Divorce Attorney Shin – K-drama Episode 6 Recap & Review

The Final Grape

Episode 6 of Divorce Attorney Shin begins with a look at the past. Specifically that of Ju-hwa receiving a call and heading outside in the pouring rain, holding her red umbrella. In a state of shock, she takes a step forward and is hit by a car. Quite what left her in this state though, remains to be seen.

Sung-han pays his respects to Ju-hwa at her grave, complete with a jar of chocolate spread. His bright and witty demeanour soon crumbles when talking about life expectancy, as he closes his eyes and drinks in the bitter taste of grief. His sister died before her time and the circumstances surrounding this, are shrouded in mystery.

Sung-han eventually heads back to the office, where he greets everyone with a bright “Good morning,” despite it being after lunch. Both Jeong-sik and Hyeong-geun know exactly what today is, but as outsiders, Choi Jun and Seo-jin are confused over the somber mood inside. Hyeong-geun speaks to his friend in his office, telling him he knows where Sung-han has been and advises him to wipe the tissue off his face.

At the office, Ju-hwa’s mother-in-law shows up, the lady whom we saw briefly in yesterday’s episode called Geum-hee. Geum-hee asks Sung-han where Ju-hwa has been buried and Sung-Han does the best he can to hold his temper – and refuses to tell her too.

Once more, Geum-hee tells Sung-han that kindness is a weakness (just like he did on her wedding day) and leaves the office, leaving Sung-han conflicted and struggling to keep it together.

Meanwhile, we learn more of this Ji-suk case. Park Ji-yeon (the wife) shouts at her husband Choi Jeong-ho back home while their son, Min-su, is on the sofa listening. He reveals that he’s going to give Jeong-ho his liver, which angers Ji-yeon as she calls out “that bitch” (Ji-suk) as the one responsible.

Min-su doesn’t want to study so hard, and points out to his mum that he has a panic disorder. “So? Eceryone has one nowadays!” Ji-yeon bites back.

In fact, Ji-yeon heads out and meets with Ji-suk. Their conversation turns heated at the hairdressers the latter has, with items thrown around and the pair getting into a catfight. There’s also the situation involving Geum-hee that continues to simmer and that night she speaks to Jin Yeong-ju, with the former asking just how she sleeps at night given Yeong-ju has basically taken over Ju-Hwa’s role.

The next day, Sung-han goes ahead with Jeong-ho’s case, where a phone call with Ji-yeon destroys her character completely. Within the call, she bemoans that she needs to pay out more and basically admits outright that she only cares about money. Given the insurance planner she’s talking to is a friend, this explains her brazen and reckless attitude. This is also why Sung-han suggested Jeong-ho cancel all of his insurance.

When Ji-yeon inevitably rings through and shows her true colours, it may be a breach in the Communications Act, yes, but it also ousts her true colours as well. Given the gravity of the situation, the judge decides to mull it over whether it can be used or not, while Ji-yeon’s judge weakly decides to try and sue. Well, the outcome of this leads the pair to begin fighting again, spilling out into the hallway, where the pair agree to a divorce after all, wrapping this case up completely.

Back at the office, Sung-han shows his skills as a leader and allows Seo-jin to give a consultation alone. She’s a great listener, given her history on the radio, and it springs a smile to Seo-jin’s face to hear this. Seo-jin questions the grapes up on the calendar, which Sung-han admits he colours in even if he loses the case. He can see the finish line now but it’s cluttering his mind. Apparently things are different now to how he imagined.

Seo-jin heads out that night after being surprised by little Hyeon-u showing up at the office. He initially wanted to give Sung-han his journal but he’s off with the boys camping. Of course, Seo-jin doesn’t fancy going to this “boys club”, so they go to the familiar noodle shop instead. Hyeon-u likes the idea of camping though and tells his mum they should go too, given just the pair of them wouldn’t b anywhere near as fun than with lots of people.

Out camping, Choi Jun ends up sleeping first while the others discuss the trying day they’ve had. Sung-han points out that it was a difficult “consultation” with Ju-hwa’s mother in law before they play Rock, Paper, Scissors to determine who will sleep next to Jun. Given he snores a lot, Jeong-sik draws the short end of the stick.

Back at the office, Sung-han receives a call from a familiar number. This actually happens to be the same number that phoned Ju-hwa that night. Apparently the call was about a favour Ju-hwa owed this person but given it was a hit and run, the officers there can’t bring the caller in as it’s not the direct cause of death.

That number belongs to none other than Yeong-ju. This is the lady in charge of Keumhwa Law Firm. She wants to meet with Sung-han regarding Gi-yeong. Sung-han refuses and hangs up on her, and as soon as he does, he colours in the last grape and makes his decision.

Seo-jin sits in on her first consultation and it’s a lot harder than she imagined. She struggles to maintain eye contact, which the timid woman calls out, and goes on to mention the difficulties in her case, including how her husband used to have a mental condition – but not anymore.

Seo-jin unwinds at the noodle shop, where Hyeong-geun shows up chuckling nervously over the fact he has an expensive stroller for his ex wife as a present. This comes off the back of Sea-bom and Seo-jin’s suggestions at the office. Sung-han and Jeong-sik show up and ask him what he’s doing, but apparently this is a divorce gift, along with the papers which he’s signed already for her. Sung-han meets with Ji-eun that night and apologizes for it taking so long.

When she leaves, Hyeong-geun starts crying. Sung-han and Jeong-sik sneak into the room just after and decide to take him out to help their friend. Hyeong-geun struggles to hold back his tears, deciding that they should drink the whisky under Sung-han’s sink.

A man from Haenam shows up at the office the next day brandishing Sung-han’s business card. Apparently “she” told him to come to see him, and that “she” happens to be Yeong-ju, solidifying their rivalry. After their consultation, Sung-han looks up at his calendar and rips the grapes off the wall.

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The Episode Review

The ending to the Park Ji-yeon case happened to be pretty anticlimactic all things considered, basically ending with the two sides agreeing to the divorce off the back of the phone call outing the wife’s character. In fact, unless I’m completely mistaken here, this episode is the first time we learn everyone’s names in this case!

Away from this, the situation involving Yeong-ju and how that concerns Ju-hwa is ultimately what makes this drama so intriguing and it would appear that the final 6 episodes are going to move into more of a long-running rivalry and feud between the two sides. I could be wrong of course, but that does appear to be the direction this one’s going.

All things considered, the balance of comedy and drama here is much stronger and more effective than it was several episodes ago and it’s easily turning into the highlights of each episode. Kim Sung-kyun is fantastic as Hyeong-geun and his mix of comedy and sadness makes for a delightful character that rivals his portrayal in Reply 1988.

Overall, Divorce Attorney Shin is a solid watch, leaving the door wide open for next week’s follow-up.

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You can read our full season review for Divorce Attorney Shin here!