Vincenzo — Episode 19 Recap
The legal battle comes to a close, but the final showdown is just getting started.
Previous: Vincenzo — Episode 18 Recap
Next: Vincenzo — Episode 20 Recap (finale)
Recap
Vincenzo takes on Kingmaker’s men and almost singlehandedly takes them down. Thankfully, Mr. Nam returns with reinforcements:
And also, some makeshift special effects:
Cha-young knocks Kingmaker out from behind and he wakes up in an alley near a train stop, a chocolate gold bar in hand.
As for the real gold? The monks discovered the presence of the vault in the temple after experiencing multiple electrical shocks during meditation, but hadn’t told the others to avoid a dispute. They, along with SenCha, Mr. Nam, and Miri all had taken turns smuggling it out slowly.
“If you walk alone, you reach quickly. But if we go together, we can go far.”
— Hee-soo
Outside the plaza, Vincenzo tells Cha-young he used ~$100M worth of gold to take care of his problems in Italy. Impressed by his heroics against Kingmaker Kim, Cha-young flirts with Vincenzo, but she’s no match for Mr. Nam, who back hugs him for nearly a minute.
Team Jipuragi use the Guillotine file to spread rumors about Candidate Park’s illegal real estate acquisitions. Prosecutor Jung attempts to postpone the Babel Tower lawsuit, reasoning that the plaintiffs will interfere with the upcoming election. Although Jung has requested his promotion be delayed, Kingmaker insists he needs the authority ASAP. Meanwhile in prison, Han-seok gets hassled for being a corrupt businessman, so he unleashes his rage on another inmate’s ear.
In the process of figuring out how to reverse the postponement of the trial, Vincenzo learns of Prosecutor Jung’s promotion. It’s clear Jung is loyal to no one once he’s gotten what he needs; when his plan to postpone the trial fails, he cuts ties with Team Babel with ease.
Han and Vincenzo both appeal (ba-dum, tss!) to the judge who will preside over the trial, but Vincenzo and his gun make a better case (zing!). Vincenzo also asks that Han-seok be released from prison as quickly as possible.
At the trial, the Geumga Gang refuse to rise when the judge enters the room. As Cha-young’s only witness, Vincenzo presents the video evidence from both the VIP auction and VVIP dinner party. Case closed. Watching remotely, Chief Prosecutor Han notices Team Babel’s faces are all blurred in the footage.
Vincenzo finds Prosecutor Jung after the trial. Jung has gotten the promotion he wants, which means it’s time for him to die. But first, a final act of mercy — he has two days to show some humility.
Elsewhere, Han and Choi know their time is running out, and Attorney Choi declares their partnership over. If he can maneuver his way into being chief prosecutor, he can figure out how to save himself. He just needs to stay out of Choi and Han-seok’s way from now on.
The Geumga Cassanos rejoice as they learn on the news that Geumga Plaza is officially theirs again. Settling in to the chairman position in earnest, Han-seo stops the production of Babel Pharmaceuticals’ RDU-90. He shoots down Han’s request to reignite their partnership.
Vincenzo pays Han-seok another visit in prison and taunts him with a photo of the Babel Tower model in ruins. But he’s no longer Jang Han-seok, chairman of Babel Group. When he gets out of prison, he viciously promises to add Vincenzo’s watch to his trophy case.
Han begs Jung to put him in jail for his own safety. As Wusang’s CEO, he has plenty of evidence against himself, which Jung can use to get himself to the top. Vincenzo makes his own plea to Han-seo to go abroad and hide from his brother for a while, but Han-seo accepts the risk to his life.
“‘It’s okay to be corrupt when you’re competent.’ This is what many of us believe.”
— Cha-young
SenCha finally have an open conversation about their revenge tactics. Cha-young admits inflicting cruelty has been difficult for her to endure, but she continued to accept it as the lesser of two evils. Just then, they learn that Prosecutor Jung eventually lets all of the VIPs implicated in the videos loose. Vincenzo takes this to mean Jung isn’t interested in being spared.
Kingmaker is desperate to eliminate Vincenzo and obtain the Guillotine file. Attorney Choi believes Han-seok is the only one that can do the former, and asks that he be released. She has already fabricated evidence that makes her look like the mastermind behind all of the Babel Group scandals, while Han-seok was merely her puppet. She’ll go to prison in his place.
Jung’s congratulatory happy hour is cut short when Vincenzo finds him taking a cigarette break on the balcony. He somehow still believes he’s abiding by the law, but Vincenzo begs to differ. His body lands on a parked car below. Three targets left.
Attorney Choi catches Han-seok up on Vincenzo’s movements and tells him she’ll take the fall for everything. He wants his release to be kept secret so he can retaliate quietly. After her arrest, Choi sings happily in her cell; Cha-young mistakenly assumes a Wusang colleague put her there.
As Vincenzo had predicted, Han-seo is Han-seok’s first target. Slightly less predictably, Cha-young is his second. She is abducted on her way to a judicial training reunion and her bloodied earrings and necklace delivered to Vincenzo’s apartment as a warning.
Han-seo has been bludgeoned badly, but is still alive and finds himself next to a tied-up Cha-young. Han-seok enters the room and Cha-young tells him that abducting her makes him a cheap villain. He declares his love for her, and she retorts that he’s inhuman and should have never been born at all.
Vincenzo arrives and barely restrains himself from running to Cha-young’s side. Han-seok hands his brother a hockey stick and promises him his life and all of Babel Group if he beats Vincenzo to death. When Cha-young calls him crazy, he punches her without hesitation. Vincenzo falls to his knees and tells Han-seo he doesn’t have a choice.
Han-seo approaches Vincenzo and raises his stick, but abruptly turns and starts swinging at Han-seok. Vincenzo rushes to untie Cha-young and lead her out of the room, but in the scuffle, Han-seok shoots Han-seo in the arm — and Cha-young in the back, startling both men.
Comments
Second to last episode means it’s time for some fan service that didn’t fit into the previous 18 episodes. Quick, cram in the flirting:
And ogling, and jealousy:
The thing is, circumstances haven’t changed. Even if the occasional moment of calm gives our leads a release valve for their desires, this is not a sustainable way for a romance to exist. Depending on your perspective of their relationship, however, the ending could be interpreted in one of two ways:
- Risking it all for love. Cha-young asks Han-seok to kill her to protect someone she cares about. Vincenzo sacrifices Han-seo to save her out of love. Actions speak louder than words. Simple, right?
- Risking it all for principle. Cha-young would rather die than be used as a tool by the very person she’s fighting against. Vincenzo tries to save her because he doesn’t believe in putting women or children in harm’s way.
The latter is more consistent with the series’ overall theme of grappling with one’s principles in a corrupt world. The Jang brothers’ actions also align with this theme well; Han-seok is unwavering in his desire to win, just as Han-seo finds conviction in his desire to repent. This stands in stark contrast to Prosecutor Jung, who is only principled when it’s convenient, and Attorney Choi, who ultimately and shamelessly choose humiliation to save her own hide.
Now that the legal phase of the vengeance plot has come to a close, the stage is set for a final showdown. The real question is, who will escape in a Bye Bye Balloon?
