UNCONTROLLABLY FOND -- EPISODE 13

That awkward moment when you realize none of your friends watch K-dramas...

This episode they confirm that Jung Eun was the driver of the car that mowed down Noh Eul's dad. She scrapped the car and left for Hawaii soon after. In the present, Joon Young agrees to do a movie he turned down when he realizes Jung Eun is involved with it. After an awkward meeting with Noh Eul, Ji Tae, Jung Eun, and Joon Young, Ji Tae takes the Hallyu star out for a drink. He reminds Joon Young that he doesn't have long to live and tells him to back off from Noh Eul. She's found by Joon Young after he helps break up a brawl. Ji Tae wakes up the next morning, stripped of his privileges by mom, and he tells her to do what she wants but leave Noh Eul alone. Joon Young and Noh Eul meet by chance at the beach, and she lets him know she's still into him. Young Ok, Joon Young's mom, meets with Congressman Choi. She drags Jung Sik (Joon Young's uncle) into it, introducing him as her husband and the father of Joon Young. You can see Choi grow more jealous by the minute. Meanwhile, Ha Ru feeds Jik's friends, milking them for information (like favorite band and so forth). A scuffle between her and Jik results in her acting crazy so she'll stay with him (a classic manhwa move). He gets wise to this and tells her to simply ask directly for info. Noh Eul gets treated badly by the star of the documentary she's filming -- Yoon Hoo --  because of his dislike for dirty clothes. Ji Tae tries to take her out but she blows him off. When his scene comes up, Joon Young pounds the snot out of the guy, resulting in an apology at the hospital...on his knees. Returning to his hotel, Noh Eul is waiting -- asking if that was for her. He wants to rest, but she keeps bugging him, until he falls onto the bed on top of her and asks if she wants to sleep with him...

I'm not sure how I feel about Noh Eul wanting to be with Joon Young. Frankly, I'm rooting for neither of them. The writers kept bringing them together then splitting them apart so we didn't know what was going on. Back and forth like a damn pendulum. He's keeping her at arm's length deliberately, as it's constantly reinforced that he doesn't deserve her. So right when she tries to cut through the bull and tells him to knock it off, this happens:



That's right. And I just know it's a tease. Nothing's going to happen. But there's no kiss, just so much staring they probably needed eye drops. It's one of the more infuriating things about this episode. Besides, he seems like such a tool I'm not sure why anyone would see him as boyfriend material.

I'm waiting for something to resolve itself with Choi and Joon Young's mom. We see so much tension there, but he doesn't seem to act on it. What really worries me is Choi's wife. We've seen how vindictive she is, and she sends out her aides to spy on him. What might she be driven to do if she finds out about this meeting? It was in a public place, after all. She could easily find out, get jealous, and arrange to have Young Ok killed. The gravity of this scene was offset by Jung Sik erupting into coughing fits every time she lied about Joon Young being their son. I was grateful for the laughs I got.


How do they play Twister without the mat?

Far and away the cutest couple in this are Jik and Ha Ru. But like the rest of it, they develop their relationship so painfully slow that you wonder if it's going to happen at all. What I get from all this is that she's way more into him than he is into her, which stunts the effect. We've all been there. It happens. But Jik's offhand attitude worries me. Either embrace her or cut her loose, dude. Quit stringing her along. Frankly, I'd like to see him offer up a grand gesture and move the relationship forward. Let's have a few episodes of loving cuteness before everything falls apart.

I think that's my main problem: the writers pack too much story into it, so it ends up all tangled and plodding. There needs to be room for characters to develop and relationships to blossom. I guess I want more than the writers are willing to give me.

Score

Plot........................7
Cinematography...8
Pacing...................7

OVERALL............7.3

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