Jang Bori Is Here! - Episode 36 (KimJiCap)

Alright! We're getting nowhere in this episode, but in a good way. This is what this drama does really well: satisfy us. Why? No, it's not the kisses. For that, you have to go watch It's Okay, It's Love (does SBS think it's cable?! Hot damn! *fans itself*). But I think it satisfies some moral need we have: that bad people get punished the way they deserve to be punished. It's slow punishment, but that makes it all the better. And it satisfies because the good people get rewarded. Slowly as well, but seriously, it's the slowness that is half the fun.
JoAnne: I've said before that I'm surprised at how I never ever ever get tired of Min Jung's antics and the Anti-Min Jungers thwarting of same, but it bears repeating. That's a tribute to the writing, which is actually pretty good - but so is the acting, believe it or not. The bad guys are playing very much against type, it turns out, and the good guys were always adorable so that's not much of a stretch. It's a happy set. I'm a happy gal.
Episode 36

Finally! Bori sees a picture of Eun-bi as a child. But what is this? It's her, Bori! Did her mother know that she, Do Bori, is in fact her, Jang Eun-bi?! Bi-dan is sent out of the room and Bori is very, very, VERY upset with her mother for lying to her -  and for not even saying sorry. Veggie repeats over and over that she didn't know (come on now), until Bori says so it was Min-jung unni that knew it all, destroyed the pictures etc. Mention of Min-jung awakens the vicious mama-animal in Veggie and she immediately defends the devil's spawn.
JoAnne: I do understand that Veggie feels regret (some) and sadness, but mostly I think she feels fear about the repercussions, and even her sadness is as much for herself as it is Bori. She is a very limited woman. It's hard to even imagine how Bori feels. She's not who she thought she was - an abandoned infant from Jang Heung, she's been disregarded at every possible step by the woman she loves as a mother, plus she actually knows her true family, who aren't exactly the nicest people either.
But Bori has had it (me too) with the stupidity, so she says she will not believe that Veggie kept quiet because she didn't want to lose a child she raised herself (meaning Bori) - no, it's all so that Min-jung could climb the social ladder and become ... well ... I guess rich? Or what is it that she wants?
JoAnne: Money is part of what Min Jung wants. What she wants is not to be looked down on as 'less than.'
kakashi: And I think she wants to rule the world, too.

There's lots of wailing and crying - all in all, almost 7 minutes long. The sad thing is that Veggie is in fact serious when she says she was afraid of losing Bori too. Yes, I believe her - but we also know that the whole thing is also due to a load of fear; Veggie thinks she has to go to prison because of the accident and because she "stole" a child.
JoAnne: There's a part of me that thinks she has it coming, and there's a part of me that recognizes she has belatedly realized that she feels actual affection for Bori. Both of those parts think she should just go turn herself in, do the two weeks jail time that would come out of it, and start fresh.
But then, we're at Bi Sool Chae, where Jae-hwa steps out of the building just as Min-jung wants to go in. Ah, he is in a good mood! He is all: just wait and seeee how fast your adoption will get nullified, smirksmilegloat. She is not defeated yet though (20 more episodes?) and smirks back: even if she is kicked out of Bi Sool Chae, she is still Jae-hee's wife - and Jae-hwa is her older Brother-in-law. OMG, Jae-hwa, delete your name from the family registry! I completely forgot that you're now related to this biatch now!
JoAnne: I so loved him in this scene. He's like, 'Go on, go in, they're alllllllllll waiting for you.' and she has balls, this girl. She really does. On some level people like this must convince themselves that their reality is real, right? Because how could you sell the bullshit so convincingly and know you were wrong?
The Hanbokers are in uproar - BaDIL tries to defend Min-jung ("she wouldn't do something like this!"), but both Bong2 and the Matron are quite certain that she did hide the Eun-bi pictures. Can we move on though? Here comes Min-jung, who messed up her hair outside, and now pretends it was Jae-hwa who did this to her. Hahahaaa, you wish!
JoAnne: This part wasn't subbed when I watched it - she said he did it? Hahahahahahahah... I was just impressed that her hair dried on the way from the yard to the house, I thought that's what she was doing when she started messing with it.
And then ... one of the most satisfying moments of this crazy drama-ride ... Bong2 gives her a wonderful Ohrfeige. Which translates as Ear Fig. Which means slap in the face. Let's watch it a few times!
JoAnne: I always look for the hand print. I rarely find one... But yeah, Bong2 swung for all of us, there.
And we all knew Min-jung would lie her way out of this situation too, and here is her explanation. 1) she doesn't know any of the pictures that were found in her room. 2) when she moved, there was a strange suitcase, which totally isn't hers. 3) Bori put it into the trunk. The last point is confirmed by that woman servant. Oh, yeah! Good explanation! Of course, it was Bori that did it all.
JoAnne: Because Bori has a strange picture-stealing fetish? Because Bori can't stand to see the child that they lost, for some unknown reason? Because Bori once again is just out to make Min Jung look bad? Oh wait, no - nowadays, the reason is because Bori wants to steal Bi Sool Chae.

Bong2 has a clear head (see? he listened to you, JoAnne) and says "why would she hide her own pictures? If she had seen them, she would have known who she is right away". Min-jung goes *gulp, my Daddy knows!* and the other two women conveniently didn't hear him say it. Oh drama... you're a crazy mess.
JoAnne: Seriously, the amount of 2 plus 2s that are not added together in this drama could.... I don't know, buy me a big enough bottle of whiskey not to kill Min Jung?
Bong2 suggests to his wife (who says super mean things about Bori) that Bori might be Eun-bi, but BaDIL rejects that vehemently. She is blinded by whatever evilness she has sworn allegiance to and cannot recognize her own child. That's sad. And you bet this woman will regret a thing or two...
A bit later, we see that she is suspicious of the Troll too - she remembers seeing the red suitcase in Min-jung's possessions and knows she was lying about Bori putting it there.
JoAnne: I am actually very, very curious about the resolution of the relationship between BaDIL and Bori. Because that woman has been incredibly hateful; even if Bori becomes her pride and joy, Bori's always going to know what an evil person her mother is, and that can't be good.

Alone at the honeymoon suit, Jae-hee hears from his thug that the brown envelope was given to Min-jung. Think! Dig! It's too late, but still! Better now than in 5 years!
JoAnne: Figure it out before she steals your sperm and gives birth to the prince of darkness!
Veggie tries to get Min-jung on the phone (to tell her that Bori knows everything), but before Min-jung can talk to her, Jae-hee shows up and Min-jung quickly puts the phone away. Man, the energy she must spend to know which of her 1mio. lies she needs to protect!
JoAnne: I wonder if she has a list. She must have a list.
Bong2 talks to GooDIL and mentions how strange it is that Veggie actually came to their house to tell them about BorEunbi - but then changed her mind. Good! Good! No more die for you, you're improving! Ah, they are now almost entirely certain that Eun-bi is Bori. 5 more episodes?
JoAnne: That feels about right, but I don't know. This is my first 50-episode drama. Oh, no it's not, there was that IU thing, which very noticeably DID piss me off by going back and forth back and forth back and forth.... so it's no help. I'd say anywhere from 4-6 episodes, but that still leaves 8-10 for WHAT?
Bori is frantically looking for her mother (who only left a bloody pillow behind) and runs into Jae-hwa, who is wearing a hideous red jacket. So ... if I dated Kim Ji-hoon, I would have an issue with his clothes. Do you think Jo In-sung dresses better? I think so. (Yes, he does, but his pant waists are a bit high for me, and his noodle-y body is very unappealing to think about undressed.  Whereas Kim Ji Hoon undressed... well.) Anyway, Bori worries for nothing, because her mother is already walking back, slowly, after looking at the hotel that Min-jun is staying in (and she knows that because ...)
JoAnne: They've got that mother-daughter DNA-dar that always has them meeting up at a moment's notice because they just happen to be quite nearby each other.
Jae-hwa demands Bori comes with him, to keep him company. No more one-sided love from him - tonight, he needs her. To watch him get drunk. Pffft. I'm not entirely sure I get why he is down - because his brother married the worst person ever? She does indeed watch him - quite closely, which  makes him embarrassed. But she ... she is remembering young cry-baby Jae-hwa, her "oppa", and realizes that this fine specimen is no-longer as-much cry-baby, hot grown-up Jae-hwa.
JoAnne: I think he's just overwhelmed at the difficulty of what they face... plus, he knows she was Eun Bi now, right? (No, he doesn't. He's a bit slow) So I think he feels a lot of sadness over the difficulties she's had.
What was Eun-bi like? she asks him. She cried a lot, she laughed a lot, and she was crazy about jjajangmyeon, is his answer. And Eun-bi was his first love. So, he has a favor to ask: if he meets Eun-bi again, can he please buy her jjajangmyeon (since he never got to buy them for her as promised) and hear her call him oppa again? Without her getting jealous? Awwwww.
JoAnne: That was cute.
He can buy her jjajangmyeon instead and she'll call him oppa once, she answers, but he would rather hear Eun-bi say it - since everybody has been waiting for her for so many years. Bori starts to cry a bit and Jae-hwa thinks it's because she's jealous. Don't worry, Bori, says Jae-hwa, no matter what, he will marry her. And he'd rather she call him husband, not oppa - with an oppa, you can't have babies. And there's this little dongsaeng for Bi-dan he has in mind ...
JoAnne: Hurry up with the baby making! Yes!
Alone later, Bori is really conflicted - when she thinks about the family looking for her, she wants to be Jang Eun-bi. But when she thinks of Bi-dan and her mom, she wants to be Do Bori. Hm, good way of prolonging the conflict. Nope, she is not ready yet to get her true identity back! She lies to GooDIL about not knowing who the kid on the missing-person flyer is - poor GooDIL. She doesn't know what's going on.
JoAnne: I do get it. I mean, as much as I can as a person who's always been who she is, with the family that actually is hers. How does she reconcile these two realities, given the history?
Oh, show-down time at the Company!!!! Jae-hwa is doing an auto-outdoor brand presentation - and he is doing it really well (I guess), because Jae-hee's face gets longer and longer. The investors are on board, Jae-hwa = winner, Jae-hee = loser.
JoAnne: I know but... look at their faces. They're so cute.
Min-jung finds out Bori knows about her true identity from Veggie - and tells her to make the move; take Bi-dan and run! Because that child threatens her alliance with Jae-hee. Airport scene soon?
JoAnne: Not quite yet. Probably the same episode where does the big reveal.

Jae-hwa asks Matron to be a consultant for the hanbok-line, but Matron suggest he should ask Bori since she isn't feeling well (if she is dying, like JoAnne suggested a while ago, it's a slow death). (She's dying of amKNEEsia.) Jae-hee's attempts to sabotage his brother don't work - thanks to Moony. Moony realizes Jae-hee hasn't yet seen his "footage" and tells him to do anything to get it from Min-jung. Since it was the only copy. Come on, show. it was a flash-drive. A flash-drive is NEVER the original copy. But seriously, Moony is my favorite character, I don't care if he sprouts nonsense.
JoAnne: Moo-ny! Moo-ny! Moo-ny!
Bori is evaluating the hanboks at the Company - and finds out that they have not been hand-sown. While she is busy explaining this to Jae-hwa, Bad Dad and Moony come in and hear it all. They have been cheated! These are not traditional hanboks! Awww, Jae-hwa immediately starts justifying why Bori is here, but Bad Dad isn't much interested in that - he wants Bori to continue! It's a big issue, since the problem they have is that the fashion show is in a week.
JoAnne: I was actually very interested in that whole conversation about exactly what the difference is between Eastern and Western patterns for Hanbok.  Good stuff!
Hehe, based on Bori's statement, Bad Dad cancels the entire Hanbok Line - and the event. Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad for Jae-hee. BaDIL gets very mad (the hanbok's were her design), of course, and slaps Bori. And insults her. And you basically see Bori go "this? this? I don't want this as my mother". 
JoAnne: For real. And you can see she would have tried to answer in a more diplomatic way, had she known.
When BaDIL has left, we learn that Min-jung was the one producing them cheaply - without BaDIL's knowledge. ( I THOUGHT that seemed suspicious.) And when Bori says she will go get a DNA test (she knows through Moony that Min-jung tried to destroy all evidence of her being Eun-bi), Min-jung looks really creeeeeeepy, smiles and says: just go ahead! You'll learn about skeletons in the closet ... And Min-jung thinks to herself that she knows much more than Bori ... for example, that her real mother killed her uncle. Stepping up behind them: Bong2, listening to the heated exchange with round, curious eyes. 
JoAnne: So now we know what comes after... Bori turning on BaDIL just like BaDIL turned on ...well, everyone. I don't mind that.

The Rest

Jae-hee first shows Min-jung her new office (and nameplate) and then takes her to a fancy restaurant, where they're just by themselves. Well, plus some musicians and waiters. Jae-hee swears to always be there for her, whatever happens (are you sure, dude?!) The romantic evening continues, with steak of course - and a cake. Min-jung calls it pretty and than says "why are there 6 candles on it"? - Well, the waiter answers: today is your daughter's sixth birthday. 
JoAnne: and I start SCREAMING: OMG Moony is AWESOME he is so AWESOME, oh my God you are BRILLIANT, Moony! And then I laugh really, really hard.

Ouuuuups.

Of course, Jae-hee thinks somebody played a prank on them, but then, the musicians starts playing Rachmaninov - a song Jae-hee never ordered. But which Moony wanted to play at his own wedding, as Min-jung remembered . It's "their" song, so to speak! That's clever ... Min-jung gets up and wants to go, but Jae-hee says to wait - if this is all Moony's doing, he wants to hear what Moony has to say.
JoAnne: Sure, why not.
And there he is! Moony! Pretending to be a cook. Min-jung falls of her chair. When she looks again, it's not Moony at all. She is cracking. She clearly is.
JoAnne: Do you think this ends with Jae Hee visiting her in the mental hospital, where she's been living for years?
Yikes, Min-jung and Jae-hee in bed?! I don't want to see that! They go have fun in the hotel pool (Jae-hee reserved it just for them). When Jae-hee excuses himself (he has to write an email?! WTF?!) (They had to get him out of there and they were on a deadline. It happens.), Moony makes his move. From under water, Min-jung sees how somebody takes her "clutch" (bag). Moon Ji Sang took it! She tells Jae-hee (who is already back from writing his important email). Their wedding rings were in the bag! He hugs her close and says they will get through this together!
JoAnne: Ten bucks says the bag is in their room when they get back, nothing missing. Operation Let's Make MinJung Look Obsessed With Moony has begun.

Comments

Well. Didn't that slap feel good? And her increasing paranoia? I don't mind if this drives her mad, that's punishment enough for me. And I think we've said it before: She already is punished. A LOT. The last straw will be losing everything she has worked for for so many years. Gone, in the blink of one lying eye. 
JoAnne: Yes, and the thing is, nothing she has is anything she couldn't have gotten HONESTLY, you know? Well, not being the daughter of Bi Sool Chae, but the degree, the career, the hot namja.

That Bori is struggling with her two identities is well done. At the moment, she believes that her choice for either of them will bring harm to people she cares for. But since she cares more for Veggie and Bi-dan, she is quite reluctant to reveal herself. And who would choose BaDIL as a mother?! Only dye-addicts. 
JoAnne: On that front it's not like she's got a winner on either team, really.
One think I don't like so much: can somebody please explain to me why BaDIL spends so much energy on defending the BitchTroll? I thought she was a total self-centered egoist. Is this a way to redeem her? I.e.: she might have been awful to her own child, but hey, at least she now really stands behind her adopted daughter, who just happens to be a total lunatic? 
JoAnne: Troll does stuff that benefits BaDIL plus she believes some of the lies. Don't think for a minute that she wouldn't toss that ho aside if she needed to. The thing is, with Veggie, Miin Jung, and BaDIL - when they get caught in a lie their response is to just push ahead harder.

The second thing I don't like: Jae-hwa gets zero character development. A while ago, he decided he is totally in love with Bori - and no matter what, he would marry her. That's noble and great, but it's also extremely boring. He also managed to go from genius-prosecutor to genius-manager in two days, and I don't like that either. Too easy. And yes, I want more Kim Ji-hoon on my screen.
JoAnne: I'm not sure what I want from him but yeah there should be something... I dunno... maybe he should start looking at his mother's death? Don't you secretly want GooDIL to marry Bad Dad?

PS: Sung Hyuk, we love you too!  OMG yes we do.