#eaw ep 16

All good things must come to an end. Now that the dust has settled in my brain after my third watch (lol), let's unpack this week's two-part season finale (spoiler alert!)

First of all, writer Moon Ji-won and her team sure know how to weave metaphors and imagery like it's nothing I've ever seen in a K-drama. Definitely her strong suit. Some are blatant while others are so subtle most people miss it without a rewatch. Seriously, I could name several off the top of my head and I've probably missed twice as much. But let's focus on those present in eps 15-16.

I want to start with the introduction and characterization of Young-woo's half-brother Choi Sang-hyeon. Love her or hate her, I can't wait to see how brilliant Tae Su-mi actually is considering she's 2 for 2 in giving birth to geniuses. In his first scene in ep 15 alone, we are told that Sang-hyeon and Young-woo are alike yet different.

Throughout the show, circles have been associated with Young-woo. The title credits, the little details Young-woo's room, her headphones, the revolving door, Young-woo's name in hangul (우영우), even Dong Geurami (whose name means 'circle')! But what about Sang-hyeon?

It's all squares with this kid, who mirrors the opening credits in ep 16. And they both love gimbap! Perhaps even for the same reason that they like to see every detail of the thing they're dealing with (Young-woo with the law and whales, Sang-hyeon with computers). Better yet, they share a tendency to lean towards what's morally right, socially just and transparent, despite being in fields that are known to exploit people who aren't well-versed in their complexities.

I definitely like how he didn't take his frustrations out on Young-woo, instead assumed that she would understand him better than their mother, and he was right. I wonder what he sees during his Eureka moments, but we'll have to wait for season 2 to hopefully find out.

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Now let's talk about this case. I can't tell you how much I LOVE that ep 15 started with spear phishing. It brought me back to this moment from ep 6 so fast I could almost feel the wind coming and hear the whales jumping. (Sorry for the noob gif quality)

Once we learn who the baby whale in question is, we're compelled to ask if Tae Su-mi is willing to make the same decision twice. And while she was ready to bury it to save her candidacy, she ultimately lets Sang-hyeon out himself as the hacker and participate in the trial, putting her political ambitions at an end - or more likely on hold.

The hunter/ress throwing the harpoon in this case, you guessed it, is Han Seon-yeong. Throughout the show, CEO Han seemed to be playing a game with CEO Tae, though the latter didn't seem to acknowledge the game at all. Where CEO Han spends most of her jealousy-driven time thinking of how to take her rival down, CEO Tae doesn't pay her as much attention, instead preferring to use her energy on her next professional conquest. Sound familiar?

The result for CEO Han is lukewarm. Tae Su-mi isn't outed (yet) for having a child out of wedlock and manages a relatively graceful exit from her nomination, Young-woo gets to keep her peace, Sang-hyeon is publicly disgraced but keeps his dignity and honor. So far, Han's bark has been louder than her bite. She's never made any significant contribution to the cases she injected herself into. Whereas CEO Tae would have won the Seodok-dong case if it weren't for Young-woo's genius. Maybe she held back because of her humanity towards the innocent parties. On the other hand, she could also be waiting for a bigger scandal to take her rival down for good. In that case, we have reason to expect her to be the antagonist in Season 2, though I would have liked to see more hints scattered prior to ep 16 apart from the deleted scene in ep 8.

With Sang-hyeon now in her orbit, I'm looking forward to more brother-sister interactions in Season 2. Choi Hyun-jin did a great job with his portrayal (am I the only one who likes his eyes?). There was some tightrope walking between sinister and brilliant going on there, his introduction felt like a scene from "Juvenile Justice". Bravo.

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Last week, I told you (!) that Young-woo and Jun-ho would be endgame. All because it was hinted by the case, the monk, and the dialogue during the breakup, among others, that they were both capable of looking beyond the surface of their problems.

I also said that Young-woo shouldn't be so criticized for letting go of him without a proper explanation at the time because she was trying to be selfless (for a change, or so she thought). So this week, we got another metaphor from Jun-ho this time about unrequited love for a cat, but that it's okay because the owner is happy with the cat just being there no matter how selfish the cat can be sometimes. Message received, and our whale couple is back together.

While I'm very happy that we were not given the 2521 treatment, the execution of this storyline leaves a bit to be desired. It's the same issue I've had with it since ep 11, in that they've been cutting the scenes so abruptly, especially those filmed near Young-woo's house. The scene where Young-woo finally tells Jun-ho her reason for the breakup and then it just holds the pause after she bows then that's it. I know they probably didn't want to cram more progress into ep 15 and focus more on the trial scenes but it resulted in some uneven storytelling.

Btw, I adore that scene where he gets all defensive when the Taesan messenger startles Young-woo but he doesn't pry. Kang Tae-oh was just majestic. Though this was something that Young-woo's dad could have seen so he'd give her a nudge to say Jun-ho may be right for her after all. Another could be the hospital fiasco, where instead of driving off with douchebag Attorney Jang, Jun-ho could have been caught on camera shielding Young-woo from the press, leading her dad to the same conclusion. Although driving off was one way to show that he can also make poor snap judgments and that's ok. I know I'm getting nitpicky but I just wish there was something so their makeup on the way to the trial could have a little more meat. But all is well since we got the result we wanted.

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Should I even write about (still trash, now compostable) Kwon Min-woo and my girl Choi Su-yeon at this point? They really went the route of "let's introduce a worse character so the guy you hate doesn't look half bad". I mean Attorney Jang is where Min-woo would be if left unchecked after about 15+ years. I'm okay with redemption arcs, I really am. I just hate when they happen overnight or when they're being given out like candy.

And while I don't underestimate nor belittle the things love can make you do, I can't get on the "I can change him" trope. It's so beneath the Su-yeon that we know. And it taints the sincerity of Min-woo's 'change' in that every good deed he does from here on is based on pleasing her and not because it's the right thing to do. He's lucky she has a great moral compass. The attempt at fistbumping Young-woo was just cringe. Would he have done that if Su-yeon hadn't been there? Exactly.

If the writer's intention was to keep his suspiciousness, then mission accomplished. I won't be surprised if they break up and he regresses to his old ways, or he regresses then they break up. If the goal was to transform him into a loveable character, then I just hope he's given a chance in season 2 to make morally sound decisions (at his expense) while he and Su-yeon are apart. It's the only way to get him back on track. I've been very critical, but seeing how things turned out, I'm optimistic we the audience will get the storyline we deserve next season.

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Lastly, I like how Jung Myeong-seok's reconciliation with his ex-wife was left open-ended and dependent on how ready he would be to leave Hanbada for good. But even if he left the firm, old habits die hard. He may choose to represent less affluent clients like the temple, but his devotion to his work could make him relapse (in more ways than one). It would be interesting to see him slowly shift into someone a little more like Attorney Ryu from ep 12 and even work with her for a change. Better yet, start a firm with his babies and take on social justice cases going head to head with Taesan and Hanbada like David v. Goliath. It's another way to see what both CEOs are really made of once Young-woo takes off with her real family.

And that's where the season ends. Where the first episode only had one floating whale during Young-woo's commute, the conclusion showed several as she no longer feels alone.

Overall, I still think the two-part season finale was more than satisfactory with enough room to elaborate in season 2. I'm excited to see what's in store for Young-woo and co. now that the writer and producers have at least 2 years to figure out the best way to continue this extraordinary saga. Until the next Whoa Whoa Wednesday!

The show just filled up my heart, as a law student I think it was so accurate, as a women it was amazing the characterizing, as a fan got me since the start crying, smiling and making my brain working in a nice way.

I was a little bit worried of how the writers would end the show because it's gonna be a second season, but they did it really nice, I'm looking forward to see Woo Young growing her relationship with his brother, he have so much material of this two to see.

Personally, I have so many concerns about being an attorney, concerns that I haven't talked about with anybody but the show really gave me confort and a perspective that I didn't knew I need.

I just love the growing up all the characters had, from the dad to the friends, to the seniors to the couple to Woo Young.

I hope we get to see all the amazing actors in other projects as soon as we can, because they're all so talented! They deserve all the hype too!