53

Radiant Office: Episode 13

Woo-jin isn’t taking the management shake-up very well as he and Hyun continue to butt heads at every turn. Not only is Hyun awful on a personal level, but he has no idea what he’s doing and refuses to listen to Woo-jin’s advice. But just as he’s getting ready to throw in the towel, Woo-jin learns a hard lesson from a surprising source, and he’s going to need to do some difficult soul-searching if he wants to stay and fight.

 
EPISODE 13 RECAP

Hyun visits the office to announce that there’s a new employee filling CEO Han’s role: him. He calls the managers to the office for a short meeting, where Manager Park immediately starts kissing up. Woo-jin refuses to kowtow and expresses his annoyance that Hyun is flouting proper hiring procedure.

Back in the office, Yong-jae realizes that the rumor of Woo-jin being Chairman Seo’s eldest son was false. Then it hits him that Manager Park won’t be getting the promotion to CEO Han’s position as they all expected. It also means that the three temps suddenly have more influence due to their connection to Hyun.

The three friends get away to talk it over, and while Kang-ho thinks this is a good thing, Ho-won is still smarting over Hyun’s betrayal. Internally she pouts that now there’s no way her evaluation for the permanent position will be fair, since Hyun will be one of the people evaluating them.

This occurs to Kang-ho and Ki-taek as well, and since the chief director’s position gets fifty percent of the vote on the new hire, they both assume Ho-won has the edge. Ho-won senses their suspicion (probably tipped off by the massive amount of side-eye she’s getting) and assures them that Hyun will certainly not give her a high score since she threatened him.

Hyun dismisses everyone but Woo-jin, then informs him that he’s the main reason Hyun chose this department as his Hauline entry point. Since Woo-jin refused to be Hyun’s follower, Hyun decided to just make himself Woo-jin’s boss instead.

He preens at his own cleverness, but Woo-jin reminds him that they’re both employed by Hauline, meaning that neither of them is the ultimate boss here. He asks Hyun to revise the criteria for choosing the permanent hire, but Hyun refuses. Woo-jin slams out of the room, muttering that Hyun relies too heavily on his father’s backing.

Yong-jae nervously delivers the nameplate that Manager Park ordered for himself when he assumed he would be the new chief director. Manager Park looks at it like it’s the Holy Grail, vowing that some day it will sit on his desk.

Woo-jin cheers up when he finds Ho-won in the hallway, but he notices that she seems down. He jokes that she must be worried after threatening the boss’s son now that she knows he’ll pretty much decide if she’s hired on permanently.

Ho-won says that she’s already survived one life or death situation, and that even after Hyun’s fifty percent, she still has control over the other half. Woo-jin smiles indulgently and moves on, sighing that Ho-won only cheers up when he provokes her.

Ji-na urges Ki-taek to spend time with Hyun socially in order to get a better evaluation from him. She even starts planning to send gifts to the other evaluating managers, not noticing Ki-taek’s embarrassment. She finally sees that he’s uncomfortable and reminds him that her future also rides on whether he gets this job.

Yong-jae is such a kiss-up that he even goes to butter up Kkot-bi, who’s now Hyun’s secretary. He prods her for information on Hyun’s likes and dislikes, until she pointedly reminds him that Hyun has been working here for less than one day.

Suk-kyung meets with Hyun in his father’s hospital room, where he says that her reports are very different from the ones he’s been getting from Manager Park. He tells Suk-kyung to report directly to him from now on, and if her work makes him look good, he’ll put her in charge of the new team when the sales and marketing teams are merged. He makes it clear that he intends to cut Manager Park out.

Meanwhile, Manager Park slips into Hyun’s office and picks up his nameplate, speaking to it as if it’s Hyun himself. He complains that he’s scratched and clawed for years for this seat, only to have some brat who knows nothing about furniture snatch it out from under him.

Ho-won slogs home that night to an empty apartment, but she finds that the doorknob has been broken and the light is on, so she runs back down to the street. Woo-jin just happens to be down there dithering over whether it would be seen as favoritism to offer Ho-won rides to and from work, so he sees her looking frightened and asks her what’s wrong.

Terrified, Ho-won stammers that she thinks there’s someone in her apartment, so they go back upstairs together, where Woo-jin’s fraidy-cat nature takes over as he hesitates to go inside. Does Ho-won seriously expect the biggest chicken on the block to protect her? Good thing she doesn’t have a cat…

Ho-won hands him a broom to use as a weapon, then he motions for her to stay outside while he valiantly charges into the apartment. The place has been ransacked but seems to be empty now, so after checking the whole place, he goes back out to report that the thief is gone.

Woo-jin waits with Ho-won until the locksmith comes to replace the doorknob, insisting that he put in an extra lock for good measure. He stays for coffee on the patio, and when he asks if Ho-won is okay sleeping alone tonight, she says that the days she has to endure lately are much scarier than this.

Ho-won tells Woo-jin that when she threatened to sue Hyun, she let go of her hope to be hired on permanently. But she still thinks it was the least she could do for the friends who have been there for her when things were at their toughest.

She admits that she feels guilty that Hyun is invading their office because of her, but Woo-jin promises that that’s not his reason. She takes his word for it and turns back to the view, pretending not to notice that Woo-jin is staring at her when he says that the view is nice.

As soon as Woo-jin gets home, he texts Ho-won to make sure she locked up. He sends several worried texts in a row, which is adorable, as is his grumpiness when Ho-won replies simply that she’s fine. He texts back to tell her to call him if anything happens, and Ho-won squees quietly to herself when she reads it.

The following day, Woo-jin revises the permanent hire criteria and emails them to Hyun just as Manager Park is teaching Hyun to use the complicated email system. It pops up on Hyun’s computer screen, so instead of approving a sample file, Manager Park accidentally approves the new criteria. Whoops.

He attempts to reassure Hyun that there’s no way the executive director and the company CEO will send in their approvals before the evaluations take place, only to have the approvals pop up almost instantly. Ha, even Woo-jin is shocked, but he figures out that it must have happened so fast because Hyun is the chairman’s son.

Manager Park assumes the same thing, and he wanders back to the office grumbling to Ho-won that this is the problem with nepotism. He goes to Woo-jin and sarcastically says that he should thank him for this. Ho-won shoots Woo-jin a thoroughly confused expression, and he gives her a huge grin and a thumbs-up.

The day of the evaluations finally rolls around. Ji-na explains to the managers and the candidates that they’ll be given a number score in each category, and the person with the highest score gets the job. Part of the test includes a self-evaluation — the candidates will submit a personal appeal to the employees, who will get a chance to score them. Suk-kyung tells the trio that they’re all doing great at their jobs, so their self-evaluations will probably end up being the tiebreaker.

Ho-won strongly objects when Ki-taek and Kang-ho want to take Yong-jae out to an expensive dinner, hoping to earn his favor during evaluations. She argues that it’s no different than the time the vendor paid for their dinners, and she’s shocked when Kang-ho snaps at her.

As the lone sales team member, he’s worried that he’ll have fewer supporters, so he’s determined to do what he can. Ho-won’s jaw drops when Ki-taek says he’ll go too.

So the guys end up at the restaurant watching Yong-jae assemble a horrifically huge bite of food before shoving the whole thing into his mouth. Kang-ho is riveted, while Ki-taek looks as though he may hurl, ha.

The managers all join Hyun for a meal, and Hyun wastes no time handing out new office culture rules, such as forbidding overtime and instituting a weekly casual dress day. Woo-jin points out that making people go home on time is useless as long as they’re afraid of their superiors, and Gu-dong says that casual day will only force people to buy more clothing. Even Manager Park argues that it will be difficult to get the executives to give up their power suits.

Attempting to support Hyun, Suk-kyung agrees that those suggestions will probably be popular among the younger employees. Hyun asks her to make the suggestions on his behalf, and he promises to push forward Suk-kyung’s idea for a high-end furniture line. Well, that’s not an obvious tit for tat.

It so happens that they’re at the same restaurant as Yong-jae and the boys, and Suk-kyung spots them on her way out. Something about the sight upsets her, and she rushes out, but not before Kang-ho sees her there. When Kang-ho tries to pay the bill for dinner, he learns that a woman paid for them already.

He arrives back at the office the next morning to find Suk-kyung there early. He brings her a coffee and asks if she paid for them last night, and though at first she looks a bit sad, she smiles and says she only wanted to treat them. She mentions that today is the first day of evaluations and tells Kang-ho not to try to earn brownie points with anyone, because he’s more than qualified for the job. Awww.

Kang-ho sighs to Ki-taek that Ho-won was right all along about bribing Yong-jae. Ki-taek agrees that it felt wrong to him too, in addition to making things awkward with Ho-won. Kang-ho leaps up guiltily when Ho-won enters the break room, and she yanks his chain for a minute before grinning and saying that they’re okay.

They wait nervously while the evaluations are handed out to the employees. Ki-taek asks Kang-ho whose evaluation of him he’d most like to see, but Kang-ho just smiles nervously and mutters that he can’t say.

Ho-won also hesitates to answer, but the camera pointedly switches to Woo-jin in his office, staring thoughtfully at the resignation letter on his desk. The friends hold hands, comforting and calming each other’s nerves, knowing that their coworkers are out there right now deciding who they want to keep.

Yong-jae gleefully gives Ho-won zeroes in every category, awarding Kang-ho the most points. Ji-na predictably gives Ki-taek the highest score on her evaluation, though she also gives Kang-ho and Ho-won high, if slightly lower, scores.

Hyun, Manager Park, and Woo-jin review the evaluations together, and though Ho-won has less points from her peers, Hyun notes that his score could change everything. He changes the subject to ask Manager Park about the high-end furniture project, and Manager Park tells him that that idea has already been attempted, but it failed.

Hyun says coldly that it’s Manager Park’s job to make it work, but Manager Park blames the marketing team for the original idea. Woo-jin fires back that the sales team vetoed the idea.

Hyun interrupts to say that they need to start marketing to the rich instead of catering to those who always buy the cheapest product. Woo-jin counters that their brand is familiar to consumers, which is why they keep coming back — and besides, Hauline lacks the resources to produce high-end furniture.

Hyun just says he’ll pay for everything, but Woo-jin argues that throwing money at it won’t solve all of the problems associated with creating and launching a high-end line. Hyun snaps that if money wasn’t the answer, Hauline wouldn’t have spent all that money hiring Woo-jin himself. Damn.

He asks Woo-jin if he’s not capable of doing this job, his words a clear challenge. Woo-jin protests that starting a new project hinges on utilizing the abilities of your employees, and that handing down random edicts from on high isn’t the way to run a business.

Hyun doesn’t budge and ends the meeting, but Woo-jin isn’t finished. He says that issuing orders without understanding how things work can cause businesses to fail, and that it will be the employees who suffer.

Back in his own office, Woo-jin tells Gu-dong that he’s quitting once the temporary employees’ evaluations are finished. Gu-dong warns him against running away again, asking him to take some time and think about it, but Woo-jin is convinced that he can’t work with Hyun.

Ki-taek hands out health drinks for a little PPL moment as he and Kang-ho discuss their self-evaluations. Kang-ho acts as though his is nothing special, though he refuses to let Ki-taek see it, and they both wonder what Ho-won is working on so intently.

Poor Ho-won has nothing, but as she’s making some copies, she suddenly gets an idea and heads to a nearby printing shop. The boys stay at the office until late — Kang-ho puts together a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) on himself, while Ki-taek’s self-evaluation includes incredibly adorable photos of himself as a child.

In the morning, they hand in their evaluations to Gu-dong on USB drives, but Ho-won is nowhere to be seen. Yong-jae is quick to remind everyone that missing the deadline will cost Ho-won her chance at the job.

Ho-won is stuck in a taxi in bumper-to-bumper traffic, frantic to get her self-evaluation in before the deadline. Eventually she arrives and races to hand her evaluation to Gu-dong, out of breath and exhausted, but thankfully right on time.

That night Ho-won waits for Kang-ho and Ki-taek at the convenience store, where the owner gives her some taffy for good luck. When the boys arrive, they all agree to reveal what they did for their self-evaluations.

Ki-taek says that he made a compilation of videos and pictures of himself from childhood, to help the managers better understand who he is. Kang-ho tells them about his SWOT analysis, then they ask what Ho-won made.

She says that she gathered all of her hundred self-introductions from the job interviews she went on over the years and made them into a book. Kang-ho asks if they weren’t all the same, but Ho-won explains that because she didn’t have much experience, she wrote something different for each one.

Woo-jin smiles softly as he reads Ho-won’s book, eagerly taking in all of the stories she’s written about herself. He reads every word, particularly taking interest in her epilogue, which is the story of her experiences at Hauline. She’s written about how important this job is to her, and how it’s become the center of her life: “A small story about me. One hundred and one small stories became the start of the grand one hundred and second story of my life.”

Woo-jin finishes the book, touched by Ho-won’s heartfelt dedication to give everything she can to her job. He looks at his resignation letter again, now feeling uncertain of his own path.

He meets with Ho-won that night for a drink at a pojangmacha, admitting that he’s wanted to do this for a while but felt it was inappropriate until after evaluations were finished. Ho-won vents about her stressful morning waiting for the printer’s to open before getting stuck in traffic, while Woo-jin just smiles at her indulgently.

She suggests that Woo-jin try narrowly escaping death some time, because it’s enabled her to see things she couldn’t see before. He asks what she means, and she shyly whispers that she really likes…

But another patron yells for soju so Woo-jin doesn’t hear her confession, and Ho-won suggests they also get another while she quietly dies on the inside. Woo-jin asks what she was saying, but she just says there’s a cat behind him, earning a playful death glare when he realizes she’s teasing him. Cuteness.

The next morning, Yong-jae enjoys crowing at Ho-won that she’s not getting the permanent position, taunting that she reaps what she sows. Ho-won gives it right back to him, saying that he’s sowed a lot too, and offering to reap their crop together. Ha, Ji-na grins in admiration.

Annoyed, Yong-jae calls Ho-won a troublemaker, but she’s still not intimidated. She does this hilariously dramatic over-apology, even getting on her knees with her arms in the air, clearly enjoying having the upper hand for once.

The decision is made, and Woo-jin calls the office to attention to hear the results. But first he announces that there’s been a change in the number of full-time positions, and that two people will be hired. He begins to read the names of the two temps who will be offered permanent positions, as the whole office holds its breath.

 
COMMENTS

Awww Show, that’s just mean to end on a cliffhanger like that! And now that I think about it, it’s even meaner to have two people being offered jobs instead of just one. At least when only one of the three was going to get the job, the other two wouldn’t be alone in their rejection. They would have had each other’s shoulders to cry on. Now the one person who isn’t hired will be left out in the cold to deal with their continued unemployment all alone, knowing that they were the least qualified for the job.

I really enjoy how this show continuously subverts tropes, which makes it stand out among other workplace dramas where you can reliably predict what will happen episode by episode. My favorite subversion is the most obvious — that Ho-won, Ki-taek, and Kang-ho have never let themselves become rivals even when they argue, as this episode highlights yet again. They always come back to each other, understanding that their friendship and support is vital to each of them while being willing to give up any advantages that might result if they lowered themselves to play dirty. But for these three, it’s not even about having a strong moral compass, it’s simply because they deeply care for each other and genuinely want good things for the others as much as they want them for themselves. So they consistently choose fair play over rivalry, for no other reason than that they love each other.

I also love how the show has spent several weeks preparing us for Manager Park’s eventual hostile takeover, only to have the rug snatched out from under him by Hyun. It’s so satisfying to see the office scammer get scammed for once! I don’t think Manager Park has abandoned his play for power, but I also see him as pretty toothless, because he’s got nothing and nobody backing his pursuit. He doesn’t even have intelligence on his side, either to construct an effective evil plan, or to simply set himself up as an invaluable employee. He hasn’t learned that when you have no privilege or money to buy your way to the top, the way to get there is through hard work, not bribes and schemes and dirty tricks. That’s coming back to bite him in the ass, and for once it’s nice to see that happen before the character gets his wish, not after he’s had time to use his newfound power to make everyone else miserable.

Then on the other side there’s Hyun, who has nothing but money and privilege, and yet his entry into Hauline has been anything but smooth. He can’t convince the one person he sees as capable of helping him succeed to come over to his side, so he resorts to forcing Woo-jin to work for him by making himself Woo-jin’s direct boss. I don’t know why he thinks that’s going to make Woo-jin any less hostile towards him, but then, I never know what Hyun is thinking. But I like that he doesn’t just put himself into the job and suddenly become an expert at it like some shows do with their characters (I love you, Perfect Wife, but I’m side-eyeing you so hard for this). Hyun is actually a pretty bad boss, and his terrible decisions could very well destroy the company he’s so eager to acquire. Woo-jin isn’t afraid to tell Hyun this to his face, and I think Hyun’s about to find Suk-kyung a major obstacle as well. She’s going along with him for now, but she’s already seeming very uncomfortable with his controlling antics. I don’t think it will be long now before Suk-kyung decides that a promotion isn’t worth it and joins up with Woo-jin to take Hyun down.

At least, that is, if Woo-jin doesn’t decide to follow through with his threat to quit. He’s lasted much longer at Hauline than he has at any other job, in no small part due to Ho-won’s influence. I don’t blame him for wanting to bail when he faces the choice of either becoming Hyun’s toady or quitting — for once that would be an understandable reason for him to leave a job. But I think that Ho-won’s self-evaluation was very timely, because it showed Woo-jin that there are people who value a good job so much that they’re willing to overlook the bad and appreciate the good, which is a lesson he could stand to learn. He’s always taken jobs that offered him money and prestige, but it’s time that he learned what it means to truly love what he does.

RELATED POSTS

Tags: , , , ,

53

Required fields are marked *

Write a comment...thanks for the recap

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Everything Hyun is doing right now is part of his lifelong "LOOK AT ME!" modus operandi. Dad ignored him, so he becomes a doctor to win his praise. Dad won't rise to the bait (because he's clearly observed some sort of emotional deficiency as Hyun was growing up) and it's not just because he's necessarily a bad human being/father (not that we know for a fact either way but his former employees seem to hold him in high regard), so Hyun ups the ante and decides he's going to try and play with Dad's toy - Hauline. Now Woo-jin is withholding love, admiration, and the willingness to be his new plaything and this is just the kind of thing Hyun can't handle. He's also mad that Ho-won's no longer looking at him with those admiration filled eyes, so it's more rejection all around. I had hoped there was a germ of decency in him, but I'm pretty sure now there isn't.

On the other hand, I like Ho-won's shy almost-confession, and her realization that she's found not only a mentor in Woo-jin, but a friend and someone to admire on many levels (even if he is afraid of cats).

16
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Will Dad wake up again? Wondering if he ever wakes up again, what he's gonna say to Hyun?

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

"Couldn't you hold your meetings elsewhere?" ?

I think Hyun's fondness of talking business in his Dad's ward will sooner jolt the poor man to consciousness.

2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Who cares about the office politics? I'm here just to cheer on Ho-won! I so want her to succeed in career and in life! ?

And we're getting to the romance part, slowly but surely, right? Right? Here's to hoping we'll get tons of cute in the remaining episodes! ?

6
6
reply

Required fields are marked *

I feel the same, only 3 episodes, I really don't get where the show is going.....

1
5
reply

Required fields are marked *

Yeah after today's episode I checked to see if there were 20 eps but was sad when i saw only 16..where are all teh cute romantic moments!?

2
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think at its core, this drama is more about the friendships of the Suicide Squad, how they've gained confidence and ate able to navigate through office politics. It's a bit like Misaeng in that sense.

6
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Agreed. But still hoping the romance won't get too sidelined though ?

0

We still have a couple of episodes left, so it should be there somewhere ?

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

But I still find the show charming and I'm excited to see where this will all go! ?

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Hyun is acting like a jackass and it is not excused even if he has other intentions. If you do, you would find another, more human way to achieve it.

1
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thanks for the recap LollyPip. I am really enjoying this show. : )

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Woo-Jin and Ho-Won really have such a good chemistry.. They complement each other and their perspective towards life evolves the more they interact and observe each other. I am soo looking forward to how much more their relationship would mould them further!!

5
4
reply

Required fields are marked *

They really are adorable. Poor Ho-won was so close this episode! But I admit I find their slow, awkward romance so charming, especially when they are also developing this comfortable friendship in the meantime.

13
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree - watching these 2 slowly build the foundations for friendship (and more, please) has been very natural and organic. Not every relationship begins with emotional fireworks and hot lust - most don't! It wasn't easy for them to take the time to learn about each other and their respective histories and characters, so letting it unfold at a natural pace is gratifying.

6
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Also I love how these two have met their respective parents "incidentally" and how they interacted naturally.....

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Only us, the viewers who are impatience with them, LoL.

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thanks for the recap LollyPip. Didn't get to watch the ep yet, because RL ? will read as soon as I watch!

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

There's only 16 episodes to this show and still no romance...I have a feeling we aren't going to get that much...I think I'd be ok with this if there was only friendship between them but it's obvious they have feelings for each other so it's a little frustrating to not see anything happen between them.
Hyun is an ass as always, and I'm hoping that his bad decisions lead to some nasty repercussions for the company just so that he gets his comeuppance.

1
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I agree completely with you. I'm seeing that they may be doing the same they did with "Missing 9" which, would suck big time! I hope in the last two episodes they give us EVERYTHING, hugs, kiss scene after kiss scene, more cute moments, and Lots of Lots of "I love you's" because we have been waiting !! Just wishful thinking but maybe even a wedding ?? Hopefully, the DOC realizes what he missed out on because Ho-Won seemed to like him first, thankfully it didn't develop much.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thank you for the recap❣

Kkot bi is actually one of my favourite characters, I really wish we had more scenes with her in. She's hilarious.

Also as if bribing isn't bad enough (especially when being that obvious) Yong Jae had to step up the game and give her that free coffee card lol. I don't really like him but I can't hate him because he's such a ridiculous character hahaha.

I love how Ho Won has really stepped out of her shell these past few episodes. Also the friendship between her and Woo Jin is making me super happy <3

Those last few episodes, I have high expectations. Don't let me down show!!

5
3
reply

Required fields are marked *

I really wish we had more Kkotbi screentime as well

3
reply

Required fields are marked *

I love Kkot-bi too! A really good show always offers memorable side characters.

3
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

She's awesome! I even wanted to ship her with Ki-taek very briefly in the beginning, before Ji-na made her turn-around. Unfortunately, there's no one worthy of her left to ship her with...

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

6
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I think this is where it's going. KT and KH get the full positions and HW gets a position later on.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

This show is going really slow that reminds weekend dramas that have bunch episode. But i enjoy that slowing progress, watching Wooojin and Howoon relationship grow up or everything else in this drama and never tink that 16 ep would be enough (if this show could turn to be drama with bunch episode, i would still watch it diligently everyweek, bcoz i enjoy it so much!)
And about Hyun... He's too... Absurd(?)
The last scene remind me this song
BgA - Who is it gonna be?
Can't help but mumbling this song on my own

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

"Hyun is actually a pretty bad boss, and his terrible decisions could very well destroy the company he’s so eager to acquire." So true! Hyun is so convinced of the need to prove himself that he is basically shooting himself in the foot. Which will be fun eventually but for now is super annoying. I'm also worried that Suk-kyung will end up taking the fall, which would be so unfair.

1
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Poor Suk-Hyung. I feel so bad for her... She's such a kind employee. However, being a woman and be treated unequally compared to the male colleague, she first obeyed Director Park. And now Hyun. :(

3
reply

Required fields are marked *

At first I thought it was kind of unrealistic that someone who's a successful doctor running a hospital would start out so badly in his new leadership role, but upon further thought, it's pretty common to see people who've had previous success (or even just a degree) think they know everything and barge into a new role with a lot of hubris (I can think of a lot of examples, including a political one). Plus, doctors and god complexes...

4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Thanks for the recap!

Who'd have thought Woo Jin would learn such a valuable lesson from Ho Won if we remember how this two started? Best of all, it happened so organically, unlike in some shows. This is what I love about this drama. The real life issues feel real and the characters develop naturally. Woo Jin and Ho Won have been learning from each other and growing all this time. Same with their friendship and romance.

But I like that he doesn’t just put himself into the job and suddenly become an expert at it like some shows do with their characters

Exactly! I also like the fact that Hyun isn't like those chaebol heir villains who have unlimited power to do whatever they want including killing people.

After watching a drama like this one, it will be hard to watch those where characters are more caricature and plots which are either very predictable or unnecessarily unpredictable.

In a typical Kdrama, these would have happen:
1. Ki Taek, Kang Ho and Ho Won's friendship unravel as they fight and betray each other to win the position.
2. Ho Won and Woo Jin would inexplicably fall in love and their previous behavior towards each other do a 180 degrees change.
3. Manager Park would win all the time and frustrate us until the very end.
4. Woo Jin would turn out to be Hyun's older brother who his father hid so well that Woo Jin didn't even know who he truly is. (Isn't it awesome that in this episode Yong Jae even spoke about how Woo Jin isn't really the older son of Chairman Seo?)
5. Most damning secret - Hyun has deliberately made Dad stay in a coma so that he can gain full control of Hauline. But he doesn't know that Dad has already regained consciousness and is plotting to make a huge comeback to Hauline.

10
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

LOL! The Gentlemen of Hauline Furniture: weekend makjang version.

4
reply

Required fields are marked *

Love this Typical K-Drama analysis :-)

1
reply

Required fields are marked *

The way Woo Jin looks at Ho Won and agrees that the view is nice...

*SWOON*

6
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Am squeeing over the last screenshot, such a cuteee death glare ?
Am also feeling vindicated by Woo-jin reveal that he keeps on provoking Ho-won because he wants her to bounce back. Some of his early words are downright nasty, like when he said he wanted her on his team so he can watch her fail, but now I feel he was actually hoping for the opposite. Aaaw! The plot seems so cohesive somehow, hats off for the writer.
Hyun as a boss is insufferable, he keeps pointing that Woo-jin was hired for his competence, then hello, shud've listened to his advice, yes? He is the worst kind of parachute boss.
Ok 3 eps left, bring on the cute please.
Am feeling unoptimistic even for a kiss, so maybe an actual hug pleaseee!

4
2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I KNOW. That glare is adorable.

It's really too bad that Woo-jin just can't seem to figure out his feelings. I'm really curious as to how he'll act once he realizes so the show better give us a little bit of that. After all this build-up, they have to give us something!

1
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

It's funny though when he doesn't even realize it (yet). He does because he might never had such a feeling as he's a workaholic.

The way he nags Ho-wo about locking the door is so hilarious to me. He's like an anxious boyfriend.

3
reply

Required fields are marked *

I loved how Woo Jin had been wanting to have a drink with Ho Won. Too bad they didn't finish the conversation about what she has started to see.

0
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

When I watched the preview of this episode, I'd thought like, "Oh, it's the time when she'd make an drunk confession." But then, a customer's asking for a more soju ruined her confession, LoL.

2
reply

Required fields are marked *

Echoing the others' comments about the progress of the story. While I looove that it's so relatable, what's the endgame here bet. the 2 Mr. Seos? The Suicide Squad? Ms. Cho? I don't mind extending the series; I'm hoping against hope that they give us a satisfying conclusion. An extra Christmas bonus, so to speak.

1
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

What I love the most about this show is its simplicity. The story, relationship between characters, even the props are just so SIMPLE. The friendship between those three suicide are so sincere, honest, and loyal. Same as Woo-ji and Ho-won relationship. It develops so slow (that makes so impatience), but I can't complain. But, that how it is mostly in real life.

I also love the properties. Nothing is exaggerated. Like in a few episodes back, some Beanies commented about Ho-Won's clothes. She mostly wears just simple black skirt and suits (not like in mostly K-drama where poor girls owns different clothes and bags). Even if Ho-jae has given her a beautiful suits. She only wore it once.

And, at this episode I like how Mr. Heo responded Hyun's idea for employees to wear casual clothes at least once a week. "It made us purchase more clothes." It's normal response from most people in real life when they're suggested to buy something we don't need.

8
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

I know of people who prefer to wear uniforms because it saves them money from buying clothes. I guess it can be extended to casual clothes here. For the younger employees, decent casual clothes may already be part of their wardrobe. However for Mr Heo, the clothes he wears outside office may be too casual even for office's casual days.

More than the dress down Fridays, I found myself nodding in agreement to Woo Jin's protest about the overtime issue. Companies can pay lip service to having work life balance and not working overtime but if it is not practiced from top down, unlikely there will be any meaningful changes.

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Again Ha suk jin kills it with his scaredy cat ness. Have not watched ep14 but read some spoilers and again yes it is sad that 2 ppl will get the permanent job.

But for how long with Seo Hyun an inexperienced Manager placing himself in decision making roles and may just run the company to the ground. Big companies in Korea do this and always seem to be successful do the employees who treat their company like it is their own family. Hope he learns that he needs to make sure his employees work with him and not for him. Huge difference there.

1
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

I tend to like romance drama like the liar and his lover over workplace drama... But- i duno- i really in love wit this show

2
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Comment was deleted

0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Oh boy! its two people now?

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Wow, the emotions going through the suicide squad. The cuteness of Woo Jin and Ho Won's growing relationship. I think he really really likes her, but doesn't even realize it. The fact that he bravely popped into her apartment shows how much he cares for her in spite of what he says to himself and to the rest of the employees.

2
1
reply

Required fields are marked *

Of course he does, the dork! He is very slow to realize because it seems he's pretty inexperienced in this area. With his good looks and body, I'd thought girls would be pawing at him but I guess he's too prickly for most. Only Ho Won can get through him.

2
reply

Required fields are marked *

I can't hate Hyun.. I just can't... and I'm blinded by his smile, hahahaha...

2
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Love the story, very fresh and interesting plots. Wish Woo-Jin & Ho-Won can be together soon.

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *

Woo-jin's glare though...

0
0
reply

Required fields are marked *