Moving: Episodes 12-13

by quirkycase

It’s time for part two of each of our past storylines, and like always, it gives us both joy and heartbreak. Our couples expand their families and spend some blissful, peaceful time together. But those happy moments feel bittersweet as we know tragedy is lurking around the corner, and our superpowered families are never fully safe from those who wish to exploit them.

 
EPISODES 12-13

We now jump back to where we left Mi-hyun and Doo-shik a couple of weeks ago. Agents storm Mi-hyun’s apartment and pull them apart. Doo-shik fights and goes for his gun… which Mi-hyun is now holding and has trained on him. (Given that Deputy Director Min threatened her sick father if she didn’t cooperate in bringing Doo-shik in, it’s understandable. But no!) Doo-shik immediately stops fighting and lets the agents take him in.

However, he’s not ready to give up yet. When he’s brought to Deputy Director Min, Doo-shik snatches him up and holds him hostage in the sky for maximum dramatics. As the entire agency gathers outside for the spectacle, Doo-shik yells at Mi-hyun for all to hear and then shoots at her. In the nick of time, Joo-won shields her by taking the bullet in his arm.

While I was ready to believe Mi-hyun could have chosen her father, I knew there was no way Doo-shik would’ve intentionally shot her. And sure enough, everything was planned from the start. When they were hugging back at Mi-hyun’s apartment, Doo-shik told her to take his gun and asked her to pass his knife along to Joo-won.

By this time, Joo-won and Doo-shik have become trusted partners after completing numerous dangerous missions across the globe. They’re the kind of partners with their own codes and signals, so when Mi-hyun gave Joo-won the knife, he knew exactly what to do – it isn’t the first time he’s used that very knife to fish a bullet out of his arm. You’ve really got to trust your partner if you’re willing to shoot at your girlfriend based on a couple of vague clues to a plan.

Now having ensured no one will target Mi-hyun to find him, Doo-shik deposits Deputy Director Min in a tree outside the Blue House (ha!) and takes off. In the aftermath of this whole debacle, Deputy Director Min gets demoted and the agency loses its power. Mi-hyun transfers to another department, living a peaceful but lonely life. Her father died shortly after Doo-shik disappeared, so she has no one left.

Mi-hyun looks for Doo-shik outside every window and frequently watches the sky, hoping for him to return. Then, on a snowy day, Mi-hyun turns around to find him standing behind her. Next thing you know, they’re doting (exhausted) parents living a normal life. That is, until little baby Bong-seok starts floating. They float-proof the house and keep Bong-seok out of sight, terrified he’ll be discovered. Worried that he’ll feel isolated as he grows up, they plan to move to the outskirts of Seoul when he’s older and run a restaurant.

One day, toddler Bong-seok sees a butterfly and chases it outside. Mi-hyun, always calm and calculated, completely panics when she can’t find him. Doo-shik has an idea and flies into the clouds, finding Bong-seok scared and crying with no way to get himself down. Doo-shik comforts him and brings him back home, exactly like in the memory dream Bong-seok has in the future.

Meanwhile, cockroach Deputy Director Min rises again, taking the position he holds in the present at the NIS. And he’s ready to bring back his old agents whether they like it or not. After Principal Jo (not a principal at the time) scouts the place out, Deputy Director Min sends dozens of agents to surround Mi-hyun and Doo-shik’s house in the middle of the night.

Mi-hyun is loath to let Doo-shik meet the agents head-on while she and Bong-seok escape, but their first priority is keeping Bong-seok safe. Doo-shik wants him to have an easier life than he’s had and reminds Mi-hyun to keep Bong-seok’s ability hidden no matter what. He promises to find them before going to fight the agents and buy his family time.

Doo-shik gets shot in the arm but still puts up a fight, including against Gye-do’s father (who has the electrical power). There’s no way he can take out 30 agents, but he holds out until he sees Mi-hyun drive away with Bong-seok. Then, he calmly lets the agents take him in once again. Thus begins Mi-hyun and Bong-seok’s new life without Doo-shik.

Now let’s circle back to catch up with Joo-won. When the agency goes under, he scrambles to get into another government department since losing his job could mean prison time. (He was granted immunity for his crimes in exchange for his service.) Joo-won isn’t built for stuffy office life, but he sticks it out for benefits like subsidized housing that he and Ji-hee depend on. Joo-won and Ji-hee are married and living well, but Ji-hee can tell Joo-won is struggling in his new job. She encourages him to do whatever makes him happy, content so long as they have each other.

Day by boring day passes for Joo-won at work until Deputy Director Min comes to see him and offers a return to the field. Joo-won misses feeling useful and being active, so he can’t say no. His first mission is to accompany soldiers searching for North Korean spies who have infiltrated the country.

Deputy Director Min is using this mission as a stepping stone to reassemble his superpowered team. There’s a rumor that the North has been training their very own supernatural team, which could serve as the justification he needs. He sends his hunting dog Principal Jo (although he’s still not a principal yet) along as well since he’s great at tracking people.

Cold and opportunistic Principal Jo and soft-hearted Joo-won immediately clash. Joo-won is horrified after he learns Principal Jo sent the soldiers knowingly into an ambush so the two of them could earn more accolades by saving the day. Joo-won rushes to save the soldiers and ends up fighting North Korean superpowered soldier PARK CHAN-IL (Jo Bok-rae). Like Gang-hoon, he has super speed and strength. After some tussling, Chan-il leaves with a Terminator-style “I’ll be back.”

Deputy Director Min now has proof that the North is indeed training supernaturals, so he assembles his second-generation Black Team (which includes the three supernaturals Frank murders in the present storyline). Joo-won, as only original member, is the team leader. His new role keeps him away on missions a lot, leaving Ji-hee lonely and scared he one day won’t make it home. Ji-hee has been trying to be supportive and holding a lot in, but she finally tells him she’d really like a baby. She’s been worried since she hasn’t yet gotten pregnant and breaks Joo-won’s heart when she cries that it feels like karma over “how I lived” (being a prostitute).

Next thing we know, they prove that flawed theory wrong and end up with little baby Hee-soo. Ji-hee is less lonely, and the three are a happy family. So of course, tragedy strikes. One day, Joo-won calls home before flying out for a mission. That’s when he gets the news about the accident that kills Ji-hee. Joo-won is devastated, barely even able to go into the funeral parlor. We end as he says goodbye to Ji-hee and vows to take care of Hee-soo.

Everyone in this drama has their fair share of tragedy, but Joo-won truly can never catch a break. He spends all his time getting nearly killed over and over – they added grenade explosion to his survival repertoire this week – and when he finally finds someone who gives him joy and starts a family, he loses her.

Now as for Doo-shik, I’m going with him still being alive. I can’t see Deputy Director Min sacrificing one of his greatest superpowered assets, so I’m guessing Doo-shik has either been coerced into working for him or is on the run. Mi-hyun seems to still be waiting for him, seeing as she made sure to start that tonkatsu restaurant they talked about and named it after where they ate on their first date. It’s like a beacon to guide him to them in case he’s still alive.

If he is alive, now would be a great time to come back since all the kids are getting discovered and Frank has been murdering all the superpowered adults. I’d love to see Joo-won and Doo-shik as a team again, pettily squabbling yet remaining utterly loyal like brothers as they fight side-by-side to protect their kids.

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