[Drama Recap] I Heard It Through the Grapevine: Episode 20

I Heard It Through the Grapevine reigns supreme on the Monday-Tuesday battlefield and with each passing week it’s more apparent. It manages to keep its safe distance from Hwajung and School 2015 is not a threat for the time being.

The 20th episode achieved 12.2%, the drama’s second best rating, followed by Hwajung’s 10.9% while School 2015 watches from afar with 4.2%. Everything makes sense, Heard It Through the Grapevine even though it remains unpredictable, it never loses its pace. It’s one of the most well-structured, well-conceived and well-executed dramas and it always manages to preserve its status with rock solid characters that progress with each episode and a storyline that keeps intriguing even more as episodes pass by.

The civilized masks fit both madame Choi and Ji Young Ra’s faces perfectly well, but everyone knows this is the calm before the storm. After the necessary references to Ji Young Ra’s forthcoming divorce and while attorney Han’s anxiety grows second by second he’s relieved to find out that everything’s flowing well through secretary Yang’s communication with secretary Lee. Things seem to be flowing well, but the tension rises gradually and harsher words appear, but the tone hasn’t climaxed yet. Ji Young Ra insists on apologizing, but the more she refers to the forbidden topic the more madame Choi’s patience reaches an end and here it is.

Madame Choi bombards Ji Young Ra with ice cubes and words colder than ice delivering the message perfectly well, she should never appear at Hansong again and she should start searching for another firm to stand by her side when it comes to her divorce with chairman Jang. Everyone around them are dazed and unable to interfere since something like that would make the conflict expand all over the lounge. Attorney Han’s in confusion as well, in one hand he wants to go upstairs, on the other hand he doesn’t want to, second by second his great mood swings explode all over the place and attorney Yang tries to bring him back to reality.

Once again, when the cat’s away, the mice will play and secretary Mim, attorney Yoo and Je Hoon’s coalition moves on with their own plan to bring the Daesan Group’s case back to the surface. Secretary Kim is renowned for being unable to keep his mouth shut and unveils a few details concerning the Hans’ problems with In Sang’s retaliation inside the household. Attorney Han appears while Ji Young Ra was about to leave and she starts sideswiping in front of him concerning the problems inside his household. Once again, madame Choi avoids demanding straight forward answers from her husband and they set their own problems aside to face their common enemy, the major disorder inside and outside of the almighty household. In the meantime, Jin Ae ajhumma has stopped by the almighty household to see her grandson and make sure Seo Bom is fine. Whether she is or not is yet another part of the story and she doesn’t intend to open up her internal world to her mother, she’s got enough problems, worrying her parents even more wouldn’t help at all.

Once again, when the cat’s away, the mice will play and secretary Mim, attorney Yoo and Je Hoon’s coalition moves on with their own plan to bring the Daesan Group’s case back to the surface. Secretary Kim is renowned for being unable to keep his mouth shut and unveils a few details concerning the Hans’ problems with In Sang’s retaliation inside the household. Attorney Han appears while Ji Young Ra was about to leave and she starts sideswiping in front of him concerning the problems inside his household. Once again, madame Choi avoids demanding straight forward answers from her husband and they set their own problems aside to face their common enemy, the major disorder inside and outside of the almighty household. In the meantime, Jin Ae ajhumma has stopped by the almighty household to see her grandson and make sure Seo Bom is fine. Whether she is or not is yet another part of the story and she doesn’t intend to open up her internal world to her mother, she’s got enough problems, worrying her parents even more wouldn’t help at all.

Secretary Lee appears and she’s having a conversation with Seo Bom urging her to be cautious for the time being since madame Choi’s summoning the queen regnant within. Dealing only with family issues and her studies feels mandatory by now. Seo Bom seems to be taking things lightly at this point and she can’t help but laugh at the forthcoming future, but it’s definitely better than shedding tears! Soon everyone will witness madame Choi’s transformation and nobody’s going to like it.

President Song gets informed by Je Hoon on the latest events concerning In Sang and he can’t hide his discomfort when it comes to the investment club and Eom So Jeong seems to be sharing the same distress. The signs are ominous and Ji Young Ra appears, she mentions that she met madame Choi, but she doesn’t invest in details and gets back to her good old self participating in the conversation about the mess inside the almighty household.

There was a time when attorney Han was thinking of separating Cheol Shik ahjussi from Hyeong Shik ahjussi and Jin Ae ahjumma, the time has arrived when Seo Bom’s parents have started thinking of sending him to the countryside even though they were the ones to reject the Hans’ proposal in the first place. Madame Choi informs secretary Lee on her queen regnant plan and she wants her to deliver the news on pretty much everyone inside the almighty household.

It’s not a surprise that nobody’s pleased! The housemaid and butler Park will start wearing uniforms once again after all these years, the young couple alongside Jin Young will be dressing appropriately in order to  greet the Hans at 7 in the morning and then they’ll be having a book reading meeting with attorney Han. Yi Ji will have to lose 10 kilos and the nanny will be waking up Jin Young at 6:30 every morning! Attorney Han returns back home and alongside madame Choi they pretend as if nothing happened between them, as for Yi Ji, she strictly disagrees with everything going on inside the almighty household and she starts her own retaliation.

 

Yi Ji’s bursting into tears, she can’t accept the new order that was forced upon pretty much everyone, but Seo Bom and In Sang stand by her side, for the time being they will have to obey and later on they will have their own chance of bringing to the surface everything that doesn’t feel right. The house personnel is not pleased at all and their duties grow, as for secretary Lee she tries to find the necessary distance from the table she will be standing alongside the housemaid while the almighty and the young couple will be eating and she informs Seo Bom of the proper spot from which she will be greeting the Hans. Seo Bom has already noticed that everyone’s against the new measures and a sense of positivity starts lurking within. The morning arrives and as expected everyone wakes up at the time madame Choi recommended, but Yi Ji still can’t approve all this irrationality and leaves immediately. As for the breakfast, it flows as expected, secretary Lee and the housemaid experience the joys of military posture while standing at attention while everyone at the table remains silent and shortly after the almighty general arrives at Hansong.

Attorney Han wants to keep his employees by his side and he intends to raise their salaries by ten times so that everything will flow according to plan. He calls secretary Lee stating that he would like to talk to madame Choi, but as the newly found queen regnant she pretends to be tough and without remorse since she’s reading her book, talking to her would disturb her majesty at this point and attorney Han is quite pleased with her overall attitude dare i say! Secretary Yang meets the jeet kune do teacher where he unveils his thoughts concerning attorney Han and how easy it feels to pass each and every phase from discomfort to amazement and from approval to resemblance. Secretary Yang informs him that chances are high attorney Han will contact him to keep teaching In Sang and Seo Bom. She looks forward to it since her power doesn’t seem as effective as it used to be and the jeet kune do teacher could be a strong opposition party inside attorney Han’s territory and a shoulder she could rely on behind the scenes.

 

Secretary Yang tries once again to unearth information from secretary Min and she delivers the message that she has started seeing Cheol Shik ahjussi as a man right away to attorney Han, along with the fact that she talked to the teacher. Secretary Min pays a visit to Cheol Shik ahjussi and shortly after Je Hoon and Noo Ri arrive. Hyeong Shik ahjussi has started suspecting that secretary Min’s at the workshop along with his brother, but Jin Ae ahjumma states that it’s meaningless to go over there and find out for sure. Je Hoon will take care of the petition and the ace up their sleeves is the fact that Cheol Shik ahjussi had informed Daesan Group of the existing accident possibility beforehand, but they didn’t take the necessary measures to avoid it despite being inside the contract. Noo Ri appears concerned about her uncle, but behind his back she mentions everything to her father and the humble house gets overburdened. Noo Ri keeps acting lowly, she wants Hyeong Shik ahjussi to stop his brother while she’s unaware of the ongoing hurt inside her parents’ hearts due to this sudden turn of events, all she cares about is achieving her dreams on Seo Bom’s shoulders. Hyeong Shik ahjussi breaks apart as he finds himself in the middle of an internal conflict between Seo Bom and his brother and the choice is never easy.

The housemaid and butler Park recall the moments when they’re younger as both of them wonder if they’ll be able to make it under madame Choi’s transformation, as for getting a higher salary, they can always negotiate, but the time doesn’t feel right and the contract doesn’t approve. Attorney Han’s reading process with Seo Bom and In Sang goes on, but it feels difficult this time since the jeet kune do teacher has walked upon specific studying fields with them. Attorney Han will teach him a lesson tomorrow after college! Both Seo Bom and In Sang are dressed as if they just came back from a funeral, i guess that’s what “appropriately” means in madame Choi’s eyes! In Sang states that he has so much to say, but he has to hang on in there for the time being, more tension won’t help the young couple.

Cheol Shik ahjussi has already filed the lawsuit and it stroke attorney Han like a thunder in the open. Eventually secretary Yang becomes his punchbag for being unable to read between the lines and foresee this sudden turn of events. Hyeong Shik ahjussi asks his brother to step back, but it’s too late since Cheol Shik ahjussi has already moved on with the lawsuit and he lets him know that Je Hoon will be his lawyer. Je Hoon informs attorney Han that he will be supporting Cheol Shik ahjussi without referring to shady details and it’s something that pleases him since it will appear as Hansong’s balance on principle in one hand, on the other hand attorney Han doesn’t consider Je Hoon capable of winning over the Daesan Group case! The coalition’s plan moves on in secrecy under attorney Han and secretary Yang’s radars!

Je Hoon’s the one to trespass In Sang’s ignorance and guide him into the light according to attorney Han. All they talk about are the latest events concerning Cheol Shik ahjussi’s lawsuit! Je Hoon has an appointment and he won’t accompany In Sang and attorney Han at the luxurious lounge of Hansong. It was about time father and son spent some time together and unexpectedly everything flows more than fine, actually it’s way better than In Sang and Hyeong Shik ahjussi’s interactions; not!

Nothing happens, zero, no common ground, we witness two strangers on the opposite seats of a table and that’s all. President Song is having a conversation with Hyeon Soo and shortly after Je Hoon appears. Referring to the latest events, Hyeon Soo becomes aware that the lawsuit against Daesan Group will affect her directly and rushes to find In Sang! He doesn’t intend to stay long and he starts leaving, but Hyeon Soo’s words strike like a knife in the heart once again. Her father’s slush funds where under attorney Han’s guidance and In Sang’s left speechless anew.

Thoughts: It was one of these episodes, you know, the ones that leave behind many of its characters cracked on the inside right before they are blown to smithereens. One way or another and through each one’s point of view pretty much everyone was left behind wounded as the storyline progresses. The camps are being forged and as time passes by they become more specific as the barricades are being constructed; the impact of the forthcoming collision will be immense.

There’s an ongoing alienation floating in the air and as the episode was progressing most of the figures were like strangers among strangers, except for those few faithful to emotion without forgetting reality. Attorney Han’s belated adolescence has progressed his upcoming ruin much faster than expected. Everyone has noticed it and madame Choi’s summoning of queen regnant is the last breath before diving into insuperable depths. Everyone has noticed it except for attorney Han whose ego is a giant with feet of clay. His height prevents him from having utter control of everyone below and the people around him can’t accomplish each and every mission he  assigns them with.

The coalition of attorney Yoo, secretary Min and Cheol Shik ahjussi managed to dwell perfectly well in the shadows and achieve the one blow right after the other while attorney Han was losing his mind and his secretaries were trying to bring him back to reality. In Sang’s retaliation felt rushed, but it worked as a diversion eventually and gathered all the attention upon him. While the cat was away both teams of mice were playing, once the cat returned, the first team acted as decoy unintentionally and the second team reached their first goal filing the lawsuit.

Jin Ae ahjumma is a mother and her maternal instinct alarms her when something doesn’t feel right when it comes to her daughters and this time it felt essential seeing Seo Bom, even if Seo Bom didn’t reveal anything. We witnessed the conflict of opinions between the family members when it comes to Cheol Shik ahjussi. Dissension has already started making its appearance inside the ranks of the humble house and it only serves the purpose of attorney Han when it comes to his divide and conquer campaign and this time he didn’t even move his little finger.

Noo Ri doesn’t seem to have learned anything, she’s got some slight sense of understanding, but her main focus is always on upgrading her social status and achieving her own dreams which are always related to wealth. Misunderstanding and degrading Seo Bom and Cheol Shik ahjussi to her eyes without thinking any further was a grave mistake. However, her mother’s thoughts on her uncle’s lawsuit seemed to have enlightened an area of her mind. We witnessed Hyeong Shik ahjussi divided and broken between his brother and his daughter.

Ji Young Ra might had been humiliated by madame Choi, but she doesn’t seem that affected by the overall situation, at least it seems this way. She has other things to take into consideration for the time being, like her divorce. President Song proves himself once again as the king of gossip and he always finds out what’s going on, but we can witness his fear alongside Eom So Jeong concerning the investment club. Hyeon Soo however managed to put his fears aside since Ji Young Ra’s testing their friendship. All they have to be afraid of is madame Choi’s approach as queen regnant.

Secretaries Lee and Yang sense the crumbling of attorney Han’s empire and both of them try to find allies. Secretary Yang roots for teacher Park, secretary Lee has Seo Bom by her side, both of them need each other in order to survive inside the almighty household. It’s the first time we witness the house personnel reacting this way under a sudden turn of events. They were taken aback many footsteps and they can’t approve of what’s going on, i am eager to find out how they intend to act inside the thick mist. Hyeon Soo works as In Sang’s lantern in the dark, not unconditionally, she cares about her family’s well-being even though the divorce is at hand, but in her own way she helps In Sang find the truth behind his father, let’s say they are odd partners in crime. The fact that her feelings for In Sang are still alive make her a broken figure, between one-sided love and a torn apart family.

 

The military law inside the almighty household has pretty much turned everyone against attorney Han and madame Choi. Instead of solving their problems they set them aside, but they keep growing on the inside like a plague. In addition, they created even more problems unaware of what’s lurking in the shadows that has already started showing its fangs. Queen regnant is bound to become queen remnant and her attitude is the fake glorification of a woman unable to take life in her own hands and look straight into the heart of the problem. Yi Ji was never on their side, but this time her attitude resembles to the one of In Sang. If In Sang and Seo Bom are hanging in there for many people’s well-being, the Hans have already lost control of Yi Ji and i applaud her for her reactions. Since the very beginning of the drama i had stated that she’s a deus ex machina appearing when things get dark by preserving a ray of light inside the gloom and i am really glad she lives up to my personal expectations.

In Sang and attorney Han “hang out” for the first time together, but it was more than apparent that none of them had something to say. It was the perfect depiction of two different worlds before a more powerful collision. In Sang has a lot to say to his father and i presume attorney Han to his son as well, but the overall turn of events won’t let the sparkle breathe and shine alight between them because everything they may say will be the opposite of each other’s thoughts. It was a successful attempt to show the family’s unity on the surface at Hansong, but it was also the personification of an overambitious man’s blinders trying to hide the sun from everyone’s eyes.

Attorney Han’s love for his son is powerful, but it’s being filtered through the wrong prism and it’s being expressed in the worst possible way; without understanding and in an emotionless tone. In the end it appears as the love attorney Han holds for himself and he would like to see himself being reflected and utterly accepted by his own son who should abolish all his personal characteristics that make him a unique human being. In Sang loves his father despite all the hurt he’s been through all these years and he intends to get rid of attorney Han’s blinders, but their roots are pretty strong and attorney Han’s hands won’t let him stamp them out so easily; not without the battle of battles.