Kdrama ‘Longing for You’ episode 1 recap and theory, ending explained

Korean drama ‘Longing for You’ Episode 1 Plot

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Korean drama “Longing for You” episode 1 plot: A murder case occurs at an art gallery, and the police strongly suspect that the victim’s husband, Bae Min-Gyu, is responsible. Go Young-Joo is determined to find evidence of Bae Min-Gyu’s crime but discovers he has an alibi.

However, two more identical murders occur consecutively, leading Cha Young-Woon to classify them as a “serial killing case.” He wants Go Young-Joo to investigate together in order to apprehend the suspect who possesses expensive Japanese knives. However, another murder takes place near Oh Jin-Sung, causing the case to reach a deadlock.

Korean drama Longing for You episode 1 recap

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🔺 ‘ Longing for You ‘ Episode 1 Recap: A murder case occurs in the art museum, and the police believe that the victim’s husband is the most likely suspect due to their constant arguments. However, after several months of investigation, the identity of the real culprit remains unclear, causing public doubt about whether special treatment was given to a suspect who happens to be a congressman’s son.

Oh Jin-Woo, while fishing by the seaside, senses something amiss but is unaware that someone is secretly filming him. He dismisses it as insignificant. Oh Jin-Woo is actually the younger brother of Oh Jin-Sung, who works at the police station. The two brothers have a close relationship.

By chance, Oh Jin-Sung learns about an illegal gambling den from someone reporting a case. Although they manage to bust this nationwide wanted professional gambling organization, he never expected his own mother would scold him for being one of its customers! Oh Jin-Sung is dumbfounded.

But because he severely injures those responsible for running the gambling den while reprimanding them on behalf of his mother, it seems like his actions are even more serious than what his mother did. As for Yang Hee-Joo and Go Young-Joo from the district prosecutor’s office called in by Chief Prosecutor Bae Min-Gyu to investigate Bae Min-Gyu’s art museum murder case; they make it clear that they won’t let criminals with connections go unpunished and try to find loopholes in alibis as evidence against Bae Min-Gyu but encounter difficulties.

Cha Young-Woon believes that Go Young-Joo should focus on similar unsolved cases instead of fixating on obtaining search warrants. When Liang District Prosecutor goes for a health check-up and coincidentally meets Bae Tae-Ook complaining about another summons issued by new prosecutors against Bae Min-Gyu; he requests Yang Ho-Chul to assign a different prosecutor.

However, Yang Ho-Chul insists that it’s just part of the prosecutor’s job. It turns out that Chairman Cha and Yoo Jung-Sook had planned for the two to meet, but Bae Tae-Ook ruined the opportunity due to his impatience.Although Oh Jin-Sung is released after withdrawing his complaint, he learns that Oh Jin-Woo has taken settlement money to save him.

He doesn’t want his younger brother always cleaning up after him. He dislikes how kind-hearted his brother is because he has heard too much about their mother treating him unfairly – not allowing him to go to college and making him work at a restaurant without pay. Therefore, Oh Jin-Sung loves his brother deeply and hopes their mother won’t treat them differently as “eldest” and “youngest” sons anymore.

After some chaos, Oh Jin-Woo borrows a car from their mother to go see a photography exhibition in Seoul and will return the next day. Oh Jin-Woo first goes to a café seemingly waiting for someone before going back there again later on (the surveillance camera lines are still being investigated). The following day, another victim appears at this café, leading Cha Young-Woon to believe it may be a serial murder case. He requests permission from higher-ups to lead the investigation himself and chooses his own team members.

And Go Young-Joo made it clear that she didn’t want to join the investigation team because she felt like it was a waste of time to focus on Bae Min-Gyu. So, she went out for drinks with Oh Jin-Sung to vent her frustrations. Cha Young-Woon’s team couldn’t find any commonalities between the two cases, but they felt that the killer was particularly bold.

There were no past crimes with similar characteristics, but the second victim had traces of salt and it was speculated that a sashimi knife used for seafood was the murder weapon. The Cha Young-Woon team believed that the killer must be someone skilled in cooking since this type of knife is not cheap and not something an ordinary household would have.

Suddenly, everyone discovered evidence that Lee Eun-Byul and Bae Min-Gyu were both skilled in using knives and had sets of knives. Bae Min-Gyu especially stood out as someone proficient in handling knives, so they focused their investigation towards them.

Longing for You episode 1 ending explained

🔺 Episode 1 “Longing for You” ending explained:  when Cha Young-Woon thought they were heading in the right direction with their investigation, he decided to personally talk to Go Young-Joo about it since she already suspected Bae Min-Gyu. By chance, Cha Young-Woon met Oh Jin-Woo at a restaurant where he had a full meal before finally encountering Go Young-Joo.

When Go Young-Joo introduced Cha Young-Woon’s achievements and background, Oh Jin-Woo paid special attention to him – almost like admiration or surprise – as if he was thinking about something deep inside his heart. Lee Eun-Byul mentioned that although her set of knives was gifted by Bae Min-Gyu, one missing knife was actually stolen by a thief.

This puzzled Cha Young-Woon because if it were just a thief stealing items, wouldn’t they take everything of value? However, the team brought bad news as they discovered past records of knife thefts. That night, another new case occurred, and it happened near Oh Jin-Sung’s house.

Longing for You Review and Theory Episode 1

Bae Min-Gyu became a suspect for the following reasons.

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Bae Min-Gyu is constantly arguing with his wife and often resorts to violence. He is the prime suspect, especially considering the evidence of his wife’s infidelity. For the prosecutors and media in Korea, it seems that they prioritize the rights of the perpetrator over those of the victim. The crux of this case lies in the fact that search warrants are not being issued due to the anesthesia used on the victim being a dental drug.

However, this refusal to issue search warrants raises suspicions. In accordance with typical Korean dramas, Bae Min-Gyu is initially portrayed as the culprit, but this portrayal feels too obvious. Moreover, given his frivolous personality, it doesn’t seem likely that he would meticulously plan and execute such a crime scene. This may be why Cha Young-Woon describes him as a violent husband; Bae Min-Gyu doesn’t fit the profile of a criminal.

Therefore, in “Longing for You” episode 1 through Cha Young-Woon’s character, it is suggested to not fixate on obtaining search warrants but instead find alternative breakthroughs. Each year there are more than ten unsolved cases in Seoul alone; therefore finding similar crimes within these cold cases might lead to quicker progress.

Thus, “Longing for You” revolves around a serial killer case which indicates that Bae Min-Gyu may not be the real culprit after all. There could potentially be elements involving powerful conglomerates evading punishment within these series of murders.

Was Oh Jin-Woo secretly filmed?

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From the scenes in “Longing for You,” we can see that the person secretly filming Oh Jin-Woo seems to be recording his daily activities and events. There is a scene where this person is seen recording (the hands appear to be those of a man). The act of secretly filming and documenting seems like an attempt to frame Oh Jin-Woo. However, I also noticed that Oh Jin-Woo’s expressions at certain moments are strange, as if he has something unsaid in his heart or deliberately observing others.

🔸 On Wednesday, August 10th, 2022, on the night after the typhoon passed, J saved a middle school student who was drowning while playing in the sea. If there were more people like J everywhere, the world would surely be a better place.

🔸 On Wednesday, September 7th, 2022, J went out to Seoul before attending a photography exhibition and planned to spend two days and one night outside. (Oh Jin-Woo’s itinerary for that evening was waiting for someone at what seemed like a café; it is currently unknown whether this person showed up or who initiated the meeting. Afterwards, Oh Jin-Woo went to his accommodation where there were signs of intentionally cut surveillance camera wires.)

In “Longing for You” episode 1 when talking to his mother about going to see the photography exhibition, it appears that Oh Jin-Woo may have been lying because although there is footage showing him passing by promotional posters for the exhibition, there isn’t any footage showing him actually attending it (although it could also be a deliberate misdirection by not presenting such scenes in order to confuse viewers with regards to timeline).

However, Oh Jin-Woo did go wait at a café (it feels like he waited for quite some time without meeting whoever he was supposed to meet or perhaps he was “waiting for time”) and surveillance cameras at his accommodation were also cut, as if someone didn’t want evidence of Oh Jin-Woo’s absence to be discovered. Therefore, there is some suspicion surrounding Oh Jin-Woo himself.

The killer’s modus operandi.

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➊ The killer injected the victim with an anesthetic drug (chloral hydrate, a medication used in dental clinics for sleep therapy) before committing the murder. ➋ They also severed the Achilles tendon of the victim (the fact that the victim’s Achilles tendon was cut indicates that the killer is highly skilled in knife techniques or may have a profession related to handling knives). ➌ Furthermore, they drained blood from the victim’s body and hung it on a railing like drying clothes, as if to display it to others.

• 🅰 Victim 1 (May 12, 2022): Liu Shuxian, museum director (wife of Bae Min-Gyu)
• 🅱 Victim 2 (September 7, 2022): Park Ji-hui, café owner. Similar evidence found on this deceased individual includes traces of “salt” and “microscopic particles of Japanese steel,” which suggests that a similar weapon used for slicing raw seafood might be involved.
• 🅲 Victim 3 (September 2022): Hye-joo, student.