In the Soop: Friendcation: Episode 2

by chocolatte

I can’t be the only one who spent most of this episode with my hands clutched at my heart, dying of the cuteness and hilarity unleashed upon us by the now-complete Wooga Squad, right? This week had triple the amount of everything I loved about the first episode – the camaraderie, the sweetness, the teasing, the stories – and I’m one happy gal.

EPISODE 2 WEECAP

Woo-shik arrives in Goseung late that first night, bringing with him three suitcases (V: “Are you immigrating somewhere?”). Before he can even get his bearings, Woo-shik is ushered into his matching sweats, and Seo-joon has the honor of writing Woo-shik’s new nickname – “Rom-com King” – onto his back.

The next morning, we see Hyung-shik enter the house, bringing the Wooga Squad back to its full strength. Woo-shik wakes up to greet him, and the two enjoy some steamed buns outside before they head in to wake the others. Even half asleep, the rest of the group welcomes Hyung-shik happily, and it’s all very sweet.

Since they’re on vacation, everyone decides to indulge in another hour of sleep — but not without some requisite cuddling in bed beforehand.

Later, Seo-joon wakes up first to prepare breakfast for the group. When I see him in the kitchen, quietly taking responsibility for feeding everyone, it feels like I’m watching one of his K-drama characters – swoon! By the reactions we see from the others when they sit down to breakfast, I’m pretty sure the guys agree with me.

The big agenda item for the day is a trip out to the ocean for some deep sea fishing. There’s a lot of excited chatter as they get ready and make their way to the port. One very important detail that’s revealed in the car ride over – the squad has friendship rings! How cute is that?

It looks to be a beautiful, cold day on the water, and according to the boat captain, there’s a lot of fish to be caught. Now that the guys are actually on the boat, some of their initial excitement turn into nerves, particularly for Peakboy and Woo-shik.

As the boat gets further out into sea, it looks like their concern is well-warranted – it’s rough out there! The water is violently choppy, causing the boys to flop around the cabin (is that the right term? I know nothing about boats).

Finally, it’s time to fish. Despite the boat rocking back and forth continuously, the outing is successful, with each member catching plenty of halibut.

Back at the rental, everyone enjoys the fruits of their labor and stuffs their faces with fresh sashimi. After a short nap to recharge themselves, they decide to check out the pool.

Peakboy is the first to get ready… and he’s in a wetsuit. LOL.

Once in the pool, Woo-shik suggests a contest to see who can hold their breath underwater the longest. While most of the guys just dip the lower half of their faces into the water, for some reason Peakboy is face down, his entire upper body floating in the water. The contest comes to a quick end when the others can’t stop themselves from bursting into laughter at the sight.

Before we know it, it’s time to eat again. They’ve decided to grill tonight, and everyone’s especially looking forward to Woo-shik’s contribution: beer can chicken.

The crew gathers around Woo-shik to watch him carefully prep the dish, which includes sitting and posing the chicken artfully on top of a beer can. The look of wonder on the guys’ faces is adorable – they’re just so curious and eager to learn from one another.

The chicken takes a few hours to cook, but everything else is ready for dinner. As they eat, they talk about how happy and appreciative they all are to have this time to relax together.

Their conversation gives us more of the backstory on how the five became the Wooga Squad. The common denominator in the group is Seo-joon, who introduced the rest of the guys to each other. He reminds them that online gaming is how they first became friendly, and Woo-shik laughs about how awkward it was when they met each other in real life.

This leads to talk about first impressions within the group – for example, Peakboy and Woo-shik claim they were so intimidated by Hyung-shik’s handsomeness that they had a hard time talking to him in the beginning. But in between the jokes and the laughter, there’s also plenty of talk about when they found each other to be “cool” and how much they admire and respect each other, both as professionals and as people.

The guys close out their outdoor dinner with sparklers and a beautiful fire, and I’m still sitting here, grinning like a fool.

It’s so easy to see what makes each of the Wooga Squad so loveable in this episode, particularly our two newest arrivals. I’m not surprised at all that Hyung-shik was dubbed as the “mom” of the group – he’s so sweet, from the way he uses terms of endearment for his friends to the way he’s so quick to laugh (I wonder what his nickname will be, as he’s the only one without one for now). Woo-shik’s a little goofy and a lot corny, and his facial expressions and reaction shots are just adorable.

The best moments continue to be the random, one-off conversations between the guys and the jokes they lob at one another. From bonding over the fact that all of them have monolids, to embarrassing Woo-shik by saying they’re all going to watch Our Beloved Summer together, to imitating the beer can chicken’s pose each time they check on the dish – I love it all. It makes me want to be a fly on the wall for every single one of their friendcations from here on out – or at least plead for a second season of In the Soop with this crew.

 
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