Bo Ra! Deborah (2023) Episode 12

Episode 12 of True To Love opens with Bo-ra and Su-hyeok coming tantalisingly close to each other in the movie theatre. At the last moment, Bo-ra turns her head away and Su-hyeok pops a chocolate in his mouth.

U-ri is ecstatic thinking about how Sang-jin agreed to go to the movies with her. Sang-jin then comes out of his office and suggests they all leave early and go for a movie together, dismaying the young girl. The employees all make excuses one by one and tell U-ri they won’t make it.

Sang-jin’s mother tells him to come visit his aunts. He agrees to do so but as he’s leaving, U-ri asks him to confirm that he’ll make it to the movie.

Sang-jin goes to the restaurant to realise his mother has set him up on a blind date. He goes inside and meets the woman anyway. Meanwhile, U-ri waits for Sang-jin at the theatre but her battery is nearly dead.

After their movie, Su-hyeok and Bo-ra bump into Su-hyeok’s parents. Bo-ra greets them warmly and they assume the pair are on a date. Neither of them denies it.

Outside, Bo-ra gushes about how Su-hyeok’s parents look like a couple out of a drama. She finds out that the man is actually Su-hyeok’s stepfather. When he was five, his mother got divorced from his biological father and then got remarried. Trying to analyse his cold behaviour, Su-hyeok’s mother got a PhD in child psychology. Bo-ra says she saw her parents fight a lot as a child and wondered if that’s what happens when people are honest with each other.

After his date, Sang-jin tries calling U-ri but can’t get through. When he calls Su-hyeok he realises U-ri is probably at the theatre all alone. He rushes over and finds her still waiting. At a restaurant later, Sang-jin makes it clear that he wants to only be friends with U-ri. She admits she does like him but is upset at his premature rejection.

Su-hyeok and Bo-ra go drinking, where Bo-ra analyses that despite Su-hyeok’s bad dating habits, his good looks keep getting him into relationships. She wonders who would get dumped if the two of them dated. Su-hyeok agrees to let it be her. She then says it would be impossible anyway since Su-hyeok hated her since they met at the jewellery shop. He says that wasn’t the first time they met. Turns out, the thing he said about seeing her at a wedding in a black dress might be real but Bo-ra doesn’t believe it. When she describes herself as a shallow person, Su-hyeok claims at least one person could be attracted to her for it. That person could be nearer than she thinks.

While walking down the road, they discuss having one more drink. Su-hyeok suggests having it at his place and Bo-ra, inwardly, decides not get ahead of herself. Su-hyeok himself says it was an inappropriate suggestion and they get a cab. Bo-ra gets off at her place and their night comes to an end.

At Yu-jeong’s place, Bo-mi and Jin-ho take full advantage of the hidden room while the older couple have a wine date at home. Yu-jeong tries to have them pretend they are meeting for the first time on a blind date but Jin-woo can’t take it seriously.

Downstairs, Jin-ho feeds Bo-mi cake. She talks about how Bo-ra worries about her. She feels like she hasn’t done anything with her life but Jin-ho tells her she’s good at a lot of things. Jin-ho leans in to kiss her but loses his balance and falls. Yu-jeong hears the sound and wants to investigate but Jin-woo fully gets into his character to distract her from it. Jin-ho’s awkward reaction to the incident makes Bo-mi realise he’s not kissing her to ‘protect’ her. She manages to talk him out of it.

The next morning, Jin-ho’s mood is through the roof. Bo-ra notices it when she arrives, She asks him what his thoughts are on the younger generation’s tendency to sleep first and date later. Yu-jeong puts a stop to her lecture but Bo-ra claims Bo-mi keeps coming home late every day. Yu-jeong is thrilled to hear Bo-ra say she too stayed out late with none other than Su-hyeok.

Sang-jin hands a file over to one of the staff members but forgets that he had mistakenly kept one of U-ri’s heart-shaped post-its (signed by the name Judy) inside it. Inevitably, the employee sees it.

At the café, Yu-jeong asks Bo-ra if she would have slept with Su-hyeok that night. Her silence says everything. Yu-jeong reminds Bo-ra that in case she ends up with Su-hyeok, Yu-jeong deserves a gift. At that moment, Bo-mi enters the store and asks Jin-woo to hire her as a part-timer, bribing him with information on Yu-jeong.

Su-hyeok visits Bo-ra to supposedly check on her progress. He then reveals that due to moving houses, his apartment is a mess which is why he couldn’t invite her. He says he could call everybody home someday, or even call her alone, basically rambling on until Bo-ra makes him stop.

Bo-mi, the new server, comes by and makes Bo-ra go to the register and place Su-hyeok’s order. While she’s gone, Bo-mi asks Su-hyeok to keep Bo-ra out late at night. She lies and says Bo-ra feels lonely and cries every night.

On the way home, Bo-ra asks if Su-hyeok will be attending Yu-ri’s wedding. He asks Bo-ra to go with him but when she questions why, he says that she is a ‘girl friend’ so it’s not entirely inaccurate. In the end, she agrees to pretend to be his girlfriend.

They go to the wedding and greet the groom, where Bo-ra puts on a very strong act of being in love and planning to get married. Bo-ra pushes Su-hyeok away when they suddenly come across Su-jin. Sang-jin arrives as well. Bo-ra realises that Sang-jin and Su-jin’s wedding is also being held at this same hall. Bo-ra tells Su-hyeok to go talk to Yu-ri before things get busy. He does so and tells her she looks pretty. She says she’s sorry and thankful, but more sorry. He says he’s the same, but more thankful.

The wedding begins and Su-hyeok looks a bit wistful. When Yu-ri throws the bouquet, Bo-ra almost catches it but Su-jin hits it, so it flies away. Later, Sang-jin sits at the next table where everybody asks him why he got divorced. Su-jin loses patience and tells them all off, so she and Sang-jin leave the event then.

Bo-ra meets her colleagues from the radio show, who ask her if she’s made a decision. However, she’s still thinking about it. She and Su-hyeok then go to the first floor to get some nice pictures. Su-hyeok is very enthusiastic about taking pictures of her and insists her right side is prettier than her left.

On the way home, he tells her he went to the wedding because he told Yu-ri’s fiancé that he was her senior from school. They then wonder what to do next as Su-hyeok says he doesn’t want to go home early.

Sang-jin and Su-jin eat steak at a restaurant. Sang-jin claims he was a bad husband and he’s getting worse. He then opens up about how back when they were married, his business had gone bankrupt, he’d lost all his mother’s money, and he had outstanding loans. Instead of telling Su-jin about the financial problems, he found it easier to let go of her altogether. Su-jin realises she wasn’t a person he could rely on. She apologises for being harsh on him and pushes him to meet other people.

Sitting near the river, Su-hyeok asks Bo-ra why she doesn’t want to do the radio show when she liked it so much. She claims she let people down and she doesn’t have the courage. He tells her people might like Bo-ra more than Deborah. When he once again insists the right side of her face is prettier, she asks him why he keeps seducing her. He retorts, asking her if she would get seduced. She says she doesn’t know.

At home, while going through old photos from Sang-jin’s wedding, Bo-ra sees Su-hyeok in one of them. The memory of seeing her in a black dress was real the whole time and this time, we get to see the whole thing.

---

The Episode Review

This episode was a bit slower than the first but Su-hyeok and Bo-ra’s dynamic carries it throughout. This show knows how to settle into a conversation between characters, as is seen when Su-hyeok and Bo-ra open up about each other’s parents. I like the way they dance around each other; the way their attraction is both obvious and subtle.

The dialogues are what really hone this element in and definitely one of the highlights of the show’s writing. As a viewer, their relationship trajectory has been highly enjoyable. The only thing I’m worried about is not seeing them actually be in a romantic relationship. The way things are going, we will possibly get a last minute union which might be unsatisfying.

I like that we learn more about Sang-jin and his side of the story as well. It offers more depth to his character, particularly a side that we haven’t seen in the usually cheerful character. Su-jin continues to be an awe-inspiring character though. I admire her stance on staying single and was, honestly, relieved that she and Sang-jin weren’t getting back together.

U-ri, unfortunately, doesn’t quite strike the same endearing note that the other characters do. Her manner of speaking comes across as childish and frankly a bit annoying. But it’s a small snag in a show that is otherwise a joy to watch.