Summary
Another solid installment, but one which suffers from a relatively slow pace.
We recap the Netflix K-Drama series Divorce Attorney Shin Season 1 Episode 4, which contains spoilers.
While the conclusion of Ae-ran’s story provided a nice twist, episode four of Divorce Attorney Shin didn’t quite have an appealing rhythm. The pacing felt off, and while the ongoings were always engaging, it wasn’t easy to become immersed in the show. That said, there are promising signs for the weeks to come.
Divorce Attorney Shin Season 1 Episode 4 Recap
Yu-seok starts scheming, and Sung-han gives Ae-ran a plan
Despite her apologies, and a request to have her resumé returned to her, it looks like Seo-jin will continue to be a part of Sung-han’s law firm. He is still impressed with the former DJ’s broad skill set and understands her act of “desperation” to gain employment. Concurrently, Yu-seok’s intern realizes the attorney he’s snooping on is the man he had filmed playing the piano. Following this, he delivers news of Ae-ran’s case to his superior, who informs the rookie it’s time he prepares for his first case, where he will represent the cleaner’s husband.
After a flashback shows Ae-ran was unable to find the notarised documents she was searching for and that she argued with Byeong-cheol over his inability ever to take her side or acknowledge her depression, we move forward. Here, the breadwinner admits her husband is decent, which is why he allows Eul-bun so much leeway before tellingly claiming the elder is the sole reason for their arguments. In time, Sung-han suggests Ae-ran countersues her mother-in-law for defamation, which would mean creating an elaborate fib about the cleaner’s beating of her tormentor never occurring.
Once finished taking Seo-jin out to eat to get the efficient worker to feel more comfortable in her job at his law firm, Sung-han goes camping with Hyeong-geun and Jeong-sik. It’s not exactly ideal weather for the occasion, but the trio seems to enjoy themselves, or at least until the divorce attorney mentions that he saw Ju-hwa in a dream. What this does allow, however, is for the viewer to find out the extent of this trio’s bond, which is tight to the point Sung-han’s friends were a vital source of support for him when his family member passed away.
Ae-ran and Byeong-cheol argue, and Hyeong-geun gets some bad news
Now armed with a lawyer, Byeong-cheol challenges his wife, wanting her to know he’ll be proactive. But Ae-ran is prepared too, reminding herself of the years of mistreatment she’s suffered through so she can garner the confidence to make her husband aware she’ll be suing Eul-bun for defamation because there never was an attack. Elsewhere, Gi-yeong’s stepmother continues to take steps to isolate the young boy from Sung-han, and she seems to have convinced her partner to stop their child from having his monthly visits to the attorney (once he has had one final goodbye).
Next, a tearful Hyeong-geun becomes despondent at work when a text tells him his divorce-wanting wife is pregnant with another man’s child. “Let’s put an end to this,” Ji-eun writes, deflating the paralegal. Meanwhile, Seo-jin convinces Sung-han to look into adding a consultation room to their building, so she can talk to prospective clients before they meet with the attorney.
As Byeong-cheol’s lawyer prepares to set up a mediation session, wowed by Sung-han’s defamation lawsuit strategy, Hyeong-geun finds solace at his favored noodle restaurant courtesy of several glasses of wine. Interestingly, this scene shows the owner has liked the paralegal.
READ: Divorce Attorney Shin Season 1 Episode 3 Recap
Affected by her husband’s harsh words on her alleged trust-defying brazenness in suing Eul-bun for defamation, Ae-ran scurries away from confrontation. This leaves Sung-han alone with Byeong-cheol, who only ends up irritated by provocations of the mistreatment his wife has suffered and the lies he has told about his building’s ownership. Then, it’s attorney Shin’s turn to be vexed, with the divorce specialist frustrated at the prospect of Yu-seok’s involvement in the upcoming suit.
With his friends too ham-fisted in their attempts at providing comfort upon finding out what’s caused him to be upset, Hyeong-geun stays alone in his house, still reeling from the news Ji-eun provided so bluntly over text. Concurrently, Byeong-cheol contemplates his mother’s grievances about how he never married the “vice-principal’s daughter” she likely set him up with and still does nothing when the elder critiques Ae-ran—additionally, the cleaner panics at the thought of the nasty Eul-bun’s return to the house.
Ae-ran and Byeong-cheol head to court
The next day, a confident Choi Jun introduces himself to Sung-han before Ae-ran’s case begins with a family court mediation session. First, it’s put forward that the cleaner deserves a share of Byeong-cheol’s property, which complements her attorney’s rejection of the idea the property was gifted to Eul-bun. “The claim that he gave away the building protected by her (Ae-ran’s) sacrifices is just unacceptable,” Sung-han says before the discussion unravels into a brittle mental health discussion.
At that point, Ae-ran confesses to the mediators that she did hit Eul-bun, though she rationalizes it by claiming she acted out of anger and still wants a share of the property. This revelation drives Byeong-cheol into reciprocating the good deed, as he shares a recording, in addition to a notarised transcript, which proves he is the proper owner of the building currently under the name of his mother. Following this, Ae-ran starts to weep at her husband’s subsequent words that show he really was aware of the struggles she went through.
The resolution to Ae-ran’s story arc, plus Choi Jun’s resignation
Later, Eul-bun lambasts her son for giving Ae-ran a share of his property and again brings up the vice-principal’s daughter he “should have married.” Yet this time, Byeong-cheol defends his wife and tells his mother the truth. He was rejected by the teacher for not wanting Eul-bun put in a nursing home, and Ae-ran was someone who he had long-held feelings for by the time she was pregnant. Shaken, the elder seems both touched and frustrated that the son she cares so deeply for allowed her to stay a “burden.”
Once finished preparing food for her mother-in-law, a weeping Ae-ran begs for forgiveness. “Thanks to you, I had the luxury of growing old with warm food and housing,” a candid Eul-bun says in a surprising response before emotionally showing gratitude to the family’s breadwinner. As an aside, it’s clear the elder wants Ae-ran to make things right with Byeong-cheol, given she requests she makes him some food too. Plus, we soon discover the divorce suit has been withdrawn.
While Choi Jun submits a resignation letter to Yu-seok, we get glimpses into what could be the next case dealt with. The details are currently vague, but it seems to involve a divorce involving someone called Professor Choi, which one woman is completely against despite him already living with someone else for the past three years.
Divorce Attorney Shin Season 1 Episode 4 Ending Explained
When rejected by Sung-han, Choi Jun gets to bargain to land a job with the attorney he looks up to. The deal is as follows: If the rookie is hired, he will take down the footage of Shin’s piano performance. Yet all this does is anger Sung-han, and the episode ends with the attorney ready to strike Choi Jun for filming, editing, and uploading the viral video.
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