Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha: Episode 2

by stritzfix

When someone new comes to town, there’s a period of adjustment for everyone. Mismatched expectations and misunderstandings abound, and our dentist accidentally gets on the wrong side of her neighbors. All is not lost, though, as she has a guide and secret advocate on her side–even if she’s a little reluctant to take his advice.

 
EPISODE 2 RECAP

Hye-jin muses that, “We all have moments we regret in life.” We see a few residents of Gongjin lost in thought–Hwa-jung gazing at her divorce papers, Chun-jae pulling out his old demo tape, and Doo-shik at home. He pulls a suit jacket out of his closet and sighs.

At her new clinic, Hye-jin lets out a sigh as she stares out the window and finishes her thought: “Nevertheless, we can never turn back the clock.”

Two weeks earlier
Doo-shik shows Hye-jin a potential clinic space. He’s looking to wrap things up quickly, but Hye-jin refuses to hurry when it comes to business. She asks where their next stop is, and Doo-shik stares at her quizzically before saying that there are no other options; this is the only clinic space they will be touring. Their next stop is to check out an empty apartment.

As Doo-shik tells her about the apartment’s features, Hye-jin is distracted by the very loud wallpaper. Doo-shik tries to sell it, but it certainly isn’t Hye-jin’s style. Her style is more an antique, simple, European vibe, and she rattles off a wishlist of interior changes. Doo-shik takes it all in and suggests changing the wallpaper instead, lol.

Doo-shik is ready for the contract signing, but Hye-jin is dismayed to learn that the person she’ll be signing with, for both her clinic and apartment, is none other than Hwa-jung. The whole situation pings Hye-jin’s BS radar. After all, Hwa-jung was the one who recommended that she start a business and then referred her to Doo-shik.

Hwa-jung assures Hye-jin that they’re not scamming her, and lets her know that she’s a zone chief (and Doo-shik a regular chief), so they’re on the government payroll and they have no need to scam her. Frustrated, Doo-shik informs Hye-jin that Hwa-jung had been setting aside the office space to open a second restaurant, but she thought a dental clinic would benefit the whole town. And the rent is below market value too, which Doo-shik is able to prove pretty easily with his cell phone.

With all that out of the way, the two women sign the contract and Hwa-jung casually tells Doo-shik she’ll wire him his realtor fee later. He then follows Hye-jin for some time until she asks him what he’s doing. He then tells her that she owes him 17,440 won for his services as a realtor and explains that he only charges minimum wage for all jobs.

Speaking of jobs, Doo-shik offers to handle her renovations, too. She doubts that he’s qualified for the task, so Doo-shik brings out the big guns: his many, many certifications and licenses. He takes her shocked silence as a sign that he’s hired, and he flips his hair as he walks away.

Back in Seoul, Hye-jin’s already got her things packed up, and Mi-sun can hardly believe her friend is moving away to the sticks. She’s not sure how she’ll take Hye-jin’s move, as they’ve never been apart after meeting in middle school. Hye-jin tries to gift her a dress, but Mi-sun dissolves into tears. They hold each other as they sob… and Mi-sun tries to get Hye-jin to give her a nicer, more expensive dress as a gift instead.

On Hye-jin’s move-in day, several Gongjin residents pop up to gawk and gossip at their newest neighbor. As they discuss the newcomer, Hwa-jung interrupts the group to ask why they’re all standing there gawking and then greets Hye-jin.

There’s an awkward lull after the first hellos, and Hwa-jung then waves to the residents and introduces them as Hye-jin’s new neighbors. Hye-jin busies herself once again with moving boxes, and pays no mind to her gawking neighbors.

Later that evening, Hye-jin is settling in when the doorbell rings. It’s Doo-shik, and he’s there to verify her address registration. He then gives her information on her new home and Hye-jin desperately tries to write everything down.

When Hye-jin gets the key code to her door, she’s horrified to learn that Doo-shik used the same combination for her door and his home–and that it’s his birthday. When she recovers from the shock of that sudden bit of unintentional intimacy, she offhandedly mentions that Doo-shik is technically her oppa as he’s a year older than her.

At the word “oppa,” he tells her seriously not to think about calling him oppa. Hye-jin is affronted at the suggestion and Doo-shik moves on, asking if she has any questions. There’s only one: Where can she get a good cup of coffee?

Doo-shik tells her the nearest place is the cafe owned by Chun-jae. She isn’t too pleased with this advice since she thinks the coffee is terrible. Doo-shik tells her to give it another try, and informs her that the clinic renovation will take awhile before going on his way.

Gam-ri and two of her friends Sook-ja, and Mat-yi are out for a walk and discussing the new dentist. As they chat, Hye-jin runs past wearing a crop top and leggings. They’re scandalized and wonder why the young dentist is wearing only her “underwear.”

Hye-jin takes a break in front of a photography studio and she stares at a photo of an older man with a young boy. She smiles and says that she knows a mischievous face when she sees one.

Doo-shik returns home to find the three halmonis waiting to buy his homemade soap. He serves them homemade shikhye to drink while he slices soap bars for them. The ladies are impressed that he knows how to make shikhye, and Gam-ri slyly adds that there’s nothing he can’t do–except find a wife.

As the halmonis wait for their soap, they reveal to Doo-shik that the dentist has been out and about in the most risqué clothing. Doo-shik tries to explain that Hye-jin’s outfit is normal athletic wear these days… but at the disbelieving silence from the women, he awkwardly tries to change the subject. (Are they stunned at the idea of crop tops as sportswear, or at Doo-shik sticking up for the newcomer?)

Hwa-jung visits Hye-jin to invite her to a party for the elderly at the town hall. Hye-jin isn’t sure about attending, but Hwa-jung insists that it’s a great opportunity to meet people and promote her dental clinic.

On the day of the party, Hye-jin dawdles on the sidewalk and Doo-shik catches her hesitating instead of joining in on the fun. The party is in full swing, with senior citizens grooving to some retro tunes. Doo-shik’s in attendance too, of course, as he’ll be the party’s photographer. Hye-jin haughtily tells him not to take photos of her since she values her portrait rights. Doo-shik counters that he has high standards for his models. Before they can continue to bicker, the three halmonis wave Hye-jin over to their table.

Hye-jin joins her former squid-gutting companions at the table, and while the women are welcoming, Hye-jin is uninterested in engaging with them unless it’s to promote her clinic. Gam-ri tries to hand feed her a bite of pork and kimchi, but Hye-jin uses a spoon to accept the food and sets it down instead of eating it.

Hwa-jung then joins the party with JO NAM-SOOK (Cha Chung-hwa) in tow, and Nam-sook introduces herself as the owner of Gongjin’s Chinese Restaurant. Nam-sook asks how Hye-jin is settling in and jokes that it’s a shame she signed a lease with a fussy landlady.

The group laughs as Hwa-jung insists she’s not fussy and willing to help with any issues. Hye-jin takes that remark very seriously and reels off a litany of minor aesthetic issues–then critiques the way Hwa-jung grills fish, saying her current method is too smelly. Nam-sook cackles as Hwa-jung looks on in dismay.

In a matter of minutes, Hye-jin manages to blithely insult everyone sitting around the table. The disgruntled townspeople leave one by one as Hye-jin obliviously, awkwardly tries to promote her dental clinic again.

She isn’t left alone for long, however. Chun-jae joins her and apologizes for not believing she was a dentist. He introduces himself as the singer Oh Yoon and hands her a signed CD of his first studio album. He then starts to expound on his one hit, “Exercising in the Moonlight ” as Hye-jin zones out.

The village chief CHANG YOUNG-GUK (In Gyo-jin) makes an announcement over the town hall intercom to encourage people to attend the party. His words boom out across Gongjin.

Chun-jae doesn’t catch on to Hye-jin’s indifference and he gets into the details of his past woes: he was working on his second album when his production manager ran away with his money. While he searched fruitlessly for the production manager, people forgot about him. He ended up singing at nightclubs and settled in Gongjin after meeting a woman.

Hye-jin cuts him off abruptly, excusing herself to go to the bathroom. Doo-shik approaches her and offers her a bowl of yukgaejang. She turns down the food and complains about how unsanitary everything is. He takes her to task for being so fussy about everything, and advises her to go with the flow and see the good things about Gongjin too.

Before he can continue, Hye-jin walks away to take a call from Mi-sun. She seeks out a quiet spot inside the town hall, and once indoors, she starts complaining about the party.

The owner of the hardware store, Geum-chul, is messing with the speaker system and cuts off the music mid-song. Instead, the speaker switches to the intercom inside the town hall.

Everyone can now hear as Hye-jin sighs and says that she doesn’t like anything about Gongjin. She goes in on Chun-jae, disparagingly saying that he would have succeeded if he’d had more drive and talent. She thinks it’s cowardly to live in the past the way he’s been doing. Mi-sun feels sorry for him, saying, “One’s unfulfilled dreams tend to hold a place in the heart.” That seems to give Hye-jin pause, and after she hangs up, she heads back outside.

The courtyard is silent with everyone staring at her. Hwa-jung runs up and berates Young-guk about leaving the microphone on, and it’s only then that Hye-jin realizes what has happened. Chun-jae leaves in embarrassment, and Doo-shik gazes at Hye-jin with disappointment.

Doo-shik finds Chun-jae on the docks and checks in with him. Doo-shik advises Chun-jae to ignore Hye-jin’s words, but Chun-jae thinks she was right. Doo-shik protests, but Chun-jae just sadly refuses to be comforted and leaves.

Later, Hye-jin is posting a position online for a dental hygienist. She bemoans her big mouth and wonders if she should leave Gonjin when the doorbell rings. It’s Doo-shik, this time wearing his delivery man cap.

Doo-shik gives Hye-jin her package—and then an unvarnished assessment of her. “You think you’re better than everyone.” Hye-jin doesn’t want to hear it, but Doo-shik wonders why she can’t handle judgment when she’s so quick to judge others.

He continues that life isn’t fair to everyone, and that some people’s paths are rough and unpaved. Some people try their best, only to be met with a cliff’s edge. As Hye-jin goes back inside, upset, the doorbell rings again. She assumes it’s Doo-shik again, but it’s actually a very distraught Mi-sun.

Mi-sun went to her boyfriend’s place to surprise him with a home-cooked meal… but found his other girlfriend there. In light of that discovery and after teaming up with the other girlfriend to give the cheater a smackdown, Mi-sun’s decided to move to Gongjin and work at Hye-jin’s dental clinic.

On the dental clinic’s opening day, Hye-jin and Mi-seon wait to greet their patients. The wait stretches on till closing time and no one shows. On the walk home, they’re spurned by every single neighbor they meet and Chun-jae even awkwardly backs away from them. Doo-shik takes this in from afar, looking troubled as Hye-jin buries her head in her hands.

Safe at home, Hye-jin finally comes clean to Mi-sun about what happened at the party and Mi-sun suggests that they move back to Seoul together. After all, the clinic can’t stay afloat without the town’s support. Hye-jin miserably replies that she can’t go back–she already spent a ton of money on the clinic.

Hye-jin goes exercising in the moonlight to clear her head and when Doo-shik spots her, he rides his bike alongside her. His attempts to talk fall flat and he guesses that she’s still angry about his scolding. It’s only when he suggests that she run in a different style of outfit next time that she stops jogging.

She objects to having her clothing policed, arguing that it’s no one’s business what she wears. Doo-shik agrees, but asks if she can’t meet the residents halfway since most of them are from a different generation. Hye-jin expresses her frustration, but Doo-shik points out that she made the choice to move to Gongjin and people need time to adjust.

But he’s not only tough talk and clothing advice. Doo-shik tells her that he’s had time to think, and everyone makes mistakes. It’s not like she knew the mic was on; after all, everyone in the town is probably busy talking smack about her, so things are even in a way. He tells her things will be fine, and then asks if she handed out rice cakes to celebrate the clinic’s opening. Doo-shik rightly assumes from her expression that the answer is no, and he sighs.

The next day, Hye-jin goes on a journey to deliver rice cakes. People receive them with as much enthusiasm as Hye-jin shows (very little). Feeling deflated, she finally sees two friendly faces: her first patient in Gongjin, Yi-joon, and his friend Bora. They have a problem and a hedgehog on their hands.

Though they saved up their money to buy the hedgehog, Bora’s parents won’t let her keep it. Yi-joon wants to ask his parents for permission, but only after he’s won a prize at an upcoming math competition.

They ask her to take care of the hedgehog until then, but she turns them down. As she leaves, she overhears Bora saying she knew Hye-jin wouldn’t help–her mom told her that Hye-jin is a cold-hearted person. That comment does the trick, and Hye-jin becomes temporary caretaker of the hedgehog.

Doo-shik stops by Chun-jae’s cafe, asking why the daily performances have been cancelled. He says he’s feeling sick, but when Doo-shik asks what’s ailing him, Chun-jae changes the subject and miserably asks why no one ever finishes their coffee.

His daughter Joo-ri brightly informs him that his coffee is awful, but Doo-shik’s coffee tastes good. This depresses Chun-jae but he pastes a smile on his face as he sighs that he can’t do anything right.

Later that evening, Doo-shik is taking out the cafe trash and finds Chun-jae’s second album on cassette tape.

The next day, Hye-jin and Mi-sun are still sitting in their empty clinic when Doo-shik invites himself in. He strides right to Hye-jin and demands to know why she thought reluctantly handing out rice cakes would be enough. Of course no one was mollified, since the insincerity of her gesture was clear.

He has a proposition for her that he’s sure will save the clinic. He drags her to the town hall to attend a neighborhood residents’ meeting. He instructs her to go in and apologize to everyone rather than avoiding them. Doo-shik turns to leave and she grabs his arm and asks him to stay with her. He grins, asking if she’s relying on him. Hye-jin immediately drops his arm and denies it. She braces herself to face the neighbors.

The neighbors are busy complaining about Hye-jin. When she enters, the residents look up at her in surprise. Doo-shik saves her from having to stand there awkwardly by carrying in boxes of snacks. He tells everyone that Hye-jin asked him to bring snacks and that she’d made that mistake at the party because she was on edge from the move to Gongjin. Doo-shik’s presence and the snacks seem to thaw the mood significantly.

After the meeting, Hye-jin thanks Doo-shik for his help, and Doo-shik asks for her hand. He gently, smoothly… gives her the receipt for all the snacks, heh. She’s stunned that she has to pay for the snacks that Doo-shik bought without her permission. Grumpily, she tells him not to invite her to events like this again, but Doo-shik smiles as he leaves.

It’s cleaning day for the neighborhood, and everyone’s gathered to get down to business. Hye-jin’s the only one missing, despite the announcement having gone out during the neighborhood meeting. Hwa-jung goes to fetch Hye-jin, who answers the door in her pajamas. Hye-jin asks if she can skip it, and Hwa-jung politely agrees.

Hye-jin goes back to bed briefly before being disturbed yet again by the doorbell. It’s Doo-shik this time, and he’s not willing to let her slack off. Doo-shik successfully gets her out to clean, and Hye-jin is stuck sweeping the street very half-heartedly.

Back at the clinic, Hye-jin is looking with distaste at her ruined nails, when Doo-shik’s police officer friend Eun-chul walks in. They stare at him in confusion, and then realize he’s there for treatment. Eun-chul is quickly followed by an older lady with a toothache, and Hye-jin and Mi-sun dance with delight.

Doo-shik is working at Chun-jae’s cafe and takes a call from Eun-chul. Eun-chul says he went since Doo-shik recommended her, but Hye-jin knew what she was doing and the treatment was reasonably priced.

Chun-jae returns and thanks Doo-shik for taking a shift on short notice. He asks why Doo-shik won’t accept a raise, and Doo-shik replies that he likes things the way they are. Doo-shik casually reveals that he’s digitized and uploaded the title track from Chun-jae’s second album onto his computer.

Chun-jae is grateful, but says he’s done living in the past and wants to focus on the present. He has request; he wants Doo-shik to teach him how to make coffee. Doo-shik agrees and Chun-jae makes him laugh with a confession that even he doesn’t drink his own coffee.

The waiting room at the clinic is packed bustling. At the end of a busy day, Mi-sun wonders how they suddenly got so many patients. In her office, Hye-jin thinks back to Doo-shik’s words about the different paths people take in life, as she takes in her copy of Chun-jae’s CD.

In town, she runs into Chun-jae in front of his cafe. She hesitates, but then stops to say that she listened to his album. Before Chun-jae has a chance to respond, she tells him that “Exercising in the Moonlight” wasn’t that good. He looks uncomfortable, but she’s not finished. Hye-jin continues that she enjoyed “Blue Scar on the Heart” and that she could relate to the lyrics.

She then apologizes sincerely for what she said at the party, and all seems to be forgiven as Chun-jae bashfully laughs and pretends not to remember what she’s referring to. Hye-jin asks where Doo-shik might be, and Chun-jae points her in the right direction. Looking energized, Chun-jae gets rid of the cigarette he’d been about to smoke and listens to the title track of his second album.

Meanwhile, Hye-jin has successfully tracked down Doo-shik at the mudflats and is negotiating the rough terrain in high heels. Doo-shik is enjoying some time off, fishing from atop a rock outcropping. From the base of the rocks, Hye-jin calls out to him and tells him that she suspects he’s responsible for her surge in patients, and admits that he had a good point when he lectured her. Doo-shik interrupts this heartfelt monologue to yell that he can’t hear a thing she’s saying. He instructs her to come closer, but she answers that she can’t. He sighs and says, “Your shoes always cause trouble.”

Doo-shik comes down to help and holds out his hand. As he’s helping her up, Hye-jin slips and falls right into his arms.

EPILOGUE

A young boy and his grandfather walk along the beach. His grandfather offers to grill some fish for dinner. Hye-jin’s father stops them to ask the grandfather to take a picture of his family.

Hye-jin’s mother prompts young Hye-jin to smile, but Hye-jin’s too worried about her mom’s health to manage a smile. The young boy starts to do a goofy dance right as his grandfather takes the photo and in the end, Hye-jin has a big smile on her face. The boy and his grandfather walk away, but the boy can’t take his eyes off Hye-jin.

The grandfather suggests that they take a photo of their own at a studio and the boy happily agrees. In the present day, we see that very photo on Doo-shik’s desk, and it’s the same one Hye-jin saw in the window of Gongjin’s photo studio.

COMMENTS:

Where the first episode was all about introductions and building out the world of Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, this episode focused on the conflicts that can arise someone moves to an unfamiliar place. Though Hye-jin had been excited to start her new life in Gonjin, her dismissive comments about fishy smells and her preference for high-end shampoo showed that she sees the town as a downgrade from Seoul. Gongjin is less a new home and more a launching pad, a temporary place where she’ll earn lots of money before moving on.

Though the townspeople and Hye-jin were at odds, I could understand both sides even if I didn’t necessarily agree. The comments about Chun-jae were pretty rough to hear, and though I felt bad for Chun-jae’s humiliation in front of practically the entire town, she hadn’t meant for her words to be heard by everyone. She may be a city girl at heart who’s not great with the whole social niceties thing, she doesn’t seem to be a bad person. We’ve seen enough of Hye-jin’s character to be able to guess that she’s not really that cold-hearted. She truly cares about helping people, but her attitude and habits aren’t winning her any friends.

There’s also tension between Hye-jin and Doo-shik, and you can see there’s a flicker of attraction on Doo-shik’s part. I think it’s telling that when Hye-jin messed up, Doo-shik looked more disappointed than anything. He made a very incisive point about the sincerity of Hye-jin’s actions when it came to handing out rice cakes. She may have been feeling sorry before, but it was only when we got to see her apologize to Chun-jae that her it felt like she was truly sorry for her comments. (It was a little disappointing that she didn’t apologize at the town hall meeting but maybe I’m just nitpicking.)

Doo-shik and Hye-jin seem like they have very with different goals in life, with Doo-shik wanting to keep things the way they are, and Hye-jin being more about change and making a new path for herself with the clinic. It’ll be interesting to see how the romance develops when you have two opposite personalities. Right now, Doo-shik acts as a bridge between Hye-jin and the townspeople, but I suspect (hope) that Hye-jin will regain her footing and confidence enough that it won’t be necessary for him to always guide her. And maybe she’ll be able to show Doo-shik a few things in the future, rather than being the always being the one who’s making mistakes and needing help.

We also got to learn a lot about Chun-jae and to meet the man behind the comedic relief. However often he brushes things off or smiles as he puts himself down, there’s real pain behind his earnest efforts to be recognized as a singer. That made Hye-jin’s words even more brutal, and I can’t help but wonder if Chun-jae’s repeated some version of her words to himself before. There’s a lot of doubt lingering behind that upbeat facade of his.

We clearly haven’t heard the last of Chun-jae’s old dreams and part of me is hoping that he’ll be able to pull himself out of the past without giving up on his dreams entired. Another part of me is hoping for a romance between Chun-jae and Mi-sun, since she expressed some sympathy for his situation and is newly single. Maybe she can be a catalyst for a change in his wardrobe too, as he’s clearly still stuck sartorially in the 90s and early 2000s. (Then again, is he stuck in the past or leading Gen Z fashion trends?)

By the close of the episode, Hye-jin’s clinic was off to a good start, and initial conflicts have been settled but I suspect that there’s more growth in store for everyone as they learn to compromise and live as neighbors.

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