Interestingly, I found the maturity gap in episode 8 obviously bigger than in the previous episodes. Maybe the drama will do a time jump at the end, for example when Kwon-sook is in the US. I think that would be a good solution.

Otherwise, I'm so glad I didn't throw in the towel after episode 1, but gave the drama a chance. It got better episode by episode.

I had to laugh out loud at Kwon-sook's stunned expression as she watched Jo A-ra interact with her fans. If I had looked in the mirror, I would have had the same expression for sure.

Tae-young have nothing to lost now, he did everything to protect his friend/sportive, so now he will go against gambling syndicate.

I was happy he cut his ties with Kwon-Sook to protect her from this battle. But I think it's too late. The gambling syndicate won't hesitate to attack her if it can help them.

Kwon-Sook is finally realizing her fer feelings. She isn't lucky with the men she loves.

I really like the love story between the main characters, it's as realistic as a drama can be. These characters slowly get to know each other and discover their own feelings. But they do not immediately make declarations of love and promises of eternal love, because their realities do not allow it at the moment.

Oh, damn, I love this drama. I'm kind of obsessed. I'm already sooo looking forward to the new episodes! Give them to me NOW. And the previews are so evilly deceiving XD but it's okay, I forgive them.

These two episodes gave me all the feels. I love these characters. And the interactions between the two leads are just delightful. Love how their relationship is slowly growing... I was kind of tired of the love at first sight that we keep seeing in many dramas.
I ship them with all my heart, even if I must admit that the age difference is real and well shown in the drama. I wonder how they will deal with it.
I see the creepy boyfriend is back next week... hope just to be sent to hell forever together with the father.
Hope Tae-young will be able to tell the truth to our lovely boxer at some point. She deserves it and it would do him good.

I was a bit late to this show but have now caught up, though it was nice to be able to binge the first 6 episodes.
I am really loving it. 
The quality of the writing and characters is fantastic. Well done to the writer for making such messy, morally grey characters be so interesting and thought provoking.
I have never seen Lee Sang Yeob in anything before but wow, he is so charismatic and amazing in this. He owns the screen when he is in the scene, there is something about his 'presence'.
He reminds me of Namkoong Min, they are in a league of their own.
Kudos to him for the grief scenes, that would have taken a lot out of him, it was so believable.
Kim So-hye is also well cast in this role. In contrast, she looks young, soft, sweet and a bit naive in love but in the ring she is a hard, formidable opponent and has had to grow up quickly because of her father. 
My only gripe would be the actress who plays Jo ar-a, I find her a bit annoying and her plot line boring.
 Keep up the great work show. 
Thanks for the recaps DaebakGrits.

I'm missing something because the agent took on the baseball player's debt and that was the whole reason he got involved with the game rigger guys. If he took on that debt, why would they still harass or threaten or whatever happened with the baseball player?

I absolutely love the leads and am in awe of the writing/directing/acting but not in love with the gangster story even though I can see that the stakes are high because of it. I find myself fast forwarding the violent scenes.
Not expecting a HEA here. I can see how the ML could sacrifice himself to protect the FL. Hoping I'm wrong.
Lee Sang-yeob is truly something else here! The anger scene in the ring was fabulous.

I thought these two episodes were the most emotionally impactful yet. Hee-won's suicide was genuinely shocking to me, and although I never warmed up entirely to that character or his relationship with Tae-young (the actors didn't have any bromance chemistry, imo), this twist was still very powerful. I appreciate the way the show isn't glossing over any of the many negative realities of dealing with mercenary, well organized criminals who have you in their pocket. I really feel for Hee-won's family (even though the show clearly didn't want to dwell on their grief, I know this will be the most traumatic for them).

In contrast, Tae-young's grief was achingly real and well played. It did serve to bring him closer to Kwon-sook, and for her to realize her feelings for him run deeper than she realized, but the situation was never trivialized. I cringed when Kwon-sook decided the way to help Tae-young was to teach him to box, as it seemed so inadequate and mirrored how she once bonded with Jae-min. But I shouldn't have doubted the show--once again, it created a character-driven, touching scene of healing without resorting to cliches or drama magic. I believed that Tae-young was ready to vent his anger, that he would be that awkward and clumsy at throwing a punch, and that in the end, having Kwon-sook push him as he pushed her would be enough for him to open up. It was beautifully done.

As much as I hate noble idiocy, what Tae-young did at the end was perhaps the most selfless and loving thing he could have for Kwon-sook. It is dangerous for her on every level for him to continue to be her agent and go forward with their plan. It would also be unfair to her in other ways. Even though, as I've argued before, I don't think these two are that far apart in emotional maturity, right now Tae-young is simply not in a place where he can be a real partner to her--not because of her age, but because of the circumstances and reality of his life right now. I'm not sure if he sensed that her feelings have now shifted, but if he did, then that's another reason why it was absolutely the right thing for him to draw a clear line so she can live her life as she wants. That doesn't mean I don't want them to work this out somehow and be good partners to each other, especially now that Kwon-sook seems poised to accept that she's feeling a lot more than platonic affection for Tae-young. But things do have to evolve, and now it's Tae-young who has to grow up and figure out a way out of this mess that won't hurt others or himself.

Hae Won is an example of a guy who has never done anything in life besides playing baseball. I feel terrible for saying that because he genuinely seemed like a good person, but the guy's lack of foresight is just ridiculous. What exactly was his suicide supposed to achieve? The surgery can still get canceled, the thugs would not suddenly leave Tae Young alone and now Hee Won's kid has to live without a father. One would think that the suicide note exposing the gambling syndicate would have at least something about that syndicate, but nope. Hee Won just kills himself saying that he was forced to lose a game.

I have little to add to @daebakgrits and @laurensophie's excellent interpretations, except to say that I'm still unconvinced that the end will see the two leads in an actual romantic relationship. Of course in these episodes we do see Kwon-sook falling in love with Tae-Young, and perhaps Tae-Young will reciprocate those feelings by the end. But I think it far more likely that this story ends with them separate, both of them having used their feelings and experiences together to grow.

Alternatively, and I hope this doesn't happen, Tae-young could get in real trouble with the gangsters, and it will be Kwon-sook alone who is recalling those experiences. As I said last week, though, I'm not sure about the direction of this one, the way I can be about some of the more badly written fantasies.

But I would also like to pay tribute to the acting, especially of the leads, but also of the secondary characters. Park Ji-hwan has been great as the falsely empathetic, underlying menacing gangster. Kim Jin-woo does not have much presence, and I won't be looking for him in other dramas, but he has made me dislike his character intensely, so that's something.
I think Chae Won-bin is really good as the driven but frustrated champion, and Han Da-sol is hilarious with her social media aegyo. (I tell you, that fake cutesiness never fails to crack me up when it appears in shows or kpop promos. I don't think I'll ever see it in real life, but if I did I'd burst out laughing.)
Obviously, though its the two leads, who are carrying this show. As @daebakgrits said, that was a really convincing portrayal of grief and frustration by Lee Sang-Yeob--on the edge of overacting, but just realistic enough that it moistened my eyes a little bit.
But its Kim So-Hye who, for me, makes this show worth watching. I do not really find her convincing as a boxer--the other actors are much more realistic in that regard, to be honest, but as a character she is very appealing. Her smile when her character is happy is radiant, and yet she is also really effective at conveying sadness, irritation and resolve. I'm really rooting for things to work out for her character, even if it does mean an implausible May-September romance!

Age gape will be the same after time skip, she is of age, I have no problem if she likes an older guy, he is her manager, but only till their deal is over and he actually already not managing her personally, so I don’t need a time skip for them to be together

In a drama where every episode is better than the last, this week took the cake. Amazing acting, a beautiful OST and such gripping writing. My heart broke when she said she’d even go to the US and play a sport she hates just to be with him. God, this drama is so underrated.

My Lovely Boxer is criminally under appreciated!