Ho-gu’s Love: Episode 6

by odilettante

It’s a Kang-chul centric episode as — no, wait, come back! Come back! Yes, he might be a total ass, but everyone has a backstory, and we get a peek into his. If that’s not enough, there’s the promise of Ho-kyung’s revenge to keep us going. We also learn why Do-hee decided to keep the baby and if nothing else, there’s the adorable Ho-gu doing what he does best: giving us warm fuzzies.

EPISODE 6 RECAP

Sixth Foolish Act: “Let’s not ask about the past”

We pick up where we left off, with Kang-chul visiting Do-hee in the hospital, and Ho-gu overhearing their conversation, concluding with the epic “Use a condom, you bastard!” punch in the face. So satisfying.

Kang-chul is panicked to discover his nose bleeding and stumbles to the floor. Ho-gu hides his face and tries to run as soon as the elevator doors open, but Kang-chul grabs his legs. Before he fully runs away, Ho-gu angrily asks if Kang-chul is hungry, and then throws the buns he had been planning to give to Do-hee at Kang-chul, slipping in one final toss of one of the condoms he took from Ho-kyung before the doors close.

As a nurse and doctor shriek in horror at discovering a knocked-out Kang-chul slumped in the elevator, he voice-overs: “My name is Kang-chul. Byun Kang-chul.”

A sleep-deprived Tae-hee and Chung-jae try to come up with a way to keep their webtoon alive (they decide they can’t use Jordan as their setting for the second season because the popular “Bisaeng” webtoon is using it, pffft). Ho-gu finally arrives at the office, and it’s a melodramatic reunion as Tae-hee asks him where he’s been, beating on Ho-gu’s chest like a forgotten lover.

At Ho-gu’s silence when he asks if he and Do-hee are over, Tae-hee wonders if he’s now become a baby errand boy after spending his life being a snack errand boy. He tries to talk sense into Ho-gu, asking who the father is, and Ho-gu admits he knows who it is, but it takes Tae-hee to put a name to a face: Byun Kang-chul.

Speak of the devil. He’s also trying to figure out why Ho-gu seems so familiar to him — maybe it’s someone he won a case against who has a grudge against him? As he’s trying to place where he’s seen Ho-gu before, Gong-mi arrives to get some documents, and conveniently spots Kang-chul’s old yearbook. But that sparks a sudden connection, and he grabs it from her, flipping to Ho-gu’s picture (which switches to a growling picture of him in the elevator, ha!).

In a high school flashback, Kang-chul observes that Ho-gu is the school’s snack errand boy, or “bread shuttle,” always doing one of three things: buying bread for someone, or buying milk, or buying bread and milk at the same time. It’s clear to Kang-chul that it’s a case of school bullying and a violation of his basic human rights, but Ho-gu flummoxes him by being so happy to do his daily errands.

He can only conclude that Ho-gu was born to be a slave to others. Kang-chul can also predict the exact moment that Tae-hee will come running up to help his friend. As Tae-hee and Ho-gu are beat up for getting the snack order wrong, Kang-chul walks away, dismissing them as inferior beings.

Ho-gu’s pulled out his own yearbook to double-check that it’s the same person, and Tae-hee reminds him that Kang-chul was always a lucky guy in high school.

Another flashback, and a group of girls are all swooning over Kang-chul’s good looks (or class-president ranking, if you go by Tae-hee’s assessment). As Do-hee returns a book to Kang-chul, Ho-gu wonders if she likes Kang-chul. Considering the four-leaf clover she left in the book and the way she smiles as she walks away, I’d say that’s a safe bet. Ho-gu sees the clover fall from the book, and stops to pick up up, angrily shouting after Kang-chul: “Hey!”

In the present, Kang-chul wonders why Ho-gu attacked him in the elevator. He rifles through his yearbook until he finds the four-leaf clover: “No way…” Flashback to high school: Ho-gu returns the clover to a bewildered Kang-chul, placing it in his hand and telling him not to throw it away.

Present-day Ho-gu and Kang-chul are not pleased to remember each other.

Tae-hee’s guessed that Kang-chul is the father because he assumes the only reason a celebrity like Do-hee went to the high school reunion was to find the baby’s father, who must be an alumnus. Downing soju are a couple of guys we saw at the reunion, and when one starts to cry that he’s done bad things in his life, it’s revealed that they both received the same same anonymous “Shouldn’t you be spending Christmas with your family?” texts as Kang-chul. Interesting.

There’s no news on who the mysterious sender is, and Kang-chul pounds his desk in frustration before returning to his normal robot-like self. As he sets out for his blind date with Ho-kyung, Gong-mi tries to suggest that he looks more like he’s going to a business meeting than a romantic date. Which is fine by Kang-chul, because that’s exactly how he sees this date.

At the hospital, Do-hee ignores voicemails from her coach warning her about reporters since there’s already rumors going around about her disappearance, and tries to settle up her hospital bill. Because she refused insurance in an effort to keep her identity private, she balks at the sum — and then tries to bargain a discount since she’s paying in cash. Ha!

Ho-gu tries to fight the urge to visit Do-hee, telling himself that he’s only leaving home to go to work. But as he steps outside, he runs into Coach, who treats him to lunch as a way to say thanks for paying back the amount he borrowed in Yeosu (aw, Ho-gu even made sure to include extra for the ATM transaction fee). Coach’s real purpose is to find out where Do-hee is, though, and Ho-gu awkwardly manages to evade the question.

But Coach melodramatically worries whether or not Do-hee is sick or kidnapped or killed, and Ho-gu rushes to reassure Coach that she’s doing well, uh, that is, he just believes she must be doing well. You’re a terrible liar, Ho-gu.

Do-hee watches happy families surround the viewing area of the hospital baby room as she waits alone for her baby to be given to her. She’s a little dazed as the nurses hand the baby over, and when she says she’ll be going home, they assume she’ll be returning to the States.

Carefully cradling her newborn, she slowly leaves the room, overhearing the nurses remarking that she’s the one who never came down to try and nurse her baby, and how much she looks like the swimmer Do Do-hee. One of the nurses wonders why, if she’s American, she reverted to talking in saturi during labor instead of English. Do-hee turns around, and, in hesitant English, says goodbye.

Ho-gu arrives at the hospital, unaware that Coach is hot on his tail. But Do-hee has already been discharged, so he glumly walks back to the bus stop. Just across the street, though, is Do-hee getting into a taxi, and Ho-gu shouts and runs after her to try and get her attention — but no such luck.

Dressed to kill (er, figuratively, but I hope maybe literally, too), Ho-kyung makes her way to her blind date with Kang-chul. Gong-mi calls her, worried because she’s late for the date. But it’s all a part of Ho-kyung’s plan. She’s exactly seven minutes late so it will build anticipation and let her be in control of the first impression.

There are about a half dozen guys, all looking identical in their suits, all waiting in the lobby of the hotel. They perk up when Ho-kyung walks in and scramble for their phones when she pulls out hers. But they slump back down in their seats when Kang-chul answers his phone. Smiling, Ho-kyung walks over to him, apologizing for being late. Inwardly, she says he’s just as awful as he was six years ago — and just as handsome.

Do-hee arrives at a cheap motel, and it looks like she’s been staying here for some time, based on all the personal items strewn about the room. She sets the baby down on the bed and slowly unwraps him from his blanket. Awww, he’s just the cutest little thing. Her eyes well with tears as she gently pats his stomach and holds his hand.

Having followed her to the motel, Ho-gu slowly makes his way through the hallways. He stops at a door where he hears the sound of a baby crying and gently knocks. Do-hee answers it, surprised to see him. Ho-gu is also surprised by Coach, who shoves Ho-gu aside and barges into the room.

Coach has a breakdown after seeing the baby, weeping and beating the floor. But Do-hee, unfazed, tells him to be quiet or he’ll wake the baby. Ho-gu tries to keep the peace as Coach and Do-hee bicker back and forth, and when Coach demands to know who the father is, Do-hee tells him there isn’t one.

He says that’s impossible — what is she, some kind of Virgin Mary? Do-hee is delighted to have an example of another woman who gave birth alone, adding that Coach should just think of it as a miraculous birth.

Over dinner, Ho-kyung is bored by Kang-chul’s prattling on about his work, even though she smiles and appears interested. She pours on the flattery about his choice of restaurant and dining selection, and he proudly tells her that not just anyone can get into this restaurant. Except it’s the twelfth time she’s been on an arranged date there this year. Pffft.

She eyes the other couples having their blind dates like they’re opponents in table tennis, accurately guessing which couples are just about to start their game and which ones are about to end with a smashing serve. After the meal, Kang-chul suggests coffee, and Ho-kyung politely offers to pay. Kang-chul tell her of course she’ll pay — after all, he paid for dinner. Oh, you ass.

They start their own game of table tennis, and cocky Kang-chul serves first, just wanting to get the final portion of the date over as quickly as possible. Pffft, he even has a flow-chart how to determine is a woman is a suitable dating partner and worth pursuing.

He serves first, complimenting her beauty (the first step in the flow-chart), and she easily returns it, demurely thanking him, and then surprising him by pointing out that physical beauty is really just a natural force for stimulating the hormones. That checks off the next criteria (“Is she cultured?”).

This time it’s Ho-kyung’s serve, and Kang-chul tells her that she’s the second most beautiful person he’s ever seen, but denies that the most beautiful is his mother or his first love, as suggested by Ho-kyung. She doesn’t care, though, because if she dates him, she’s not interested in his past — just the present and the future. That hits the last criteria (“Does she not annoy me?”), and it’s game, set, match.

Kang-chul looks like he doesn’t quite know how to handle this discovery that she’s easily made it through his flow-chart, and Ho-kyung nonchalantly sips her tea.

Ho-gu tidies up Do-hee’s room as Coach naps with the baby. Do-hee feels bad for Coach, since she’s his primary source of income and she disappeared for six months to have a baby. Ho-gu asks her why she did it, if she knew it would be such a shocking matter — and especially with a guy like Kang-chul.

He grabs her shoulders, shouting if she thinks he’s a fool (a “hogu”). Surprised, she says he is Kang Ho-gu. But he insists that even if he is a fool, she shouldn’t take advantage of him — why would she flirt with him when she’s having Kang-chul’s baby?

Except it’s just his imagination, and Do-hee stares at him, wondering if he has something to say to her. He pretends to brush the dust off her shoulders as a way of explaining why he grabbed her, and it’s back to sweetheart Ho-gu as he worries if she’s okay.

He sighs as he wonders how she relieves her stress. Coach can scream, cry, drink, and then sleep — but what about Do-hee? He offers to buy her something to eat, but instead she just wants some fresh air.

Coach soon joins her where she stands on the rooftop of the motel. They stare out at the city landscape, and when Coach asks why she decided to have the baby when she’s so determined to succeed in her swimming career, she softly smiles and says it’s because of Ho-gu.

It’s also because of the ahjumma pickpocket who stole their wallets in Yeosu. Flashback to Do-hee’s confrontation in the bathroom, and afterwards she signs the baby-carrier, asking why the ahjumma decided to have the baby even though she has no husband or family to support her. What gave her the courage to go through with it?

The ahjumma pickpocket admits that she had the baby because she didn’t have the courage. She had lived following her own will up until then, but while she was waiting to have an abortion, she realized that she would regret it. She plans to give him up for adoption to a family that is financially stable and will be able to have a better life than she could give him. Even so, because of her baby, she admits likes herself a lot more these days.

On the rooftop, Do-hee says that she went to the abortion clinic, but just couldn’t go through with it. She tells Coach not to worry — things might not have started the way she planned, but she’s resolved to see it through to the end. She, too, will put the baby up for adoption.

Coach asks worries about the reporters who are trying to find her, and she says that she’ll be fine — she’ll make sure of that. But Coach wonders what’s the deal with her friend, who takes care of her baby without complaint. Do-hee smiles, saying that’s just Ho-gu.

As Ho-gu watches over the baby, he sighs that he ended up being unable to ask Do-hee what happened between her and Kang-chul, or if the baby is his. He tries to tell himself that it’s better that way — according to Ho-kyung, just like you can’t ask an elder when they’ll die, you can’t ask a girl about her past.

Kang-chul drives Ho-kyung home, and when Gong-mi texts her, dying to know how it’s going, she reassures her friend that the game isn’t over yet. Ho-kyung sweetly apologizes to Kang-chul for texting, excusing it as a work-related thing. As he pulls up to drop her off, she smiles brightly, thanking him for the date and telling him next time it will be her treat.

He agrees, but doesn’t seem convinced they’ll meet again. She flirtatiously tells him that if he doesn’t agree to a second date, then she’ll figure out who that most beautiful person was. As Kang-chul watches her go, he wonders to himself whether or not if having a past means you can’t talk about having good luck or bad luck.

Ho-gu watches the baby sleep, convincing himself that the baby has Kang-chul’s nose and chin, and tries to warn the baby that he’ll hate it in the future. But the cute faces his makes at the baby bely his words.

Kang-chul decides that he won’t be able to tell Ho-kyung who the most beautiful person was — because the most beautiful person is none other than “that punk.”

A brief flashback shows high school Kang-chul suddenly being kissed. The kisser’s face is obscured by a hood and scarf, but Kang-chul tells us, “Because that person is Ho-gu. Kang Ho-gu.”

COMMENTS

Well, that was a twist I did not see coming. You’ve definitely got my attention, show.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when the anticipated “My name is Ho-gu. Kang Ho-gu” was replaced with “My name is Kang-chul. Byun Kang-chul” at the beginning of the episode. There may have been a moment’s panic because after the previous episode, I was not too thrilled about spending an episode centered around Kang-chul. Even though I’ve been assuming that the conversation Ho-gu overheard was a red-herring, and really about something totally other than condoms (my pet theory is it has to do with legal matters, since he’s probably the only lawyer Do-hee could trust), Kang-chul definitely hasn’t been a likable character lately.

But now I’m gobsmacked with the realization that he was probably in love with Ho-gu. Sure, the kiss itself was obviously Ho-kyung, but Kang-chul didn’t know that — he probably doesn’t even know Ho-gu has a twin. Which makes me wonder: Is that the reason why Kang-chul sees blind dates as business propositions? Because he’s had a secret unrequited crush on Ho-gu since high school? I also wonder if that’s what makes him such a jerk, but liking the same sex doesn’t magically grant you the rights to be a total ass to everyone.

Which is why I’m so glad that Ho-kyung is there to ruin his life. Obviously she must have had a thing for him back in the day, and I’m dying of curiosity to see how this whole high school version of Twelfth Night went down. But in the present day, I’m so happy to see how she calmly and confidently shakes him up. It’s so satisfying watching the calm, collected robot Kang-chul get so unnerved by her.

As for Do-hee, I loved her in this episode. I mean, I love her just generally, but this episode was fantastic in letting us getting another glimpse of who she is behind her façade. I’ve been impressed with UEE since the beginning, but this is my favorite episode for her yet. I especially was moved by watching her attempt to keep distant from her child melt away as she brought him home, tearing up as she held his tiny hands and looking so much in love with her baby. She may not have originally wanted this child, and she may plan to give him up for adoption, but she’s still his mother and she still loves his cute little face. And let’s face it, that baby is cuuuuuuuuuuuute.

Maybe Ho-gu will adopt him. After all, despite the fact he’s terrible about respecting Do-hee’s privacy and the boundaries she’s set (I’m still annoyed by that from the previous episode, and even though I know it will end well, I’m not a fan of him following her to her motel), he clearly is head-over-heels for this little guy. Hey, maybe if it is Kang-chul’s baby, he and Kang-chul can adopt it and raise it together! What, too progressive?

Hey, a girl can dream that Dramaland will give her a happy ending where everyone wins — Do-hee gets to keep swimming and win her gold, knowing that her child is being taken care of by the best mama figure; Ho-kyung gets her revenge and can torment Kang-chul for the rest of her life; Kang-chul gets to be with the most beautiful person he’s ever met; and Ho-gu gets to play hero-savior-sweetheart to everyone and raise the cutest baby ever. Win-win-win-win-win.

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