REVIEW: ‘My Demon’ Episodes 11-12

We’re inching closer to the end of My Demon. In My Demon Episodes 11-12, a lot happens. Noh Do-gyeong (Kang Seung-ho) gets thrown under the bus by his father. Jung Gu-won’s (Song Kang) past and his connection to Do Do-hee (Kim Yoo-jung) is revealed. Most of all, we learn of a link between Gu-won, Ju Cheon-sook (Kim Hae-sook), and Do-hee’s parents.

My Demon Episode 11 starts off where we left off. Gu-won regains his tattoo and has healed Do-hee from the wreckage. With his powers restored, he is almost back to his old self. He’s over-confident and dismissive of humanity. An encounter with an old man wishing to communicate with his dying wife one final time is our way of learning Gu-won isn’t as dismissive of humanity as he seems. Instead, he has become more human.

His memories of the past also prove his humanity. Gu-won still dreams of the mysterious dancing woman from the past; this time, in My Demon Episode 11, he learns her name is Wolsim, and she is wearing a familiar cross necklace. Gu-won is rightfully concerned that these feelings and emotions aren’t going away, so he goes to the Arabica woman (Cha Chung-hwa) to get answers. She speaks in vague notions, pointing out that the reason why he might be blocking out memories is due to how painful they are.

Finally, the Arabica woman leaves him with a question of fate. Fated souls always find a way back to each other and are fated to repeat the actions of the past. This troubles Gu-won. He wants to protect his wife and keep her safe. Before he can think about what their fates have in store, there’s the lingering issue of Noh Suk-min (Kim Tae-hoon) and what his intentions are for D0-hee. We already knew how diabolical Suk-min is from previous episodes. In Episode 11, he reaches new lows.

Suk-min visits Do-hee’s office with an olive branch. He brings a photo featuring her parents with Cheon-sook. Suk-min also offers to expand her branch of the company to the United States. These nice platitudes can’t hide the monster dwelling within. Unfortunately, for Do-gyeong, he becomes the object of Suk-min’s rage. His failure to eliminate Do-hee for his father turns him into a scapegoat. To Suk-min, that is the only way Do-gyeong can redeem himself. All the blame for Cheon-sook’s death and other misdeeds gets pinned on Do-gyeong after he turns himself in.

Gu-won and Do-hee confront Do-gyeong at the police station. It is here where actor Kang Seong-Ho gives his best performance so far in My Demon. Do-gyeong breaks. As Suk-min’s sacrificial lamb, Do-gyeong knows his life is forfeit. So, even while Do-hee breaks down in front of him at the news he may have killed Cheok-soon, that’s not what he can focus on. All he wants is to watch the world burn. This is the ultimate consequence of his parents’ abuse and neglect.

More lightheartedly, we see progress for the surrounding people in Do-hee’s and Gu-won’s life.  Ju Seok-hoon (Lee Sang-yi) and Jin Ga-young (Cho Hye-joo) both see the leading couple in a new light. Seok-hoon realizes Gu-won isn’t such a bad entity for now. He throws in his lot with the demon and goes out of his way to aid D0-hee by trying to uncover evidence in Suk-min’s house for her. This is where he spies Gu-won’s demon book, but it disappears later on. Ga-young, meanwhile, has accepted that it’s best to move on from Gu-won and commit to one final performance for the Sunwol Foundation.

Secretary Shin Da-jeong (Seo Jung-yeon) draws the attention of Do-hee and Gu-won when they’re trying to uncover whether or not she’s loyal. In the process, they learn that Da-jeong and Gu-won’s righthand man, Park Bok-gyu (Heo Jung-Do) are dating. Bok-gyu reveals Gu-won’s demon status to Da-jeong. It’s a miracle at this point that the whole world doesn’t know that Gu-won is a demon. He can barely keep it a secret!

My Demon Episode 11 leaves us with the reveal of Wolsim’s face. Gu-won dreams of Wolsim, and it appears that his past self violently murdered Wolsim. In Episode 12, it becomes clear that this is clever editing, but for the doomed couple, their original end was a violent one. We flashback to the past when Gu-won was previously a nobleman named Yi-sun. Frivolous and lazy, he comes upon Do-hee’s past self, Wolsim. Immediately, he is infatuated, but it takes time for the young woman to reciprocate.

Wolsim is a Kisaeng aka a courtesan. As the two get to know each other, she brings up to Yi-sun how they can’t be together due to their class difference. This leads Yi-sun to discover Catholicism and bring it to Wolsim. With teachings preaching the idea of equality among all people, it is a seductive lure for the two lovebirds. Unfortunately, their interest in Catholicism spells their doom due to the suspicious society they live in.

Wolsim becomes a scapegoat while Yi-sun is away. Her influence on Yi-sun gives Yi-sun’s father the opportunity to get rid of her as fear against Catholics reaches its peak. Wolsim refuses to give up Yi-sun’s name when questioned. For her silence, she is executed. Of course, Yi-sun witnesses this after returning from his trip. This triggers a violent murder spree from the young man and ends in him renouncing God and declaring his hatred of humanity before killing himself.

Gu-won now sees the truth but is also full of worry. His influence on Wolsim and her death links them together. Fate and its cyclic nature linger in the back of his mind. Will their romance end in blood? This question haunts him and leads him to return to the Arabica woman. Gu-won wonders why he is cursed with demonhood when he renounces God and humanity. This, ultimately, turns out to be the perfect combination to become a demon. With the hatred stoking his soul, the Arabica woman could turn him into a demon easily.

Most interestingly is the Arabica woman’s comment on faith in this scene. She mentions that faith is dangerous. Faith can lead people astray. It leads good people to become bad based on what they believe in. Yi-sun’s faith in humanity led to his heart breaking. Where will Gu-won’s faith lead him? The Arabica woman reminds Gu-won that his fate is tied to Do-hee’s.

Speaking of faith, Do-gyeong’s faith in his parents is at rock bottom in My Demon Episode 12.  His mother, Kim Se-ra (Jo Yeon-hee), visits him and tries to be encouraging. Do-gyeong’s not having it. He reminds her of all the times he’s protected her. All she does is hide and refuse to take responsibility. Se-ra tells Do-gyeong that he could have been spared if he had been a filial son.

In one of the most shocking moments in My Demon Episode 12, Do-gyeong kills himself. How his family members react tells a story. For Se-ra, she’s still silent, but his words haunt her. With no one left to take Suk-min’s rage, she may be next on the chopping block. For Do-hee, her rage over his actions still burns. She can’t let it go. As for Suk-min, it’s unclear whether or not he feels a genuine loss for his son. However, Do-gyeong’s suicide means another mess for Suk-min to clean up.

The second shock of My Demon Episode 12 comes in its ending. A priest prays at a church altar. We are transported to the past, the night Do-hee’s parents died. Cheon-sook witnesses a figure bend down next to the flaming car. It is Gu-won. A sinister smile is on his face as he lifts up a contract. With the question of fate floating around in My Demon Episodes 11-12, it’s a foreboding end to the episode.

What deal did Gu-won make with Do-hee’s parents? What if the deal was with Cheon-sook? So many questions now linger after these two jam-packed episodes. With how loving and sweet actor Song Kang has been in the past few episodes, it’s also nice to see him slip back into this darker energy. Things are poised to take a turn for the worst, though.

My Demon Episodes 11-12 cover a lot of ground. With the clock ticking down to the end of the season, there’s a lot more left to uncover. With that said, the story never fumbles. Bolstered by a fully committed cast, we’re in this for the long haul. The question is whether or not all of our questions will be answered in the remaining episodes before it’s too late!

My Demon Episodes 1-12 are now available on Netflix, with new episodes airing on Fridays and Saturdays through January.