107

Ho-gu’s Love: Episode 7

If last week’s developments spun the story in a sideways direction, today gives us answers and explanations, which shed a lot of light on what’s actually going on with these characters. I would have expected a story to have fully set up its main story well before the fourth week, but there’s an appeal to discovering things in layers, peeling back truths in steps to keep the things shifting.

SONG OF THE DAY

Hello Gayoung – “어른인 듯 아닌 듯” (Kind of grown-up, kind of not) [ Download ]

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

 
Seventh Foolish Act: “Let’s respect one’s preferences”

Kang-chul admits to us that the most beautiful person to him is Ho-gu, but from his furrowed and the way he forcefully tosses back his wine, it seems he’s not exactly thrilled about it.

Ho-gu says that the most beautiful person to him is, naturally, Do-hee—or at least it was, until he saw this little guy. He looks down at the newborn adoringly, finding the kid the cutest thing in the world.

He dials it back when he realizes Do-hee’s awake, and asks how she slept. Ha, and in her reply she accidentally slips into some of his baby talk before catching herself. Then over on the floor coach stretches awake—it’s like a clown car in this room.

At school, Ho-kyung reports on her research project to Professor Mok, who’s pleased with the progress. She’s equally pleased to hear about Ho-kyung’s date with her son, though she assures her that she doesn’t need regular reports—on this front, she’s content to step back and trust Ho-kyung to handle the dating. But she does add that she’d love for things to proceed to the next level. Ho-kyung assures her that things are already in motion.

But it’s Ho-gu’s name that Kang-chul is looking up on their high school alumni list. (Ha, I love the recurring bit where people assume Ho-gu’s unemployed, hear that he’s a webtoon artist, and then say, “Like I said, unemployed.”) Kang-chul racks his brains trying to figure out the link between fish-shaped buns, condom, and Ho-gu, because nothing about their elevator encounter makes any sense to him.

And then he wonders in disbelief whether this is about the events of “that day”—”surely not still?” He’s so shocked he spills coffee all over himself, and thinks back to a morning just like this morning, which unfolded six years ago.

Flashback to high school. Kang-chul recalls it being a fine morning as he arrived on campus, just as Ho-gu stepped off the bus as “the only flaw” marring the moment. We see “Ho-gu” wearing a hoodie with a scarf covering most of the face, but he’s identifiable by the school nametag pinned to the coat: Kang Ho-gu.

Kang-chul watches as the school bullies surround Ho-gu and start harassing him. But today, Ho-gu swears back at them under his breath—and although it looks like Ho-gu, that’s definitely Ho-kyung’s voice we’re hearing. Kang-chul is just as amazed as the bullies are when “Ho-gu” talks back and sends the leader flying with a well-placed uppercut, then proceeds to knock down all the underlings.

Ho-gu’s lunch goes flying, and (s)he starts collecting the containers. Then (s)he notes the kimchi stain on Kang-chul’s shirt, tosses out a careless “sorry” and tells him to follow so they can clean it up. Kang-chul sputters about being late for school, and “Ho-gu” just laughs in his face about being such a goody-goody model student that it provokes his temper.

In retrospect, Kang-chul notes that the right thing to do would have been to ignore Ho-gu. But in the moment, hes irked at the school wimp laughing at him, so he follows. “That was the start of that day’s tragedy,” he thinks.

“Ho-gu” leads Kang-chul to the manhwa store and asks Dad to clean the shirt. Kang-chul waits awkwardly while Ho-gu lounges around reading a manhwa book (the latest volume of the Elise series), and Dad cheerfully scrubs away at the shirt… and makes the stain ten times worse. Hee.

Kang-chul is appalled at the stain and Dad’s casual attitude about it, so “Ho-gu” takes him to Mom next to fix things. Next thing we know, Kang-chul is at Mom’s alterations shop wearing a garish flower-print shirt while ajummas sing trot and feel him up. And then Kang-chul’s jaw drops when Mom presents the finished product, replete with elaborate red dragon stitching, which makes him look rather like the world’s nerdiest gangster.

Kang-chul storms off angrily, and when “Ho-gu” asks about it, he roars that it would’ve been better off without any of their “help.” But the day has gone off the rails for him, and everything starts going askew—next a motorcyclist snatches his bookbag and drives off. “Ho-gu” starts running after the bike screaming, and he finds himself lost and alone in the strange neighborhood.

Broke and hungry, he doesn’t know what to do other than look around for Ho-gu, and spends the day wandering and waiting at a neighborhood playground.

Adult Kang-chul heads into work that day, and something about secretary Gong-mi, sporting an unfortunate pimple, has him wondering if they’ve ever met before. She doesn’t think so, and he shakes off the thought—but in flashback, we see the connection.

While Teenage Kang-chul waits for Ho-gu, there’s a group of tough-looking girls nearby dancing to rap music, and the leader catches him staring. It’s Teenage Gong-mi, wearing a monster zit on her forehead, and she accuses him of laughing at her dance.

He insists he was smiling, not sneering, but and when Teenage Gong-mi continues to harass him he pushes back, to both their surprise. And just as Gong-mi’s about to send her fist into his face, “Ho-gu” reappears to defend him. Kang-chul is so relieved that he grabs “Ho-gu” and whimpers, “Why’d you come only now?”

Ho-kyung drops by the law firm for an unannounced visit, but when she hears that Kang-chul isn’t in, she kicks off her heels and sits back, annoyed. Gong-mi notes the lack of relationship progress since Kang-chul hasn’t so much as texted Ho-kyung since their date, and wonders if he might be gay. Ho-kyung reminds her that he has an ex-girlfriend.

Ho-kyung tells her that the girlfriend wasn’t just a Do-hee lookalike, but actually Do-hee. Gong-mi says now she understands his lack of interest in women, because nobody can measure up to Do-hee, and scoffs that Ho-kyung has no shot—Do-hee was likely his first love, first girlfriend, first kiss.

Ho-kyung’s face falls as she thinks, “First kiss? That’s probably true, isn’t it?”

Kang-chul concedes that he doesn’t want to dump the blame for his lack of love life on “that guy.” He picks up the flashback from the last scene, after the scary girls have been sent off and “Ho-gu” has recovered his stolen bag. “Ho-gu” spots an unopened beer bottle left behind and helps himself (herself) to it while Kang-chul hisses at him not to. But this Ho-gu knows exactly how to push his buttons, teasing about him being too scared to drink, and Kang-chul chugs down the beer.

Tipsy, Kang-chul sits on a swing watching perplexedly as “Ho-gu” swings back and forth, both confused as to what his deal is and thankful for all the help today. Then he wonders how a guy could have such nice fingers, and his heart thumps. It makes him bolt to his feet in alarm, and he drunkenly tells “Ho-gu” that he likes girls.

“Ho-gu” laughs at him, then walks him home. Kang-chul heads toward his house determined to ignore Ho-gu tomorrow, lest the school pushover start thinking they’re friends—but then “Ho-gu” falls over and sways drunkenly back and forth, struggling to tie his shoe.

Kang-chul takes over the task, and as he ties the lace, “Ho-gu” calls his name and leans forward to kiss him. Then (s)he replaces her face scarf and skips off saying that it’s a “present” for spending a fun day together. Kang-chul’s heart starts thumping uncontrollably, and that’s when he says his heart became broken—not as in shattered, but literally malfunctioned.

After that, his heart wouldn’t race for anyone, man or woman. He doesn’t blame Ho-gu for all of it, supposing that growing up in an a cold household probably had a hand in it.

He visits his mother at her office on campus, and she prods him to see Ho-kyung while he’s here and ask her out on another date. Kang-chul says he’s not going to, because she’s not his “style”—the word can mean you like a certain type, but it’s also the word used euphemistically to refer to your orientation.

Mom asks what he does prefer, and Kang-chul thinks on that. He flashes to high school when Ho-gu had angrily shoved a four-leaf clover into his hand, which he still carries around with him to this day. Aw, you thought it was from Ho-gu, didn’t you? (Ho-gu, on the other hand, knew it was from Do-hee and was warning Kang-chul not to discard her gift.) Kang-chul tells himself that Ho-kyung just isn’t his type, and that this has nothing to do with Ho-gu.

Ho-kyung spots Kang-chul leaving the building and perks up, thinking he must be here to see her. But then she watches as he sees her calling him and just ignores the call.

Coach takes Ho-gu out for hamburgers and warns him darkly about keeping his mouth shut about Do-hee, threatening to sue if he so much as talks to anyone about it. Ho-gu assures the coach that he’s well aware of the position Do-hee is in and says he’s a friend, so the coach doesn’t have to be so scary and mean—he’ll keep the secret. Coach just orders three more burgers for Ho-gu and thanks him for helping Do-hee through labor.

As they head back to the motel, Coach suddenly whirls around to see a pair of reporters appear down the street; they’ve received a tip on a Do-hee sighting and are here to check it out. They hurry to Do-hee’s room where Coach calls her agency—he’d asked them to have those reporters followed to avoid such a scenario, but somebody dropped the ball.

Hearing that her agency has been contacted alarms Do-hee, but her coach says that it’s too big a problem for him to handle it on his own, and he needs their resources. She looks panicked to hear that the CEO has ordered her to come in, but Coach assures her that he didn’t say anything about the baby; he just made a cover story about her getting hemorrhoid surgery and then going AWOL for a while.

While they head out to the agency, they ask a grandpa in the motel to watch the baby, and he cheerfully agrees. Ho-gu watches anxiously as Grandpa bumbles through the directions, and darts in to take over before the baby gets burned or starved.

So while Grandpa promises he’ll manage fine, Ho-gu refuses to give up the baby to him. He insists that they have to leave the baby with someone else, but doesn’t have any suggestions, and Do-hee points out that she has nobody to ask. So he says he’ll take responsibility for the baby, and brings him to the workshop.

Tae-hee naturally thinks he’s insane, and refuses to be roped into this. He reminds him that Chung-jae can’t stand babies and urges him to leave before he gets here, except they’re too late because that’s when Chung-jae walks in.

Quickly, the two friends move to block the baby from his sightline, but their refusal to budge is more suspicious than anything, and Chung-jae darts around them to see what they’re hiding.

Waiting in the CEO’s office, Do-hee nervously runs through a few sample apologies, trying to figure out how best to appease the inevitable burst of anger she’s about to face. Then the TV report announces her rival’s latest gold medal win, and when asked about Do-hee, she laughs that Do-hee wasn’t really her rival so much as she was the team’s pretty face.

Then a high-level director steps in, her ice-cold glare making Do-hee shrink back immediately. Apparently CEO Park is out of the country at the moment, so the director instructs Do-hee to stay hiding for the time being.

On her way out, she runs into Kang-chul, who’s a consultant for the agency. They step aside to talk, keeping smiles on their faces since they’re only semi-private. She tells him to mind his own business since he’s no longer involved, and says she’s got adoption plans in the works. He’s mollified by that (“At least you’re not idiotic through the end”), and she turns to go, wanting to be done with him.

Kang-chul stops her to ask if she’s still in touch with Ho-gu, and she lies that she hasn’t seen him since graduation. She asks why he’s interested, and Kang-chul stammers a lame explanation about how they’re old friends—er, classmates. Do-hee scoffs at his words, then asks suspiciously, “Are you…” Kang-chul gulps nervously, but she finishes, “…getting married?”

That’s the explanation that makes most sense to her, that he’s casting a wide net to collect wedding gift funds. ‘Cause he’s certainly never cared about old friends or classmates before.

It’s a disaster zone at the workshop, with Ho-gu and Tae-hee trying their best to figure out how to quiet the crying baby. When they find the stinkbomb in its diaper, they flip out even more and blunder through the process of changing it, leaving them all exhausted and shell-shocked. Chung-jae exhaustedly warns Ho-gu that he’s going to kill him—but later, once he’s recovered his senses, since he’s all worn out.

Then Chung-jae screams at Ho-gu to leave before he kills him, and Ho-gu packs up and heads out cradling the baby. Tae-hee goes with him.

Do-hee runs into another familiar face at the agency—her rival, Sung-shil, who’s been scouted here after winning all those gold medals. They trade barbs coated in sugary coating, with Sung-shil expressing her “relief” that Do-hee didn’t get fired from her agency after all.

Do-hee doesn’t bat an eyelash at the rumors of her having a baby and just says it’d be nice if they said she had a son. Sung-shil returns that she should have a daughter that’s just as pretty as her, but she shouldn’t make her swim—because then she’d just sell her face with photo shoots and ads instead of winning medals.

Not one to be cowed, Do-hee sweetly returns that Sung-shil absolutely must have her daughter swim, “Because that’s her one path to surviving.” Sung-shil nods, not even registering the insult for a long beat: “Wait, that was an insult, right? Which part was the insult?”

Ho-gu and Tae-hee wander around town with nowhere to go, trying to figure out where to take the baby. They head to their favorite squid place to get out of the cold, but recoil in panic upon seeing Ho-kyung sitting there. They dart outside without her spotting them, which is easy enough since she’s drowning her disappointment in soju.

Ho-kyung thinks back to her date with Kang-chul, and how he called her the second-most beautiful person he’s encountered, assuming that Do-hee must be his Number 1. Thinking of how he ignored her call, she screams angrily that she won’t date him, no way! Glug, glug.

Ho-gu and Tae-hee end up at a convenience store, and the baby starts to cry again. Tae-hee tells him to return the kid to Do-hee, but Ho-gu says he promised to take care of him until Do-hee’s agency business was all cleared up. Then they get kicked out of the convenience store too, and Tae-hee rages at Kang-chul for shirking his responsibility.

Ho-gu thinks to himself, “Why did it have to be Byun Kang-chul?” It would have been easier to just write off the dad as some deadbeat if he hadn’t known him, but since he does, this makes him extra-mad. So he decides to go to Kang-chul now.

Meanwhile, Do-hee arrives in Ho-gu’s neighborhood, frustrated that he’s not answering his phone. She leaves a voicemail just as a drunk Ho-kyung comes through, knocking into her and falling to the ground.

The boys arrive outside Kang-chul’s building, awed at the obvious wealth represented here. Then Kang-chul heads inside with a woman at his side—it’s only Gong-mi, but to their eyes it seems like he’s a carefree bachelor flirting with a woman, and Ho-gu fumes even more.

They’re here for a business meeting, and Kang-chul sits with his client as raised voices sound outside his door. Ho-gu insists on barreling past the secretary and bursts into the office—and the sight of him has Kang-chul sitting up in shock.

Ho-gu extends a hand and says it’s good to see him again, though the hard look in his eye belies the words. Kang-chul thinks to himself, “Kang Ho-gu, this crazy guy, has finally come to find me.”

Do-hee worriedly checks on Ho-kyung, who whimpers in pain and growls half-intelligible insults about Do-hee. She ends with the declaration, “This is all that chick’s fault—Do Do-hee.”

Kang-chul rises to his feet to shake Ho-gu’s outstretched hand, his four-leaf clover falling to the ground as he does. “Good to see you, Kang Ho-gu,” he says.

“My name is Ho-gu,” Ho-gu thinks with more conviction today.

In the street, Ho-kyung looks up to see her helper, and blinks in confusion to recognize Do-hee. “My name is Ho-kyung,” she thinks.

 
COMMENTS

I know that the full picture was purposely withheld till this point, but I do wish we’d gotten it a bit sooner, before I so thoroughly jumped off the Kang-chul train, while I might have cared more what happens to him. Admittedly, not seeing him being an ass for a full episode definitely does soften him up and make him more of a quirky, introverted character than a plain douchebag, but just because we don’t see it doesn’t erase how blood-boilingly hateful he was previously, and once a character crosses the line into classist misogynist, there’s not a lot you can do to argue “He’s just misunderstood!”

I thought that they were going to make Kang-chul gay and was interested in what the show would do with that, but I see now that they’re framing it a bit differently. It’s not that liking one boy (or so he thinks) makes Kang-chul think that he may be gay, but rather that he’s only felt that way about one person ever, and it’s never happened with anyone else, so he’s never even had an opportunity to figure out his orientation. He was, it seems, indifferent at best.

Which adds to the suggestion that Kang-chul may not be the baby daddy after all, although right now that question is still mostly in speculation territory. I can’t see Kang-chul having sex with anyone given the way he’s describing his feelings, although I also don’t see Do-hee sleeping with someone lightly. So the father’s identity remains the big question mark, no doubt one that will hover over the show for quite a while.

If it’s true that Kang-chul isn’t the father and we are merely being misled into that conclusion, I can see how the show may be setting itself up for that reveal. Kang-chul is her agency’s lawyer, and he writes contracts and is privy to Do-hee’s business. And it occurs to me that the word for “use” (as in using condoms) sounds the same as the word for “write”—so it’s possible they’re using wordplay to make us think he’s saying he won’t use those annoying condom things when he’s really saying he refuses to write those stupid documents. It doesn’t explain how or why he and Do-hee are close enough that he feels he can tell her to have an abortion, but again, this show does seem to be keeping a very tight rein on the way in which it doles out its information—carefully and strategically.

That aside, I do enjoy seeing Ho-gu falling in love with the baby and determined to be the safety net that Do-hee doesn’t have… just as I also enjoy watching him struggling with every step of it, because it’s great to have good intentions, but unhelpful when you don’t actually know how to see them through. I wondered why he didn’t take the child home because his parents seem the type to willingly help, but I was glad to see him try to figure it out on his own, because he declared that he’d take responsibility, not that he’d foist it off on someone more capable. That’s Ho-gu’s charm, in that he’s not necessarily (or ever?) the most capable person for the job, but he will do the job nonetheless. What good is competence when you refuse to use it? A willing heart and determination to figure it out can go a long, long way. Even if means dirty diapers and crying fits and never seeing sleep again.

RELATED POSTS

Tags: , , ,

107

Required fields are marked *

Oh..me 1st comentee??! :-D
Am I the only one who hopes that the baby turns out to be Hogu'd....hehe...may be he had Amnesia..and may be he has been a Hogu(fool for not remembering)through out the time.....hehe

0
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

SPOILER BELOW!!! be careful if you don't want a possible part of the story spoiled....

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

I've deleted them.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

OMG! At fírst I was waiting for the spoiler and then I saw JB had deleted them, and it just made me laugh, but that was smart since they are people who hate to be told beforehand what's going to happen..
But wow, I can't wait till Kang Byunchul realises it's the sister who did that. Hmm. Now I AM wondering when that will happen and who the real dad is.. Well I guess we will find out... Eventually.
Anyways, thanks for the recap!! :)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hehehe. Good job!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

You know how its funny that this all started from my comment and I'm the one who Missed the whole spoiler-deletedspoiler commotion....BTW just got back from work!
Ughhh......

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

So, I really love this show. There are a lot of great quirky moments and a lot of fun. I'm also getting a kick out of pretty much every single actor in here. On the other hand, I'm not always on board with the messages it seems to be sending. For the moment I'm dealing with it.

Also, I heard that in the webtoon he really does kiss HoGu. If that's true than that makes me even more frustrated.

0
6
reply

Required fields are marked *

Really? If so I'd really like to read the webtoon. This show has me cackling like crazy but you're right, the messages aren't really ones I agree with. I'd like to see the original and compare.
The drama seems to be going the coffee prince route with Kang Chul, after all. I'm holding out hope though, since he'd seen Ho Goo's face all throughout school and still maintains that he's the most beautiful person he's ever seen. That's got to count for something, right?

Thanks for the recap! I'm finally looking forward to Mondays lol

0
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

here is the link to the webtoon its based on.
http://m.webtoon.daum.net/m/webtoon/view/foolforyou

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thank you!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yeppers. I wish I knew where it was in English though.

I kind of knew it was going to go Coffee Route when it was so obviously his sister. But I was hoping it wouldn't just be one day and a clover gift. I was hoping there would be more of him maybe developing feelings for both in a way. (I did laugh a ton at him being confused by Ho Gu giving him a condom)

I think they're really going to play it super safe. I just don't know why you'd pick up a webtoon and then make a point of changing such a big plotline. I would be surprised though. I mean there's already such a stink over the Seonam lesbian kiss and they're actually a couple.

Still...I'm really enjoying this show! I know m post sounds mostly critical but it's just because it's easier to identify what I dislike. The things I like are too numerous and mostly I'm just like...!! Aw !! Aw !! Haha

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

hahaha me too! I feel sorry for anyone in the house who can hear me but don't know what I'm doing. They must be ready to have me admitted lol.
I can't really pinpoint whether the show is conservative or not-- it has refreshing discussion about safe sex, but the way it frames pregnancy and abortion is a little...hmm. I'm just going to sit back and hope for the best.

And thanks for the link! Now to learn fluent hangul ... =_=

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Agreed, I really love this show, but the depictions of pregnancy and abortion are a bit of a turn-off for me aaand the ungaying of Kang-chul *sigh* Still, it´s going to be a fun ride seeing him confronting his feelings (I know, he has some!).

0

How did the smarty pants like Byung Kang Chul not see the skirt "Ho-Gu was wearing?!? Ha!

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Actually I thought that too! It was flying around during her kicks!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Exactly!
I guess you see what you want to see.
The name tag was all he needed to buy it.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

the more ridiculous thing to me is how he failed to see that "ho-gu" got shorter, suddenly higher pitched voice, totally different style of speech or even body language (altho the derpy run she did while drunk is very ho gu like hahaha. they are def siblings XD) and a sudden interest in wearing face masks.

tbh its obv the way the writers can give nod to the source material while still taking the story in a different direction. which i guess is fine but tbh it would have been plenty interesting even without the confusion that she is ho-gu. like the fact that his first love/kiss was a delinquent girl he met in HS whose face he never saw is pretty hilar/great on its own tbh.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

It's a lot easier to make this believable with drawings. Since the creator has a lot more control over the visuals than a casting director.
Unless they had the same actor play both parts,
which, could have been interesting, too.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I have this crazy theory...what if the real father was her 'boss' (her agency's CEO)...we didn't get to see him...he might be young... his absence felt suspicious... like he is a important character to the story but he is still mysterious... and they were just introducing his existence into the show.... and at the same time you learn that the lawyer takes care of her company's business....what if the CEO told the lawyer to take care of that "issue"...

0
6
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think you are right.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Ahhhh.... what a good theory. The plot thickens! *CSI music plays*

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I also had that thought while watching this episode.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

You know what I think you might be right, from what was spoiled by the soompi people it kind of makes sense hmm....

Yes, avoid soompi if you don't want spoilers...

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

that theory isnt crazy man i think u might have hit the nail on the head there or at least in the vicinity of truth. which begs the question of just how consensual the act was if it was her BOSS that got her preggers. like...yikes. i'm kinda hoping its not true for that alone but unfortunately..if its not kang chul and not a random man...well who does that leave really? :/

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

yes maybe the ceo is the father of the baby ,because from ep 8 i m sure that kang chul isn't the father my be he try to find a solution for her

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I love how there is always Autumn In My Heart soundtrack playing in the background whenever Kang Chul is thinking of Ho Gu.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thanks for the recap and the thoughts.

My face hurt from smiling this whole ep.
I don't have to imagine how bad those diapers smelled lying all over the place, I've lived it.

I think you are right. She tricked KC into thinking he was the father.Remember he said, "You came to me that night."
Something fishy.

HG falling in love with what he thinks is KC's baby is so right since KC fell in love with whom he thinks is HG.

I can't wait for the moment HK finally shows her true self to KC rather than this boring perfect woman that nobody really wants to marry.

It really is an ensemble piece with our leads not getting all the screen time. I like it.

0
6
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree that Kang Chul is not the father, but I don' think she tricked him into thinking that he is one. That's just too low and out of character for Do Hee to do that. More likely something bad happened to her (with her real spermdonor) and she came to ask Kang Chul for legal help 'that night'.

0
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

So the play on words JB was talking about...hmm... I wish I understood the language enough to pick up on that stuff.

So that means they have totally tricked US!

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

I am starting to understand that this show is playing with POV and unreliable narrators to make its point. Change ONE word in the convo between DDH and KC, which we only heard from HG's POV and it everything changes.

KC: You came to me that night.

DDH:That day, I asked...I asked you to use a
condom, but you refused.

KC: So... are you saying all of this is my fault?
I don't use condoms, I never have, and I never will.

DDH:Sure. Because you never do things
that's a hassle to you.

KC: I did the best I could. (This makes a lot more sense if he is talking about legal matters vs safe sex!!)

DDH:Go. This doesn't concern you anymore.

KC: Right. Naturally. It has nothing to do with me.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

yep tbh even that conversation i was thinking this could be aread another way but i was totally lost on the "condoms" bit cuz he's def not talking about condos that time. but thank you javabeans! what she says finally adds the final piece into what was imo already a suspicious argument. it's too bad most of us dont know korean enough to have noticed that ourselves and ofc dramafever wouldnt pick up on it -_-

anyway, kang chul is a jerk but i dont think we're supposed to see him as a jerk that rejects his own baby after having unprotected sex with his ex girlfriend. (besides his family would have accepted her with open arms since she had a son and is gorgeous/famous.) like thats 10 jerk levels above the cold indifferent ~genius~ rich boy type of jerk that KC is.

0

Tai -
I have to say I am relieved that he isn't that low. He may be mysoginist, but not subhuman.

0

Although they use the word condom in the English subtitles, what Kangchul literally says when he's with Do Hee in the hospital is "that thing" which could be a euphemism for condom (as Hogu hears it) but isn't necessarily. And if you consider the fact that "use" and "write" are homophones in Korean, the meaning becomes much more difficult to decipher. Here's what it's like with the double meaning.

DDH:That day I asked you to use that thing but you refused // That day I asked you to write that but you refused.

KC: So you're saying this is all my fault? I don't use those things, I never have, I never will // So you're saying this is all my fault? I don't write those things, I never have, I never will.

0

It may be because I skimmed through the first couple of episodes, but it hasn't been that hard for me get on the Kang Chul train...yes, he is still a monumental ass, but his background story did get me interested in his arc. There's so much potential for character development there, because he's not as much of an ass as he seemed to be in the beginning. I didn't like him then either, but the reveal in the last episode and this episode did soften me towards him. Now I really want him and Ho Kyung to work things out, because I feel like they'd be good together. He's the buttoned up asshole with the nerd-of-the-century center and she's awesome and totally the kind of person who'd bring that nerd out and kill the asshole.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm really sad how much they changed it up to make it ambiguous. Though it's pretty clear Kangchuk had a minor crush on Ho Gu prior to his day with Ho Kyung considering how he was always watching him and kept the clover.

In the webtoon there is no question who he spent the day with and who he kissed but I guess the show won't go there...

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

well tbh, if he's not going to end up with Ho Gu in the end and Ho Gu doesnt share his feelings and he isnt interested in any other men or women then...where does that leave the story? hardly a great progressive turn then. like i'm really sick tbh of tragic gays or unrequited queer crushes like, either give me a real damn couple or the hope of one and not a hopeless pining or turning his hopeless pining into a comedy. the only reason its funny now is cause he's actually in love with ho kyung. (and ofc should have clearly known that wasnt ho gu but i guess he wasnt aware ho gu had a twin lol) if he was really in love with another boy who is straight and would never like him back even if do do hee wasnt his dream girl.....yeah i'm fine not having that story play out.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

It's not about taking the most progressive turn. But if they're keeping in the kiss but changing his sexuality, then they're choosing to turn it into the running joke. Yes, it may be a one-sided love but that doesn't mean who couldn't evolve or have a happier ending. It can still be funny or light. I think a lot of people actually got a kick out of the jerk falling for someone he can't have. But if he really did like HoGu he could learn a lot from his crush. I mean from the actual HoGu. While in the show I think it's the sister that's going to have the impact on him, I actually think the things he needs to learn in life are from HoGu, and not the sister (and that's nothing against the sister because I love that character). I don't find it particularly great to be laughing because 'oh the poor guy thinks he's gay'. Cause oh how awful that is.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I was just remembering another drama that handled the crush on a boy who is actually a girl.
Hanazakari no Kimitachi e had that story line and while the boy was willing to accept his homosexuality, they didn't make fun of him ever for it. I hope they go that way with this.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

yeah he thinks he's in love with a boy isnt funny to me but i think the humor comes from how way off base he is in the assumption that the person he kissed is ho gu and he created this entire melodrama in his head that has no basis in reality and ho gu barely remembers KC let alone would have even a clue that KC would be into guys let alone him/ho gu in particular. that to me is p amusing. it helps that KC is such a drama queen haha. if kc was rly struggling with the fact that he liked men in general and ho gu in particular. that wouldnt be funny At All but that's obv not whats happening here.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

thanks for the recap!!
It was a really cute episode and though it isn't going the route I wanted it's still has it's charm.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

may be ho gu has multiple personality disease & he's indeed the father of the baby?:P that's what i think right now.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

This is the first episode I've decided to watch raw. Loved the Physical comedy even though I really had a hard time making out the meaning of the dialogue.

Thank you for the recap. I really think I understand it better.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

For the people interested in the webtoon its based on here is the link: http://m.webtoon.daum.net/m/webtoon/view/foolforyou

[SPOILER DELETED. -jb]

0
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

SPOILER!!!!! be considerate for other people don't spoil things some people want to find out as they watch the show

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

No one knows if they're going to go that route, things could change as the story progresses & they take some things out.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

They have made some changes, but still it is a spoiler, when I saw it first at soompi I was disappointed, and wished I hadn't seen that.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

they might change it in the drama.. they already made a bunch of changes..

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I just addressed that above... still please be considerate of other people, some people like to go into dramas without knowing anything about it to experience it while watching it, you would be surprised of how many people watch the shows without even reading the synopsis, it you are going to address a possible event then put a spoiler tag before it at least give a warning to people who are reading the comments...

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Awww...I just love Ho-gu.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Btw did you guys notice the posters in the agency? Yang Eun Bi (Lee Chung-Ah) from flower boy ramen shop was on a poster in the scene where do-hee and sung-shil are talking. Yay for meta!

0
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

yes! yes, i did, too! ^_^ bring on more meta!

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

It was cute with her being a volleyball player in the poster. I totally flashed back to Cha Chi Soo falling for her watching her serve/spike angst session. And later in the office, kang-Chul was discussing yang eun-bi's contract with the other guy (before Ho-Gu burst in). Hahaha

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

They have a lot of fun cheeky shots. When Byung Kang Chul is in the office (I think his mom's), he staring out the window and behind him is a poster that his body partial blocks so all you can read is "psycho", just like his nickname lol.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yes!! I loved that awesome piece of meta and was sad it didn't get a shout out in the recap! Eun Bi playing for the Russian natl team - perfect! I was hoping they'd say her husband is also her manager and a crazy guy!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

[Yeah, this is a pretty big and upsetting spoiler. Deleted. -jb]

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oopps!! SPOILER! Sorry.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Well, it's a webtoon adaptation, so they may decide to take it another direction.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Or they may not, in which case it's a spoiler.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Seriously??? WTF is with all these spoilers in the comment section without warning? Please have some decency for others who have not read the webtoon.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Such a disappointment. I don't get how anyone could think of blurring out a spoiler like that. I was spoiled on day 1 and it....sucks.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

You're not the only one. I was in Soompi's FL page last week and just had a major WTF moment because someone posted a major spoiler without any kind of spoiler warning. I came to this page and bolted as soon as I read "in the webtoon". I'm going to have to do my best to block what I read from my memory or hope the drama screenwriter comes up with something different. I think in the future I'm going to have to avoid online discussions of any drama based on previosly available source material. It just seems impossible to stay spoiler free. I'm going to have to wait until "Ho-Goo's Love" ends. Same with "Orange Marmalade".

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

lol... kang byunchul really believed its hogu?? thats not how hogu dresses up to start with.. he doesnt walk and talk that way.. and the skirt too. it was obvious that its hokyung, the way she dressed up during highschool in the past episode was like that too, the way she talked the way she walked and her laughs and giggles were like that.. during the kiss, he might not have recognized it cause he was looking down tying hokyung's shoe laces, then hokyung called him so he looked up, sudden kiss, then hokyung immediately put the mask up.. he did seem to always notice hogu beforer the kiss too though...

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

And the way Ho Kyung twirled down the street drunk just before she ran into Do Hee was exactly how the scarfed person danced away in H S. Of course Kang Chul doesn't know there is a twin (sister) so he wouldn't guess it wasn't Ho goo. the one with the most information to work with is Ho Kyung as more pieces need to be fit together.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Loved the recap! Very good job God bless! I will be staying away from the comments, too much spoilers. I dont blame them its human nature to brag that you know what others dont even if you are harming them by divulging said information

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

AAHH i love this drama. there's just something about it that makes me smile whenever i watch it.

wow, all these deleted spoilers though :\ have some consideration for those who haven't read the webtoon, and especially for javabeans who probably had to read all the comments, including the spoilers, in order to moderate them.....

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thanks so much javabeans for deleting all the spoilers for us!

Feel really sorry that you had to read it and spoil your joy :(

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

javabeans ~

Thanks for the recap. I enjoyed this episode. I suspect that Kang-chul is not the baby's daddy.

Probably the unseen CEO like others have speculated. They focused on his name plate when Do-hee entered the office.

Manager Yang probably knows that there was something between the CEO and Do-hee as she certainly gave Do-hee death dagger looks.

Not the sort of look you'd have for a troublesome employee, but a jealous look like you slept with the boss and are now making waves.

Like others have suggested, since Kang-chul is the company's legal rep, the CEO probably entrusted him to " take care of it".

Then again, if it was the CEO, was the sex consensual ? Did he know about Kang-chul and Do-hee's relationship ? Did either of the parties involved disclose their relationship? Was Do-hee and Kang-chul broken up at that point ?

I hope Kang-chul didn't pimp Do-hee out to the CEO. Yuck! If that's the case, he'd forever be in the nonredeemable scumbag territory. I don't think the show is going there. The show has kept a pretty light tone so far.

I like Ho-kyung's character. Can't wait to see what happens next.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

i highly doubt he pimped do hee out and from the information given so far, it seems they broke up during HS or soon after. remember he said she was "scary" so he broke up with her hahaha. (imagine how he'd have reacted if he'd actually known who ho kyung was, she makes do hee look like mother theresa lol)
but yeah i think she found she was pregnant and then immediately ran to KC since she knows him from HS and he's her company's lawyer. and he given this last minute info prob "did the best he could" but didnt go so far as to do whatever it was she asked him to do. tbh i hope that it's not the worse case scenario with do hee and ceo but if kc knew what rly happened and still didnt think it was worth "the hassle" to do whatever it was do hee had asked of him....idk. i dont want to think about it. i want to LIKE kc but idc what the excuse was if he knew smth awful happened to her and then chose to do and say nothing. anyway. we'll see, i'm rly glad i missed all those spoilers at least. (never read the webtoon, dont care to either.)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

The only thing that is ruining this for me is how quickly DH "recovered" from her c section. Ppl can barely walk for weeks after a c section, and they CERTaINLY aren't like "yep! Let me jump right back into my Olympic training" 3 days after one. I can only suspend disbelief so much?

0
10
reply

Required fields are marked *

Kelli ~

C section? Huh? I must have missed that. Perhaps you're watching a different show.

0
6
reply

Required fields are marked *

I myself actually wasn't sure how the birth happened, but they definitely moved her into a surgical room with a surgical team.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

They moved her into delivery theatre. She was sharing her hospital room with other patients, you can't expect women to give birth in front of each other.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I know that they moved her for that reason, but the way the birth went down strongly suggested (to me) that it was a c-section. I could be wrong, I guess I cant expect TV shows to always reflect reality.

0

hmmm....I thought that they mentioned she had a c-section. I could be wrong. Still, after giving birth myself, I find it hard to believe that there are NO telltale signs that she just had a baby. I guess I am just being nit picky, lol. Other than that, I love the show. It's adorable.

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

They mentioned a c-section, but her nurse clearly advised against it (Or, you could say blew the idea off). (To me) She was clearly pushing while she gripped her swimming goggles because if there had been a c-section I doubt she would have passed out after the baby was delivered. If you recall, she held her goggles firmly and then dropped them from sheer exhaustion.
Plus, I don't think the nurse would suggest Ho Gu come help message her belly if it was stitched up.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Many women push for hours before a c-sec (sucks, I know) but you have a point there about the belly rub. I guess that I just filled in the blanks in my mind, cuz the scene was so quiet for a "regular birth" I am speaking from experience there;). Also I guess from my exp in giving birth in the US, typically you labor in a labor/delivery room, and then are moved to another room after you give birth, but move you to a surgical room if there is a C-sec. ( hence the confusion) Then you only have like 24 hrs to recover before they send you home with a "regular" delivery, (believe me you are still in no shape to train for the olympics @ that time) and like 3-4 days after a c-sec. I guess it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things....It's still a cute show, and the baby is seriously squishy and cute;)

0

she had it the traditional way, she WANTED a C section cuz the labor pains were hell for her but the nurse said there was no need for that and it was sugested when ho gu spoke to her too that a c section isnt an option when she's healthy and strong enough to have the baby normally. because like you said its after effects are pretty intense wehreas having a baby normally the female body is meant to return to its previous state very soon after. (hell in the past women would pop babies in the fields and then go right back to work a fw hours later. or so i heard lol)
C sections are very dangerous afaik you dont just get a c sections cuz u ask for it, it has to be an emergency. also when she said in exhaustion "i did it, i got the gold" also indicated she had endured the pain to produce her baby. (whereas for a c section she would be either strongly sedated or would have had a lumbar puncture. its like a p intensive surgery? would havent taken way longer to get the baby out that way. lit nothing suggests in the episode that she had a c section. so dont worry about suspending ur disbelief too much lol.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

It takes a few weeks for your body to go back to anything resembling "normal" after any delivery. IDK what women popped babies out in fields...THOSE women deserve a medal! lol It's all good. You have to suspend disbelief a little in every drama, otherwise it wouldn't be any fun.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I have to agree with you. From the way the scene was edited, it also seemed like she had a c section. I was then confused why the nurse would ask hogu to massage her belly. The room looked like a surgical room, they panned to the surgical instruments, and she seemed unconscious when hogu entered the room. The baby did not start crying until after so it seemed like she had fainted, dropped her goggles, nurses were frightened and they had to c section the baby out.

At first I thought the show was doing a good job depicting labor since it wasn't labor pains and then thirty minutes later the baby comes out, but now I've accepted they're kind of like every other drama. Such as smiling, happy baby that apparently doesn't need to eat until convenient for the plot. And those three looked way too rested after a first night with a newborn! Lol!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Also, I am leaning more toward the mysterious director being the baby daddy. I think Kang Chul is just a friend who is trying to look out for her in his clumsy way.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

This drama so crajeeeee.

I love it. Sigh.

The writing team is tripping. Seriously.

Wow.

..... and that is the extent of my incoherent thoughts.

Thank you JB. I do not know whether I agree with everything you wrote but then again i am changing my mind minute by minute and it is a little bit too much for me tender heart to absorb.

My name is samsooki. and this drama is crazy.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I can NOT be the only one who is curious about the meaning of the names of the other characters in this drama. If Ho Gu and Do Hee's names are significant, surely Byun Kang Chul and Kang Ho-Kyung's names are too. I know Kang Chul means strong steel among other things (Thank you Dramabeans!). What does Ho-Kyung mean?

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

oooh i'm curious too! ho gu is the pushover/fool/true hero. do hee is haughty/arrogant. and kang chul is strong/cold steel? (isnt steel alrdy strong tho lol). i hope ho kyung's name means Hurricane cuz that woman is a hurricane hahahaha. (she's my fave character ;_;)

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I'm hung up on how the show seems to want us to empathize with Kang-chul after making him totally irredeemable during the first couple of episodes. There's no way for me to change my mind after that scene in the court room.

Also, I can't stand that Ho-gu is taking it on himself to involve the person he thinks is the deadbeat dad? He doesn't have Do-hee's permission to do that. He's totally overstepping his bounds.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

yes, i know, and it unfortunately seems to be working, judging from the comments on here. being gay/believing yourself to be gay does not excuse misogyny- i know some people are arguing that those are separate, because he was an asshole from way before, but no, the writers are trying to make the viewers like him despite the courtroom scene with the following episodes and digging deeper into his story. nope. so much potential.....but i think i'll stop watching now and just stick to recaps.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

choi woo-shik is SO cute as hogu. i can really see him as a future leading man in films/dramas. he's always made an impression on me in his roles prior to this, and this drama only confirms for me that they weren't mere flukes. he's got talent.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

...father?... Kang Ho Gu?

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thank god i got in a bit late and missed the spoilers.Im really enjoying the show and would have hated for that to happen.
Now the episode,i'm warming upto Byun chul a bit that i forgot that just the previous episode i wanted to reach inside the screen and strangle him.Haha.
The baby is adorable and as long as Hoo goo is around he wont let Do hee put him up for adoption. Waiting patiently for next episode.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Arigato Jb! Starting to love Ho Gu

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Maybe I missed something but how come Ho Kyung doesn't seem to remember that day she spent with KC which would explain why KC thinks she's not his "type"? Or could it be that she didnt know she wore Ho Gu's name tag??

0
6
reply

Required fields are marked *

i just watched ep8 and it addresses your question angela. note: please delete this if it too spoiler-y.

0
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

I've watched EP 8, but I don't really understand where/how it was revealed... o.O Have I missed something? Please enlighten me! :3

0
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think she means because she's convinced that she knows who his type is (or who). So she's not going to think it's herself from high school.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree. I think Ho Kyung is so busy playing The Dating Game that she is getting in her own way. Granted, this all stems from a series of misunderstandings from high school. The truth is she is not the girl she's pretending to be.

No matter what the reason was HoGu got BKC's attention, the fact is he spent "that" day with HoKyung. He was star struck by HoKyung. He was kissed by HoKyung. I think the main reason why she appealed to him so is because she treated him like the class president and not the President of Korea. He was a kid/young adult and she treated him like one.

HoKyung is nearly the polar opposite of HoGu. So even if BKC's heart goes pitter pat now, there's no reason to say that it still will once he really gets to know HoGu.

And HoGu (who is also getting in his own way) needs to stop doing what he thinks will make Do Hee happy and just ask the girl. I lurrrrves him. Lawd knows I do, but talk about noble idiocy...

0

Well she personally has said that she wants revenge on him....so I imagine there's more to the school story bit. She might remember that day, but she probably would have no idea that it would effect him much. I mean really, why would she think that one drunk kiss in high school would be related to his type?

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Ah right. Thanks so much for your reply!

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think the baby is acting too. so cute!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Omg, the twin sister looks so much like Choi Woo Shik when she have her mouth covered! Now I know why she's cast!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

this week's episodes are so good!!! can't wait for your ep8 recap ^^

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

seulong's OST part 3 is fab!!!!

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Agreed! It's like honey to the ears c: I've listened to it on repeat more times than I care to admit now hehehe

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

love this drama and the story line and uee acting and the other is the besy

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

this drama is getting more and more interessing ,i think kang chul isn't the father and love this drama because it's not like the other rotine drama with love triangle every one here though that the he/she loves loves anather one,also it's a the most touching and haliarious drama i ever seen

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

yes you are right,it's an amazing drama love how Dohe begin to feel for hugo

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

can anyone link me the spoiler?

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

the baby doesn't have name yet :/
I wish she gives him a name

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

the whole ho kyung and kang chul story made me lol! 19 y/o kang chul lost in that strange neighborhood staring creepily at poeple's food and waiting in the park for ages was priceless!! his side of the story cant condone his harsh words and actions but its okay to point out how hes seen that robotic behavior all his life with parents that certainly dont really look in love and he naturally cant really measure or know much about love...
im lost with who's the dad but kang chul surely knows what happened.. maybe he knows the father and thats why Do hee felt he could help even tho she says "she has no friends"? Idk why but I feel something is fishy here

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *