Summary
Episode 1 is a heartfelt opening as we learn what the job of trauma cleaners entails.
This recap of the Netflix K-drama series Move to Heaven season 1, episode 1 contains major spoilers.
Welcome! Since Love Alarm 2, we’ve been aching for a full-batch-on-day-release k-drama, and here we are, treated with another new original series — Move to Heaven — let’s recap season 1, episode 1!
The opening episode begins with a young man at work, and he gets trapped in machinery — despite pressing the “stop” button, the machinery keeps going. The man is now crippled, and he makes his way home and cries on his bed after a horrific evening at work. Ironically, as he walked out of the workplace, it said “a safe working environment.” But, unfortunately, it didn’t look safe.
Trauma cleaners
Then, episode 1 moves to Han Geu-ru at an aquarium; he appears to have extensive knowledge of fish which is heartwarming to watch. The character absorbs the tank in front of him — the aquarists are amazed by what he knows. Afterward, his friend Na-mu rides him home on his bike, and she tells Geu-ru how popular he is becoming at the aquarium. When he returns home, his father (Han Jeong-u) makes him egg on toast, and he asks Geu-ru if he’d like to learn how to make one. The father gets a call and answers with “Move to Heaven” — he has a new case. They are trauma cleaners.
And thus, the concept of the k-drama series begins.
Kim Seon-u did not survive the wound from the machinery
The first chapter of Move to Heaven demonstrates why it is important for workplaces to have health and safety measures because this episode soon turns into a tragic event.
The young man (Kim Seon-u) we saw at the beginning of the episode died on his own in the apartment; after suffering a bad wound from machinery, it was left untreated all weekend, and it’s possible that he died from sepsis. When Jeong-u and Geu-ru enter his apartment, they pray for the deceased before getting to work. Next, Geu-ru asks his father what kind of person the deceased was; Jeong-u tells him his dream was to have a permanent job at his workplace one day; Geu-ru then explains what his favorite noodles were and the type of fabric freshener Kim Seon-u he used — he also states he loved his parents very much.
It’s clear that they do not just clean and clear; they also attempt to under the deceased’s life.
Where he bought his noodles
Jeong-u and Geu-ru pack a box of sentimental items and write “RIP” on it before clearing the place completely. Afterward, Jeong-u wants to head to Kim Seon-u’s funeral on the way home. As they get into the vehicle, Geu-ru points where Kim Seon-u got his noodles from. Flashbacks show Kim Seon-u putting on deodorant before heading into the store; he had a romantic interest in a shop staff member.
The funeral
Episode 1 takes a dark turn as it’s revealed that Kim Seon-u’s death was not entirely “just accidental,” and it’s the result of abuse in the workplace.
Kim Seon-u’s parents are told by the company manager that it is not a workplace accident because it did not happen at work. They offer their condolences. Jeong-u and Geu-ru arrive at the funeral with a box of sentimental items. The parents are upset but grateful. The mother looks through her son’s phone and learns that one of the machines needed fixing — Kim Seon-u offered to fix it alone but then told his manager that he needed time off to see a doctor as he injured himself at work. The manager told him that he needed to work no matter what and that he shouldn’t mention a workplace accident as it will get him sacked.
An angry Jeong-u grabs the manager and his workers and asks the mother if she’d like to say something — she is deaf, so speaks in sign language. She asks if her son ever slacked off or did his job half-heartedly or if he would have treated his own like this. The mother hands back the pay package that was meant for her son, and tells the manager she’d never take money for her son’s life. Move to Heaven season 1; episode 1 proves that this series will be full of strong dramatical moments.
Getting a hug off his son
Geu-ru follows a doctor into a hospital and scares her — he wants something off her but she ends up screaming. His father arrives in the hospital and apologizes to the staff for his son startling him. Geu-ru wanted her badge as a gift for Kim Seon-u. Jeong-u is proud and asks if he can have a hug — he doesn’t like hugs, so he has to make a deal with him to have one. There’s a warm feeling in this relationship — a father enjoying the little moments with his son who has Asperger syndrome.
Heart attack
But another tragedy strikes, making the audience feel heartbroken very early on in this series.
Later in the episode, as Jeong-u makes his way home, he collapses in the street. Meanwhile, Geu-ru is at the aquarium. On the floor and struggling, Jeong-u calls his son — he apologizes to him. Panicked, Geu-ru tries to ring his father back, but it goes to voicemail. He recites different sea species to try and calm down. Meanwhile, his father is hoisted into an ambulance. Geu-ru bravely drives his father’s van to try and find him — however, lacking experience, Geu-ru suddenly puts on the brakes on a busy highway.
The police knock on the van window, but he gets increasingly irritated. Meanwhile, his father flatlines. Na-mu knocks on Geu-ru’s van door and hugs him while sobbing; Geu-ru tells her he isn’t hurt or in an accident — he explains how his father usually picks him up, so he had to break a promise and drive the van.
The ending
Episode 1 flits to Jeong-u’s funeral. He’s given his father’s ashes and he wants to take them home, despite others telling him not to. At home, Geu-ru kneels to his father’s portrait, and repeats, “Dad is always with Geu-ru”.
Episode 1 flits forward slightly, and a man barges into Geu-ru’s house; he tells him that he owns this place as of today.
Move to Heaven season 1, episode 1 is a heartfelt opening as we learn what the job of trauma cleaners entails.
