The Matchmakers (2023) K Drama Episode 16 (Final Episode)

Episode 16 of The Matchmakers begins with Jung-woo wanting to leave for Ming but Soon-deok assures him that they will find a way in their own homeland.

What happens on the wedding night?

Bu-kyum and Ye-jin finally arrive as he doesn’t want to ruin her reputation. He convinces her that he will formally ask for her hand in marriage. While So-hyun tries to stop the Chief Magistrate from entering the matrimonial room, Ye-jin and Bu-kyum sneak in. Soon-deok and Jung-woo hide and when the Chief Magistrate barges in, he sees Bu-kyum and Ye-jin in a compromising position. Everyone is shocked including So-hyun.

After the guests leave, she confronts Ye-jin, Bu-kyum, Soon-deok and Jung-woo. She is furious and blames Soon-deok for ruining her plans as she slaps her. Jung-woo wants to elope then and there but Soon-deok assures him that she can resolve the situation before they can get together. 

Elsewhere, the former officer cooks for Yeoju, makes her a flower crown and proposes to her. She and her daughter are delighted and a mini-wedding takes place.

At the Jos, while ranting at Soon-deok, So-hyun lets it slip that she killed her husband and brother for the family. Ye-jin overhears and is upset. She wants to leave but Bu-kyum urges her to stay so they can sort out their marriage.

How does So-hyun take her revenge?

At the palace, the King is happy with the outcome as he did not want the Jos to team up with Defence Minister Lee. As a reward, he annulls Jung-woo’s marriage to the late princess.

However, So-hyun has other plans as she tricks Jung-woo and Soon-deok into a room together and locks them in. Royal guards show up as she frames him for raping Soon-deok. The King does not believe it but to protect Soon-deok from So-hyun, Jung-woo insists it’s true. He is given the death penalty via the silkworm poison.

Bong and the Maengs try to save them but it’s too late. So-hyun tells Soon-deok that Jung-woo is dead and tells her to kill herself.  Meanwhile, a dying Jung-woo hallucinates Soon-deok but fortunately for him, the King’s physician saves him. He wakes up but faints on learning that Soon-deok is dead.

How does it end for everyone in The Matchmakers Episode 16?

Ye-jin and Bu-kyum’s marriage is approved. They live together and raise Geun-seok. Sam-soon continues to write. She has writer’s block and Soon-gu helps her. Her latest book is on Soon-deok and Jung-woo’s tragic love story. Meanwhile, Doo-ri is pregnant and Shi-yeol dotes on her. 

Ha-na and the Crown Prince are married but they spend their days discussing books. Their attendants are annoyed as this means they won’t be sleeping anytime soon. So-hyun is alone in the Jo house, mourning the death of her daughter-in-law while being adamant that she did no wrong. 

The King visits Jung-woo who spends his time reading books in Hwa Rok’s den. They bicker as Jung-woo tries to refuse a mission because he is suffering heartbreak. The King refuses to listen as he gives him a new identity and tells him to matchmake old bachelors and spinsters in 8 provinces. Jung-woo has to work with a matchmaker who is waiting for him. At this, the King smiles and tells him to have a good life.

Is Jung-woo able to get together with Soon-deok?

Of course, the matchmaker waiting for him turns out to be Soon-deok. She is alive and did actually visit him when he was dying. The King had told her about his plan to save Jung-woo.

A flashback shows So-hyun trying to convince her – instead of being a tarnished woman, she should die honourably which would also protect Geun-seok’s reputation. Soon-deok takes the knife but refuses; she’d rather live for her family than die and is alright with So-hyun faking her death so she can live her life as the single Jung Soon-deok. 

At the end of The Matchmakers Episode 16, Jung-woo and Soon-deok set on their mission to matchmake in the 8 provinces. Jung-woo wants to get married but Soon-deok wants to date first. They blush at that and hug as they agree.

The Episode Review

At the 20% mark itself, viewers can start predicting how it will end with Jung-woo and Soon-deok faking their deaths and running away. And well, that’s what kind of happens. It is still fun to see how it is executed and the way all the characters come together in the end.

Even if it is all a bit too conveniently done. How do Ye-jin and Bu-kyum get together since So-hyun is against them? Why do the people not react the same way to So-hyun the way they did with Park when their misdeeds were revealed by Hwa Rok? But guess we can let that go for the sake of a happy ending. 

By the way, anyone else notice Jung-woo calling Soon-deok buin (wife) from the beginning of The Matchmakers Episode 16? How cute is that? And it seems that Cho Yi-hyun can act, we see her Soon-deok cry and laugh. Definitely a plus for such a tear-jerking finale. But this makes us wonder why she is so one-note and stony in the first half of the K-drama, especially since this is supposed to be a rom-com.

But all things considered, it all ends well for a pretty entertaining show. Does this have any rewatch value? Probably not, but what we do get is a fun show, full of comedy and mystery.