Connection: Episodes 11-12

25 June 30, 2024June 30, 2024

by solstices

The identity of the enigmatic Doctor is unveiled at last, yet the reveal offers little catharsis to our long-tormented hero. Meanwhile, latent fissures amidst the trio of schemers portend the fracturing of their avaricious alliance, all while our tenacious investigators’ astute deductions hit closer and closer to home.

EPISODES 11-12

In the wake of Tae-jin’s outburst, Jae-kyung cuts right through Yoon-jin’s mortified sulking to the heart of the matter. Tae-jin and Joon-seo had opened a foreign cryptocurrency account together, splitting the password because they couldn’t trust each other. Initially, Joon-seo had joined the drug operation to quickly amass money for his daughter’s medical treatment, but after he’d finally earned enough, the ambitious Tae-jin had reneged on his promise to cease the operation. Without Tae-jin’s half of the password, Joon-seo hadn’t been able to withdraw a single cent.

Joo-song sums up the process with an adorable doodle — the pharmacist Lee Myung-guk manufactured the lemon meth pills, which Joon-seo delivered to the addicted Jong-soo. Tae-jin, who keeps his cards close to the vest, is likely manipulating the scheme from the shadows. But one question remains: now that Myung-guk and Joon-seo are dead, who has taken over their roles?

As it turns out, the answer has been right under our noses all along. Remember how Myung-guk’s research journals revealed his regularly scheduled meetings with Sang-eui? That’s right — Sang-eui is our current Doctor. The fugitive drug dealer Jin-wook sends him Jae-kyung’s gun and a USB in exchange for an escape boat to China, and as a final parting, Sang-eui disconnects the voice changer and reveals his identity.

Except he claims he’s Tae-jin, convincing Jin-wook with anecdotes only Tae-jin would know. Afterwards, Sang-eui sends a note with a location and time alongside Jae-kyung’s lemon meth delivery, informing our detective of the port Jin-wook will be escaping from in two days’ time. Ah, so he plans to have Jin-wook implicate Tae-jin when interrogated?

As usual, our devious trio gathers in their private hideout, where Jong-soo denigrates a meek Sang-eui. Then they send Sang-eui out to discuss matters in private, unaware that Sang-eui’s phone is recording audio in the coat he left behind. Tae-jin criticizes Chi-hyun and Jong-soo for rashly killing Myung-guk, but in turn, Jong-soo flares up at Tae-jin for cementing plans on his own and ordering them around. Unfazed, Tae-jin points out that Yoon-ho is too much of a liability, insinuating that he ought to be eliminated entirely.

Sang-eui calls Yoon-ho with an audio clip of Tae-jin’s proclamation, then follows it up with a message that the proof of Tae-jin murdering Joon-seo is somewhere within Joon-seo’s house. Yoon-ho beelines straight there, and guilelessly, Ji-yeon opens the door. Recounting how Joon-seo had always been there for him, Yoon-ho works himself up into a seething agitation, accusing Ji-yeon of betraying her husband and killing him in cold blood with Tae-jin.

Meanwhile, Yoon-ho’s beleaguered wife gives up his location to Jae-kyung, allowing the police to track him down via phone signal. By the time Jae-kyung’s squad arrives, Ji-yeon lies battered — but still breathing — amidst a thoroughly ransacked apartment. Yoon-ho hadn’t finished her off despite having ample opportunity to; murder had not been his motive.

While on the run, Yoon-ho calls Jong-soo to plead for help, disparaging Tae-jin and Chi-hyun all the while — not realizing Jong-soo has put him on speaker, allowing the insulted pair to hear every word. Now that it’s all out in the open, Tae-jin admits to his affair, but denies having a hand in Joon-seo’s death. Amidst the brewing suspicion, Tae-jin points out that this is exactly what Joon-seo intended — to have them all turn on one another. Do they really intend to leave a loose cannon like Yoon-ho to his own devices?

The next morning, Yoon-ho anxiously awaits his rescue car deep in the woods. Unsurprisingly, he ends up chloroformed by Chi-hyun, regaining consciousness next to a freshly-dug grave. Still, Chi-hyun’s conscience halts him in his tracks. Telling Yoon-ho to never show his face around them again, Chi-hyun spares his life. However, as Chi-hyun leaves, Yoon-ho shouts their high school student creed — and the next thing we see is Chi-hyun tossing Yoon-ho’s bloody sneaker aside.

Elsewhere, Jae-kyung and Yoon-jin tail Sang-eui to a restaurant, where they realize he’s meeting Tae-jin. Thanks to Yoon-jin’s handy listening device, they overhear Tae-jin catching Yoon-ho recording their conversation yet again. Surprisingly, Tae-jin doesn’t press the issue beyond a stern warning, and even more unexpectedly, Sang-eui passes Jin-wook’s USB to him.

After the meal, Jae-kyung and Yoon-jin pile into Sang-eui’s car to interrogate him about the lemon meth scheme. Instead of answering, Sang-eui drives them both to the meth lab within the freezer storage. Nonchalantly, Sang-eui admits he’s the one who got Jae-kyung hooked on the drug — simply because he dislikes him.

Bitterly, Sang-eui recounts how Joon-seo used to be his one and only friend, until Joon-seo grew closer to the Audiophile club and drifted apart from him. How dare Jae-kyung refuse to forgive Joon-seo, turning him away for over a decade? Sang-eui simply can’t comprehend why Joon-seo left the insurance money to Jae-kyung and Yoon-jin, when he’d been the only one who stayed devoted to Joon-seo all these years.

Of course, Sang-eui’s plan had been far from perfect. Things had gone awry when Jae-kyung failed to capture Jin-wook and trace the drug distribution chain, causing the situation to spiral out of control. Still, Sang-eui begs them to hold off on arresting him so he can trip Tae-jin up and avenge Joon-seo. He’s convinced Tae-jin is Joon-seo’s murderer, and he needs to secure decisive evidence that will put Tae-jin behind bars.

Alas, it seems time may be of the essence. The tail that Chi-hyun put on Tae-jin, following Jong-soo’s orders, reports back to him with photos of Jae-kyung and Yoon-jin in Sang-eui’s car. Elsewhere, deep in the woods, Jae-kyung and his squad uncover Yoon-ho’s corpse.

A flashback to high school reveals Joon-seo hadn’t voluntarily taken the bullies’ side; his dad had been threatened by none other than Jong-soo’s father. Only Jae-kyung had been transferred out, and Tae-jin smoothed over the issue by suggesting they accept Joon-seo back into their fold — until Sang-eui pointed out that they needed to cut Joon-seo off from Yoon-jin, too. Following that, Yoon-jin found Joon-seo smashing up the audiophile club room. Then he broke up with her in an aggrieved rage, all while Sang-eui watched smugly from the shadows.

Sang-eui’s duplicitous nature was on full display this week, which makes me suspect that there’s more behind his alleged loyalty to Joon-seo — especially since he’d been present the day Kyung-tae’s house burned to the ground. Did Tae-jin pressure him into taking over the role of the Doctor, or did Sang-eui volunteer with ulterior motives? I have a feeling we’re nowhere near the full truth of the matter, and the twists are only going to get more shocking the closer we draw to the end.

On that note, I can’t help but notice the parallels between Yoon-ho and Sang-eui, especially given their similar trajectories. Yoon-ho clings onto and ingratiates himself with anyone who will let him into their fold, yet is quick to lash out when slighted. Sang-eui — if you believe his words — harbors a profound faithfulness to Joon-seo, and he strikes back not for his own sake, but on Joon-seo’s behalf. Both men feel their emotions viscerally, yet stifle themselves to blend in until it all comes spilling over — and if Yoon-ho is any indication, Sang-eui may very well be digging his own grave one misstep at a time.

Amidst the burgeoning strife between Tae-jin and Chairman Won, who are aware of each other’s dirty dealings, Jong-soo has finally succeeded in securing a hefty investment for the redevelopment project — but as the saying goes, the higher one rises, the harder one falls. (Plus I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing them get decked, because Yoon-jin’s payback smack to Tae-jin’s face this week was gratifying.)

As for our detective, his addiction is drawing near to its breaking point. Severe withdrawal symptoms had him incapacitated several times this week, to the point Yoon-jin was left with no choice but to feed him one lemon meth pill. Worse yet, the officers that scorn him are starting to catch on. Will Jae-kyung figure out yet another alternative, or will he succumb worse than he already has? In the meantime, I’m anticipating even more tense stand-offs between Jae-kyung and the antagonists, because the tension in his confrontation scene with Tae-jin was positively electric, and there’s certainly no harm in letting these actors flex their acting chops again.

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1 Nefret

June 30, 2024 at 11:24 PM

Considering that Ji Sung's character is on drugs and has only had two hours of sleep, he still looks comparatively fresh. For me, it's enough that I feel like a zombie after only 6 hours of sleep, the circles under my eyes are getting darker and darker.

I didn't find the Doctor's motive for getting JJK addicted and wanting to get rid of his school friends completely convincing. If I'd been responsible for the script, the reason would have been that he's fed up with always being in the second or even third row and wants to show everyone for once. JJK would just be a tool to expose the others.

Of course, it was clear that JJK's addiction would be exposed at some point, but I was hoping that his team would discover this. No idea how it will all end for him.

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Sunnyboo ☀️🥰

July 1, 2024 at 2:35 AM

Lol, I know, right? And he still has energy to run and fight! I worry for how tough it will get for him now that the crimes team has some idea of his addiction.

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2 Bunny Sonaki

July 1, 2024 at 1:43 AM

Thank you @solstices for this beautiful recap. I agree with you that we might be up for more reveals next week. Which is a good thing as the drama needs to keep its momentum till the last moment. Best of all it doesn't feel like the drama is dragging the mystery out but peeling it layer after layer until we see the whole thing playing out. The more things get revealed, the more curious I get about this well-woven connection entangling everyone together.

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3 Sunnyboo ☀️🥰

July 1, 2024 at 2:24 AM

Wonderful recap. Thank you. There was a lot happening in these episodes! I did not believe a word Sang-eui was saying. I found him incredibly annoying in that scene and his reasoning for getting Jae-kyung addicted is so twisted. He gets no sympathy from me.

Also, something I've been thinking about: is three days enough to get addicted to a drug? The lemon pill must be really potent.

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Mad_Hatter

July 1, 2024 at 8:16 AM

I think it's a combination of potency and genetics. They've been touting the Lemon Meth as the strongest drug on the market, stronger than previous ones. Plus, some people are genetically predisposed to addiction than others and it could just be that Jaekyung is one of those people. We also don't know exactly how many pills and how often he was given them over the 3 day period. If he got a pill every couple of hours for 3 days straight, no sleep, no water (to eventually pee it out or something), and things like that, the addiction is no surprise.

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Sunnyboo ☀️🥰

July 2, 2024 at 5:37 AM

I didn't think about the genetic predisposition. That makes sense. All his memories from the abduction are clipped and hard to form a picture what really happened. Maybe they'll tell us before the show ends. Though if he was reduced to begging for the drug then whatever frequency they used was enough to have him crave it like that.

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loveblossom🌸

July 1, 2024 at 9:40 AM

Sang Eui got no sympathy from me too. He looked so immature and awful. It kinda cracked me up that he was still clinging to his plan and trying to catch Tae Jin. Smh.

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4 Blue (@mayhemf)

July 1, 2024 at 2:33 AM

I was a bit underwhelmed with Sang Hui’s motive. I get the revenge for friend’s death part but not the drugging part. I get jealousy too, but.
Anyway. It wasn’t a major setback or anything. I still enjoy the show. Now that our leads know the motives they need to find something to nail Park Tae Jin. I was surprised chairman knew not only about his son’s addiction but also Tae Jin’s money. I wonder if he has something to nail Tae Jin so his son can get away unscathed.

Even though the bad guys did bad stuff I like that they are friends.
I especially like Chi Hyun. He picked the wrong friends. His hesitation to kill his own friend was a nice touch. It makes these people a little bit human and not some psycho bad guys.

The lost gun and the drugs are going to get exposed next week. I don’t know how Jae Kyung will escape this. He has a few days to stay alert before he collapses again.

Tae Jin is pushed to the corner. And everything he worked for all his life is pointless now. He gets nothing. He might go rouge.

I am so ready for the finale next week. Hope the show ends well.

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loveblossom🌸

July 1, 2024 at 9:13 AM

Yeah I was also underwhelmed, but the acting during the scene between Sang Eui and Jae Kyung was still great. I think I needed a high school scene of Sang Eui and Joon Seo hanging out and looking close because it wasn't clear that they had been friends. Or was it a one-sided friendship?

Agree about Chi Hyun too. All of the bad guys have been able to show different emotions and not be completely one-note.

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PYC

July 2, 2024 at 11:26 AM

To think Tae Jin is getting nothing after all these plottings is very, very satisfying (although he looks like up the Chairman’s ante in the preview).

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5 jillian

July 1, 2024 at 7:27 AM

The actors are amazing in this show. Few key instances:

1) Jae Gyeong reaction when he found out who
the Doctor is. I feel Ji Sung acted every bone in his body to convey the varying intense emotions.
2) when Tae Jin's turned murderous and terrifying. It was a sight to behold.
3) Jong Soo's body slam of thepoor prosecutor on the table. It was oddly satisfying. His own switch turned protective.
4) Yoon Jin's embarassment after then the big slap to Tae Jin

I have a feeling that four digit code maybe the sos number between JunSeo and Jae Gyeong. If it isnt, it still maybe related to JG.

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Blue (@mayhemf)

July 1, 2024 at 7:48 AM

Tae Jin getting slammed, then punched and then slapped by every living member of Audiophile was super satisfying!! lol.

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Blue (@mayhemf)

July 1, 2024 at 7:50 AM

Also, #4. Also, when they were in the restaurant after she sprained her neck - The way JK wrote down on his phone rather than talk to her to not make her embarrassment worse was sweet yet so funny.

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jillian

July 2, 2024 at 10:45 AM

It was sweet and funny at the same time. Jong Soo didnt even notice why she suddenly changed. 😅

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jillian

July 2, 2024 at 10:46 AM

Super!!!😁 I like Kwon Yul but he definitely portrayed his detestable character well.

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6 Mad_Hatter

July 1, 2024 at 8:11 AM

It's honestly disheartening that Jaekyung didn't get the closure he needed on why he was targeted for addiction. He's been holding on dearly and doing his best to avoid taking more Lemon Meth because he thought there would be some grander or more evil reason behind his addiction. And yet it all comes down to "being disliked?" Hope next week continues to deliver.

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Blue (@mayhemf)

July 1, 2024 at 9:02 AM

Yeah. and disliked for what? For being awesome?? lol. Clearly Jun Seo valued his friendship and admired his ability to be brave and do the right thing.

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7 welh

July 1, 2024 at 9:00 AM

There was a lot of clarity this week without substantial proof.

We are told that Joon-Seo was motivated to deliver drugs on behalf of Tae-Jin’s high school gang because he needed $500k to send his sick daughter to the US for treatment. But she died before he could get the money. Tae-Jin was in the drug selling game to get a large stake to invest in the KH land deal. It appears Joon-Seo was the first Doctor, the point man for the distribution, but the real brains behind the distribution operation was meek Sang-Eui, the bullied high schooler who was a fringe gopher like Yoon-Ho in the HS group.

The bedrock theme in the series is high school friendships are forever bonds of duty and loyalty. This is a bizarre concept as friendships ebb and flow as people grow older, drift apart, move, get jobs, settle down, etc. It seems the HS classmate death and Jae-Kyeung’s school transfer were not the principal reason for present day revenge actions. It was Joon-Seo and Sang-Eui’s friendship disruptions that made San-Eui psychopathic to plan a complex house of cards to ruin the HS gang’s lives. But we are still left with allegations and suspicions but with no actual evidence.

Jong-Soo finally gets his father’s acknowledgment and praise for getting the land deal done. He orders Chi-Hyun to get him one last hit before heading to the US for drug treatment (which seems a stretch since it is a new drug not used in the US with no antidote). But Chi-Hyun’s demeanor foreshadows a possible OD to Jong-Soo since Chi-Hyun, having to kill his friend, is no longer waiting for Tae-Jin and Jong-Soo to cut ties with him. There are only two HS minions left and their expected life spans are short.

Tae-Jin’s transfer to get him out of the picture to pave the way for Jong-Soo’s place at the top of KH does not sit well. He has no money to invest. He is being forced out by the Chairman. His plan is in ruins. His friends don’t trust him.

It is interesting to note that all the suspects, Tae-Jin, Jong-Soo and Chi-Yun, still deny killing Joon-Seo. But they still all have the alibi of being in the elevator at the time of death. Joon-Seo never got his money from Tae-Jin, he knew of the affair, Tae-Jin would not let him stop dealing drugs . . at that point Jong-Soo had nothing to live for which puts suicide back on table. That would have put Sang-Eui in the position to “carry out Joon-Seo’s revenge” plan, including “telling” Jae-Kyeong Joon-Seo was wearing shoes when they were “found” on the 9th floor.

Everyone is pointing fingers at Tae-Jin as being the mastermind killer. He denies direct involvement in it. My theory now is that the destruction of his destructive HS gang has been orchestrated by Chairman Won who knows everything about everyone, including Tae-Jin dealing dirty drugs. He is getting rid of the “bad people” around his son by letting them destroy themselves.

This series may end with no good moral lessons just as the criminal cases may end for lack...

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welh

July 1, 2024 at 9:01 AM

.. of evidence. I can also see characters like Jae-Kyeong, Yoon-Jin, Yeon-Joo, Tae-Jin and Chang-Soo all losing their jobs to be left alone and poor like Ji-Yeon and Si-Jung.

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8 loveblossom🌸

July 1, 2024 at 9:33 AM

They keep pointing at Tae Jin and he keeps denying it. I don't think he did it. I think Jong Soo's father had Joon Seo killed for being a liability to their company. He didn't get rid of Tae Jin yet because he was still a useful pawn.

Hmm, I wonder if Tae Jin is going to start wondering about Joon Seo's death. Why hasn't he? He just wanted to brush it away as a suicide? Didn't care about the culprit. Or it was him all along. ??!! While everyone accused him, he doesn't accuse someone else, but changed the direction of their talk. He did make sense that they had to get a handle on Yoon Ho at that moment.

Lesson: Don't trust the guy with glasses! Lol jk. =P

Jin Wook should have been more suspicious than he was when he questioned the Doctor. Maybe he was too desperate or out of other escape options.

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Blue (@mayhemf)

July 1, 2024 at 10:11 AM

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Blue (@mayhemf)

July 1, 2024 at 10:16 AM

I kinda like Jin Wook. He is desperate but I hope he is smart enough to see it’s a trap. I wonder how he will lead to Tae Jin. Even thought Sang Eui pretended to be one, no one (especially JK) is going to buy it now that he revealed himself to JK.

I also think that Tae Jin didn’t kill Joon Seo. But you are right that he seems too chill about letting it go. Yes it was convenient for him but as a prosecutor it would have made sense to find out why he was killed specially it involves drugs. May be he knew the killer and was sure investigation would lead to him and hence wrapped it up. Won’t be surprised if chairman was involved.

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9 ys

July 1, 2024 at 11:46 PM

There was so much exposition in these two episodes that halfway through 12 I went to check whether that was the final episode. Then by the end of ep12 I’m filled with lots of information but still have no clue who killed Junseo.

I’m annoyed the show keeps dangling these peripheral characters from high school, the kid who was beaten and burned by Jongsoo and his gang, and the kid’s friend who was in the bathroom who is now a taxi driver who drove to the site?

So now, 12 episodes in, is it safe to stop suspecting Joosong? We have all the players and suspects in place, don’t we? Now including the chariman? Can we please keep Joosong as the clumsy but loveable sidekick with a giant crush on Yoonjin?

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10 LateBloomerAddict

July 2, 2024 at 3:10 PM

Love, Love , Love this show. As I did, Mouse, Beyond Evil, and Flower of Evil. This is saying A LOT since I am a died-in-the-wool, hard-core Rom-
com fan. But Great acting, great writing, great production. I cannot wait to see how this all plays out.