Recap: The Heirs Episode 7

It has all the signs of a sweet first love with all its impatient passion, jealousy, and major mood swings. But love at any time of our lives can be a powerful force, and to protect Eun Sang, Tan will become stronger and better, growing up from a boy to a man.  It starts by following her footsteps….

Written before live recap

There are a lot of characters in this drama, and I hope each get a good storyline and time on screen, even though there are a couple that grate my nerves every time they are on screen. Kim Won is a character I would like to see more of and in situations where he isn’t angry at Tan or his dad. Hyun Joo seems to be the only person who brings out a smile in him, even making Won pout a little because she wouldn’t take his gift.

Hyun Joo seems to have understood what Won’s dad was doing by supporting her education, and acts very carefully around him, although being by his bedside when he is sick is not exactly something only a scholarship recipient would be doing. I want to know how Eun Sang and Hyun Joo, these two women in the Kim Brothers’ lives, change and affect Tan and Won.

Everyone is so serious and prickly  in the drama so it’s really wonderful to see these BTS stills where they are all smiling and having fun.

The order will go like this. I can’t post updates while the drama is airing, unless the episode is moving slowly. I will be trying to capture as much as possible while I am watching the episode.  When the episode is over, I will go back to my notes, fix them up a bit and update part by part on each recap post while waiting for the torrents. If you can leave a link here, that would be great. When the full episode is available, I will fill in more blanks and screencaps, and continue to update. Finally, I will leave my comments.

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Character Index

 Kim Tan

 Cha Eun Sang

 Choi Young Do

 Kim Won, Kim Tan’s half-brother, President of Jeguk Group

 Lee Bo Na

 Yoo Ra Hael (Rachael Yoo)

 Yoon Chan Young

 Lee Hyo Shin

 Jo Myung Soo

 Kang Ye Seul

 Jun Hyun Joo

Han Ki Ae -Kim Tan’s birth mom

 Kim Nam Yoon- Kim Tan and Kim Won’s father, Jeguk Group CEO

 Park Hee Nam- Cha Eun Sang’s mom

 Yoon Jae Ho- Yoon Chan Young’s dad, Chief Secretary in Jeguk Group

 Jung Ji Sook- Kim Nam Yoon’s second wife, birth mom to neither Tan or Won.

 Esther Lee- Yoo Ra Hael’s mom, RS International CEO

 Choi Dong Wook- Choi Young Do’s dad, Zeus Hotel CEO

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Episode 7

The convenience store. Same situation where ES is resting her head on the table, and YD sits down in front of her with his ramen.

YD kicks the table several times- “Why do you always sleep in places like this, making me want to protect you?” ES pretends she is still sleeping. YD’s phone rings. It is Tan. YD asks, “How did you know my number?” Tan retorts, “You know my number too.” Touche.

Tan asks,  “Is your ramen tasty?”

Tan shows up across the street of the store. He sees ES and YD together.

YD:  Do you want to come over and eat ramen?  T: Do you think I called because I was happy to see you? YD looks over to ES and says to Tan, “I will connect you to the person you are happy to see.” YD kicks the table more and says, “Wake up already. Kim Tan is here.” ES pretends to have just woken up. She finally sees Tan across the street, and he gives her this look like a dad would give his misbehaving child.

Tan asks YD, “What are you two doing?” but Young Do thinks Tan is just faking running it to them by coincidence. ES asks a similar thing, asking what YD and Tan are doing here. YD invites Tan over, thinking that Tan came to see ES. Tan says he has no reason to go over. He warns YD to not do bad things in this neighborhood. Tan leaves

YD tells ES to go chase after Tan. ES says she didn’t come to meet Tan. YD doesn’t believe her. “Then this situation is all coincidence?”  ES replies, “Then did we two meet because we promised?” ES leaves. YD still doesn’t believe Tan or ES, saying, “There is no winning against insistence.

At home in the garden, Tan was waiting for ES. When she arrives, he runs up to her, mad that ES slept in a place like that. ES says that was the only place she could sleep without paying money, and she didn’t’ want to come home early.  Tan wants to know why she met YD, and she explains she didn’t meet him, she just ran into him. Tan warns her to stay away from YD; did he threaten here? ES tells him no, “He said he wanted to protect me.” Tan exclaims, “That’s a threat! Please listen to me.”

She asks Tan what happened between him and YD. Tan says he doesn’t remember, but in the present, they just don’t like each other.

ES tells him to come in five minutes after she does, so the parents don’t know they know each other. Tan wonders why can’t they just have met in the garden by coincidence. ES goes in and greets KA, who is in the kitchen. Tan comes in asking for water. Before ES can quietly leave, KA makes ES bring water and introduces Tan to her. She introduces ES as the daughter of the woman who can’t speak. ES says nice to meet you for the first time. Tan says he has seen her often in school. ES says she has never seen him in school, when KA asks. Tan goes up to his room. KA wants ES to report to her about Tan. ES: “Report?” KA snidely asks, “Why? You don’t want to do even that when you are going to a private school for free?” ES has nothing to say to that.

Tan is outside and hears KA say to ES, “But I don’t meet that you should be friendly with him. Just because you go to the same school and live in the same house, you can’t act like you are friends. Just like how you guys live in different spaces in the same house, you need to breathe different air in the same school. You also can’t speak informally to him just because you are the same age. ES: Then he is like the master of the house.

ES goes into her room. She sees the school uniform. Mom bought it. Her mom tells ES not to worry when ES exclaims about the cost of the uniform. She tells ES to try it on to see if she looks nice in it. ES thanks her mom and gets teary eyed.

Esther wants them to take a family picture. R: Do we really become a family if we take a family picture? R says she won’t go. She leaves her mom. R calls up YD.

R asks YD about the family picture photo shoot. She asks if there is any way they can break up the engagement. YD: Shall we date? R: I’m not asking you to break up my engagement. YD says even if he can’t break up the engagement, he can stop the photo shoot. But he wants something in return from R.

It is dawn, and Tan is waiting for ES. He and ES take the taxi to go to school. Tan coaches ES on what to say to KA: Kim Tan is well liked  in school because he is handsome. Kim Tan does well in his studies because he is so handsome, etc. Man, this guys is so humble.

Tan notes that ES said yes to his mom readily when KA asked ES to report about Tan ES: What else can I say? Tan: So you say all your no’s to me.

Tan asks what she wants to avoid by going to school so early. ES thinks about all the rich kids’ cars. She asks to be dropped off separately, but Tan wants the driver to take them to the front of the school. No one will be there this early. Before she can say anything else, he turns her attention somewhere else and rests his head on her shoulders.

“I’m tired. I woke up too early because of you.” Tan adds, “You look good in the uniform.” ES can’t help but smile a little at that.

At school, he walks behind her. His eyes are drawn to the back of her neck. He can’t stand it anymore, and he pulls her hair down. ES turns around surprised and exclaims, “What are you doing?” Tan replies, “Don’t tie your hair in school.” He ruffles her hair, pulling it over her face and telling her she looks prettier covering it. ES is worried that someone will see. Tan wonders who will at this time and out appears MS. He looks like he stayed out all night. Tan guesses he has been clubbing at night.

MS steps on the body outline. He tells ES that it is fake and someone keeps drawing this. It might be that Joon Young (the bullied kid). MS keeps asking ES if they have seen each other before. Tan replies that ES doesn’t go clubbing. MS asks how Tan knows that, and Tan replies that clubs are picky about who they let in, implying that ES is too ugly to get into clubs. HA!

KA’s friend visits KA. Friend gets call from daughter’s school, and KA is jealous because she can’t even show her face at her son’s school.

Friend asks how the affair plot is going with JS. JS unfortunately has a very boring life. Friend suggests targeting Won this time, but KA says Won is even worst, almost like a priest. Again, ES’s mom is there to overhear. KA is done, annoyed with mom. Friend asks if mom is really mute. KA tries to sneak up and check but it doesn’t work out.  We find out that ES’s mom became mute after a high fever at the age of three.

ES is having an interview with HS. She listed sign language as her talent. HS notices she has a uniform, which makes it unnecessary for her to get into the club. ES confesses that she lied about buying the bag instead of the uniform. HS replies that it seemed like that. But ES still wants in. She signs that she will get revenge if he doesn’t pick her. Unfortunately, BN doesn’t want her boyfriend’s best friend in the club. Another girl want to get into the club, so BN picks the lesser of two evils- ES.

Outside, ES tries to tie her hair, but Tan takes away her hair tie. YD watches. ES notices the strange look on YD’s face. Is it a strange mixture of anger and sadness?

BN tells CY about ES trying out for the broadcasting club. BN also finally confesses she dated Tan before. CY teases her about it. He tells her R told her about their past relationship. CY wants BN to keep ES’ secret, but BN doesn’t promise. “Why should I do that?” CY: “Because I believe you.” BN: “Don’t believe me. The past is the past, and I don’t like ES.”

Tan is at the hangout looking at the old pic between him and YD. CY comes. Tan asks how long CY and BN have been dating. CY replies that it has been about a year and a half. CY asks what level is  Tan and ES’s relationship. Tan replies, “Right before confession.”

Tan asks about CY and ES’s friendship; did he ever have feelings for ES? CY: “What if I did?” Tan sighs and say, “Of course. There couldn’t NOT have been. When?” CY says at nine years old when ES was taller than him and protected him against bullies. CY asks why Tan held BN’s hand when they were dating. Tan: “Because it was cold. Back then, BN was stronger than me.”

Won tells Daddy Kim he is going to live outside. He has no place to return to now. Dad thought Won would be more wise and sophisticated about this. Won retorts that it wasn’t sophisticated or wise of dad to bring Tan to the office.  Dad replies that Tan is only 18. Won says he was only six when he lost his mom, twelve when he got a half-brother. ” I know there is more to lose than to gain. But there is still something to gain- someone will get hurt. Someone else’s pain can be comfort to me, father.” Ouch, that is mean.

Dad subtly threatens. “You can guess what you will lose?” Won replies, “No, but if I have to lose something, I will lose it.”

Tan is all smiles to see Won. Going into his room, he says, “Hyung, you’ve come home now?” Won cold replies, “Is that what you and your mom are most curious about? Get out.” Tan’s smile is gone now. He pleads, “Can’t we live together, whether we don’t like each other or not?”  Won replies, “That’s only what real family does.” Tan asks, “If you talk to me like that, is your heartokay?” Won replies, “No, but neither is your heart.”

Tan asks how Won can do this, leaving the house because he has come. Won replies, “Because you keep following me around like you are seven. I have no place to escape to. How can I do this?  Doesn’t it occur to you that you are taking away the place I should be? Or do I have to go to the U.S this time. When will you grow up? How long will I have to deal with a high schooler. Please grow up fast.”

Won is in the wine cellar. Tan comes down and apologizes to Won for coming to Korea, going to the office, and going to the hotel.  Tan: “I’m sorry so please stay at home.” Tan stops Won from leaving. Won asks how dare Tan grab him. Tan replies, “I can’t even have this amount of courage? I know it is overstepping my boundaries, but I understand you. Won: “You understand me? Are you making fun of me? Who are you to understand me? You have the courage to return but no courage to fight? How dare you….”

Before Won can continue, Tan hugs Won. “I’m not going to fight with you. Because I will definitely lose. How can I win a fight in which I have no heart in?”

Won tells him he is noisy and just leaves Tan alone in the cellar. *Heart breaks* But I must say, why is LMH wearing a fuzzy cotton-candy pink cardigan???

In the garden, ES says hi formally to Tan, so Tan asks if she is rebelling. ES replies that it is because she doesn’t know when KA will come out.  He asks ES why isn’t she bringing back his dream catcher. “Bring it now to the wine cellar.”

Inside the cellar, Tan turns on music- “Two People”- what ES was listening to before the other night. ES comes in and says thank you for the dream catcher, handing it to him. Tan: “This thing is fascinating. Without it, I had a nightmare.” Tan asks her to stay for the music. Sorry, I’m kind of laughing here about the cheesiness of his line. ES sits down, saying it’s because he picked a good song.

Tan asks if ES likes he song, and she replies that someone she liked liked this song. Tan gets all jealous, and ES adds, “I didn’t say it was boy.” Tan smiles. “Oh, you didn’t it.” CUTE. ES says it’s her sister.

Tan asks if ES still wants to go to the U.S. now. ES explains it wasn’t necessarily the U.S. she wanted to go to, just some place that wasn’t Korea. Now that she is back, it’s the same- one part-time job after another and a very shocking transfer. Tan offers his help when she needs it.

ES asks Tan what it is like to be a son of the Jeguk group. Tan replies, “The feeling that I can’t call mom, mom, and brother, brother.”

Tan wants to ask ES something. ES says no, “You’re questions are always dangerous.” Yeah, like “Do I like you?” Pftt. ES thanks him for the song and leaves. Tan lifts up dream catcher as ES leaves, trying to catch ES’s disappearing image. “The first verse is not even finished.”

ES back in her room thinking about Tan’s confession. “By chance, do I like you?” “Cha Eun Sang. By chance, did I miss you?”

Next day at school, kids are complaining outside classroom because they can’t get in. BN of course pushes in. Inside the classroom, YD keeping ES from leaving. He has something to ask her. He empties her bag. He empties BN’s bag. He compares the difference between BN and ES’s stuff. ES has nothing nice or expensive. YD asks, “You’re not an upstart, right?” He asks BN is ES is really a nouveau rich. BN says she doesn’t know. What does it matter to him anyway? YD replies, “Of course it matters, if she lied and pretended, she is deceiving the whole school.”

ES, scared, tells him to bug off.  YD sneers; would it be too rude if he asked her how she can be so audacious. CY comes in and says to YD he is a bother to so many students. YD says to ES, “Why does our transfer student have so many black knights? It makes me competitive. I’m could get more twisted.” YD leaves.

BN is mad that she was put in this situation because of ES. CY says thanks to BN, but BN is mad at CY too. CY helps out ES, and BN storms off.

Ye Seul comes in to Tan’s class to report what happened to ES. Tan is about to run off, but the class starts. R sees Tan looking worried throughout the whole class and looking at his watch.

At the end of class, Tan is searching for ES.  In the hallway, a crowd has gathered around Joon Young and YD. It seems YD has filed charges against JY for the time JY fought back. JY begs YD to cancel the charges. Of course, YD refuses. JY asks what he can do. YD tells him to get on his knees, although he can’t guarantee he will change his mind.

JY gets on his knees. Tan comes, and tells JY to get up. JY tells him to stop butting in. “Don’t pretend you are nice. You are just like YD.” Tan asks, “Did I bully you in the past?” JY replies, ” At least YD remembered.” Tan apologizes, “I will repay you like this.” Tan hits YD. “Since I hit you, try to get me to get on my knees too.” Before YD can do anything, a teacher comes.

With JS, YD assures JS that he won’t file charges. JS says she is apologizing as Tan’s mom. JS yells at Tan for starting trouble. “Transfer then. Who should I tell on for you to be scared? Your brother?” Hit where it hurts, why don’t ya, JS? YD pretends to be nice and says, “I’m okay. Don’t yell at Tan too much.” Tan give him a death glare.

Outside, YD once again tells Tan to transfer, and Tan replies that the person embarrassed because he got hit should transfer. YD jabs at Tan, “Just because she is not your birth mom, aren’t you ignoring her words too much?” Tan warn YD to leave before he gets hit on the other side. YD wants Tan to bring it, but Tan thinks there will be another chance in the future.

Flashback to YD and Tan’s childhood in junior high school. Young Tan asks why YD is avoiding him. Is it because he is embarrassed of what they saw yesterday. Tan assures him that something like that is not embarrassing but painful. Tan assures him that everyone has something like that in there lives. Tan confesses he is not JS’s real son. “I have a different mom. You are the first person I am telling.” YD says to Tan, “So you were the child of a mistress? If my dad and that woman we saw yesterday have a child, the child will be like you.”

Ye Seul, BN, and MS talk about what happened to Tan and YD today. BN stops R to talk. She is mad that R told CY that she and Tan dated. R says CY shouldn’t be hanging around another girl. BN says it’s Tan and ES that seem to have something going on. R tells BN to not push her over the edge. She already has a lot on her plate.

Esther has come to pick up R. E sees Tan and honks, which R didn’t want her to do. Tan looks uncomfortable with E’s offer to have a meal together.

E is mad that Tan can’t even feign friendliness. R tells E about YD and Tan fighting. YD deserved it because of the way he has been acting around school. It says something about the man E is about to marry to have a son like that. “One thing I know for sure is that my fiance is better than you fiance.” E gets mad the tells R to get off. What kind of mom just drops off her daughter in the middle like that???

E is at the Zeus hotel, and asks about Won, who is staying at the hotel right now, to ultimately get CY’s dad’s number. She calls, but Yoon is standoffish. Interesting that Yoon already has her number in his phone.

Dad asks if Yoon is dating someone. Yoon says it is something closer to an affair. Dad warns him against it- “Look at me.” Yeah, dad, look at you, you jerk.

Yoon reports on Zeus Hotel and RS international. They will have a good number of stocks in Jeguk with the marriage, and dad wonders if this marriage will go through. Yoon says, “As it is a marriage in which love is not the priority, I think it will go through.”

Outside, Yoon notices the guy who reported to Daddy Kim about ES and HJ carrying the Jeguk envelope.

CY and ES are studying. ES ignores a phone call from “Do Not Answer.” Ha! After CY leaves, ES picks up YD’s call. YD want ES to come over and eat with him. YD also sent JY to make ES come, saying to JY that he will cancel the charges against him, if JY can bring ES to him.

ES has come to YD’s hotel room. ES wants to the know the real reason he made her come since she doesn’t believe he will really cancel JY’s charge. “Don’t play around.” YD replies, “Who says I’m playing?”

YD is really going to cancel the charges. Because she came. ES asks, “What changes if I come?” YD replies, “My heart.” ES: “Why does you heart change?” YD: “Something like, because you came to me and became a flower.”

ES replies that she doesn’t feel like playing around right now. YD: “Does it all seem like a joke if I do it?” ES freezes. YD: “Do you not like flowers? Do you not like flowers or the ‘because you came to me’? Pick one so I can make you do the one you don’t like more.”

ES replies that she hates both. YD smiles like a shy kid and says, “I’ve been rejected. I’m going to take revenge.” ES can’t believe this kid.

R has come to complain to YD about him not having canceled the photo shoot yet. R enters and sees ES. She asks about this situation, but YD says mind her own business. R says she doesn’t care to stay anyway and says to ES that ES seems to get around. ES sighs and says to YD, before she leaves, to please keep his promise about canceling the charges against JY.

R calls Tan and tells him ES and YD are together at the hotel. That’s really dumb, R. Tan hangs up and calls. No one picks up. He keeps calling and calling.

ES’s mom gets a message about parent conference in school. ES’s mom is replying she can’t go. KA sympathizes with her. Tan leaves the house in a rush.

Tan finds ES closing up the café, and he gives a sigh of relief.  He talks to her outside. “Why didn’t you pick up? Did you go to YD’s hotel?” He calls her crazy for going. ES says in the U.S. she even went to the house of someone who could have been a drug dealer. “I’m not going to do something stupid.” Tan retorts, “That was stupid. Why did you follow me? What did you trust about me?” ES replies, “You aren’t someone like that.” Tan asks, “How do you know that?”

ES can’t answer. All she says is that she went to help JY get the charges canceled. Tan is exasperated- “You believed that?” ES says she doesn’t, but she had to help out JY. He kept her secret.

Tan yells that JY is going to transfer anyway. How many times does he have to tell her to not get involved in these type of situations? ES says it is his fault that YD keeps bugging her. Tan responds that this is why he is so worried. Because it is his fault. “That something will happen to you because of me. Please, I beg you. Don’t make me worry. Can’t you just do nothing?”

ES  yells back, “Can’t you leave me alone? My life is difficult enough already, but it seems YD has caught on to something, and with you, everyday it is getting more uncomfortable. I don’t want a lot in life. I just want to graduate and live just a bit better than now. I don’t know what to do.”

Tan: “Shall I tell you? Leave the house immediately tomorrow. Do you want to keep going to school? Then start liking me now. If possible, sincerely. I like you.”

Preview for Episode 8:

Tan: I like Cha Eun Sang.

R: So what if you like Cha Eun Sang?

Tan: Do we look good together?

YD: Why are you asking something so horrid like that?

Tan: We look good together.

KA: If you keep behaving that way, you and your mom won’t be able to stay in this house.

YD: Sit down.

ES: Me sitting here, what does it mean?

Tan: Get up. Get Up!

YD: What kind of meal etiquette is this?

Tan: You bastard.

Comment:

Young Do is going to make me bipolar. He is mean and scary, and an awful bully. But then he has these moments of vulnerability and sincerity in front of Eun Sang that makes him endearing, although it is difficult for both Young Do and us viewers to understand how Young Do feels about Eun Sang. It seems to be a mixture of genuine interest, anger towards Tan, and a projection of his own loneliness.

The “heirs” are rich with everything they want at their fingertips, except for real affection and love from their family. Chan Young and Eun Sang may not be rich, but they have parents who genuinely care about them. I don’t know about Bo Na’s family situation, but she has Chan Young who truly cares about her. And she is able to look past his status and love him just the same. Good girl. But Rachel, Young Do, and Tan all have awful parents or family situations that leave them eating a lot of meals alone. Poor Young Do and Tan. They really just want someone to eat with, to share a sandwich or a bowl of noodles.

Bo Na’s friend, Ye Seul, seems to be the daughter of Ki Ae’s friend. As we learned this episode, but I didn’t summarize in the recap, is that Ye Seul’s family runs a chain of “room salons,” which is a shady and low-status business. The other parents at Jeguk High think Ye Seul’s family sells water. So we have another student at Jeguk High with a secret. Interesting, interesting.

I noticed that Tan phrases the question to the people he might have bullied the same way he phrases his confession questions to ES. He asked Chan Young in a past episode and Joon Young in this episode, “By chance, did I bully you?” He asked Eun Sang in the same manner, “By chance, do I like you?” and “By chance, did I miss you?” I don’t think there is any real correlation or deep meaning between the two types of questions, but the way he phrases these questions always shifts the responsibility to the other person, asking them to answer or remember, even if it was rhetorical in the case of Eun Sang. I am glad, finally today, he came straight out and said, “I like you.” I’m also glad Tan is taking some action against Young Do’s bullying, although he needs to be better at remembering the people he use to bully in the past.

I was hurt by Won saying he wanted to cause people pain because that pain can bring him some comfort. It hurts me that Won is that scarred inside, but it also hurts to know he is doing it to Tan. He keeps telling Tan to grow up, but Won needs to grow up too and stop living in the past as a six and twelve-year-old. Won may be hurting Tan to hurt his dad, but Tan is really trying hard to reach out to his hyung, and Won’s excuses are falling on deaf ears now. Won will lose his family and chance at happiness if he doesn’t grow up!

At the near ending scene between Young Do and Eun Sang, Young Do is actually quoting from a Korean poem called “Flower” by Kim Chun Soo, according to my research. Poems take a long time to translate so while I would love to do it myself, I have found a translation by Chae-Pyong Song and Anne Rashid at this blog here.  http://jaypsong.wordpress.com/2013/01/16/the-flower-by-kim-chun-soo/

The Flower by Kim Chun-soo (1922-2004)

Before I called her name,
she was nothing
more than a gesture.

When I called her name,
she came to me
and became a flower.

Like I called her name,
will someone please call my name
that suits my light and fragrance?
I, too, long to come to her
and become her flower.

We all long to be something.
You, to me, and I, to you,
long to become a gaze that won’t be forgotten.

꽃/김춘수

내가 그의 이름을 불러 주기 전에는
그는 다만
하나의 몸짓에 지나지 않았다.

내가 그의 이름을 불러 주었을 때
그는 나에게로 와서
꽃이 되었다.

내가 그의 이름을 불러 준 것처럼
나의 이 빛깔과 향기에 알맞은
누가 나의 이름을 불러다오.
그에게로 가서 나도
그의 꽃이 되고 싶다.

우리들은 모두
무엇이 되고 싶다.
너는 나에게 나는 너에게
잊혀지지 않는 하나의 눈짓이 되고 싶다.

Looking at different translations, I see that the object of the poem is often translated as  male, not a female. Also, the poem has been used before in another drama, “A Thousand Day Promise.”

It’s a beautiful poem, and it definitely inspires me to write something. Just the way I can’t think about Eun Soo from “Faith” without thinking about the poem “Besides the Chrysanthemum,” this poem is going to stick with me for Young Do.