Kang Shi-Wan is the head of the Investigations Team, a small pool of detectives assigned to the CHA.

I can’t believe you compared the smoking hot Kim Sun-Ah to hairy goofball Steve Carell. I recommend a trip to optometrist, and soon.

I also can’t believe you missed the opportunity to compare Cho-Hee’s coworkers to those of another Steve Carell vehicle, “The Office.” Seriously, all the Regulation guys want to do is punch a clock, work a little, punch out, and be home by 6:00. The cops in the Investigation Squad are there largely because of their mediocrity, since the Regulation Team does most of the fact-finding. A sad fate for most cops, but they seem content with their lot and mostly dedicated to their jobs regardless.

It’s not Cho-Hee that’s pointed out as missing, but the statue that she “stole.”

The potentially priceless vase is a national treasure which disappeared during the Korean War. This tidbit is important, since the whole series revolves around nationalistic pride and cultural identity. Imagine if someone had stolen the Liberty Bell, a presidential relic from the White House, or a prized painting from Buckingham Palace.

The reason she interfered with the viewing was because the mission was to arrest Mr. Kim AND his accomplices. Since Cho-Hee unknowingly has the wrong Mr. Kim, there are of course no accomplices in evidence, so she’s stalling for time, thinking that the accomplices will show up eventually. Going back to the vault later is an impulsive act on her part, due in part to her dedication & stubbornness and also due to her underlying motivation for being so dedicated, which will be developed in later episodes. Don’t forget, she was also being driven a little crazy by seeing all the Korean pieces in her room, all of which she’d like to see returned to their place of origin.

One blooper that you missed: When the two guards in the hall almost catch Cho-Hee the first time, their discussion is in Korean, not Japanese – not exactly what you’d expect in a Yakuza house.

I find that the best judge of potential is usually found around the 4-episode mark. Two episodes is barely enough time to unfold the set-up for most dramas, and rarely gets into sufficient depth about the characters to make the audience care about them.

I completely disagree with your impression that the series was going for ‘cool and action-packed.’ My first impressions, taken solely from the Cho-Hee/Bum-Sang interaction, is that the vibe they were going for was sassy and fun. Having watched the entire series, I have to say that they hit that mark dead-on.

After the episode ended, I re-watched some episodes in ESA … and still found it entertaining.

I also hope this drama succeeds in entertaining us.

Looking forward to more of your recaps!!!!

So, cheers and many thanks! ^ ^

Haha, I was waiting to see what you’d say about ep. 1 and found it amusing that I couldn’t agree with you more about it. Let’s just hope ep. 2 is better!