.

Later that night he watches over the sleeping girl and thinks back to how much better life seems to be in the big house compared to life with Pregnant Bitch Mom. The solution here would be to get rid of Pregnant Bitch Mom, but that's not gonna happen. When is she ever going to have that baby? She's like that one character on Family Guy who was pregnant for like ten years.

Hong Chul goes and digs out the little sweater Hae Joo was wearing when she was taken as a baby. It is bright yellow with a sail boat on the front. But oh no! He goes to see bastard Jang Do Hyun, not Geum Hee. Oh, you have signed your death warrant, Daddy. He has to wait, though, as Do Hyun is in a meeting with Jeong Woo. Jeong Woo warns the bastard to leave the pear orchard alone. That was his brother's land. Land Hak Soo donated to the poor people. Do Hyun says he's only trying to fulfill Hak Soo's dream of building a ship yard there. Jeong Woo promises he won't give in and storms out of the office.

So now it is Hong Chul's turn. He goes into the office and show Do Hyun the little top, asking if he recognizes it as his baby daughter's clothes. Do Hyun claims he doesn't, and really, what man remembers what a baby wore eleven years ago? Hong Chul suggests they show the top to Geum Hee. Do Hyun lies and says they found the corpse of their dead daughter, so what is Hong Chul trying to pull? Hong Chul packs up the clothing and scuttle out of there, not seeing the startled look on Do Hyun's face.

Do Hyun (who has the hand shakes - this will probably be relevant later on) jumps in his car and tracks down Park Gi Cheol. He drives them to the sea side. Oh no, that's never good in DramaLand when you go near water. Do Hyun asks about Hong Chul and, more importantly, about whether "that child" is dead or not. Ah, so Gi Cheol was supposed to kill Yoo Jin, not just kidnap her. That just makes Do Hyun an even bigger bastard. Cringing Gi Cheol keeps claiming the child is dead, even after a couple of dunkings in the ocean courtesy of his boss.

Back on shore a kneeling Gi Cheol lies some more and tells that he wasn't able to kill the child on his own so he brought in his old army buddy to help him. It was Hong Chul who supposedly killed the baby and must have kept the clothes. Gi Cheol figures the man is in debt and so he wants to blackmail Do Hyun for some money. Do Hyun orders Gi Cheol to go get Hong Chul and they'll all have a nice conversation together.

And now we see why Jeong Woo was so upset at the thought of seeing Bong Hee's unni. It turns out Bong Hee is the younger sister of ... Geum Hee. (There are a lot of Hee's in this show.)

Now that Hae Joo has learned Kang San is the grandson of the owner of the shipyard, she forces the boy to show her every inch of the place.  She wants to go up top of a cargo ship that's being built. Kang San reluctantly follows. He's afraid of heights. The kids make a deal that San will teach her everything about ships if she teaches him everything about welding.

Hae Joo starts for home but Oh No! the thugs are back! She sees them hanging around outside of her home and she runs off to warn her dad.

Dad, meanwhile, is meeting with cringer Gi Cheol next to a cliff. No! After Rule #1 (Don't meet anyone in a Korean drama near the water) is Rule #2 (don't meet anyone in a Korean drama near a cliff.) Gi Cheol confronts his old army buddy about going to Do Hyun. Hong Chul admits he did but he's been convinced that their baby truly is dead and Hae Joo is not their daughter. So who are her parents, he asks. Hong Chul steps closer near the cliff side (no!) and says it's not really important any more. Hae Joo is his daughter no matter what. As he's looking out at the ocean, that wuss Gi Cheol sneaks up behind him. Cringer has his hands up and is just trying to work up the courage to knock Hong Chul over the side when Hae Joo calls out. Hong Chul didn't see what Gi Cheol was up to, but Hae Joo saw the whole thing.

Office Girls Episode 12

I'm trying to kiss up to DramaFever right now, and it's there where you can watch Office Girls.

 

This was a nice little episode, full of warm fuzzies and laugh out loud moments, despite the cartoon sound effects. Even Bitch Mandy managed to bring a smile to my face.

 

It's three o'clock in the morning. Xing Ren finally goes out to see what Zi Qi wanted. He's asleep on a bench. Xing Ren is trying to wake him up when his cell phone lights up with a new text message. Turns out there are other people awake at 3 a.m.  The text is from Kai Er (who is listed on his phone as "Pretty Kai Er") and Xing Ren can't help but read the message. In it Kai Er explains about that night she wore his shirt and went up to the girls' apartment. She apologizes and hopes they're still friends.

 

Xing Ren wakes Zi Qi up and he also starts to explain about that night. Xing Ren stops him and says she believes him. (Well of course you do now that you've seen Kai Er's text.) While the two playfully spar out on the patio, Moma Shen peeks out and watches them with delight.

 

The PB counter opens for business and is an instant success. Everybody's wearing PlayBoy. As our store characters congratulate Yu Cheng Feng, his maybe-ex girlfriend Wei Mi Na shows up. She announces she no longer wants PlayBoy's counterspace. However, she does make the request to have Shen Xing Ren design a new counter for the Yu Cheng Feng brand. Xing Ren tries to point out she's in sales, not design, but her boss Shi Te Long overrides her and gleefully loans her out to Mi Na.

 

Moma Shen comes by the store to drop off some homemade wine to Te Long. She mentions she'd like to go see Danshui and Te Long, thinking to be helpful, orders Zi  Qi and Xing Ren to go with her. Once there, Moma Shen knows to make herself scarce and announces she'd rather walk around by herself. This leaves Xing Ren and Zi Qi to have a day together on a not-date. He attempts to play a sharpshooter game in order to win her a stuffed bear. He doesn't hit a single balloon so he ends up buying the bear for an inflated price. While they're out and about, Zi Qi gives her a key to his apartment.

 

Meanwhile, back at the office, after Shi Te Long wakes up from his afternoon nap, the remaining sales people discuss the new makeup samples. One sample is of a lip gloss that includes a mirror and an LED light so women can apply their makeup in the clubs. Te Long flashes back to being trapped in the elevator with Le Le and how she confessed to being scared of the dark. This would be perfect for her. He takes the sample and runs Le Le down to give it to her. Although she at first sneers that he's giving her a sample product, she doesn't turn down anything for free. She still won't get into an elevator with him, though.

 

That night Xing Ren receives a video message on her phone from Zi Qi, who is downstairs in his apartment. He speaks through the stuffed bear, telling her what a great guy Zi Qi is and she had better grab him. Xing Ren sends a video message of her own. She pretends her stuffed bear is Zi Qi and she abuses the poor toy for a bit. Yet at the end she smiles and wishes him a good night. This is enough to make Zi Qi happy.

 

The next day at work Wei Mi Na swings by to grab Xing Ren so they can talk about the new counter. Talk as in Mi Na goes to get a massage as Xing Ren stands there uncomfortably. She shows Mi Na a design but the businesswoman doesn't like it. Doesn't Xing Ren have any other alternatives to show? Xing Ren gets a call from Zi Qi and she admits things aren't going very well. He offers to come to the spa and handle Mi Na. He shows her some popular designs being used in France. If Mi Na sees something she likes, they can adapt it to make it their own. Mi Na turns her nose up at the idea of plagiarizing. (People, it's a counter. How hard is it to design a counter?)

 

At the store Le Le goes into the women's restroom and is in a stall. Next to her a pervert is peeking over the top. Eww. Le Le screams, which Shi Te Long hears from outside. He runs into the bathroom to confront the pervert. The guy happens to trip and fall against a post, knocking himself out. Le Le comes out of the stall and Te Long takes all the credit, comforting the crying girl.

 

But for every step he takes forward he gets knocked back two. Turns out they're still having those special team meetings and Le Le practically ignores Te Long in favor of Michael, Cheng Feng's assistant. Kai Er is apparently out on vacation. Te Long and Zi Qi ask Cheng Feng how should a difficult client be handled as they describe (but don't name) Wei Mi Na and her behavior. Cheng Feng replies this is a good question and that's what the two teams will be working on for the next presentation. The teams have been mixed up so now Zi Qi and Xing Ren will be working together.

 

Xing Ren is in her apartment going through several design books (again, it's just a counter!) and Zi Qi volunteers to help her. They work throughout the night. Moma Shen silently watches them with glee. Yet as she turns around to head off to bed she suddenly grimaces in pain and grabs her side.