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Yong-pal: Episode 3

I like it. I really, really like it. Yong-pal is sleek, stylish, but most of all, human—and it never gets so caught up in its beautiful and sometimes haunting imagery that it forgets what it wants to say. It’s just the opposite actually, since the visuals work to add depth to the narrative, which isn’t as intuitive a process for some directors as it should be. For a PD whose past work mostly consists of home dramas, this is an unexpected turn, and most definitely a welcome one.

Visuals aside though, this hour delves deeper into the world Tae-hyun and our sleeping princess have to live in, which is its own kind of hell for all parties involved. Money may be able to move mountains and imprison the innocent, but if there’s one thing it can’t move, it’s the heart. And while Tae-hyun may be willing to sell his pride to get what he wants, he’s incapable of selling his soul.

SONG OF THE DAY

The One – “사랑하는 그대에게 (To My Love)” from the OST [ Download ]

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EPISODE 3 RECAP

Yeo-jin is subdued and rushed through the hospital, her main and most pressing injury being the wrist she slashed in her suicide attempt.

While performing their unauthorized surgery on Patient Young-shik, Tae-hyun is forced to shut the lights off and hide when he hears activity in the hallway. It’s Nurse Hwang and her group of lackeys with Yeo-jin, though they fortunately choose the operating room Tae-hyun isn’t in.

He edges the door open just a crack to see what’s outside, and ends up face-to-face with Yeo-jin on her hospital bed. She doesn’t notice him, instead focusing all her strength on bringing the vase shard she’s hidden up to her throat before she’s caught.

Risking detection, Tae-hyun sees what she’s trying to do and reaches his hand out of the slit in the doorway to grab the shard before she can impale herself with it.

She looks at him pleadingly as he disappears back into the darkened room, as if begging him to give it back to her so she can end her life. Tae-hyun is haunted by that look later, and how she desperately whispered, “Please.”

The next morning, we find Tae-hyun greeting his new coworkers on the VIP floor. A meticulously dressed woman named CYNTHIA PARK (Stephanie Lee) confidently introduces herself as manager of customer satisfaction, and a laugh is had at Tae-hyun’s expense when he has trouble with the pronunciation of her name. (Even coming from Chief Lee, it sounds like “shin-shi-ah.”)

Chief Shin causes a ruckus when he hears about Tae-hyun’s reassignment, and accuses Chief Lee of stealing his resident. Only when the hospital director intervenes to say that he’s the one who reassigned Tae-hyun does Chief Shin back down, but he and Tae-yong make no bones about viewing Tae-hyun’s defection to the VIP floor as treason.

The transfer Tae-hyun requested for Patient Young-shik goes through, with his new doctors being surprised that the patient is still alive. Nurse Oh smiles to herself, knowing that she and Tae-hyun saved him.

Cynthia seems to sense that Tae-hyun is uncomfortable in his high-rise office with a stellar view, so she turns him so he can catch a better look while reminding him that the view isn’t for him—it’s for their clients.

Similarly, if this is where they sign their consent forms for treatment, Tae-hyun can’t be caught looking like a beggar with cheap taste in pens. She gifts him a nice one to help with his image, and sits across from him in what she calls the true seat of power.

But when Tae-hyun casually asks about the patient known only as Young-ae, she smiles conspiratorially and notes that the rumors about him being able to smell money must be true. If he could get into the princess’ room and she found favor with him, there’d be no limit to the heights he could climb.

Then again, she mock-sighs, it’s best for him to keep his dreams more realistic. Only Chief Lee, Nurse Hwang, and the hospital director have access to that room.

Detective Lee’s boss tears into him about focusing only on Yong-pal when there are real criminals to find—like the mob boss that escaped with Yong-pal. Even though he’s threatened with possible demotion, Detective Lee vows to bring Yong-pal down.

After calling loan shark buddy Man-shik up to tell him he won’t be able to moonlight as a gangster doctor for a while, Tae-hyun gets a visit from Tae-yong, who wonders if his frenemy is happy now that he’s working on the VIP floor.

When Tae-hyun insists that he’s very happy, Tae-yong brings up Patient Young-shik having survived, and seems to note Tae-hyun’s very measured reaction to that. Without calling him out for having performed a secret surgery, Tae-yong only tells him that being a doctor isn’t about the money no matter how tough the circumstances.

Tae-hyun agrees with him completely, and shares his hope that Tae-yong will go on to become a doctor known for his humanism. Tae-hyun reasons that his materialism as a doctor, which isn’t about to change anytime soon, will only make Tae-yong shine that much brighter. It’s needlessly self-depreciating, and Tae-yong knows it.

Both Chief Lee and Nurse Hwang have to answer for Yeo-jin’s latest incident, which the hospital director is not pleased about. At least Yeo-jin wasn’t able to cut deep enough to do real damage because her muscles had atrophied, Chief Lee reasons, and her tolerance for the medicine they’re using to keep her in a coma is what caused her to regain consciousness.

The hospital director doesn’t care about any of that—what they all have to fear is Yeo-jin’s brother, the CEO of Hanshin Group, and his well-known temper.

Speaking of, Do-joon complains to his secretary about having to fend off all the board members who keep insisting on seeing Yeo-jin. His father’s power was never questioned when he was alive, so Do-joon is incensed that he’s still having to play nice with these people. Unless they’ve caught onto something.

His secretary insists that’s not the case, causing Do-joon to say something cryptic about ending the comedy of these “two families under one roof.” Huh, so maybe he’s an illegitimate son? That would explain why he’s still having to fight for power when it comes to his younger sister.

He still sees a reason to get after his secretary/possible lawyer, who he claims has been negligent in clearing a path for him—if he’s still having to visit his sister’s hospital room to act like he’s getting her approval, then he still doesn’t have the absolute power her wants.

They’re interrupted by Do-joon’s wife, LEE CHAE-YOUNG (Chae Jung-ahn), and though it seems like she could’ve been eavesdropping with a motive at first, it’s quickly revealed that she’s waaaay too simple for that.

Do-joon doesn’t even know how to deal with her, since she laughs at jokes that don’t exist and thinks her husband is legitimately funny. When she leaves, Do-joon complains even more to his secretary about his simple wife—and it’s clear his secretary thinks he’s being paranoid when he worries she could’ve been eavesdropping. I think his secretary thinks a lot of things about him he can’t say out loud.

Chae-young pays a visit to the VIP floor for some cosmetic surgery (she’s a regular), only to blow up when her usual room is taken. It’s only when Cynthia arrives to diffuse the situation that Chae-young calms down, because she knows just what to say to appeal to her vanity.

Interestingly enough, the secretary has a minion keeping tabs on Chae-young, though he reports nothing out of the ordinary with her. It’s only when Chae-young’s alone that she drops the airhead act and calls her father.

It turns out she was eavesdropping and reports what she’s heard to him, sure that Do-joon has something in the works with his promise to end the comedy of two families under one roof. Her father, and the man she simply refers to as “Ahjusshi,” take this to the interested parties who’ve been pressuring Do-joon to see Yeo-jin. They’ll get what they want if she signs a power of attorney document.

It’s clear that Chae-young’s father is a powerful man, and he’ll stand to gain a lot of shares if the people on his side can get to Yeo-jin. He claims he’s just doing this out of respect for her late father and his in-law, the chairman, who foresaw this power struggle before it even happened.

In her dream world, Yeo-jin is trapped in a circular room made up of glass panels that reflect a muted cloudscape. She can hear what goes on in the waking world like it’s far away and above her, and is aware of everything—like the fact that Wednesday is the day Nurse Hwang eats steak that’s been passed through a warm room at best.

While Nurse Hwang relishes in her blood-drenched steak and drinks wine from a vampire’s cellar right next to her comatose body, Yeo-jin says:

“It’s been 1,165 days since I’ve been trapped in this glass bottle. During the first year, if someone would have helped me to wake up, I’d decided to grant him his wish no matter what it was. The next year, I had decided to grant a wish to anyone who would help kill me and put and end to my suffering, no matter what it was. And today, three years later, if I am to ever wake, I’ve decided to kill those who imprisoned me here and anyone who helped them.”

But now she can’t help but think of Tae-hyun reaching through that doorway to take the shard out of her hand, though she doesn’t know who he is—only that he’s the first outsider she’s seen in three years.

Tae-hyun finds himself shunned by other doctors he used to associate with at lunch, with them presumably having been told that he transferred out of their department. The only person who will sit with him is Nurse Oh, who wonders why he allows everyone to think he’s just after money when he had Patient Young-shik transferred for his own good.

For whatever reason, Tae-hyun doesn’t care to clear his name when it comes to his fellow doctors, content to let them think whatever they want of him. What he does want to know is who the patient was that got surgery in the room across fro theirs yesterday, since there’s no record of it.

Nurse Oh guesses that it was a patient from the VIP floor, and only knows that Chief Lee performed the surgery. Curiouser and curiouser.

Tae-hyun confronts one of his hoobaes over why he’s not even allowed in the operating room anymore, to which the young doctor blames Tae-yong—he’d always wanted to get rid of Tae-hyun anyway, so he just took the opportunity given to him.

Cynthia tries to deal with a VIP client who desperately needs to get to their hospital but can’t risk the media attention. Just then, Chief Lee spots Tae-hyun moving all his stuff from his old department, and knows that his backpack contains the surgery equipment he’d use as Yong-pal.

So he gathers extra supplies and stores of blood to put in Tae-hyun’s backpack, telling him that it’s not a request but an order for him to pay a house call to the marooned celebrity.

Cynthia drives him there in her awesome sports car (literally, the word “awesome” is written on the car) and fills him in on the details—it’s a Hallyu star’s girlfriend who got hurt in their hotel room, and they can’t risk extracting her without the press finding out.

She pays off whoever she needs to in order to ease their way, eventually leading him inside the suite. Immediately, Tae-hyun goes to the bloody figure on the floor everyone inside seems to be ignoring, and can tell from her bruises that she was beaten by the star and stabbed with a glass bottle.

He calls Cynthia over to tell her that they’re looking at a crime scene, not an accident, and it’s also sexual assault. She doesn’t have the moral scruples he has, and tells him to just take care of the patient. Their client is the star who beat her, and they have to take care of him and his reputation first.

Tae-hyun gets some of the star’s retinue to help him only after telling them that they’ll go to prison if the girl dies. Using his experience as Yong-pal, Tae-hyun turns the hotel room into a functional operating room, and even fashions a coat hanger into an IV drip.

Cynthia stops him before he can make an incision—the goal was just to stabilize her so they could get her to the hospital. Despite how she caters to the rich, it seems she has no love for them, and knows that the star would be able to weasel out of being blamed for the girl’s death if Tae-hyun were to cut into her.

Despite her warnings, Tae-hyun does the surgery anyway, knowing that the girl would die without it. Of course, the media later presents the story the way the star would want it, painting him as a hero who stopped a random attack and saved a girl’s life.

Afterward, Cynthia seems impressed with Tae-hyun, since the stunt in the hotel room proves that he’s not just in it for the money like all the rumors claim. She finds that attractive on a personal level, but it’s not a trait she’d encourage as a comrade. “Don’t act like you know me when you don’t know me,” Tae-hyun replies.

As a way of repaying him, she tells him to go over Chief Lee’s head and go straight to the hospital director if he wants access to the princess’ room. Who knows, if he finds the director in a good mood, he just might get permission.

The hospital director is overjoyed with the job Tae-hyun did, and commends Chief Lee for his creativity in sending Tae-hyun on a house call, which has given him the brilliant idea to make house calls a VIP service.

He gives Cynthia and Tae-hyun envelopes of money to thank them, and gets a kick out of how grateful Tae-hyun is. It’s because he likes money, Chief Lee mutters, but the director doesn’t see anything wrong with that. Who doesn’t like money?

But when asked if there’s anything else he’d like, Tae-hyun takes the opportunity to ask for access to the restricted area, though he makes it sound like he just wants to help Chief Lee out, since he’s the only doctor on call all day every day right now.

Chief Lee wants to throttle him, but the oblivious hospital director thinks it’s a great idea for Tae-hyun to help out. He trusts Tae-hyun to do a good job with their super-secret patient, but entrusts Cynthia with getting him a new wardrobe so he can make house calls in fashion.

Tae-hyun doesn’t see anything wrong with the way he looks, but the flamboyant male stylist he’s sent to couldn’t disagree any more. Tae-hyun sleepwalks through multiple hairstyle changes, with Cynthia adding a final touch with a thick pair of eyeglasses.

Next up is clothes, and just the shoe choices are enough to overwhelm Tae-hyun, who couldn’t be any less into this if he tried. He ends up looking like a nerdy schoolboy who got lost on his way to prom, but Cynthia’s happy with it.

After securing him a luxury car he can use to make house calls, Cynthia admits that her “customer satisfaction” label is just that—she’s really all about sales. She explains how membership for the exclusive VIP floor works, and if you thought our 1% was bad, all that floor caters to is the 0.1% of society, the richest of the rich.

That’s all fine and well to Tae-hyun, but he wants to know about the patient they call Young-ae. Cynthia begins the story as it turns into a flashback, describing Yeo-jin’s story as Romeo and Juliet, where she was the Juliet and heiress of Hanshin Group in love with the eldest son and heir to their bitter rival.

Do-joon had at least pretended to be nice to his sister then, who clearly loved and admired her oppa. In the memory, he finds her overlooking the guests at a fancy gala as she sighs that all the women there look and act the same.

Yeo-jin asks her older brother if he’s really going to marry Chae-young like their father wants, to which Do-joon replies that he has no power to do otherwise. He knows who she likes and knows it won’t work, but promises her that he hasn’t told their father yet.

He gets uncomfortable when she shows him affection, but Yeo-jin doesn’t care—she wants to show her prospective in-laws that he he has a sister who loves him. And to Do-joon’s credit, his smiles directed at her seem genuine.

Do-joon offers to drive her home, only to be foiled by Yeo-jin’s unauthorized boyfriend. They speed off in her car together while Do-joon sends his minions to catch them. In voiceover, Cynthia tells Tae-hyun that they’d planned to get married that night.

But of course, it all goes horribly wrong in the ensuing car chase, which ends with Yeo-jin’s boyfriend getting impaled. That’s how the prince of Daejoon Group died and the princess of Hanshin Group survived, Cynthia says in the present.

Tae-hyun summarizes the story as two rich kids who fell in love and ended up in an accident, which is a much drier and succinct way of telling it. As to why Yeo-jin’s still in the hospital, Cynthia can only guess it has something to do with her mental state, and that she’s probably unable to make herself leave her hospital room.

Later that night, Tae-hyun shoves all his new digs away in his old locker, but he doesn’t escape the notice of his old department. Everyone’s in awe over how sharp(?) he looks except for Tae-yong, who calls him out for selling out so he wouldn’t have to hold a scalpel again and for wearing a stupid bow tie.

Tae-hyun’s reaction is surprising—he’s subtle about it, but everything he says after that is meant to take a dig at Tae-yong. He casually mentions his office, the view, the perks. Now he doesn’t have to cater to someone like Tae-yong in the hopes that he’ll get to stay at the hospital after his residency.

In fact, now he’s better off than Tae-yong, and will likely be given a fellowship. On that note, he asks, has Tae-yong been given a permanent position yet? No? Oh well, he’s sure Chief Shin will throw him a bone. He adds an extra douchey touch by showing off for the nurses, and he even invites the one who likes him out for coffee and/or soju.

But when he turns the corner, he cringes at how childish he must’ve sounded. Maybe you took it a little far, but it’s about time you stood up for yourself, I say.

Chief Lee ushers Tae-hyun into the princess’ room, proving that they have permission from the higher-ups by pointing to the nearest security camera, which nods its assent. Chae-young watches the two go in while lurking nearby.

It’s like walking into another world when Tae-hyun is taken into the futuristic stronghold that is Yeo-jin’s room, but it’s only when he’s told to introduce himself to her comatose form that he recognizes her from when he grabbed the shard out of her suicidal hand.

In her glass prison, Yeo-jin suddenly finds herself surrounded by light as she hears the syllables of his name float down to her. She looks up as if trying to catch a glimpse of him as she repeats, “Kim Tae-hyun?”


COMMENTS

My attitude coming into this show can best be described as kicking and screaming, so convinced was I that any medical drama that labeled itself as being more was doomed for spectacularly epic failure. Because of the traumatizing effects of covering both Dr. Jin and Doctor Stranger (I’m not linking because I’m not cruel) in one lifetime, I can honestly say I had written off medical dramas as a genre that was just not ever going to be for me. And that was okay.

But then I watched the first episode of Yong-pal and was surprised that I actually liked it. Then the second episode, which I liked even more. And so here we are, and I can only hope and pray that if dramaland has any mercy in its heart, it won’t take the oh-so-cautious sense of optimism this show has somehow managed to tease out of me and crush/immolate/eviscerate it with inevitably boring hospital politics, nonsensical medical ethics, and all the other ways a drama like this can go terribly wrong.

The whole point I’m trying and likely failing to make is that it’s good. And it’s not just baseline good, or the kind of moderately competent fare that’s inoffensively watchable—there’s a compelling visual language at play here that manifests itself without being oppressive, and some really interesting ideas interwoven with the more basic stuff that moves the plot along. The world feels realized, and the people within it have goals of their own and purposes that seem to extend beyond the page.

Even side characters who could be just fillers, like the head nurse and Nurse Oh, instead operate based on a deeper understanding of Tae-hyun that he seems hell-bent on not cultivating amongst the people who know him. It’s a character trait of his that sets him apart in a meaningful way, because while many capable heroes downplay their abilities, Tae-hyun takes self-depreciating to a whole new level. And for what? Why would he rather let other people believe he’s an unfeeling, money-grubbing douche when there’s so much more to him? I wonder if it’s some sort of self-defense mechanism, or a knee-jerk reaction to positivity.

And after his most recent conversation with Tae-yong, he’s only made things worse as far as how people view him, but whether that’s something he wanted or not is up for grabs. It seemed intentional at first, the way he was bragging so everyone could hear, but then he chastised himself after in the way that we all belatedly view the stupid things that we do. He tries to tell himself to act differently and say the right (or in this case, wrong) things, but he’s also a human who has a patience threshold like everyone else. And one who had a perfectly respectable wardrobe before Cynthia messed it all up.

Poor taste in fashion aside though, Cynthia is an unexpected gem of a character. She’s not just the generic and perfectly manicured corporate sponsor, but a player who knows the game and only plays to survive. That moment in the hotel room when she felt a connection to Tae-hyun because neither of them belong to the upper echelon of people they serve said everything about her, and though she didn’t care too much about the girl bleeding on the floor, she cared enough to warn him against risking his neck for people who will never give a damn.

But try as Tae-hyun might to convince everyone otherwise, he actually cares. And for a princess who’s powerless against a scheming brother trying to use her and a nurse who has a very creepy fetish for living corpses, that’s exactly the kind of hero she needs. Now it’s just a matter of keeping her away from sharp objects long enough for her to get to know him. After that, revenge.


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Idk, I can feel already that their chemistry would be overflowing. I loved the first scene and the last scene of this episode seriously.

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I really like this show. It's gripping and entertaining, and the time really flies by.

The show is certainly too heavy handed at some parts, I find the characterisations of the money-grubbing 12th floor chief and director almost laughable. Yes, we know it is about a rich/poor divide, now could you start behaving like a (more) normal hospital instead of one that lets patients die on an operating table because a richer patient has suddenly appeared?

Cynthia I actually find super cool, but the hotel scene where she was willing to cover up a sexual assault just because the client was rich and famous was really apalling. I hope she will have a complete story arc, because while she clearly knows what she does is really problematic, she seems at the same time, really content to stay in this job because of the perks of pretty clothes and fast sports car.

The Chairman's wife is really fascinating. Wrote her off as an airhead in the first scene where I saw her, but as we spend more time with her, it seems that she has her own agenda. I wonder how much (if at all) her husband has actually caught on. I hope she will have a meaty role here, can't wait to see more of her.

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I'm glad I finally watched episodes 3 & 4, because after episode 2 I wasn't really feeling it. The first two episodes were so clunky and I could care less about our hero, despite how hard they worked to make him sympathetic. But the show seems to be developing a slightly lighter touch in these episodes and has become much more watchable/interesting. I hope it continues in this direction.

The show really benefits from the addition of Cynthia, the Chairman's wife, and even YJ's presence.

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The hospital isn't a normal hospital it's a sanctuary for that 1 percent rich portion of the population. They go to that specific hospital to avoid the scrutiny of society, the law, and reporters.

Cynthia doesn't find it problematic rather she was agrees it is logical to support the powerful in times of need.

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Visually fascinating dream world, as wall.

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. . . And a thumbs up for Stephanie Lee, who switches effortlessly from from being a dopey high school girl in 'Spy Club' to a smooth, subtle adult professional in 'Yong-pal'.

It's so useful to be 25ish with perfect skin in drama-land!

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Oh, I wondered where I knew her from. THANK YOU!

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It's finally here!!!! Thank you HeadsNo2!!! ^^

I loved the makeover sesh (despite the weird, high fashion/really expensive clothes)! We got lots of yummy looks of Dr. Kim and I find his disinterested and bored look during the makeover quite funny!

The visuals were also lovely and adds more to the narrative, like the clouds in the glass prison walls of Yeo Jin, kinda symbolizing Yeo Jin's clouded state while she's in an imposed coma.

Acting's awesome from everyone, especially Joo Won, and I like that there's depth and dimension to each character. Time flew by so fast watching Yongpal and I am not surprised of its rating increase. It's sooooo good! I just hope the awesomeness goes through the end! Yongpal hwaiting! ^^

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I love it!!! This is one drama that is brainy, gripping and beautiful, all on the same time. I hope it stays that way until the very end. Fingers crossed!

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I like it alsooo! I check it because the writer is the one who did reset wherein kim so hyun starred in haha His plot is similar with the style of japanese hehe and I love it as of now :-) shooooooow please be good!

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The first time I saw a gorgeous and stylish girl in beautiful dress but with out HEELs in kdrama, Cynthia Park :) I dont know why I already started to like her character :)

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I loved that too. The fact that she didn't wear high heels adds a sense of realism.

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I suspect the reason she doesn't wear heels has more to do with her height. She's 5-10 according to the Internets, so if they put her in heels she'd tower over most of the other actors, including Joo Won.

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The high ratings are deserved. This drama is such a pleasure, visually and story-wise. It's somehow glossy yet gritty :3
Can't wait to see how it all unfolds

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I like the new charcters specially Cynthia (shin-shia by chief lee lol). Can't believe she's only 21 in real life.

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Cynthia's the prettier and classier version of Manshik, Yongpal's sidekick/loanshark friend. Hahaha! I hope she'll be of help to him in the near future and vice versa.

P.S. HeadsNo2, are you alternating with gummimochi in recapping? Taking over? Or is it taking turns along with girlfriday and javabeans? 'coz I'd love for it to be the latter, to read everyone's take/insight on yongpal!

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Ahahaha suddenly I'm picturing a case of "Pair the Spares" where she and Manshik end up hooking up, probably after too much soju. Ahahaha.

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They can't be too different. Beauty and Beast. Tall and Short. Slim and Plump. But both are good aides to Yongpal.

I really want them to meet. Maybe they will get jealous and fight over Yongpal, ha. Just kidding.

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@ HeadsNo2

Thanks for your recap. Like you, I'm cautiously optimistic. I only got more into the show in Episode 2 and liked Episode 3 for starting to bring all the threads together. I'm watching out for the people who are going to be on the Yong Pal team, because it's evident that if he's going to help Yeo Jin, he cannot do it entirely alone.

A word about the reverse makeover trope where the girl dresses the guy. Why was the taste in clothes so... er... bizarre? The image Cynthia wanted him to have must have been something less than polished and suave ... more like an over-
dressed loan shark or nerdy waiter? LOL!

I'm beginning to like this show more anyway, and am happy to give it a fair viewing. :)

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I like this drama too!!! Superb acting from Joowon. Thank you HeadsNo2 for the recap.

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My attraction to this show is increasing episode by episode. But keeping my hopes low if it goes melo way. Visuals are stunning! Looking forward to the recaps for now.
Is Joo-won a really good actor? There was so much hype around this dram.. What is so special about him? Looks or talent?

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most of joowon production got a good rating. i think korea loves this guy.
for me i like him because he is totally give best when acts and i can feel his sincerity.

by looks i think many actors are more handsome than joowon.
but not many of young actors can lead and acts superb like him.

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Joo Won is a really good actor. He's not the most handsome but he has a very nice body and so tall too.

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He is a good actor. I think he is one of the few Korean actors (just like Jang Hyuk), who doesn't care if he looks "ugly" on screen if the scene requires it. Take Gaksital for example - simply awesome!! I am loving Yong Pal too so far... Joo Won is definitely more suitable for intense, darker roles.

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You should try watching Gaksital/Bridal Mask, Ojakkyo Brothers (where you also see Chief Lee playing Joo won’s eldest brother) or Good Doctor. He won awards for these shows. I also like him in Cantabile Tomorrow.

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Thanks for the suggestion i'll check out Cantabile, it is a musical drama before watching yong-pal.

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Cynthia Park / Stephanie is 178cm - nearly 6ft... so she could pull off anything in flats.. Nice
I have trouble clicking:replying to individual threads here so I have been missing from the conversations. Missed some of you gals here.
After watching and enjoying Healer, Blood and I remember you, I didn't expect to like yong pal. But now I do. The pace, the intrigue, the sidekick. I also like the brother and sis in law - both actors are underrated in my opinion. Looking forward to this drama...

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Hi Shurei, long time no read! :)

I love how this show is filled with interesting characters with so much potential to add greater intrigue and complexity to the story. I just hope we don't get to lost in the whole web of different agendas that's starting to fly about already!!!

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yay! now i have something to watch after i remember you ends...

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me too, me too... i keep repeated hyun and min scenes these days, because can not move on ...

but now i will give this a try, because joowon in it.

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I wasn't the only one who shouted "Gaksitaaaaal" in one of the hair transformations, right?
The other hairstyle looks to me like the one he had in Good Doctor.

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Lol, i scream Gaksital so many times with this show...
when Chief Lee said "Bingo"..or when Joo Won cried eating with his mom... and so many.

by the way, i'm re-watching Gaksital again, so good!!

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Eh? Just something I don't get: If mega chaebol YeoJin falls in love with another mega chaebol, isn't that a good thing for her parents? Since when did Chaebols say no to marriage with big players, rival or no rival? I thought with chaebols, bigger is badder and therefore better, no?

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I don't think her father really knew about it. But her marrying the equally rich enemy chaebol won't be good for the brother. His position will be threatened. Yeo Jin's position will be far superior to his after the marriage.

It's probably the brother that got her boyfriend killed, not the father.

It's also suspicious that the father died so soon after her accident.

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I'm thinking the families might have been actual, active enemies. Or, so big that merging the family fortunes would be problematic.

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There is actually a real life true story that is very close to this. In 2005 a Samsung heiress committed suicide because her family objected to her marrying a "commoner".

http://nypost.com/2005/12/04/behind-sad-mystery-of-heiress-nyu-suicide/

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I know right. How can Stephanie lee be 21 and act so professional like hello 21 is still a teenager (IMHO) she's also very tall. 178cm at that. Went through all source searching about her because I like her so mucho.

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then you should watch detective of seonam high school, it's quite watchable and she was funny..

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Stephanie Lee is 178cm?? Wow, height envy.

Wait, then how tall is JooWon? Is he aiming to be a tower?

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Joo Won usually towers over everyone around him, and then comes this lady that also towers over everyone on FLATS. Imagine their children. Hehe.

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Another 87'er !!!! Holy 1987 !!!!

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I love love love it. Really.
The ratings are compeletely deserved, Yong Pal seems to have struck all right strings for the Korean as it's breaking one record after another, I wouldn't be surprised it it becomes the next super-hit-drama after You Who Came From The Stars.
As for the plot, I'm eagerly waiting for Yeojin's awakening. My doubts vanished this episode, because as many of you I feared that Joo Won and Kim Tae Hee wouldn't have any chemistry together. They proved us wrong, oh so wrong. I felt the sparks flying in their first scene (which has to be the most bizarre first meeting of the OTP I've ever seen) which was rather disturbing as she tried to commit suicide. The same goes for the last scene, even though they didn't even touch and she was uncounscious I felt the sizzle, and I'm waiting for more.
As for the haters of Kim Tae Hee's acting that of course came up as soon as she appeared, I think that they hate her just for the sake of hating. I think she did actually pretty good in Ep3 and even better in Ep4, but I'll wait for recap to elude on it more. She's not the best, but not the worst, she's a pretty decent actress with experience and if she keeps up her strong chemistry with Joo Won, this is gonna be a pretty good drama. They already look so good together.

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Of course not elude, but expand upon it. My bad.

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First thing first: I was very surprised to see Chae Jungahn having a 'shallow' character. I expected her role to be a total madame of the house, but it turns out that she has two sides of herself. That's interesting. I'll give credits to the writer for making it like that.

Our Sleeping Beauty keeps proving that she's not just a spoiled princess; she has some idealistic (sans her crazy stunt with the boyfie) ideas about how her world works. She has determination to be different, and I always like that. Kim Taehee acts surprisingly very strongly too, and I can't wait for her and Joowon to actually interact.

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Oh HeadsNo2, I'm very happy for you that you like this drama! You'll have to sit through the final eps of the other one *I can't name*, but at least this one is good. Hwaiting!

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I'm so proud of Stephanie. She's definitely killing her character. She and Lee Sungkyung are definitely the model turned actress from YGK+ to look out for.

For those who don't know. Here's some basic information.
Stephanie Lee is a model under YGK+, same agency as Nam Joohyuk. She's born in 1993 and this is her second drama only. Yes, she's very tall.

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I love this show, but I am slightly different in that I don't want the OTP pairing.

Give us a show in which the main leads don't fall in love with each other.

That will escalate it above everything else.

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It seems like there is a bit of Beatrix Kiddo, the Bride, in Yong-ae's character. Really intrigued with how she develops as she awakens.

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Good reference. Considering they made a point of addressing the muscle atrophy issue, they may have her pretend to not be awake for a while so she can exercise and regain her full function if he ends up helping her wake up.

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I like that the visuals don't just narrate the story, but augment it. it's sort of like a language that only films can express, and it's only after watching this episode that I was reminded I had such thirst for aesthetics. keep it up, yong pal!

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Oh wow, Yong Pal. Never guess that this one would help me heal from a bad drama withdrawal of IRY. Watched 1 - 3 in a go, then live stream the 4th. So far I'm impressed. The casts, the story, the pace and the visuals all good. Hope they'll keep it up till the end. Come JHJ, as you usually do, hooked me bad.. ^^

Thanks for the recap, Heads!

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Nurse Hwang is one creepy character! My stomach turned watching her eat that bloody probably-still-alive steak, but it's so fascinating at the same time, really curious at how far she can go.

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IT WAS SO BLOODY OMFG. i was genuinely concerned that she would get food poisoning from eating raw meet LOL.

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meat* oops

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i guess i'm not eating any rare steak if that is what it looks like.. hahaha.. no thanks...

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IKR, and I swear I was going to puke in that scene

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Yeah, thank god she's a nurse and knows what she's doing! *shudders*

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maybe it's all symbolic? To portray her as a beast, LOL.

Currently, she's the creepiest thing in dramaland, more than all the night creatures in SWWTN.

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she looks more like a psycho than min and ljy in i remember you O.o

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Yes, she does!

I haven't seen this actress before. She's doing a good job.

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i really hope the chemistry between joo won and kim tae-hee will be okay, because right now i can't quite see them together yet. individually though, joo won is great (as usual), and really makes me feel for the character in ways that a lesser actor wouldn't have. it's kind of weird because i've always known that he was a really good actor, but i feel 1000% more attracted to him in this role than anything else i've seen him in.....except for when he had that weird bowtie and glasses thing going on. and i think i'm going to like kim tae-hee's character too, so crossing my fingers that i'll like them even better together!

i still kind of have reservations about the drama too though, because i feel like this is the kind of drama that has very very veryyy big potential to go completely crazy and off-the-rails with huge gaping plotholes and a lot of weepy, mopey scenes during the later half LOL. but hopefully it isn't! the writing seems a bit heavy-handed at times, but the main story is compelling enough to keep me wanting more. is it just me though, or does the editing feel really choppy and messy?

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Hi @es
I think the editing could be better... especially in Ep 4 but I won't talk about it here. Nevertheless, I'm wondering if at the beginning, the editing is not that great, how will it be when they get to live shooting time and have only hours to edit?

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Yeah, ep 4 was so great save for the obvious editing errors. The upside is that they will be paying extra attention to it now...or am I too hopeful? Show is doing great, so maybe just get more manpower to look into it.

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Yeah it IS kind of choppy. And the car accident scene needs to stop replaying.

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My my my... this one is really good! and Ms Pretty lady assistant is killing it!
Keep it up show!
and thanks for the recap!

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I am supposed to care about the loveline between Joo Won and Kim Tae-hee, right? Because they are the center of the story? Because ultimately, it will be their romance?

But, dammit, Cynthia is a ship-wrecker. I want them to just leave Kim Tae-hee aside and drive away in the red sports car. I know it's only 4 episodes long--things might go wrong and I might still consider Kim Tae-hee--but dammit, I just felt a lot of chemistry with Joo Won and Stephanie Lee.

*start rant* I just hope the car accident stops replaying. I just find a lot of distaste in that scene because of Kim Tae-hee's acting/expression. I know fans of her will call me out on this, but ugh, I just can't stand her still trying to look pretty when she's getting all banged up. *end rant*

Let's hope that this show maintains its good start.

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* it's only BEEN

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Not fond of that scene either, but it is the one memory that keeps hunting JY conscious and unconscious as she has never got a chance to deal with it.

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As soon as Joo Won put on the bow tie and slicked his hair back, I was just waiting for him to find a piano and start playing a concerto.
But really, this has become my new drama fix!!

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LOL. We need Joo-won to play more concerto to recovered from CT.

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Thank you for recaps, HeadsNo2, I really enjoyed reading it. Will you be recapping the future episodes? I certainly hope so.

I came into this show with some expectations but it has far exceeded them. This drama has so much packed into it and yet it doesn't feel like a convoluted mess nor the tone jarring. It's an very entertaining mix of action, thriller, medical, melo and comedy. Plus it has a heart beneath the sleek and beautiful. I read that the show resonates well with Korean audience because the issues with the healthcare system as depicted in this drama are real. So who doesn't enjoy a show which they can relate to and yet is fun and exciting to watch.

Let's hope Yong Pal stays awesome all the way and you'd have an enjoyable time watching and recapping :D

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Thanks for the recap.Can't wait to see more of our leads in action especially our sleeping princess.

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I just have one word for this drama.AWESOME! They just deserve the best rating. Awesome plots n casts. Hopefully its momentum is continued, and no doubt it can reach 20 digits soon ✌

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I'm glad it's good and the ratings are pretty intense so far. I guess that's the power of a good script + Joo Won + (maybe, probably) Kim Tae Hee. I'm still going to hold out till the show is almost over (as in probably right before the last episode ha) before I start watching. Just in case it flies off the rails!

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I don't know, it seemed like a deliberate choice to keep showing it to me- yeo-jin has to keep seeing it over and over so the audience can suffer through it a few times too. It could get really annoying if they keep it going, but so far I don't mind it.

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I'm hooked up with this drama. Aside from my bias on Joo won, this drama offer an interesting setup. I like how the characters revealed one by one. Chae Jung-ahn is a great actress, I wish she will take an active parts in the plot. Agreed, visuals are great and the story as well. Glad we have Kim Tae-hee start to took more parts in story narration....Unnie...irona-seyo
And what with that creepy Nurse Hwang?!! I think its creepy enough to have her dolled up Yeo-jin and now added facts that she's enjoying meal every day in her room?!! Uber creepy....

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I'm sorry but I'm pretty sure my friend is the only human on Earth that willingly goes around in bow ties.

I was going to say I don't understand why Do-joon doesn't just kill Yeo-jin and pretend like she's in the hospital, it's not like anyone can get in to see her without his permission anyway. But maybe that flashback provides answers and he does have some affection for her and so he keeps her alive.

I though going in that Lee Chae-young the sister-in-law was going to be an adversary, but maybe she's a potential ally.

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About why Do Joon hasn't killed Yeo Jin, it's in ep 4.

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Exact reason I don't know why he didn't kill her, but he needs YJ as "living". Maybe his position isn't enough strong (a lot of people go against him in the company: we could see with the visit-demand scene) or he wouldn't inherit yet after her so he has to wait for anything (later we will know).
I think CY surely is ally. We could see that she pretends to be airhead before her husband, spies for her dad and in flashback party scene (when he talked about arranged marriage) she scornfully watched his husband. She never liked him, maybe he forced or extort this marriage.

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@ SS and Ancsy

There was mention of wanting her to sign a power-of-attorney over to the shareholders... maybe the brother needs that kind of thing from her as well before he can do whatever he wants.

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Perhaps it is to make it seem that Yeo Jin was the one eating those food that is why creepy nurse hwang eats it in the room instead. You know, to keep the story they were feeding to the outside world that she is awake. I guess that is why it seemed it was deliberate of hers to smash the wine glass 'accidentally'. That or this is just another one of the imagery this show has given us.

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@yong82
Yes, I believe that Nurse Hwang has to play the part of Yeo Jin to keep the myth alive that she is awake. I even felt (because of those lips close-ups) that she ensured that both she and Yeo Jin wore the same colour lipstick so that the glass she drank from would have the lip marks of the right color. Although it was not necessary to apply lipstick on an unconscious Yeo Jin, it was part of her creepy playacting with the doll and as the doll.

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Thanks for the recap - enjoyed reading it. I'm loving the show too and Joo won!

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There are only three dramas i'm watching these days, Oh My Ghost (TvN), Last (JTBC) and this one, Yong Pal,..
to be honest i'm not Joo Won fans and his only drama i watched is Bread, Love and Dreams (King of Bread), i don't like his character in that drama, but when i watched him again in Young Pal, i change my mind. He looks more handsome, and his acting is very Good as Yong Pal.
I love the way this drama makes Yong Pal caught too soon, it is very rare in dramaland,.. my favorite scene of ep 3 is when Young Ae try to kill herself and secretly Tae Hyun take the glasspiece from her hand... YongPal.. hope this drama can bring more fresh and surprising plot to dramaland...
Yongpal Fighting!!! ^_^

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Absolutely in love with this drama!!

However, something that confused me, though, was Yeo-jin's speech about wanting to get out and kill those who imprisoned her there and yet, she attempted suicide?

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Ooooh, I'm dead or I'll be! This drama is going to kill me soon!!! I'm in love with it, although I think i's not the best, but I still love it and it's perfect for me!:D
About the Taehyun's wardrobe, it was absolutely fine till and Cynthia really messed it up!! I just wish Taehyun doesn't follow her taste from now on!:D

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@PinkSushi the first time I watched it I was confused as well. But reading the recap of HeadsNo2 clarified that for me and I quote her quoted line from yongpal:

"And today, three years later, if I am to ever wake, I’ve decided to kill those who imprisoned me here and anyone who helped them.”

So, I'm guessing she only made that decision on that day and perhaps after her encounter with Kim Tae Hyun.

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I love it so much ! I am so glad to have found dramas to fill my week ! Mrs Cop, Yongpal and Oh My Ghostess. It is awesome and makes my holidays seem less boring, haha.

As you mentionned, the visuals are really stunning. The storyline is so interesting that you are completely immersed in it. It is grasping (?). Also, the acting is top notch. Joo Won doesnt disappoint ! I like how full dimensioned are the characters. No one seem useless and they are quite interesting in their own ways as well so yeaaah !

Does someone else checked the ratings ? They are amazing. I cant believe that episode 4 got more than 16% ! Kim Soo Hyun and Joo Won are seriously the ratings' King lol. It has been years since a primetime KDrama surpassed the 15% range so good for them for picking good projects.

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My heart goes out to HeadsNo2. You have suffered so much, recapping drama turd after drama turd. This drama is off to a good start and I am crossing my fingers and toes that it remains good/great till the very end. HeadsNo2 FIGHTING!!

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Best drama ever.

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Yong Pal is great drama so i hope it can break 18% as soon as.

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