Flower Of Evil – K-Drama Episode 8 Recap & Review

Who Is The Accomplice?

As we hit the halfway point of this Korean drama, one thing’s for sure – this story is far from over. With Ji-Won closing in on her husband and Mi-Ja starting to crack under the pressure, big question marks remain around the direction this one is likely to take next.

Episode 8 of Flower Of Evil takes a familiar approach over episodes have taken. We begin in 2005 – Fall to be precise – as Hyun-Soo speaks to Hee-Sung’s parents.

With Man-Woo now given the Chief Of Staff position at the hospital, he wants to keep up this false pretense to make sure he doesn’t lose this lucrative spot. After being given numerous sheets of paper, Hyun-Soo memorizes Hee-Sung’s life.

Back in the present, Moo-Jin and Hyun-Soo discuss the latter’s search for his sister. Unbeknownst to him though, Ji-Won is obviously tracking him on the monitors. Back home she tries to keep up this false pretense, smiling and telling him she’s happy.

In the morning, Ji-Won heads to a local bar with her fellow officers o stake out a gang. Only, when she’s there she notices a boy trying to steal a purse. That boy happens to be In-Seo.

He regrets what happened in the past and it definitely hits home for Ji-Won who sees first-hand that someone can change from being a good to a bad person in the wake of different circumstances.

Moo-Jin rings Hyun-Soo and tells him he’s found his sister. Hyun-Soo is given a time to meet – 7pm – but that’s not all Hyun-Soo wants. There’s a discrepancy in the Mi-Sook case that definitely looks a little suspect.

In the report, it says that Kyung-Choon’s wife packed up a bag and left after arguing with her husband. Only, if that’s true then why did Kyung-Choon report her missing? To get to the bottom of this, he tasks Moo-Jin to head up to prison and question him. Only, he refuses to do so for now.

Clearly still rattled from the In-Seo and Hyun-Soo situation, Ji-Won is reluctant to take on the serial murder case. The others definitely see this as suspect though and question her behaviour.

Given she usually loves solving cases, they instead tease her about a private investigation she’s undertaking. Although she brushes it off, none of the officers realize just how close they are to the truth.

Hyun-Soo arrives at the abandoned Marronnier Hope Plaza and comes face to face with his sister. Despite not wanting to find her, Hyun-Soo admits that he needs her help following what happened with the fish pendant.

Unable to hold her feelings in any longer, Hae-Soo jumps forward and throws her arms around him. Given the sacrifice Hyun-Soo made for her in the past, she’s obviously pretty torn up about it.

Back home, Mi-Ja continues to feed and entertain Eun-Ha. Only, Man-Woo is not happy at her obvious empathy and worries this could expose them. Mi-Ja wants to live like other people and seeing a child in their house almost made her cry.

While they argue – which becomes pretty heated as Man-Woo smacks her across the cheek – Eun-Ha gets up to use the bathroom.

Meanwhile, Hyun-Soo and Hae-Soo discuss their Father’s accomplice. As he mentions the case, Hae-Soo reveals that Ji-Won was the detective that came to see her. Suddenly, she asks whether Hyun-Soo loves Ji-Won. “No, I never felt that way.” Unknown to him, Ji-Won happens to be listening to this entire conversation.

After phoning Eun-Ha and telling her she loves her, Ji-Won focuses on the case with renewed vigor. She takes the various items for Hyun-Soo – including his cassette player – and burns them. It’sa small scene but one that’s symbolic of her severing ties and moving on.

In the wake of this, Ji-Won meets Hyun-Soo and asks him outright if he loves her, Instead, he kisses her hand and says “why ask what’s already obvious.” On the back of this, Ji-Won decides to front the serial murder case. She silently vows that their relationship is over but she’ll keep up the false pretense for the sake of their daughter.

At work, Ji-Won tellingly removes her wedding ring and focuses on the case. At the same time, Hae-Soo and Hyun-Soo do the exact same thing with Moo-Jin, determined to find the accomplice. Only, Hyun-Soo is clever and thinks back to past lessons with his Father. He would have set a trap for Mi-Sook to fall into.

As things become heated, Hyun-Soo hits out at Moo-Jin but he holds his own again. This time he tells Hyun-Soo that he’s completely emotionless and doesn’t understand why anyone would want to be with him.

Hae-Soo backs Moo-Jin up too, telling Hyun-Soo he’s changed. Given he never wanted anything in the past, the fact that he does now is evidence unto itself.

Not long after, Ji-Won phones Moo-Jin who feigns being ill to get rid of her. Only, when he opens the door Ji-Won happens to be right there waiting for him. Uh, oh.

To make matters worse, Moo-Jin’s pizza arrives (all three of them) and opening the door allows Ji-Won to spy three sets of shoes. With the pressure mounting, Hyun-Soo clutches his heart.

At the same time, Mi-Ja makes a big sacrifice and removes the mask from her son’s face. Holding back Man-Woo they watch in stunned silence as their son opens his eyes and regains consciousness. He’s incredibly weak but his eyes moving slightly are evidence enough that he’s definitely still alive.

As the episode closes out, Hyun-Soo arrives at the door and greets his wife.

The Episode Review

With a lot more characterization for Hyun-Soo this time around, it’s obvious that despite his psychological issues he wants to try and change and live better.

He’s still incapable of empathy though and his big reveal about not loving Ji-Won is a tough pill to swallow. Her silent vow means she’s more determined than ever to crack this case.

Of course, kidnapping Moo-Jin and the issues he’s had doesn’t let him off the hook. It does, however, show some compassion and sacrifice given he took the brunt of Hae-Soo’s problems.

The big talking point here though comes from that ending. Could Hee-Sung now reawaken and cause big problems for everyone? Who is the accomplice?

Big questions remain over this one and Flower Of Evil is really starting to heat up now.