REVIEW: ‘Motel California’ Episodes 9–10

For better or worse, it’s probably a good thing Motel California Episodes 9-10 get us one step closer to the end of the series. That’s not to say that this batch of episodes doesn’t show immense progress between Ji Kang-hee (Lee Se-young) and Chun Yeon-soo (Na In-woo). They do. However, in Episode 10’s final moments, it is clear how the push-pull nature of Kang-hee’s nature throughout the series undercuts the full impact of her decisions leading into the finale.

Motel California Episode 9 shows a marked change and relaxation in our main couple as they finally stop trying to deny their feelings and go all in. Yeon-soo, in particular, is far more giving in his declarations of love. He tells Kang-hee that he’s spent his life trying to live for others and make them happy. Now, he’s going to be dedicating his life to her, which, in all honesty, he’s been doing for almost the entirety of the series.

Love, in general, is a running theme throughout Motel California Episodes 9-10, and we see how this feeling impacts everyone’s relationships. In Episode 9, Kang-hee finally makes her feelings clear to Geum Seok-kyeong (Kim Tae-hyeong), who comes out in this episode swinging with the most public, cringiest proposal. While Kang-hee has made her opinions on a relationship with Seok-kyeong known throughout the series, it’s not something he has fully given up on. But her public rejection not only breaks his heart but stirs up controversy in the town.

Much of the controversy surrounds Kang-hee’s rejection. Some, including Yeon-soo’s friend, Ryu Han-woo (Jung Yong-ju), don’t understand why she didn’t say yes when Seok-kyeong pulled out all the stops. However, as seen through Motel California Episodes 9-10, Kang-hee prefers simple things. Yeon-soo understands this, even if his insecurities and societal expectations tell him to go the extra mile for her. And therein lies one of the lessons these episodes are trying to tell us. It’s one thing to pick a partner that checks all the boxes our parents and society may want for us. It’s another to pick one that matches us completely.

The battle between what’s good for us versus societal expectations

Of course, finding love is not without its obstacles. The developing romance between secondary characters and fellow “Gang”sters, Cha Seung-eon (Koo Ja-sung) and Han A-reum (Lee So-e), hits a wall when A-reum’s mother refuses to accept an orphan for a son-in-law. However, in her rejection, A-reum’s mother’s words warn of what A-reum can expect if she doesn’t follow her heart. She, too, can be stuck in a loveless and potentially abusive marriage if she does what is expected.

Similarly, a conversation between Seok-kyeong and Esther Park (Seo Ye-hwa) shows how Seok-kyeong’s continued path of doing what’s expected continues to underserve him. It is revealed they were looking at an arranged marriage. Esther didn’t want that. No, she wanted Seok-kyeong to ask her out of his own free will. Not because his parents wanted him to. While the two have circled friendship this entire time, with Seok-kyeong’s heart still very much on his sleeve, if he had taken the initiative and communicated sooner, his emotions could have been reciprocated.

This brings us to the mystery between Kang-hee’s mother, Yeon-soo’s father, and Ji Chun-pil (Choi Min-soo). A decent chunk of Motel California Episodes 9-10 is dedicated to flashbacks, answering any remaining questions surrounding what happened to Kang-hee, her father, and her mother all those years ago. The transitions between these sections are more seamless than in previous episodes, and what is unveiled is tragic.

The end of Episode 9 shows Kang-hee hallucinating the scene of her mother’s death while in the car with Yeon-soo. While the hallucination saves them from an oncoming truck, what follows in Episode 10 is a sea of painful memories that Kang-hee had long forgotten. Her hatred towards her father becomes harder to hold onto. His failure to make her mother happy is one thing. But as is revealed in Episode 10, Kang-hee’s rage at her mother leaving her results in her having a hand in her mother’s death.

Love heals and destroys in Motel California Episodes 9-10

It’s been clear throughout the series that Chun-pil was often absent, indicating that perhaps his love for his wife and family wasn’t strong. However, flashbacks in Motel California Episodes 9-10 show that he tried in his own way to do what he could to help her. In fact, he was downright desperate, especially knowing that the relationship was rapidly falling apart. Ultimately, their relationship, as arranged as it likely was, could not survive a lack of compatibility. No amount of scrambling from Chun-pil could save what was already lost.

As a child, Kang-hee wouldn’t have understood the complexities of the relationship. All she could see was her mother not smiling and her father absent. She learned from both that when someone says they love you, they will inevitably leave. In her mother’s case, the departure was permanent. And so, everything about Kang-hee’s push-pull nature surrounding her father and Yeon-soo comes into focus. It also adds a tragic note to what has been foreshadowed in Motel California Episodes 9-10.

Foreshadowing across Motel California Episodes 9-10 hints that Ji Chun-pil (Choi Min-soo) is sick and potentially dying. Throughout the series, he has always looked after everyone, even if those people didn’t deserve his kindness. Regret hangs heavily in Chun-pil’s body language in these episodes, but more so when he overhears a conversation between another family and their daughter while he rests in the hospital. This is something he’s yearned for but never forced upon his daughter. But the pained expression on his face is undeniable.

This regret influences his continued attempts to leave something behind for Kang-hee. Whether it’s the funeral portrait he has Seung-Eon take (using the excuse that he wants to take a photo while he’s looking good) to his commenting that he wants Kang-hee to take away some good memories from the town before he leaves, little moments here and there paint a bigger picture. Is this project to add an extension to Motel California his final gift to Kang-hee? It’s hard to say, but it feels like the show is readying us for Chun-pil’s final farewell.

Motel California Episodes 9-10 give us brief happiness before predictably pulling out the rug…again. 

What I would desperately like to say farewell to is Kang-hee and Yeon-soo’s relationship. The end of Episode 10 is predictable. With Kang-hee’s revelation of her involvement in her mother’s death, she can no longer see herself with Yeon-soo. Because, at the end of the day, she also inadvertently was involved in killing Yeon-soo’s father. In the episode’s final scene, the two lovebirds are in a familiar place. Yeon-soo is happy and hopeful. Kang-hee is on edge. And, for the second time in the episode, she tells him she can’t be with him.

This time, there is a legitimate reason. She’s uncovered something earth-shattering and sees herself as a murderer. But when Yeon-soo tells her that he loves her, she delivers a devastating comeback that also reveals why she has behaved the way she’s been, pushing everyone away before they can get too close. Those who tell her they love her ultimately leave her, and with that, Kang-hee tells Yeon-soo she loves him in a final send-off.

This should be a devastating moment, and it is. However, nothing is surprising about this development in their relationship. This has been a consistent pattern in the writing of each new episode. When you set up similar rug pulls each week, it no longer shocks. Ultimately, it then undercuts legitimate moments of shock like this one, where, while the information is different and a big plot moment, the set-up and delivery are nothing new.  And that’s a dang shame.

Motel California Episodes 9-10 cover a lot of ground, answering much-needed questions and setting up the pieces for the finale ahead. However, while Kang-hee and Yeon-soo finally get moments of happiness and gross cuteness, the predictability of their relationship’s trajectory is too cyclic to garner any more goodwill. And with the cycle repeating nearly every week, it shows that sometimes some relationships are better off dead.

Motel California Episodes 1-10 are streaming now, exclusively on Viki, with new episodes airing every Friday and Saturday through February.