Once Upon a Small Town episode 8 follows Ja-young and Ji-yul unwinding on a work trip together, only to be later surprised by a visitor from the latter’s past.
Recap
Episode 8 of Once Upon a Small Town sees Ji-yul, who while at work, overhears two women talking about the fight between the Majeong and Huidong factions at the elementary school a while ago. They also laugh about how Mal-geum had insulted Ja-young amid the quarrel.
So when Mal-geum comes running to Ji-yul, crying about his old mother’s sick dog, he is apprehensive at first about the idea of leaving his current work commitments and commuting to a fairly distant village and checking up on the dog.
However, Ja-young takes over that decision and togetherness, the two travel to Gupyeong. Ja-young is also giddy about the fact that Ji-yul felt defensive of her with his hesitancy to go and attend to Mal-geum’s mother’s dog.
With the treatment done, the two get ready to depart, only to meet with another bit of hitch — the tire’s busted and it’ll take an hour and a half to get it replaced. In the meantime, Ja-young and Ji-yul, for the first, hang out together, sharing really cute moments of banter, goofs, and fun all around.
On their way back, they get overtaken by a speeding car, the driver of which later turns out to be Ji-yul’s ex-girlfriend. Ja-young, unaware of the status of their relationship, begins distancing herself from the couple.
Meanwhile, Yun-hyeong has also come to visit Ji-yul at Huidong and it clearly becomes clear why the two surprising visits occurred simultaneously. It was Yun-hyeong’s livestream that gave away Ji-yul’s current location and made it possible for Min, his ex, to come crashing into the village.
While Yun-hyeong apologizes to Ji-yul, the latter is distressed over Min being so weirdly clingy and obsessed over trying to get back together with him. He wants her gone but she has already found a room to stay in and seeks one week to change Ji-yul’s mind about her.
Later on, because Se-ryeon’s home is a wreck due to a burst pipe, Min is to be given a stay at none other than Ja-young’s house. At her house, Min arrives with Ji-yul, and then Sang-hyun as well, who Min thinks is Ja-young’s boyfriend.
Sang-hyun delightfully puts his arm around Ja-young upon Min’s misunderstanding. Later on, Sang-hyun takes Ja-young for a walk with Nurungji.
Ji-yul considers his recent change of perception toward Ja-young. Sang-hyun and Ja-young are on a walk and the latter is about to tell her decision on the former’s request to reconsider their relationship.
However, before she can say anything, they stumble upon Ji-yul, who must have come running to her. He tells her that Min is not his girlfriend, clearing up a misunderstanding that Ja-young probably had. The episode ends with the two looking at each other with a concerned Sang-hyun third wheeling.
Review
- Once Upon a Small Town finally delivers an outing where the two leads have an unperturbed fun time together. Along with a montage of their hanging out together, the viewers also get a chance to see the development in their dynamic, especially now that Ji-yul is aware of who Ja-young is.
- There’s a pretty evident romantic feeling innate to Han Ji-yul, that he so wants to express already. The character development from a walled-up grumpy to a cheerful romantic with a fluttering heart is really wholesome to behold.
- However, the lightness of all the love and crush and everything surrounding it is soon disturbed by the arrival of Ji-yul’s ex-girlfriend Min.
- The new character has complicated the love triangle into an even more dreadful rhombus. However, it does set up the stage for a clichéd finale, in addition to Ji-yul’s intense new drive to express his love for Ja-young.
Once Upon a Small Town episode 8
Director: Kwon Seok-jang
Date Created: 2022-09-20 17:30
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