[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Valid Love" Episode 13

Joon's attempts at reconciliation predictably end in failure. What's especially sad about what Il-ri and Joon are trying to do is that their obvious genuflection toward Hee-tae simply doesn't mean anything. They just want the situation to go back to what it was before their ill-conceived emotional affair, and Hee-tae simply won't have any of it. As usual, it's not because Hee-tae has any kind of alternative in mind. The man's almost completely governed by his own sense of inertia.

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Ironically Il-ri briefly manages to mistake Hee-tae's love of inertia to genuine emotional attachment to her. And really, it's entirely possible that it is a genuine emotional attachment. But if Hee-tae is unwilling to acknowledge this fact, there's simply nothing to be done. His continued cruelty is particularly perplexing. Il-ri barely made any effort to deceive him in the first place. Does he honestly believe that all her begging and promises now are the extension of some master plan to cheat on him again?

Apparently so. Hee-tae only finally gets some inkling that Il-ri's emotional overtures are serious when by happenstance he runs into Il-ri discussing her emotional state in a context clearly not intended for him. Yet even by this point Hee-tae has just gone too far. The only reason Il-ri has been fighting the divorce this long is because of her lingering attachment. Those of us watching the drama lost sympathy for Hee-tae's cold-heartedness quite some time ago.

Hee-tae has forced Il-ri to accept the situation. And that's why by the end Il-ri can't even stand the sight of Hee-tae and his pseudo reconciliatory stance. Hee-tae won't let her talk to him, yet expects Il-ri to passively accept any discussion he wants to have. Is that supposed to be a relationship? A lecture Joon receives midway through is particularly ironic in this circumstance. Whatever relationship Hee-tae and Il-ri have, it's been no help in getting them to resolve their current difficulties.

And let's not forget the usual excellent parallel of Hee-soo. Here is a woman who more than anyone else genuinely wants her life back to the way it was before, who's horribly frustrated trying to cope with this level of change. If Hee-soo could just talk it's entirely possible that she could have persuaded Hee-tae to stop being so unreasonable. If things could have been different...well, that's always the hopeful thought isn't it? Too bad hypotheticals have no bearing on reality.

Review by William Schwartz

"Valid Love" is directed by Han Ji-seung, written by Kim Do-woo and features Uhm Tae-woong, Lee Si-young, Lee Soo-hyuk, Choi Yeo-jin, Im Ha-ryong, Lee Young-ran and more.

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