Summary
Episode 3 continues to rely on good action sets while slowly moving the story forward as the character’s pasts are learned, and new subplots are created.
This recap of the Netflix K-drama series The Uncanny Counter Season 1 Episode 3 contains significant spoilers.
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The opening
So Mun and the noodle gang head towards a location to fight a spirit. They call this So Mun’s ‘field training’ and that he needs to listen to what they say. They are looking for a Mr Han that is following a young girl. When So Mun learns that Mr Han used a chisel as a weapon, he finds a stonemasonry nearby. Meanwhile, Mr Han kills the father of the daughter. Like the last two episodes, there are some brutal scenes.
Confronting the evil spirit
So Mun finds energy coming from the floor outside, and he’s mystified by it as it surrounds his hands. Nearby, he sees a small BBQ that is still burning and senses something. So Mun finds Mr Han at the warehouse, and he sees the visions of the man killing a married couple who have a daughter, and he is shocked.
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The spirit hurts So Mun who is in complete shock; Mr Han manages to get away with the girl. In this scene, the violence suddenly dawns on So Mun as he realises what he is up against — pure evil.
Defeating Mr Han
They find Mr Han’s location again, and Ga Mo-tak manages to save the girl in time before getting crushed by a massive stone. So Mun arrives on the scene to help and ends up in a fight with the spirit. As they continue to fight, the territory activates. So Mun repeatedly punches him, but Ga Mo-tak tells him he can’t kill him. He isn’t dead, and So Mun is relieved. Episode 3 seems him lose his temper.
Sentenced
To finish the mission, So Mun has to put his hand on the man’s chest and divert the spirits who have been wronged by the evil spirit to Yung. When the evil spirit arrives at Yung, Wi-gen sentences him to the eternal prison. Meanwhile, the spirits who were victims are taken to the afterlife. Afterwards, Ga Mo-tak warns So Mun that if he kills the host, they cannot transport the spirits and tells him to learn self-control.
Relaying a message to the daughter
So Mun wants to tell the daughter of the killed couple about what happened to her parents and pass on the message, but the noodle gang advise against it. Ms Chu tells Mo-tak that she wishes she warned So Mun of the traumatic visions he will see while on a mission.
“So Gwon”
The episode then flashes back to seven years previously where Ga Mo-tak woke up from a long coma; he doesn’t remember anything. When he looked in his pockets as he left the hospital, he saw a card in his pocket that said: “So Gwon” (So Mun’s father). In the present day, Go Mo-tak looks at the same card. He knows he is linked to So Mun’s family. We saw this twist coming, but at least we have a new story strand.
Suspicious friends
At school, So Mun finds himself defending another friend from bullies. His friends are suspicious of how So Mun can suddenly defend others with strength and skill. He tells them that something huge has happened to him, but he cannot tell them what it is. So Mun then shows them that he can walk without a stick to prove that something life-changing has happened.
Fighting the gang of bullies
At school, the gang of bullies are frustrated that So Mun keeps on stopping them, so the leader approaches him directly in the corridor. The leader throws So Mun against a window, but then So Mun shows his strength and knocks a couple of them out. He tells the gang to stop taking money from other students and never to bully anyone ever again. The students applaud So Mun. He’s become a hero overnight in episode 3.
The mayoral election
When talking about the election in 2013, Ga Mo-tak learns that he was part of an accident a day after with So Mun and his parents. Ha-na and Ms Chu are shocked by this information but Go Mo-tak tells them to keep it quiet. This will surely be impactful in later episodes when So Mun learns that Ga Mo-tak was there the day his parents died.
Investigating his death
Ga Mo-tak looks at the police reports on his death, and it says he drove under the influence and killed himself. The investigator was Kim Jeong-yeong. He puts in a civil application. When the investigator learns Ga Mo-tak wants to look at his case, she is shocked. At the police station, Ga Mo-tak sees a man that was with him when he died – Noh Chang-yu — this man looks villainous.
Approach the investigator
Kim Jeong-yeong speaks to Ga Mo-tak. He asks her if Noh Chang-yu is a wanted criminal. She ushers him outside, and Ga Mo-tak asks if they were on the same team. Kim Jeong-yeong tells Ga Mo-tak that everything indicated as suicide and that the higher-ups will not reopen the case. Ga Mo-tak then pushes her on So Gwon, and she looks pressured over the situation.
The ending
Ha-na accompanies So Mun as he goes to meet the daughter of the dead couple. They hold her hand and pass on her parent’s message, which ignites an emotional scene for the young woman. On the way home, Ung-min and Ju-yeon are captured by the bullies. Afterwards, So Mun receives a video call from Ung-min, and he sees they have been captured. The bullies threaten to kill his friends.
The Uncanny Counter episode 3 continues to rely on good action sets while slowly moving the story forward as the character’s pasts are learned, and new subplots are created.
Additional points
- So Mun meets the financier of The Counters.
