Summary
A key character makes a major decision as we see how one mistake can cost someone everything.
This recap of Juvenile Justice season 1, episode 7 contains spoilers.
In the aftermath of Eun-seok’s deductions in the previous episode, the Descartes trial is a mess. And if it’s up to Kang, it’ll only get messier. Without any evidence against him, he’s still determined to speed through the whole thing, ignoring the knock-on effects that the scandal is having on the student body, especially the poorer ones. And if Eun-seok can’t find proof of his bias and personal involvement, he won’t step down.
Juvenile Justice season 1, episode 7 recap
Of course, Eun-seok is able to acquire proof in the form of a confession from Sin-u, which has to sting. Kang is furious, naturally, but he’s more annoyed at the situation he finds himself in than at Eun-seok. She’s right, after all. In the first of a couple of tender conversations, Eun-seok reminds an angry Kang about the responsibilities of his position and how hard he has worked on the Juvenile Act over the years. He’s an obviously good man caught up in a no-win situation. The kind of guy who keeps 22 years’ worth of case journals and frequently reads back over the regrets detailed in them isn’t a man without principles. Now is the time for him to stay true to those principles.
Thus, Kang confesses. He’s removed from his position and his political ambitions are dashed. But he’s able to walk away with his head held high, knowing he did the right thing. In the second emotional scene, Tae-ju chases him outside on his final day and reveals that he was the judge who helped him as a juvenile, who he has been looking for all these years. Of course, Kang already knew — he recognized him the day he started working for him. He tells Tae-ju he was instantly proud of the man he became, and Tae-ju ties his loose shoelace, as Kang once did for him. With all the people Tae-ju has helped over the years, whatever debt he might have owed Kang has been paid in full, and he says as much.
Unusually, this episode pivots to a new case midway through (Eun-seok is lenient on the Descartes students, given their remorse and the fact it was the first offense). The new matter involves a traffic accident seemingly caused by Do-seok, one of the kids who attended the restaurant meeting in the first episode who is close with Tae-ju. He was driving an SUV with a fake ID, fled when he was confronted by the police, and ended up knocking down a motorcyclist. Both Do-seok and the biker are in critical condition, and while the minors in the car are claiming it was all Do-seok’s idea, Do-seok’s guardian claims he was forced to do everything by Lee Nam-gyeong, one of the other kids. It’s he-said-she-said for now.
The episode delivers a flurry of cliffhangers to close things out, with the motorcyclists’ pregnant wife seemingly having a miscarriage, Do-seok having a seizure, and Eun-seok coming face to face with Kang’s replacement — Na Geun-hee, a woman she clearly recognizes and isn’t at all happy to see.
You can stream Juvenile Justice season 1, episode 7 exclusively on Netflix.
