GABDONGI EPISODE 20 (FINAL EPISODE)

Cha facing the noose

Recap:
Cha's begging comes to naught. Ji Wool shows her latest webtoon to Maria and Mu Yeom, and it displays what she's learned about Cha's past. Cha is similarly tortured by thoughts of the noose like Tae Oh, who is out of prison thanks to his mother's legal team.  Tae Oh is later summoned by Cha and challenged, mano-y-mano, but laughs and says that he has surpassed Cha. "Now I'm the real Gab Dong," gloats Tae Oh. He resumes his job as a barista, but is killed just as quickly by Cha's willing accomplices. There can be only one Gab Dong. Maria quits her job at the hospital now that Gab Dong has been caught. Mu Yeom lets Maria know he's going to have brain surgery--thankfully, he gets through it just fine. And then, we see the future: Cha is stabbed in his eye in prison, Ji Wool continues her webtoon, Chul Geon is reunited with his estranged wife, Maria continues practicing psychiatry, and Mu Yeom marks "closed" in his notebook on the Gab Dong case. Maria, Mu Yeom, and Ji Wool pay their respects together at Tae Oh's memorial site.  

My Take:
I was so wrong about the outcome. I figured Mu Yeom's hematoma would kill him. Every time they mentioned it, I worried. I like shows in which the hero survives to enjoy his time. While the 'Iris' series was highly enjoyable, it did not have that satisfying ending. This is one of those shows that sort of had a satisfying ending, but I wish Tae Oh didn't have to die for it. I know the disturbing thing is that he asked others to help him die, but I think he may have figured it out?  He didn't seem too bent on murder anymore. So now that he's cured, the writers kill him off? Seems a little counterproductive to me.


Tae Oh in trouble

I feel sorry for Ji Wool. She seems to gravitate towards unavailable men (like Mu Yeom) or psycho-killers like Cha and Tae Oh. It doesn't seem like she's all there, even though she's competent enough to crank out a webtoon, but there's got to be something there that is damaged enough to be like that. I know she says she wants to see the good in people, but is that all it is? Really? Maria kind of had the same damage because she was a victim. Maybe there's some of that lurking beneath the surface somewhere...

There's a couple things that still stick in my mind. I'm not sure of the other reason Gab Dong left Maria alive. I don't remember the reason ever being revealed, and yet they brought it up last episode. Another thing is Cha's molestation, which we learn about this episode. That could have been character development gold and yet it was left unmined. They could have brought it up early, gradually, showing a snippet here, a vignette there, and then gradually show us that it was Cha and why he started killing in the first place.


Kneeling at Tae Oh's memorial

I think the punishment for Cha was a bit unsatisfying. While it was gratifying to see him blinded in one eye, I think he got off pretty lightly. So all he does is wait in prison for death? That's it? Obviously, in real life this is more than enough. But here, it seems anticlimactic. Where's the justice? The man was not only a killer but a cop, as well, and he was responsible for Tae Oh's death. No one knows this, but a little more karmic justice would have been nice.

All in all, this was a fascinating show. Yes, it got low ratings because I think people tuned in and were confused. But I think the psychodrama was in large part what drove this show, and that's why there are things I think they missed that they should have covered. They should have told the tale of Cha's molestation. They should have gone into Chul Geon's childhood. How about having Tae Oh make more moves toward redemption? It's not a bad thing, but I can see some things they missed. Stick a fork in me. I'm done. Thoughts, guys?

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