Thirty-Nine (서른 아홉) is a Korean drama TV series directed by Kim Sang-ho and stars Son Ye-jin, Jeon Mi-do and Kim Ji-hyun, alongside other cast members. The series has 12 episodes and Thirty Nine episode 11 is titled About Romance and has a runtime of 75 minutes.
Netflix describes the series as:
LEANING ON EACH OTHER THROUGH THICK AND THIN, A TRIO OF BEST FRIENDS STAND TOGETHER AS THEY EXPERIENCE LIFE, LOVE AND LOSS ON THE BRINK OF TURNING 40.
– Thirty Nine episode 11 recap contains major spoilers –
Thirty Nine episode 11 starts with Joo-hee singing and dancing with extreme passion. However, Mi-jo cuts her off to sing another song, which is successfully cut off by Chan-young and Joo-hee. The passion with which the three of them horribly sing into the microphone is honestly shocking and extremely entertaining to watch.
But entertainment can wait since we’re back in prison. Mi-jo and her mother are having a conversation where the latter looks just so fake with the concern she is showing her bio daughter. She straight-up asks her why she sent creditors to her clinic and further adds to never contact her or anyone around her. Although Gyeong-suk tries to get a word in, Mi-jo stops her from getting a say in and tells her to stay away. The former is pissed, but Mi-jo doesn’t seem to care either way.
That evening, Mi-jo meets up with Seon-u while it’s raining heavily. As the two share a romantic walk, Chan-young is having a tough time at home with intense pain. When her mother comes in to check on her the next morning, she finds the columbarium contract and is, acceptably, heartbroken. Chan-young realises that when she gets up and has a heart-to-heart with her mother.
However, in a bid to convince her, she tells her that she went to book the place with the girls instead of mentioning Jin-seok. She later asks the two of them to read the contract carefully lest her mother questions them. Mi-jo, in turn, gives her an earful, just like her mother. Chan-young then changes the topic to Mi-jo’s mother, but the latter is not having any of it. The evening ends with everyone upset with everyone.
The next time, as Chan-young goes to take a picture of herself, Seon-u meets with Mi-jo’s father to disclose everything about his father meeting Mi-jo. He further discloses why he couldn’t meet them beforehand and apologises to him. Her father asks him to not let his father’s words affect their relationship. Although his father’s words have deeply hurt him, that’s on Seon-u’s father. That’s something he has to come to terms with.
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That night, after learning how Mi-jo helped So-won get back into playing piano, Seon-u rushes to thank Mi-jo for her help. However, the next night, Mi-jo takes Chan-young out, who seems to be not interested to go out. Though by the time Mi-jo rolls over to her place, she seems pumped. In the car, she tells Mi-jo about the picture that she has taken for her funeral and that she has shut down her social media accounts.
Sitting at a diner, Chan-young tells Mi-jo different things that she’s thinking about in regards to her death and the latter looks very uncomfortable with the discussion taking place. The two women take a walk and have some more heartwarming conversations. I wonder why the series wasted so much time running behind a non-character like Gyeong-suk instead of focusing more on the interactions among the friends. Like, Mi-jo and Joo-hee are concerned for Chan-young. It’s sweet and is what this series is about.
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Anyway, the next morning, Jin-seok asks Chan-young to marry him, which she swiftly declines while Mi-jo tries to convince Chan-young’s parents to renovate the restaurant to make their daughter happy. However, the funniest part is when Joo-hee takes both of her friends out and starts taking pictures of them. It’s hilarious watching Joo-hee shouting at two adults “Peekaboo!” These are moments we should’ve watched more, especially when Joo-hee falls on a random guy’s lap thanks to her enthusiasm.
That night, after Mi-jo tells the others that they can renovate Chan-young’s parent’s restaurant, the latter tells them that Jin-seok asked her to marry him. Shockingly, everyone is up for the marriage. Anyway, as the day of the renovation comes over, everyone meets at Jeong’s Kitchen, including Hyeon-jun, and everyone has a merry time eating and working together. However, a fun karaoke night turns a bit sad when About Romance comes on and the reality sets in for everyone in the room. It’s a bittersweet moment though since the song is a reminder of the good times as well.
Final Thoughts: Thirty Nine Episode 11
Well, this is exactly what we were yearning for with Thirty Nine and although it did lose its way a bit in the middle, I was moved by today’s episode. First of all, I am glad they ended the mother plot before going too far off the deep end. Although it definitely seemed rushed, I’m glad it’s over.
Now, the episode featured a lot of interaction among the characters who actually matter to us. So-won’s plot, too, has been successfully dealt with swiftly with a sweet ending so I am glad about that. Apart from that, our 5 protagonists and one Hyeon-jun get tons of screentime which is great. The karaoke scene was very sweet and heartwarming. Plus, Chan-young going and taking all the necessary steps so that her parents don’t have to do anything is absolutely heartbreaking.
I must, however, mention something that I have previously mentioned in the other episode recaps. Joo-hee’s character just seems so out of place here. The series really doesn’t care about having a trio. The poor girl tried her level best to come out of the rut that is the third wheel in their friendship trio. Unfortunately, in this episode too she is the last one to get in on the secret, the last one to get the guy and the one with the least amount of screentime among the three.
I am a bit shocked as to why that is, and if so, what was the point of having three friends? Two would’ve done just fine. This is actually more embarrassing since the series made such a stink in the last episode about Joo-hee missing out on everything. So to see it repeated in this episode, it’s actually quite sad.
Thirty Nine‘s ending is near and you can almost smell it. For some shows, you wish it to never end. For others, it feels like it’d be best if it did. Although I did enjoy the series as a whole, I wouldn’t miss it if it ended. I wish the three women got equal attention so that we could cheer for them all because believe it or not, the audience is capable of juggling multiple storylines if done right.
Thirty-Nine is streaming on Netflix.
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