Woman With a Suitcase: Episode 6

by Paroma

This show does a wonderful job coming up with cases that put real-life moral conflicts before the protagonists, and as they solve each dilemma thrown their way, they grow as people, colleagues, and friends. The dam of emotions that broke in Geum-joo is giving her a new appreciation for the work she does and how much that work means to her. And to add to the fun, her Hamburger just keeps getting more and more adorable with every episode.

 
EPISODE 6: “We’re All Madonnas”

Geum-joo walks into the surgeon’s office in her bar-madam guise and accuses him of leaving unpaid bills at her club. A crowd gathers outside and nurses arrive to rescue the surgeon, DR. SHIM. He leaves the office in a huff, telling them to get rid of Geum-joo. She follows him out, loudly demanding that he pay up, and only pauses long enough to wink at An-na, who’s waiting in the crowd with Suk-woo.

Once the crowd disperses, An-na starts to head into the office, but Suk-woo stops her. He’s afraid that if Geum-joo gets caught, she might get in trouble due to her criminal record. An-na tells him to run off if he’s scared, and Suk-woo nods and walks away. Pfft. Scoffing, An-na goes in and begins her search for the surgery video clip that they suspect the surgeon had doctored (har).

Geum-joo is stopped by hospital guards and pretends to have mistaken the doctor’s identity. She employs some major aeygo and apologizes so sweetly that even the guards crack a smile. Meanwhile, An-na hits the jackpot, but before she can click on the video to confirm her find, she’s discovered in the office by a nurse. She dodges the bullet by pretending to be a medical student, but has to leave the room nonetheless.

As she walks out, a man in a doctor’s coat walks by her and into the office. An-na reports the bad news to Geum-joo, but before they can feel too disheartened, Suk-woo walks towards them in his white coat flashing a USB drive containing the clip. Clever boy.

When the trio get back to their office, An-na and Suk-woo are greeted with high fives, but the room falls silent as Geum-joo appears at the door. Bok-geo’s jaw hits the floor and Geum-joo freezes with embarrassment. He asks which girl group she’s trying to imitate, and Geum-joo wonders if he’s a drill sergeant on uniform inspection due to his tone. She sticks the USB in his face and informs him that they found incriminating evidence on the surgeon.

…which turns out to be deliberately mistitled porn. Bok-geo has a good laugh at Geum-joo and Suk-woo’s expense and An-na uncomfortably fast-forwards through the recording to find anything at all to do with the surgery. Pfft.

Oh Sung law firm conducts a trial rehearsal with their most difficult witness, the ER doctor, Dr. Kim. As CEO Lee and Hye-joo grill him, his testimony keeps falling apart as he nervously wavers between the truth and what he is told to say — that the patient admitted to drinking after the surgery. Finally, his surgeon barks at him, “Did I tell you he drank or not?” The terrified doctor almost screams that he did, he absolutely did. CEO Lee tells him to say it exactly like that in court. Really? Like he’s scared witless?

Bok-geo calls Geum-joo into his office and suggests that she give up before the case goes to trial. He points out that aside from the anonymous tip about the perforation, she has no other information. He argues that the firm should defend their client by getting her the best compensation possible through settlement.

Adding that he’s paying her to win cases, he ends the discussion. Geum-joo takes a deep breath and begins to recite the particulars of the case in thorough detail, showcasing the hours she spent studying both the legal and medical side. Geum-joo tells Bok-geo that she might not be a doctor, nurse, or lawyer, but he can’t really accuse her of not knowing anything about the case.

Suk-woo waits in front of the ER nurse’s home for hours. When she finally gets back and tries to brush him off, he states that the patient’s death was caused by perforation. She looks up at him and thinks back to the surgery where Dr. Shim stopped Dr. Kim from writing down the real cause by accusing him of poor eyesight.

But when the infected portion was removed from the stomach, the nurse clearly saw the hole that the surgeon claimed wasn’t there. In the present, Nurse Kwon tells Suk-woo that she wasn’t the one to tip him off, and that she quit to avoid watching what unfolds in that hospital. As she goes in, Suk-woo tells her he’ll wait for her.

Geum-joo visits Dr Shim’s previous liposuction clients who have all either fought and lost cases against him, or are still fighting a losing case. At the end of her day when she’s leaving the hospital, a child from the pediatric ward asks for her card, having heard that she’s a “companion.” Geum-joo smiles and tells her to keep it safe, and to call if she’s ever in trouble.

Attorney Goo meets with Bok-geo and tells him that Geum-joo is a woman who has gone through many ordeals. She may seem tough and confident, but she’s in an emotionally fragile place. Bok-geo asks if she means that Geum-joo is a patient.

Attorney Goo points out that they all are patients, at least subconsciously. (That’s deep.) But she adds that Geum-joo is especially vulnerable right now. She tells him about Hye-joo’s dig at Geum-joo about “using her body” to win cases, and says that if Bok-geo is a gentleman, he won’t play at courting her unless he’s truly interested. Bok-geo looks thoughtful and promises to keep her advice in mind.

Geum-joo meets her husband and signs the divorce papers. He tries to thank her and apologize, but she stops him, saying that she feels like she lost too much and feels too pitiful. She advises him to finalize the divorce before registering his marriage to avoid overlapping. Listening to her legal advice, and noticing the sore on her foot from hours of walking, he observes with a slight fondness that this is just like her.

Later, as she walks back home, Geum-joo waits too long at an intersection to begin crossing and the light changes midway. Bok-geo watches from a distance as Geum-joo looks uncertainly around herself, disoriented by the cars and the noise. When she gets home, he’s waiting by his car.

He immediately begins to tease her about her suitcase, and then suggests they pick up where they left off the other night. It takes Geum-joo a moment to recall what he’s talking about, but when she does, she’s clearly mortified. Bok-geo enthusiastically tells her that he’s come really prepared tonight and has high expectations.

Cringing, she sputters at him to let it go already. As she walks off in a huff, her melancholy overshadowed by embarrassment, Bok-geo shakes his head at himself: “Trying to make her laugh… doing all kinds of things.” You, sir, are a total sweetheart.

The next morning, the Golden Tree team prepares for the first day of trial, and Attorney Goo announces their strategy to try their best to introduce a little bit of doubt in the judges’ hearts. Then Geum-joo enters with an armload of hospital garments. We then see her at court, before trial, coaching dozens of patients on how to behave during the proceedings. She tells them they must never jeer, but since they are patients and must follow their hearts, to jeer properly. Pwahaha.

Once the trial starts, Hye-joo raises an objection to the patients populating the audience, arguing that the judicial panel may be pressured. At Geum-joo’s signal, the patients begin to groan and cough, and the judge dismisses Hye-joo’s objection. Early in the proceedings, Hye-joo brings up the picture of the athlete sitting with a drink for the judges to see. Attorney Goo gets it removed from evidence on grounds of the defense stating speculation as fact, but the damage is done, since the picture seemed to show Kang Hyeon-ho with alcohol post-surgery.

Attorney Goo brings the athlete’s wife on the witness stand and asks her if Hyeon-ho drank that night. The widow insists he gave up drinking after an accident some time back, and that the glass before him held water for his medicine. The idea seems to be a new one to the reporters in the court as they murmur amongst themselves.

The wife says tearfully that there were articles immediately after her husband’s death that branded him as a careless alcoholic, and protests that he wasn’t like that. Attorney Goo says that there is no evidence that he drank that night, but to argue that he did on the basis of one photograph is the same as killing the man twice.

Geum-joo texts Suk-woo that he should begin his crucial argument now. Suk-woo hesitates because he hadn’t submitted it as evidence, but Geum-joo tell him to do it just to shake up the mood in the court.

Suk-woo questions the chief surgeon, Dr. Shim, and displays the anonymous text they received on the court projector. Dr. Shim immediately looks suspiciously at Dr. Kim, sitting nervously in the audience. When Hye-joo objects, Suk-woo says he doesn’t want to use the text as evidence, he simply wants to ask Dr. Shim some medical questions. The judge lets him proceed.

Suk-woo maps out a hypothesis about how Dr. Shim’s original surgery caused the perforation, and when he realized it, he deliberately avoided an X-ray so no evidence of his mistake would be left behind. He asks if such a hypothesis is medically sound. Dr. Shim, visibly agitated, says that it’s just a theory, and they can’t prove it. But Suk-woo achieved what he wanted by introducing a more plausible explanation for the patient’s death.

Min-ah lies in her bed and thinks back to a night when Ji-ah did her make-up while some men waited in the next room for them. Ji-ah told her not to worry, that they were just normal men. Later, Ji-ah handed her a check for the work, and Min-ah told her that she hadn’t eaten in ten hours. Ji-ah looked at the girl with something close to pity. In the present, a nurse enters Min-ah’s room with a food tray and helps her sit up and eat. She asks Min-ah if she can’t talk, or doesn’t want to. Min-ah stays silent.

Back in the courtroom, Suk-woo questions Dr. Kim. Nurse Kwon arrives, but tells Geum-joo that she only wants to watch. Under Suk-woo’s questions, the doctor denies any wrongdoings on Dr. Shim’s part. Looking miserable, he heads back to his seat when his eyes meet Geum-joo’s. It seems to tip him over the edge, and he rushes out of the room. Geum-joo runs out after him.

Nurse Kwon scoffs in her seat, clearly having expected better of the young doctor. Her name is called as the last witness though she hadn’t declared her presence in court. Hye-joo tries to intercept, but Nurse Kwon gets up and says she’s suddenly found courage and wants to testify.

Geum-joo takes off her heels to better pursue her fleeing quarry, but then bumps into Bok-geo. He stops and ties her cardigan around her waist, pointing out the torn button of her skirt. She tells him to stall for time in the court and runs off again. Dr. Kim is just about to enter a taxi when Geum-joo reaches him, completely out of breath. Noticing her abnormally hard breathing, Dr. Kim gives up the taxi and makes her sit down.

In court, Nurse Kwon testifies to Dr. Shim stopping Dr. Kim from recording the perforation in his notes during the surgery. Hye-joo objects that she’s not an authority, but Suk-woo argues that she’s just giving an account of what she witnessed. Hye-joo’s fellow lawyer asks how the nurse could have seen a perforation when she wasn’t the one operating, to which Nurse Kwon explains that she was the one to dispose of the removed section of intestines.

Geum-joo sits with Dr. Kim and tells him that she failed the bar five times, so she understands what a license means to him. She even admits that she would sell her soul to protect that license if she ever got one. But, she observes, that Dr. Kim is different. She asks why he didn’t leave when he saw her breathing so badly, and he responds that he thought she was sick. She smiles at that, and guesses that he was the one to send them the tip about the perforation. Dr. Kim looks to be near tears.

Hye-joo is arguing to dismiss Nurse Kwon’s testimony, since it contradicts two expert opinions. Suk-woo pleads that there may be small roles, but none are unimportant when it comes to life and death. The judge decides to hold cross-examinations. He asks if Dr. Kim has left the court, and Bok-geo intervenes to say that he hasn’t — he’s just in the bathroom taking a dump.

The judge is offended by his language, and Bok-geo makes it worse by asking if the court is ashamed of bodily functions. While he has the audience laughing, he loudly plays music on his phone, pretending to fumble for the volume control. Admonished by the judge, Bok-geo stops his gimmicks and the Oh Sung lawyers decide to end the court day. They request that cross-examinations be conducted the next day, but just then, Dr. Kim and Geum-joo stumble in through the door.

When Suk-woo cross-examines Dr. Kim, the doctor takes a deep breath and admits that there was a perforation. The audience claps as Dr. Shim jumps up to demand that Dr. Kim speak the “truth,” as he did earlier. Hye-joo accuses him of committing perjury, and the judge asks why he’s changing his testimony now.

Instead of blaming the hospital for pressuring him, Dr. Kim apologizes for his earlier testimony and insists that this one is the truth. The judge rules that in the absence of another cause of death, Golden Tree’s plea will be accepted. He sets a date for another session, but it’s clear to everyone that Hyeon-ho’s widow has won her case. Dr. Kim looks at the tearful but relieved face of the widow and looks comforted.

As Geum-joo happily looks around her, she thinks to herself:

“Why did I run around so much, when I can’t say a word of defense? But I’m happy. At this moment, without even a license, a feeling is bubbling up in my heart as if I’ve become the primadonna of this courtroom. And also, I think I get it now. A license isn’t a right, but a duty. So, it’s a heavy thing.”

The Golden Tree team celebrates their win by drinking out. An-na asks Suk-woo if he doesn’t want to see Bok-geo’s face now that he’s won their bet. Suk-woo worries that Bok-geo might change his mind, but Geum-joo reminds them of Bok-geo’s words: How can a man speak out of both sides of his mouth? They all laugh at her mimicry of the boss.

That evening, Hye-joo tracks down CEO Lee at a small theatre to apologize for losing, but before she can approach him, she notices the man he’s talking to. It’s Tomy Kim. Some instinct keeps Hye-joo from showing her face as Tomy Kim leaves, but she stares after him as if in recognition.

Bok-geo joins the team in their partying at a bar. While Manager Hwang and An-na sing their hearts out, he sidles up to Geum-joo and asks her if she isn’t grateful to him for sacrificing himself in court. She retorts that he should be grateful that she won the case he wanted to give up on. They laugh together and Attorney Goo asks for a duet. When they demur, Suk-woo squeezes in between them on the sofa and asks Geum-joo to choose a song to sing with him. Hee.

Ji-ah walks down a road and approaches a public phone. Tomy Kim asks if she’s having second thoughts, but she tells him not to worry. She makes a call and asks the person to look around, since there are CCTVs all around the house.

Back at the bar, Bok-geo makes a toast and congratulates Suk-woo for doing well in court. He welcomes Suk-woo to their firm and excuses himself, saying that a boss that pays and leaves is the coolest. He looks at his phone which streams the CCTV feeds in the safe house where Min-ah is staying, and notices that all the screens are blank. He hurries out but is stopped by Geum-joo, who tells him that he doesn’t have to leave. Suk-woo follows close behind, so Bok-geo tells him to take care of Geum-joo tonight.

In the safe house, Min-ah’s nurse approaches her bed quietly and pulls out a knife to stab the sleeping girl. Bok-geo gets there in the nick of time and wrenches the knife away from her as blood splatters on the wall.

Geum-joo sits at her desk and scribbles “win” on the case file, when she suddenly hears a woman’s scream. Upstairs, Bok-geo sits across a trashed room from the killer nurse and says, “Let’s do this.”

Hye-joo sits at a bar with CEO Lee, when he gets a call from someone who says that there’s been a problem. As he moves away to have the conversation, Hye-joo suddenly remembers where she had met her boss’s theater friend.

After Geum-joo was sent to jail, Hye-joo was still visiting prosecutors and digging into Min-ah’s case to help her sister. She walked into her apartment one night to find that the lights weren’t working and saw a man was in her kitchen. It was Tomy Kim, who introduced himself as a “good man who cleans up messes,” and in the tone of friendly advice, threatened to murder her if she looked any further into the case of the homeless girl.

Sitting in the bar now, she clears the horror from her face as her boss returns from his call.

Geum-joo investigates the scream and enters Bok-geo’s private rooms upstairs. She’s just in time to see a man escorting a woman out. They don’t see her, and she tiptoes further in and notes the signs of struggle and the spots of blood. As she walks through the room, the curtains of a window blow open in the wind.

She approaches the window cautiously, but suddenly gets yanked down on a sofa. She lands on Bok-geo’s chest and sees that his hand is bleeding from the wrist. She asks what happened, but he just holds her tight and tells her to stay like that, because he needs to think.

 
COMMENTS

I’m glad Geum-joo didn’t just stumble upon Min-ah in Bok-geo’s room. I want Bok-geo to bring her into his confidence as he realizes that he needs her help. At this point, Bok-geo’s keeping Min-ah a secret from her not because he doesn’t trust her, but because he’s too used to playing his cards close to the chest. I look forward to the two of them joining heads to protect the kid and to bring down what increasingly looks like a large-scale child trafficking business.

Hye-joo’s flashback gives new insight to her behavior after Geum-joo was imprisoned. We suspected Hye-joo may have done something to have her studies sponsored, and then to have a position waiting at Oh Sung law firm. It’s clear now that she hadn’t abandoned her sister before Tomy Kim got to her. Afterward, CEO Lee’s proposition must have seemed a heaven-sent escape hatch. However, it’s a little surprising that she never wondered at his timing and never questioned his motives for suddenly favoring her so much. Logical reasoning is not her strong suit. So, while her current position at Oh Sung is more or less explained by CEO Lee’s association with Tomy Kim, we’re still left with everything she’s said and done to demean Geum-joo and hurt her since then. None of that behavior can be explained away or easily forgiven.

In other news, I’m back to sailing on the Geum-joo and Bok-geo ship. How cute was the way he teased her out of her depressed funk? I like this self-deprecating Bok-geo much more than the alpha male he was playing before. Their scenes throughout the episode were loaded with humor, attraction, and a building connection. I especially enjoyed Attorney Goo taking it on herself to have the “What’s your intention?” conversation with Bok-geo. It came from a place of respect and affection without crossing a line. And someone needed to remind Bok-geo of Geum-joo’s vulnerable state. As we saw last episode, he’s well aware of her emotional struggles, but maybe because she comes across as unflappable, he didn’t seem to realize how his attentions could hurt her. Of course, Bok-geo’s better nature lasted only long enough to tell Suk-woo to take care of her, and then he was pulling her into his arms again. Pfft.

While I like my heroines to have a good handle on their emotions, Geum-joo had started to seem oddly detached from all the horrible things happening to her. She was throwing her whole self into her work and determinedly not thinking about her husband and sister turning away from her. This week, we see her begin to deal with the fallout from her broken relationships. Cha Ji-woo has this wonderfully understated way of showing deep emotions that always hits me hard. I love this side of Geum-joo as much as I adore the badass paralegal who loves her job. Hopefully, now she can begin to heal.

One of my favorite things about Geum-joo is how self-aware she is. When she tells Dr. Kim that she would sell her soul to keep a lawyer’s license, she’s talking about what she knows she’s capable of. For the longest time, Geum-joo was so good at her job she was almost a lawyer without the right to call herself one. But as she’s beginning to understand during her months of working with Suk-woo, she was also someone who didn’t have the duties and moral obligations of a lawyer. She won cases with half-truths and manipulations, justifying her actions as necessary to win. What makes Geum-joo 2.0 different from her earlier version is the realization of what a manipulated court case can do to an innocent life. I’m so happy we get to meet her.

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