Mi-rae’s Choice: Episode 6

by gummimochi

Simply put, I love this episode. Knowing the future can be dangerous, especially when you can never be certain of what the outcome will be. So I love that our hero doesn’t let a pesky prediction get in the way of trying his best anyway, future be damned. Who knew that our serious morning show host would one day put his own neck on the line for the sake of others? Will he be able to save lives, save his career, and get the girl?

Good news: Mi-rae’s Choice saw a small upswing with this episode hitting a 7.5%. Huzzah!

SONG OF THE DAY

K. Will – “촌스럽게 왜 이래 (You Don’t Know Love)” [ Download ]

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EPISODE 6 RECAP

Everyone gapes in shock as lightning strikes Namsan Tower, causing the spindle to crack. Shin can hardly believe it, even though he’s seen it with his own eyes. Which is when Oppa calls, yelling that he would have filmed this once-in-a-lifetime event if he had known about it earlier.

Ajumma tells him to go ahead, and tells him about a fire at a subway station that will occur the day after tomorrow during the morning rush hour. Giving him the arsonist’s description and how there will be over a hundred casualties, she tells him to cover it as a special feature.

Mi-rae jumps into action, and when Oppa says that it could be a load of crackpot nonsense, she says no—everything Ajumma says comes true. Unfortunately, the police takes her warnings as a drunken rant and sends her away.

Ajumma Mi-rae asks if Shin believes her now, adding that these are true events and not mere predictions. “If it’s true, then we have to stop it!” Shin yells. Despite what she may think, he’s not someone to put lives at risk just to cover a big story.

Jokey PD is shocked when the subway station’s CCTV cameras captures the arsonist (wearing a red hat) on video. It spooks him and the rest of the team, who collectively rack their brains on how to tackle this. Then Se-joo suggests the simpler solution—why don’t they just broadcast it instead?

He enlists Yoo-kyung’s help to obtain permission from the subway officials to film there. She pouts with worry outside the office, but as it turns out, she gets the okay without even lifting one aegyo finger, much to her confusion.

The team is both surprised and impressed at the news, and Shin raises a suspicious eyebrow when he hears that someone had already put in a word for them. He immediately suspects Se-joo and hangs back to ask who’s pulling the power strings behind him.

Se-joo answers that it all worked out anyway: they’ll save lives, have a show, and raise ratings. That last part is the wrong thing to say to Shin at present, but Se-joo remains realistic about how ratings are also important in this industry.

The team spends the next day in disaster prep mode by surveying the station, asking the medics for help, etc. I do love the bit when Jokey PD tests the sprinkler system himself with a lighter as his hoobaes cringe, and deadpans, “It doesn’t work.”

Oppa nearly flips his lid at Shin’s suggestion to come clean about everything they know about the predicted arson. There are lives at stake, Shin argues, and wouldn’t it be awfully convenient that a production team just happened to be at the scene of the crime?

He doesn’t feel right about putting on a show to fool the public, to which Oppa retorts, “And will that go on air?!” Shin counters that it’s their job to relay the truth and stick to their principles, but Oppa shrewdly points out that they’re in this mess in the first place because of him.

Shin catches Oppa at the elevator and agrees to go into the subway himself to intercept the criminal. He won’t let his appearance be sold as mere coincidence however, and he requests that Mi-rae work with him.

Oppa says that’s out of the question, and they bicker about why Mi-rae isn’t an option. Having overheard the tail-end of this discussion, Mi-rae appears around the corner and volunteers to go out into the field.

Shin bolsters that argument by saying she’s been taking “lessons” from him anyway. Mmhm, okay, you keep calling them lessons for now. Oppa has no choice but to let her go, even though he doesn’t like the arrangement.

As they survey the subway station, Shin chides himself for being selfish and thinking this story could be one last shot at saving his career. But Mi-rae points out that he took on the job anyway and even broke his own set of principles for his team.

Shin gets on the defensive in his usual huffy tone, to which Mi-rae wonders why he purposefully makes himself out to be the bad guy and pushing people away. There isn’t a point in getting to know his co-workers on a personal basis when it’s every man for himself, Shin argues.

Mi-rae asks why he seems to be friendly with Yoo-kyung then, and Shin answers that she’s refreshing and he feels comfortable around her. He turns the question on her about Se-joo, and when he gets the same answer, he asks if they’re really dating.

She asks if he’d like it if they were, and he averts his eye while answering that they look good together. Then Mi-rae asks why Shin specifically requested her to help him and if he treats his other hoobae to tours around the building and private lessons like he does with her. Shin answers: “Because you’re special.” Omo.

After a noticeable pause, he adds that he never had to pay so much attention to another hoobae to make sure they did their job right. For a journalist who boasts about the truth, you sure have a hard time admitting your own feelings, eh?

Mi-rae is near tears now, and when she nearly falls into the tracks in her distracted state, Shin pulls her out. Then he says that he’s never taught anyone else (i.e., she’s the only one). Aw.

Ajumma Mi-rae is alarmed to hear that Mi-rae and Shin are out on assignment together. She sets off to find her younger self (it’s so cute how they both have each other saved as “Younger/Older Me” on their phones), and even hangs up on Chairman Lee in her haste.

She finds Mi-rae packing in the office to warn her that going out into the field is too dangerous. She backs down and apologizes, admitting that she didn’t have the foresight to think of the potential victims in her prediction. But why does Mi-rae keep hanging around Shin anyway?

Ajumma Mi-rae confirms that her younger self will be ruined if she marries Shin, “I’m you, after all.” But Mi-rae counters that they’re in fact quite different, and she’s already changed for the better.

It’s Shin and his stubborn personality that’s the problem, Ajumma repeats, and the changes in her own personality won’t influence the future AT ALL. To that, Mi-rae answers matter-of-factly that Shin has changed—why he’s even taken on this story for the sake of his team.

That’s news to Ajumma Mi-rae as she tries to compute the fact that Shin possibly has noble intentions that extends further than himself.

As for Shin, he paces outside the subway entrance, arguing with himself between hoping the arson story will be hit and (literally) slapping himself for wishing for such a horrible thing.

Ajumma Mi-rae issues one last word of warning to Mi-rae before she heads out. She needs to be careful with messing with major events, or she might find herself in a bigger tangled mess. Mi-rae assures her that they have everything under control.

The station manager is alerted about the faulty sprinkler system, and orders the plumber to fix it. The plumber apologizes for overlooking the problem… and then puts on his red hat. Ack, it’s you!!

D-Day. The morning show goes on air without Shin, who gripes over how they chose not to tell the truth like he wanted. Meanwhile, Oppa is a ball of nerves as he checks in repeatedly with everyone at their stations to make sure the location is secure.

Oppa then quietly confers with Ajumma Mi-rae on whether they’ve set everything up at the right station, which is when Ajumma’s voice falters, unsure of whether it was the subway car or the station itself. Uh oh.

At the same time, Shin and Mi-rae are only one stop away from their destination. He reminds her to forgo the broadcast and save the others in a worst-case scenario. And that’s when Red Hat enters the subway car.

Though Shin says it could be anyone, they film him anyway just in case, and watch him fiddle with his backpack. Then the entire car reels in shock as Red Hat pours lighter fluid onto the floor just as Ajumma remembers that it was the subway car. Ohhh crap.

Oppa relays the danger to the team immediately, but it’s too late because Red Hat has already flicked on his lighter and set the car ablaze.

Shin covers Mi-rae out of harm’s way as Red Hat exits, cackling like madman. Then Shin sets off after him with Mi-rae filming behind him with her phone. Ack!!

Luckily the train pulls into the next stop where the production crew is, and the panicked passengers stampede out of the smoky train in droves. It only gets worse from there since both the water supply and sprinkler system is inaccessible while Oppa frantically tries to get ahold of his sister.

Thankfully Mi-rae calls to inform Oppa that she’s fine and that she’s recording the entire thing on her phone as she follows the chase in the station.

Se-joo, meanwhile, tries to ram his way into the locked water tank room just as Yoo-kyung arrives with the keys. What they find inside is the tank handle chained to the pipes, and they get to work to cut through them.

Shin corners Red Hat in a dead end as the live footage broadcasts on air. The rookie announcer covers the story no better than a poor sports commentator: “Will he grab the lighter?” “Oh no, it got taken away!” Ha, I know it’s supposed to be a tension-filled dramatic scene, but it’s still funny.

Red Hat wrestles out of Shin’s grip and threatens them again, but he’s out of ammo and forced to run. Shin gives chase, telling Mi-rae to run, but she crashes into a display that falls on top of her.

Sliding her phone over, Mi-rae sends Shin after their culprit, and with great reluctance, Shin promises to be back soon. Eek, but that open lighter fluid bottle is sure making me nervous.

Shin chases down Red Hat and stalls him long enough to be apprehended by the authorities. He barely takes two seconds before running back for Mi-rae. Hurry!

At the same time, Mi-rae tries to squeeze out to no avail as electrical sparks fly around her, threatening to set the floor alight. Shin arrives and lifts the display so Mi-rae can escape just as the sprinklers turn on.

They both break into smiles of relief as they sit under the sprinklers. Se-joo arrives just then to see them together, and you can almost see his heart break then and there.

When Shin apologizes for throwing her into danger, Mi-rae answers that she’s learned a lot from the experience. Shin says that he’s learned something too: “That you [Mi-rae] can never die.”

By some miracle (or dramaland rule), Shin’s phone still works, and Oppa is utterly relieved to see Mi-rae safe and sound. Then Shin takes over the closing and informs the public truthfully that their team was tipped off about the incident and planned accordingly in advance.

He admits that things quickly turned dangerous, but everything turned out all right in the end. Shin: “The future [mi-rae]… fate… is a lot scarier than anything we can prepare for. But one choice can also change the future. The future isn’t set in stone. Your choice is your future.”

The story is a bona fide hit, and Chairman Lee stews in her office before issuing the order to leave the morning show as is.

Shin and his team go out for a celebratory dinner in high spirits, and he even praises them on a job well done, to their amazement. They teasingly toss out ideas to cover Shin’s marked personality change next, and ha, Mi-rae silently reminds him to smile.

Mi-rae notices that both Se-joo and Yoo-kyung are absent, and learns that Se-joo will be joining them later whereas Yoo-kyung is off at an invite-only chaebol birthday party. Ten bucks says Se-joo is at the same party.

It quickly becomes apparent that despite Yoo-kyung’s reporter status, she clearly isn’t welcomed within the high-society circle. Yoo-kyung scopes out the crowd of celebrities and singers, determined to mingle anyway.

HA, Yoo-kyung’s awkward out-of-place experience just cracks me up as she sneers at the pretentiousness of it all.

Mi-rae is sent out an errand and gets held up by a nightclub employee trying to persuade her for more business. Having followed behind her, Shin intercedes just then, and lays down a nerdy smackdown. It’s… kinda awesome.

As they walk away, the employee curses up a storm behind them, which effectively stirs Shin’s temper. So he marches back and get up in the guy’s face… to give him a talking to about curbing his words.

Then Shin turns to Mi-rae and asks if he did well, like a child seeking praise for his actions, and she tells him that he did.

Shin asks if her hand is okay now, saying that he really wanted to send her out of harm’s way earlier. She asks why, and he answers, “Because [the thought] bothered me.”

Mi-rae becomes aware of how their hands brush each other at that moment, so Shin takes her hand and scoops it into his pocket with his, saying, “We’ll just get rid of that bothersome thought then.” That’s it. I’m done for. Adorbs.

And not far behind them, Ajumma Mi-rae emerges with a watchful eye.

Back at the party, Yoo-kyung cocks her head curiously when she spots Se-joo sitting alone. I’m pretty sure those sunglasses will attract more attention, but whatever. It doesn’t take long for her to put the pieces together in her head as he’s approached by a couple of rich buddies.

Se-joo rises and locks eyes with Yoo-kyung, and he allows her to confirm that the maknae VJ is in fact a chaebol heir.

He meets her at his car, now changed into his casual attire, and Yoo-kyung now addresses him in jondaemal. Her tone makes it clear that they cannot belong in the same social circles anymore, as he confesses his noble intentions to learn about the company from the ground up.

When he asks her to keep his secret, she jokes that she has to or else he’ll fire her. Above all, Mi-rae can’t know about his blue-blood status because she’s too pure and will just run away.

Yoo-kyung scoffs and asks if it’s so bad to have feelings for a rich man. Hm, something tells me we’re not talking about Mi-rae anymore. He simply answers that he’s come across too many golddiggers who have before.

She remains silent in the car, and Se-joo asks if she’s upset about the truth before they join the others. But Yoo-kyung turns around with a wide smile and speaks to him in banmal like before. It’s only after she sends Se-joo on ahead does she let the truth sink in.

Yoo-kyung runs into Ajumma Mi-rae at the convenience store, and they both recognize each other. She helps pick up Ajumma’s things off of the floor, which is when Yoo-kyung asks why the ajumma has Mi-rae’s diary.

Ajumma brusquely answers that that’s her name too, but something pings off Yoo-kyung’s suspicion radar.

Se-joo’s face darkens to see Mi-rae sitting alone. He sits beside her reluctantly, and she thanks him, having heard about his heroic feat with the sprinklers.

He brightens a little at that and hints that it’d sure be nice if somebody gave him a massage for his efforts. Mi-rae obliges with a smile.

Shin returns at that moment and sees the two smiling and laughter together. His face falls.

COMMENTS

What a fantastic episode. Among the many things that I enjoy about this show, I love watching our four leads interact with each other and their subsequent pairings. I think that the show has done a fair job in that area up to this point, and to be quite honest, I’m torn between Team Shin and Team Se-joo. It seemed so easy at the start when Se-joo was the perfect gentlemanly foil to Shin’s hot-headedness, but now that we’ve broke through that confidence to reveal a vulnerable underbelly with a heart for others, I can see how Mi-rae fell for Shin. (The first time, that is. Unless Ajumma Mi-rae had her own future advisor, which would make it the nth time.)

Mi-rae continues to impress me as a heroine time and time again with her steadfastness and stubbornness towards her career and herself. I admire the way she sticks up for herself and take the initiative, a characteristic that was initially buried under her insecurity. At first it was to prove her self-worth, but I like that we see that consistent quality in her as the story progresses. Her general carefree attitude about love (which could make her interactions with each suitor that much more blissful) is a quality I enjoy about her because she has no idea that that’s why both men are drawn to her. I find it delightfully charming for now and dearly hope that doesn’t change.

As the story continues to transform into different versions tweaked by personal choices, it’s safe to say that this specific timeline differs from Ajumma Mi-rae’s reality (time-space conundrums are simply beyond me). That being said, it grounds Mi-rae’s remark that although she and Ajumma are the same person in being, they are quite different. This makes for a jarring experience on a character consistency level when you’ve got one optimistic heroine versus one jaded one and wonder if they’re actually the same person. But I’m intrigued by the exploration of how our futuristic heroine arrived at this shift in perspective that led to her narrow-minded focus on her one-woman mission. And that biased perspective is what makes her an unreliable narrator, who is deadset on one outcome.

Shin is quickly becoming one of my favorite characters, especially within the past two weeks. I love that we’re already seeing some marked changes in his character, and although we have Mi-rae to thank as a main influence for that change, it’s rewarding to see him warm up to his co-workers even though their allegiance to him can turn on a dime. I like that we got to see the transition from his brewing romantic feelings to his denial and the eventual honest admission and expression of how special Mi-rae is. I like that Mi-rae can see past his defenses and call him out on them, and in that same vein, directly challenge his intentions for seeing her outside of work. How ironic that the journalist needs a reminder to be true to all things, including his feelings.

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