Triangle: Episode 11

by gummimochi

Yang-ha steps up his game now that his romantic rival is out of the picture while big bro Dong-soo is busy gathering evidence for his own revenge plan. It turns out that prison life has gotten a lot scarier since Young-dal’s last stint, seeing as he runs into the one person he never dreamed that he’d meet. But if these three brothers play their cards right, they might be able to survive long enough to see the end of this game.

SONG OF THE DAY

Jaejoong – “싫어도 (Even Though I Hate It)” from the OST [ Download ]

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EPISODE 11 RECAP

Once in prison, Young-dal introduces himself to his fellow cellmates in a monotonous voice. He’s been behind bars six times already and he’s feeling pretty lousy right now, so they should leave him alone if they know what’s good for them.

Naturally, that kind of arrogant talk invites trouble, but Young-dal prevents any attempt to establish the pecking order and takes two prison sunbaes down easily. He does, however, apologize for causing trouble at the start to the elderly inmate in the room.

Little Byung-soo brings up Young-dal’s incarceration at the dinner table—apparently the entire town is talking about it, and Byung-soo puffs up proudly that he protected his noona from that gangster hyung.

Poor Young-dal looks pretty miserable, but he keeps those dismal thoughts at bay by remembering how Jung-hee had hurried to see him before he was hauled off to prison. Jung-hee stands outside in front of Young-dal’s darkened room, thinking back to happier times.

Both Young-dal and Jailbreak seem to be handling the whole being in jail idea far better than Jang-soo, who they see blubbering with his knees drawn up in the big yard. Evidently Jang-soo hasn’t stopped crying ever since his father came to see him in tears. Jailbreak says that prison life isn’t so bad, but that makes him cry even louder. Aw.

One of Young-dal’s cellmates approaches them to relay that Manbong hyungnim demands Young-dal’s presence. It isn’t a name Young-dal recognizes, but thankfully Jailbreak does, and I’m assuming that he’s the head honcho among the inmates.

All three of them are led inside to see Manbong hyungnim, and Young-dal gets kicked behind his knees to show respect. The reason why we should care at all about this balding man becomes clear at the mention of one name: Do Ki-chan, aka the dead man whose loot Young-dal stole.

Young-dal realizes this too, and Manbong clarifies that he is the true owner of that 5 billion Won stash. Crap. Manbong also knows that money ended up in Chairman Go’s hands and he is NOT happy about it. He was looking forward to getting his money upon his release five years from now, but that’s all changed thanks to Young-dal.

Young-dal begs for another chance—he’ll do whatever it takes. Surprisingly, Manbong grants it, though that doesn’t save him or his buddies from a beating. Manbong chuckles when Young-dal asks him to spare his friends, wondering how someone of such loyalty could betray another man.

Dong-soo grows uneasy to see Yang-ha and Chairman Go laughing together at Daejung Casino. Chairman Go spends his time winning at baccarat in the VIP room and casting creepy looks at Hyun-mi. Let’s not kid ourselves—everything about him is creepy. Also, should we be focused on the mirrored surface set next to her?

After Dong-soo is filled in, he and Yang-ha go out for drinks, where Dong-soo hands in his report on Chairman Go. Yang-ha airily replies that there’s no use for this anymore now that he’s made allies with their once-mutual enemy. That also means Dong-soo’s services are no longer needed, however Yang-ha doesn’t intend to fire him.

Asked why he decided to work with Chairman Go, Yang-ha says he realized fighting a lowlife like Chairman Go was beneath him. Now he can treat the skunk-haired chairman like a dog, tossing treats like casino and resort shares which the man ate up readily. Oh, and he did such a clean job of putting Young-dal behind bars.

Dong-soo relays all this info to Shin-hye, chuckling that Yang-ha’s more villainous than his adoptive father. Citing the “Keep your friends close and enemies closer” adage, Shin-hye believes that Dong-soo should remain at his head of security job because his ultimate target is Chairman Yoon.

Speaking of, Chairman Yoon is none too pleased by this recent alliance, though Yang-ha clarifies matter-of-factly that keeping Chairman Go in the palm of his hand is all part of his grand plan for his father.

It really does seem that Yang-ha’s been taking crazy maliciousness pills lately, his meek side all but a memory. He bursts out laughing when Director Hyun says he’s on his side, calling it a wise move.

Shin-hye takes the lead on the investigation of Chairman Yoon’s lobbying in his casino and resort dealings. Team Dong-soo agrees to look into it.

Grandma comforts Boss Yang at his office and hands him some allowance money to pass along to Young-dal. Aw, it’s sweet that she considers him like family.

Young-dal takes pity upon Elderly Inmate 4224 in the room and gives him his snacks, which the old man cheerily accepts. The others warn him that being nice to the old-timer will bring trouble, but before we learn why, Young-dal is called away to see a visitor.

Aw, it’s Jung-hee and she’s wearing the necklace he gave her. Her adorable attempts to try to make him laugh (“I brought my ex-boyfriend kimbap when I visited him in the army, but this is my first prison visit, so I came empty-handed.”) are met with his flat expression, but he finally cracks a tiny smile when she asks if he’s making sure to eat properly.

She honestly admits she wasn’t sure whether she should come, but his hangdog look back at the police station made her wonder why he felt so sorry towards her and what they meant to one another. She then musters up the courage to ask him outright: “Heo Young-dal-sshi, what are we?” Omo, omo.

A long, silent moment passes before Young-dal answers that they aren’t anything to each other, so she should forget about him. Aw, Young-dal, way to break a girl’s heart.

Jung-hee calls that answer irresponsible of her growing affection towards him, and then tells him how someone told her how she has no dreams and that she’s seeing someone who doesn’t benefit her life at all. “But… that’s because that person didn’t really know me,” she explains.

She doesn’t choose who to date based on what she can gain from him, but whether he’s handsome, nice, and if she likes him. And that’s why she met Young-dal. She’s both hurt and disappointed in him, not because he’s in jail, but because he doesn’t take his own life seriously. “I think you’re just trying to succeed by taking the easy route.”

She asks Young-dal to give up his gambling lifestyle, and then shrinks back, saying that makes her sound like a nagging visitor. She promises with a warm smile to continue to keep watch over him, so he shouldn’t feel sorry towards her and take care of himself. He looks away to hide the tears welling up in his eyes.

Her words stick with him though, and Young-dal resignedly accepts another beating from Manbong’s crew as punishment for leading such a terrible life. Young-dal grits through the pain in silence.

Jung-hee comes home to find a basket of roses waiting for her. They’re from Yang-ha, aren’t they? They are, and he sent them for her birthday (though Grandma notes that Jung-hee celebrates her birthday according to the lunar calendar). Her grandmother and brother ask if Yang-ha is her boyfriend, but the gift only makes Jung-hee sigh dejectedly.

Back at prison, the cellmates wake up in the middle of the night in disgust. It seems the aging inmate has soiled himself, a fairly common occurrence judging from the others’ revulsion.

Young-dal is tasked to escort Elderly Inmate 4224 to the washroom, where he bathes him and launders the clothes by hand. The aging man apologizes for being such a nuisance at his old age, but Young-dal is happy to be of help.

When asked what he’s in for, the old man answers, “Greed.” Everyone’s greedy, Young-dal replies, and he’s paying for that in prison time. He continues washing with a smile, and the elderly man looks at him warmly.

Dong-soo pays a visit to a snack truck ajusshi, to whom he asks for a favor. The snack truck ajusshi apparently sells ddukbokki by day and a burglar by night, but regardless of his good relationship with Dong-soo, his expression hardens when he hears the job is to rob a safe at Daejung Casino.

Elsewhere, Boss Min wonders when Chairman Go will keep his end of the promise they made, wherein he would repay her investment in profit. He recalls no such agreement and tells her to stick to her own business. This is why you need to get things in writing, people!

Boss Min isn’t afraid to call Chairman Go a gangster, but he merely laughs off the insult. This is where their business ties end, she declares, and Chairman Go orders that she be done away with quietly.

Dong-soo reviews the security cameras during the day before returning that evening with Hamburglar. Using the darkness to their advantage, they sneak into Chairman Yoon’s office in that tiny window of time when the security system is temporarily offline.

I don’t know where Dong-soo’s looking when dramaland rules dictate that a rich man’s safe is always behind the most expensive painting in the room. His accomplice finds it there though, and immediately gets to work to crack the safe. Since when did safes have a USB connection? Man, I need to upgrade.

Dong-soo grows more uneasy with each passing minute, but eventually they hack their way in, and he proceeds to take visual proof of Chairman Yoon’s ledgers. At the same time, Shin-hye is given the lowdown on Chairman Yoon’s lobbying relations with Kim Myung-gu (Assemblyman Kim, perhaps?) as well as her ex-husband’s lengthy history with various women. Her face remains stoic at the pictures.

Dong-soo and Shin-hye put their heads together with the information they have. Although Shin-hye understands Dong-soo’s thirst for vengeance, she warns that they have to tread carefully and wait for the opportune moment. Dong-soo nods in agreement, but I have a feeling he won’t take her advice.

Elderly Inmate 4224 asks Young-dal why he gets constantly beaten, and Young-dal says it’s because he lost Manbong’s money and he can’t get it back. The old man asks how much he lost, which gets Young-dal to chuckle—will 4224 tell him how to repay his debt?

The elderly man gives a vague answer, and Young-dal says warmly that he can use that money for snacks instead. But just as Young-dal walks away, the old man suddenly doubles over, coughing.

Concerned, Young-dal hails the prison guard down, but gets flatly dismissed. His panicked worries are met with a slap to the face, so Young-dal grabs a fistful of the guard’s uniform and demands that the elderly inmate be transferred to the infirmary.

Jang-soo and Jailbreak try to break it up and are promptly ordered to do as Young-dal commands. Although valiant of him, Young-dal’s outburst has got him pinged on the prison guard’s radar.

Over at the underground casino, Madame Jang remains tight-lipped about the casino’s true owner. She does, however, allow Boss Yang to promote his business. Lady Kim has him forcibly removed, barely batting an eyelash at his threats to report them to the police.

Yang-ha provides us with the requisite product placement break as he shops for a windbreaker. For Jung-hee? Oh, maybe it’s for the entire company because we see everyone with one thanks to a company-wide workshop that will take place tomorrow.

Supposedly the casino dealers will be giving team presentations in front of the company execs, and the annoying sunbae trio leader gossips that the top prize in this year’s mock casino game is a whopping 10 million Won (roughly 10,000 USD). That gets everyone excited and Jung-hee says she’ll win to repay her debt to Hyun-mi.

Jung-hee leaves the house next morning to find Yang-ha waiting for her with his car. He offers to drive her to the workshop and she gets in. He points out her nervousness in the car, which she quickly denies.

As expected, Dong-soo doesn’t take Shin-hye’s advice and sits down with Chairman Yoon after all. He asks point-blank whether the chairman knows of Jang Jung-kook. Chairman Yoon doesn’t deny the acquaintance, admitting that he also knows that Dong-soo is Daddy Jang’s son.

Dong-soo says he knows that Chairman Yoon and Chairman Go worked together to kill off his father. Way to show your hand there, Dong-soo. That accusation gets Chairman Yoon worked up, as he hollers that he couldn’t have murdered anyone, not with the law in place.

But Dong-soo uses the ineffective legal system to bolster his vow: “So that’s why I’m going to destroy you myself!”

Chairman Yoon smirks at that declaration—does Dong-soo really think that he’ll be able to do anything? But now the gloves are off for Dong-soo because he’ll do whatever it takes to bring Chairman Yoon down.

Neither Young-dal nor his buddies have seen Elderly Inmate 4224 ever since they moved him to the infirmary. Jailbreak wonders if the old man kicked the bucket, and something about today gives Young-dal new resolve as he tells his buddies they won’t get beaten anymore because he’s going to go up against Manbong.

Yang-ha drives up to a countryside villa, to Jung-hee’s confusion. I… don’t have a good feeling about this. Neither does Jung-hee as she asks what they’re doing here. Yang-ha says they’re having their own workshop… just the two of them.

She demands that he take her back this instant, and he asks why she’s being such a party pooper. “Fun?” she repeats, and then slaps him for that remark. Well yeah, he deserved that.

Jung-hee proclaims that she’s not a plaything for him to toy with and stalks off. But Yang-ha whirls her back and begs, “I never once thought of you as a toy. One day. Give me just one day. I’m begging you.”

 
COMMENTS

No. Just say no, Jung-hee! I see that wavering look in your eyes, but don’t let those puppy eyes fool you into feeling pity for the crazy, creepy man! Sure I know that she can’t hear me, but I can still worry for her safety, right? Seriously, though, just step away. Or run if you have to.

Um, that being said, Yang-ha continues to be an eerily interesting character. It’s good to know that he isn’t so naive to join hands with Chairman Go that easily, and yet I can’t tell whether achieving his adoptive father’s goals align with his goals. So while I’m all for crafty evildoers whose psyche makes you question what exactly makes them tick, Yang-ha’s actions come off as less diabolical genius and more petty man-child, as evidenced by the hour spent trying to woo Jung-hee now that Young-dal is (temporarily) out of the picture. Furthermore, I can’t accept his feelings towards Jung-hee as genuine when he speaks of his enemy no better than a domesticated animal. Maybe we were never meant to know the inner thoughts of a creeper in the making, but it’d help for character consistency to know whether he cares or detests all people without Jung-hee being the exception in either case. Or maybe that’s the whole point and I don’t get crazy love.

Speaking of love, I found it brave of Jung-hee to define her relationship with Young-dal, even if he did say it wasn’t much of anything. I know you didn’t mean that, Young-dal. Still, someone had to hang a lantern on just how easy success has come for Young-dal and voice that there are people who care for him and wish him greater success in life apart from being rich. What’s even better is that Young-dal actually takes her words to heart, and we see the decisive change from self-punishment to leading a life worth living for.

It’s good that Young-dal’s stint in prison this time serves a lesson, and that we see his loyalty and selflessness shine as well. I loved watching his budding friendship with the elderly inmate, who I dearly hope we see more of because Young-dal could use older and wiser friends. In that case, I’m sort of glad that Young-dal rejected Jung-hee for now, giving him more of an opportunity to grow into a better person.

That’s more that can be said for Dong-soo and Shin-hye, who at the very least had something to do in this hour. It’s unfortunate that their revenge storyline, while important, is the weakest link right now. I think it was reckless for Dong-soo to show his hand so early, but then again when has he ever waited for the right timing for anything? Let’s hope you don’t have to fold, Dong-soo.

 
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