Things are getting more complicated for our ace attorney heroine, who finds herself at the center of a nasty scandal. And the only way out is to follow the cheating duo’s wishes and settle the case.
Still, with some nudging and an out-of-town trip, our rookie heroine comes up with a way to turn the tide and give the cheating duo a taste of their own medicine.
Bunny S. watches Good Partner on Viu
Episode Recaps:01 & 02 | 03 & 04 |
Good Partner Episode 5 Highlights
“Before we think of a countermeasure, this is something I need to confirm as your attorney.”
Since Eun-kyung won’t budge, the mistress grows impatient and sows seeds of doubt in Ji-sang’s mind, claiming that Eun-kyung must have had an affair with Woo-jin. Not that Ji-sang is any better, playing right into the mistress’s hands and tipping off a reporter about “Eun-kyung’s office husband.” (Ji-sang has been jealous of Eun-kyung’s relationship with Woo-jin. Thus, readily believing the mistress’s lies.)
Back at the firm, Eun-kyung apologizes to Woo-jin for getting him roped into that scandal. Yet Woo-jin argues it isn’t her fault but that of Ji-sang. As they discuss how to respond, a broken glass causes Eun-kyung to cut her finger, sending Woo-jin to attend to Eun-kyung. And it is at that exact moment that Yu-ri walks into the office and takes the situation the wrong way. Eun-kyung’s “You too?” couldn’t hit any harder.
Following Eun-kyung’s teachings, Yu-ri doesn’t blindly trust Eun-kyung but first checks the facts with “her client.” To cement her position, Yu-ri summons Eun-kyung to the conference room instead of coming to her office. I love this dynamic with Eun-kyung getting shifted to the client seat and Yu-ri taking the lead and not just following Eun-kyung’s instructions, regardless of Eun-kyung’s protests.
Another sequence emphasizing Yu-ri’s growth is her reaction after figuring out that Woo-jin has feelings beyond admiration for Eun-kyung. Yu-ri doesn’t judge Woo-jin or get emotional yet thinks about what is best for her client, asking Woo-jin to stand back from the case so that he won’t do anything that might be unfavorable to Eun-kyung. And though Woo-jin tries to deny it, Yu-ri holds her ground, arguing that Woo-jin should treat her as Eun-kyung’s lawyer and not his junior.
No matter how much Yu-ri racks her brain, she still believes that settling the case is the best option for Eun-kyung. If they go to court, Eun-kyung will have to give half her assets to Ji-sang, her reputation will get tainted, and worst of all, Jae-hee will get hurt while watching her parents fight. Yet an adamant Eun-kyung refuses to settle, no matter what.
To get revenge on Yu-ri and help Yu-ri get some learning experience, Eun-kyung has Yu-ri go on a business trip to the countryside to meet with a client. Since Yu-ri can’t drive well, Eun-kyung has Eun-ho accompany her. But the catch is that yu-ri and Eun-ho have been awkward around each other for a while as they got drunk and ended up spending the night together in a motel.
“Attorneys are familiar with the notion, but the public isn’t. It will go massively viral.”
Regardless of the case details, this trip serves as a good chance for Yu-ri and Eun-ho to talk things out. Yu-ri wants to forget about it and return to being good colleagues. Yet that incident had Eun-ho consider the possibility of them getting together, suggesting they get to know each other casually. Yu-ri, however, isn’t on board with that. She just wants to focus on her career.
It seems like Yu-ri’s parents’ broken marriage affected her deeply, making her vow not to get married. Even when Eun-ho argues that marriage and dating are two different things, Yu-ri doesn’t change her mind. And all Eun-ho can do in this situation is respect her opinion and agree to be just friends, even though he likes her. (That confession feels a bit rushed to me.)
Being out of town helped Yu-ri devise a creative plan, using a fancy legal term (bigamous common-law marriage, as in a married man living with another woman) to describe Ji-sang’s affair with the mistress just like they called Woo-jin Eun-kyung’s office husband. (A term for a term.) Thus, piquing the public’s interest. Everyone gets curious about what that term means, and reporters swarm over in front of the court, awaiting Eun-kyung’s arrival for the first hearing. It is indeed a show, as Eun-kyung puts it. And our lawyers do nail their performance.
Cut to a frantic Eun-kyung searching for Jae-hee after getting a call from school reporting that Jae-hee has gone missing. We are yet to know who contacted whom first, but we end the episode with Eun-kyung losing her temper and yelling after spotting the mistress with Jae-hee.
Good Partner Episode 5 Musings
As things stand, it seems like Eun-kyung’s divorce case will take center stage and the other cases will serve to explore a divorce-related theme or impact the relationship between our characters like what happened with Yu-ri and Eun-ho. But to keep things engaging, the drama needs to do more than just pit Eun-kyung and the cheating duo against each other.
I am not the slightest bit fond of the affair plotline. Still, I appreciate how the drama takes the it-takes-two-to-tango approach, instead of throwing all the blame on Ji-sang and portraying Eun-kyung as faultless. For someone who got married to a man she met on a blind date just three months later because getting married is more time-efficient than having a long-term relationship and her criteria for choosing that man were that he could cook, was a doctor and looked normal, it should come as no surprise that Eun-kyung’s marriage failed.
Though I hate cheaters the most, a part of me thinks that Ji-sang had the short end of the stick in that marriage, having had to forsake building a successful career to take care of Jae-hee while Eun-kyung gave all her energy to building up her career. I have nothing against people who prioritize their careers over having a social life, yet I think they might need to think twice before entering someone else’s life or giving birth to an innocent baby whom they can’t spare time to take care of.
The one who will get hurt the most from this divorce battle is Jae-hee, no matter whom she ends up living with. It is obvious Jae-hee knows about it all but knowingly avoids Eun-kyung whenever the latter attempts to bring up the divorce. Given how maturely Jae-hee acts, I won’t be surprised if she was the one who contacted the mistress first. But it makes me feel for the poor girl who is stuck between a workaholic mother who doesn’t have time for her and a cheating father who might genuinely care for her, yet scarred her heart deeply with his actions.
Photos and videos: SBS Drama
