Yumi’s Cells 2: Episodes 9-10

by missvictrix

Things hit the fan in a big way, and let’s just say our heroine and her cells might never be the same. But maybe that’s okay? On the other side of heartbreak lies something else entirely, and our budding writer’s hard work and dedication is rewarded.

EPISODES 9-10 WEECAP

Where do I start! This week really puts us through the wringer, as we see the consequences of the earthquake Bobby felt at Da-eun’s departure from his life. Yumi goes to visit Bobby on Jeju for Christmas, decorates his trees, buys a cake, and then heads home to find Da-eun staring forlornly at the trees. Yumi’s radar goes up — as does mine — and during this whole exchange I was waiting for something to be revealed.

Did Bobby reach out to Da-eun after she left? Did they somehow meet? Did she not go to Busan at all? Did she stay on Jeju? Did they kiss? But no, none of these things happened.

So what did happen? Yumi learns that Bobby is leaving his epic house for an apartment closer to work, and ditz that she is, Da-eun wonders tearfully if it’s because of her confession to him. It seems she didn’t think her schoolgirl crush would have any impact, but when she sees that it did, she’s shocked. And Yumi is shocked. But I’m not sure if I’m shocked? Actually, I don’t know what I’m feeling.

Yumi confronts Bobby on the matter, and we once again see his cells scramble to hide the truth (not a great thing to see repeated). In trying to answer her question about Da-eun, though, Bobby and his excellent command of words backfires when he hesitates for too long. In that moment, you can hear their relationship crumble.

While I don’t pretend that Bobby feeling something towards Da-eun is in any way okay, it’s not like he was opening the door to it. Once his village felt the earthquake and he realized he was vulnerable to her, he made a very bold move away from the temptation (I mean, it’s not like he was moving to be closer to Da-eun, like I suspected at first). I see this as a good thing, as Bobby took firm action in the right direction, but Yumi has the opposite reading: that it’s an admission of guilt.

We see Yumi’s cells scramble to try to forgive Bobby as he tearfully begs her to stay, and Love shreds previous memos about things Yumi won’t tolerate in a boyfriend in order to make this relationship last. But it’s not enough, and neither is Bobby’s sincerity. Yumi’s cells renounce all her past standards except one: she won’t tolerate a man who’s shaken by another woman, even for a second. With that as the remaining standard, Bobby must be broken up with.

And so, after making us fall in love with perfect Bobby who inspired Yumi to pursue her dreams and gave her so much love and confidence for one year one month and 17 days, this is the ending we get? To quote Yumi herself: -_-

Before Yumi’s fated trip to Jeju, we learn a bit more about her novel — which is a web novel called “My Love Muse” — and new life as a writer via her interactions with the illustrator that she’s closely working with. He is known as CONTROL Z (Pyo Ji-hoon) and they butt heads like crazy (and, in Yumi’s imagination, quite literally).

The whole thing is played for color and comedy, but this drama is of course too nuanced to leave it at that, and what’s at stake is Control Z’s criticism of Yumi’s story: the honesty between the leading couple is unrealistic.

At the time, Yumi brags about the honesty and openness in her own relationship, defending her work. But this hurts even before the breakup with Bobby, since we know how much his cells want to keep Yumi from finding out certain things… and it stings even worse afterwards.

As expected, though, the breakup becomes fuel for Yumi’s writing career. After Love went berserk and tried to torch the entire village (that fire-breathing rage mode was exactly what I was feeling too lol), she was replaced as the prime cell. The writer cell takes the spot, and soon Yumi’s village is unrecognizable, with a castle for Writer being erected, Stingy turning into the giving tree, and Fashion becoming a “fashion terrorist.”

I’m thrilled by Yumi’s success — we soon meet her a short time later as an up-and-coming web novelist who’s gaining popularity by the day — but also, this Bobby chapter has ended so very quickly that it feels like the door has been slammed shut in our face. Did Bobby just exist for Yumi to get where she is now — more mature, more skilled, more dedicated to her writing? Why does he feel like a mere plot device now, instead of a character we were starting to understand?

If Bobby disapparating from the story felt like a shock, I was even more shocked to have the story turn back to Woong. Gone is the broke long-haired geek; now he’s a sleek and successful game company CEO with a freakin’ three-piece suit.

As it turns out, fate is at work. Control Z has gained popularity because of the success of Yumi’s web novel and his next contract? To draw characters for Bow-wow Time 2! Control Z becomes the link that lets Yumi and Woong’s worlds connect again — first learning of each other’s success, and then meeting again, with Woong’s heart all aflutter, and 40 kilos of lingering feelings in his metaphorical trunk lol.

So… is this where we’re going, Show? Is this why we never really got to know Bobby, and why we blasted through that relationship at a breakneck speed? Is this why it seems like the show will indeed only have two seasons? Because the ending was about Yumi and Woong finding their way back to each other?

They had me through the Bobby breakup, and Yumi devoting her energy to her writing. I loved seeing her change and grow as a consequence of the things she went through, and the peek we get into her life as a writer is just what I didn’t know I wanted. Why can’t we linger there? For a second, it felt as if the drama might land on the sentiment from season 1 about Yumi being the heroine of her life, not reliant on a hero. Does she really need a fated love connection to make our journey with her worthwhile?

As if juggling this course correction wasn’t enough to handle, as our episodes close this week we learn that Bobby is back from Jeju and working in Seoul again. I sincerely don’t want the final two weeks of our drama to be about these two men trying to win her heart back. I could pick up any K-drama and get that. I want this story to be about Yumi — who she is, and who she is becoming. But before I turn into the rage cell myself at the thought that we won’t get that, I’ll withhold judgment on the drama’s new trajectory until we know where we land.

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Yumi’s Cells 2: Episodes 9-10