Playful Kiss Episode 6 Recap

This is the first episode of Playful Kiss (Mischievous Kiss) I’ve watched since the rather slow episode 1 that didn’t leaving me giddy as a gopher dug a new hole. Don’t get me wrong, I still really liked it. But PK can do with upping the intensity and the pace more, as it remains rather languid in its execution.

I worry people are going to check out of PK, because there is still little excitement from scene-to-scene and episode-to-episode. PK has a lot of endearing moments, but no real urgency in its forward momentum. I had a tweet-discussion with Javabeans yesterday. With the ratings for episode 5 being at 3% (OMG, give me a second here, that still hurts to see it and write it), I was afraid there would be a cut from the bigwigs at MBC. JB doesn’t mind a cut, as it might speed the story along.

The more I think about what I am really concerned with, it became crystal clear to me. What I am worried about isn’t a cut per se, but that a cut would cause the story to end pre-maturely. I don’t care if its 20 episodes (as it is scheduled to be), or 16 episodes (as most trendy rom-coms end at), as long as the ENTIRE story is told, i.e. we see the wedding and the aftermath with the OTP dealing with struggles of married life and their future together. With that said, let’s get to the good stuff, shall we?

Episode 6 Recap:

Ha Ni is at the hospital, and she apologizes to Seung Jo for causing him to miss the exam. She says he should have just left her there, and Seung Jo wryly says that might be what he should have done. She says that she really is a nuisance in his life. No, worse than a nuisance, she is a disaster. Seung Jo doesn’t seem terribly upset actually. Ha Ni friends, including Joon Gu, arrive at the hospital to visit her. Joon Gu starts to yell at Seung Jo, presumably thinking he’s the cause of Ha Ni’s accident, but Ha Ni curtly tells Joon Gu to stop.

Ha Ni asks them to leave and lays down to rest. Seung Jo asks her if she wants him to leave, too, and she tells him to go home and get some rest. Seung Jo stays and sees Ha Ni quietly sobs into her pillow. After Ha Ni gets discharged, she still can’t let it go that she was the reason Seung Jo missed the exam. At home, Ha Ni’s dad apologizes to the Baeks, who tell him not to feel bad. They realize that Seung Jo had plenty of time to get to the exam after admitting Ha Ni to the hospital, and he simply chose not to go.

Ha Ni tells her Dad they should consider moving out of the Seung Jo’s house. That night, the Baeks are having dinner, and Mom remarks that Ha Ni still refuses to come out of her room. Eun Jo says she comes out late at night, and one time she freaked him out thinking she was a ghost. Mom tells Seung Jo to be nicer to Ha Ni and make her feel better. Seung Jo says he already told her, by thanking her for causing him to miss the exam. Mom tsks to Seung Jo that he’s pouring fuel on the flame instead, and she takes away his rice bowl and tells him not to eat until Ha Ni comes out of her room. Oh Mom, can you be my mother, too?

One night, Ha Ni packs her bags and sneaks out, only to be caught by Seung Jo. She thinks Seung Jo is there to prevent her from leaving, but Seung Jo merely asks her if she needs help with her luggage. Seung Jo shows her an acceptance letter to Parang University, and says that he intends to go to Parang. Apparently the recruiter he met with at the fast food restaurant was from Parang!

Seung Jo tells Ha Ni that in the last year, it was the most unexpected year of his life, with so many strange things happening to him. And he says he liked it. He says that he wants to experience happiness and excitement in his heart like she said. Ha Ni asks if he’s attending Parang because of her, and Seung Jo says he’s attending because of himself. Because he wants to find happiness in his own life.

Ha Ni smiles radiantly, relieved that it appears Seung Jo’s future is not a mess because of her. She asks if she can continue to live at his house, and Seung Jo helps carry her luggage back upstairs. Ha Ni asks Seung Jo why he kept his decision about Parang a secret if he decided so long ago, since not knowing made Ha Ni feel so guilty. And Seung Jo replies because he was amused by it, i.e. watching Ha Ni mope was apparently funny (let’s all agree that Seung Jo can be evil and has a weird sense of humor). Ha Ni is angry for a teeny moment, but is so ecstatic in general that she grins like a fool, hugs her Seung Jo stuffed animal, and adorably flails about the living room.

Joon Gu, who is not planning to attend college, goes to see Ha Ni’s noodle chef daddy and asks to be taken on as his apprentice. He wants to become a chef, earn a good living, and provide for Ha Ni. Ha Ni’s dad initially refuses, but then a large group of ahjummas come into the restaurant and he allows Joon Gu to stay and assist him, noticing that Joon Gu has a way with the customers.

Ha Ni goes shopping to buy a present for Seung Jo. She’s in the men’s department and remarks that she can’t pick an outfit because Seung Jo looks good in everything. Imaginary Seung Jo models two outfits for her, and she picks one only to see the high price of the clothes and has to scrap that plan (for now). Ha Ni takes on a part-time job at the local mini-mart to earn enough money to buy Seung Jo that outfit. Too bad this makes Ha Ni exhausted every night, and she falls asleep even when Seung Jo is talking to her.

She’s a hard worker and quite good at her job…..until one night Seung Jo walks through the door. Ha Ni doesn’t want Seung Jo to recognize her, so she zips up the hood on her hoodie, thereby covering her entire face with a freakish-looking chicken head. She adopts a mock voice to ring him up, but since the hood covers her eyes, she has to ask Seung Jo how much money he handed to her, and ask him to reach into the cash register to get the correct change back.

Ha Ni is promptly fired by her manager, who witnessed the entire sorry exchange. She runs to duck out of the rain and sees a hiring sign at a fried chicken restaurant looking for a delivery person. Ha Ni starts delivering chicken that very night, riding a scooter in the rain to and fro. Of course, knowing the “Luck of Oh Ha Ni”, she gets a call to deliver chicken to the Baek household, and who else answers the doorbell other than Seung Jo.

Ha Ni adopts the same weird voice, and once again zips up the freaky chicken hoodie and hands the chicken over the Seung Jo. Afterwards, Ha Ni gets a call from one of her friends, saying the other friend is feeling quite down about her future. The three girls gather in their 3-7 classroom, and cheer each other up. They toss their school book out the window and vow to try their best in their future endeavors.

The next morning, after Seung Jo gets dressed for the school graduation, he steps out of his room to see Ha Ni waiting for him. She hands him a present box, saying that is a thank you and I’m sorry present, as well as a graduation present. It’s a weird head massager, and Seung Jo tells Ha Ni he doesn’t need it. Mom comes up and is totally touched by Ha Ni’s sweet gesture. She asks Ha Ni where she got the money to buy such an expensive present, and Ha Ni admits that she was working a part-time job. Seung Jo overhears this as he’s headed downstairs, and smiles widely.

At the graduation, the principal gives a speech about two weird things happening this year, which is Oh Ha Ni in Class 3-7 getting accepted to Parang University, and Class 3-1 Baek Seung Jo also going to Parang. Seung Jo gives the commencement speech, which incorporates the thoughts Ha Ni shared with him.

Seung Jo says that he was told by a weird grandmother that person must first be happy, then bring happiness to others. Since he’s not the latter type, he’s going to try to live his life happily first, and see where that takes him. Ha Ni is deep in thought and doesn’t hear that she’s been called to go on stage along with Seung Jo as the class representatives. Ha ha, how apt – it’s like a non-evil version of Pinky and the Brain.

As Seung Jo and Ha Ni climb the steps to the stage, Ha Ni has another daydream (and boy, are her daydreams escalating in degree of fancifulness). This time, she daydreams that it’s her wedding day and Seung Jo and her are standing before the alter getting married. She yells out “Yes, I do so swear” thinking she’s consenting to wedding vows, and causes the entire auditorium to laugh at her.

Joon Gu stands up to respond to that vow, saying that he also do so swears that Ha Ni is the only one for him. Mom stands up to object to Joon Gu’s declaration and yells at Seung Jo to say something, which prompts the entire school to realize that Seung Jo has to deal with Mom and Ha Ni at home.

Seung Jo stiffly tells Ha Ni to get off the stage now, and what does Ha Ni do except trip on the steps and fall on top of Seung Jo’s back. Seung Jo’s freeze frame expression was priceless, as was everyone else watching it unfold. After the ceremony, Ha Ni and her friends walk with Mom, who is just so happy at the occasion.

They see everyone swarm around Seung Jo, who rebuffs any attempts to take pictures with him. Mean girl Jang Mi grabs Seung Jo and tries to take a picture with him, only to have Seung Jo jerk himself out of the frame in the last minute. Mom calls Seung Jo, and then pushes Ha Ni to stand right next to him. Seung Jo asks if she’s here for a picture as well.

In front of everyone, he grabs Ha Ni by the shoulders and hauls her right up next to him for a close picture. She’s excited, until he says something to taunt her and she pulls away. You know what he says? Seung Jo says “Customer, how much money did you give me? Please take the correct change from here.” Mwahahaha, he totally busted her on being the freaky hooded chicken employee at the mini-mart. The picture ends up being Ha Ni turning to stare at Seung Jo, who smiles the brightest grin he’s likely ever delivered in any picture.

Afterwards, Ha Ni is out at dinner with her entire Class 3-7, who are eating and karaoking their hearts out. Ha Ni is uncharacteristically glum, and Joon Gu resolves to cheer her up. Who comes walking into the same restaurant then the entire Class 3-1. At the same time, Joon Gu and his Bye Bye Sea posse get on stage to deliver a performance ode to Ha Ni.

Let’s just say their performance is quite…..memorable, and I mean this is a good way because Joon Gu is clearly 100% devoted to doing anything for Ha Ni, be it silly or embarrassing for him. Seung Jo grins at Joon Gu’s performance, but the grin is wiped out the second Joon Gu steps off the stage and grabs Ha Ni’s hand, and then starts singing the refrain “I Love You” over and over again.

The teachers’ stand up to deliver their respective speeches to their graduated class, and they start bickering over whether their respective pupils have succeeded. Which leads to Seung Jo to call Ha Ni a nuisance, and he and Ha Ni start bickering. It’s quite clear that Seung Jo is totally a jealous little boy pulling the hair of the girl he likes.

Ha Ni tells Seung Jo not to be so arrogant, since he’s just naturally smart and that’s not something he should be proud of since he didn’t work hard to get it. Ha Ni gets pissed and shows off the cross-dressing picture of young Seung Jo to both classes! Seung Jo grabs the picture back and drags Ha Ni outside. He corners her against a wall. Ha Ni says that he has publicly mocked how much she likes him, and that she has finally decided to give up and will no longer like him. She is looking forward to going to college and finding a guy a million times better than Seung Jo.

Seung Jo sarcastically asks whether she can really forget him, and stops her tirade with a sudden kiss! And we’ve got our first kiss, ladies and gentlemen! He walks away throwing out yet another teasing comment to Ha Ni, noting that after the kiss she looks so affected, leaving Ha Ni completely floored by being kissed by Baek Seung Jo. She wakes up the next day and runs into Seung Jo in front of the bathroom. He’s as cold and indifferent to her as he always is, which makes our Ha Ni so very confused (sister, I am with you, that man blows warm and cold).

Ha Ni starts college and immediately finds her two bestest girlfriends on campus. Ha Ni sees a couple kissing and starts swooning about the kiss with Seung Jo. She tells her girlfriends, who wonder if this makes them a couple. Ha Ni confesses that it was more of a mischievous/playful kiss if anything. As they pal around campus, Ha Ni almost gets hit by a car driven by our second female lead of PK, Lee Shi Young as Yoon Hae Ra. Hae Ra is model-tall and thin, glamorous yet not bitchy to Ha Ni. She gets out of the car and asks if Ha Ni is alright, then leaves.

Ha Ni and her friends go to find Seung Jo. They lurk outside his classroom until he steps out and talks to Ha Ni. When they are talking, Hae Ra walks out and talks in banmal in Seung Jo like they are good friends. She asks Seung Jo if Ha Ni is his girlfriend, and Seung Jo say that’s not possible. Ouch again, Seung Jo, you are the king of the pithy and hurtful putdown, you know?

Hae Ra is happy to hear that Ha Ni is not his girlfriend, and she asks him to grab a coffee at the café. Seung Jo declines and walks away, which makes Ha Ni smile. This leaves the two girls, one tall and gorgeous, the other short and adorable, sizing each other up as love rivals.

Thoughts of Mine:

Strange how in an episode with the long-awaited first kiss between Seung Jo and Ha Ni, this episode felt curiously flat. I still laugh at ALL of Ha Ni’s antics, but it’s mostly because I find Jung So Min’s acting so charming and joyful to behold. Otherwise it would get old quick, and I’d be itching for Ha Ni to grow up by now.

Perhaps I feel like it’s a lull episode, between all the major issues the OTP has in high school which are resolved by this episode, and the upcoming increasingly more meaningful interactions between them in college. Either way, this episode was cute and had its moments, but I am ready for college to begin, stat! As for that ballyhooed first kiss, it was as usual per the dictates of K-drama productions quite lacking in sizzle and steam.

Now I don’t need tongue or movement, since I do get these two kids just graduated high school, plus Seung Jo totally went in for the kiss out-of-the-blue. But if you’ve watched It Started With A Kiss, the kiss should have been more pressing and lasting longer. Just sayin’, it was fine but I wanted a bit more oomph.

Baek Seung Jo, that ain’t no kiss to make a girl remember you in college. I don’t blame you, Seung Jo, I blame the weaksauce PD that made you pull back so quickly. Remember, a memorable kiss lingers, and a few nibbles won’t hurt either. Furthermore, you need to work on your after-kiss skills, because right now you have none.

[credit: screencaps from MBC stills and soompi.com].


Comments

Playful Kiss Episode 6 Recap — 21 Comments

  1. yippieh..time to go to bed now….thanks for this recap…gosh I’m so often on your site, I feel like a stalker….
    I liked ep 5 more than 6, but that may be because 1. the kiss wasn’t that great – I totally agree with you on that one, it should have happened with a little more oomph or be more aggressive and more surprising and I blame Seung Jo for leaning so close to HaNi from the beginning and then getting closer oh so slooooooow! If he’d just done it super quickly I would have loved this kiss more…so it reminded me of the japanese drama version Itazura na kiss…I can’t remember what the kiss was like in the anime and I haven’t read the manga…so…
    and 2. I got distracted by that Hairstyle, what the hell was that?!?! Seung Jo looked cute with the highschool hairstyle, I do understand that they changed it to make him look older = to show how he matured from highschool boy to college guy…but that hair?!? But then I thought one of Joe’s hairstyles were absolutely atrocious…and what’s with the ugly backpack!?!?!
    Anyway thank you so much for the recap as a non korean watching only the raw leaves me sometimes so puzzled that I’m totally grateful and thankful for your posts. I really, really appreciate them!!!^^

    • hahaha am wondering too about the hair?? I think KHJ didn’t made a fuss to the stylist bcoz he still looked good despite that monstrosity but can we blame him. Even handsome guy LTS didn’t complain about his..

  2. Thanks for the super-fast recap.. just watched ep6 raw and since I’m non-Korean, am wondering what BSJ said to OHN during the picture-taking to make her pull back like that.. Sly fox that he is! Love JSM and KHJ bickering so much, I don’t mind that their first kiss is not that torrid like the Taiwan production bcoz we have to admit he is just toying w/ our heroine in that instance.
    I just wish more oomph in the next episodes and higher ratings bcoz this show really brought smiles and wonderful memories of time when we had our first love.

  3. I have to admit I was anticipating more from this episode than what I got. It was still good but not as good as I was expecting it to be. I loved moments from the episode but overall I agree it fell a little flat. They haven’t seemed to slow the pace that the drama is developing but the pace was too slow for developing the drama, if that makes sense. I’ve decided no more expectations about an episode is the best course for me to take. Just watch and enjoy.

  4. Just a quickie comment (gotta run), but I don’t think Seung Jo’s new hairstyle is that hideous. Which is why I didn’t mention him getting dragged for a perm by Mom.

    Look, I spent 10 hours with my Pi looking like this:

    http://i966.photobucket.com/albums/ae145/ockoala/Guilty%20Pleasures/bscap161.jpg

    And I still thought he was adorable and mooned over him. So, long comment short, KHJ’s new college hairdo is nowhere near amongst the worst hairdoes on dramas, not by a long shot.

    • Lol! The hair is the hot topic at the moment. True I have seen worse and he does still look good but not the best choice in my opinion. If they were trying to make Hyun Joong look older I would have to say they missed the boat because I think the hair actually makes him look younger. From the comments I have read many others do too. I am sure this will be the next Playful Kiss poll along with the hundred of others out there…Baek Seung Jo’s new hair…love it or hate it.

    • LOL I actually thought Pi looked cute with his hair messed up like that. I didn’t mind it at all. But that’s just because I totally love Pi even with bad hairstyles…can’t say the same for KHJ though….

  5. thanks for the recaps ockoala….loved this episode overall but maybe I’ve expected too much from the first kiss having watched the TW version….would love to see “I can’t help myself” type of kiss rather than the teasing kind…leaving the kiss quite unmemorable……. it didn’t help as I watched MGIAG wonderful first kiss
    am still hoping and praying that the ratings will picked up as I have the same fears that PK will end prematurely…jebal

  6. The hooded Ha Ni in the convenience store scene really cracked me up. That scene like numerous others really tickled my funny bone. Thanks for the great and informative recap again! Your recap has to fulfill me until I can watch it tonight after work. BSJ has been consistently mean and gruff to Ha Ni hasn’t he! Ha Ni on the other hand is simply adorable in how honest and forthcoming she is with her love for BSJ. Ah .. to be young and exuberant.

  7. My prediction is this drama will keep getting the low rating, but the company isn’t worry anymore because they managed to sell it overseas, and most likely will gain more success overseas.
    PK, or Itazuraa Na Kiss’ ( the manga ) lovers will love this version too. I guess PK is just unfortunate because it has to fight with more established drama such as Baker King.
    But since BK has ended this week, there is possibility that PK’s will gain new watchers next week?

    *SPOILER*
    ( I don’t know whether this can be considered as spoiler, since I guess most of PK watchers here have known the whole story.. but still. ) :
    I agree with your worries about the premature ending, but I saw the article and pictures that they’ve already shot the wedding scene, so I’m not that worry anymore.

  8. Thanks for your fast recap! Man, this is practically the only place I can go to spazz about the drama as soon as I finished watching it. Love your blog!

    I watched the anime and have always maintained that PK follows its pace more than any of its other predecessors.. but episode 6 made me gasp quite a few times. Maybe according to the standard of a K-drama, it’s slow.. but I think it’s going rather faster than the anime. Even the mischievous kiss scene was sandquished in the middle of two big events.. the high school graduation and the college entrance. No, make that three.. with the introduction of Hani’s love rival.

    I think a lot of people are fussing over the kiss becoz they compared it to the Taiwan version. Well, sad to break it here people.. but Korean dramas targeted at the younger audience are not that big on hot-smoking, long-lingering kiss. At least, I’ve never come across one.. I might be wrong. And, even though everyone knows it’s Hani’s first kiss.. it’s actually Seung Jo’s first kiss too since he’s never cozied up to a girl in his life before Hani comes along. I don’t want this supposedly cold guy to suddenly go nibbling on her lips like they’re candy. I think it should go that way.. leaving us dissatisfied and waiting for the 2nd kiss.. the “Saikyou no Kiss” (Strongest Kiss) episode. I hope KHJ practices a lot for that one.. coz he’d be hit with a lot of bricks if he fails to deliver.. LOL

    Seung Jo is meaner than Naoki Irie in some respect.. hmm, more verbally abusive.. 😛

    I like the sudden karaoke session in the classroom with the Bye Bye Sea people appearing for a performance. Actually, I like a lot of the scenes in this episode. I don’t find it plodding at all. Maybe it’s coz I watch more japanese doramas than korean ones and this is right up my alley of loveliness. Nobuta wa Produce, anyone? Oh, the hairstyle! Love the change. Don’t really like straight hair on a guy. And it makes Seung Jo look like a university student..hmmmm. Brings back memories.

    Can I ask a question? Does the episode say anything about Seung Jo’s course of study? Is he studying medicine or something else altogether? It feels like an engineering classroom than anything medical.

    Anyway.. thanks again! I share the concern over the MBC cut. Been blogging about it too after I found the news on Episode 5 rating. I think they filmed up til episode 5 before the drama was aired on Sept 1, right? So we’ll see what kind of changes the production team will be making next. Despite not feeling confident about next week since Rain’s drama will replace Baker King (gyaaaaaa!), I do hope so much that PK rating will go up next week..

    Playful Kiss FIGHTING!

  9. @ Kersten

    Joe’s hairstyles in ISWAK were all wack. I only thought he looked great in TKA.

    @ magdzgo

    Seung Jo is not just sly, he’s got a really mean streak that comes out when’s he’s aggravated. He’s as mean as Joe was….and maybe even more because Ha Ni doesn’t do nearly the level of dumb things to him as Xiang Qin did to Zhi Shu.

    @CeeCee

    That’s my sentiment exactly – with a K-drama the intensity needs to build, however slowly, but then up the pace as the drama heads towards a climax. I don’t see intensity or the climax on the horizon, so the drama comes off as rather listless to people who don’t already adore the story, i.e. the majority of Korean viewers.

    @ sara

    Thanks, I did enjoy the kiss, it was appropriate, but could have been delivered with a bit more intensity and emotion.

    @Renee

    One of the reasons I like PK is that it does showcase the exuberance of youthful foibles, follies and falling in love.

    @djes

    Yeah, the wedding scene was a fantasy, but regardless of the cut I know PK will have a real wedding. The question is whether they will show some episodes with their post-wedding issues and cute moments.

    @Ami

    I watch A LOT of J-doramas, and I agree PK would be totally expected in that genre. Except it’s not a J, it’s a K-drama, and K-viewers except certain things that PK hasn’t shown. PK is not popular because the PD took the manga and adapted straight from the J-source without adding more Korean tweaks, like was done to BOF. This makes PK less interesting and captivating to the Korean viewer. I’m not saying PK would benefit from more Korean tweaks, I like it’s J-flavor, but more that there is a valid reason for its exceedingly low ratings. It’s just not the Koreans cup of tea. Mores the pity, it’s a good drama.

  10. This drama is kind of addicting. I say that hesitatingly because I hope the momentum starts picking up durinG the next few episodes. I don’t mind the slow plot but at the same time, I’m so used to some angsty scenes by episode 6 that it feels weird to not get that (yet). However, I felt emotionally disconnected with the plotline during this episode. It was flat, albeit having some cute moments. Was it just me, or was the directing/editing choppier than usual, too? Hmm. Anyhow, the kiss was rather lackluster, but I’m gonna let that slide ’cause there should be a couple, if not more, kisses to come, am I right? Jung So Min is kicking butt and I am now publicly announcing that I’m her fan. Heehee! As always, nice recap, ockoala! Thanks! <3

  11. tanx u so much.I can’t wait until subtitles so this help me calm down and don’t be nervous.Also I can see the special scene.tanxxxxxxx x x x
    and i love the writer.i owe u

  12. @ ockoala
    There was at least one Hairstyle on Joe in ISWAK that looked good on him….the longer hair took me a long time to even find it attractive…I got so used to the curls that I kinda missed them in TKA…^^
    I have to say, now that I’ve slept for quite a long time, that Seung Jo’s new hair isn’t as bad as I thought it was, KHJ still looks hot, but the hairstyle he has now…I can get used to it…it will take some time…
    Anyone remember his terrible hairstyle in BOF??? He looked so good in the beginning but then uuuurgh..

  13. Thanks for your recap. Please don’t go into the “this drama needs more angst” way. I love the way everything is unfolding.

    I loved every episode. Each episode had it’s little quirks and meaningful moments that is picked up in the next episode. I really like how the PD is building up the relationship. I am bothered by dramas that doesn’t even make the attempt to show how the “love” is developed. You just “know”.

    I really adore JMS. She’s really carrying this whole drama. KHJ is just lovely to look at. And may I say…I love jealous, mean, icy Baek Seung Jo?

    Hehe…I watched Buzzer Beater too. Unfortunately, I had a hard time dealing w/Pi’s hair. It got to the point that my sister and I ended each episode with “ohmygeee…the hair…it’s so ugly.” But I still love Pi.

  14. yeah…i agree about the kiss…it definitely was lackluster…..bt it wasnt the kissing itself but the emotions htat Kim Hyun Joong should have put behind it that i thought was lacking…..bt then again i could be at wrong for expecting him to deliver anywhere near what Jo Cheng did for the first kiss

  15. Lol kiss was ashort one though I don’t know how to it should have been a long one for the memories sake, I love this drama especially when KHJ changes the hairstyle impressive, I also like JMS she is the role of the Drama.

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