The Atypical Family – K-drama Episode 10 Recap & Review

Episode 10

Episode 10 of The Atypical Family continues when Gwi-ju finds himself in the same car accident as before, this time with Da-hae. The accident occurs after Gwi-ju and Da-hae argue over a minor detail in their favourite film. Da-hae encourages Gwi-ju to travel back in time to find out the real colour in the scene, and he agrees. When he returns, the car is in shambles.

Five days before the accident, Da-hae officially moves back into the Bok family house and is warmly received. Soon-gu also returns home, and Gwi-ju feels grateful and happy. However, it seems everyone but him knows about his inevitable death. It is revealed that Man-heum had told Da-hae about her horrific premonition and asked her to make Gwi-ju live his happiest days. Initially hesitant, Da-hae responds, “How can I stay by his side, knowing he’ll die because of me?” Despite this, she agrees to Man-heum’s request.

At school, I-na’s homeroom teacher questioned the children present in the gym when I-na was locked inside. They point their fingers at Hye-rim. Later, everyone discovers Hye-rim’s true personality, and even I-na refuses to talk to her. Meanwhile, it is revealed that I-na and Joon-woo are dating.

Elsewhere, Gwi-ju proposes that the family should move since they cannot afford their grand house anymore. Man-heum immediately agrees. When Soon-gu confronts her, she says she will do anything that Gwi-ju wants and adds that once Gwi-ju is gone, it’s the end for her and Soon-gu as well. At the gym, Dong-hee runs on the treadmill while crying, aware of Gwi-ju’s impending death.

Meanwhile, Gwi-ju, I-na, and Da-hae enjoy a day of laughter and fun, riding bikes and taking pictures in a photo booth. Later that night, Gwi-ju sneaks into Da-hae’s room and insists on staying. He promises to remember the moment and come back to it. It’s revealed that although Gwi-ju wants to save the 17-year-old Da-hae in the past, it is Da-hae who stalls his plans and insists on getting married after Dong-hee’s big day before his superhero trip to the past. They plan to visit the beach the following day.

Back at the sauna, Il-hong gives Hyung-tae a cryptic order regarding Da-hae, saying, “We need to give her a proper goodbye.”

The next day, Da-hae and Gwi-ju are driving to the beach when they argue about a film detail. Gwi-ju leaves to find the answer but returns to find the car in an accident and Da-hae missing. The police and ambulance arrive, and a search ensues, but they find only Da-hae’s coat.

Gwi-ju is utterly shattered by Da-hae’s disappearance and falls into depression. He searches for her everywhere but to no avail. Eventually, he visits the sauna, where he accuses Il-hong of murdering Da-hae. She yells back, “Why couldn’t you find her? Why couldn’t you save her?” As a result of his depression, Gwi-ju can’t go back to the past anymore. The Bok family feels relieved, hoping this means he might live.

Time passes, and Dong-hee returns to her original physique. She is set to marry Ji-han, her fiancé, who is revealed to have a mistress and is only marrying Dong-hee for her money.

Gwi-ju keeps returning to the junkyard to find the car but to no avail. Dong-hee arrives to take him back, saying, “We’ve lost our superpowers for good.” I-na joins them and encourages Dong-hee to fly and search for it, but she can’t fly anymore and leaves disheartened. I-na comforts Gwi-ju and encourages him to travel and find Da-hae to warn her. Gwi-ju travels back to a family outing but fails to change anything. He then transports to the night he insisted on staying in Da-hae’s room, warning her about the accident, but nothing changes.

I-na decides to investigate the anomaly and finds Hyung-tae in the sauna. Hyung-tae’s behavior suggests he knows about I-na’s power. Meanwhile, Il-hong is suspicious about the accident and asks Hyung-tae to take her to the beach. I-na is persistent, and Hyung-tae eventually tells her, through his thoughts, that Da-hae is alive but they need to find her before Il-hong does.

A flashback reveals that Da-hae planned to stage her death in the accident with Hyung-tae’s help. When Gwi-ju left for the past, Hyung-tae staged the accident and took Da-hae with him. Da-hae is staying as a paying guest near the beach.

I-na tells Gwi-ju about Da-hae’s location. Gwi-ju ends up at the same guest house and learns Da-hae went to the beach. He searches for her, calling her name, and finally sees her. Shocked, Da-hae starts running away. When Gwi-ju catches her, she begs him to leave, saying if he stays, he’ll die. After much debate, Da-hae breaks down, and Gwi-ju hugs her, refusing to leave even if it costs him his life.

Meanwhile, I-na informs the family that Da-hae is alive. Man-heum almost faints. I-na reads her thoughts and blurts, “Dad is going to die?” as the family stares in shock.

The Episode Review

Da-hae not only conned Gwi-ju but also the viewers! This episode, despite its lack of clarity in some events, was enjoyable and interesting. The plot direction is ingenious but suffers from poor execution and lack of detail due to the limited time before the finale.

The Atypical Family feels like a blur of a rollercoaster; just when it gets interesting, the focus shifts, leaving original ideas half-baked. This is evident in the treatment of side characters. The show had immense potential to delve into Da-hae’s family dynamics with Il-hong but pivots to a different direction with Da-hae faking her death.

Although enjoyable, the show requires viewers to suspend disbelief and take the events with a pinch of salt.