Emergency Couple: Episode 20

by Slappyunni

If a man and woman wake up together naked, and no one else is there to see it, did it really happen? Does it mean that it was the work of Fate, or the work of copious amounts of beer? Or is it simply two people who are rediscovering the parts of their selves that they fell in love with long ago?

 
EPISODE 20 RECAP

Jin-hee and Chang-min scream at the top of their lungs as they wake up nekkid in bed together. After taking a shower, Chang-min calls out for a towel which sparks another memory for Jin-hee.

In flashback, we see Jin-hee embarrassedly offering a towel to a wet Chang-min. Laughing, he yanks her into the bathroom. The camera stays on the hallway, and we see her sweater, pants, bra and panties fly through the air before landing in a heap on the floor.

In the present, Jin-hee smiles to herself, perhaps in pleasant anticipation. Closing her eyes, she offers the towel to Chang-min…only to be disappointed when she hears him say that he found a towel inside the bathroom after all. Pffft.

As Chang-min puts out breakfast, he recalls the previous night. In his memory, he watches Jin-hee sleep and eventually falls asleep himself. They snuggle closer and closer together as the night wears on.

Still mostly asleep, Jin-hee reaches for his face and they kiss. Their clothes and underwear land in a pile beside the bed.

Feeling awkward, Jin-hee joins Chang-min for breakfast. He asks whether she remembers what happened, and she replies that she sort of remembers but sort of doesn’t. He admonishes her to drink less booze but she adamantly denies that she gets that drunk with just anybody.

She essentially denies having been with anybody else during the past six years. Turning the tables on Chang-min, she asks him whether he’s been with another woman. As if having to rack his memory, he teases her while her alarm grows.

Laughing, Chang-min insists that there has been no other woman in his life since Jin-hee. Looking dubious, she brings up his time in the States. I guess, you know, ’cause we American women are fast and loose?

Chang-min says that he had a hard time forgetting Jin-hee and that he was solely focused on his studies. This finally brings a smile to her face.

As they drive to work, Chang-min can’t help but tease Jin-hee some more. Claiming to remember everything that happened, he jokes that he thinks Jin-hee’s put on some weight while her breasts have gotten smaller. As she splutters, he laughs and finally admits that his memory of the previous night is also hazy.

Chun-soo suggests to Ji-hye that he’d like to look into a clinical trial for the grandma with lung cancer. When she confirms that she once worked at a cancer center in the States, he asks her to inquire whether it’s a possible fit.

A previous patient of Chun-soo’s is back in the emergency room after having tried to commit suicide via pill overdose. The patient is an opera singer who can no longer sing after being treated for acute laryngitis. Everyone races to stabilize and stomach-pump him.

Later, Jin-hee poses to Chang-min the same question that Chun-soo once posed to her. She asks: would he rather live and work as a doctor for one month, or would he rather quit being a doctor and live a long life? He replies that he wants to continue working as a doctor AND live a long life with her.

He then makes a big show of drinking from the opposite lip of the water bottle from which Jin-hee just drank. As he drinks, Jin-hee smacks the underside of the bottle. Water spills down Chang-min’s chin, and Jin-hee sticks her tongue out at him.

Yong-gyu expresses some trepidation about leaving medicine and embarking on a music career. Ah-reum reassures him that he will be happier once he’s doing what he really wants to be doing. She then asks him out on a date to see a concert during the weekend.

A passing nurse bumps into Yong-gyu, causing him to spill his beverage all over Ah-reum’s scrubs. Without thinking, he rubs at her chest until they both realize the awkwardness of the situation.

Chang-min and Jin-hee work on the opera singer patient who suddenly regains consciousness and pushes Chang-min away. The patient grabs the scissors in Jin-hee’s hand and violently slashes his wrist. Chun-soo, Ji-hye, and other residents rush to restrain him.

The patient shouts that he no longer wants to live. He demands to know who ruined his singing voice and Chun-soo shouts back that it was he who did so in order to save his life. The patient bemoans his hard work and lost opportunities.

Chun-soo yells that people have overcome circumstances even more desperate than the patient’s: “Opportunities will come again, and your voice may very well return!” When the patient continues to struggle, Chun-soo demands that he be restrained.

In his office, Ji-hye asks Chun-soo if he’s okay. She knows it’s not the first time that saving a patient’s life has resulted in the curtailing of their dream. She recalls having to amputate a patient’s leg, only to discover that he had dreams of becoming a basketball player. She mentions another patient whose dream of becoming a pianist was shattered when her hand was amputated at the wrist.

Chun-soo muses, “As I work, I wonder whether I’m really working to save lives, or whether I’m only doling out despair. People who would otherwise die comfortably…am I only prolonging their pain?”

Ji-hye agrees that at times, she feels that she only wants to save the patients who want to live. But she realizes that death is not something that anyone can or should choose.

Smiling gratefully, Chun-soo considers himself fortunate that he can still talk about these kinds of things with Ji-hye. She teases that he must have been awfully lonely during the time when he didn’t have somebody to have these conversations with.

The married girl intern is upset at her husband and his apparent lack of concern over her health. Shouting, she gripes that he doesn’t consider her feelings about not wanting to get pregnant. A couple of residents break up their fight and tell them this isn’t their living room.

Ji-hye and Chun-soo finalize the proposal for checking the grandma with lung cancer into a clinical trial. She asks Jin-hee to explain the arrangements to grandma’s son. When Chun-soo offers to speak to the son himself, Jin-hee insists that she’ll do it and will ask for his help only if needed.

Studying Chun-soo closely, Ji-hye chuckles at his awkwardness. Defensive, he asks why she’s laughing, but she only chuckles some more.

When Jin-hee offers up the clinical trial proposal to the grandma’s son, he replies that he’s already received a recommendation for a clinic from Professor Ahn.

Jin-hee and Chang-min agree that Ji-hye’s cancer clinic is probably a better choice for the patient. With sudden resolve, Chang-min walks over and asks Professor Ahn whether he can sit in on his research clinic presentation he’s making.

Later, Chang-min sits with the grandma’s son and points out the pros of choosing the cancer clinic in the States. The son agrees that it seems to be a much better fit, and wonders why he wasted time listening to the other proposal. Ruh roh.

Sure enough, Professor Ahn, looking furious, stamps into Chun-soo’s office. Angrily, he insists that Chun-soo has again overstepped his bounds. He grabs him by the lapels, and criticizes him bitterly about his utter lack of respect for hierarchy.

Chang-min listens with great interest to Jin-hee as she speaks on her phone to a friend who tries to convince her to go out on a blind date. Jin-hee refuses, insisting she has no time to date eligible chaebol bachelors.

Hanging up, Jin-hee is startled to find Chang-min in the office. He tries to feign nonchalance by flipping hurriedly through a textbook. She sidles up to his desk, and asks him whether he’d like to catch a movie later.

They both claim (again) that neither so much as dated during the six years apart. Looking her squarely in the eyes, Chang-min teases, “Who could have merely looked at this woman and left her alone?”

As Chang-min leaves work, Chun-soo stops to ask him if he presented the clinical trial to the grandma’s son. When he confirms it, Chun-soo tells him he did well and pats him on the shoulder.

Jin-hee catches Ji-hye in her office and apologizes for having been oblivious to her relationship with Chun-soo. Ji-hye clarifies that she and Chun-soo were in a relationship six years ago. Even so, Jin-hee asks why Ji-hye encouraged her in regards to Chun-soo.

Ji-hye replies that she likes Jin-hee, and that Jin-hee is the person who shook up Chun-soo’s heart. She adds obliquely that in relationships, the impossible can become possible.

Jin-hee catches up to Chang-min and still wants her movie date, much to his amusement. But then she walks away to take a phone call from Chang-min’s mom and agrees to meet with her later that day. She merely tells Chang-min that their date isn’t going to happen today after all.

Chang-min’s mom has discovered that her husband paid for Jin-hee’s medical school tuition. Jin-hee apologizes, but Chang-min’s mom says that it eases her mind that her husband may have made up for her own behavior towards Jin-hee.

Jin-hee’s face falls when Chang-min’s mom encourages Jin-hee to meet someone new and start afresh. But she goes on to say that whether Jin-hee and Chang-min work out or not, she is going to live her own life. She realizes now that her son’s life cannot be her own.

Jin-hee is struck near-speechless, but then, Chang-min’s mom more realistically says that she is unable to apologize for her past behavior to Jin-hee, because that is who she is. Jin-hee replies that it’s okay, and Chang-min’s mom thanks her.

Strolling through the hallway together, Ji-hye teases Chun-soo, asking whether he doesn’t like her because she comes saddled with a child. She tells him that her daughter and her parents are coming to Korea for a short visit on the weekend.

Jin-hee settles onto her couch with her sister and Baby Guk. Jin-ae chides her for not having come home last night and starts in on the questions: “Did you sleep together? After drinking? Was it good? You don’t remember?” Embarrassed, Jin-hee redirects the conversation by asking of Kwang-soo’s whereabouts.

Suddenly serious, Jin-ae admits that Kwang-soo left the house after they had a huge fight.

Meanwhile, Kwang-soo calls out Chang-min for drinks and complains about fighting with Jin-ae over money that he loaned to a friend.

Chang-min offers relationship advice to Kwang-soo. First on his list of dos and don’ts is the following: only take action after discussing things over with the wife. Secondly, he says, a man needs to keep his word. Once vows are spoken, a man needs to see things through to the end. Kwang-soo hilariously interjects that he and Jin-ae haven’t had an actual wedding ceremony.

Thirdly, Chang-min says that a man should always lose to the woman. When Kwang-soo reacts with doubt, Chang-min says it’s not like men can win against women anyway.

At another table in the same bar, Jin-hee advises Jin-ae to overlook all of a man’s shortcomings. She reasons that such things can never be changed and that the focus needs to stay on the good things. She asks Jin-ae what she originally liked about Kwang-soo, and Jin-ae replies, “His looks.” Haha.

She adds that she did like his positive attitude as well. Jin-hee advises her to trust in this one thing and ignore everything else.

Jin-ae asks what other advice Jin-hee has to offer, but she replies that there is no more. She thinks men are simple creatures, and that her advice is enough to provide for 50 years of marital harmony.

Leaning in, Jin-ae is still curious to know whether Jin-hee and Chang-min slept together. As Jin-hee pauses, Kwang-soo’s voice rings out loudly from the other end of the bar: “You slept together??” The two women giggle, without realizing that it’s Kwang-soo.

It’s Kwang-soo’s turn to pry for details from Chang-min, but suddenly he hears Jin-ae’s voice loudly complaining that she’s unable to live appreciating one good quality in a man, when so many other things about the man bother her. Chang-min physically drags Kwang-soo over to the girls’ table.

When chided about their fighting, Kwang-soo and Jin-ae laugh at the irony. They tell Chang-min and Jin-hee to sort THEIR issues out, and then head out to go make up.

As Chang-min walks her home, Jin-hee tells him that she met with his mom earlier. He reacts with a surprising lack of shock to the news that his mom no longer intends to interfere in their lives.

In front of her house, Jin-hee stares awkwardly at Chang-min. When he just stands there, she takes the matter into her own hands and reaches up to kiss him on the cheek. They exchange smiles and waves.

The next day, Chun-soo and Jin-hee check in on the opera singer patient. Still in despair, the patient asks, “What will I be able to do now?” Chun-soo replies that he can do anything but the patient scoffs doubtfully.

Chun-soo adds that the patient will probably now be able to see and consider possibilities that he’s never been able to see or consider before. Jin-hee is moved by his words.

Chang-min finds Jin-hee lost in thought and clearly, she has applied Chun-soo’s words to her own personal situation. When she explains that they’ll have a lot to see in the future, and that they’ll have many things to consider for each other, Chang-min asks whether that’s a confession. She denies it with a smile.

Jin-hee’s phone rings, and on the line is her friend who is insistent on setting her up on the blind date. In irritation, Jin-hee snaps that she has no interest but before she can hang up, Chang-min grabs the phone.

Turning on the polite charm, he introduces himself and declares that he and Jin-hee are dating. In light of this, he asks firmly that the matchmaking stop, but softens his request with a friendly invitation to dinner. Jin-hee smiles happily as he walks away.

Meanwhile, the chief of the ER complains bitterly to Chun-soo about Professor Ahn’s latest ruckus. When Ji-hye tells him that she has been asked to go back to the States, Chun-soo rushes out to confront Professor Ahn.

Stopping him, Ji-hye says that it’s enough for her that the lung cancer patient chose the clinical trial that she recommended. “I’ll go back (to the States),” she says. She thinks perhaps things have worked out for the best, as she had been thinking that she needed to be with her daughter.

“Don’t do that,” Chun-soo replies. He says he won’t stand for Professor Ahn’s antics, but Ji-hye stops him from taking it any further.

Chang-min tells Jin-hee about Ji-hye’s dismissal and regrets that he got involved with the lung cancer patient in the first place. He’s bothered enough to go meet with Chun-soo, but Chun-soo reassures him that he did the right thing.

When Chang-min wonders whether he should have better observed formalities, Chun-soo scoffs and reminds him that every second is important to the patient. Informing the patients so that they can quickly make their own decisions is all that needs to be done, according to Chun-soo. He tells Chang-min not to worry about Ji-hye because he’ll do whatever he has to in order to resolve her situation, and says that he hopes Chang-min won’t have to encounter these struggles when it’s his time to be the chief.

Jin-hee gets off work when Chang-min comes running up to her to grab her by the wrist. When she asks what’s going on, he smiles and says, “A kidnapping. And this time, I won’t fail.” Hand in hand, they run through the hospital.

Once outside, they continue running down the street. In voiceover, Jin-hee remembers her sister asking what she liked so much about Chang-min. We hear Jin-hee’s reply: “Precisely this kind of thing…his boldness in moving forward with me. The aspects of his personality so different from my own…”

They stop outside of a hotel, and Jin-hee asks whether they’re going in. He tells her to hurry, but she says that today isn’t a good day and that she wanted to just talk with him instead. Chang-min replies that he only needs two hours and Jin-hee seems exasperated.

Chang-min says that if she’s that tired, she can just go in and sleep. Jin-hee replies, “How can we come all the way here and just sleep?”

Cut to: the two of them sitting in a theater. Chang-min watches the movie while Jin-hee struggles to stay awake. Ahahaha. Okay, I fell for this one and assumed they’d been discussing whether to check into a love motel.

As the movie plays on, Jin-hee eventually succumbs to sleep, while the camera pans over to Chang-min who is busy wiping away tears. He wakes her when the movie ends, and she’s embarrassed that she slept through the whole thing. It’s Chang-min’s turn to be embarrassed when she asks him if he’s been crying.

Over drinks, Chun-soo brings up Professor Ahn but Ji-hye doesn’t want to talk about it. He’s concerned that her sudden departure will taint her resume, but she demands that he stop. She repeats again that she wants to go back to the States.

She continues, “The truth is, I thought I was fine all this time, but I don’t think I can see you anymore. No, I mean, I’d prefer not to see you.” Angry now, she rebukes him for his repetitive patterns of behavior. He thinks she’s referring to their past, but she tells him that he mishandled his relationship with Jin-hee.

Ji-hye says that he should put himself out there with the expectation of getting hurt. Otherwise, how else can he sort through and understanding his feelings if he never even tries?

In stark contrast to Ji-hye and Chun-soo, Chang-min and Jin-hee canoodle over snacks and drinks at a food truck.

Chun-soo broods as he considers Ji-hye’s outburst. With sudden resolve, he calls Jin-hee, who doesn’t pick up. He eyes the red jacket that she gave him before rushing out.

For whatever reason, he asks the taxi ajusshi to let him off at the bus stop instead of the house. He stands there as if waiting, and sure enough, Chang-min and Jin-hee get off the next bus at the same stop.

Chang-min jokes about how long their dates are going to stay wholesome. When Jin-hee asks him what he means, he leans in for a kiss. Only several meters away, Chun-soo watches them while his eyes twitch with hurt.

COMMENTS

I am mystified. At this point, we all know that Jin-hee has chosen Chang-min. Why is Chun-soo, here in the next to last episode, only now making a play for Jin-hee? Could it be that the one episode extension caused the writers to cast about for one final conflict, only to settle on trotting out the second lead for one last round of emotional battering? And let’s face it: there is no added suspense that Jin-hee might yet choose Chun-soo. I’ve never seen a drama heroine yet who transfers her affections from one man to another in the course of one episode or even twenty. That’d be considered loose, y’all. Remember, we’re to believe that neither Jin-hee nor Chang-min had sex with anybody else for six years. Six years, people! As I watched those scenes, my right eyebrow migrated to a different line of latitude entirely from my left. They’re still misaligned as we speak.

Now, please don’t misunderstand me. I value constancy. I value fidelity. But I do not consider Jin-hee’s and Chang-min’s six years of abstinence as “fidelity” because they were not in a relationship with each other–they were divorced. Nor do I like the show’s seeming insistence that their abstinence/”fidelity” must certainly equate to love. That’s just ass backwards. It’s when love (and commitment to a relationship) effectuates fidelity that I swoon in satisfaction.

What also dissatisfies me is that using Chun-soo to try to generate one last lame duck conflict and point of non-suspense effectively guarantees that Chun-soo and Ji-hye will not get their happily ever after. There simply isn’t enough time left for our second leads to hash things out in any sort of convincing fashion. And I realize now that I’d been counting on it. How can Ji-hye, who’s been all sorts of awesomesauce, not get her man? How can Chun-soo toil on, saving the world one patient at a time, without anybody who understands him by his side?

I have little to say about our main couple because their conflicts are largely resolved, or as resolved as they’re probably going to get. They had plenty of light-hearted, playful moments in this episode which made for a pleasant, unchallenging watch. I had wished that the final episode would show us more happiness and discourse about their future from our lead couple, while resolving Chun-soo’s and Ji-hye’s storyline to satisfaction. It looks like I might not get my wish, so how about hoping instead to see more of Baby Guk’s top-shelf acting and enviable head of hair. Keep on keepin’ on, Guk-ieee!

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