Critic’s Rating: 3.5 / 5.0
3.5
Whoosh! Storylines flew by faster than ever on Pachinko Season 2 Episode 7, with momentous changes for almost every character.
Watching this episode caused a little whiplash due to the quick cuts between all the different story threads and timelines.
I guess that structure was necessary to fit all of this episode’s events into one hour, but it often made it seem more like a highlight reel than a full chapter of the ongoing story.
Noa’s Off To College
The entire neighborhood turned out for a celebratory farewell feast for Noa. It was amusing to see how, in the background, Sunja’s mother put away a serious amount of sake after initially covering her cup demurely. She has long deserved some fun, so it was good to see her enjoy herself.
Mozasu won the Most Hilarious Callback EVER award when he announced, “Today, I get to be served first!” He also deserves an Honorary Mention for Best Outfit since he really nailed a ’50s sartorial vibe between brush-cut preppy and James Dean cool.
It wasn’t all fun and games, though. Koh showed up in his fancy car and gave Noa the gold watch he’d gifted Sunja all those years ago. It keeps turning up like a bad penny or, more accurately, a compass of despair that’s only useful at one’s lowest point.
Koh joined the feast and proudly watched as his secret son accepted the toasts and cheers of his neighbors with humility and a touch of embarrassed grace.
Later, amid the festivities, Noa caught a lingering look between Sunja and Koh across the table. Noa’s face was impassive, but his eyes clearly conveyed that while he might be good, he wasn’t naive.
It didn’t seem like Noa had a big revelation; it was more like he’d just taken note of something that was potentially interesting. Or something that he knew he might eventually want to forget.
Naomi’s Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
The scene at Naomi’s office was heart-breaking but also just incredibly well constructed.
We first saw her triple-checking numbers on a deal, which reminded us of how conscientious she is as a person and also how careful she has to be as a woman in her career field.
This example of her professionalism made her employer’s accusation of leaking client information all the more painful, even though it was true in this particular case.
I don’t know how she held it together while her boss and Tom laid out how they’d pretty much taken over her deal in light of her “transgressions” while also telling her she was a bad employee and an even worse example for other women in the company.
She quietly defended herself, pointing out that it was unrealistic to expect her to be perfect forever. This echoed her final talk with Solomon, in which she said she wanted to do what he asked and never again look at another man, but she couldn’t promise that.
Naomie also said it was unfair of her boss to deny her a shot at redemption, “Especially when others (in this very room, TOM) have been offered a second chance.”
However, the conference room was not a place for either logic or good sense. She was dismissed, but not without a parting shot from her boss, who said, “It is a shame.”
Naomi’s “For whom?” was the SNAP heard round the world.
You go, girl (well, after you put all your things in a box and turn in your lanyard)!
Mozasu’s Truly Excellent Evening
In an episode where several long-oppressed characters finally fought back, Mozasu’s fist-banging outburst at his uncle was still a surprise.
The family had a more modest farewell feast at home for Noa’s last night, which everyone enjoyed until Yoseb descended from his attic lair and complained about pretty much everything but Kyunghee’s cooking in particular.
Moz became the audience surrogate here when he shouted How long are we all going to live like this?
He was DONE with Yoseb’s put-downs of his auntie and how everyone ignored the fact that he hadn’t left the house in five years.
On a side note, it was lovely to hear Moz state the differences between him and Noa without any hint of jealousy or defensiveness.
He’s so completely comfortable with himself in an admirable way that even his elders can’t match.
Noa had the idea to take his uncle out, using “it’s my last night” as reason and encouragement. It was a struggle for Yoseb, but with the aid of his nephews and a head scarf, they went to a baseball game.
Yoseb lost himself in the game and seemed to realize that no one was looking at him, even in his Grey Gardens era. It marked a welcome and long overdue turning point for him.
Moz showed that he was more than just the comic relief in the house. He has always known his own worth, but I think the household may have thought of him as the disappointing younger brother to a certain extent. That ended on this night with the crack of a bat, just like Yoseb’s life as a recluse did.
Mr. Kim’s Rollercoaster Of An Afternoon
Koh finally saw that Mr. Kim had truly made up his mind to leave his life in Osaka and join the fight back home in Korea. “People like us don’t have a home,” Koh reminded him.
Koh didn’t like this turn of events with his trusted right-hand man but accepted it — after getting Mr. Kim to do one last job, of course.
At home, when Yoseb saw his packed bag, Mr. Kim explained that he was “joining the fight with our brothers in the north.”
Yoseb went full-on Mean Girls and said, “Why do that? You’re not even from the north.”
But Yoseb’s next words shocked the heck out of both Mr. Kim and me: he gave the green light for Mr. Kim to pursue a romantic relationship with Kyunghee!
You could see the turmoil wash over Mr. Kim’s face at these words. He had just decided to uproot his life for a cause he believed in, but… Kyunghee! He could finally have her, and wasn’t that what he’d really been waiting for all these years?
Yoseb practically pushed Mr. Kim out of the yard with big “Go get our girl!” energy, but when Mr. Kim found her, Kyunghee wasn’t having it.
This was a frustrating decision on her part, at least for the reason she cited. There were many other good reasons to say no, a perfect one being the awkwardness of them living in the same house with her legal husband.
But it felt like instead of honoring her bargain with God, Kyunghee really refused a life with Mr. Kim as penance for their apparent night of passion in the country (why did this happen offscreen??).
This moment between these two star-crossed characters felt overly dramatic and a bit out of step with how we’ve seen them act so far.
And the lighting was so weird! What was that blinding gold shaft of light Mr. Kim was standing in? Was it supposed to portend that he wasn’t long for this world and was about to get beamed up to either heaven or a spaceship?
All That And More
Even with all of these events, the episode managed to cram in a couple more doozies.
I did not see it coming when Koh had Yoshii Isamu (who is maybe the grandfather of Solomon’s 1989 Yoshii?) kill his father-in-law.
I knew something was going to happen after the father-in-law kept Koh away from his daughter’s wedding, but the killing itself PLUS the new association with the person who I thought would be Koh’s rival was a total surprise.
Sunja, in 1989, dealt with learning that Kato had participated in war crimes. She stood up to Moz instead of praising him after he brought her this information, expecting her to cut ties with Kato immediately.
Sunja was obviously disturbed by what it seemed Kato had done in the past.
But she resented the double standard of how she apparently couldn’t have a Japanese friend while Moz had been involved with a Japanese woman for years, and now Solomon’s new girlfriend was Japanese.
(About That: Sunja, you might not want to invite Naomi for dinner anytime soon).
So many chess pieces were moved on and off the board in this episode that it’s hard to imagine how it all will wrap up in the one hour left in this series.
What did you think about all the twists and turns in this episode, TV Fanatics? What do you think will happen in the finale? Let us know in the comments!
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