From Russia With Love

In 2009, Min-Chae’s mother had written about her experiences living in South Korea during the Korean War. In the article, Min-Chae’s mother talks about how she was forced to leave her home and family behind to fight for South Korea. She also talks about how she was able to find food and shelter online.

Yi-Jin is reporting from the podium after Hee-Do won her third gold medal in a row. He addresses the audience and points out that he has covered Hee-Do’s development for large stretches of her career. She reflects back on the hardest match she’s had, coming from the final in Madrid 2001, against none other than Yu-Rim. ..

Yu-Rim, a high school student in South Korea, was scouted by the Russian team while playing in an international youth tournament in February 2000. She and her teammates, Hee-Do and Yi-Jin, admitted their relationship to Ji-Woong and the other players on the team. Ji-Woong pointed out how beautiful Yu-Rim was, while Seung-Wan laments that she’s now the third wheel in this group dynamic. ..

However, that soon proves to be a short-lived victory as the gang all start playing drinking games. It’s pretty funny, especially as it’s Yi-Jin who loses every single one. Heading back home, the gang are all drunk, and Yi-Jin ends up with pen scribbles all over his face. ..

Ji-Woong and Yu-Rim are leaving together, but when they pass in the bus the dreaded white truck crosses parallel to them and crashes off-screen. And who should be driving? Yep, it’s Yu-Rim’s father.

Yu-Rim’s dad is in the hospital and they don’t know how to pay for the victim’s medical bills. They’ve been trying to sell the shop for a while but it’s been hard to get anyone interested. The only thing they can think of is selling it.

Yu-Rim, a South Korean gymnast, is set to change her nationality to Russia in order to compete in the Olympics and win a gold medal. This move is likely to exacerbate the burden her family has been carrying for years, as they have sacrificed much for her success. Yu-Rim assures them that this is what she wants and that she will put an end to their misery. ..

It’s a really sad turn of events when her parents begin crying and Ji-Woong is later tasked with hosting a farewell party for her. Yi-Jin realizes what this entails, given his job. She knows that he’ll have to betray his friends in order to make things right.

Just like what Jae-Kyung did with Coach Yang, Yi-Jin has betrayed his friends for his career.

Hee-Do is understandably angry when she finds out. Yi-Jin is conflicted, torn between his job as a reporter and his loyalty to friends, and he seems to know it was always going to end up this way. Yi-Jin knows that he’s going to have to break the news to his friends face-to-face, but he’s also scared of how they’ll react. ..

Yu-Rim tells Ji-Woong that they’re going to have to break up. She doesn’t want to make promises that they may not be able to keep.

Yu-Rim wants Hee-Do to live for herself, not for him. So when Hee-Do is packing her things up the next day, she reflects back on how she’s feeling and finds the place swarming with reporters. Out of all the people to ring, Yi-Jin turns to Yu-Rim for help.

The reporters were all fooled by Hee-Do’s tricks and now they’re all on the run. Hee-Do and Yu-Rim have managed to escape together, but their moments of happiness and laughter are bittersweet as these enemies turned friends turned besties are now on the verge of leaving each other forever.

This isn’t something Yu-Rim wants to do but she feels compelled to do right by her family. Ji-Woong eventually says, as the pair hug it out and say their goodbyes. Unfortunately, Ji-Woong isn’t there but he drives up to the airport in his aunt’s car, getting over the fear he had last episode, now that it’s something as important seeing Yu-Rim off.

When Ji-Woong arrives at the airport, he promises to be loyal to Yu-Rim, doing everything he can to endure and stay together no matter what. Even if all she can give him is misery, he’s going to endure that as he wants them to be together. He’s even taught her the Russian for “I have a boyfriend called Ji-Woong.” As she says the words, Ji-Woong kisses her.

Thanks to Yi-Jin’s report, Yu-Rim is labelled as a traitor and she’s rejected by the public, who rip up her posters – there’s even graffiti on the walls in a tunnel reading “Ko Yu-Rim is a traitor.” As Yi-Jin breaks down into tears, Hee-Do happens to be in front of him watching.

Hee-Do tells Yi-Jin that she isCongratulations on your wedding.

The Episode Review

Yi-Jin has married Hee-Do, a woman he met while working on a project together. The two have been together for a few months, but it’s not clear if they are really in love or if Yi-Jin is just using Hee-Do to keep up appearances. It seems that Yi-Jin is very careful about his words and actions, in order to maintain his professional image.

Episode 13 was much more light-hearted in tone, while this episode completely switches things up, delivering a really poignant and heart-breaking chapter. The whole drama involving Yu-Rim was so well paced and it’s matched by details that help this one stand out. ..

The little touches in this drama are what make it so enthralling. For example, Ji-Woong driving his aunt’s car fast down the road. Normally, it would be a standard scene in a k-drama, but we know that Ji-Woong is a nervous driver. That was established last episode. But yet, he swallows his pride, faces his fear and races up to the airport to see his lover off. ..

The Twenty Five Twenty One story is still unfolding, and it’s anyone’s guess how everything will end up in two weeks. But it seems like we’re not done with the drama just yet. The wait for next week is agonizing.