The Uncanny Counter Season 2: Counter Punch (2023) Episode 9

Episode 9 of Uncanny Counter season 2 starts with Mun in a coma. Pil-gwang is livid that he can’t take the power for himself and holds Gelly up by the throat. “How dare you ruin my plan,” He rasps.

Just before he hits the killing blow and consumes her essence, the Counters jump in and try to save her. They know that if he is to consume Gelly, he could become unstoppable and increase his powers. With all the Counters struggling, Jeok-bong attempts to take Mun away. However, Ju-seok gets involved and stops him.

Ju-seok certainly doesn’t stop Pil-gwang though, who has Mae-ok and Ha-na by the throat. Instead, he grabs a comatose Mun instead.

The turning point comes from Mr Choi showing up like he’s auditioning for La Casa De Papel (Money Heist). He has a whole chain of bullets and he fires them up both sides of the hallway. This gives the Counters a perfect chance to escape as Pil-gwang hides round the corner.

Ju-seok jumps in and stops Mo-tak at the elevator doors. Mo-tak decides not to try and fight back and instead embraces his strength, using his momentum to launch into Ju-seok, throwing him down, knocking him out, and allowing the Counters ample time to escape.

In the aftermath of this, Mun is still comatose and Mae-ok’s powers aren’t working. It would seem that Wi-gen is also suffering as a result of this devastating move, as she’s stuck somewhere called the “White Ground”. Only those in a coma can enter that place, and so they need Mun to reunite with her again so they can sign the Counter contract  again and restore his powers. That’s the only way he’s going to awaken. It’s also impossible to restore the memories lost.

Ha-na believes the right call here is to track down Gelly and go on the offensive. Now that she’s severed ties with Pil-gwang, she should be easier to find and take out. However, she’s still going to present a significant challenge. At the same time, Ju-seok uses his powers to pull out bullets from his wounds and discusses their next move with Pil-gwang.

While they scheme, Choi spins a story for Mun’s grandparents, claiming that he’s off at an art gallery and in a big competition. As for his friends, Choi tells them outright what’s happened with Mun’s coma as they show up by his bedside.

Those in the Spirit Office theorize that maybe Mun isn’t actually in coma but instead, his soul is still inside his body and he’s not waking up for… reasons. The solution comes from Ha-na, who holds his head and decides to communicate with Mun inside his mind. There, he finds a version of Mun who is dispirited and has given up. “Everyone around me dies,” He says sadly.

So the solution actually lies in trying to instill the belief system and will for Mun to continue on and fight for what’s right and just. Mae-ok is determined not to let this be the end and she promises to do everything she can to make sure both him and Wi-gen come back.

For now, Mae-ok heads back to see Jae-youl and decides to make him some food. While they sit together, he realizes that she was the one who healed him all those years ago. As for Mae-ok though, she points out that he actually saved her and helped get her back on her feet.

Now though, Jae-youl needs to do what’s right, and that comes from heading to the stayion and testifying on his part to play in everything. The thing is, Lee Chung-jae is actually on the cusp of leaving, and he’s going to do so that very night.

When Mae-ok makes a crucial call to Mo-tak to tell him this, Jae-youl leaves and slips away. Mo-tak rallies the troops and decides they can work as a team and make things right. That comes from stopping Chung-jae, while also working to show they’re a solid team and don’t necessarily need Mun every time.

Gelly gets there first, and it leads to Ha-na and Gelly squaring off together. Ha-na leads them into a confined space, with Jeok-bong working to shut the shipping container behind them to keep the pair locked up in the darkness. Using her senses that she’s harnessed rom the last few encounters, Ha-na bests Gelly and eventually knocks her down, exorcising the demon from deep inside of her.

It’s a move that was perhaps coming for a while, and now that she’s no longer a big threat, more spirits have been released from her tyrannical grip.

When police show and take her down to the station, Pil-gwang intercepts the transport and realizes the Counters have got to her first. And just like that, Pil-gwang decides to rip the essence right out of her. Although he’s grown a little more powerful, as the Chinese Counters have returned to where they should be, his power won’t have grown as much as it could have.

Ju-seok blindsides Mr Choi out in the street and decides to read his memory. In doing so, he realizes where the Counter HQ is. Choi quickly tells him that Chung-jae has been caught, and the money has also been found. When a car swings by, Ju-seok decides to bolt.

Choi feeds back to the team exactly what’s happened and points out that their base could well be compromised. The only solution is to bring Mun back, and now Ha-na has no choice but to do whatever she can to bring Mun back.

Inside Mun’s mind, Pil-gwang, Gelly and Ju-seok continue to float in and out of the frame, feeding little nuggets of doubt into Mun’s head. All of this stems from the hotel scene, which he’s convinced was an absolute massacre, with everyone dying at the hands of the evil Counters.

Ha-na decides to show him the truth of what’s happened, including all those moments of teamwork they’ve shared together. As Mun is ripped back to the fateful moment his parents met their doom, time freezes and Ha-na reiterates that everyone is waiting for Mun.

Ha-na is quick to reiterate that they’re a family and can all protect him, as much as he can protect them. And with that, Mun returns from his kinda-coma and so too does Wi-gen.

The Episode Review

It was perhaps obvious that Mun was going to return in some form or another, with Gelly’s memory loss powers not really working all that well, given Mun just collapsed and fell asleep for a while, doubting his own abilities.

The entire plot point for this felt quite contrived, and it’s made worse by the lack of explanation about it, hand-waving away the implications that we thought were an issue and pointing out that it’s actually just Mun’s self-doubt creeping in, even though he was encouraging everyone else to fight and work as a team earlier in the season.

Despite all that though, Uncanny Counter has been an enjoyable watch and this episode at least has some fun moments between the search for bringing Mun back from the brink. The hallway fight, with Choi showing up with the minigun is a particular highlight, while seeing some closure to Gelly and Ha-na’s fight is another stand-out moment.

Everything ultimately ends with Mun back and our Counters back on the hunt again.