ANGEL EYES EPISODE 2
When we last left off, Soo Wan had agreed to be Dong Joo's girlfriend. Dong Joo was ecstatic, shouting the news as far as his voice could carry it. But if you thought 'Angel Eyes' was done squeezing tears from us, you would be dead wrong.
Still, there are more sweet moments ahead. She hands him an mp3 player and explains that it's for them only, to exchange music, to record the things they want to say to each other -- a modern version of an "exchange diary." I've never heard of one until now and Google seems to indicate that it's a Korean tradition, but I like the idea. Especially that method, ideal for one who is blind because you can share music, your voice, and other sounds.
A friend of Soo Wan's advises - rather insistently - that it's Soo Wan's birthday, that she hasn't celebrated it in a few years and that she most likely wants to spend it with him so he needs to treat her right, especially on that day. It's very sad that someone hasn't had a birthday party in a while, but they do show a scene in which she is unhappy about being alive right after the accident. If you don't like your life, you're not going to feel like celebrating they day you were born.
Her father comes to visit (which was a shock to me, but she treats it like no big deal). He seems emotionally unavailable; they discuss her chances of getting an eye transplant, and he leaves, not even wishing her a happy birthday. It seems like he doesn't like seeing her this way, and since a hospital keeps you busy at all hours he would probably welcome any chance to bury himself in his work and forget that his daughter is suffering.
They celebrate her birthday at Dong Joo's house with his family as she has grown close to them. It should be happy, but the occasion is marred by the fact that she desperately wants to see, especially now that she has people she really cares for. Dong Joo's mother comforts her, telling her she is surrounded by people who love her and that she will get her eyes. That was a very touching moment. His mother, Jung Hwa, has a huge heart, and I was hoping to see more of her, but alas, that was not to be.
After a couple dates, Dong Joo falls ill and that's where it all goes downhill from there. His mother, doing deliveries for him, is struck by a car and hospitalized. While the doctors seemed to think she'd be okay after surgery, there is a monkey wrench thrown into the mix: an unknown person phones another unknown person and mentions that Jung Hwa seems to remember the car from the accident. A person in a lab coat comes in and injects something lethal into her as she recovers from surgery. No one can save her from this.
There's another wrinkle in this which they kept hinting at: Soo Wan's father is a surgeon in that hospital, the director, if I understood correctly. There were scenes of him sitting at his desk, looking at the pictures of his family during Jung Hwa's ordeal. His desire for his daughter to obtain donated eyes is no secret, so we're left to wonder if there was some complicity on his part, as well. His phone conversation at the end of the episode, assuring the person on the other end that they "did well," is entirely suspicious.
In an exchange that I didn't completely understand, his mom tells Dong Joo before she dies that it's time for his little sister, Hae Joo, to head to America and he has to accompany her and act as her guardian. I didn't quite understand why. That made little sense to me. Above and beyond being a vehicle to separate our young couple, what was the reason?
After his mother's death, Soo Wan gets her eyes; it was Jung Hwa's dying wish. But our lovers do not get to say goodbye. He finds her recovering from surgery and leaves a note next to her bed. She should be able to read it if everything goes well. But her father takes it and locks it in his desk. At the end, we see Dong Joo, now an adult, looking at Soo Wan's house and reminiscing.
This episode left me with more questions. Maybe some of you already know the answers. Why was the time in America necessary? What was the significance of the car that killed Jung Hwa? Apparently it belonged to some criminal. Is this going to pop up again? How is Soo Wan's father involved? Why did he hide Dong Joo's note?
Bear with me. We can find out the answers together.
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