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Voice: Episode 9

We finally learn a little more about Hyun-ho and his background, although the truth of it may surprise you — or at least it will surprise the rest of the Golden Time Team. It just goes to show that nothing can be taken for granted and everyone is worthy of suspicion until proven innocent. On the other hand, this is probably the least violent and gory episode yet. Has OCN taken heed of their controversial censorship review, or is this just the calm before the storm?

 
Chapter 9

Hyun-ho shows Kwon-joo and Jin-hyuk the information he’s gathered on the killer. He’s researched the Bible verse that was on the wall and determined that the killer considers himself to be an executioner, like God who punished those in the corrupt city of Sodom.

These are the words of a crazy person, and Hyun-ho further elaborates that the mirror placed in front of Chun-ok’s crucified body was a hint that his next victim would be whomever looks into it — in this case, Kwon-joo and Jin-hyuk.

Tae-gu soaks in his bath and languidly answers the phone when his father calls. He explains that the reason he didn’t answer the phone earlier was because he was asleep. After his bath, he stops and intently stares at the TV when he sees a news report about the Golden Time Team’s recent successes. Are those bloody locks of hair Tae-gu has just lying around in plastic baggies? The blurry censoring makes it unclear, but there’s definitely something disturbing he’s keeping on his desk.

Tae-Fu’s father CEO Mo is also listening to the news report, which names Sang-tae as the culprit. CEO Mo orders his driver to find Sang-tae and then tell Commissioner Bae that they need to meet.

 

Hyun-ho returns to the call center, where Eun-soo asks why Kwon-joo wanted more information that the Violent Crimes Unit wouldn’t have. Hyun-ho doesn’t know for sure, and he sighs that he could find out so much more if he could use social media. Eun-soo thinks it’s dangerous to post too much personal information online, but Hyun-ho loves the freedom and communication that comes from it.

He also loves abbreviations, and rattles off a bunch of examples that he uses. He then reminds her to stop by and watching him DJ later. As he’s packing up his belongings, Eun-soo spots a bottle of pills in his bag.

Kwon-joo returns to the quiet sanctuary of her apartment, but there’s no chance to rest when there’s a killer chasing after them just like they are chasing after him.

 

In the morning, she meets with Young-woon where she tries to gently tell him that he won’t be able to see his sister for a while. But his childlike mind refuses to comprehend because his sister promised she’d come back for him. As he starts to scream for Chun-ok, the other cops try to hold him down, but it’s Kwon-joo with a bottle of Chun-ok’s homemade rice drink that manages to soothe him.

But of course the poor man doesn’t understand the full truth of the situation, and Kwon-joo feels the weight of Chun-ok’s death on her shoulders. She vows to arrest the killer, no matter what it takes.

 

Later, Hyun-ho and Eun-soo leave the station together after their shift. Or, rather, Hyun-ho follows her out, offering her a ride. She declines, since she has to go help her grandmother at the restaurant.

Hyun-ho is distracted by a cute puppy, and Eun-soo pragmatically informs him that the dog was likely abandoned, and places that have a higher rate of abandoned dogs also have a higher rate of crime. Well, it certainly would describe this neighborhood. But Hyun-ho, a giant puppy himself, happily takes selfies with the dog, knowing his social media followers will like it.

 

Jin-hyuk stays late at the station, pouring over all the files he can find about Chun-ok’s case. His son calls him, sad that his father won’t be able to visit him tonight. Jin-hyuk promises that he’ll be there tomorrow, and cutely cheers his son on over the phone as he takes his medicine. Then it’s back to studying the file on Sung-tae. Since he doesn’t think Sung-tae is the killer, he wonders why Sung-tae confessed to killing his wife.

Commissioner Bae meets with CEO Mo, who tells him to take care of the Bok-soon/Chun-ok case as soon as possible. Commissioner Bae politely says that he would like to, but there are complications — such as the forensics guys finding Sang-tae’s fingerprints. CEO Mo sighs that Sang-tae is just as cruel his father, whom the CEO owes a debt. Which means he can’t have Sang-tae end up in jail and instead will make plans to send him away to Japan.

 

CEO Mo’s leaves him with a reminder that he’s the one with the power who calls the shots, which is something Commissioner Bae ought to keep in mind when he starts to think he’s on the side of justice.

The weary Violent Crimes detectives stagger into the station the next morning, complaining about how little they were able to sleep that night. Jin-hyuk appears to have gotten some sleep, although it was done at his desk, where he’s spent all night researching the files.

 

Dae-shik pulls him aside to let him know that he’s still keeping an eye on Chief Jang, and overheard a phone call where the chief was telling someone about Jin-hyuk catching onto something, and that he doesn’t know what he’ll do if Jin-hyuk finds out about Fantasia, the elite hostess club.

In a deserted restaurant at the docks, Sang-tae meets with CEO Mo who tells him that he’ll send Sang-tae overseas to run one of their paper companies (that is, a company on paper only). Sang-tae doesn’t seem all that willing to leave, but CEO Mo reminds him that it’s his fault that they’re in this mess.

 

He gives Sang-tae two days to take care of business before leaving the country, and then hands over a suitcase filled with money and a passport. Sang-tae says that he’ll disappear on one condition — he kills Jin-hyuk before he goes. He’s hired a hitman to go to Jin-yuk’s son’s hospital room. CEO Mo thinks he’s crazy for attacking his enemy’s son, knowing it will only end badly for him. But Sang-tae, crazy or not, has nothing left to lose.

At the station, Kwon-joo studies her report on possible weapons the killer used, recalling Kyung-il’s description of an iron ball with a handle on it and wondering where the killer would have found such an item. What, they don’t have Crossfit in Korea?

In the call center, Eun-soo is annoyed that she keeps getting calls from a pervert. One of her gossipy coworkers stops to talk with her, pointing out that it seems so quiet in the call center since chatty Hyun-ho isn’t there today. Just then, another coworker reveals that an anonymous note was left on the department’s electronic forum.

It’s about Hyun-ho, and it declares that when he lived in the States as a teenager, Hyun-ho was involved in a gang and bullied other students, even causing one to commit suicide after Hyun-ho hacked his account. According to the note, Hyun-ho was also addicted to drugs.

That reminds Eun-soo of the pills she saw in Hyun-ho’s bag, and she looks up the drug Scopolamine. The primary use is for helping with motion sickness, but one of the more popular side effects is that it’s an hallucinogen.

Hyun-ho arrives at the club where he’s DJing. It’s a trendy club that he was only able to book a gig due to a last-minute substitution. He’s adorably excited to introduce himself to the famous DJ there, but as he’s hurrying into the club, he gets a message on social media from one of his fans telling him that he looks great — his fingers are so pretty, she wants to hang them on her wall. Er, creepy much?

 

He tries to introduce himself to the famous DJ, but a fangirl barges into the dressing room instead and cutely requests an autograph from her. Hyun-ho finally has his chance to introduce himself as DJ Black, letting her know that he’s also her fan and excited to share the stage with her tonight. She just dismisses him, annoyed that any no-name DJ is being invited to play at the club.

As the manager leads her away, he points out the coffee on the table that has Hyun-ho’s name on it. He takes a sip, managing to spill some of it down his shirt. But when he goes to bathroom to tidy up, he realizes that he’s not just unsteady because of his nerves — there was something in that drink. As he staggers to get his bearings, a woman steps into the bathroom.

The club is going full swing when it’s time for “DJ Black” to take the stage, but as he sways his way to the center of the room, he pulls out a knife and swings wildly until the party goers give him a wide berth. He takes one of the women hostage as he brandishes his knife. The manager of the club calls the emergency center letting them know that they’ve got a hostage situation, and that the DJ looks like he must be on drugs.

The call center gets multiple reports from the club goers about what’s going on, and they even get a copy of video that shows Hyun-ho stumbling around with his hostage and knife at the ready. The rest of the call center is shocked that it’s Hyun-ho, but Eun-soo tells Kwon-joo that she knows Hyun-ho was going to be DJing at the club that night.

 

Kwon-joo declares it “code zero” as she starts the Golden Time clock, dispatching Jin-hyuk and Dae-shik. Jin-hyuk can’t believe that Hyun-ho is at the middle of this, but Kwon-joo tells them about the anonymous posting and the other evidence they have. The detectives head out, and Kwon-joo warns them that it might just be a misunderstanding so Jin-hyuk should try and talk to him first.

Eun-soo reports her findings about the pills she saw in Hyun-ho’s bag, as well as a report she got just now by calling the cops in America. It states that a high schooler committed suicide and that a “Michael Oh” was considered to be a person of interest. Kwon-joo thanks her for her information, but warns her not to jump to any conclusions just yet.

She passes this information on to Jin-hyuk and Dae-shik, who wonder how Hyun-ho could have become a police officer with that on his record. Apparently he’s the son of someone with a lot of money and connections, so his record was wiped clean.

 

They finally arrive at the club, where Hyun-ho threatens the club goers not to move or else he’ll kill the girl he’s holding hostage. Dae-shik pulls out his gun and aims it Hyun-ho, ordering him to drop the knife or else. Jin-hyuk attempts to reason with him, but it doesn’t work. Hyun-ho yells at them to leave him alone, telling them repeatedly that the knife is a “high color laser.”

As she listens in, Kwon-joo tells them shat she knows Hyun-ho must be drugged because of the way he’s stumbling around, but Jin-hyuk tells there that it’s obvious he’s drugged just by looking at him. Ha.

Hyun-ho continues to babble about his “high color laser” and that he’s giving them a clue and if they don’t do anything, this place will turn into a sea of fire. Jin-hyuk’s understandably bewildered, but he reports back about the “high color laser.” When Eun-soo searches for it, all she can find are laser jet color printers. Remembering Hyun-ho’s love of acronyms, she wonders if “high color laser” is his way of saying HCL, or hydrochloric acid.

 

While he tries to get more information out of Hyun-ho, Jin-hyuk orders Dae-shik to look for someone that might have threatened Hyun-ho. Glancing around, Jin-hyuk notices a few bottles of HCL perched near the ceiling. He tries to tell Hyun-ho where they are without tipping off whomever threatened Hyun-ho by saying he knows that it’s hard working “under” Kwon-joo, cluing them in that there’s a bottle of HCL just above Hyun-ho.

Dae-shik finds someone hiding behind the bar with a controller, presumably to make the HCL bottles fall from the ceiling. Jin-hyuk tells Hyun-ho that on the count of “three” he should drop the knife and they’ll go, but it’s also to let Dae-shik know to get the person hiding behind the bar. Except that person hits the button before Jin-hyuk reaches “three” and the bottles slowly teeter towards the edge, and Jin-hyuk barely saves Hyun-ho from an acid attack.

 

The detectives then race after the woman who had the controller, and Dae-shik grumbles that this woman is ridiculously fast. Jin-hyuk manages to cut her off via an alleyway and trip her, sending her to the ground. But as he’s arresting her and reading her rights, he stops short when he realizes that the woman is actually a man. That doesn’t mean they still won’t arrest him (or her) as their prime suspect in the acid attack, fifteen minutes after the first call came in.

As the police cars arrive at the station to the horde of reporters waiting outside, Kwon-joo watches and listens as Hyun-ho insists it wasn’t him, but the cross-dressing man politely apologizes to everyone.

Kwon-joo and Jin-hyuk get Hyun-ho’s statement, where he insists that this was the work of one of his social media stalkers, who he only knows by her screen name “Love8080.”

 

He reveals that when he was struggling to pull himself together in the bathroom, the cross-dressing man appeared with a knife, telling him that Love8080 sent him and that if he doesn’t do what Love8080 tells him, she’ll release the HCL. Oh, and she was the one who drugged his drink, but she won’t kill him if he does as she’s told.

Hyun-ho is convinced, based on all the pop culture references on her social media accounts, that it must be a woman in her 40’s. He doesn’t know what she looks like though because she only sends him photos with her face covered by a parasol. When Jin-hyuk asks why a computer genius hacker like Hyun-ho hasn’t bothered hunting down Love8080’s IP address, Hyun-ho reminds him that it’s illegal unless he’s doing it for police business. Ha! Besides, he’s sure she’s masking her IP address, anyway.

 

He also explains that he was never part of a gang in high school, in fact, he was terrified of the “Black” gang, and the only reason he calls himself DJ Black is because it sounds cool. A boy at his school did die — but in a car accident, and Michael Oh was questioned about it, but he’s not Michael Oh. He pleads with them to catch Love8080 before she drives him totally crazy.

Dae-shik is interrogating their cross-dressing culprit Yang Ho-shik, or “Surprise” as he’s known online. Jin-hyuk is convinced that he must also be Love8080, but Ho-shik insists that he only did what Love8080 told him to — he has the chat records to prove it. They met on a “revenge exchange” site, where you can read about other people’s stories of revenge. He admits that he was happy to befriend her because the photo she sent — with her face covered by a parasol — made her look pretty.

Their friendship was further cemented when they agreed to exchange revenge requests. He needed someone to punish his boss for not giving him the back pay he was owed, and Love8080 wanted to seek revenge on an old lover. Ho-shik never met Love8080 in person — he just found the costume and props waiting for him at a meeting place. He was told that the HCL was water that he was supposed to pretend was acid.

He’s convinced that Love8080 only ended up using him because, as an electrician working at the club, he had access to the ceiling. Dae-shik tells Jin-hyuk that they’ve looked into the IP addresses on the revenge web site, and Ho-shik and Love8080’s IP addresses are different. Even though everything seems on the up-and-up about Ho-shik, he orders Dae-shik to continue to watch the suspect after he’s released.

 

Meanwhile, Commissioner Bae yells at Kwon-joo for making a fool of the police department. He’s considering dismantling the Golden Time Team. After all, they’ve gotten their own team members into dangerous trouble multiple times. He’s handing off Bok-soon/Chun-ok’s case to the Violent Crimes team, and if he hears Kwon-joo is still investigating, he’ll have her fired. She’s just intrigued by the realization that Commissioner Bae is getting more nervous the closer they get to the real criminal.

The Cyber Crimes Unit reveal that Love8080 is a screen name for a forty-three-year-old woman Kang Mi-sook, who’s previously had lots of warnings against her from younger men. They also have proof that she recently purchased a large amount of acid. The only odd thing is that the IP address they traced her account to belongs to a PC room.

 

Dressed in borrowed clothes, Ho-shik politely thanks the cops for everything they’ve done, as well as repeatedly apologizing. But just as he’s about to leave, an odd smile flashes across his face. He finds Hyun-ho in a nearby interrogation room, and shyly enters, yet again apologizing. Hyun-ho tells him it wasn’t his fault — after all, he was persuaded by a psycho.

Ho-shik’s smile falters for a moment, then returns as bright as ever as he tells Hyun-ho that he’s so handsome. But Hyun-ho is more relieved that the police are finally tracking down the woman that’s been a thorn in his side for so long. He continues to rant about how disturbing it is to have someone cyber stalk him like that, adding that he can’t wait until she’s locked up.

Ho-shik points out that she only did it because she likes Hyun-ho, but Hyun-ho recoils at the thought. If she really liked him, why would she make his life a living hell?

 

Eun-soo arrives just then to talk to Hyun-ho in private, and after Hyun-ho explains that they can’t talk about police cases in front of civilians, Ho-shik hurries to leave the room. But the piercing glare he gives Eun-soo makes me shiver, and he lingers outside to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Eun-soo wants to know if Hyun-ho believes that Kang Mi-sook is really the woman behind Love8080. She believes that Love8080 is suffering from erotomania, which is a delusional disorder centered around the belief that someone famous or of a higher status is in love with the person suffering from the disorder. Eun-soo finds it suspect that Mi-sook seems to be unrelated to the usual afflictions of someone suffering from this disorder, and decides to look into past cases involving acid attacks.

 

She leaves a laptop with Hyun-ho (along with the all-important Subway sandwich), and he delightedly starts to look into the IP address mystery himself. Meanwhile, Eun-soo looks around in the archives, but is surprised when she finds an empty evidence box.

Kwon-joo also reflects on the odd way that Ho-shik’s inflection changed when he entered the building. It sounded more like someone saying “sorry” in a prideful way, as though being complimented. Meanwhile, Hyun-ho manages to hack into Love8080’s documents, and discovers that the IP address isn’t the PC room, but an electrician’s repair shop. He tries to remember where he’s seen that name before, and pulls out the business card Ho-shik had handed him.

He desperately tells Kwon-joo that Mi-sook isn’t the one who threatened him, but it was Ho-shik all along. He’s now concerned for Eun-soo, since he remembers the way Ho-shik looked at her. Except Eun-soo isn’t answering her phone, and Hyun-ho runs out of the room to find her just as Kwon-joo orders Jin-hyuk and Dae-shik to return to the station. Eun-soo is in danger!

COMMENTS

Ahhhhh, is no one on the Golden Time Team safe? They’re either suspected killers or about to be killed themselves. Even if Commissioner Bae wasn’t a crooked cop out to protect only himself, I could see why he’d be considering shutting down the Golden Time Team — if only for their own safety.

I am relieved that Hyun-ho truly seems like the adorable puppy he’s always been. Maybe he should learn to keep more things to himself instead of being a constant chatterbox, but I’ve never thought of him as particularly evil, so it was hard to embrace the idea that he’d suddenly hold an entire club hostage for no reason. I also thought it was kind of awkward to suddenly let us know how much he loves acronyms and then to create a strange “acronym” for HCL. I get what they were trying to do, but it just seemed a little forced. However, it was refreshing to have a case that didn’t rely on Kwon-joo’s super-hearing. Anything she could hear was also obvious to everyone else through different means, so while her unique skill is useful, it’s nice to know that the team can solve the mysteries through standard detective work.

Also, if you’re going to have a plot about a creepy stalker-fan, I suppose it only makes sense to give it to the idol actor in the show. I’m sure Yesung has seen his share of sasaengs, those stalker fans that know no boundaries — whatever it takes to get them closer to their oppa. It makes me wonder if his outraged words about how someone could say they like him even as they terrorize him are ones he’s wanted to say to certain “fans” in real life.

At any rate, the cyber stalker acid attack is a good enough case that I did make me pretty much forget about the Kettlebell Killer for a moment, which is also a relief because I’ve been unsure how the show was going to handle the reveal now that there’s still nearly half the show to go. I won’t have too many complaints if the show just keeps dragging it out, bit by bit, each episode while continuing to focus on other cases. After all, the call center never stops taking calls, so there’s still plenty of opportunity to tease the purpose of the original killings each week while focusing on other cases until the final resolution.

Although, if the drama is going to do that, then I have to insist that should they show Kim Jae-wook in a bathtub again, they’d better give me some actual abs or something. Why be so cruel to tease me like that and then not show the goods? Oooooh, but does that make me into a creepy sasaeng if I insist on more brooding baths? Am I no better than Love8080, suffering under delusions of erotomania? Well, at least I haven’t threatened anyone with acid. Yet.

 
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We need a cameo from that chief in 'You Are All Surrounded' to come and throw some red beans around and yell about makjang teams on the police force.

Seriously, though, I am TRYING with this drama, I really am but I am just not connecting with it. I want to, so why can't I?

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In my case, I can't connect because there is no character development. Characters are "likable" but very flat, despite actor's efforts, imo. I can forgive the numerous plotholes if they gave me more fledged out characters and a deeper connection between the leads (not romantic, just them having one conversation that is not strictly about a case or some preachy PSA statement). I'm still here for JH and actually even LHN, her character was promising and I like her. Also to see how they resolve the whole thing. The killer is pretty cliche (like every other character) but the actor is doing a good job and Im curious to see what his motives are.

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I totally agree. I have tried to like it but its not gripping enough or very thrilling because of its predictability. The first episode was good and had lots of potential but that was about it. After watching really well written crime dramas like signal, Mrs cop and cruel/heartless city this pales in comparison. There is also barely any character development between the stars of the show, I dont even mean romantically but there's no friendship or shared grief. I find all the supporting cast unnecessary and unlikeable. Eun-soo is so stuck up and looks bored all the time. I honestly didnt care when her sister got kidnapped, I was rooting for her to die because she was so annoying. The eun-soo character would have been more interesting if her sister did die and thats why she joined the team, otherwise I cant understand her passing up a police promotion to essentially work in the call centre department instead. And Yesung's character, whats the point does he even need to be in the show? JH's partner has too many talking parts and he basically says the same thing all the time. Its like they are wasting budget with these people, they dont add anything substantial to the plot. There is something lacking about the whole show and most of its characters. Even Jang Hyuk, I'm a fan but why is he yelling all the time? Is the director telling him to act like that? What is the purpose of him having a son? The wife being killed was enough to get our sympathy, the sick kid is milking it a bit and not really adding additional development to his character. Maybe I'm just cold hearted but their scenes do not tug at my heartstrings. Lee-hana is doing well and I felt sorry about her losing her dad from their picture alone. Its like this show is a first draft with good ideas here and there but the writer and director dont know how to make it better so they are just chugging along with stock characters and scenarios for a 'crime thriller' and hoping no one notices. I really do like the main two actors and was looking forward to this show but I have decided to give it up. Its a shame I really wanted it to be good and it had so much potential but I dont have time to waste watching things hoping they will improve.

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This drama requires that yu switch your brain off, otherwise the amount of stupidity in some scenes will get to you lol. It is still enjoyable enough and I like Jin Hyuk and Kwon Joo's mutual trust.

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true, true.

some scenes are really nonsense..

it's better to not think about it and just enjoy the show, which makes me disappointed because Voice could have been much better.

oh well, at least HyunHo is cute.

i loved it when HyunHo got distracted by cute puppy XD

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Haha some parts can indeed be done better but I am just enjoying it for the thrills and suspense. Makes you come back for more every week!

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@nutellafitzgerald now that would be a scene I'd watch in Voice.

The only redeeming factor of this episode was Kim Jae Wook in the bathtub. Seriously though, *minor spoiler* episode 10 was no better. I tuned out during many of the scenes. Hopefully the episodes will pick up from then on since we aren't really left with any more members of the Golden Time team to mess with or who haven't already been messed with. Now show, that was not a dare. Please stop already.

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I watch this show every week. And every week I am screaming at the TV.. and yet I still watch it. My fave logic-less part of this episode was - They made a point to show that the records room is for authorized personnel only, and they show us Eun-soo badging into the room. And VOILA! killer also get a magical badge to access the records room. Its like the show runners are trolling us now!!

Also I love how deliciously menacing Kim Jae-wook's crazy killer is. Whenever he shows up on screen, I automatically tense up.

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It's not just the recording room. The holding room that Officer Oh was in...how is it that everything said in the room can be heard by anyone walking pass, especially non police personnel? Such poor security measures.

I still like the show but I think that such deliberate plot contrivances is rather amateurish.

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Hard to catch the kettle bell killer if your own police station is so lax. I liked how the crazy fan had an extra bottle in his bag. Dont they even search the bags of someone they arrested??

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Did he have the bag with him when arrested and brought to the police station in the first place? :-P

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So much facepalm this episode! This particular stalker case was a mess ?

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Because that stalker is an expert hacker who has IQ of 150, how would a simple archives room door stop him from entering?

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Can someone technically savvy please clarify if hacking the security pass scanner is indeed possible? Gosh i laughed in disbelief when the stalker hacker was inside the room as well. Oh the frustration with the show. I don't have much patience or nails left. My nails is no longer being worn down by the thrill and suspense from watching the show.

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Of coz it is possible, nothing is unhackable in the cyber world.

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It is technically possible, but it takes a lot more than bare hands and an IQ of 150. That part was indeed very ridiculous. xD

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and where the heck did the lunatic get an HCL? I can't remember he have a bag going to the police station because he was caught outside the bar while running off. Okay, lets just say he just have it (for who knows when & how) the police should've check it right? he is still a suspect & he shouldn't be taken lightly.

But i'm still enjoying the show. The thrills & action. I'm willing to shut my brain for some plot holes as long as it doesn't frustrate me that much.

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he wore drag queen costume when arrested, and I remember Kwonjoo asked another officer to give him a change of clothes. so my deduction, he changed into male clothes given by the police, and given a bag also to put his drag queen costume.

the HCl bottle though...

so here's my other deduction, he was given access by an insider, someone from the police who set him up to ruin the golden time team. because not only that he got access to the archives room, he also got another bottle of HCl, and... do you remember the call from the cyber team that told Kwonjoo about the IP address of Kim Misook (or something i don't remember) which turned out wrong?
i mean, it's a cyber team for God's sake. is Hyunho's skill more superior than the people in cyber crime team?

so yeah, I think there's someone in the police who set up all this tragedy. and Commissioner Bae, I'm watching you, old man.

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I really hope that your deduction holds true, because that will make us forgive the show for what seems to be gaping plotholes. I wish the writers gave us equally adept good guys to combat the rich psychos. But then again, perhaps they really want to show how incompetent and rotten the system has become, affecting even the basic of police protocols, because corruption runs deep in the organization.

That said, I still love the team up of Jin-hyuk and Kwon-joo and the mutual trust that's holding the team together.

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The IP address the cyber team got was wrong. It did track to the cafe Ho Shik used. The just were too lazy to did further and get the real IP. It's not like they knew that it would be a cover up. Their job was pretty straight forward this time.

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I think you're right that there's an in-house campaign afoot to undermine the Golden Time Team.

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Your theory sounds great but, why is it that our Golden Time Team doesn't imediately question things such as, where did this guy get the acid at the police station? I know they barely have time to breath amidst all the kidnapping and running to places but it is frustrating.

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A couple of you commenters are mentioning Ho Sik having stuff in some bag he didn't seem to have before at the police station, but that isn't a part of the episode 9 that I saw.
What motivates people to watch ahead and then go back and post spoilers on a previous episode's comment section?

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This drama is so silly sometimes. How did they get Hydrochloric acid from a drugged up man screaming 'High colour laser'???

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Haha but when i heard HCL, the first thing I thought of immediately was indeed Hydrochloric acid.

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Same here. I'm surrounded by chemical engineers and biochemists in my immediate family. ;-)

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That was something else! Also .. ok one acid bottle fell. Was that really going to burn the place down?

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No no, it was meant to burn and disfigure Hyun-ho, not the whole place.

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There were 4 bottles in total. If they fell on the floor, many people would've been hurt.

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Yup! I it would have rained acid on everyone which would have been like as if it had been raining fire- the acid burns would have been horrific.

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@pakalanapikake
*waves hello back!*

Your questions are always deceptively hard! I'm not sure what the conc of the acid in the bottle is but the stomach pH is 1 to 3. So that's super acidic. It's been ages since I've learnt this so I really can't remember so I had to google. the HCl in the stomach is mixed with other stuff too so the conc isn't that high- sources I found quoted 0.5-1%.
Compared to acid that can be used it attacks- can be above 12%!!

i also think that the facial acid Burns should have been more red than black at least initially, and you are 100% correct that they should have tried to wash it off instead of just cuffing him and dragging him out of there. Guy's gonna have one hell of a scar.

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Gee, thanks, Michykdrama!

It sounds as if the HCl in the bottles was way stronger than stomach secretions. Yikes. Seriously nasty stuff.

The perp is going to need the ministrations of Dr. Eun-soo, assuming she can get out of Goryeo. ;-)

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We're gonna need a truckload of TUMS to neutralize that acid spill. A missed PPL opportunity.

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Several of you commenters are talking about scenes that happened in episode 10 but this is episode 9's comment section. Why the spoilers?

I would ask the people that specifically post the spoiler info, but not all the comments have a reply link under them.

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Kwon-joo studies her report on possible weapons the killer used, recalling Kyung-il’s description of an iron ball with a handle on it and wondering where the killer would have found such an item. What, they don’t have Crossfit in Korea?

I can't blame her too much. I had no idea what a kettlebell was until I saw the word in the recaps and looked it up.

(And I just had to look up Crossfit).

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Same!

But I'm a self confessed couch potato who is allergic to exercise so I'm not the best example.

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Hear! Hear! I barely work out, and when I do, I still do it the old-fashioned way (i.e. stretch a few times and that's it! lol).

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I had to look up kettlebell, too. It makes me wonder if Killer Cheekbones has ties to the Russian mafia.

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need more kim jae wook brooding bath!

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HOW CAN SOMEONE LOOK SO SEXY JUST SITTING IN A BATH TUB?? HOW??

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I stopped watching in Episode 7 when I got a lot of 90s action movie vibe, and there's nothing more I can look forward to especially in the recent episodes where most cases are already leading up to who is the Kettleball Killer and the bigger syndicate behind it.

Will you recommend me to continue watching this show? Btw, I was/am not a fan of the actress' acting style, but I was holding on to the promise of the plot until I grew tired of it as well.

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Well, if you don't like it so far, there's no point in forcing yourself to watch. I'd say wait a week and see what the comments are, then you'll figure out whether you're curious enough to watch the rest of it.

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Me too, have kinda lost interest in this show since they introduce the à la Mission Impossible-Face/Off plastic surgery -_-'
Am doing crayon's advice and reading recaps only for now, will pick it up if it gets nail-biting again; still keeping the hope for twists ahead.

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ignoring the subpar procedural scenes, i'd say voice is good with the mood and psycho killer oppa (sorry, just had to add oppa there coz of Kim Jae Wook).

i thought this episode was more of a filler than ep7, n for once i was kinda bored =X luckily ep10 was much more interesting

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I think everyone's redeeming factor for the show is Kim has wook's bathtub scene or maybe every scene.

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Kettlebell Killer with some Killer cheekbones, anyone with such amazing cheekbones cannot be trusted. The man is just too beautiful to look at straight. He manages to be chilling af in his scenes tho. Must be them Killer Cheekbones (trademark still being negotiated).

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Cheekbones of DoomTM

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Lol! Or Kettlebell of Doom. Cheaper to hire than the vehicles of doom, as there's still no union for Crossfit props of doom.

Killer cheekbones and killer smile, belonging to a killer body. lol

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After this show, I'm going to have to re-watch COFFEE PRINCE and ANTIQUE to overwrite the psycho-killer afterimages. Come back, WaffleMeister / pastry chef of Demonic Charm!

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So it's official now -- KJW is a certified "ahjussi fatale"?

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What a smexy nickname, @PakalanaPikake! Also, it sounds like "juicy" so, it conjures naughty scenes in my brain as well! Oh, stahhhpit! hahaha

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@Klurker,

That's not one of my coinages. -- I read it somewhere -- and for the life of me cannot recall where. It was in reference to a couple of Korean movie actors -- one of them being Cha Seung-won, IIRC. -- Ah, here it is.

http://www.dramabeans.com/2016/12/news-bites-december-24-2016/

What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. ;-)

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Noooooooooo! Handsome Oppa will always remain an oppa!

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@odilettante,

Mea culpa!

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I didnt know that hes an idol.

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He's one of super junior's main vocalists. Got a distinctive husky & imho opinion quite lovely singing voice but maybe as a fan I'm biased.

I don't know about sasaengs but he's got a really nasty stalker antifan/hater who's been harassing and threatening him (including death threats) on Twitter and Instagram for the past year or so - every time fans report her(?) and get her accounts terminated (s)he just creates new ones. She's quite recognisable both from her broken English and modus operandi. I saw her leave a couple of nasty comments on OCN's Instagram page, it appears to have been shut down now, I wonder if it was because of her. She appears to have no other reason for doing it other than that she prefers one of his band mates. I dare say the stalker storyline was just a coincidence but I wouldn't be surprised if the writers know about his situation. Maybe it was a kind of warning shot to her to back off. Then again he gets so many comments on his posts, perhaps he's not even aware of her.

Thank you so much for the recaps - sometimes I just read them because I like to see other people's reactions but for crime series like Signal and this I really do need them to make sense of what's going on, I'd literally miss about half of the plot otherwise. This series is seriously messy, though not enough to totally ruin my enjoyment....yet. I do still really like the chemistry between Jin hyuk and kwon joo and even though we pretty much know who the killer is I still want to know WHY. More specifically why Jin Hyuk's wife? Nam Sang Tae seems to want to get revenge against him for some reason.

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So there are plot holes, and quite a few, but the reason I'm still around is because Tae gu is such a fascinating character, his killer cheekbones not withstanding!

I want to find out how Tae Gu turned out like this, so psychotic and so refined, completely different from his mobster boss father.

And so when they blur out things like his keepsakes at home it irritates me, even more than the bath scene without abs! Haha.

Because if you are going to make your character so fascinating then please don't give me a peek into his home (and mind) and not show me everything.

Don't be a tease show!
Bath scene = abs.
Lingering over keepsakes = show me the stuff in high def.
Thankyouverymuch.

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Lingering over keepsakes = show me the stuff in high def.

I agree. What the heck were they not showing us? It was less than useless.

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Usain bolt in stiletto heels faster than policemen in sneakers?!????

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Thanks for recapping, odilettante! I think you're onto something vis-a-vis an editorial meta-comment by the cast's resident idol and rabid fans. It makes a ton of sense to me.

I really had to suspend my disbelief when Speedy Gonzales took off like a shot in his Ruby Slippers. Even up steep stairs and around corners on pavement without wiping out. Is he a cross between a cheetah and a mountain goat?

1) Not only was the homicidal nutcase of the week a geeenius hacker with a IQ of 150, he was also a track star. (Kudos to the actor. I hope he doesn't need to consult an orthopedic surgeon after filming this episode. I wonder how many takes it took.)

2) I'm a woman who used to wear the danged things, and my metatarsals, ankles, and knees were killing me just watching it.

3) What happened to the Broken Heel of Doom that always shows up at an inopportune time? It missed its cue! Especially when it normally puts in an appearance when the leading lady is just walking around normally. ;-)

4) If I have to see a guy in high heels, please make it Cha Seung-won or Eric. Oh, right. One of them is an officer in another precinct, and the latter is busy over at MovieSound. ;-)

*Cues up "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" by Elvis Costello and totters off in her vintage ruby Bandolino 3.5-in. heels*

Okay, so now we know that the corruption goes at least as far up the food chain as Police Commissioner Bae, but I'm willing to bet a dollar to doughnuts (none for you, bad cop!) that it doesn't stop there.

I just knew that sooner or later Detective Moo's little cutie in the hospital was going to become a sitting duck to some scumbag. -- That said, I've missed Dad's interaction with him, and love how he signs off with kisses. Way to go, Jang Hyuk!

How much do you want to bet that the Man In Black is not going to relocate to Japan? My spider sense is telling me that there's going to be some internal housecleaning after he screws up his pre-exit whacking of Detective Moo. But in this case, housecleaning is that will have to be done after the housecleaning, if you catch my drift.

What is it with doors that don't close and latch automatically? When Eun-soo entered the records storage room, the lock didn't click behind her. I was listening for it. Is it a matter of shoddy locks in the police headquarters, or indicative of someone having forced it? But shouldn't there be CCTV cameras in the hallway?

I had to laugh when Eun-soo described scopolamine as a "new" drug. If I recall correctly, it was used as "truth serum" in spy novels set in WWII. (Per Wikipedia, police interrogators started using it in 1922, but it was used earlier to induce "twilight sleep" in mothers in labor. Yikes.) Or maybe "new" refers to new indications (such as motion sickness) that have been more recently approved.

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Thanks for the recap odilettante, just giving you a shout-out to say I nearly missed it because it wasn't in the 'Featured' section. I think you forgot to tag it, since it doesn't show up in the Voice tag-list either!

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Ah, thanks for the heads-up! I'll notify the tagging gnomes so they can fix it. ^_^

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The DJ sunbae is a cameo from Kim Yuna of Jaurim band :D

(I'm only 80% sure cos I can't find confirmation anywhere...)

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Yes, that's Jaurim's Kim Yuna! She's also on the OST: https://youtu.be/1bsvAcSsfrU

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