Having finally earned the approval of his new boss, our secretary settles into his new position and impresses our heroine with his skills both on and off work.
As they work together, a romance starts to blossom, though our leading lady might be falling a bit harder.
Bunny S. watches Love Scout on Netflix
Episode Recaps: 01 & 02 | 03 & 04 |
Love Scout Episodes 3 and 4 Highlights
“Did I do too much again? Better not cross boundaries.”
Eun-ho suggests going to the hospital so Ji-yoon can get a check-up. But Ji-yoon would rather eat some spicy food and let off steam. Bonding over spicy food that Ji-yoon loves and Eun-ho can’t handle, Ji-yoon thanks Eun-ho for his help and apologizes for crossing the line. Eun-ho’s sincerity makes Ji-yoon come around, and she is willing to give it a shot and see if they can work well together.
Accepted by Ji-yoon at long last, Eun-ho gets a chance to show off his skills to her. Be it memorizing the clients’ names and helping Ji-yoon out when she gets confused, stopping her from getting into the wrong car for the umpteenth time or making her working environment more comfortable by organizing Ji-yoon’s desk, and sorting out the files so that Ji-yoon can find things easily. This man knows how to take care of others, and those little acts of service are slowly melting Ji-yoon’s heart and getting her to soften up.
“It was simply a position that suited her.”
Ji-yoon’s next project features a hotel planning to scout a renowned chef. But the catch is: the chef wants his sous chef to get relocated with him, arguing that they complement each other well. Given how the chef vouches for the sous chef, she must be skilled. So, Ji-yoon relays the chef’s request to the hotel. However, while doing research, nasty rumors turn up about the chef being involved in an appropriate relationship with the sous chef and showing favoritism to her.
At first, Ji-yoon wants to proceed with hiring only the chef to avoid things getting more heated. But Eun-ho suggests asking those directly involved about the rumor to ensure fairness. Both parties strongly deny the rumors and assure Ji-yoon and Eun-ho that the rumors are completely groundless and just acts of jealousy committed by those who look down on the sous chef.
Still suspicious, Ji-yoon does some further sleuthing. Thus, finding out that the chef has a wrist problem. He kept his condition a secret from everyone but the sous chef. Hence, his insistence on working with only her. Faced with it, the chef and the sous chef ask Ji-yoon and Eun-ho to keep the chef’s condition a secret. After sleeping on it for a bit, Ji-yoon reports the situation to the hotel, which surprisingly still wants the chef on board despite his wrist problem since they need his fame. Yet, they want him to choose another sous chef to work with.
Unlike, the sous chef who was loyal to the chef, it seems like the chef was only using the sous chef for his gain since he readily accepts the offer, urging the sous chef to find her own way now that he no longer needs her. Feeling betrayed, the sous chef blames it on Ji-yoon and Eun-ho, arguing that none of this would have happened had they kept it a secret. How can she survive in the kitchen now with everyone looking down on her? But, as Eun-ho says, the sous chef should believe in herself first for others to follow her.
In a slightly unexpected move, Ji-yoon helps the sous chef secure a better job. Just like the hotel needs the chef’s fame. Other places need the sous chef’s talent. Everyone has their own unique talent and Ji-yoon’s job is to help them find the place that suits them the best.
“For some people, things that seem basic are luxuries.”
The more time they spend together, the better Eun-ho understands Ji-yoon and the headhunting line of work. He is adjusting more quickly than he thought and getting the hang of it. Also, Ji-yoon is warming up to him, offering him a cup of coffee (but not without making the excuse of pressing the wrong button), discussing things with him, and taking his opinion into consideration while handling her projects.
To highlight the change in their dynamics, we see Ji-yoon thanking Eun-ho instead of scolding him when he keeps circling around to help her catch some sleep. Also, when it rains and Eun-ho covers them with a children’s umbrella, Ji-yoon just laughs it off and enjoys the moment.
We get more tender bonding moments between our leads sprinkled throughout the episodes like an observant Eun-ho noticing that Ji-yoon craves noodles and whipping up a tasty bowl of noodles for her, carrying a hair tie around so Ji-yoon will be more comfortable while eating, helping her lighten up after an annoying run-in with Hye-jin and buying Ji-yoon her favorite bread since she didn’t have time to grab lunch.
“When CEO Kang gets drunk, she always goes to the office.”
Not only does Eun-ho take good care of Ji-yoon, but of the employees as well, treating them to pizza when they pull an all-nighter and racking his brain over a way to get two employees to reconcile following a tense situation. Which is all a set-up to throw Eun-ho a welcome party that everyone attends, minus Ji-yoon, of course, since she isn’t a fan of staff dinners. Still, with some nudge from Eun-ho, Ji-yoon joins them for the second round and gets drunk.
Worried about Ji-yoon, Eun-ho follows her to the office, having heard she heads there every time she gets drunk. Which leads to a charged moment where a drunk Ji-yoon caresses Eun-ho’s face (thinking he is asleep) and pulls his face closer in an attempt to kiss him. Whatever happens next, we have to wait for next week’s episodes to find out.
“I only trust what I have seen.”
As we come to learn, 5 years ago, Ji-yoon’s former company (where Hye-jin is currently the CEO) collaborated with another company and got people hired there. Yet, unfortunately, it was a shell company aiming to scam people. On the outside, it seemed like Ji-yoon’s company fell victim to the scam. Yet a suspicious Ji-yoon kept digging into it until she figured that an insider was in on it with the paper company and deliberately scammed the candidates.
Unable to handle the situation, the CEO back then took his life and Hye-jin blamed Ji-yoon for it and chased her out, though the drama hints that Hye-jin was the one in cahoots with the paper company and the CEO took his life to protect the company and the employees.
Honestly speaking, the drama could have done without Hye-jin’s character and this whole plotline, dedicating that time to the characters instead. Then again, Hye-jin acts like a foil to Ji-yoon, highlighting the contrast between their approaches. While Hye-jin focuses only on her success, Ji-yoon thinks about what is best for the candidates and proceeds accordingly.
Love Scout Episodes 3 and 4 Musings
Given her workaholic nature, it is easy to mistake Ji-yoon for a greedy woman who is blinded by success and works her employees to the bone. But the truth is: Ji-yoon buries herself in work because she has nothing else going on for her.
With Eun-ho in her life, we can see Ji-yoon letting loose and leaving her worries behind for probably the first time since her father’s death. During the basketball match, we got a side of Ji-yoon we didn’t see before. This charming smile of hers that no one knows about has Eun-ho falling for Ji-yoon. While he is generally kind, his actions toward Ji-yoon stem from love. Ji-yoon is developing feelings for him too, getting jealous when the employees fangirl over Eun-ho.
As sweet as our leads look together, I can’t help but have mixed feelings about the ending sequence. A week 2 kiss is more worrying than swoon-worthy. Even if the kiss gets interrupted, nothing much will change since Eun-ho knows what Ji-yoon is up to. A slow-burn style suits the story the best, so hopefully the drama will find the right pacing.
On a lighter note, we got the first meeting between Ji-yoon and Byeol. Those two ladies are more similar than they think. Poor Eun-ho has to deal with strong-headed ladies, both at work and at home. Still, I can’t wait to see those three become one sweet family.
Photos and Videos: SBS Drama
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