Cafe Minamdang (미남당) is a mystery-drama-comedy TV series directed by Ko Jae-hyun and written by Park Hye-jin, the series is based on the book Minamdang: Sagun Soochub written by Jung Jae-han. Cafe Minamdang episode 7 has a runtime of 62 minutes.
The series, created by Park Hye-jin, Ko Jae-hyun and Yun Ra-young, takes over KBS2’s Monday-Tuesday 9.30 PM KST slot previously occupied by Bloody Heart. The series stars Seo In-guk, Oh Yeon-seo, Kwak Si-yang, Kang Mi-na, Kwon Soo-hyun and Baek Seo-hoo, alongside other cast members.
Netflix describes the series as:
A SUSPICIOUS BUSINESS THAT OFFERS THE SERVICES OF A PURPORTEDLY ALL-KNOWING SHAMAN CATCHES THE ATTENTION OF A TENACIOUS POLICE INSPECTOR.
– Cafe Minamdang Episode 7 Recap Contains Major Spoilers –
It’s a race against time as Gopuri tries to strangle Han-jun and then tries to run away. With Su-cheol hot on his heels, the man runs through the hospital and eventually locks Su-cheol out and buys enough time to escape to the basement. Unfortunately, they lose Choi Yeong-seop as well.
Heartbroken at losing their one and only lead, who tells Han-jun that he didn’t kill anyone and that the real killer will use someone like him again, things take a rather hopeless turn for Jae-hui. However, Han-jun has the last word when he points out how Jae-hui had ignored his warnings for so long and that, to get the DNA under his fingernails, she must apologise to him.
She apologises after he threatens to destroy the evidence by washing his hand, but even though he mentions that her apology wasn’t sincere, he complies with her request after she threatens to thrash him again.
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Either way, Jae-hui is angry with herself for not being more objective, and Da-won mentions how Han-jun was the only one who got it right from the start. Meanwhile, Han-jun feels disappointed about the lack of a DNA match and for not being able to catch Gopuri again.
Later that night, Han-jun and his team discuss everything that they know so far and come to the conclusion that Gopuri’s victim Kang Eun-hye must be the way to find the serial killer and that her murder was more personal for him than the rest since his MO was different for her. Han-jun promises to catch Gopuri before Jae-hui so that he is able to rub the victory on her face.
The next day, Su-cheol gets to Eun-hye’s parents after Jae-hui, and the latter talks to one of her friends to know that she got a job at Joyce Entertainment that her parents did not know of. Plus, the two also learn that Han-jun had already talked to her before them, after which Jae-hui has a moment of possession in the middle of the street, much to Da-won’s concern.
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However, Gopuri has to wait for the time being as Han-jun has a new client whom he has to exorcise. It’s a ploy by Jae-hui, who has sent one of her pals to go some ghostbusting. Even though Han-jun isn’t wearing his earpiece and doesn’t have any help from Hye-jun, his keen observation skills take him on the right path.
In the end, the two end up asking for Han-jun’s help with their issues and Han-jun catches Da-won and Jae-hui at Minamdang, but before that conversation can go anywhere, Deacon Kim catches him, and they get a good talking to. However, she isn’t interested in knowing the details and simply walks off.
Back to the investigation, both camps start to look into Park Jin-sang, Park Dong-gi of Choekang Insurance’s son, and the director of Joyce Entertainment. He’s apparently one of the three wild dogs, along with Shin Gyeong-ho of S&H Group and Cha Seung-won of Choekang Group.
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They decide to pay him a visit, but Da-won gets to Jin-sang first and threatens to make him go through hell if he doesn’t turn in all the information he has on Eun-hye. As Jin-sang rushes out of the gym, Han-jun and Su-cheol give chase and end up at a scary-looking house where they are both scared to enter.
Inside, as Jin-sang is doing some weird ritual using Eun-hye’s picture, and before they can see whether he has the scar on his arm, Su-cheol falls right into the ceremony, giving birth to a hilarious situation involving a general and bananas. Meanwhile, the boss takes the case away from Jae-hui, but the team decides to go rogue and audition for Joyce Entertainment.
Cafe Minamdang Episode 7 Ending
Incidentally, but to no one’s surprise, Na-dan is also at the audition, with Hye-jun keeping a close eye. Meanwhile, from the police team, Jae-hui and Du-jin go on to win the auditions but are caught by security and now have to actually audition instead of investigating the circumstances surrounding Eun-hye’s death.
Han-jun has a field day watching Jae-hui and Du-jin break dance in the most hilarious routine ever, but in the meantime, Gu Tae-su tells Jin-sang about Han-jun’s history, who immediately tells him to get rid of him. Armed with a deadly syringe, Tae-su attacks Han-jun slyly in the bathroom, but his efforts are wasted as Han-jun gets a whiff of what’s going on behind him.
In the epilogue, Eun-hye gets the same pair of shoes that she was found dead in given by Tae-su, with an annoyed Jin-sang watching and suspiciously covering his arms.
Cafe Minamdang Episode 7 Review
What a thoroughly entertaining episode this has been. Although it has less number of serious and complicated moments, I laughed at loud at the absolute absurdity of this episode – it’s just so funny.
Seok In-guk is particularly delicious as the eccentric fraud shaman who is extremely perceptive and smart. There’s something about watching him that is so entertaining that you won’t be able to look away. Even when he is just thoroughly over-the-top, you still find it believable because he embodies the role and makes us feel like this is someone Han-jun truly is.
These moments contrast well with his serious and analytical side, which reminds me of BBC’s Sherlock Holmes (which is a different sort of deliciousness in itself). Either way, Han-jun is the star of Cafe Minamdang, and In-guk is just too good at what he does. That tush moving at the hospital was not lost on me!
Anyway, moving on to Jae-hui – in contrast to Han-jun’s adorable over-the-top attitude, Jae-hui’s character is thoroughly annoying for some reason. These moments where she becomes an angry witch feel forced, and she screams at the top of her lungs in a hospital because why not. I know it’s for comedic effect, but these moments make me cringe. At least she didn’t double down about being wrong regarding Choi Yeon-seop.
Coming to the episode in general, as I mentioned above, what a thoroughly enjoyable and funny episode. Disregarding Jae-hui, the episode is filled with the stupidest things that are just so odd that they are funny. Weirdly enough, they make sense in the context of the show for some reason, yes, including the scene with the bananas. How it makes sense, I don’t know, but it does.
However, I understand that the series won’t be for everyone. It’s thoroughly light-hearted and takes the central conflict rather loosely. Yes, it has 18 episodes to talk about this and is probably why so lax with its runtime, but still. The silly humour won’t be for everyone. However, for those who enjoy watching light-hearted crime thrillers such as these, this episode will keep you entertained.
Cafe Minamdang is streaming on Netflix.
Check out our Cafe Minamdang reviews here.