The Uncanny Counter Season 2: Counter Punch (2023) Episode 12

Episode 12 of Uncanny Counter season 2 starts with the team working together, determined to try and summon Ju-seok’s spirit and right the wrongs caused. Ju-seok coughs up blood, but just as the others get nearer to him, the place blows sky high, courtesy of Ju-seok sending a shockwave of power out.

How are the Counters going to free Ju-seok?

Mae-ok uses her healing powers to try and help Mr Choi and Jeok-bong, while the other three Counters do their best to hold Ju-seok back. While he’s subdued, Ha-na urges Mun to head into Ju-seok’s subconscious so he can track down their friend and summon Pil-gwang out of his body. Mun points out he can’t do that, given it would make Ju-seok stronger.

The others are convinced it’s the right play though, so Mun trusts his friends and summons the territory. In doing so, he watches in shock as Ju-seok heals his wounds, taunting Mun forward.

We then cut to inside Ju-seok’s subconscious, where the blackened Pil-gwang faces off against Mun. The fight occurs on two fronts, one inside the mind and the other in the ruined HQ. To be fair, there’s some pretty cool visual shots here, as Ju-seok holds all the Counters up in the base, strangling them out while levitating in the air.

Whst is the catalyst for stopping Pil-gwang?

Inside Ju-seok’s subconscious, Mun pleads with Ju-seok to come through for them and help out. As the life fades from everyone’s eyes, the Counters inside the base collapse to the ground in a heap. The Mun inside Ju-seok’s mind though sheds a single teardrop that changes everything. The tear hits the black water and immediately brightens the subconscious.

With Pil-gwang’s spirit fading, Ju-seok takes control of his body and decides to sacrifice himself, running head-first right into a pole and impaling himself through the chest. Just as he does, Mun watches from inside the subconscious mind and decides to summon Pil-gwang and exorcise him out. It seems to work too and Pil-gwang rips to pieces, eventually spreading out to the base, where Ju-seok brightens in a blaze of glory and Pil-gwang is summoned and destroyed, once and for all.

How does Mun convince Ju-seok to leave?

Just as this happens, the countdown in the base for the self-destruct stops. The Counters realize that Pil-gwang has been summoned and Ju-seok is back to the way he was before. Mae-ok stumbles over and heals him. However, Ha-na is stunned as she realizes Mun hasn’t awoken yet. Mun is still inside the subconscious mind but he notices an apartment building shining with an orange glow in the distance. He approaches and heads inside.

This is Ju-seok’s apartment, and he happens to be sitting at the table by himself. Pictures of Ji-seok and Min-ji are up on the mantlepiece. Ju-seok urges Mun to leave. He’s convinced he’s dying and with the long battle over, Ju-seok has had enough. He believes he has nothing left and so he needs to pass. “I will never give up on you,” Mun says, “You were the one who gave me hope every time I wanted to give up!” 

Mun’s words strike a chord with Ju-seok, who comes back from the brink along with Mun and back in our world. Mae-ok wipes Ju-seok’s memory, making sure that he won’t remember anything before being possessed. With Ju-seok back on the mend and the impossible achieved, Mun and Wi-gen show up to see Pil-gwang off.

Is Pil-gwang gone for good?

When the door is summoned, Pil-gwang vows to try and return back whence he came, but when he heads down to the depths of hell, numerous hungry souls are there waiting to feast on the newbie, and he’s overcome. All that’s left behind is his coin, which Mun collects up. He proceeds to thank Wi-gen, giving her a big hug before there’s a reunion with the other Counters who were consumed earlier in the series.

Mo-tak takes Ju-seok back to the police station but on the way, his mum is there to see him off. With Ju-seok back behind bars, Mun shows up to see Wi-gen again. She’s been impressed by Mun and decides his skills could be put to good use abroad. Specifically in teaching skills to other Counters. It won’t be for long but Mun agrees to go.

Before he goes, Mun urges Wi-gen to let Ju-seok see Min-ji again so it gives him something to cling to. He actually promised Ju-seok this already, and Wi-gen has no choice but concedes to break the rules for him.

Does Ju-seok get to see Min-ji again?

Mun heads back to see Ju-seok in prison. He points out that there are attorneys on the phone who want to meet with him, believing they can help out. Mun promises to always be there for him, and that he won’t be lonely (except for the time that he’s helping Counters abroad of course).

That night, Mun summons the territory and lets Ju-seok experience his dream of seeing Min-ji one more time. Min-ji vows to always protect him from now on, and to promise to hold on and keep fighting. Ju-seok promises to do just that, and they get their final reunion.

Mun informs the others that he’s leaving for a few months. All the others see him off but en-route, Jeok-bong senses another spirit nearby and off they go, leaving Mun to get a taxi instead.

How does Uncanny Counter season 2 end?

We then skip forward six months later. Ha-na returns to see Do-hwi, and he hands over a leaflet, encouraging her to come and learn piano. She smiles warmly and decides to try and rekindle what they had. Elsewhere, Mo-tak heads off on a stakeout and uses Jeok-bong’s powers to try and suss out evil spirits. As for Mae-ok, she manages to turn Jae-youl around, who gets his GED and seems to be turning a corner now.

Mun happens to be in Germany, half a year later, and he meets Jade, Wi-gen’s daughter who’s still in our world. Mun allows them to see each other again in the Spirit world before walking away.

As he does, we cut back to Korea some time later. Mun returns with a brand new haircut, reminiscent of Lee Dong-wook’s character in Tale of the Nine Tailed. He appears right as the others are about to get into a big fight, and they decide to fight on. As they do, we get a montage of everything that’s happened across the series

The Episode Review

So Uncanny Counter comes to a rather disappointing end, all things considered. There’s some big plot contrivances and changing of the lore, along with some rather amusing contradictions too. The biggest comes from the resolution with Ju-seok. Even though we’ve rewritten the rules on what’s possible for these Evil Spirits and summoning their souls, we then come to the head scratching decision to let Ju-seok go back to prison… and then leave him there.

Mun promised he’d come and visit and that he’d never be alone, but then we get a time jump of six months. So in those six months, Mun clearly didn’t visit and broke his promise. I do appreciate that he had Min-ji visit him in his dream but surely Mun just leaving Ju-seok in prison would drive his disappointment and despair, something that originally caused an evil spirit to possess him. Of course, he may have done this off-screen but based on what we’ve seen, it’s a bit of a strange decision not to at least address it.

In the end, Jeok-bong proved his usefulness by… being there? I guess? His power is rendered useless though when Mun is about, given the latter can summon the territory and suss out where evil spirits are. While it made sense to have Jeok-bong in the early parts of the series, one can’t help but feel it would have made narrative sense to kill him off in brutal fashion midway through, to show that these evil Counters are for real and being a Counter is not a walk in the park. Instead, everyone has to play the babysitter role for him.

We do get closure for Mae-ok and Ha-na though, which is a nice touch, and although I mentioned before that these two subplots went nowhere, at least they’re mentioned and tied up at the end, which is something.

Ultimately though, Uncanny Counter started with a roar and ended with a whimper. A disappointing end to what could gave been a really promising series. The first season is definitely far superior to what we got here.