Who Is She: Episodes 5-6

by Dramaddictally

As our catty idol group prepares for a make-it-or-break-it evaluation, scandal is on the horizon for our new trainee. All she wants to do is hang out with an old friend, but it might not be wise in her young body. Add to that her habit of speaking her mind to anyone in earshot, and this granny-girl could get canned before she even debuts.

 
EPISODES 5-6

Last week we learned that each member of the group will be evaluated individually to see if they’ve got what it takes to debut. That’s the backdrop for this week’s episodes, with more mean-spirited slights toward Ha-na and Doo-ri as they practice hard to catch up.

When she’s late for practice, Doo-ri is suspended from training for a week. This might set her back a little, but it gives her more time to loiter at her family’s house and see how things are going without halmeoni there to help.

Mostly, things aren’t good. Since Ji-sook was recently promoted at her corporate job, she’s got even more responsibility and stress. And her partially employed husband — who’s working a gig thrown to him by a (female and interested) friend — isn’t picking up the slack at home. It seems Mal-soon was the one that did the cooking, and now the fridge is pretty empty.

It also gives Doo-ri more time to catch up with her life-long friend and current neighbor, whom she calls MR. PARK (Jung Bo-suk). Now, I didn’t mention it last time, but Doo-ri has already come clean to Mr. Park about her identity. So far, he’s the only one she’s confided in and it lifts a weight to have an ally she can be herself around.

The relationship between these two friends goes back a long way, and we’ve learned that Mr. Park has always been in love with Mal-soon. His one big regret is that he missed his chance with her when they were young — he went abroad for a little while and by the time he returned, she was already pregnant. Since then, he’s stuck by her side and pined for her, but she’s never shown romantic interest.

The thing is, they’re so comfortable with each other that even though she’s in her young body again, they go out to eat, chat, and goof around with each other like they always did. The problem is that the people around them in public are giving Mr. Park dirty looks and covering their mouths in shame. And then, one of the mean-girl members spots Doo-ri out with him, films it, and sends it to Ae-shim in an effort to get Doo-ri tossed out.

Aside from how scandalous this is in itself, Ae-shim already has it out for Doo-ri. She knows something is off about this girl, who spoke resentfully about Ae-shim’s success at a team dinner (and who Daniel then dragged out of the room before things got worse). So, when Ae-shim receives the video of Doo-ri out with a much older man, she calls for Daniel to cut her from the group.

And he does! But it’s more out of jealousy than credibility. Doo-ri argues back and gets upset that Daniel would think so low of her, and then she takes off to stay at her house. Luckily, Ha-na explains to Daniel that Mr. Park is a long-time family friend and he changes his tune. So, Doo-ri is only off the roster for like five seconds before she’s back on.

But this sets up the makings of an interesting triangle. Because Daniel’s stalker is getting even more creepy — entering his apartment and moving things around — he can’t sleep or rest, which is really taking a toll on him. And wouldn’t you know it, Mr. Park runs a guest house that could really benefit from having a former idol stay there and give it a good rating. So, voila: Doo-ri and Daniel are living next door to each other.

However, I use the word triangle because even though Doo-ri looks young, she’s her same self, and Mr. Park is still in love with her. He’s not really putting the moves on, he just wants to take care of her where he can, but it’s getting awkward for everyone involved. When the moment comes where Doo-ri has to choose between riding to work in Daniel’s car or hopping onto Mr. Park’s motorcycle, she goes with Daniel — and Mr. Park is about to cry.

Finally, it’s evaluation day. Doo-ri has been practicing her butt off, but at the performance she hits a snag: Ae-shim decides to sit in with the judges. As soon as Doo-ri sees her, she can’t focus. She starts messing up the formations and then the moves. And by the end, things don’t look so good for her or Ha-na passing the test.

But before they’re officially kicked out, a viral video saves the day. Earlier, Doo-ri and Ha-na had given an impromptu show at a local arts festival, where they performed a new arrangement of Mal-soon’s song (the one Ae-shim stole from her and made famous all those years ago). Now, the video of that show has over a million views and Doo-ri is being recognized in the street. When Daniel and the rest of the execs see this, it bodes well for the twosome’s talent and stage presence.

We don’t get to see exactly what the final decision is yet, but that’s not the most exciting thing that’s happening. We end this week’s episodes with Doo-ri getting shoved over in a bustling, screaming crowd. She’s about to hit the ground when a handsome young gentleman catches her and lifts her out of harm’s way. Afterward, he tells her that her clothes look pretty and she gapes at him and exclaims, “Mr. Park?”

That’s right. It looks like Mr. Park will be getting a chance to change his fate along with Mal-soon. We know her biggest regret is not pursuing her singing career and his is never winning her over, so this makes perfect sense. Plus, with everyone in young bodies, it’s a great way to transform the trio of Doo-ri, Daniel, and Mr. Park (who I guess will get a new name?) into a proper love triangle.

There’s another thread I didn’t discuss yet because, honestly, it’s boring me to tears. And it’s the one that we left off with two weeks in a row: the woman who looks like the old Mal-soon. The information that comes to light this week is that this person, whoever she is, is someone Mal-soon and Mr. Park know from like sixty years ago.

When they briefly talk, Doo-ri realizes who the woman is and they hug and begin to cry. Then, Doo-ri pushes her away, saying she’s nobody to her. “Why did you come here pretending to be me?” she asks. The mystery woman then gets a call from the magical taxi driver, who tells her that it’s against the rules to be talking to Doo-ri. She leaves and gets in his taxi, and they argue. She’s upset that he gave her back her youth and then took it away. But he tells her that she made her choice.

I’m still not sure what’s going on with all that, but we can count on the clues trickling in. I just have a sneaking suspicion that I’m going to be disappointed. It feels a bit like mystery for mystery’s sake and there are other threads in this story that I like much more and would prefer to see teased out. For example, we see another argument between Ha-na and Ji-sook this week, where mom is trying to convince daughter to give up her idol training and keep her head in the books. They don’t understand each other and part on bad terms.

Later, when Doo-ri is at the family house and Ji-sook is stressed and drinking alone, she tells Doo-ri that she hates her mother. “She never understood my feelings. What kind of mom is that?” Hmm, how’s that for tragic irony?

Anyway, my new favorite storyline has to do with the pretty-faced suitor who just entered the mix. I feel like things got a whole lot more interesting and I’m excited about next week. Until then, I’ll be walking around humming Mal-soon’s song, since it’s apparently impossible to unstick from my head.

 
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