[Drama Review] 'While You Were Sleeping' � Episodes 31 & 32 (FINALE)

AKP STAFF

WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING � EPISODE 31 & 32 (FINALE)

So the final two episodes are in, but what kind of ending will we see for the finale?

Choi sees luggage in Yoo Bum's car�and suggests a travel ban so he can't flee. At the trial, Woo Tak admits that he is color blind, and promises to resign as a cop as soon as his testimony is done. But he still manages to accurately describe the umbrellas. Because of this, Boss Ko tells Yoo Bum to stop claiming self-defense, and instead admit wrongdoing. Outside, Yoo Bum runs Choi down after a confrontation. Jae Chan tearfully says goodbye. Hong Joo offers comfort while he grieves, just as he did for her 13 years ago...

Yoo Bum is arrested and charged with the murder of the IV killer, covering up the IV killer's crimes, and the attempted murder of Hong Joo. But nothing about Choi. Grrr... Jae Chan sentences him to life in prison. Hong Joo collects Jae Chan's law books and gives them to Woo Tak -- she saw in a dream that he would be going to law school. Soon, they all head off to a wedding. So Yoon even shows up to see Seung Won and play piano for the ceremony. And finally, we see who the lucky couple is: It's Ji Kwang and Woo Joo! I knew there was something going on there! And Jae Chan and Hong Joo finally figure it out too, as we see a picture in their house of them lovingly gazing into each others' eyes, and she's in a bridal gown...

The interaction between Woo Tak and his partner was touching. This is certainly not the way I had expected Woo Tak to leave the force. But it was better than I had hoped. I was just thinking a salute to his captain, and then he would be gone. But that wasn't the way they wanted it to go, and I'm glad they did it this way. It's one of the reasons this drama has found its way into my heart.

Choi's death was very sad. I wasn't bawling like Jae Chan, but I was certainly tearing up. I'd grown attached to the ahjussi, and I was hoping he would be exonerated and everything would be fine. I also can't help thinking he fell victim to the "must kill an elderly character" trope, though I was glad it wasn't Hong Joo's mother. I've grown even more attached to her.

Yoo Bum is surprisingly unrepentant. He is so unwilling to admit that he's a monster that he became enraged during questioning -- and desperate. He finally gets what's coming to him, and then he can't seem to find his way to make peace with it? He can't even see that why he was there was the fact that he willingly did things wrong, and that a prosecutor who makes a simple mistake is not necessarily as wrong as someone who has committed an evil act.

Jae Chan learns that things will be alright and to stop blaming himself. And I'm glad. And yes, people make mistakes, but the true test of character is how they deal with those mistakes. And now that he's married to Hong Joo, and they finally have the happy life they deserve, he can finally see that. �

And now we must say goodbye to one of the best dramas (maybe *the* best) of the year. It's been a fun ride from there to here, and they really wrapped up the tale. And in such a touching way these last two had me bawling. I should buy stock in the Kleenex company. But I digress. These characters were very real, and as the series progressed they really gained some dimension. I hated the prosecutors at first, and then they grew on me. And that is the mark of a successful writer -- to get you to care about even the minor characters. And the drama itself definitely made a mark on me. It'll be something to binge watch in the future. And it'll probably be making me cry all over again.