Bringing The Battlefield to a New Arena 

The Whirlwind episode 3 starts with a flashback to when  President Jang II Jun became the second South Korean to win a Nobel Prize. President Jang II Jun was excited, and the country was proud of him.

Unfortunately, Dong-ho didn’t share in his people’s excitement since he knew what  President Jang II Jun had done. President Jang II Jun tried to thank him for his efforts and gave Dong-ho a chance to ask for something. At the time, Dong-ho asked him to step down as President. President Jang II Jun tried to reason with Dong-ho, but the latter refused to budge and, in the end, declared war on the President for protecting his son.

Currently, Yeon-suk holds the forte down by declaring a state of emergency, given that both Dong-ho and  President Jang II Jun are fighting for their lives at the military hospital. On the other hand, Su-jin orders Byeong-oh to prevent the new doctors with expertise in poisoning from assisting Dong-ho. However, Yeon-suk saw this coming, so she promotes Byeong-oh to another position outside the hospital and appoints her man. The new chief quickly allows the new team to save Dong-ho.

The following morning, Yeon-suk visits the hospital and asks the doctors to ensure President Jang II Jun recovers slowly without any rushed measures. On the other side, Jeong-yeon tries to convince Dong-ho to take it easy and rest but he stubbornly refuses. He is afraid he is running out of time and anticipates Su-jins next move t round up new legislators. He calls  Jang-seok and asks him to coordinate with the few legislators he has to bring a special investigation against Hyeon-su.

Meanwhile, Su-jin video calls Sang-woon and plans how to save themselves. Su-jin fears that Sang-woon is doomed since his case has been handed over to Jang-seok. She uses this opportunity to get Sang-woon to relent to her.

Out of desperation, Sang-woon asks her to contact one of his right men, Dong-su, to help her get him out. She asks him not to contact her husband again and let her run the show. She plans to use their people in the system to get a special prosecutor and bring Sang-cheon on board with them. After that, the prosecutor’s office will lose its edge, and they will wait for President Jang II Jun to return and save them all.  

As the plot thickens, Hyeon-su is summoned to the prosecutor’s office, where hundreds of people show up to support him and criticise the prosecution. Unfortunately, Hyeon-su refuses to cooperate. Another problem arises when Chairman Park refuses to help Dong-ho and scolds him for attacking Hyeon-su at a delicate time. This time, Dong-ho is determined to have his way and keep the case going. If anything, he is curious to see how things will unfold as the politicians pledge their allegiance to President Jang II Jun. 

On the other hand, Su-jin fails to convince Sang-cheon to join the special prosecution. She gets to his office and is surprised to discover that the prosecution has already arrested Dong-su. Dong-su is one of the few people who knows where the skeletons are buried in Daejin Group. He is Sang-woon’s vault keeper and, as such, can lead the prosecutors to the hidden slush funds.

However, Su-jin doesn’t give up. She visits President Jang II Jun at the hospital, hoping the man will wake up and stop Dong-ho. Unfortunately for her, the doctors are under strict orders not to give President Jang II Jun shock therapy. Since it is a military hospital, the doctors have to follow Dong-ho’s orders as he is the Acting President. Su-jin realises that time is running out for her.

In the meantime, Dong-ho visits the First Lady to threaten her to order her son to confess. He points out that Su-jin is unreliable and will only save herself. As they talk, the prosecutors arrive at Min-ho’s company to arrest him for fraud. Min-ho reaches out to her for help, but Su-jin is also scared.

As the noose tightens around her neck, Su-jin takes her riskiest move yet. She sends her assistant, Man-gil outside to keep watch while she kills President Jang II Jun. She covers his face with wet wipes and a handkerchief he gave her won they first won the elections. She promises to save his legacy and family as she slowly watches him suffocate to death.

Dong-ho is about to convince the First Lady to talk to her son when they receive the news of President Jang II Jun’s passing. Once again, Su-jin ruins Dong-ho’s plan and saves herself. 

As expected, the President’s death shakes up the nation, and Su-jin further stirs the people’s anger against Dong-ho. She lies that in his last moment, President Jang II Jun succumbed after learning of his son’s arrest. She adds that the President’s last words were to reform the prosecution and ask for forgiveness for failing the nation. The people turn against Dong-ho completely, even as the latter plans the President’s funeral.

At the same time, Su-jin places herself as one of the chief mourners, hoping to will help with her popularity among the people. As she and Dong-ho discuss her cheap antics at President Jang II Jun’s wake, Yeon-suk angers the people more when she announces that the investigation into Yeon-su will continue. The people get angry, and Su-jin is forced to escort Dong-ho to his car so that he doesn’t hide at the venue like a coward. 

A few days before the funeral, the family refuses to let Dong-ho give the eulogy, and they pick Su-jin instead, which is a big deal. By giving the eulogy, it signifies that Su-jin should be his successor. Of course, Su-jin gives a moving speech about how some bad apples are trying to destroy President Jang II Jun’s legacy and how she will protect it. She also refuses to shake Dong-ho’s hand in public during the funeral.

Three days later, Jang-seok is caught off guard when he learns that the case against Hyeon-su was stopped. The Prosecutor General even apologises to the First Lady, and Pil Gyu goes to great effort to embarrass Jang-seok even though he is a subordinate. Pil-gyu is feeling himself because Su-jin is backing him up. After putting out the fire, Su-jin suggests that Min-ho takes a break as the CEO of his company and hand over his shares to  Cheol-un. She is now focused on the next phase as her popularity skyrockets. 

At the Blue House, Dong-ho and his team worry about his dropping popularity and the fallout with the Korean Liberal Party. In fact most of the ministers don’t want to work with Dong-ho and are threatening to resign. Dong-ho can’t run a country without support.

He decides it is time to step down and give up his position as the Acting President. He calls for a press release and announces that he is resigning. However, he vows to return to the Blue House as a legitimately elected President of the people.

The Episode Review

Dong-ho and Yeon-suk suspect that Su-jin killed President Jang II Jun to save herself and her husband but can’t prove it. If they ask for an autopsy, Dong-ho’s secret will be discovered, too. Su-jin knows this and feels secure in the fact that she will get away with killing the President.

She is gutsy, and her plan is working. She is like a seven-headed snake. Every time Dong-ho attempts to cut one head off, she defends herself with the other six! She is also good at PR because she effortlessly used President Jang II Jun’s death to her advantage without a shred of remorse. It is equally impressive and scary at the same time. 

As for Dong-ho, he is also making wild moves, but his decision to run for President seems logical. If he wins, he is going to have more time to eradicate the corruption. However, he only asked for one month. Will Yeon-suk give him more time or turn him in as agreed?

Most importantly, with his dwindling popularity, how does he expect to win the election? Knowing Dong-ho, he probably has a plan. Let us delve into the next episode and find out!