Dear Hyeri – K-drama Episode 3 Recap & Review

Episode 3

Episode 3 of Dear Hyeri begins with a glimpse into Hyun-oh’s life, where he’s helping a group of grandmothers prepare for one of their friend’s death anniversaries. We learn that Ji-on and Hyun-oh have known each other for a long time, and his sister is on Hyun-oh’s team.

The three seem to be close friends, perhaps through their grandmothers. It is here that Hyun-oh hears from Ji-on’s sister about Eun-ho being trapped in a freezer truck with a dead body and goes to pick her up. Later, Eun-ho questions why he came, and he mentions how the PD had been drunk.

Eun-ho emphasizes not coming to her aid even if she’s dying, while noticing Hyun-oh wearing two different types of shoes. Hyun-oh, in turn, adds that he’s embarrassed about her and tries to help her so he can feel better being associated with her as her former boyfriend.

The next day, one of the least popular employees of the station returns, causing much drama. Meanwhile, Baek Hye-yoon, Joo-yeon’s junior, who has a crush on him, deduces that he’s found himself a girlfriend. She, along with the other employees, tries to figure out the woman’s identity.

On the other hand, Joo-yeon has been waiting for Hye-ri, who hasn’t shown up to work since spending the night in his apartment. In a flashback scene, he recalls his conversation with Hye-ri. He told her how his brother died on the way back home after attending Joo-yeon’s graduation ceremony. They found out about his selection as an announcer later.

This is when Joo-yeon decided to become an announcer to fulfill his brother’s dream. Hye-ri falls asleep hearing his story, leaving the question of whether Joo-yeon is happy living his brother’s dream.

The next day, Joo-yeon meets Hye-ri and expresses his interest in her, emphasizing that the next time, he wants the two of them to wake up together.

Later that night, Hye-yoon and her colleague discover Hye-ri and Joo-yeon together, along with Eun-ho’s infamous senior, Jeon Jae-yong.

The next day, Jae-yong goes around asking about Eun-ho’s sister at the office. While Eun-ho and Ji-on are preparing for the broadcast, the CEO of the station berates Eun-ho and rudely mentions her age. He wants Eun-ho out of the picture so he can put in the announcer he prefers.

Eun-ho is later chastised by her batchmates and the senior announcers’ group because she broke their rules by taking on field reporting jobs twice. Feeling pressured, Eun-ho apologizes to the group. In a flashback scene, we see how hard Eun-ho worked to become an announcer. She’s also responding to Hyun-oh’s comment about being an embarrassment to him by apologizing to the group.

Later, Jae-yong mentions to Eun-ho that he saw someone exactly like her working at another broadcasting station’s parking lot. He adds that since her sister is dead, it couldn’t have been her, but Eun-ho takes offense, responding that her sister isn’t dead.

In a flashback, Eun-ho recalls how Hye-ri disappeared during a graduation hiking trip. While reading Hye-ri’s diary, we see how close the two sisters were. Eun-ho begins impersonating Hye-ri and works as a part-time parking attendant until she truly becomes Hye-ri, forgetting about her own days. This is when she finally visits a psychiatrist.

In the present, Eun-ho receives information about Joo-yeon and goes to meet him at his workplace. However, Joo-yeon finds her first, at the same time that Hyun-oh arrives. The episode ends with Eun-ho trying to hide her face from Hyun-oh while Joo-yeon addresses her as Hye-ri.

The Episode Review

Dear Hyeri is turning out to be surprisingly enjoyable. It’s different from earlier K-dramas that used DID as a trope, like Kill Me, Heal Me, which, although fun to watch, leaned heavily on the condition. Dear Hyeri focuses more on the characters than the plot, observing the relationships that the two personalities form and how they evolve.

Certain scenes in the drama are extremely cinematic and emotive. The use of color to depict Hye-ri’s and Eun-ho’s distinct personalities adds depth to the show and enhances the viewing experience.

While Hye-ri is mostly surrounded by warm tones, matching her cheerful, happy-go-lucky personality, Eun-ho is framed with cooler tones, reflecting her reserved and seemingly cold demeanor. When Eun-ho remembers Hye-ri’s disappearance, the scenes are in monochrome, signifying her grief, whereas the parking lot is a cheerful yellow.

We’re not really sure why red was used for the psychiatrist’s chair—perhaps it signifies the difficulties in Eun-ho’s path moving forward?

Speaking of the characters, we’re definitely Team Joo-yeon. The major issue with Hyun-oh is that despite his love for Eun-ho, he has treated her terribly. Even when they were dating, he neglected Eun-ho’s insecurities and signals—such as her continuous questions about who he would save. That’s more than enough reason to believe his love isn’t the right kind. We hope the show doesn’t justify his actions for a toxic romance.