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The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

It’s time to say goodbye to our wacky law cafe lawyers and baristos, but like all morally guided heroes and heroines fighting for justice, our characters must face off against the villain before they find their happily-ever-afters. And given our bad guy’s flair for the dramatic, he’s not going to go down quietly.

 
EPISODES 15-16 WEECAP

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final) The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

Since last week’s penultimate episodes ended with Jung-ho on bended knee offering up a diamond engagement ring to Yuri, it’s fitting that our final theme-o’-the-week is focused on the ups and downs of marriage — or, more specifically, the downs. And to kick off this particular motif, Yuri rejects Jung-ho’s marriage proposal.

Although Yuri — in true Yuri fashion — serves up several logical rationales for turning down his proposal (e.g., it’s rushed, divorce rates, etc.), her two main reasons for rejecting him are rooted mostly in emotion. For one, she doesn’t like the idea of making promises that neither of them can guarantee they will be able to keep (more on that later), and second, she isn’t ready to become a member of his family because, well — *gesticulates wildly at Pyun-woong, who is, at that very moment, trying to commit patricide.*

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

The final confrontation between Pyun-woong and Byung-wook is rife with Pyun-woong’s usual brand of chaotic unpredictableness, but at the core of everything he says — sincere or disingenuous — is his unremitting childlike desire to be acknowledged by his father. Of course, both father and son are far beyond the point of any sort of reconciliation, but Pyun-woong’s passionate declaration that his only regret is his recent liver donation suggests he’d still carried — until very recently — a genuine lingering hope that his father would acknowledge him as his son following the transplant surgery. And when faced with the reality that he was nothing more than a convenient organ donor to his father, he laments offering up a literal piece of himself in hopes he’d be called “son.”

Well, that or he’s just bummed he didn’t let Byung-wook die of liver failure when he had the chance. So now he has to kill Byung-wook in a more direct manner — by choking him. I’m more inclined to believe his regret stems from the aforementioned strand of hope that Byung-wook crushed, but either way, the end result is Pyun-woong’s attempted murder of his father. Luckily, Byung-wook is rich and has a house full of servants that rush to his aid and ensure he survives the attack, but Pyun-woong evades capture with a little help from his most loyal goon.

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final) The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

While CEO Hwang freaks out, fearing he’s going to be Pyun-woong’s next target, Jung-ho remains surprisingly calm, so we can assume Yuri’s previous requests for space and trust have finally taken root. Instead of clinging to Yuri like a koala, he channels his energy into locating his uncle, but sadly his undercover operation as a gigolo was more amusing in theory than execution. It also turned out to be a waste of time because Pyun-woong was one step ahead of them, and he had already vacated his hideout before Jung-ho and the police arrived.

Eventually, Pyun-woong comes out of hiding on his own terms, but first he kidnaps Yuri’s mother and locks her in a cold storage unit. With instructions that Jung-ho should come alone — or else — Pyun-woong lures Jung-ho into his trap. Desperate to rescue Yuri’s mother, Jung-ho follows Pyun-woong’s instructions and meets him at a church, where he passively allows Pyun-woong to punch him repeatedly until his hands are sore. Meanwhile, Jung-ho is just biding his time until Pyun-woong leaves him alone with his loyal goon. When he gets the chance, Jung-ho convinces the goon to tell him where they’re keeping Yuri’s mother so he can pass along that information to CEO Gil and the search team.

Once Yuri’s mother is located safe and sound, Yuri, Seo-yeon, and an entire police task force corner Pyun-woong on the outside steps of the church. He holds Jung-ho hostage, a knife to his neck, and Pyun-woong is downright gleeful to see Yuri. He explains that his fascination with her stemmed from what he perceived to be hypocrisy. How can she take the law, which has never been on her side, and use it to save others?

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

Pyun-woong’s entire kidnapping plan was intended to put Yuri into a situation where both her mother and Jung-ho were in trouble, and Pyun-woong wanted to force her to choose between them. He was curious to know how she would react. Would she still try to save them according to the law? Or would she toss aside her ethics when backed into a corner? Thankfully, she didn’t have to make the choice, but Pyun-woong still tries to force her into a difficult position even though his original plan has fallen through. In exchange for Jung-ho, she has to promise she will use the law she loves so much to defend him.

While Yuri pleads for Jung-ho’s safety and promises to abide by Pyun-woong’s request, Jung-ho jumps in and tries to wrestle the knife away from Pyun-woong, but he’s stabbed mid-heroics. A police sniper then shoots Pyun-woong in the leg, and as the rest of officers converge and arrest Pyun-woong, Yuri rushes to Jung-ho’s side. Before he collapses in her arms, he confirms with Yuri that her mother is safe.

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

Although there’s never really been any doubt — for the audience, at least — that Jung-ho would survive his wounds, the same can’t be said for Yuri. The experience of watching her boyfriend get stabbed in front of her has undeniably affected her. Not only does she now understand first-hand Jung-ho’s previous fears over her safety, but it’s clear that she’s also started rethinking her rejection of Jung-ho’s marriage proposal. She doesn’t immediately change her mind — that would be decidedly uncharacteristic — but in keeping with the drama’s formula, she unpacks her feelings and comes to an epiphany by helping and talking through her feelings with others.

As I’d mentioned earlier, the theme of our finale episodes is the trials and tribulations of married life, and both Seo-yeon and Jung-ho’s mother came to Yuri with their marital problems and threats of divorce. After first taking both women out for a little shopping and pampering to clear their heads, both women open up about the real reasons they’re unhappy in their marriages.

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

Seo-yeon mostly has a mother-in-law problem, but she also failed to communicate with Jin-ki that her recent conversation with his mother left her feeling insecure and guilty that she returned to work so soon after giving birth. She fears that there may have been a kernel of truth in her mother-in-law’s accusations that she has clipped Jin-ki’s wings and emasculated him by having him be the primary homemaker and caretaker of their baby. Once Seo-yeon, at Yuri’s encouragement, speaks with Jin-ki about what’s bothering her, though, she discovers that his opinion does not align with his mother’s. Instead, he wished she’d told him about the conversation sooner so he could have assured her that he’s happy with their current arrangement, especially since it allows him to spend more time with their child.

The situation between Jung-ho’s parents, however, is a little more complex. Their whole dynamic has been thrown out of whack now that Seung-woon’s involvement with Jung-ho’s maternal family has been exposed, and neither of them knows how to speak to one another anymore. The solution: Seo-yeon handcuffs the two of them together. The forced proximity compels them to be honest about their feelings and the wall they’ve unintentionally built, and they come to the conclusion that they should temporarily live apart until they can comfortably face each other. Although it sounds like the beginnings of a separation, there’s an optimistic thread to it, as though they plan on starting anew.

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final) The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

After helping Seo-yeon and Jung-ho’s mother with their respective marriages, Yuri is almost ready to admit that she wants to marry Jung-ho. Aside from her hesitation to become a part of Jung-ho’s family, the biggest hurdle Yuri faces is her unwillingness to make promises that cannot be kept, and marriage vows are the forever kind of promises. Her insecurities about this particular issue are rooted in her father’s death. He made promises to her mother — like always being there for her — that he wasn’t able to keep.

I mean, it seems a bit unfair to blame a dead guy for not upholding his wedding vows, but after Yuri speaks with her mother, it becomes apparent that it’s not really “unkept promises” that give Yuri cold feet. Instead, it’s all the unknown variables and possible ways a relationship could potentially end. She’s afraid to commit to a long-term relationship without an assurance it will last forever, but as Yuri’s mom points out, nothing lasts forever. Unfortunately, Yuri’s fears are preventing her from living in the moment and embracing the love that’s in front of her.

With her mother’s blessing and sage advice in mind, Yuri rushes to find Jung-ho, and when she locates him — wearing, I might add, what looks suspiciously like a Squid Game tracksuit — she proposes to him. Obviously, he accepts, and from that point on, our story winds to a close.

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

Time between their engagement and wedding passes, and we get small snippets of information about our characters. Yuri and Jung-ho visit Pyun-woong in jail and tell him to find a different lawyer because Yuri is not keeping her promise to be his legal representation. Eun-kang and Joon continue to work at the cafe, and after Joon passes the bar exam he interviews for a pro-bono position with CEO Hwang, who’s immediately reminded of Yuri based on Joon’s answers to the hiring committee’s questions.

Jung-ho decides he’d rather continue working as a lawyer at Yuri’s cafe than become a prosecutor again, and the day before his wedding, he has a beer with his father and encourages him to come to what turns out to be a very windy ceremony. But even with a storm brewing, Yuri is unaffected by the impending rain or her guests’ frantic faces as they try to tie down the florals and decorations.

Always one for bold fashion choices and bucking traditions, she wears a stunning red wedding dress, and after they exchange vows, we skip ahead one more time to see their bustling law cafe, where customers must now choose between a “mild or spicy” coffee theme. Will they pick mild and have their legal consultation with the sympathetic Yuri? Or will they select spicy and be paired up with the no-nonsense Jung-ho?

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

To be honest I didn’t enjoy this drama as much as I wanted to enjoy it. My first impression — that the plot was the embodiment of the idiom “to throw everything at the wall and see what sticks” — proved accurate, and The Law Cafe suffered by having too much going on. Admittedly, when picked apart, the individual pieces were fun, engaging, and — in some cases — groundbreaking, but none of them were given the attention they deserved. Instead, they competed against one another for air time, leaving us with awkward pacing and a dissatisfied sense of what could have been.

I’m not sure how I would have doctored this drama to have made it more palatable, though. The obvious choice would be to remove the Big Bad Villain plot line because it’s the easiest to lift out of the story, but I enjoyed having Pyun-woong’s chaotic evil provide a foil for Yuri’s lawful good. When Pyun-woong faced off against Yuri on the church steps and revealed that he’d wanted to test her unwavering faith of the law by inserting her into a high-stakes scenario where she’s forced to choose between her ethics and a loved one, it made me wonder what the story would have looked like if that line of conflict had been prevalent from start to finish.

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final) The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

In some ways, Yuri’s positivity and hyper-focused faith in the law were unrealistic and borderline annoying, especially when you realize that it’s easy for her to take the moral high ground when she’s only represented — to our knowledge — clients who have been victims. I’m all for her fighting for the underdog and sticking it to the man, but her personal practice of only defending the innocent seems at odds with her supposed straight-edged faith in abiding by the law, which also states that everyone is owed the right to legal representation. So even though it’s completely understandable that she wouldn’t want to defend Pyun-woong because of their personal history, I also find myself curious to know if she could set aside her personal morals and defend a truly guilty party.

I guess it’s good, then, that Yuri opened up her law cafe and has the ability to be a little more selective of her clientele, but sixteen episodes later, I’m still shaking my head over the absurdity of this business model. But what do I know? Certainly nothing about being a lawyer or running a cafe, so maybe a real life law cafe would work out better than a K-drama that features one.

The Law Cafe: Episodes 15-16 (Final)

 
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First, I loved loved her red wedding dress. Yasssss b#$$h. The rest if episodes were fine. It is too bad they only touched on what it is to be a working woman. I also appreciate that they showed couples separated and apart. I enjoyed this drama for what it was. Happy, I got the bean.

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I liked that too. I liked that the different types of relationships were shown and it wasn't treated as some ominous/shameful thing that the right choice for one couple was separating.

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Almost the whole last episode was like an epilogue. But I don't want to complain, I like it when the happy ending is not just dealt with in the last five minutes.

If I had been in charge of the script, I would have had Yu-ri and Jeong-ho live together for a year first until they got married.

Especially liked the reminiscence of episode 2 where Jeong-ho imagines what waking up together, including brushing the teeth, would be like with Yu-ri. But the reality is different with a Yu-ri who also snores sometimes and is a morning grouch 😂

I think it is a realistic decision for Jung-ho's parents to live separately for the time being. A man who withdraws so much that you can't even argue with him would drive me crazy.

I'm glad I stumbled upon this drama, even if the first two episodes were a bit bumpy. For eight weeks I was well entertained and always had a comforting feeling. I laughed and suffered along with Jeong-ho and kept my fingers crossed for his love to be reciprocated. And of course there is Yu-ri, who is one of the highlights of the series thanks to her unconventional and direct manner.

Sure, the destination was always clear, but thanks to Yu-ri, the road to get there was paved with a few surprises.

Among the crowd of current and recent dramas, it was the series that touched me the most and kept me engaged afterwards. It will certainly end up on my rewatch list and I will check in every now and then when I need something light that goes to the heart.

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Aww, your comment made me so happy as if I was actually involved in the production! Haha
Because yes! That's exactly it. It's supposed make you feel that way and just be a relatively easy going and comforting show.

Personally I'm going to miss it haha
I looked forward to Mondays & Tuesdays after all the murders and schemes of the weekend dramas.

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The drama should had 12 episodes. The big villain story was stretched way too long and then the marriage issues weren't interesting at all, I knew what it will happen, they didn't take any risk. I found funny that when the man she loved was unconscious, she found the time to change her clothes into a very style and sexy outfit...

This show was a mix of different genres : investigation, vigilante, rom-com, law, moral, comedy, etc. It didn't work at all. I didn't like how they tried to give some life lessons in the middle of the story.

But the biggest issue is that the very principle of the Law Café didn't work. She did way more than giving legal advice.

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Thanks for the wonderful recaps. So glad I stumbled upon these posts. I agree with you that somewhere along the way the drama lost its footing. All the things that made me love the show became clustered especially episodes 13-15. I haven't watched a lot of K dramas because I find K dramas sometimes lack execution towards the end.
I did however love the ending to the Law Cafe, it gave closure to all the characters as well as showed them moving towards the future.
Love LSY and LSG in this drama. Their acting was superb and their chemistry. I had never watched a show with LSG before, only seen him in his variety show. Who knew he could carry off romance and be so sexy. Lee Se Young has played two of my favorite heroines in The Law Cafe and the Red Sleeve. I'm glad she took this role to show another side of her acting after breaking our hearts in her last drama. Kim Yuri is a modern woman who is confident, sexy, and knows what she wants. There were some really nice quotes from the show. That wedding scene had me smile for the last 10 minutes and also the final scene... how witty and it seemed like it wasn't scripted. Loved the gang especially the two employees and doctor. Despite it's shortcomings, I still enjoyed the show. 8.5 out of 10

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oh, you must watch King 2 Hearts now. LSG shows his range very well!

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I never know how to start and I've honestly been thinking about this (and what my review will be for weeks haha)

I really liked this observation "at the core of everything he says — sincere or disingenuous — is his unremitting childlike desire to be acknowledged by his father. Of course, both father and son are far beyond the point of any sort of reconciliation, but Pyun-woong’s passionate declaration that his only regret is his recent liver donation suggests he’d still carried — until very recently — a genuine lingering hope that his father would acknowledge him as his son". This moment and the moment at the church when Yuri said he feared he was going to be blamed for everything and Pyun Woong looks like "wow, she gets me" (and then he says she almost got him), I kinda felt for him. (I can actually pinpoint the moment the actor made the face that made me feel for him). The guy was just so deeply broken and Yuri was on point when she said that he hurts himself and others because he can't deal with all his damage. I don't think he deserves anyone's forgiveness, especially Yuri's, but for a moment, I did feel for him.

I liked Yuri's exploration of her feelings and thoughts on marriage. Personally, I didn't want them to be engaged or married but fine, this is the traditional happily ever after but I liked that it was all done in typical Yuri fashion which is to go against the grain. I knew that if they did get engaged, Yuri would be the one to propose haha
I really liked that she chose to wear a beautiful red dress vs a traditional white.
I even liked how they chose to get married on a stormy day because from the very first episode, I thought Yuri was like a storm that blew into Jung Ho's life. She's just an agent of change or inspiration for everyone she interacts with and I thought their wedding was so indicative of that. I liked how all the people she's helped in turn helping her wedding by trying to keep things from getting messed up and/or blown away.
I liked that she expressly told Jung Ho that they needed to have lives and passions outside of each other (yet another thing I don't think is typical in romance shows. It's always as if people are just trying to get into relationships and then once that happens, their lives revolves around the relationship).
It is funny to me that while Jung Ho was inspired by Yuri, his new direction/path has him still right in her proximity haha. Another moment I liked/found funny: the end when he says he's going to be doing something because at least one of them needs to make money and Yuri just looks at him before letting it go to do their promo. I liked that moment for a few reasons such as it's a full circle moment from that college era stroll when Yuri first mentioned her dream of a law cafe and doing it with Jung Ho as well as Jung Ho figuring out how they/it would make money as well it's a running gag on the fact the cafe doesn't make money haha. From the very start, Jung...

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From the very start, Jung Ho has said that the cafe would just be bleeding money and that still seems to be the case especially since Yuri would close the place at random times. Yuri definitely isn't the greatest business owner but she never got into it to be a good business owner but to be accessible and comforting to people which she is. But seriously, if she had anyone else aside from Jung Ho as her landlord, she would probably be kicked out so fast haha
I think it's cute that the high schooler keeps bringing her client/customers. Who would need cheap help more than students?
It was cute seeing Jung Ho taking Joon with him to suit store. I really liked their dynamic.
I liked how the building ends up being a kind of one stop for people and they're all referring clients/customers to each other. They have such a found family vibe to them and I love it.

It was nice seeing Jung Ho trying to extend an olive branch to his dad. He's not shown much but it really is shown (and said) that him and Jung Ho have some similarities so who better to start the reconciliation process than Jung Ho, the guy who can relate the most to him. (Even though it's still very complicated for all involved).

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This just came to mind but I have mixed feelings about Jung Ho being relatively calm despite the news of Pyun Woong being on the loose. On the one hand, I kinda get it because it's supposed to character development since Yuri specifically asked for him to be calm and trust her but on the other hand, for me, the things she goes through warrant freaking out. Maybe not to the extent the CEO was doing but some animated voices and pacing. I think I would've preferred to see him freak out privately at home for a moment, get himself under control and then do the playboy thing (which as mentioned seemed better in thought than execution haha).
That actually made me chuckle but not for the reasons that were probably intended haha

Actually, I'm not the biggest fan of that entire section. I don't claim to be smart or creative enough to come up with a better sequence but I just didn't like the random new guy (though I did like Jung Ho knocking over the jenga bricks haha).

I don't know, I liked the moments of Jung Ho giving off these boss energy, all calm, cool, and intimidating but the situations are just... off to me.

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While there were ups and downs in relation to this drama, overall I looked forward to it and was glad to watch it. It raised issues/stories that I hadn't seen in other dramas and treated them in a more modern way. I also loved the leads and their chemistry, I'd love to see them do another drama.
I cheered when I saw the red wedding dress! My own wedding dress was also red and caused a mini kniption among more conservative elements of my family but i adored it. It was so cool to see YuRi wear red.
As FLs go, I loved how progressive she was, and also how she talked things through. I also loved the main cast.
There are a lot of great elements to the drama and these will be the things I will remember about it. Thumbs up overall from me!

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I don't think I can ever forgive this drama/writer for making me hate LSG's face so much 😒🥲💔 Particularly for the first half of the drama, all the lies and truth-omitting that Jung-ho did...

I just didn't our main protagonists; and while I didn't hate them either, I couldn't stand their decisions, their naivety, and hot-headedness. I am so so so bummed that there was little I enjoyed about this whole ride :(

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While it was apparent this show could’ve been a bit tighter, and I could feel they were heading towards a finish line by Ep 14. That said, I did enjoy this show a lot. They had good social cases, and while the drunk scenes got grating the more we saw of it. I thought the theme of guilt was done in a complete way. Both of our couple, and the other characters made peace and turn a new leaf. The turmoil of marriage and divorce, was a good way to show the flip side to dating.

LSY was my fav duh lol, she nailed the tragic elements but also sassy moments too. I hope to see her in something bright and confident again, and I think she’s a chemistry magnet. LSG’s role was a good contrast to Yu-ri’s emotional approach vs rational. I do wish Yu-ri was able to clear her dads name, but I guess the thought of the villain burning in jail lonely and tormented was enough.

Cute show. Liked the rest of the cast too. Felt like the romcoms of the 2000’s, kinda syrupy but the couple didn’t break up and I think they were able to become a unit. One thing, it’s odd that Jung-ho never said I Love You, yet Yu-ri said it multiple times in Ep 16? Lol ok. Wedding scene too was crazy bjt fitted our pair. Solid conclusion to each caste member, but I did hope for the barista and single mom to date. While I finished this late, it was time well spent.

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