Alchemy of Souls 2: Episodes 3-4
by alathe
Marriage is a tricky business when you’re living in the shadow of your husband’s ex-fiancee who stabbed him. Our heroine is beginning to learn the true meaning of emotional unavailability — but soon, our hero will be forced to face up to the trauma he’s buried deep.
EPISODES 3-4 WEECAP
Outrage at the Unanimous Assembly! Things very nearly get violent: as the leaders object to the marriage, Wook — with a glare that proclaims, I object to your face — lashes out with magical force. Mu, whose goal in life is to make every situation worse, demands the couple produce a witness to their vows. Here, Bu-yeon, with a flicker of the old Naksu guile, touches her stomach. Isn’t their unborn child witness enough? Wook, rather resembling a man whacked over the head with a mallet, escorts his new wife home.
When Bu-yeon touches Naksu’s sword, she gets the flash of an old memory — and a corresponding flash from the magic lantern. Wook is elated, but also has a bone to pick. What’s with this witness business? Bu-yeon clutches her stomach, with eyes so profoundly sad that it takes them both a minute to remember the baby is purely hypothetical. However, our heroine’s wicked grin suggests they can easily make fiction reality. Turns out, Wook is as swiftly reduced to a sputtering mess by this iteration of Naksu as he was by the last. Advancing, she reels him into an impulsive kiss. Eyes open, Wook accepts this without a flicker of reciprocation.
A moment later, Bu-yeon’s keeled over on the floor: Ho-gyeong has invoked the summoning thread. Bu-yeon sweats out the night in magical agony, determined not to return home to a cage. More painful still is seeing Wook hover outside her door — then turn away. Little does she know, he’s about to be awesome. Marching straight into Jinyowon, he stops Ho-gyeong mid-ritual, crushing the magical thread beneath his sword’s heel. My wife can’t sleep, he tells his mother-in-law, deadpan. Stop calling.
Later, Bu-yeon seeks him out at another of Daeho’s great date destinations, a.k.a. That Forest Where Your Husband Built a Shrine to His Murderous Ex-Wife Who Is Also You. But in all seriousness, it’s beyond moving when she approaches her own memorial — pulling out the blue egg charm that’s been lovingly placed there. Memories flash unbidden. You take the blue one, Wook once said, a lifetime ago. I’ll take the red.
Meanwhile, So-yi is out living her best life: presiding over a Gaema Village gambling den, drowning her debtors… just regular #girlboss things! But the party ends when Mu’s lackey-of-all-trades, Yeom-su, pays a visit. So-yi’s still reliant on him for the medicine she’s been posting to Yul. As such, when he orders her to kidnap Bu-yeon, she’s bound to comply.
Bu-yeon proves less kidnappable than predicted. In fact, she’s endearingly proud of stalking So-yi back to her lair. So-yi, who’s majored in supervillainy since last we saw her, pumps the room full of sedative — but, Bu-yeon, whose first instinct is generally to fling herself into a nearby body of water, leaps into the drowning tub.
Meanwhile, Yul is scouring Gaema Village for So-yi, whom he’s identified as his anonymous medicine supplier. He arrives to find his best friend’s wife triumphantly spitting out water, soaked to the bone. Such is the strength of his embarrassment-induced directional blindness that they sort of just wander in circles for a bit. Bu-yeon is gleeful. She loves a brainless beauty! Yul, most frequent possessor of probably the only brain cell among the Four Seasons, sputters that she doesn’t understand — he’s read so many books, okay. Cue Bu-yeon’s absolutely iconic reply: As you can see, my beauty is unmatched… but I’m not very bright. Yul does what any reasonable person would do under the circumstances — consigning his Possessor of the One Brain Cell badge to the fires of oblivion, he agrees to be foolish in exchange for the privilege of hanging out with her.
Meanwhile, our heroine’s other erstwhile suitor is on the move. Prince Won has heard some worrying things about his mother: granted, the years she spent in captivity would have turned anyone a little funny, but her coping mechanism appears to be terrorizing the palace maids. Her latest trick has been to hand out foundation powder that dries up the skin. The only solution, decides Won, is to flee the palace dressed as a eunuch and investigate Daeho’s makeup stalls!
Here, he encounters a dispirited Bu-yeon, who is pondering how much rouge it would take to make Wook love her. (Little does she know, the last time she wore rouge, he was head over heels.) She’s soon distracted by a turtle the merchant intends to kill for cosmetics. She demands that Won buy it at once. Look — it’s watching him! It already loves him! Besides, as a eunuch, he can’t have children, so he might as well have a turtle. Won, imperiously lifting his chin, announces himself as Go from the royal palace… to Bu-yeon’s blank incomprehension. Royal genealogy wasn’t exactly on the curriculum in the family prison cell.
Elsewhere, Wook is subjected to more of Jin’s cooking — with a side dish of loving emotional intervention. It’s time to talk about Mu-deok. Jin has tried to let Wook grieve in peace, but he hasn’t so much as allowed himself to visit where she died. Before he decides to join her in death, he must face up to what happened. Afterwards, Wook seals himself up in Jeongjingak — waiting, remembering, and steadfastly refusing to cry. His wife waits at home, anxiously anticipating his return.
Eventually, Bu-yeon puts her foot down: on Do-joo’s advice, she decides to find him. However, a visiting Yun-ok has other ideas. She’s bitterly insistent that Wook won’t appreciate guests. Cruelly, she adds that if Bu-yeon wants to understand why no one believed she was Wook’s bride, she ought to channel energy into the jade egg she carries. Then, she’ll see.
The look on Wook’s face when his egg begins to glow splits my heart in two. Breathless and disbelieving, he sprints towards the forest. When Bu-yeon turns to face him, he is crestfallen. She looks at him with anguish. You and I, she says, have liked each other for a long time.
Wook’s reaction is fierce — he seizes her by the wrist and demands she explain. Bu-yeon falters. Her powers must be allowing her to access someone else’s memories through the jade. However, when she moves to replace it, the memorial stones topple, seemingly of their own accord. Humiliated, she scrabbles to stack them back up. Wook tells her to keep the jade. After all, he’s desperate to find out what Naksu was thinking before she died — and callous enough in his grief that he doesn’t care if she knows it. Later, though, after Bu-yeon spends hours hefting rocks and ineffectually kicking her new romantic rival, the stone tower, he recalls himself. Watching from the shadows, he sends fireflies to guide Bu-yeon home.
Elsewhere, Won welcomes the new responsibility of turtle parenthood. (It’s very advanced for its species, he assures Eunuch Oh.) He also plans to sneak out to Chwiseonru and drink cinnamon wine — though, if this has anything to do with the anniversary of a certain assassin’s death, that’s between him and his jaunty new eunuch’s hat. Soon, he encounters Bu-yeon again, teasing her about the turtle’s fate. He has better pets, you know. A peacock! And a white horse! Bu-yeon nods, dejected. She can’t blame someone for rejecting a — a turtle. Not if there’s someone — erm, some other animal in the picture. Won, taking pity, assures her that his new charge, the turtle, is clever and cute. Boy, is the poor guy in for a shock when he learns whose wife he’s been flirting with.
There’s more heartbreak in store for Bu-yeon, who has a masochistic lunch date with Ju-wol in which she learns the gory details of Wook and Naksu’s grand romance. As Ju-wol reminisces about how Naksu always brought Wook honey biscuits, Bu-yeon grabs a handful. Without breaking eye contact, she crams them into her mouth. Later, she runs into Yul, who steers her away from the sleezy attentions of his uncle, Yoon-oh. As they chat about pine pollen snacks, Yul experiences a very pressing sense of deja vu.
Meanwhile, Daeho is ablaze with panic: the anniversary of Naksu’s death fast approaches, and witnesses have reported seeing her return to slaughter a boat of civilians. Gaema Village’s economy is presumably thriving; protective charms are selling like hotcakes amid the furore. The king summons Wook, demanding that he hunt and kill his former lover. Of course, as Mu gloats privately to an uncomfortable Won, it’s all an illusion he orchestrated. Just the prospect of Naksu’s return is enough to put Wook in an agonizing position.
The queen has her own scheme — she’s organizing a banquet for the ladies of Daeho, to distract them from the great Naksu scare. Beforehand, Jin has a stern chat with Wook. Word on the street is that his bride is “Naksu’s” first target. Bu-yeon told Jin she wanted to protect Wook — it’s time for Wook to step up and look after her too. Meanwhile, Do-joo is having an glorious time wrapping Bu-yeon in ribbons and silks. Wook, walking in on his wife in party clothes, seems anything but indifferent. She looks pretty, he says. That is — her outfit does. He examines her hand. She should get Do-joo to trim her nails; Bu-yeon is precious. That is, uh. Her nails are.
Bu-yeon, sensing her advantage, declares her intention to brag about how well they’re getting along. She’ll wear his family crest. She’ll boast — that he lit up a path for her late at night. Wook smiles. Go ahead. Later, Do-joo trims her nails. Wrapping the clippings in cloth, Do-joo hands them over to Jin, who leans in close and tells her she looks beautiful in her party clothes. (Those aren’t actually her party clothes. Points for effort, though.) Afterwards, Jin attends an unlikely meeting with Ho-gyeong. Songrim and Jinyowon have always been at odds. However, right now, their priorities align.
At the banquet, Do-joo announces that Wook has arranged for fireworks to light up the sky for his wife. Smiling, she nudges Bu-yeon in the direction of the gardens. Sure enough — Wook is waiting. Naksu will show up soon, he tells her. I’m sorry, but now you must die.
Naturally, it’s the prelude to a creative scheme! As Bu-yeon watches the dancing, one of the musicians draws out a sword. Stone spreads across her face; she plunges towards Bu-yeon, piercing her through the heart. Cho-yeon rushes towards her sister, and Bu-yeon — dissolves into shadow and light. Onlookers gasp. The real Bu-yeon walks forth. The Bu-yeon who was stabbed was actually Gwiseo, a body double from Jinyowon, created using her nail clippings. Ho-gyeong came through after all.
The soul-shifter, meanwhile, is quickly dispatched by Wook — on Daeho’s patented Bridge of Heartbreak, no less. Naksu is gone for good, Wook tells the king. Perhaps it will bring him peace. As for Wook? Peace is a distant memory. Still, he’s trying. For the first time, he visits the cliff overlooking the lake, looking at where Naksu fell. He breathes, remembers, and still can’t cry.
Bu-yeon can’t stop thinking about how Wook wanted Naksu to rest in peace. Then, she remembers that Wook used the power of the ice stone — wraiths will be swarming him tonight. In his room, Wook sits. Drinks. Remembers. He hears a woman call his name. Hazily, he peers at Naksu, or — no. At Bu-yeon. She cups his cheek and asks if he’s all right. I couldn’t cry, says Wook, as tears trickle down his cheek. It felt like I was abandoning you.
Bu-yeon envelopes him in her arms. Taking him to bed, she holds him as he sleeps against her shoulder. Wook stirs to the feeling of her hand against his cheek. He lifts his head — and kisses her.
Folks. FOLKS. I am breathless with emotion. Every time I think about Wook, I am undone. It hurts because I don’t want him to heal. I want him to be loyal past the brink of death. It hurts because I want him to love Naksu no matter what form she takes. It hurts because I do want him to heal. And he’s beginning to, and that part hurts as well. Lee Jae-wook is doing a stunning job of portraying the kind of grief that eclipses you utterly. Still, he’s beginning to peer into the light. It’s clear when he misses Yul, or when he lets Do-joo take care of him — or when he smiles as he calls Bu-yeon pretty.
As for Bu-yeon — I am in awe. Jung So-min’s sardonic expressions were the stuff of legends, but Go Yoon-jung has introduced pouts to Naksu’s repertoire that could stop your heart. I love her resourcefulness; it’s different to Mu-deok’s, but there’s a gorgeously stubborn streak running through both. I love that she isn’t just a more innocent version of Naksu: she has her own difficult history, and she’s just as unaccustomed as Mu-deok was to being free. She’s learning who she wants to be. And if that person is a woman of unparalleled beauty who happens to be not too bright? I love her all the same. Wook now needs to figure out if he does too — and I’m sure it’ll hurt in all the best ways.
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Tags: Alchemy of Souls 2, Arin, Do Sang-woo, Go Yoon-jung, Jung So-min, Lee Jae-wook, Minhyun, Oh Nara, Shin Seung-ho, Yoo In-soo, Yoo Joon-sang
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26 frabbycrabsis loves KBS Drama Specials
December 20, 2022 at 12:16 AM
I'm a sucker for the "she's my wife" trope.
That "my wife can't sleep" line?
Oooh. Delicious.
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Ally
December 20, 2022 at 5:22 AM
But the kicker is the next line, “As you know, we’re ‘newlyweds’,” meaning, with all the sexual relations we’re having during the day, she needs her rest at night! 😂
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frabbycrabsis loves KBS Drama Specials
December 20, 2022 at 9:52 AM
To say that to her abusive mother's face is peak audacity - that paired with her pregnancy lie makes them a perfectly matched couple 😂
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Warrior Ajumma
December 20, 2022 at 10:41 AM
My mind is dirty. I took it to mean she was interrupting their “witness making”
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Ally
December 20, 2022 at 12:15 PM
Yup yup.
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empressgirl
December 20, 2022 at 3:31 PM
Totally down there squatting with you in the gutters. LOL.
"Like. We need to cook that bun in the oven. Get out of our hair."
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panshel
December 20, 2022 at 5:08 PM
@alathe "My wife can’t sleep" is a Netflix mistranslation. Wook said, "우리 애가 잠을 못 자서요 (Our baby can’t sleep)" meaning the baby in her stomach.
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empressgirl
December 21, 2022 at 11:19 PM
Dang. Lost in Translation. The perils of Netflix's flaky subs. Tsk
@panshel: are you a native Korean reader by any chance?
my gfs and I had to toggle between the English & Chinese subtitles just to wrangle for a better interpretation.
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panshel
December 22, 2022 at 5:35 PM
I'm not a native Korean reader, but I heard him say "ae," and the best thing about Netflix is Korean closed captions.
However, the other interpretation is Wook is calling Bu-yeon "baby" as a term of endearment.
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empressgirl
December 22, 2022 at 10:45 PM
Ah I see, thanks for the explanation!
Wook is quick-witted and opportunistic enough to improvise off BY's lie.
Just like in S1, these scoundrel partners-in-crime are truly a match made in the heavens (that could rain down an ice stone).
27 KdramaAhjumma
December 20, 2022 at 12:44 AM
I didn't think I could love Ep3 and 4 more than I already am until I read your recap, @alathe. Your recap was insightful, snarky and funny - total *chef's kiss*. I didn't expect to like Alchemy's Soul Part 2 this much. I struggled to finish Part 1 - somehow the story didn't get me emotionally and I only watched Part 2 after much prodding by my friend who love Part 1. And thank goodness for that prodding. Looking forward to more of your wonderful recap and of course the heart-wrenching performance by our main leads and friends. And Jin Mu, just go away!
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28 ssandulak
December 20, 2022 at 2:53 AM
Go Yoon Jung is amazing. I was worried about our leading lady switching after season 1, but she’s won me over pretty quickly. The expressions, the whole beautiful but ditzy vibe, and owning them all the way? Love it.
She’s quirky, fun, kind and I’m just here for it. Those eyes and the slight smirk as she stalked towards our ML *fans self* He’s got willpower I would not possess.
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29 darwi
December 20, 2022 at 4:28 AM
Thanks a lot @alathe for this spirited recap.
Thanks to all the beanies for their insights, and particularly @lordcobol for the turtle trivia and all those who pointed various reference that eluded me.
I'm grateful to learn some titbits, and not just swoon over Wook who's so nice to his wife but does not want to tell her for fears she might love him while he believes to be incapable to reciprocate.
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30 Ally
December 20, 2022 at 5:14 AM
If you would have told me last season how effortlessly I would believe the Mu-deok body switch this season, I would have nodded politely, but be cackling like a hyena under my refined exterior! 😂 @alathe, your writing is hilarious; you’ve inspired me!
But I think I finally understand what Wook means about feeling like he was abandoning Naksu in his drunken stupor to Buyeon. His memory and undying love of her was his way of honoring her life and death and if he gives that up, he’s abandoning her to oblivion. That’s deep, guys. I hope he realized that the one lying next to him in that last scene is indeed Buyeon though, because she deserves all the love too! My heart breaks for him though. Dang, what immersive acting. In a recent interview I read, Lee Jae Wook (funny, I just noticed he’s using is real name, kind of) wanted all his scenes with Go Yoon-Jung to be the prettiest and most heart-rending. I think he’s succeeding.
My heart just breaks for Yul too. He looks frailer and skinnier in this rendition of Alchemy. The close up when he says that he wants to know at least what’s killing him before he dies I noticed it the most. His jawline is sharper, his eyes are more sunken. Was he really sick in real life here? (IU was deathly ill dụring one of her scenes in My Ahjusshi and everyone just thought it was stellar makeup and acting.) and I don’t expect him to make out of here alive. Poor boy. His lantern getting extinguished at the Confucian? temple will be a cryfest for me. I’ve always had a soft spot for him.
And I didn’t know Park Jin could be such a flirt—swoony he is not, but it’s still adorable.
On to the next two episodes! I do like this season at least as much as lasts. Bravo for the Hong sisters pulling off what I didn’t really think they could with the body switch. They do have an eye for actors, I’ll give them that.
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ar_arguably romantic
December 20, 2022 at 9:41 AM
With Naksu being so legendary and not seeing her dead body, I feel like he was psycholgically holding onto a thread of hope that she may have survived somehow. After 3 years of no sign of Naksu's life (and the only time Naksu's egg called to him was when Buyeon had touched it), I think he's giving up that hope. I guess he saw that as abandoning her. And it's harder to let go of her since she also had such a hard life and her reputation after death is even worse than was in life.
Yeah they're doing a great job having Yul look ill. I guess the good thing about the split season is that it gives time for the actor to change their physicality. Like take a month to lose weight.
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Gremlich
December 21, 2022 at 2:43 PM
Silly, Bu yeon = Naksu
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31 welh
December 20, 2022 at 5:26 AM
I did not expect a pouty and numb Uk to continue. But the old Mu-deok personality (or BY/Naksu combined personality) came out in these episodes, from her clever lies about a baby witness, to her water tank survival solution to the turtle conversation with the CP. Ko Yoon Jung has been softened to the point to look like JSM; she has gotten her cadence and charm but with her own sly fox smile.
There was a fierce trap volley that resolved very quickly. The ice stone has given Uk superpower insight into Jin Mu’s evil plans. I was right about the previous lantern trick Uk devised to keep BY by his side. Uk’s counterpunch to kill the “fake” Naksu to calm the nation at the Queen’s trap party (to find a replacement body for her soul) then reveal the real BY is alive stunned his enemies. The truce with Jinyowon to use a magical mouse to trick the banquet guests was a great, logical twist. It made the CP wince in the acknowledgement that Jin Mu is not to be trusted and his plans are flawed. Just as quickly, Uk seems to find affection for BY, who has been portrayed as a damsel in distress. Perhaps that is Uk’s ideal type since he also fell for a weak Mu-deok.
I could not tell if he saw the blue light in her eyes when they were lying next to each other. Until then, he was just using dormant power as a tool. As others have pointed out, it is Naksu’s sword that will regain BY/Naksu’s memories and divine powers. But the end game is still in doubt. The Queen and Jin Mu are tampering with the wells to cause the drought so they can use BY’s power to obtain another ice stone to be used to revive the Queen’s body. Reincarnation is the rebirth of a soul in a new body. But resurrection term was used for Uk, meaning the revival or restoration of his life, body and soul. Or is it reanimation, the process of restoring to life or consciousness; to revive a dead body. All three processes are clearly different, but in this world, we still do not know what is happened to create a the new Uk or the current BY. I assume the Queen wants power equal to Uk’s ice stone. In contrast, Alchemy itself is not the answer as it was the medieval forerunner of chemistry, based on the supposed transformation of matter. It was concerned particularly with attempts to convert base metals into gold or to find a universal elixir in a seemingly magical process of transformation, creation, or combination of natural elements into something new.
Since BY now looks like Naksu because her soul is dominant the body must change to conform to it, that means Mu-deok’s body was dominated by BY’s soul. Yet, Naksu’s personality and eye-sight shined through. In this mythology, is it the soul that transforms the body into mage powers or is the the DNA of the body that allows a soul to transmute nature? Or its it both? This is the one nagging question that the writers will never answer.
So-Yi fits too well as the shaman village gambling hall madam. Her encounter with Yul was cold. He is...
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welh
December 20, 2022 at 5:27 AM
...clueless after 3 years about the blood worm in his body. What happened to the great Heo medical family tradition? But it was a way for So-Yi to keep in contact with Yul, even from a distance. Talk about a toxic relationship.
And I have lost all interest in he Dangu-Gu-Cho Yeon relationship. After 3 years, they are both foolish children. At least Park Jin has embraced Maid Kim and put his cluelessness into cooking. And it seems Park Jin will mount a comeback to lead Songrim against Jin Mu. The last two episodes were better because there was ACTION to move the story along.
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32 empressgirl
December 20, 2022 at 5:51 AM
On Death l Dark Forest l Recovered Memories:
1) Love the deeply brooding Dark Forest full of cypress trees.
Did a check on its possible symbolism -- how apt
"The Cypress is depicted as a variation of the tree of life motif, which represents everlasting life. The cypress tree is used in rituals with the dead, but symbolizes the eternal life that comes after death."
That's the theme of alchemy of soul -- in a nutshell (or in a cypress tree).
2) Jade eggs: recovered memories VS spirit channeling:
great plot device, well played. Pretty much a Catch-22 for our dear heroine now.
It is reminiscent of the same ruse in "Moon Embracing the Sun" where the "shaman" Wol mistakenly think her returning memories are actually flashes of psychic insights (as her shaman powers develops). But she actually has NO shaman powers.
This cleverly ties our dear divine priestess into a messy knot -- cos ANY recovered memories would now simply be dismissed by Uk and even herself (or at least doubted in their veracity) as tapping into her divine powers to "read" the memories of others.
Stage cue: enter Blue Light in eyes / Master Lee
At least one of these things must enter into the mix and pull their weight now in favor for Bu-Yeon to be ID as Naksu.
Else our poor lovers (and us viewers) will be denied their reunion for a few more eps!
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Gremlich
December 21, 2022 at 2:27 PM
Glad someone else noticed the blue flash.
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Warrior Ajumma
December 22, 2022 at 1:57 PM
I noticed since the previews, but everybody told me it was my imagination.
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empressgirl
December 23, 2022 at 11:53 PM
No fear, many many Beanies saw the blue flare in her eyes!
and all across the globe, millions of fans squealed in vindication and thanks the heavens.
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33 too_much_tv
December 20, 2022 at 6:50 AM
I always like it when people thank the person doing the recap. This is the second time I've felt like reading the recap brought me back to the pleasure of watching the episode.
It occurs to me that if So-Yi is sending Yul her medicine, she's not taking it. Am I right? Also as we know, he's also not taking it? So no one is taking the medicine and everyone is in pain and just waiting to die from the whatever-blood-evil-thingie?
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zephyr
December 20, 2022 at 7:32 AM
Hmm, I think because she transferred the blood-parasite to him, it no longer affects her! So she doesn't actually need it, but continues pandering to Jin Mu and collecting the medicine so that she can send it to Yul (out of her...love...I guess, for him).
Can't help but think she's gonna play a part in bringing Jin Mu down eventually.
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too_much_tv
December 20, 2022 at 9:47 AM
She transferred it to him and doesn't have it anymore? I feel like the writers of this show expect too much of my ability to follow their magic rules. But I agree that she is biding her time until she can bring down Jin Mu. She really likes Yul also. Even though she is kind of a rotten selfish person, he's her soft spot.
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hmwtx
December 20, 2022 at 10:06 AM
So Yi digs it out of her own arm and puts it into Yul's bleeding wound to strengthen him and save his life (the worm being full of Jin family blood, which is why Jin Mu put it into So Yi in the first place back when she was trying to impersonate Bu Yeon and infiltrate the Jin family home). The Jins are considered strong and have definite power, so her hope was that having their blood in his body (in the worm) it would help him to survive his wound.
It does... but now he has to deal with the effects of the worm itself (which will ultimately try to kill him in gruesome ways) and so he has to take the "medicine" - that is, magical compound produced by Jin Mu/Rat Face to keep the worm under control and not in kill mode.
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too_much_tv
December 20, 2022 at 10:27 AM
Even though I watched that part and read the recap, I somehow forgot major parts of that! Thanks.
hmwtx
December 20, 2022 at 9:41 AM
Yeah, except for that nasty scar on her arm, So Yi no longer has to deal with the effects of the bloodworm she put into Yul. She hands over her medicine - not sure if it's love motivating her? or just conscience, since she's the one who put it in there? is she capable of either of these emotions?
Yul waiting to die from it is what I cannot figure out. He never seemed particularly resigned to early death prior to his infection with the worm, so what has him ready to give up now? The loss of Naksu? Not wanting to spend his life in the Seo fortress? Unable to think of anything fun to do when his friends aren't dragging him into their harebrained schemes? And if you're that ready to end it all... why wait on the worm to melt your insides for you? Why not man up and throw yourself off a cliff or feed yourself to a soul shifter? Who are you waiting for to come and talk you out of it?
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too_much_tv
December 20, 2022 at 9:49 AM
I'm sure he's not killing himself because he thinks that's not a good thing to do. He's an upright kind of a guy. Also, wasn't the bloodworm originally in Cho-Yeon? (Hope I spelled that right!) She didn't even notice it was there. Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds. (As Ralph Waldo Emerson apparently said more than once, each time with a slightly different wording?)
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hmwtx
December 20, 2022 at 10:10 AM
For "consistency" - see "convenient random rules"... the worm is happy to live peacefully in Jin blood. Unfortunately, neither So Yi nor Seo Yul are full of Jin blood - and so the worm goes into attack mode and tries to kill them, unless restrained by Jin Mu's concoction (the "medicine"). It's a mirror of the way that soul shifters go wild if there is conflict between the new soul and the former soul's body... at peace, everything's cool. With conflict comes the attempt to kill/destroy the unwelcome.
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too_much_tv
December 20, 2022 at 10:41 AM
Ooh, that's really helpful! We know the whole reason that Mudeok didn't go wild was that Jin Bu Yeon was harmonious with Naksu. It just goes to show that the real magic is acting.
Bethy80
December 20, 2022 at 1:08 PM
Yeah, with both the blood worm and with soul/body match, my brain has been making equivalents with how a body has a really hard time accepting an organ transplant.
It's super hard to find a match and the mismatch makes the system go crazy...
Warrior Ajumma
December 22, 2022 at 1:54 PM
From what I remember, it’s two separate things. Jin Mu needs to perform sorcery regularly to keep it from devouring its host. The pills were just to alleviate the pain. That’s why So-I who no longer needed the pills, gave them to Yul. She even went back and was confronted by Mama Jin. That’s why we keep saying she should of told someone. I can only guess that Yul ‘s strong energy was able to keep the worm at bay this long, but his strength is running out.
Warrior Ajumma
December 20, 2022 at 10:30 AM
I thought Papa Jin inserted it to feed with the pinprick and then pulled it out when it was gorged, like a leech.
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too_much_tv
December 20, 2022 at 10:50 AM
I remembered seeing that. I guess the part I didn't get was that the worm was out of the previous two characters that had it in their bodies and into poor Yul. I am definitely having a "somebody's mom watching TV" kind of a moment here. (Which is fair, I am somebody's mom.)
hmwtx
December 20, 2022 at 10:59 AM
When he puts it into her arm, he explains to her (and us) that she needs some Jin blood in order to be able to open the door to the secret relics - which would prove she was a Jin family member. As it turns out, she doesn't need the blood because Mu Deok (who actually does have Jin blood, since her body is the real Bu Yeon's) is lurking nearby and the door responds to her instead.
The scene of Papa Jin pulling it out of Cho Yeon is simply so he can hand it over to Jin Mu, to be put into the fake Bu Yeon. Whatever Jin Mu wants, Jin Mu eventually gets from people... although reasonable onlookers like me can't figure out why on earth they all pander to this sociopath.
ophelia7
December 20, 2022 at 7:08 PM
Why is it that So-yi could so easily slice open her arm and let the blood worm swim out into Yul's gaping chest wound, but she's not telling him it's that easily removable? There's no talk about the worm being the thing keeping him alive. It was used as a weird form of "blood transfusion" and now it's decided to squat in pretty Yul's chest cavity. Am I missing something here?
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Elinor
December 20, 2022 at 7:49 PM
There aren't many data points on the worm, but it seems to stay in the location it was placed: Cho-yeon's neck, So-yi's arm, and therefore Yul's chest, where it would be very hard to extract with a simple knife cut since it went into a deep, life-threatening wound. When he's in pain, he clutches his chest, which suggests it's still there near his heart. At the time she put it in him, she clearly (and ignorantly) thought it would help him. So-yi also uses the medication as a way to keep in touch with Yul, even though she doesn't know he's not taking it. She might think he's come to depend on her. I don't think she's capable of loving him but she covets him.
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ophelia7
December 20, 2022 at 8:12 PM
Valid points! But it did swim from her wrist up towards her heart when it was first inserted by JinMu. It somehow travelled back down to her other arm when she needed it out of her and into Yul >.>
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Elinor
December 20, 2022 at 9:36 PM
😂 Good catch! I didn’t notice that, but I did see the constant playing with left and right hands, which is on full display in part 2. Go Yoon-jung is right-handed but she seems dextrous (sorry) with her left: BY/Cho Yeong sword-fights right-handed in part 1, but in part 2 ep. 1 she points the fork at Wook with her left, has a dinner plate she’s about to throw in her right, then pours Wook’s drinks with her left but drinks with her right. In Wook’s opening scene in part 2 he’s fighting the soul-shifter with his sheathed sword in his left hand while giving that bored eye-roll (which I took as a Princess Bride callback), despite LJW being clearly right-handed. BY/Cho Yeong’s tracking bracelet is on her left wrist in the show but on her right in the poster. The ultimate ambidextrous fighter is Yul, who wields a sword in each hand in his part 1 fights, although he’s a righty so far in part 2.
I have no idea whether there's a moral implication to left/right-handedness in Korean culture the way there is in Western Christian culture. And this is why I have to watch every episode 3 times - I get so distracted by even the most minor visual tricks!
DancingEmma
December 20, 2022 at 10:00 PM
@elinor: Different omens in different cultures equally fascinate and exacerbate me. The association of left handedness with deviancy and an evil nature has given us ‘sinistra’ for the left and the persecution of such individuals in the middle ages in Europe. I wonder if the depiction of twins - as an outrage justifying infanticide - among the Joseon royalty is a KDrama invention or based on real superstitions.
empressgirl
December 21, 2022 at 11:25 PM
"There aren't many data points on the worm"
---I guffawed. That was unexpected comedy.
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34 Bethy80
December 20, 2022 at 1:04 PM
Well, well, well, I was deeply emotionally affected by many moments in these episodes and thus irritations with various characters seem small...
I was so glad to see Park Jin take on his wise, councillor role with the younger generation this episode, it suits him. A direct talk about Naksu needed to be had and I was so glad he broached the subject with Uk.
I can understand where Uk is coming from though. Nothing about Naksu's final actions seems real to him, he wasn't there to see a lot of events for himself. When you don't have a body to mourn, it is actually really really difficult to for humans to find closure. Those who have lost family members in war zones or plane crashes or due to dictators stealing their loved ones in the night... those people search for their families' remains for years and years. It's a really important part of closure. Uk's been living a nightmare since being resurrected, deeply traumatised on sooooo many levels, literally haunted (how much more alcohol numbing can his liver take?). I have no impatience for any frozen or inconsistent or closed off behaviour he shows. I can see him melting as soon as Bu-Yeon comes into his monotonous life of monster hunting but he is also fighting it. He is naturally kind but he also doesn't want to be kind to Bu-Yeon because he knows on a sub-conscious level that being kind to her is just the beginning...
I was so hoping for Yul's family to be less crappy. Both the Queen and his uncle are the worst. The Queen got herself involved with soul-swapping in the first place because she wanted a new, better-looking body right? (how exactly did she think that was going to go undetected anyway?) And now she is so miserable about her appearance that she is lashing out at servants and helping plot murders just so she can get her hands on another ice stone.
(How much of this weakness in character has been exacerbated by Jin Mu do you think?)
And Uncle Seo is soooo petty and you can tell he will rationalise loads of cruel things to get any influence or position in the world.
I cheered so hard for Yul when he quickly saw what was happening when his uncle "called" for Bu-Yeon to come to him and shut it down in a way no one could fault.
Yul doesn't know what has been killing him but it seems he is quite clear he doesn't want to talk about it. For some reason it doesn't feel to me like he is avoiding the truth or seeking death (death would probably be preferable to the intense pain). I wondered if he has already had a magical "check up" and been told there is nothing anyone can do (not necessarily an accurate diagnosis of course). He feels like someone who has gotten a terminal diagnosis and is simply trying to live out his days as best he can without pity, maybe even returning to say goodbye to his friends. But that reserve which has always been part of his nature is not helpful in this situation. Please let there be a way to save him, or at least...
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Bethy80
December 20, 2022 at 1:05 PM
or at least something meaningful about this horrible situation in his last days.... please show, I love Yul.
I think Won's real struggle is with his pride. He doesn't like looking stupid or weak or wrong and he has allowed stuff to slide that he knows deep down he shouldn't. But he also can't respect himself deep down either which he also hates. Time for his denial to end and for him to face up to the real consequences of his inaction and willful blindness. He got kinda cornered into King's Star holder but that lie can't continue.
Master Lee continues to be an enigma (which is exactly how I felt about him last season) although more distant seeming since he has not had a lot of scenes and none with our main younger generation characters. He smiled when he talked about Naksu/Bu-Yeon though and said he 1) saved her life 2) woke her up and 3) erased that which is no longer necessary. Difficult to know exactly where he stands or what he is trying to accomplish. My main feeling is that he is very very carefully trying to manoeuvre a way through Uk's destiny/Ice Stone return/repeat of past with as few people dying as possible but maybe that is just wishful thinking.
Last question for now, How accurate is Bu-Yeon's sensing of energy? We know that she can sense people's presence and talks about their nature or the character of their aura. Can she be deceived into thinking a person with bad intentions is a good guy? Is she accurate in her estimation of people? I don't think she's a walking lie detector and she certainly didn't flinch at the Queen who is so clearly rotten to the core... but I wonder how this ability will develop...
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hmwtx
December 20, 2022 at 1:43 PM
"Last question for now, How accurate is Bu-Yeon's sensing of energy? We know that she can sense people's presence and talks about their nature or the character of their aura. Can she be deceived into thinking a person with bad intentions is a good guy? Is she accurate in her estimation of people? I don't think she's a walking lie detector and she certainly didn't flinch at the Queen who is so clearly rotten to the core... but I wonder how this ability will develop..."
These are interesting points - I am not sure about the extent of her powers, but I know that Bu Yeon has always been remembered as more powerful than other family members going back generations... Remember, we still don't know who her actual father was, or if that is even relevant or important - although details matter in the show's world. Have to also consider that while she is Bu Yeon when using powers, she is also Naksu... who would be careful about revealing what she knew about a person if it was not advantageous to her to do so. I expect once her Naksu qualities start to surface (and I assume it is only a matter of time before that happens)... she'll be less likely to let others know she can see them or see other people hiding around the corner, or whatever.
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Bethy80
December 20, 2022 at 11:30 PM
I am remembering a line from near the end of Season 1 but I could be remembering it incorrectly...
Bu-Yeon's actual father was stated to be Daddy Jin (it actually made it extra painful because he had been resentful of a daughter who was indeed his). And they said she had the powers of both the priestesses in her mum's Jin line and the shamans in her father's line which is why she was so powerful at such an early age.
Who said that? Am I remembering correctly?...
But either way, once blended with Naksu (which I believe she still is, we've still got a twin soul situation here or some permanent alchemy that has fused them) all bets are off as to what this "new" Bu-Yeon can actually do.
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empressgirl
December 21, 2022 at 12:13 AM
Yup - you remembered right. She hit the lottery in both ends of the gene pool LOL.
To bastardize Star Wars, I really don't know how we can "bring balance to the Force" here in S2.
Premise of AoS universe: The emergence of the Ice Stone (read: Chaos) will also herald the emergence of someone born under the King's Star to restrain it.
BUT what happens when BOTH the ice stone & the king's star are merged in one and same person? What gives?
His balance to the Force is now Naksu-BY
empressgirl
December 21, 2022 at 12:10 AM
To be fair, our heroine has already demonstrated she can play her cards close to her heart when she needs to.
Case in point: First time she met Seo Yul she was about to read his energy when her face darkened and she paused, then lightly deflected the topic to how great it was to have childhood friends.
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empressgirl
December 21, 2022 at 12:33 AM
Comment was deleted
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hmwtx
December 20, 2022 at 1:32 PM
"The Queen got herself involved with soul-swapping in the first place because she wanted a new, better-looking body right? (how exactly did she think that was going to go undetected anyway?) And now she is so miserable about her appearance that she is lashing out at servants and helping plot murders just so she can get her hands on another ice stone."
No, I think the actual Queen (as in, Won's actual mom) was the victim here. Shaman Choi took up her body in a power move, trying to take over the royal family with the help of Rat Face Jin Mu, who is always more than happy to help anyone making a power grab, so he can pick up any leftovers. Real Queen is P**SED about it, as one naturally would be, and is lashing out in sort of evil ways because, after all, she is trapped in Choi's original rotten-evil body; it's a definite downgrade from her own/original body which was destroyed. I figure Real Queen is looking for a way to escape her current physical reality, which is why she is seeking an ice stone so she can force a body-swap on someone younger and prettier.
But like all other rotting, nasty threads in this huge convoluted story, it leads back to Jin Mu.
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ophelia7
December 20, 2022 at 3:44 PM
The queen did want a new, younger body like what @Bethy80 said, but was tricked into swapping bodies with Shaman Choi instead, which was what landed her into this whole mess.
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Bethy80
December 20, 2022 at 11:38 PM
I remember they said Queen Seo got mixed up with Shaman Choi (and the slime that in Jin Mu) originally because of her vanity.
When Shaman Choi was cornered at the end of Season 1 she basically unleased on everybody, pointing out how none of them were on the moral high ground or had the right to judge her. She said the Queen came to her and was then tricked.
Not that vanity is necessarily some huge character flaw but I think that was the chink that Jin Mu used to exploit and it is still what he is exploiting now.
It also sounds like she still has to absorb energy so as not to go mad because she is still a soul-shifter. And that totally sucks. But there is no excuse for beating maids, threatening them with soul-shifting, plotting murder so that you can get an ice stone and rip someone else out of their body...
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too_much_tv
December 22, 2022 at 6:56 AM
I know I have lost all credibility because I (still) don't get the blood worm thing, but...is this queen Won's mom? Or is she his stepmother? They seem indifferent to one another. Or maybe she's just a really bad mom.
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hmwtx
December 22, 2022 at 8:48 AM
Either is possible, but also keep in mind that - given that this is a quasi-historical show - even if she is his actual mother, it is likely he grew up being cared for by staff rather than her, and as a result the mother-son bond is not necessarily as strong as we might expect.
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empressgirl
December 22, 2022 at 9:35 PM
This current Queen is not his birth mother (CP Won explicitly stated that fact).
But she is not necessarily his stepmother (cos step mum implied a death or divorce. The king just probably has many many concubines as alluded to by CP Won, cos he was obsessed with breeding an heir born under the King's Star).
Blood worm:
1) It was sent into Cho-Yeon to be engorged on her Jin blood, then retracted by father to be inserted in So-Yi by Jin-Mu.
2) So-Yi inadvertently rid herself of it when she tried to save Yul who needed a blood transfusion
3) So now it is in the 2nd host -- Seo Yul and eating him up.
The meds was to prevent the worm from eating their insides and killing the host.
Someone earlier made a very neat analogy to organ transplant & the rejection of an alien by host.
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35 Jingbee
December 20, 2022 at 3:17 PM
It seems I am right in just reading the weecap. Sounds like this became more of a romcom which is not my favorite genre. The comments section is very entertaining though. Fan interpretation and analysis are complex and nuanced, so I hope the Hong sisters are taking notes.
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36 Gremlich
December 20, 2022 at 3:22 PM
Hilarious:
"Daeho’s great date destinations, a.k.a. That Forest Where Your Husband Built a Shrine to His Murderous Ex-Wife Who Is Also You."
You win the internet. Also, Jin Mu must die...
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empressgirl
December 20, 2022 at 3:35 PM
And also can I just say: I LURVE the "I am jealous of myself" trope?
Cue to: BY petulantly kicking a fallen stone from the cairn. "He should have told me you are the first wife, and I am just the second wife!"
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37 FanKDrama
December 20, 2022 at 4:18 PM
I love these summaries. They really help me when I am confused about things. They also explain Korean culture (e.g. frog references) that I wouldn't normally get.
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38 DancingEmma
December 20, 2022 at 9:50 PM
I have a bad cold and have been at home watching “Alchemy of Souls’ Part 1 eps under my favourite soft woolen NZ made blanket (the climate change and La Niña are messing with our summer and in this instance, I don’t mind at all). @elinor had the great idea to watch Part 1 again before Part 2 rolled out. There are so many things I had either not noticed or forgotten.
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DancingEmma
December 20, 2022 at 10:46 PM
Watching Naksu in the early eps of Part 1 makes it even more obvious how much soft filtering has been used on Goo Yunjung in Part 2.
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DancingEmma
December 20, 2022 at 11:57 PM
Like Mudeokie poisoned Uk! How did I forget that? It is a bit shocking to see that.
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DancingEmma
December 21, 2022 at 12:19 AM
And Park Jin tortured Mudeokie! This is awful. How could I have forgotten all these? A reminder not to multitask while watching dramas!
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empressgirl
December 21, 2022 at 12:30 AM
I actually wanna give a different take to the soft filtering used on GYJ.
By Ep 3 it was absolutely clear the tonality and treatment of her "unmatched beauty" (straight from the horse's mouth here) is parodic and tongue-in-cheek which is totally keeping with the spirit of AoS.
Her "Dumb Friends" scene with Yul was the proof text (the soft filter lens got turned off in her punchline: "But I am not the brightest.") It was great comic deflation.
1) She has to keep selling her "unmatched beauty" cos she was desperate to hustle JU for a "out of jail" proposal card. Her divine powers are non-existent then.
2) It actually nicely parallels the old Naksu in S1.
In S2, BY brags that "heads will turn where ever I go" while in S1, Naksu flaunts that "heads will drop where ever I go."
3) Which leads me to my next point: the old Naksu was also a master adept at hyping herself as she created a fearsome reputation that preceded her.
Her moment of comic deflation also came round about Ep3 I think: she was describing her legendary prowess with hallucinated mastery by the Lake cliff, then nearly keeled over hyperventilating and with leg CRAMPS LOL.
We know Naksu was formidable as a mage, but there was also hype for sure (late in the game we found she was actually cleaning up all the victim soul-shifters who were sent into the bodies of the powerful mages who have discarded their old shells. So she wasn't exactly killing the most powerful mages but their hapless victims).
So yes, AOS is telling us not to take this too seriously. It's great marketing by both Naksus. LOL
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DancingEmma
December 21, 2022 at 12:59 AM
I enjoy your takes. A lot.
And, I appreciate that the over-used filtering was likely done with a pretext.
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empressgirl
December 22, 2022 at 9:42 PM
Thanks, and hope you are mending well from your bad cold! (but re-binging on S1 is surely a treat LOL)
Can't wait for Ep 5 tomorrow.
In the meanwhile, Beanies - enjoy this hilarious summary:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haWIW4J2VHg
Their AOS episodic summaries are a SCREAM!
purplefall
December 22, 2022 at 8:20 PM
That's absolutely hilarious! Thanks for sharing that. This show leaves lots of easter eggs for us to collect for sure :D
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39 empressgirl
December 21, 2022 at 2:33 AM
Oh oh oh! Easter egg: found another cute inversion lol.
@alathe: Bu-yeon clutches her stomach, with eyes so profoundly sad that it takes them both a minute to remember the baby is purely hypothetical. However, our heroine’s wicked grin suggests they can easily make fiction reality. Turns out, Wook is as swiftly reduced to a sputtering mess by this iteration of Naksu as he was by the last.
Callback to: S1E3 - A gleeful Naksu tears off Uk's robes, and clutches his stomach - bent on sensing the torrent of energy. A startled and mistaken Uk frantically fights off her pawing hands, and sputters: "When I brought you home, it was NOT for this!"
That was a scream LOL
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Gremlich
December 21, 2022 at 2:17 PM
Bu-yeon = cheeky monkey
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40 Snow Flower
December 21, 2022 at 6:16 AM
Great recap and comments! I just want to add that I can imagine Park Jin having his own cooking show: The Philosopher Chef, dishing life advice and noodles!
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41 azou86
December 21, 2022 at 11:41 AM
I thought Park Jin would have recognized Naksu. They fought against each other in S1.
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panshel
December 22, 2022 at 6:08 PM
As should Yul and Heo Yeom who examined Naksu’s body at Jeongjingak, and Wook, Dang-gu, and the people of Daeho who all saw her body before it was publicly burned.
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kdramacurious
December 23, 2022 at 6:08 AM
Jin Mu sorta explains it in Episode 3, when he says that Buyeon's face may look like Naksu, but her body and build are different, with Buyeon apparently being shorter.
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42 Mirana
December 22, 2022 at 8:25 AM
Thank you for the wonderful recap.
This to me is everything I feel too - "Every time I think about Wook, I am undone. It hurts because I don’t want him to heal. I want him to be loyal past the brink of death. It hurts because I want him to love Naksu no matter what form she takes."
So I really want BY to recover her memories and Uk to know it's Naksu the one he loved all along. While I am happy for him to know too what Naksu could have been had it not been for her tragic life, and while we know it's her all along - it really isn't. I want there to be a resolution to the Uk/Naksu of S1. I want Uk to know what indeed Naksu felt as she was dying. That she never once felt he abandoned her. That she loved him and would never have harmed him.
Remember when MuDeok told Ju-Wol that she was changing her fate and she now wants to protect the ones she loves, that's also what BY said. She will always stand at this distance and protect him. I really wish Uk knows it's her soon and she recovers part of her memories. This whole thing is killing me.
On another note - I hate that in the 3yrs, they did not follow the thread of sorcery. Jang Uk was studying it in the library while trapped. Park Jin discussing it with Jin mom and Heo in the context of Naksu dad running wild. Master Lee knew MuDeok would never have ran wild - why no investigation? And even now that soul shifters are running wild left and right. Why is this not being thought about? Then Uk would have at least thought MuDeok was under sorcery when she killed him.
Anyway, too little episodes in S2. I feel everything a little rushed. What i loved in S1 was the slowburn of their love. Here it's the opposite and I'm in a bit of disbelief how Uk could melt so fast, no matter how pretty as he is immune to prettiness...unless he could somehow know BY is Naksu.
Anyway, looking forward to the next 6 episodes and to your recaps as well. Thanks!
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welh
December 23, 2022 at 7:37 AM
"So I really want BY to recover her memories and Uk to know it's Naksu the one he loved all along."
I don't know if Uk really knows. He remembers Mudeok's face (which was BY's original as it was dominant when she took Naksu's soul) and part of Naksu's personality. Now that BY's soul is allegedly gone, it is Naksu's image he sees in BY.
Would it not be interesting if BY was so shy as a blind girl that she captured Naksu's energy in order to become more attractive towards Uk?
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Mirana
December 23, 2022 at 12:58 PM
I meant that Uk should know by the end of the show that this BY he met now is the old Mudeok/Naksu he knew and fell in love with irrespective of her face or what she looks like now.
It's also clear that Uk would not be attracted to a shy girl (nor was BY ever shy when she was a blind girl) as why he (and all the men in Daeho) fell in love with Mudeok/Naksu was because of her fearless and strong personality. So I miss that side of Naksu. The strong and intelligent person she was presented as at the beginning of the series. I cannot bear that she is now this "unmatchable beauty who is not very bright". It's a little insulting. To Naksu - because she was very bright in all series one. To Uk and to Crown Prince and to Yul - who all loved her bright and resourceful personality. And to us -viewers, who suddenly now have to contend with a female protaganist who is dumb. Of course - she's not meant to be and this is why I'm hoping she gets her memories back soon.
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43 Cyberglich
December 23, 2022 at 9:34 AM
Thank you Alathe. I love your recap and your insight into the characters. Even after I watched the show and read other recaps. Yours is the best. I am heartbroken for BY because of Uk callousness and indifferent toward her. But Uk is too sad to see who BY really is. The new Naksu still has that resourceful, stubbornness and daring trait even when she is not burden with the bloodied history of the shadow assassin. Yul is even more beautiful in the season 2, not physically but in heart and brain. Yul's love is the purest.
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44 Annie Deo
December 26, 2022 at 6:50 AM
where she's pampered...and she's mad he isn't wooing her or swooning at her feet? He's done everything for her and while it may be out of an ulterior motive, she came up with the idea for her own benefit too, but then she's caught feelings and HE's a jerk? Hmm
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45 Annie Deo
December 26, 2022 at 6:55 AM
I'm enjoying the show aside from screaming every time Jin Mu or So-I show up, but the one thing that bothers me with the new BY/Naksu/MD & Jang Uk dynamic is how needy and petulant she is that he doesn't love her or want to spend time with her. I get it's not pleasant having him avoid her and that would make her insecure, but she seems ungrateful? She was locked in a room for 3 years and about to be married against her will to be turned into a brood mare, Jang Uk saved her, is married or will marry her, giving her his wealth and privilege and a home where she's pampered...and she's mad he isn't wooing her or swooning at her feet? He's done everything for her and while it may be out of an ulterior motive, she came up with the idea for her own benefit too, but then she's caught feelings and HE's a jerk? Hmm
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