Many Happy Endings
Episode 50 of Homemade Love Story starts with Jae-Hee eavesdropping on his parents. Min-Jae tells Jung-Hoo that she is ready to give him a chance. She wants to see for herself if he has really changed so she will stay in the house in a different room to observe what he is like in every day life. Jung-Hoo is pleased and shouts to Jae-Hee to come help his mother as he knows he has been listening. Meanwhile, Ms Kim and Seo-A are called to the office after the sprinklers are set off. They are surprised and not too pleased to find Hae-Deun and Jun-A. They tell them they didn’t have their phones and explain that this was their first night together as a married couple. After getting changed, Hae-Deun and Jun-A decide to play one last card. They sit down with both mothers and tell them they have decided to go their separate ways and get divorced. They both apologize and announce that they will go back to their old lives. The mothers are shocked by this revelation but don’t really know what to say to them. In both houses, Jun-A and Hae-Deun stay in their room, crying. Jung-Won then talks to Seo-A and mentions that Na-Ro is in the police station and that they have been summoned to testify. In LX fashion, Seo-A sits down with Chae-Woon and finally apologizes to her for everything she has done. Chae-Woon thanks her and tells the girl she knows she has been through a lot. She wants her to come to her next time she has a hard time so that they can talk things out together. At work, Jung-Hoo visits Jae-Hee to see how he is doing with the project. He is very impressed so Jae-Hee asks him what idea he has to save the villa. Jung-Hoo remains tight-lipped so Jae-Hee starts teasing his dad about it. Hwak-Se rushes over to the villa and tells Soon-Jung he has found Eun-Ji. They then call Ra-Hoon and Ba-Reun and ask to meet them. All four head over to the flower shop where Eun-Ji is working. Ra-Hoon goes inside to see her and gives some tea his mother wanted her to have. Eun-Ji tells him that she heard he is enlisting soon so she wishes him well. After getting a bouquet, Ra-Hoon says goodbye and promises to come back while he is on leave. However, he quickly comes back and gives her a hug. He hopes she will be well and gives her the bouquet as a gift to her. In his head, he thanks her for giving birth to him. Jae-Hee and Chae-Woon head to the hospital just as Pil-Hong is being released. Chae-Woon pays for his hospital bill and tells her father that Soon-Jung has offered that he stays at the villa while he recovers. He is not sure at first but finally accepts and the two laugh together. They take him to the villa are are greeted by Soon-Jung and Hwak-Se. He thanks them and promises Chae-Woon to live honestly. Back in Jung-Hoo’s house, the latter shows Min-Jae all the changes he has made for her; including a neon sign similar to the one she had; a study room just for her. On the phone to his sister, he tells her that he will be cutting back on organizing everything for the family. Jung-Won visits Pil-Hong in his shop. She mentions she heard he will be staying in the villa and tells him to make sure he helps out Soon-Jung. She then surprises him by admitting that she wants to hire him to make their samples. Pil-Hong is ecstatic and promises to do a good job for her. Jung-Won tells him she is prepared to forget the past and wants him to be a good dad to Chae-Woon. Chae-Woon tells Jung-Won to play Jun-A and Hae-Deun at their own game. Jung-Won laters ask Jun-A when the divorce will be final and wishes him well as he prepares to leave for London. He heads to the villa next where the residents say goodbye to him. Jun-A leaves, followed by Hae-Deun. Both are surprised that no one is trying to stop the divorce and wonder what to do next. Jun-A then realizes the brought the wrong passport and the two hug as he won’t be able to leave now. Suddenly, the residents and Jung-Won appear in the street. Jung-Won tells them she switched the passports. Both mothers don’t know what to do with them anymore as they are not happy they tried to deceive them. Jung-Won then asks Soon-Jung if they should shorten the consideration period. After some negotiating, they give them one month and then they can move in together. The couple jump for joy and hug everyone. As we flashforward, it is now the day before Ra-Hoon is due to enlist and everyone gathers in the villa for a meal. Hwak-Se gets a call and tells everyone that he has just been signed by a big recording agency. Everyone is excited and happy for him, and they of course congratulate him. Jung-Hoo arrives with Min-Jae and brings pork trotters for everyone. Everyone sits down after eating where Jung-Hoo reveals that he is the one who has bought the building. He didn’t want to say anything though until everything was finalized. He then asks Soon-Jung to be the co-owner of the villa. Soon-Jung is grateful but she can’t afford it. Jung-Hoo then explains that all she needs to pay is the money she was going to put on a new place and he will take care of the rest. Chae-Woon also tells her that everyone will pitch in so it will be like everyone will be owners. The residents tell her how special this place is so she thanks everyone. Hwak-Se then tells them to all clap as the villa will start a new life. Jung-Hoo takes Min-Jae home and tells her how happy he has been since she has been back in the house. He then bravely asks her to start over. He gets down on one knee and gives her a ring, asking her to embark on a new relationship with her. Min-Jae has tears in her eyes as it is the first time he has ever said anything like that to her. Years ago, she was the one who confessed her love to him. In a flashback, we see her asking him to date. Jung-Hoo remembers this and apologizes for always being so slow but he tells her she has always been the love of his life. Min-Jae then accepts his confession. She tells him she sometimes hated and resented him but she has constantly worried about him. She thanks him for trying so hard and changing. Jung-Hoo thanks her too and they hug. In the villa, all three siblings are in bed with their mothers and talk about their childhood. Soon-Jung thinks they had a difficult one because she was poor but they quickly dismiss her as they have been very happy. The next morning, everyone say goodbye to Ra-Hoon and wishes him well. He walks away with Ba-Reun but stops for a second. Unbeknownst to him, Eun-ji is watching from afar. Seo-A visits Na-Ro in prison to see how he is doing. Na-Ro remains cold and tells her not to visit him anymore. She insists though as she is still thinking of him and wants to be there for when he gets out. Chae-Woon, Jae-Hee, Min-Jae and Jung-Hoo spend the day together. All four are happy but as they have lunch, Chae-Woon starts to feel sick. Jae-Hee then tells them that Chae-Woon is seven weeks pregnant. Min-Jae and Jung-Hoo are over the moon and congratulate them. We then cut to Hae-Deun trying on a wedding dress. Jun-A is speechless and both mothers are there too to give them their advice. Jung-Won tells Hae-Deun she prefers the previous dress so Hae-Deun jokes that she should wear herself instead. Jung-Won laughs and tells her she will also find a new husband too. We then jump forward in time in the villa as Jae-Hee and Chae-Woon are there with their baby boy. Jun-A and Hae-Deun are also there while we see Hwak-Se on tv, who is now very successful. Man-Jung arrives and she is pregnant with twins and married to Hwak-Se. They congratulate her as she is doing very well in her new job and is rumoured to become chief soon. Hwak-Se and Pil-Hong arrive next, and the latter has brought a doll he has made for his grandson. Soon-Jung comes home too and everyone congratulates her on the release of her first novel. Min-Jae and Jung-Hoo arrive too so Hwak-Se suggests that they take a group picture. They are first interrupted by Jung-Won and Seo-A then Ra-Hoon and Ba-Reun. Soon-Jung stops the pictures as she wants everyone to blow on all her petals. Soon-Jung has some final words : “Despite not being blood related, believing and loving each other can make you become a family. I love you all”. As they blow, a petal lands in Na-Ro’s hands as he is just walking by.
The Episode Review
There we are, after 50 episodes the finale is here and what a journey it has been! Homemade Love Story ends its runtime with an excellent last episode, giving great resolutions for all its characters. Min-Jae and Jung-Hoo had the longest journey and while I predicted they would get back together, it was really heartwarming to see them finally happy with each other. Jung-Hoo has definitely changed and proven it to Min-Jae, who really deserve to be treated correctly by her first love. Seeing the two of them spending a fun day with Chae-Woon and Jae-Hee was very touching and of course, the cherry on the cake came from the young couple announcing they were expecting a child. Everything ended well for Jun-A and Hae-Deun though, with a final little joke between her and Jung-Won. The latter also put the past behind her when she forgave Pil-Hong. He also had his dream come true too, as he is finally able be a good father for Chae-Woon. Thankfully, Soon-Jung was able to keep the villa thanks to Soon-Jung and I am sure many more memories will be made there. The time jump was also a great way to see how everyone is getting along with their lives. I was so happy to see that Hwak-Se and Man-Jung were married and expecting twins! I would have loved to see their wedding though and see him, of course, perform his usual song. Soon-Jung also had a great ending as she was finally able to write her novel and see everyone in her house, happy and settled. Her last words were simple but so true. Seeing Na-Ro walking by, just shows that even he can have a second chance now that he has done the right thing after going to prison. These weekend family dramas from KBS2 are quite different than the ones from the likes of tvN or JTBC but the amount of episodes really help build the characters up. The stories are usually simple but also more real and heartwarming too. As I said before, I am really going to miss the residents of Samgwang villa. After many tears of joy and sadness, I think this drama is definitely up there with one of the better ones this year. If anyone is looking for an easy to watch and enjoyable K-drama, the great story, fun characters and excellent acting make this a great choice.
