The Uncanny Counter Season 2: Counter Punch (2023) Episode 6

Episode 6 of Uncanny Counter season 2 starts with Mun and Ju-seok face to face outside the prison. The Spirit urges Ju-seok to take control and kill his old friend but instead, Ju-seok restrains and tells him to stay away and not get involved. This is his revenge and he won’t let Mun stand in the way of it. And with that, he shows off his awesome power and barricades Mun with a bunch of metal barricades against the wall.

When guards show up, Mun bursts a shockwave of power out and stops the guards from hurting Ju-seok. That momentary lapse in focus allows Ju-seok to slip away. The other Counters show up and regroup, but they can’t sense Ju-seok or the other evil spirits. They’re gone.

Ju-seok manages to evade being seen and heads back home. She calls him a fool and sobs in his arms, asking just what he’s doing. “It’s not too late to turn yourself in and ask for forgiveness” she says. But before that, she wants to treat her son to some kimchi. Ju-seok though, watches his mum in the kitchen before slipping away.

Ju-seok heads out the front door and he’s cornered by police officers, who figure out his location. However, Ju-seok’s power is immense and he effortlessly controls this orchestrate, lifting them all up in the air and forcing their guns to their own heads. Ju-seok controls himself and doesn’t kill any of the men, instead dropping them and walking away. Unfortunately, his mum sees all of this.

Ha-na tries to hone in on his position but he’s shocked to learn Ju-seok can actually see her. He warns them all to stop meddling and he walks away, telling them he’ll atone for his sins in the way that he sees fit. The fact that his mother has collapsed and is in hospital isn’t enough to deter Ju-seok either.

The Counters gain counsel from the Spirit Immigration Office and try to figure out what’s happened. Well, they point out that Ju-seok’s blind rage and sadness has attracted the evil spirit. They warn that Ju-seok is stronger than most of the evil spirits, perhaps even stronger than Mun. He’s unpredictable too and they need to be careful. If he murders, it could tip him over the edge and who knows if Ju-seok will find his way back then.

Ju-seok oversees the hospital from afar but Gelly appears and begins taunting him. When she insults his family, Ju-seok doesn’t hesitate to grab her round the throat and choke her out. He demands she stop otherwise things may not go well. When Pil-gwang appears after Ju-seok has slipped away, he also realizes that Ju-seok’s powers extend to him seeing the lights that the Counters conjure, meaning he can not only read them but also avoid them if he wishes.

At the police station the next day, Mo-tak learns that the prison guards don’t remember anything from the night before. Ju-seok has clearly wiped all their memories. Not only that but all CCTV footage for a week prior to his escape has been erased. Mo-tak believes this may be a lead and asks for the exact date.

On the road, Jeok-bong senses a familiar smell. He’s with Mun and the pair drive toward the hospital. They believe Ju-seok’s mum is in trouble, just as everyone pieces together that Pil-gwang is the one who doctored the footage and visited Ju-seok in prison. Unfortunately, he shows up at the hospital just as Ju-seok’s mum is about to get surgery. He intends to kill her and spark further anger, believing Ju-seok will resent himself for this.

The pair notice the familiar lights of the Counters show and ring the alarm. In the confusion they head off, while Mun and the other Counters arrive and notice Ju-seok’s mum in a rough way. Mae-ok puts her oxygen tube back in and revives her using her powers.

Mo-tak is taunted by one of the inmates at the prison but he notices that the guy has a rose tattoo on his neck. However, it’s accompanied by the number 27. Back at the station, he speaks to his colleague and the pair realizer that these are Chung-jae’s men. The tattoo is the RRG symbol; the Red Rose Gang to be precise.

Mo-tak was unaware of another gang operating here, thinking this was just Tae-sin’s gang’s turf. After Tae-sin’s downfall, Chung-jae’s gang moved in, although many have been arrested for their involvement in the scamming incident.

The tattoo parlour is actually illegal and located inside Chung-jae’s hotel. He’s secured two business cards though so it falls on some undercover work to learn more. And that comes from Mae-ok and Ha-na visiting a pair called Tommy and David. When they show up, Ha-na touches their wrists and finds number 37.

Ha-na effortlessly knocks him out and learns his name is Lim Jae-youl. He extorted money from the arcades for Chung-jae in the past. And now they have proof, through his memories, that Chung-jae is still alive. And he has the scamming money.

However, the Counters aren’t the only ones after him, given Pil-gwang and Gelly are also on the hunt. The thing is, Mae-ok is distracted. She knows who this Jae-youl is. He was the first person she healed when she came to have her powers. She saved him from a bunch of bullies and healed his injuries. And now he’s working for a gang, making her question her choices.

Pil-gwang and Gelly are determined to push Ju-seok over the edge while all this is going on. They find CEO Park and communicate with Ju-seok through the light beams. This taunting also attracts Ha-na and the other Counters, realizing they’re trying to lure Ju-seok in. It works too and Ju-seok arrives to see Mr Park. When he reads his memories, Ju-seok is shocked to learn Mr Park was the one who killed Min-ji.

Ju-seok holds him up by the throat and begins choking him out. Ha-na and Mun arrive and try to get him to see the truth. Mr Park was just a puppet and Pil-gwang was the one behind everything. It’s not enough, and Ju-seok kills him, snapping his neck. He also throws Ha-na back, impaling her against the wall. As for Ju-seok, he sucks out the energy from Park and feeds on his essence, making the evil spirit that much stronger.

Ju-seok bitterly retorts to Mun that he told him to stay away and not interfere – now look what’s happened. Mun though has had en0ugh, he uses his power against Ju-seok…. just as the episode comes to a close.

The Episode Review

Things have just got a whole lot more intense, and that comes from Ju-seok’s vicious streak and how much more dangerous he is after killing Park. That was perhaps obvious but it almost seems like he could be the one to kill Pil-gwang and become absolutely unstoppable. This would set up a showdown between the Counters and Ju-seok, which would certainly make things very interesting. Still, those are just guesses right now.

This chapter was a big improvement over yesterday’s, with lots of drama and pockets of action too. It’s clear that Ju-seok is a force to be reckoned with and it’s nice to see a villain that’s potentially stronger than all the Counters as well because Pil-gwang and Gelly seem a bit evenly matched for our group.

Six episodes in though and Jeok-bong’s purpose is still a bit of a mystery. While we needed a new member of the Counters, his powers have essentially been relegated to sniffing out where the evil group are… and that now feels a bit pointless given Ju-seok is luring people in. Not only that but he’s absolutely useless in battle and basically plays out like a damsel in distress. It would have been good to see him conjure some forcefields or at least do something outside of just smelling the evil spirits.