Recap: May Queen Episode 5

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Watching this drama drains my optimism. It’s like a never-ending round trip of rich folks stepping, spitting, and stomping on poor people who could never raise their heads because they chose to live that way. I didn’t recap episode 4 because it’s an annoying filler where 30 minutes were given to wailing, screaming, and endless crying from the parents. There are other ways to bond the leads AND use their stellar acting chops, RIGHT writers? Why are you wasting my time?

Episode 5:

Knowing the truth is one thing, being told about it is another. In Hae Joo’s case, it steals away the comfort that she thought nobody knew or cared as long as she works hard to please mom. After eavesdropping unintentionally on Hong Chul and evil stepmother’s loud argument, Hae Joo runs away in tears.

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She stops and slumps to the ground, hands hugging her knees, pulling them tight to her chest. She confesses that she knew a long time ago she isn’t stepmom’s biological daughter. She cries and looks up with sparkling eyes, asking in a heart-breaking manner, “Who is my mother?” Startled, Hong Chul straightens himself and continues to lie that evil stepmother was angry so she misspoke some lines earlier.

Oh Hong Chul. The intuition of children is very accurate. They can sense immediately who loves them and who hates them. The way evil stepmother treats and hates her is a whole world of difference from the loving behavior she displays towards Sang Tae and Young Joo, Hae Joo notes. People even gossip that she bears no resemblance to evil stepmother. Whatever Hae Joo says, Hong Chul vehemently denies, poking holes at her growing sureness, “If we’re speaking about looks, then you don’t seem to look like me either, then are you not my daughter?!”

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That does the trick. Hae Joo drops her gaze and Hong Chul swoops down to assure her that even when the world collapses, she’ll always be his daughter, just like she’s her mother’s daughter. With tears striding down her face, Hae Joo apologizes for causing him pain with her foolish thoughts. They cry and embrace each other.

Cut to the hospital, where Geum Hee strokes In Hwa’s sleeping face. Apparently, rich kids can’t endure the hardships in life and need constant protection. This brat is still not awake from the accident!

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Treading home with Butler Park, Chang Hee is met with another beating from Il Moon, who blames him for not dragging his precious sister home. “If something happens to my sister, you’re going to die.” Dude, it’s not like you don’t know your stubborn sister is the one in control here? Please stop beating this poor boy. My veins!

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Next morning, Chang Hee walks by the same place where he uses it as his therapy center. A beautiful view of the shipyard. He sees Hae Joo sitting byself and joins her. She observes the busted lips and he waves it off as an accident. Then she wonders about his mother, why hasn’t she been seen around? Swallowing an invisible lump of heartbreak, he reveals that she abandoned them when he was so young that he couldn’t recall her face.

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Hae Joo looks at him sadly, finding another connection between them. She tells him the truth about her stepmother and he immediately asks whether she’s abused by the lady, in which she hurriedly answers no. Relieved for now, he guesses that she must’ve been working hard to appease her stepmother, and she smiles knowingly. She continues to say that she’s now afraid of meeting her real mother because she doesn’t want to part ways with her father. “If I have to part ways with my father, I don’t think I have the courage to live in this world.”

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I think he understands part of her reasoning. She requests that he keeps this conversation a secret, and he agrees too, about his mother. They do the traditional pinky-promise handshake, and when his hand comes in contact with hers, he murmurs, “Your hands…are warm.” Oh writers, you’re so cheesy with the symbolism. Hae Joo: “Why are your hands so cold, Oppa?” I like that she only calls him Oppa. 😉

Still holding onto her hands, the realization of warmth in his eyes just about kills me. He explains: “It’s because I don’t have a warm heart.” She refutes his nonsense, “My father’s hands are cold too but his heart is like silk. It’s nice to hold his hands in the summer. You’re like that, Oppa.”

Can I watch these two interact foreeeeeeva?

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Afterwards, Hae Joo returns to the hospital in hopes of visiting a conscious In Hwa. The Jang family stand and sit around In Hwa’s bed, worrying about Mom’s health because she has been watching over In Hwa for two days without sleep. Hae Joo turns around, about to leave when the little brat wakes up. And the first thing she’s going to say is “I want pizza Mom.” This princess.

Il Moon goes outside to get the doctor and pauses to snipe some condescending words at Hae Joo. Jang Do Hyun also comes outside and warns Hae Joo not to see In Hwa anymore. He also wants to talk to her dad regarding the damages done to his boat. He heads back inside where Geum Hee shudders at the thought of seeing Hae Joo again. Unsettled by her parents’ harsh words, In Hwa reveals the whole story – that she wanted to ride the boat to show off and if not for Hae Joo, she would’ve died. For the record, I don’t hate In Hwa because she’s a harmless brat, unlike her brother who’s a rotten potato.

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Walking home in a dejected mood, Hae Joo is chastised by her stepmother, cursing her for wandering around and leaving them hungry. She goes inside her room and uncovers a basket of sweet potatoes and eats them happily, content that Mom at least thought about her, even if it’s this little.

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Checking out the soil at the pear orchard, Jung Woo’s friend, Lee Bong Hee (Kim Ji Young) notices that the roots of the trees are decaying and suggests they do a chemical analysis to find the problem.

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As they walk home together, Bong Hee whines about her dry skin and says that she needs potatoes or cucumbers to soothe it. Emerging from the trees, Hae Joo greets Jung Woo cheerily, neither knowing that they’re related as uncle and niece. Seeing Jung Woo’s big goofy smile, Bong Hee guesses this is why he can’t get a girlfriend, if he’s always hanging around little kids.

Hae Joo speaks back to her, declaring that she’s a lady too, and Bong Hee narrows her eyes, saying that it’s like comparing an egg to a hen. Going on the same line of thought, Hae Joo calls her an old hen, making Bong Hee’s eyes to widen in shock and embarrassment.

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The two ladies continue to argue all the way back to Jung Woo’s house, where Bong Hee digs in the potatoes like they’re hers while Hae Joo sits on the side and grumbles that she shouldn’t eat all of it, “If I were a man, I wouldn’t like you!” Trying to read a book in between these two is proven difficult, so Jung Woo chuckles along, seeing that his sharp-tongued friend finally meets her match in a child.

Curious of the Bong Hee’s occupation, Hae Joo wonders what she does for a living, and when Jung Woo claims that she’s an expert in petroleum, Hae Joo snickers, “She looks like the type who struggles in school.” ha.

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After Hae Joo leaves, Bong Hee asks if Jung Woo wants to come with her – she’s visiting her sister, Geum Hee (Hae Joo’s real mother, Jang Do Hyun’s wife now). Jung Woo’s face turns 10 shades darker, all his cheeriness from before disappears, refusing the offer, and Bong Hee ponders the reason for his hate towards his sister-in-law. Bong Hee thinks it’s perfectly fine for her sister to remarry after she was widowed.

At the hospital, Geum Hee feels bad for hitting Hae Joo earlier, now that she knows the girl was responding to In Hwa’s unreasonable demands. She wants to do something….

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….and we cut to a party at the Jang’s residence where all the parties involved in the accident are invited. While everyone eats and drinks to their heart’s content, Hong Chul sits in a daze and watches Hae Joo interact and smile back at Jang Do Hyun, who’s doing a wonderful job acting the part of a loving husband and gentle dad. I want to barf!

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With a hot steak on her plate, In Hwa makes her towards President Kang (Kang San’s grandfather) and confesses her wishes of marrying Kang San. She doesn’t mind being engaged now, which is when Kang San coughs on the side, telling her to cut it out. Persistent, she even points out shamelessly that in saguek dramas, kids her age are already married! Exactly! In dramas!

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Nudging In Hwa on the side, Hae Joo questions why Kang San’s dad looks so old, and is told that the man sitting there is Kang San’s grandfather, president of Hae Poong Shipbuilding company. Impressed, she throws a curious glance at Kang San.

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Geum Hee compliments Sang Tae, Hong Chul’s eldest son, for looking bright and the camera emphasizes the boy in a frame, pigging out like he usually does. Stepmother and Hong Chul look at each other nervously, and Il Moon quickly blabbers that Sang Tae places last in class. Breaking the potential embarrassing moment, Kang San raises his hand proudly, declaring that it’s actually him who ranked last in class.

In Hwa joins in, wondering why Sang Tae has such bad grades while Hae Joo always ranks in Top Ten. “They’re definitely not similar,” she notes. All this school talk which brings down her precious son and raises the value of Hae Joo earns a glare from evil stepmother.

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Jang Do Hyun wants to have a private talk with Kang Dae Pyung, and so the two moves into his office. To begin, Do Hyun jokes earnestly that In Hwa liking Kang San isn’t a bad thing, their families can become closer that way. Seeing through the wolf’s plan, Dae Pyung replies in half smiles, “Might as well be honest and say that you want to swallow my Hae Poong when I die.” Laughing off his lies, Do Hyun denies having such evil mindset. Dae Pyung checks out the office and notes that it contains many books on building ships, “There was once many idiots who thought they could build ships by simply reading.” Whoa – This man has words!

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The main topic finally arises – Jang Do Hyun wants Kang Dae Pyung to concede and let him have the pear orchard land. But Kang is rooted in his own belief – he doesn’t concede to anyone. If so, Jang reveals that even if he got Jung Woo involved in the fight, he wouldn’t back down. Jang, in a threatening voice, mutters, “The world has changed a lot. People who used to support you have mostly retired. You should live the rest of your days in peace.” The second he finishes talking, Kang has already retorted by splashing red wine into Jang’s face, calling him a barking new-born puppy trying to eat the aging lion.

Upset with Jang’s arrogant attitude, Dae Pyung walks out of the office and takes Kang San home, despite his protests.

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Well, the party continues with Geum Hee complimenting Hae Joo again for her patient and kind nature. Stepmother thins her lips and orders Hae Joo to stop eating and piggyback ride Young Joo to sleep. The first to object is Chang Hee, who thinks Hae Joo should finish eating first because Young Joo isn’t that young to be piggybacked anymore. Stepmother shoots him down with a look. Then it’s Geum Hee who speaks up, calling the housekeeper, meaning to have the child taken to her room for now while she sleeps. Hong Chul intervenes and calls Sang Tae to piggyback his sister but stepmother barks that she wants Hae Joo to do it!

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And now, guys and gals, In Hwa also joins in the fun, pinpointing out stepmother’s strange behavior, “You’re so weird ajuhmma. You don’t even pack Hae Joo’s lunch. She has the same thing every day. Are you a stepmother?”

DUN DUN DUN!

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Stepmother prepares to gush out everything just to have Butler Park shoots up from his own chair and screams for the woman to stop. But he quietly sits down after regaining his sense. Hong Chul and Stepmother argue right then and there, causing the tension to rise and rise until he slams down on the table. Angry, Stepmother dares Hong Chul to hit her, which of course doesn’t happen.

Butlet Park pulls Hong Chul inside to have a talk. Hong Chul comes up with an idea, deducing that Hae Joo must be In Hwa’s twin but he can’t figure out why they would abandon one of the two. Butler Park is speechless but doesn’t say anything more. Chang Hee interrupts, informing them that stepmother has left first with Young Joo and Sang Tae. So where is Hae Joo? She’s with Geum Hee, who has bought a pretty knee-length yellow dress as a token of her thanks for saving In Hwa’s life. Watching Hae Joo’s beaming, Hong Chul sighs heavily.

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At home, Stepmother orders Hae Joo to give up the dress so she can sell it to make money. Hong Chul comes in and actually breaks down into tears, taking up the blame from stepmother, it’s his fault that she – who was once a well-off lady, is now living poorly.

That night, scenes of Hae Joo being mistreated by stepmother play over and over in Hong Chul’s head. He goes to the storage and searches for the her baby clothes. NOOOOOOOO! Don’t go!

He does anyway. People just don’t listen to the wise one.

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Jang Do Hyun’s speaking with Jung Woo, asking him to stop siding with President Kang. He lies that by buying that pear orchard land, he’s making Hak Soo’s dream come true. Not buying into his story, Jung Woo snaps that his brother would never purposefully kill the people’s only living sources (the pear trees) to achieve his dreams. Jang Do Hyun corrects the term Jung Woo used, clarifying that he’s “reviving” the land. Furthermore, Jang believes that if the land is used properly under his control, the people’s lives will improve dramatically (as if he’s willing to share the wealth, pshhh).

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Unrelenting in the protection of his brother’s land, Jung Woo tells Jang Do Hyun to stop making up baseless excuses for his greed. He knows what despicable deeds Jang has committed against his brother and for as long as he’s living, Jang will never acquire one acre of that pear orchard. And if Jang insists on building a shipyard there, Jung Woo urges him to pay the right amount.

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Jang’s initial pleasant attitude quickly changes to anger once Hong Chul lays out the baby clothes on the table. One glance and he denies furiously, causing Hong Chul’s puzzled expression. He shouts at Hong Chul for being a busy body because they have already found the baby’s corpse, so it’s no use trying to reopen his wife’s old wound. Dazed, Hong Chul gathers the evidence and leaves the office meekly. I’m so glad he didn’t reveal the big secret.

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But this just means bad news for Butler Park because he’s hauled in the car by Jang Do Hyun and brought to a random harbor for a beating and ocean-water drinking session. No matter how harsh Jang presses, Butler Park’s lips remain sealed, until he finally spews out a logical explanation, which I applaud him for. He opens up saying that because he couldn’t kill the baby alone, he had asked Hong Chul’s participation in the murder. It seems like Hong Chul is after the President for money, he thinks.

The idea appears plausible to Jang so he asks to have a three-person conversation with Hong Chul to confirm the truth.

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Bong Hee visits Geum Hee and the latter encourages her younger sister to go on blind dates because she’s no longer a spring chicken to be living alone. Bong Hee, intentionally or not, says, “I’m going to pick my own partner, someone like my late brother-in-law.” Geum Hee’s face freezes at the mention of her deceased ex-husband. There’s probably guilt in those eyes too, seeing how she got remarried not long after.

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School is dismissed. Kang San hops behind Chang Hee and spills out how he skipped class today because he’s fallen asleep in the lawn. Chang Hee is about to chide his friend when Hae Joo’s voice distracts their conversation. Eyebrows raising up-and-down, Kang San figures she’s been waiting for him and she nods, waving bye to Chang Hee because she has business to talk with Mr. Little Liar. She grabs Kang San’s arm and takes off, leaving poor Chang Hee behind, and his face falls. AWWWWW! And Argggg Hae Joo! Why you no bring Chang Hee along?!!

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Turns out Hae Joo wants a tour around Hae Poong’s shipyard, now that she knows Kang San is the grandchild of President Kang. He takes her around and she learns another weakness of his; he’s afraid of heights too. Seeing her eagerness to learn about shipbuilding, Kang San proposes a deal – he will tell her all there is to know about shipbuilding while she will teach him the arts of welding. She agrees but not today, she has to cook! He’s incredulous, “Why do you have to cook? Rice cookers do that!” Rich kids talk. Don’t mind him. 😛

Hae Joo skips home….to find three men from the loan shark company. She hides behind the trees and dashes away, but one of them sees her.

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Butler Park meets with Hong Chul. The helpless father nods that he did go to President Jang but based on the man’s attitude, he finally understood that Hae Joo’s not his daughter. Regardless of the identity of her parents, Hong Chul resolutely declares that Hae Joo is his daughter no matter what.

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He moves closer to the cliff and wishes that he can live happily with Hae Joo forever. Butler Park inches behind Hong Chul and after a moment of hesitation, prepares to push…………

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….just to have this almost-murder be interrupted and seen by Hae Joo.

Kap: What is wrong with people that they don’t understand the danger of standing before a cliff? You don’t evaaaar do that, especially if a kind person is standing behind you.

Oh Chang Hee….Oh Hae Joo. You two are the perfect makjang couple of this drama. No mothers. Crappy fathers. Burnt on the same place. Hot hands aiding cold hands. So perfectly tragic!! I really wish that another actor is casted as adult Chang Hee. Someone who always looks tragic and sad and wistful, like a younger So Ji Sub, he who masters the art of eternal doomed face. I can’t see Jae Hee as Chang Hee. Let’s hope he proves me wrong 7 ways to Sunday.

Hae Joo is slowly ticking me off with her too goody-two shoes attitude towards everything. She’s beginning to make me think of Joon Young from Feast, and you never want to be her Ver.2. Ke. Give her some spunk of a normal kid! On the other hand, I’m liking In Hwa more and more because she’s straightforward and spoiled, but not evil and calculating.

I like this shot:

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  1. 2 thoughts on “Recap: May Queen Episode 5

    thanks for the recap Kaptain A!

    Chang hee and hae joo couple kills me really. they’re so cute together. I love kang san too but please writer let Chang hee and hae joo end up together!!!

    the stepmother is annoying the heck out of me. she has no shred of decency treating hae joo like that. 🙁

    …is the father going to die??????

  2. 2 thoughts on “Recap: May Queen Episode 5

    I like this drama but I’ll read recaps till the kids grow.It’s too depressing for my liking.Thanks for the recap

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