[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Cinderella and the Four Knights" Episode 15

All conflicts come to a head in this penultimate episode of "Cinderella and the Four Knights". Hyun-min finally starts to push himself to be something besides passive; Ha-won is forced to reckon with her situation; the Kang cousins come together to save something important to them. Even Yoon-seong is not what he seems.

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By this point, Ji-woon has changed the most due to Ha-won's presence. He has climbed out of his prickly shell and opened up not only to Ha-won and love, but to his grandfather and cousins. In this episode he makes the difficult decision to undergo a dangerous liver donation operation to save the grandfather he has mixed feelings for. He does a lot of thinking, and this time it's not just pointless drama brooding. The outcomes are relevant. He has the surgery; he becomes closer to his cousins; he chooses to stay with and cherish Ha-won.

The same is true for the mysterious Yoon-seong. He goes along with his mother's nefarious plans, but there is a good deal of hesitation in him. Even when Hyun-min confronts him, his language isn't that of a greedy person, but of an older brother pushing a younger brother to do better and try harder.

While CEO Gramps becoming ill has been a great catalyst for change, I wish it had come sooner to make some of the characters a little less bland. Hyun-min is so much more interesting right now that he seems like a different person all together. Yoon-seong is quietly making decisions. The chairman's wife shows her true colors. Unfortunately Hye-ji is still a cardboard cutout of a character even when she and Hyun-min make up because of his newly acquired gumption.

All of the plot mechanizations have been quiet trite, but the growth they have caused in the characters have been worth it. This drama was never about the gravity of the situations, but about how the characters dealt with them. Seo-woo turns to Ha-won's friend and to his music to deal with his pain. Ji-woon and Ha-won turn to each other. Hyun-min grows up. What we are left with is the outcome of the surgery, Ha-won's decision, and the plans put in motion by the CEO's wife, Yoon-seong, and Hyun-min.

Written by: Lisa Espinosa AKA Raine from 'Raine's Dichotomy'

"Cinderella and the Four Knights" is directed by Kwon Hyeok-chan, written by Min Ji-eun and Won Yeong-sil, and starring Park So-dam, Jung Il-woo, Ahn Jae-hyun, Lee Jung-shin, and Choi Sang.