Early Access: Confession E5 (Patreon)
Content
E5. Considering how Do Hyun's desire to clear his father's name forms the main arc of our story, I'd say that Show does a reasonably good job of going off on a related tangent, this episode. Not only does it give us a change of pace from Do Hyun dealing with Han Jong Goo, it also unearths some important details, that have an impact on our main story.
I'd call that a win, even though the parallels and coincidences do lean a touch heavy-handed. And part of the reason I'm willing to call this a win, is because I've decided that Show is more interested in the melodrama and the emotional heft of the story, and isn't actually interested in being a strict legal &/or medical drama. And, if that's what Show's decided that it wants to be, it only seems fair to judge it based on what it wants to be, right?
Before I get into the meat of this episode, on a side note, I wanted to stop and appreciate the fact that Do Hyun continues to show concern and care for Jun Hwan as a person in his own right, even though he's just found out, through Jun Hwan, some details that are of particular importance to the case.
It'd be understandable if he were to excuse himself and rush off, but no, Do Hyun doesn't do that. Instead, he puts aside his shock, to interact with Jun Hwan a little more in the moment, and tell him that it's not his fault that his mom is working so hard; that anyone would do that for a sick family member.
Plus, he even reminds Jun Hwan that his immune system is weak, and to take good care of himself, before he leaves. I do love how Do Hyun's compassionate and kind like that.
I do love how Chun Ho goes to see Han Jong Goo, and basically provokes him to think about who could be working so hard to frame him for Kim Sun Hee's murder. I mean, Chun Ho doesn't actually leave with any new information, but it does feel like he's managed to get Han Jong Goo moving in a helpful direction.
I like how Chun Ho's willing to go the extra mile, even if it's just to test the waters. And he does leave with a fresh conviction that there's something deeper, between Han Jong Goo and Do Hyun, which I think is useful as well.
It turns out that my assumption that Hyun Yi had been the murderer, is completely wrong, after all. And it also turns out that the detail, that Jun Hwan had been the next in line to receive a heart transplant, had been something of a misdirect.
In the end, Nurse Cho had killed Teacher Dude, in a fit of panic and anxiety, brought on by his behavior, which had brought back painful memories from when he'd sexually assaulted her, when she'd been in high school.
It was never about saving Jun Hwan, and it was never about protecting Hyun Yi, after all.
However, the whole situation, of Jun Hwan being next in line to receive the heart transplant, does bring up inadvertent questions about the same situation 10 years ago, when Do Hyun had ended up receiving the heart transplant, when Yoo Ri's father, the original scheduled recipient, had died.
It's kind of ironic, that in the present, the suspicion that Nurse Cho had killed Teacher Dude in order to save Jun Hwan is completely off-based, but it reflects, to an uncanny degree, the situation in the past, where it's now beginning to look very much like there had been foul play, in Yoo Ri's father's death.
After all, according to Nurse Cho, no one had asked any questions, when Yoo Ri's father had died, right before he had been due for that heart transplant. Contrasted to the present day, when so many questions had been asked, after Teacher Dude's sudden death before his schedule heart transplant, it's easy to see that there had been some irregularity there.
I'm beginning to strongly suspect that the price for Do Hyun's father agreeing to be the fall guy, hadn't just been Do Hyun's surgery fees, but had been the heart transplant itself. I'm guessing that Do Hyun had been dangerously ill, and would have died without an urgent heart transplant.
That's probably the thing that had caused Dad to agree to take the fall for the murder - and the higher ups who had brokered this deal, had probably also arranged for Yoo Ri's father's death - and the non-investigation of that death - so that Do Hyun would be able to get his surgery quickly and smoothly.
Since Show has already hinted to us that there are big guns involved in dirty work, with the staging of Kim Sun Hee's murder and the extensive attempt to frame Han Jong Goo for it, it's not that much of a stretch, to expand that to include corruption in medical malpractice.
If that's the case, then I can see why the doctors hadn't even tried that hard, to revive Yoo Ri's father, when he'd gone into cardiac arrest. That had probably been the brief; to not try too hard to revive him, because he needed to die. 😳
I feel bad for Yoo Ri, because this is a world-tilting nugget of information. She's never thought to question her father's death, because he'd had serious heart problems. But now, for the first time, there is something to suggest that her father may have been killed.
Even though it's clear that Do Hyun wouldn't personally be involved in such a scheme, it'd be hard for Yoo Ri not to feel anything towards Do Hyun, since he's the direct beneficiary of her father's death.
It's not impossible for Yoo Ri to now turn her back on Do Hyun, but I hope that that's not the direction Show intends to take. I actually like that Yoo Ri and Madame Jin are now Do Hyun's little legal team, and I'd like that dynamic to continue and expand, if possible.
I actually like the fact that Chun Ho finds out about Do Hyun's father's case, and confronts him.
Guh, so much crackle and sizzle between these two, even as Chun Ho provokes Do Hyun, by calling his father a murderer, and Do Hyun provokes him right back, by calling him an incompetent detective.
Ahhh. This is the first time we've seen Do Hyun this worked up, and it's the first time we've seen Do Hyun actually provoke someone out of anger; of course it would all be in defense of his father, whom he believes to be innocent.
And with Chun Ho having resigned from his job as a detective because of a mistake, and now working in security, of course that touches a raw nerve.
There's so much crackly tension between them, as Chun Ho grabs Do Hyun by the collar, and the two stare each other down, barely controlling their raging emotions.
Yesss. More of this, please. I feel like there is so much room for Chun Ho and Do Hyun to spark off each other, whether they are working together on the same side, or facing off each other, on opposite sides. And in a similar vein, I feel that there is so much room for both Yoo Jae Myung and Junho, to flex their acting range, in such a situation.
I'd love to see Chun Ho and Do Hyun challenge each other, and both grow to greater heights, as iron sharpens iron.
Next episode notes will be out on: Monday, 7 Mar 2022!