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Man to Man: Episode 4

If we’ve learned anything about our secret agent thus far, it’s that he’ll do whatever it takes to complete a mission. Though his quick thinking and decisive actions have served him well in the past, things aren’t working out quite as cleanly for Seol-woo in his newest mission, leading to some unintended consequences that will probably make his job—and his life—a little more complicated than he’d like.

 
EPISODE 4 RECAP

Seol-woo follows Woon-kwang and Chairman Victor to the chairman’s secret room. Through his earpiece, Seol-woo tells Dong-hyun that they’re going to “Plan B,” and though Dong-hyun clearly thinks Seol-woo is crazy, he goes with it.

Chairman Victor unlocks his secret room with his handprint and then the secret password, which happens to be “Dark Death” and the character’s signature phrase (in Korean): “The worst there is.”

Dong-hyun watches Seol-woo as he follows Woon-kwang and the chairman into the room, then puts their new plan into action, pushing a button that shares their location.

On the receiving end of this information is Major Petrov, the Russian military leader who Seol-woo helped break out of prison. In a flashback, we see that Seol-woo sought out Petrov before the party to secure his help for Plan B. Seol-woo said he’d get the evidence on Chairman Victor that the Russian military is looking for; in return, he asked Petrov to be ready to deliver a blast of EMP (electromagnetic pulse), just in case it’s needed.

When Petrov receives the chairman’s location, he knows Plan B has been activated. He gives the order to send the EMP drone to the mansion.

Back in Chairman Victor’s secret room, the chairman shows off his collection of artifacts, which includes an original print of the first Dark Death comic book. Seol-woo carefully looks around the room, then zeroes in on a small sculpture (a wood carving, perhaps?) in the corner.

Dong-hyun’s voice comes through Seol-woo’s earpiece with an update: Petrov has been notified, and there’s one minute left. Dong-hyun shuts down his equipment since the EMP will cause the power to fail and reminds Seol-woo that he’ll be on his own.

As Seol-woo checks his watch, a drone circles Chairman Victor’s mansion, sets its target, then sends the EMP blast. Immediately, all the lights in the building turn off. A guard quickly relays to the chairman that the security system is down, but it should be back up soon. Though the chairman orders an increase in security, he tells his team to keep the party going. The group leaves the chairman’s room, and Seol-woo takes one last look at the sculpture.

Back at the party, the guests murmur in bewilderment over the sudden power outage. As if on cue, a chef wheels out Chairman Victor’s birthday cake into the darkened hall, and a performance of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” begins, making it look like the outage was planned.

Seol-woo and Woon-kwang return to the party, prompting Do-ha to exhale in relief. She’s worried that something might be wrong, but Woon-kwang just shrugs it off, and Seol-woo assures her that things are fine.

As the guests watch the performance, Seol-woo slowly makes his way out of the hall and heads to the second floor, where the carving is supposedly located. On his way, he puts in a special contact lens which gives him superhuman vision to detect signs of danger, and he’s able to avoid the guards stationed around the building.

Back at the party, as the song continues, Woon-kwang watches Mi-eun with a sad, wistful look on his face. A few beats later, it’s Mi-eun who gazes at Woon-kwang—and it doesn’t go unnoticed by her husband.

Seol-woo makes it to the second floor, successfully evading two guards stationed in the hallway. He confidently strides towards his targeted room, quietly takes out another guard at the door, and enters.

He gets rid of the several more guards in the room, then trains his flashlight on the door to a vault. He’s able to open the door quite easily by simply twisting the handle, which then leads to another door made of metal bars. This door, too, isn’t secured in any way, and Seol-woo swings it open.

He heads right up to a small carving—an exact replica of the piece he saw earlier in Chairman Victor’s secret basement room—then smashes the protective glass.

Meanwhile, Do-ha volunteers to look for Seol-woo when Woon-kwang notices that he’s missing.

Seol-woo grabs the wood carving, then places a tracker onto the figure before stuffing it into a bag. Outside, in his surveillance vehicle, Dong-hyun hurriedly powers on his equipment and notes the location of “SW” in the building.

Seol-woo heads outside to a balcony, then places the bag with the carving on the railing, looking up at the sky. Once he notes a drone on its way over, he steps back inside. The drone—expertly flown by Dong-hyun—picks up the bag, then flies away.

But he’s not out of the woods yet—on his way back to the party, he’s met with guards from either side. Thinking quickly, he hops the railing down to the first floor, where he promptly runs into Do-ha. Aware that he’s being chased, Seol-woo scans their surroundings—and sure enough, he sees several guards running down the stairs toward them. Seol-woo’s out of options, so he does the only thing he can think of: He grabs Do-ha, whirls her around, and holds her close.

The embrace is enough to fool the guards, but the two stay close for another moment before Do-ha pushes Seol-woo away. Looking shaken, she asks him what he’s doing, to which Seol-woo answers, “Something bad.” With a slight smile, he asks her to ignore what just happened.

Do-ha regroups and joins Woon-kwang and Seol-woo back at their table, where the performance is still going on. She turns to look at Seol-woo, but he just stares straight ahead.

After Chairman Victor blows out his birthday candle, a guard breaks the news that an EMP blast was responsible for the outage and urges the chairman to leave the building immediately. Then, Chairman Victor’s given a second piece of bad news: His vault was robbed as well.

Just then, the party is interrupted by the sounds of helicopters circling the building, flashing their bright lights and blinding all the guests. Moments later, droves of Russian troops rush into the mansion, with Major Petrov bringing up the rear. Well, that was fast.

Before the troops take Chairman Victor away, Petrov catches Seol-woo’s eye, and Seol-woo acknowledges him with a nod and a smile. Outside, Dong-hyun happily lands the drone and secures the wooden carving.

After the party is officially over, Do-ha confronts Seol-woo about his actions earlier that evening. She asks him for an explanation, saying that she’ll need at least that much in order to continue working with him and treating him like family. Looking up at him earnestly, she asks him for an honest answer.

In voiceover, Seol-woo wonders, “Why do people believe what you say with words is the truth?” And out loud, he says, “It’s because you were there, and you were the only thing I could see.”

We hear Do-ha’s heart start to pound, but she doesn’t say anything and looks up at him, wide-eyed. Seol-woo continues that he knows that he wasn’t supposed to do that, and says he’s sorry for crossing the line.

As he walks away, he narrates: “During the course of a mission, you often have to think on your feet.” He checks his phone to find a message from Dong-hyun confirming that he has the carving. Seol-woo looks back at Do-ha, who’s still just sitting there in shock, then continues on his way, smiling as he notes the completion of the Moscow mission.

Back in Korea, Woon-kwang debriefs his staff about the crazy events at Chairman Victor’s party. Do-ha looks pretty uncomfortable the whole time, and when she gives Seol-woo a little glance, he looks away.

CEO Ji meets with Mi-eun and asks her to hand over the agency to him so that he can continue working with Woon-kwang. CEO Ji seems truly upset at the way things played out, and he swears that he’ll do whatever it takes to get back in Woon-kwang’s good graces, even if that means cutting off contact with Mi-eun herself. Mi-eun agrees and tells CEO Ji to stay by Woon-kwang’s side.

Dong-hyun and Seol-woo use some fancy software to scan the wood carving for clues and discover a hidden cavity. Taking a closer look at the piece, Seol-woo successfully locates the opening to the hidden compartment and pulls out an odd-shaped key. Seol-woo notes that it’s not a complete key and says that they’ll need two more pieces—one from the remaining two wood carvings—to figure out what they open.

Seol-woo hides the key in a nearby container filled with screws and other random keys, then asks about the second wood carving. Dong-hyun says it’s with the royal family in Thailand, which perks Seol-woo right up, since it means he can finally stop his undercover work as Woon-kwang’s bodyguard. He tells Dong-hyun that he’ll disappear during Woon-kwang’s shoot the next day.

At home, Do-ha can’t get Seol-woo’s “explanation” of his actions out of her head as she tosses and turns on the couch. Her friend Song-yi’s convinced that Seol-woo likes Do-ha, but Do-ha’s not so sure, finding it all too sudden and weird. When Song-yi asks Do-ha how Seol-woo’s hug made her feel, Do-ha gets all dreamy before quickly saying she felt annoyed.

Song-yi tells Do-ha to confirm Seol-woo’s feelings for her by eliciting two emotions in him: jealousy and worry. Do-ha thinks back to the swoony things Seol-woo’s done so far, but then she flips out over how complicated it all is.

Seol-woo bops around happily as he plans the best way to fake his death. Unfortunately for him, Dong-hyun nixes Seol-woo’s usual methods, telling him that he can’t do things like blow up cars in Korea. Instead, Dong-hyun suggests a novel idea: Seol-woo should resign.

Seol-woo grumbles about the change in plans, so Dong-hyun tells him to annoy Woon-kwang for a few days, then quit. This appeals to Seol-woo, and he starts to hatch his plan.

At Woon-kwang’s shoot the next day, Do-ha is still preoccupied with thoughts of Seol-woo. She orders poor Sang-shik to hug her, as if that will help her to figure out how Seol-woo’s hug made her feel, then pries him away from her when they see Seol-woo headed their way.

Seol-woo gets started on his new exit strategy, which seems to be to try to out-diva Woon-kwang. Complaining about the delay in the filming schedule, he plops down in Woon-kwang’s special chair and even sasses Sang-shik when he points out that he’s sitting in the celebrity’s chair.

Sang-shik wonders aloud if Seol-woo’s annoyed with him, but Do-ha has a different read. With Song-yi’s words about jealousy ringing in her ear, she comes to the conclusion that Seol-woo must be annoyed with her for daring to hug another man. She gapes to herself, wondering if Seol-woo just revealed his feelings toward her. Pfft.

Seol-woo’s still lounging in the chair when Woon-kwang appears. The star points out that Seol-woo is in his chair, but Seol-woo doesn’t move and says that he’s tired. As Woon-kwang’s staff all exchange nervous glances, Woon-kwang furrows his brow at Seol-woo—only to ask with concern if Seol-woo needs to go to the hospital. Aw.

Seol-woo jumps up in annoyance, saying he’s fine, then kicks the chair for good measure as he walks away from the mystified crew. Sang-shik calls Seol-woo’s attitude inappropriate, but Woon-kwang says that he’ll be understanding, since he considers Seol-woo to be his brother/family and not a mere bodyguard.

Woon-kwang has canceled his filming for the day, so he suggests that they go out for a team dinner. When they get ready to load up the van, Seol-woo gets into the car first without a word, leaving Woon-kwang behind.

Songsan heir Seung-jae meets with Assemblyman Baek, who can barely contain his glee as he clucks over Chairman Victor’s downfall and the problems it’s causing for Songsan’s bottom line. Annoyed, Seung-jae turns the conversation back around to the assemblyman’s inability to find the wood carvings, but the politician assures Seung-jae that things are moving along. To that, Seun-jae says he’ll deliver the campaign funds to the assemblyman by next week.

Assemblyman Baek’s underling Ki-chul has set up a white board detailing all the players involved in the mission for the first wood carving, including Woon-kwang and our NIS agents. Over the phone (and as he assembles a shotgun), he tells Assemblyman Baek that it looks like the agents found Chairman Victor’s wood carving, but that they haven’t turned it over to the NIS just yet.

Assemblyman Baek asks about the ghost agent that they’re working with, but Ki-chul has no news. The assemblyman then tells Ki-chul to bring him the carving as soon as it’s found, saying that he needs to teach Seung-jae how negotiations are done.

During their team dinner (which they end up having at Woon-kwang’s house, ha), Woon-kwang thanks his staff for getting him back on schedule, then calls for a toast. His stylist offers to pour Seol-woo a drink, and to Do-ha’s surprise, he accepts, then downs the entire thing.

Over drinks, Department Head Jang and Mi-eun’s friend Sharon discuss Woon-kwang’s departure from Chewing. But then the conversation goes a whole new direction, as Department Head Jang slips Sharon a pair of tickets to an art show and asks her to go with him.

Back at Woon-kwang’s, Do-ha is on her way to getting wasted, and Seol-woo gets a text from her that says they need to talk. The rest of the team fills Seol-woo in on Do-ha’s drinking habits: Whenever she gets drunk, she picks someone to text and ropes them into an endless conversation that lasts all night. Seol-woo looks horrified at having been chosen.

So when Do-ha pours herself yet another glass of soju, Seol-woo takes the glass away from her and drinks it himself. But Do-ha won’t be stopped that easily—she just finds herself a new glass to fill. She’s about to drink when Seol-woo dramatically takes the glass from her once again.

He angrily tells Do-ha not to drink too much and forces himself to chug the second glass. Everyone is impressed with Seol-woo’s chivalry, and Do-ha in particular looks thoroughly moved.

Woon-kwang comments that Seol-woo must worry about Do-ha a lot, which leads Do-ha to remember Song-yi’s words about jealousy and worry being indicative of Seol-woo’s feelings toward her. As Seol-woo stumbles away, Do-ha decides that she needs to end things clearly and chases after him.

She catches Seol-woo outside the house and asks him if he’s leaving because of her. When he says yes, she tells him that she understands his feelings and says that though she appreciates how hard it is to confess his feelings, she doesn’t feel the same way as Seol-woo.

Seol-woo can’t help but smirk when he realizes that Do-ha really believes he’s into her. He tells her that it doesn’t matter, assuring her that he’ll move on.

At home, Do-ha replays the evening’s events in her head, sighing at Seol-woo’s attempts to stop her drinking. She says out loud that she’s drinking because of him, then says that she’s sorry for hurting him.

Meanwhile, Seol-woo fiddles with some equipment at his place, but keeps stopping to stretch and rearrange his chair. He finally stops for good, then looks at back at the pictures of Do-ha on his bulletin board in annoyance. He ends up putting black tape over her eyes on each of her photos, then smiles in satisfaction.

The next day, Seol-woo submits his letter of resignation to Woon-kwang, citing health issues. Woon-kwang first refuses to accept this news, then tries to offer Seol-woo some time off. But Seol-woo is firm, and leaves with a bow.

At another one of their meetings, Department Head Jang tells Dong-hyun that the second wood carving is no longer with the Thai royal family, as it’s been put up for sale at a black market auction for the wealthy. Only members can participate in this auction, but Department Head Jang knows that Agent Y had a membership card. He tells Dong-hyun to look for the agent’s informant, “Goldfinger,” to find the card.

Do-ha visits her father in prison and tells him she’s deposited his commissary money. Ever the con man, her father tries to butter her up, telling her how pretty she is and how it’s time for her to get married. Do-ha angrily asks him how he can even talk about marriage twhen he’s in prison for fraud for the ninth time.

He tells her he’ll get out soon, then asks if Do-ha still has the “gift” that he gave her a while back. She hesitates and says she threw it away, then tells him not to contact her if he’s going to cause trouble again. He can totally see that she’s lying, so he shouts after her that he’ll come see her soon, then notes to himself happily that she must have both the gift and a man.

When Do-ha returns to Woon-kwang’s, she finds her boss moping in bed. Woon-kwang tells her that Seol-woo quit for health reasons, then wonders if Seol-woo might be faking his illness. A look of realization cuts across Do-ha’s face, and she tells Woon-kwang that Seol-woo is indeed sick—with an illness of the heart. She assures her boss that she’ll take care of it.

Seol-woo studies the photographs of Do-ha on his bulletin board, all adorned with a strip of black tape over her eyes. When he tries to peel off the tape, her eyes come off with it, so he covers her face with Post-its instead.

Just then, the door buzzes. Seol-woo checks the CCTV feed and is shocked to see Do-ha standing in front of his building.

They relocate to a nearby café, where Do-ha tells him that they can’t accept his resignation. Seol-woo tries to shut down the conversation quickly by telling her that he has nothing more to say, but she stops him by saying that she’s sorry. She says she empathizes with him and that she knows how hard it is to like someone without them liking you back.

As Seol-woo watches Do-ha talk, he narrates: “When working undercover, the end is more important than the start.”

Seol-woo’s expression turns cold, and he asks Do-ha if she didn’t understand him when he said that it didn’t matter. Leaning in, he asks incredulously, “Do you think I liked you?”

He goes on to say that he’s not interested in women like her—those who make decisions without consulting others, jump to conclusions, and are just rude in general. He says that she just says whatever she wants and doesn’t listen to what others have to say; he calls her easy, simple, extreme, and exhausting. Dang, that’s harsh.

Do-ha starts to shrink at Seol-woo’s verbal attacks, looking down and clasping her hands together nervously. But he continues to hammer hard at her, telling her that she shouldn’t be confused by what happened at Chairman Victor’s party—he did what he did out of “curiosity.” He even raises his voice, yelling that he tried to play it off by telling her that he’d move on. He asks her if she understands now that the reason he quit had nothing to do with her.

As Do-ha struggles to hold back her tears, Seol-woo ends things by telling her not to think of him or come looking for him ever again.

On his way out, Seol-woo answers a call from Dong-hyun, who asks him if he’s quit yet. Seol-woo says he did—definitively at that—but nearly trips over himself when Dong-hyun tells him to take it back. To Seol-woo’s dismay, Dong-hyun says that they’ve found the second wood carving, and Seol-woo will have to play the role of Guard Kim for a bit longer.

Seol-woo looks back at Do-ha, who’s slowly walking out of the café. In voiceover, he repeats something we’ve heard before: “Love is a useful deceit and tactic to a secret agent.” He adds that his new target is Cha Do-ha, and that she’s one of many assignments that he’s had.

He strides over to Do-ha purposefully and plants a kiss on her. In the middle of the kiss, Seol-woo opens his eyes to look right at Do-ha and thinks to himself: “But I have a bad feeling.”

 
COMMENTS

Let’s talk about that last conversation between Seol-woo and Do-ha—I don’t know about you all, but man, my heart was in shreds for Do-ha in that moment. I know that Seol-woo was doing his secret agent thing and trying to end things with Do-ha as clearly and painfully as possible, but it’s really hard not to hate Seol-woo in that moment for being so cruel to her.

What makes that conversation even harder to watch is the fact that Seol-woo’s words, on some level, aren’t too far from the truth. After all, he is a master of identifying weaknesses, and we’ve seen firsthand that Do-ha does, at times, jump to conclusions and talk a mile a minute without listening to what others have to say. You can just see it in Do-ha’s face that Seol-woo’s words hit her to the core, not just because of how mean they were, but also perhaps because she’s all too familiar with those very weaknesses in herself.

So it will be interesting to see how Seol-woo comes back from this to try to win Do-ha’s heart, aside from his usual repertoire of hugs, twirls, and kisses. It’s clear that he has some kind of an effect on Do-ha, but if I were her, I’d be extra wary of anything else Seol-woo has to say following his brutal attacks on her personality and character.

And as for Seol-woo, I’m really hoping that we’ll get to see some insight into his character soon—I’d like to know how he came to be this stone-cold secret agent who can manipulate the hell out of any situation. Understanding his background would make his journey more interesting, especially as he gets closer to Do-ha and Woon-kwang, the two characters who seem to have a knack for not only throwing things off-kilter, but also eliciting some actual feelings in our secret agent.

Seol-woo’s successful theft of the wooden carving almost seemed too easy (seriously, why was that vault so easy to break into?), but at least that means we are a third of the way closer to figuring out what Agent Y was hiding. I hope we move even faster with the other two, because I want the show to make room for the other storylines and relationships, particularly those that have to do with Woon-kwang.

I missed our big celebrity a lot this hour—I felt like we didn’t get nearly enough time with him, or the usual repartee between him and his Guard Kim, which I particularly enjoyed last week. I think Woon-kwang’s backstory and current storyline is the more interesting one in the series thus far, and without him, there’s a noticeable lack of heart and humor. Given that Seol-woo’s going to have to continue his role as Guard Kim for the foreseeable future, I’m hopeful that this will be rectified quickly—and that we’ll never have to see poor Woon-kwang so sad about the loss of his bodyguard ever again.

 
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I swear to God, Kim Seol-woo is a big fat jerk. But this episode was so funny and heartwarming at the same time. Woon-kwang sulking like he just got dumped after Seol-woo quit was hilarious and cute. I do feel some chemistry between Park Hae-jin and Kim Min-jung in recent episodes. Poor Do-ha is in for the shock of her life next week.

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I agree with you, i've been seething since Saturday evening on what happened.

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The statements sounded really harsh. But he had no choice. He needs a complete shut down on the mission, and he can't have her looking for him whether it's out of sympathy, curiosity or friendship.

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But I like watching WK sulk like a man child over his bodyguard's resignation. It shows how much he values SW, and how much his resignation affects him. I just wish SW can see all this, and realize how much this group of guys loves him and treats him like part of their big family.

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I guess SW knows but he couldn't be part of the family as long as he is still a secret agent....

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Episode 4 was, for me, the best episode so far.

Agent Kim continues to make those faces that make me giggle, and adds new ones at that. When he puts on that petulant, sulky face, it’s so funny and adorable. I’m beginning to think this is the real him: that grouchy, grumpy, rude guy who slumps in a chair and shakes his leg sullenly, who kicks a chair childishly, who stomps away in a temper, who downs two glasses of soju. His face when he realizes the significance of that text he got – the dismay and the desperation in his eyes hahahaha. And that rude rant when he starts yelling at her to stop drinking. Do these little outbursts indicate the real him? Like we’re slowly peeling off the layers to find what’s real and what’s really inside of this guy?

I giggled at the taping of her eyes. He takes his time over it, like it’s a very important task, very slowly and meticulously, and the look on his face when he rips it off, like he’s so creeped out by her new mutant-like visor in place of the eyes. So funny.

All the clichés get thrown in our faces this episode, and turned upside down. A man in love is jealous, and that’s what put him in a foul temper, Do ha deduces incorrectly. A man in love shows concern, and the look on her face when he practically snatches those glasses from under her nose and downs them so grumpily was so laughable.

That scene of her appearing at the entrance was so funny and his face! Deja vu all over again LOLOL. When he demands to know how she found out where he lives, she answers, from the address you gave at the agency…LOL. Never knew a ghost agent who gives his REAL address as his contact information. He must be the first.

The noble idiot cliché was played to the hilt in the ending scene, when he said so cruelly, and so typically of a noble idiot, in a scene played and replayed many times in Korean dramas, “I would never like a woman like you.” And then he starts to list all the things that he finds so unappealing about her, and hey, those are the very things commenters have posted about her! I like the line where he says, “you don’t go left or right, you just go forward. You act tough but you cry alone.” It almost sounds like he cares for her. And then his voice starts to rise in irritation, and that smooth mask just slips, “I was trying to be nice! You should have just left it at that!” That tone of exasperation, that involuntary outburst, like he’s had it up to here, and he can’t keep it in anymore – that’s him speaking right? The real him.

This scene was difficult for me to watch because every cruel word, every jibe, every smile, drove the knife deeper, and the pain, the disbelief, the shock mirrored in those huge eyes hurt me so bad.

The walk out the door, and the satisfied expression that flickers across his face says it all, he’s giving himself a pat on the back, “You did a pretty good job there. Now it’s time to go.” And then the phone call, and I am laughing so hard at the loud SCREEEECH as...

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as his feet slam on the brakes. Then the horrified expression on his face, his voice rising in panic, What?????LOLOL and that U- turn as his beautiful long legs (clad in tight black jeans and so lean and beautifully long) stride toward her (this scene kind of reminds me of Goblin’s Gong Yoo taking those long strides of fury toward the Grim Reaper King at the top of the stairs), and I imagine him thinking up a new plan as he’s walking toward her-“The feet are very important, you have to think on your feet”- that stop, and the kiss.

He kisses her, and his eyes open, just a fraction, and they are staring at her, studying her so objectively, and I am overcome by a wave of pity and dread for Do ha. Girl, he’s so going to break your heart, and you don’t even know it.

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Everything you said is 100%. The tears pooling in her big, beautiful eyes broke my heart. I wanted to smack him so hard for hurting her even if his words were true but I can't even be mad at him because he's such a dork underneath that mean exterior. I mean his little dance in lair had me cackling like crazy.

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I know right. I was so conflicted, I wanted to laugh when I heard that long deep sigh he made as she rattled on about not wanting to hurt him, I hated him for being a jerk and hurting her so bad, but I couldn't be mad at him, because it's part of his Grand Plan, which he has been sharing with us all along.

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Exactly! It must've been really frustrating for him that she just wouldn't give up! she kept misunderstanding everything and kind of pushed him into saying those things, he wanted her to stop! Yes, he was a jerk but cutting people off of his life like that is a part of his job!

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it's hard that we know what he's up to and that it's part of his job, it's all work for him yet, i'm justifiably pissed off still of what he did, sealing it with the kiss. at that point I want him to fall really had for her and realize that there are still things in life more than the completion of his mission. I was thinking while watching the preview that he would be really terrified for DH getting kidnapped.

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From E1, the show has established SW as someone who can suppressed his emotions so well that he could pass / beat the lying detector... so while he appears to be very harsh and cruel, who knows what his real emotions are. Or has he managed to stop feeling anything?

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I bet those things that he said he "didn't like" about her are the things that makes him notice her, and those things unsettle him and they're gonna be the things he falls for. That'll be good revenge on him! ?

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Yes, make him squirm, the jerk! But I still love you, Oppa!

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I should've read this comment before writing mine, LOL!

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exactly, those are the very things that pulls him to her, ugh! can we teleport to Friday 23:00 KST? I need to know what they did afterwards, for me to have peace of mind.

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I bet he's going to fall for those exact things he listed as he didn't like about her. You just wait Kim Seol-woo, you wouldn't even know what hit you!

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Lol. Right. I would love to see him eating back his every words to Doha one day. Soon.

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Yes! I think it would be great writing if one day Seol Woo repeats these same words but instead as a list of all the things he finds endearing about Doha.

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"......as his feet slam on the brakes... "
YES! I loved that part... When his legs reacted to the news, it's worse than when his Russian mission reverted to Plan B. Coz this time he definitely did not see that coming after he ended the conversation like a big jerk. Anyway I am not surprised he kissed her. His modus operandi is standard. Charm the girl, kiss her, hold her hands etc.

I can understand his outburst at her. He is clearly disturbed/annoyed by the fact that she is different from the other ladies he met. I'd assume most of them were cultured, well mannered, eloquent, elegant, refined.... in other words, different from Do Ha. In a way, that would explain why he prefers to blow himself up. Breaking up or rejecting someone is hard to do. I think despite repeating the phrase "love is a useful deceit and tactic for a secret agent", he never felt comfortable about it.... there is a shred of deep humanity in him that wants to leave good memories behind rather than a messy and cruel parting.

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He breaks up with the girls he uses in his mission because he doesn't want to be traced in any way, death should give closure to most. He also is not too keen to face wrath of heartbroken women, that is his own words. He knew Do-Ha's weakness, slapping all that on her face with her words was a way to utilize that. He profiled her and the worst aspects of her personality that she is not herself proud of, he laid it out in front of her. He called her easy girl who gets on a person's back, is that really the case with Do-Ha?? She may not be refined or lady like but she doesn't sleep around to earn the "Easy" tag. In fact, in most she inspires loyalty that they are willing to follow her out of Chewing. It had absolutely nothing to do with greater good of any human being or his humanity. At any rate, Seol Woo is absolutely cold at heart and master manipulator, which is why he is a ghost agent to begin with. He did that as it was convenient for him to end things that way so that she will never again think of him.

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By the way, yes I love those little outbursts from him, it's like the "real" him comes out uncontrollably when he's around DH/WK and he's not able to keep up the "i'm the cool bodyguard" facade anymore. He's definitely a grumpy, petty guy who's wholly childish (love all his little bopping dances when he's with Donghyun in the man-cave) and that's somehow endearing to me.

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His new nickname should me Mr. Grumpypants, lol. I loved seeing his face when she drank so much and he had to take the shots for her. I do feel like Woon-kwang and Do-ha bring out the inner Seol-woo that he keep hidden under the cool, detached Agent K facade. Hoping to see more of the trio's interactions!

Although Seol-woo was cruel for dishing out Do-ha's weaknesses to shut her off, but I was glad that he was being truthful albeit a little harsh, Do-ha needed that reality check. It's true that she never listens to anyone, maybe sometimes to Woon-kwang, but our trio have some serious character growths they need to go through.

Oh, that screech when he got the phone call and needed to take back his resignation was hilarious! I can never get enough of Seol-woo's dry humor. Park Hae-jin and Park Sung-woong are amazing in this.

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Really enjoyed this episode except for the last scene. It just creeps me out that a guy just walks up to a girl and kissess her.

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Yea me too. But a necessary development in the plot. I hope they show Do-ha giving him some ass-kicking in the next episode.

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I know right! After he insults her for a full five minutes. OMG! I will be terribly mad if she doesn't kick his butt in the next episode.

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He called her an easy girl who gets on a man's back so easily....what an unforgivable insult. I was stunned by the cruelty of these words.

That's the thing about SW, we know he's being deliberately horrible and saying the most awful things to make her hate him and forget him, but the cruelty of the words he used still took me aback.

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Indeed. Cruel. And I think DoHa was in shock so she couldn't smack him... I am curious as to what makes him so cold. He places mission above all else. In a way it's sad that he has no friends. Except for Dong Hyun. Yes he insulted and kissed her. But a tiny hope we have is that he has a bad feeling about it. That's the closest indication that he isnt having zero emotions.

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Saw comments on E3 saying they wished DH had been portrayed that way since E1, but I wonder if the point was to show her in E1 as a crazy fan, which was probably SW's first impression, and then in E3, he, (and us viewers), realize there's more to her. We (SW included) don't have to like her right away; it's only through getting to know her more that we realize what a gem she is.

On Do Ha: Ok first things first: I'm really interested in how SW's going to worm his way out of this situation. DH, if you let whatever he said to you slide just because he walked back and kissed you, I'm going to be mightily disappointed. (Is it just me though, or was that a look of almost-regret flashing across SW's face after he raised his voice at her in the cafe?)

When DH talked about having a one-sided crush (probably on WK), it broke my heart (I've been there, I feel ya.), which made the harsh words from SW hurt even more. It's true that she misunderstood things easily, but DH's just so straightforward and engrossed in her own thoughts that she only saw what she wanted to see. But her intentions come from a good place - she was worried that she had hurt him and apologized. My heart just breaks for her because you know she's about to get emotionally manipulated by SW and it's gonna be baaad. (When he realizes he actually likes her - girl, you better make him beg.)

On Seol Woo: Hah!! I love how he stuck stickers over her eyes and then tried to take them off (with that look of guilt) but just ended up covering her entire face with a post-it anyway. I also love the "Whoever receives a text from her dies", and then his "oh crap" look when he realizes he's the one who received the text, so he ends up scolding her for drinking. I love all these moments where he loses his cool because it shows us the genuine him (like when he's with Donghyun in his man-cave). And when he hid the key with those scrunchy hand motions? So. Adorable.

On Woon Kwang: I love how nothing SW did to annoy him had any effect. And ouch, poor WK! I think he finds it hard to trust people around him, and he was so earnest in calling SW his "brother". And SW just up and left. (I can't wait to see his reaction when SW comes back to the job, I bet it'll be hilarious.)

You know what? I'm not usually a fan of shows with action, so I can't comment much on all the agent stuff, except that I think SW looks pretty cool in them. I'm just 100% up for the emotional manipulation. It's going to hurt, but boy is it going to hurt in a good way.

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Any repentance by him would be fake, and would probably be along the lines of "I said all that to make you hate me, because I'm a bad person, I'm not good for you, you deserve so much more bla bla". He'll just worm his way back into her good books. The repentance will come later when he falls for her.

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I love Oppa but I don't want him to get out of this quickly because what would that make of Do-ha?! I don't know what he's going to say to try and convince her but I want her to be tough on him and make his life miserable, especially now that we know he took that U-turn only because of the second wood craving, it'll be fun seeing him trying to win her heart if she resists giving it to him!

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YY, ?, you can be a co writer

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right and I want to him to fell for her real hard he'd be conflicted in all things he's gonna do because it would hurt her, to say it simply he'd be conflicted to what he does best.

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Did you see regret? I saw a stillness - I thought he was shaken - couldn't make out what it was, but it was quickly overtaken by that satisfied look on his face, like he shrugged it off and moved on.

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nope I didn't see regret, since this is the certain scene i fixated, i watched it for the nth time and he was initially frustrated at her and you're right I see a satisfied look.

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I thought it might have been regret because he was being extra harsh in pointing out all her flaws (and I think it showed on her face) and he hadn't meant to shout. But maybe I'm giving him more credit and he was actually just a jerk, hah! ? I shall go replay that scene again and again to try and get the emotion he was portraying!

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YY, Lezah
I thought so too. Perhaps a little bit of regret. He didn't smile so it wasn't something he was happy about...

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I'm going to replay that scene again. All I remember is that look of satisfaction. Will get back to ya!

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Okay, rewatched it...no, no regret, his eyes sort of narrowed, and then it hardened. But I detected a tinge of gentleness when he leaned forward, and said, "Erase me from your memory. Please." Clutching at straws, desperados we are....haha

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It was such a small moment. Let's hope that they will let us see more of his reaction next episode.

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I thought the narrowed eyes was like "oh crap shouldn't have shouted" and then the quieter "please forget me" was more to... Make the situation less harsh. But you're right, we're grasping at anything to make SW more likeable and less of a jerk! I guess we will see in E5! ?

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+1,000,000 Lezah
The producers took a risk in portraying her as an overbearing and overprotective manager in E1 and E2. It didn't turn out well for Gu Hye Sun in Blood although I really like her performance in subsequent episodes. I am glad that everyone can root for Do Ha now as a character that we can connect with now.

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I think it's sad that an efficient, commanding woman is stereotypically seen as "bossy/loud", or "arrogant and unlikeable"... Maybe it's because I find myself relating to DH (and also GHS in Blood) that I didn't find either of their characters annoying from the start.

I find that they are both capable women who try their best to do their job - but this does not mean they don't have flaws, of course! DH definitely shoots her mouth a bit more than she should and she's definitely a little obsessed with oppa, but it wasn't exactly something to garner hatred. Contrastingly, when I watched Shy Boss, I did think that the main character was annoying because not only was she hindering the team's progress, she was nosey, unempathetic and rude to boot.

Oh well! I'm just glad that more people are supportive of DH now! I'm rooting for her all the way!

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I agree completely. I've liked Do Ha from the beginning and sadly I think it's some of the same traits that I like which caused so much of the hatred for her. By this I mean, she is refreshingly uninterested in being pleasing all the time. Too many female characters have no sharp edges. Think of the traditional kdrama candy, who starts out poor and has had a crappy life but is still determined to always put on a cheerful face lest a female display any negative emotions like anger or bitterness.

Do Ha is unafraid to be aggressive or in your face in the course of doing her job (which she has been shown to be quite competent at) and doesn't even care if that angers even a very handsome man like Kim Seol Woo. Sure she's got her flaws. I do think her possessiveness is an issue she needs to deal with. However male characters can have all sorts of flaws and still get passes. (Can anyone argue now that Kim Seol Woo isn't 10x more flawed than Do Ha?) Sighs. I am glad people are more sympathetic to her now but the response to her character at first was very frustrating.

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I love that scene where SW stuck stickers and post-its over DH's face. Poor boy! He is so clearly affected by her in ways he doesn't even know. I watched that scene multiple times and laughed every single time.

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I love how the suave secret agent is constantly obliterated by the diva and his manager. So funny.

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This episode was hilarious, i was nervous when Seol-woo was being rude to Woon-kwang, i thought for sure Woon-kwang would snap at him but he was so considerate it made me laugh, he's a really good guy.

Seol-woo is feeling attracted to Do-ha but doesn't know it yet, this will be funny, i hope Do-ha doesn't let things slide just because he kissed her, he was so mean to her and i hope she make things (hilariously) difficult for him.

Thanks for the recap!

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That scene with SW throwing a mini tantrum at WK is pure gold. I also thought WK would snap at him, but no! He turned out to be more considerate than I thought.

The actor who portrays WK does it very well. His performance is so engaging, no matter what he does, even if it's childish, I can't help but glue my eyes to the screen whenever he is interacting with other characters or he is by himself. This is the first time I have seen him act in a drama, and I am very impressed by his acting skills.

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WK is such a good man deep down and cares deeply for the people close to him..I hope the betrayer when he finds out SW real purpose will not be too big..I found it hilarious that SW tried soo hard to make him mad and accept his resignation only to get consideration and being told he is family...

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I'm really interested to see what explanation Seol Woo provides for the kiss next episode ... I really kinda hope she slaps him or something ... I really want another doting guy drama ... maybe I'm too much of a hopeless romantic but I got spoiled with Strong Woman and Weightlifting Fairy.
I love how Woon Kyung was making excuses for Seul Woo in regards to his bad behavior ... The "he's family; he's allowed to have a bad day here and there" was great! Since I get the feeling that Woon Kyung doesn't let anyone off the hook hehe.
Can't wait for next week!

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I hope she gives him a slap at least for all the horrible things he said to her.

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Do-ha is not my favorite character but I wanted to slap Seolwoo for being cruel. I understand his intentions but it has just terrible consequences for the ppl he leaves behind. I now wonder if there will be any repercussions with his past "breakups" that will make Seolwoo rethink his choices in the past.

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There was not enough Woon Kwang in this episode. ;A; I missed his bromance with Seol Woo. It was cute and touching when WK was sulking in his bed after he got the news about SW's resignation.

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I missed WK's bromance with SW too. It's sorely lacking in this episode. It's not as funny without their interactions.

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Oh man, Seol-woo's words were down right harsh when he was trying to end things with Do-ha. As much as I love Seol-woo's character, I hope Do-ha doesn't go easy on him just because of that kiss.

On the other note, I really enjoyed this episode especially that cute moment when Seol-woo hid the key in that container. It's nice to see that he has another side of him besides his cold and mysterious character. Would love to see more of his soft side as the drama unravels his story.

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if i be her i would just endup slapping him LOL,
idrc if that guy were hottie or whatsoever, coz im so disliking guys who were acting so jerk.

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If I were her, I'd never want to see him ever again. But then, what he said was true. So, I would try to slowly accept it and reduce those bad traits. Not for him but for myself.

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For a moment I thought plan B was going to be blow up everything, instead it was a drone who took out the electricity.
I like the gadgets that Agent K uses, would like to have one of those cameras in my eyes so it can tell me when I would be in danger.??
DH "Did anything happen?"
Me: "Yes a lot of laughs from me watching the first three episodes."???
I was no they are going to discover Agent K but DH was just in the right place at the right time. DH is lucky, plus she got to dance again with Agent K.?
Agent K: "All I could see was you."?❤️
DH's reaction:?
Me:???"Wish I was DH."???
Interesting what Agent K thinks if he were to tell her the truth could she handle it. I don't know maybe if he told her I don't think she would believe him and would think that he is just joking.

Agent K: "Moscow mission complete."?
Me: No, that means the drama will end.??
Like what the Chief tells him that he needs a break lately since know he has been doing things he wouldn't do before. I enjoy the relationship between the two and how everyone keeps asking the Chief if his retired or not, and what would happen if his wife found out he is still helping them.
The Chief: "She will kill me."?????
Agent K: "So now I can quit been a bodyguard."
Me: don't count on it agent K. ?
DH seeking love advice from her friend, I like her reactions. I wonder if she is going to plan anything to see if agent K likes her.
Like the whole DH thinking that Agent K was quitting because of her.
Found Agent K a bit too harsh at the end with DH?
But laughed when the Chief called him and
Agent K:"I quit already."?
Chief:"You can't."?
Agent K: ???
Agent K when he sees DH walking by.
Agent K:"New assignment Do-Ha Cha."???
Let the romance begin.???
Looking forward as to how the story progresses.

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"All I could see was you."

I stopped breathing.

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it's sad because he just literally means it but at the context DH understood, she thought he liked her. :( poor DH.

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I was bowled over by the charm and the line, so romantic and so typical Korean Drama, and I didn't even think of it that way...that is so sad.

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Seol Woo, Seol Woo, my dear Seol Woo, you are a grade A ass. Do-Ha is getting to you in some capacity even if that is not romantic so far and so you decide to crush her emotionally. Was that even necessary?? I do feel after shouting at Do-Ha, he regretted it but didn't let it bother him for too long after leaving. That was cruel what he did. Not that, what he does to woman all around is not cruel but the whole thing was nasty. And that wasn't even Do-Ha's fault. As good as she is as her Oppa's manager, she is terribly inexperienced in matters of heart. I hope she doesn't immidiately give in to Seol Woo but it seems unlikely.
I too would like some insight into Seol Woo, I don't necessarily need a reason to justify his growing attraction to Do-ha be it annoyance or romantic. Sometimes, you fall for somebody just like that and there's no concrete reasons. What why want to know is why she might be breaching his firewall more than the others. What makes her stick out more among all his others subjects of interest, how does she get to him.

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I find it good that the drama is not making out that either character is without flaws.

While the beanie crowd appears solidly against what SW just did, we are forgetting that just a few episodes ago, DH misunderstood SW's actions at the bar and rather than clearing things up with SW or WK, she manipulated WK into agreeing to fire SW. If the incident with the car and subsequent clarification didn't happen, SW would have been fired by DH.

Although she owned up to her mistake and apologized, I believe her actions there, even if based on a misunderstanding, were also ruthless and manipulative.

Both of them are shown as fairly ruthless and willing to cross the lines if it means protecting what they deem precious to themselves.

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I absolutely loved this episode, I loved Seol-woo! I love it when he’s with dong-hyun, it’s only when he’s around him he shows his true self, forget the cool agent K, he’s so adorkable when he’s with him, just being natural! When he thought he was done with his mission here and was free of Woon-kwang, OMG, how cute was that little dance of his? And his fake tantrums? And the way he kicked Woon-kwang’s chair? So CUTE!

Aww, Woon-kwang ah, you got your heart broken by Seol-woo! It was so funny seeing him sulking ahen Seol-woo left! He started to really care for him and consider a part of this weird, little family of his! He might look like a difficult person but he’s such a sweetheart, and he gets attached to people pretty quickly!

And how funny was it seeing Do-ha misunderstanding Seol-woo’s “act” as being annoyed at her for rejecting him? Haha! He said some really harsh things to her and hurt her badly so I don’t know how he’s going to explain that kiss but it’s going to be really fun seeing him falling for her, for real this time!
That kiss.. umm.. *takes a deep breath and just keeps taking deep breaths*

Thanks for the recap.

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He turns on the charm when he wants to get his way, and he gets his way when he turns on the charm. He's so self-assured I want him to be rattled out of his smugness.

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What's with the deep breaths? *glares*

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After reading this, my mind went to imagine YY as DH and the diva star is PHJ. Oh my, if she glares to every girl and woman who dare to take a deep breath after seeing oppa, what would happen if they look and drool at her oppa, or flirt with him? ^^

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Think whatever you want!

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I have a new plan, azzo. Plan D. Do you want to hear what it is? No? Okay, I'm going to tell you about it anyway.
I changed my mind about oppa piggybacking me. Piggybacks are killing on the spine. Why, poor oppa's beautiful, long, straight and fine spine may become curved from the weight pressing down on his back.

So my plan is: when Oppa piggybacks me, I'll let YOU piggyfront him, simultaneously!!!! Our combined weights will keep his spine straight!

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I actually wanted to hear your plan this time and I must say I like what I hear! But do you think Oppa will survive our weights combined? I don't know about you but I'm a little chubby!

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I'm skinny so we'll balance out nicely. Oppa will lurch about with us latched to him, front and back...*swoons* Should we wear matching couple shirts, you think? Like mirror images, front and back.

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Imagining this made me laugh out loud, really loud!! Deal, what color should we make our couple shirts? Blue? I like blue!

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Blue in the day, with vertical stripes. Neon glow in the dark at night, so people can spot lurchy oppa a mile away and clear a path for him.

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I love that WK has completely trusted SW and considers him as a brother, after SW saved his life and told him the secret about Mi-eun.
Even SW's attempt to be rude doesn't affect him at all.. He really considers SW as a part of his family now and not just a mere employee, just like Do-ha.
SW must've felt quite taken aback too that WK feels that way about him.

And his sad look after SW left.. seems like he really felt heartbroken & betrayed that once again someone he fully trusts just left him without any explanation. Looking forward to see his reaction when SW returns!

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Re-employment kiss ㅋㅋ

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I like Do Ha more and more each episode and like Seol Woo a little less. Her emphasis on being a family rather than just coworkers makes sense given her father's lack of involvement in her life - she values the people who are close to her. And I really admired how she addressed Seol Woo directly about his (supposed) feelings for her instead of making it awkward and also considering his perspective. She seems like such a caring but fragile character and I felt so bad for her at the very last scene in the cafe (props to the actress). Seol Woo is a unique character that has my interest piqued but he's not one that I'm particularly liking so I hope the storyline delves more into his background and shows us a non-jerky side that will redeem his character.

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Kim seol woo is not my favorite character right now specially at the end after saying all those horrible things to her he just goes back and kisses her? Is that suppose to make everything ok? I know he was acting but still such a jerk...
I'll wait to se Do ha's reaction because for her it wasn't acting and if she just falls for him just because of the kiss I would be more angry with her character than with jerk kim seol woo

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Seol-Woo's reaction when he found out he couldn't blow himself up and have a dramatic "death" was do adorably hilarious.

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Yes! It was hilarious how he was gleefully planning to blow himself up! Its like his favourite part of the mission.

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Yes! I also loved when the threw the key among all the bolts and nails (or whatever they were) and he oh so joyfully mixed it all together. SO cute!

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Yes, it's one of my favorite scenes in the series so far! It's just so adorkable, but it also tells you so much about Seol Woo. He is actually a bit of a coward! He wants the "clean" getaway where he doesn't have to face up to the messy cost of his missions on others. So much easier to blow oneself up than even have to face someone in person to resign your job.

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Thank you for the recaps @chocolatte!
Off to read... been waiting for your post!

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Okay I have to let out of my chest first... SW was a real jerk delivering a diatribe then kissing her afterwards like nothing happened. Seriously, I had been waiting since episode 4 ended till well until friday, to get to see what DH's reaction will be. A fellow poster at soompi said that DH isnt' a push over and definitely SW will get a piece of her mind or might get pushed mid-kiss. Me? I'd rather she push him and slap him. Just to show that she doens't deserve all the things that he said. Really, I am caught in a dilemna after episode 4 to continue livestreaming because the ending did really cause me to watch it over and over again and gnaw on what DH's reaction will be and mind you, I'm still doing that till now. I think that will only stop comes Friday night.

What really irks me is that after everything he did to DH, comes the knowledge that it isn't personal to him, it's just him having to finish his mission cleanly. His eyes had always been on the price and that is the completion of his mission. Understanding his motives and actions does not mean that I condone what he did.

There had been really a lot of good points in episode 4 yet I cannot even concentrate on that because I was royally pissed with what SW did to DH. I would have been okay with his tirade but him kissing her capped it and made me really angry at him. I think what really topped it off was the preview where she seemed okay with him. Dang! How did he get away with it, is what I had been thinking, I really need to see that asap! He really need to do something this coming episode to redeem himself, at least to me.

On the other hand, WK continues to be really cute and endearing in his role. DH's character continues to flesh out that I'd hope we'll have lesser meanies to her this time. I really pity her and hated that her emotions was played at by people just because they can. At least, UK really cares for her.

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hi nonski! i think i've seen you in the soompi forum. please correct me if i'm wrong hehe.

i too did not like what seolwoo did to doha. i wonder if the impact will be the same if seol woo just went on his knees and begged for doha's forgiveness rather than kissing her after telling her off in such a mean way.

eagerly waiting for friday to watch what will happen.

out of topic: i subscribed netflix for manxman. so many stories in netflix, one need to have great will to avoid from binge watching. i unfortunately got addicted to terrace house ?

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heya! i saw you there and tagged you as one of those active in the forum. glad you are here too. I've been really wanting to discuss and read, and found it here at DB. i also subscribed to netflix but i still have a lot of dramas on hold that's why haven't binge watched there yet.

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Isn't what he did to the girl in the first episode much worse. She is clearly a student (maybe early 20's at best) and he woos her as her professor/teaching assistant. Clearly they had a significant and physical relationship (scenes in apartment etc) - then he walks away after faking his death.

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imo, both actions are bad. i think viewers are emotionally connected to doha compared to the the student. she was only there for half an episode.

the impression is when he cut ties with the student, he vanishes = the student will forget him and live a happy life somehow. in addition to that he was an unknown person in hungary.

but with doha, he can't run away yet. he's a bodyguard to a famous actor. he saved that actors life. he's no longer an unknown person so to speak. its getting complicated due to the situation he's currently in.

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both actions i do not condone. What I don't really like with his action on DH is that he had to go back and kiss her and that's very calculated and considering what her did earlier to her he knew she was in a emotionally vulnerable. I need DH's reaction to this and please DH don't let me disappointed in you.

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typo
don't let me be disappointed in you.

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The scenes depicted all interactions as chaste. Most likely they were only spending time cooking, eating, reading etc. The skinship was limited to kissing, hugging and holding hands. Nothing beyond that. I guess that's why he went with the car bomb thingy so that she could move on without any traces of bitterness or betrayal. It's unfortunate he had to use her to get to the dad. Clearly, she was a casualty due to her being the daughter of a mafia boss.

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I did not think that their relationship was chaste. They looked like they lived together, and him meeting her father would have to be huge since from the start, she's hiding that connection by using a different name. They have matching Tiffany's rings as well, which certainly implied deep commitment if not outright engagement.

Only limited skinship was shown on TV, but I would expect two people living together to be sleeping together.

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I keep this drama on hold after episode 1. Anyway, I wonder if anyone had ever mentioned about the similarity between Kkot Bi's hair style (from Radiant Office) with the lead female in Man to Man..

Speaking of appearance, Kkot Bi looks fine (and cute) with those hair style but it's distracting for Do Ha, and I couldn't help but imagining about what it would have looked like if Kkot Bi was the lead female instead of Do Ha. Would I like it more? (silly thought I know.. but I can't get rid this imagination out of my mind..)

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I don't see why she has to look pretty though, she doesn't work in a film, she manages a film actor. She looks fine and dresses accordingly.

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"Resignation: the most suitable death in Korea."

I loved Do-ha's misinterpretation of Seol-woo's actions and her conclusions (based on her friend's not-so-great love advice). She is cute. But I don't feel Seol-woo's glimmers of interest in her, like when he tried to take the tape off her picture and her eyes ripped :) He doesn't have to try very hard to be a jerk because his character is already one. Which brings me to the question: why is he in this spy arrangement in the first place? I mean, what's in it for him?

I recognize the three parts key from Moorim School.

That aboutface - um, I think I'd slap him.

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"why is he in this spy arrangement in the first place? I mean what's in it for him?"

I know eh!? I've wondered that since the beginning and have been hoping for more backstory on him. Its weird; like I know he's part of the Korean national intellegence, which must mean he got there with grit and good ole' fashioned hard-work. But like, what about the dirty stuff? Like when did he realize he's often a pawn in the dirty machinations of higher ups? And does he/did he (when he found out presumably) care? Where does he stand morally? I have so many questions about him, because he's the main lead, and he's sexy in a suit, and we the predominantly female viewers are falling for him despite it all. Sooo like, I'd like some answers please...

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As far as I understand from watching, SW started out as a military person and was probably on assignment with the UN. For some odd reason (i.e. not realistic) the UN team was involved in the guy in the bus with a bomb situation where SW acted without orders and was subsequently court martialled and about to be kicked out. At this point, he was recruited to be a "ghost" spy. As far as SW is concerned, he seems to be acting in accordance with his superiors as far as his spy activities are concerned (realistically speaking, the spy is not involved in making the policy decisions). At this point SW is not aware of any dirty machinations or being a pawn of any sort - he is given a mission by his superiors to carry out and these are for the good of his country.

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That's a good summary of that first episode where sharpshooter SW acted on his own and what followed in terms of his career. He looked good enough in military togs, but in a suit - oh yeah! Even if he is a jerk in a suit right now...

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tummy you're right, I suppose we have to assume he was recruited as a ghost agent for the first time when we saw it on the first episode. I guess I couldn't accept that in my head because of the ease with which he's doing the whole agent stuff, which makes it looks like he's been doing it for years. And what about Lee Don Hyun, the funny adjusshi who keeps following him around? How long have they known each other and where did they meet? I realize he's not involved in deciding his activities or next mission and that's exactly why I want more backstory on him: how does he feel about not being able to decide where he's sent and what he's made to do? Is he, like other agents shown on television, in somewhat of a moral limbo or maybe numb to it all? Like at first I thought he might be psycho- or sociopathic, but he doesn't seem emotionally impaired given that he shows pleeenty of emotion on screen. At this point he just looks like a hot man-thing in a suit doing agenty stuff really well.

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Thanks for the recap chocolatte.

Wooo, yea rereading the end of your recap made me relive the heart-shredding. I never liked Do-ha but man did he go hard on her. I admire his skill, which makes me wish his facial expressions and other proceedings in the show would align with what his character appears to be. And yess in the least, I agree with chocolatte that I would looove to see more on his backstory, though with the way this show is going I doubt we'll get that. Such a waste of Park hae-jin *cries*

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I found the conversation with her dad in prison quite interesting, almost as if they're trailing that Do-Ha's dad might well have one of those carvings (given we've got his missing partner at the same time as the now missing former Agent).

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@eked13 That cut to Doha's dad in prison after discussing Goldfinger was pretty telling.

The 'gift' Doha's dad gave her is either the statue (way to easy) or the membership ring.

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That's for sure. Perhaps he has been an informant for a long time.... and who knows the third object could be with Do Ha.

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Thank you for the recaps Chocolatte! I too would like to know more about SW's back story. How and why did he become a ghost spy? I like that the story is moving pretty fast. Wood carving 2 is related to DH, could wood carving 3 be related to SW, his past? Man x Man is actually turning out to be quite interesting and entertaining! Loving SW here and all the personas he takes on in the name of fulfilling his missions. I know he was a jerk at the end but can't even hate him because he was doing his "job" the way he knows best. But what a performance! I think the kiss made sense because that was probably the quickest way for him to go back on his words.... I can totally see him say "it was all a lie, this is the way I really feel about you, I just can't help myself and will not refrain from loving you anymore ..." The ending was pretty intense and really built up anticipation for next episode! I am now fully hooked! Can't wait!

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This drama has been thoroughly enjoyable to date.

My respect for PHJ as an actor has increased tremendously. He is delivering a performance through his micro-expressions and not only through his words and actions. The pauses that indicate that he is thinking of his next action are well delivered that we, as the audience, understand immediately what he's doing.

KMJ is doing a fairly good job selling her character and making it more "real". The over the top "fan girl" has rounded out to where we believe she really loves her "oppa" not as a fan but as a person.

The pacing and plotting are good, few wasted or drawn out scenes, everything looking to pull together fairly cohesively. (I have a suspicion that CDH's father happens to be Goldfinger)

Kudos to the team for integrating and balancing a fleshed out human drama with comedic touches and enough action. It doesn't have to be entirely realistic as long as it isn't too over the top. Now we'll be looking forward to the romantic lines to develop... and we're only on episode 4.. (talking to you Mystery Queen... ep 8 and counting...)

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@tummy So do you think the gift Cha Doha's dad gave to her is the membership ring or the statue?

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Membership ring would be my guess

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I hope this doesn't spoil it for anyone but...

a) at some point, our intrepid ghost spy must go off the reservation and the story needs to give him a reason why.

b) it is also very likely that DH and WK find out about his real job at some point.

c) the most obvious vehicle would be our bad guys targets WK and DH after they figure out SW is the ghost and that forces him to abandon his usual methods and protect them.

d) at this point in the story, SW is still more than likely to act like his normal self and abandon DH and WK in favor of completing his mission, so something must develop to change his loyalties.

e) also guessing that ME and WK manage to resolve their relationship and that will involve a choice on ME's part and a big revelation on WK's part.

My guess is another episode or 2 of developing the "good guy" team before "bad guys" figure out who the ghost is. Perhaps an episode or two more of trying to contain things before SW is "outed" (around ep 10?) They might have 1 episode of DH/SW relationship recovery?

Then 4 episodes of dramatic buildup and setbacks before the climax at 116 where good guys win.

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the ring I guess... ? as shown in nxt episode Do Ha called by the man " She is the ring" and when Kim Guard saved/found her he said that "He found the ring" while Do Ha is in his back.... ??

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Well, I was laughing and giggling my ass off during the beginning of this episode until that conversation at the end happened. That scene kind of turned off all the affection I felt for SW since the beginning of this show, and I catch a glimpse of psychopath Sunbae from the Cheese in Trap era on that look his got when he exploded.

I never did like DH character since the beginning, but when SW jab all her weakness like that, I flinched along with her and desperately hope that a black hole might as well pops up and swallow her right away. And right after that he strolled back and kisses her without a proper "sorry" at all to win his way back to her good grace? That man is sooo full of himself and I just wish the next scene that will be played out on episode 5 is DH swinging her hand to slap his face, repeatedly, some good and hard slap.

It's really interesting how these characters created a kind of push and pull relationship with the viewers, like how some of us hates DH at the beginning and now can mostly relate and feel her pain, specially over what SW did. Or how SW stole our heart with his deadpan, exaggerate, desperate expression then makes us want to slap him ourselves for what he said to DH.

Man, if only Friday can just come faster....

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I'm currently watching this and Chicago typewriter , and i love both!!
In this show, i'm more interested in 'woon Kwang's family' , of course including the dork Seol Woo and the brave yet naive Cha Do Ha . But i found though she is so bold, she is so pure and doesn't have any experience in love. Meanwhile our 'ghost' whose has a cold stone heart and face(he can be silly though), doesn't realize what he feels while manipulating her .
So I'm eager here waiting him to approach her, and beg for her attention and forgiveness.

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SW better beg for DH's attention and forgiveness! He's too mean to her in the last scene.

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After rewatching that painful dumping scene my thoughts have changed. He was cruel but in the long run maybe kind. Everything he said about her was true. She looks straightforward and doesn't see the forest but only the tree. Being a fangirl/family with her star is fine, but there's a line between unrequited love and obsession and she's kinda crossing over.

I quite liked DH when she was instinctively on to him. She has potential to be so much more! and I want to see that DH come back. Fighting!!

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I get that all the cold hardhearted actions that SW did towards DH is just him being efficient at his job.. But when he taped over DH eyes and then tried to untape it - does that mean he is getting affected by her.. probably she is getting under his skin without him realising it. I hoped SW will fall hard for DH and when he really does, DH will make him grovel for her affections! And that kiss scene, one of the rare times when the man has his eyes open rather than the woman. hehe

And I soo need more SW and WK interactions.

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I suppose the more I watch these last two episodes the more I appreciate what is being done here. Sure, I enjoy the homage to the genre... Bond, Man from Uncle, little bits of Bourne and even Chuck. The soundtrack from when SW does his spy thing has lovely resonances of John Barry's original 007 theme mixed with But it's the characters that are the drama's biggest pull.

I don't really think SW is as stone cold or indifferent as he appears at times. There are different sides to him that I'm trying to reconcile. On the one hand, he's the slick, ruthless operative that does whatever it takes to complete his mission but in his spare time, he geeks out in his base of operations, playing around with gadgets and arcade videos. The guy lives from mission to mission and there's no personal dimension to his life. His entire reality revolves around accomplishing one mission after another.

I wonder too if he's brutality of his words to DH was as much for himself as it was for her. Maybe it's for him to disconnect with the asset in each instance so that he makes a clean break. Any kind of residual attachments are severely dealt with. Closure, finality... all those sorts of things he needs to move on to the next thing.

I'm counting on DH's strength of character to withstand the turmoil that is to come. The kiss will probably be the least of her problems I imagine once he applies the full force of his seductive powers. ;)

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Loved, loved this week's episodes! I do wish we would spend more time on building bromance between Seol Woo and Woon Kwang than the romance between Seol Woo and Do Ha, to be honest.
Do Ha just doesn't appeal me as a character so far. Instead of being a character of her own, she seems to be a decoy to interrupt the bromance and make Seol Woo's mission harder and that's it. She was a little bit more calm in this week's episodes, I'll give her that, but I'm still not on board with her character. The way Kim Min Jung is portraying Do Ha is not helping either, her slow and very articulate speech makes her sound like she is in a sageuk drama and not very natural to me.

I'm loving Seol Woo and Woon Kwang as characters, they are so interesting and funny. I do hope we will get to see more of Seol Woo's past story thought. He is cold and heartless just like most depicted ghost agents but he is still has a certain warmth (He was hilarious as he danced happily with explosives to "kill himself") that makes me wonder how could he keep it despite the crazy and dangerous life he leads.

As for the ending scene, I personally loved it. It was barbaric from Seol Woo to go to such extent to leave his job peacefully and I did feel bad for Do Ha because she genuinely looked hurt. But what Seol Woo said was the truth and was exactly what everyone complained about since episode 1. To a wider extent, it is exactly what annoys me in many dramas where there is misunderstanding between the leads. The main difference here is that our lead Seol Woo didn't jump into more misunderstanding but actually realized what was going on. It was harsh yes, but damn it was so refreshing!

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SK drama and its super savvy spy always makes me cringe and shake head. Regardless, I love the sulky-halfhearted-disgruntled super agent K. Here's the man who committed to his work, and take order seriously although he's groaning-whining-grumbling endlessly to his supervisor. If only MIVD have one tall-goodlooking-hottie back here... *lol*

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Omgg that sounds so interesting.. Where are you guys watching this? I can't find this on Netflix/Viki/DF etc. Help?!

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Netflix. Thankfully on my side of the planet we get all the eps as they air in SK.

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I'm... So pissed at what Seol-Woo did at the end. It's not just the crushing words but to add humiliation (which she doesn't feel but we as the audience know she should be feeling) to that by kissing her and stomping over her heart... And then in the teaser for next episode it just shows them doing couple-y things, which must mean that she forgave him and is giving into his plans...

Sigh I guess I'm also reacting strongly because this is one of my least favourite tropes ever - the man manipulating the woman into a relationship, falling in love with her, dealing with the fallout when she finds out, and winning her love and forgiveness again at the end. So infuriating.

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Kim Seol-woo you jerk!!!
That kiss not cool dude!
You definitely will broke Do-ha heart ?
Do-ha please please don't fall for him easily.

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but as seen on the preview for next episode she will definitely fall for him... poor Do Ha... but as Kim Guard said when she kissed her that he has a bad feeling about that assignment, so Im guessing that he's starting to have a feeling for her but hes not aware of it...

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Kim Guard's game is just to strong for our poor Do Ha ?

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I've been consciously avoiding Man to Man recap threads because I didn't quite like the negativity around Do-ha and the actress that played her. While I do think she was a bit extreme in episode 1, I don't think her character warranted all the hate and criticism. In fact, I thought she did an exceptional job as Woon-kwang's manager, for instance, Seol-woo used CCTV to monitor Woon-kwang, but Do-ha relied on her instinct and familiarity to know that Woon-kwang would have sneaked off. And being Woon-kwang's protective manager, she naturally becomes guarded around strangers, when Seol-woo came, I found it interesting that she was the only one who asked the right questions (ex. when she asked Woon-kwang about Seol-woo's suspicious phone conversation mentioning infantry and etc.) and sniffed off fishy vibes from Seol-woo. Also, I don't get why the emphasize on the actress' outward appearance, the hair didn't quite do her justice, but she's a pretty girl nonetheless and I don't think visual is the problem here. That being said, I'm quite happy that everyone seems to be warming up to Do-ha now.

On the other hand, I'm nervous with the way Seol-woo handled Do-ha's misunderstanding by the end of episode 4. He just cleared up all the misconceptions she had of him, but with the kiss, he's setting up another trap to lure her in deeper. While we all know he would fall for her eventually, I don't quite like that he's starting the romance with a lie. I hope Do-ha won't let him off easy, and make him squirm and beg for her love, I can't wait for the day when Seol-woo will be outdone by Do-ha in his game of love.

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Hmm so it looks like Do Ha's dad is Goldfinger, right? So she's going to end up getting tangled up in more spy shenanigans.

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I really need to watch episode 5 already cuz everytime I watch the preview I'm getting angrier each time

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I have been lurking this drama as I was a little apprehensive to start it yet, especially the mixed reviews on the femal lead for the first two eps. But this episode sold me! I want to watch it, for the sole purpose of seeing Seo Wool swept off his feet by Do Ha. That's just the best revenge for the way he was an a** to her. I could only imagine the pain she felt, and I wanna mighty high-kick Seo Wool for that, Park Hae Jin or not.

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He's going to reap what he sow... LoL. Can't wait that moment.....

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Unfortunately, I didn't feel anything when Seol Woo said all those cruel things to her. I think it's because I knew they were true to her character that I didn't really feel any sympathy for her. I think the only point I can feel sympathy for her is that Seol Woo's words, though true, are hardly genuine. He's just saying them to get her off his back.

But from a more positive perspective, I thought it was good that Do-ha could see herself for what she really was, instead of ignoring her own weaknesses.

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Kim Seol Woo. That was a jerk move. That is all.

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I've watched the first 4 episodes, and although I was very excited about this series, I'm having trouble getting into it. I think this is the 4th drama in a row that I've seen with a lead actress with a truly, truly ugly bowl cut (Mystery Queen, Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, Weightlifting Fairy all had the same awful hairstyle), and the lead actress seems is very one-note, while the bodyguard is very cold. The hollywood star is the best character so far. Anyway, I hope the story improves.

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The words SW said to DH were true... dang....it stings. but I'm interested to see how DH would react after his kiss. she'd think he's bipolar. Love SW behaving like a spoiled brat and getting away with it.

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oh my god. i guess im the only one who thinks the love line is arriving too early for this drama. this is just my opinion btw. i was having high expection for this drama on the first episode, my first JTBC drama and i was looking forward to Park Hae Jin’s acting eversince Cheese In the Trap.
i love his acting here though. I was honestly laughing at some funny scenes throughout episode 1 until 3 but while watching this episode i was not into the love line. I definitely do feel empathy for when Do Ha got roasted by Seol Woo (though tbh i feel satisfied cause her character just sucks to me huhu i dont hate the actress! she did amazing)
all in all, only 4 episodes in, i already dislike this drama.
Sorry for the negative opinion.

Maybe i can watch it when i’m ready..next year? or 2 years from now

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What is the name of ost played at 54 minutes?

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