Wedding Bells
With an injection of excitement and an intriguing ending to boot, Abyss returns for episode 14 and a small glimmer of hope that the show may end with a roar rather than a whimper. Despite starting well, Abyss devolves into a slower paced romantic comedy for its second half and while this in itself is fine, given we only have 2 more episodes left to wrap up all the loose ends, I’m not sure if this is a wise move or not. I genuinely can’t work out if Abyss feels overlong or rushed either, such is the manner of the haphazard pacing here, and as we enter the final home straight I’m genuinely concerned this will either have a rushed ending or an inconclusive one. Before we get there though, we pick up where we left off yesterday, with Seo coming into possession of the paramedic gear in order to hijack the car housing Hee-Jin. As he drives off, Park Gi-Man and Dong discuss the funeral plans for the body Seo is carrying in the boot. After separating both Se Yeon and Hee-Jin, Cha min talks to Seo on the phone and promises to kill him if he hurts Se-Yeon. Seo laughs, telling him she’s running out of time and is currently held up in a freezing freighter by the docks. After getting off the phone, Seo Ji-Uk talks to Hee-Jin whose still held captive in the backseat of the car. She tells him he’s worse than their Father but he simply brushes it off, antagonizing her about her Mum before throwing a suitcase off the docks, prompting Hee-Jin to burst into tears. Seo doesn’t stop there though. He makes a deal with Cha Min, agreeing to let Se-Yeon go in exchange for him handing over the abyss. However, before they can agree terms, Hee-Jin suddenly drives the car straight over Seo. As he bleeds out on the ground, Cha Min demands to know where Se-Yeon is being kept but dies in his arms before he can get any answers. As Hee Jin stumbles out of the car, in a daze and clearly frazzled, Se-Yeon is saved by Cha Min at the last minute, just in time for the police to show up. However, Seo is nowhere to be seen. At this point, we learn via a flashback that Cha Min actually revived Seo Ji-Uk in the hopes of him confessing Se-Yeon’s location. Unfortunately, he refuses again. Cha then changes tactics, promising to kill and revive him repeatedly if Se-Yeon dies which makes him cave – revealing to her the unit she’s being kept in. Cha Min rushes to the scene and saves her at the last minute, driving her to hospital. From here the episode then slows down as Seo scurries back into hiding while Cha Min and Se Yeon spend more time together after she’s released from hospital. They head to her family’s house and realize its her Father’s birthday so stick around for the celebrations. Things do get awkward though when Cha Min’s mother shows up, but as the food and alcohol flows, things ease up a bit. Realizing their two families get on really well, Cha Min proposes to Se-Yeon. After a moment’s hesitation, she says yes! The rest of the episode then sees them returning home where Se Yeon decides they should sleep together. Much like what I said yesterday, Abyss feels like a show of two halves. While the changing tones is certainly welcome, and I do actually quite like both styles here, the way they clash together is something that’s a little concerning. Given how dark and gritty some of the earlier material was, especially given Se Yeon’s ordeal of being kept in a freezing container, to see them then more concerned with familial matters and the mischievous music kick in late on, abandoning the tension, feels a little jarring. It’s a shame too because the early parts of this episode are really good but the romantic angle feels like it’s been ripped out of a completely different show. Still, there’s two more episodes to go to wrap this one up and I can only hope that Abyss delivers an almighty bang at the end to make the wait worth it. Will we see Seo receive justice? Will Se-Yeon and Cha Min get married in the finale? Or will Abyss leave things hanging for a second season? So many questions, so little time. Only one more week to go here and who knows what will happen next.
