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Serendipity’s Embrace: Episodes 7-8 (Final)
by Unit
Our serendipitous tale comes to a simple end, fitting for what has been a straightforward and uncomplicated journey. Our characters get closure on the past and resolution on present feelings, and while the future might be uncertain, it’s less daunting traveling the road together as opposed to being alone.
EPISODES 7-8
Our final week begins with some much needed closure on the Hong-joo and Joon-ho relationship. Joon-ho admits that he left because he was sick, and he goes on to paint himself as the victim and fault Hong-joo for not taking him back. But after three years of beating herself up and thinking she was the problem, Hong-joo refuses to be gaslighted any further. The knowledge that Joon-ho would still have left her no matter what she did makes Hong-joo angry, but it also makes it easy to forgive him because he has given her an answer to the question she has struggled with her whole life: the people who left her had a reason to do so, and it isn’t her fault they left.
Hong-joo officially quits the Avant Garde project, but this decision leaves her with mixed feelings because the adaptation was something she really wanted to do since before joining the company. To lift her spirits, Hong-joo takes Hoo-young out on an activity-filled date, and afterwards he admits that he also needed to de-stress because he quit his job. Hong-joo asks if he quit because she told him not to go to the U.S., and he says no. He tells her not to worry, and to just trust him.
But it’s hard not to worry when Hoo-young’s mom moves into uncle Wook’s place for the rest of her stay in Korea. Mom starts by treating Hong-joo as Hoo-young’s “friend,” and she’s not moved when Hoo-young insists that Hong-joo is his girlfriend — and that his decision to remain in Korea has nothing to do with Hong-joo.
Since uncle Wook’s address is now a tourist attraction, Joon-ho also shows up at Hong-joo’s place to drop off all the love letters she wrote to him. He probably didn’t pay for trash collection at his place or maybe the waste management company banned him for littering — because this dude folded some of the letters into planes and crashed them at different spots in the compound. Tsk.
One of the planes hits Hoo-young’s mom’s head, and she is not impressed by Hong-joo’s “complicated love life.” Mom gives Hong-joo the “don’t block my son’s future” speech, and Hong-joo is happy to inform Mom that Hoo-young is the one who flirted with her and kissed her first. Lool. And as for what Hoo-young could “lose” because of her, Hong-joo replies that if smart Hoo-young did the math and made up his mind to be with her, it means he thinks she’s worth it. I love her confident comebacks!
But while Hong-joo might have acted unfazed in front of Mom, she’s actually worried that Mom will prevail and Hoo-young will return to the U.S. with her. Hoo-young, on the other hand, overhears from Sang-pil and Hye-ji that Hong-joo was going to work on a project with Joon-ho. And a combination of abandonment issues and trust issues leads the couple to have their first fight. Just great!
Hong-joo and Hoo-young report themselves to Hye-ji and Sang-pil respectively, and they get scolded in return. Hye-ji tells Hong-joo that she should have trusted in Hoo-young’s promise to stay, and Sang-pil tells Hoo-young that Hong-joo’s biggest fear is that people will leave her without saying goodbye. Hoo-young previously noted that Hong-joo always said goodbye to him every time they met, and now he realizes why.
Our OTP eventually apologize to each other, make up — and fight for their right to be the one that likes the other person more. Tsk. It’s very disrespectful to us single folks, but whatever. At least they have overcome this hurdle and things are looking up for them, right?
Wrong! Mom sets up more hurdles on our OTP’s path: 1) she gives Hong-joo the “come to the U.S. with Hoo-young or forget about him” ultimatum; 2) she refuses to accept Hoo-young’s resignation and files a lawsuit against him for using inside information to secure outside investments. Man just wanted to branch out on his own, but now no one will invest in him with an ongoing lawsuit. Wow!
How did this woman manage to be one of the worst ever K-drama male lead moms in just three episodes?? I’m not even counting her lie to Hong-joo that Hoo-young changes girlfriends frequently. How do you stain your son’s personal and professional reputation and then turn around to say things like “What mom would let her son ruin his own life?” Ma’am, you are the one ruining his life. Jeez!
Hoo-young has no choice but to return to the U.S. due to the lawsuit, and he asks Hong-joo to go with him. But as much as Hong-joo likes him and she’d like to, everything precious to her is in Korea, and she can’t leave. I half expected a breakup and time skip to follow, but our OTP doesn’t break up. Hoo-young promises to return after the lawsuit is over, and she plans to wait for him. The relationship might not have run as smoothly as she expected, but Hong-joo says she doesn’t regret it.
Next thing you know, Hoo-young is at the airport ready to leave, and Hong-joo rolls up with a suitcase. Apparently, my good sis has too many vacation days, and she has decided to spend them all in the U.S. A vacation is a nice compromise, and I’ll take it even though it feels like Mom won. Hoo-young and Hong-joo set off together on another phase of their serendipitous journey, and as far as happy endings go, this is theirs. As for me, maybe if I drink enough water, the fish bone lodged in my throat will go down.
From its first week it was obvious this drama wasn’t promising anything out of the ordinary, but a part of me feels like it could have been more. All the time spent on Hoo-young’s disapproving mom and Hye-ji × Kyung-taek’s overly dramatic arc before they got together, could have been better invested to give Hoo-young and Hong-joo the chance to know more about the present-day versions of each other. Show did deliver on the short and simple, but as for the sweet, there was a slight aftertaste.
Overall, I guess the message of the drama is that first love is special, but it is not the ultimate. It’s great if first love comes true, but even if it doesn’t work out, love can always be found in someone else’s arms. While Serendipity’s Embrace might be a good way to pass time, it is not one of those great romance dramas you’ll remember in future. But if you’re lucky, it might be one of your viewing options on a flight headed to your first love, or away from them — and in either case, best of luck to you.
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