Gangnam B-Side – K-drama Episode 7 Recap & Review

Episode 7

Episode 7 of Gangnam B-Side begins with Prosecutor Min telling Choi that she wants a bigger role in his plans. But alone, she leaves Mrs. Ryu a cryptic message.

At the intersection, Gil-ho quickly rescues Dong-woo while K goads him. A flashback shows a teen Gil-ho beating and scarring K for some kind of revenge. At present, the cops show up and K lets them go. He informs Choi who orders him to kill Gil-ho and Dong-woo.

As for the duo, Dong-woo begs Gil-ho for help as he reveals Ye-seo is trying to avenge Jae-hee. However, Gil-ho just points out that Dong-woo finally knows what he is feeling and leaves. Desperate, the former cop calls Su-in who pretends not to care. He knows she secretly helps the girls and she is troubled.

But it doesn’t lead him anywhere and he requests Min-hee, the injured escort for information. He hits the jackpot as she reveals she met K at the now-closed HYENA recently for a batch of Neon.

It cuts to Su-in confronting Ye-seo and trying to get her to go home to her father. But the younger girl refuses as she has Jae-hee’s video. She needs to do something and tells Su-in they have to take action. This spurs her as she hides Ye-seo when K shows up to check on the girls.

Meanwhile, Dong-woo finds Gil-ho at HYENA as he too had the same idea. The former convinces him to work together as their goal is the same – to destroy K and Choi. Psyche suddenly attacks but Gil-ho easily takes him down. The drug dealer shows them all the Neon K has stashed at the abandoned club for the launch and the duo has an idea. Psyche calls K and claims the two are stealing the drugs. But K knows it is a trap thanks to a hidden camera at the club.

We learn that before Jae-hee joined Madam Baek, she worked for Su-in who helped her escape K. Once again, Su-in helps Ye-seo who has a blade in her vape and a plushy, gifted by Dong-woo, in which she hides the video. The girl gives the plushy to Su-in who gives Dong-woo their location and tells him to save the escorts. Unfortunately, K overhears and punishes Su-in. He also recognises Ye-seo and informs Choi.

Dong-woo hesitates but Gil-ho tells him to go save Ye-seo. Gil-ho tries to enact his vengeance but K’s thugs tranquilize him. As for Dong-woo, he arrives too late and finds that K has taken everyone with him. He finds Su-in dying with the plushy in her hand.

He finally plays the video which Jae-hee recorded and includes a meeting between Choi’s inner circle and their escorts. Jae-hee, Jung-hwa, Choi, Prosecutor Tak, Mayor Woo and a couple of other important assemblymen are present. Neon is introduced for the first time and the men test it on an escort against her will.

Dong-woo also gets a location to a strange place and finds Mrs. Ryu. Turns out, after Joon-seo’s death, Min has been playing the long game. She always planned to take Choi down and is about to deliver the final blow. Dong-woo races to Hae-il Tech and requests Min to hold off till he rescues his daughter. 

At the end of Gangnam B-Side Episode 7, Min arrives at the HQ and finds Choi’s inner circle. Tak is present as well and it was all a test by Choi to ensure she is loyal. Tak is about to become the Minister of Justice and he mocks Min for trying to arrest him. She is even more surprised when the highlight of the meeting is another illegal trial – testing the newest batch of Neon on the selected girls including Ye-seo.

The Episode Review

At this point, we are just waiting for this K-drama to end. The interest is gone and so is the suspense as the whole show has become extremely tedious. Gangnam B-Side Episode 7 has the right formula to make for an exciting penultimate episode but unfortunately, the plot just isn’t that exciting anymore.

The characters are constantly running in circles, there are tons of random plot moves that are added as red herrings, and the inconsistent pacing has turned this ambitious crime thriller into an amateurish and messy drama. Except for Jae-hee and the subtle queer hints of a relationship with Ye-seo, none of the other characters has left an impression.

Which is a bummer as we get heavyweights like Ji Chang-wook, Jo Woo-jin and Ok Ja-yeon trying to add gravitas to their shallow characters. Talking about shallowness, Prosecutor Min is yet another character with weak motivations who is purely written in for shock value. Yet she is as predictable as they come with the fake corrupt prosecutor trope. Gee, we wonder how the show will end…