Moving (2023) Episode 8

Moving episode 8 starts with a flashback to the year 1987. There is a plane and the pilot is making an announcement about turbulence. Among the passengers is a man who handcuffs himself to a suitcase bomb and switches the timer on. A kid looks through his window and sees a man flying towards the plane. This is Doo-sik and he tries to warn the pilots about the bomb onboard. Unfortunately, the bomb goes off killing everyone as Doo-sik sorrowfully watches.

We then travel forward to 1994, when Mi-hyun used to work for NIS at the Namsan Agency. She was 24, the youngest agent since the foundation of the agency. At the time she was removed from field duty after hurting her eyes. All her senses are augmented and she has super reflexes, explaining her powers. After her eye injury though, she was given a desk job at the Information Management Division.

Yong-jun recruits her to work under him. He assigns her a new critical task coming in the form of evaluating Doo-sik’s philosophical views ahead of an upcoming mission. Yong-jun is adamant that there can be no mistakes. He asks her to get close to Doo-sik and evaluate if he is up for this secret mission. Mi-hyun asks why he chose her and Yong-jun explains that he needed an information analyst. 

Mi-hyun doesn’t buy his excuse so he expounds further, stating she needs to use her beauty as a weapon. He sweetens the deal by promising to give her a chance to return to the field as a black ops agent again. However, if she fails, he lets her know she will face the consequences. Mi-hyun goes over Doo-sik’s files and thinks he is good-looking. 

Over the next week, Mi-hyun did everything possible to coincidentally run into Doo-sik. Yong-jun had planned everything to make sure Mi-hyun knew when Doo-sik was coming to the office. In a twist, we learn that Doo-sik’s partner was Ju-won. This means that Mi-hyun and Ju-won know each other. Does this mean Mi-hyun recognized him in episode 5? After all, she is supposed to have super senses! 

Back to the mission, Mi-hyun’s effort started to pay off as Doo-sik noticed her. He, however, didn’t approach her until later on. Jong-yun also played a huge role by making Doo-sik and Ju-won visit the office often to report to him. He also selectively gave Ju-won more paperwork, allowing Doo-sik to wander the hallways and run into Mi-hyun.

 After a few weeks, the silent seduction came to an end when Doo-sik approached Mi-hyun at the office coffee stand. A game of wits started as Mi-hyun and Doo-sik got close. 

The scene jumps back to 1992 in Longjing, Yanbian, China. Sang-gu was in charge of Operation Seagull to take out double informants. The plan was to invite all informants to Longjing Hotel and set the bait. Mi-hyun was also part of the mission and acted as the performer of the night. She sang as the informants were served with drugged tea, clueless about their scheduled trip to meet their creator.

As soon as the informants started dropping, Sang-Gu identified the traitors and shot them dead. The doors were locked and he gave new orders to kill every informant in the room. Anyone that dared to move was met with a bullet to the head. Mi-hyun watched horrified and Sang-gu ordered her to get a grip and take out the targets. 

She, however, decided to save a few. Instead of using a can of tear gas, she used a flash bomb and then proceeded to shoot the door. The surviving informants scurried away and Sang-gu tried to call for backup. However, the backup never responded to his call for help. Surprisingly, Doo-sik was supposed to be on alert as the backup. This is why Yong-jun wants to test him and see where his loyalties lie. 

We circle back to 1994, Mi-hyun is working hard on her mission to seduce Doo-sik.  Woon-kyu is one of her superiors and feels jealous that Yong-jun didn’t pick her. It is for this reason that she brings up Mi-hyun’s failure in 1992 (Operation Seagull). She is shocked that Yong-jun was aware of it and still chose Mi-hyun. She switches her plans and starts giving Mi-hyun a hard time. 

As the days go by, Doo-sik begins to show more interest in Mi-hyun. They had silent coffee dates at the office coffee stand. He helped her carry files around and Ju-won started feeling frustrated by his partner. He even tried to put Mi-hyun in her place but soon found out that he had messed with the wrong one. 

Jong-yun becomes more pleased as he sees Mi-hyun get close to Doo-sik. Unfortunately, it is not exactly what he thinks. You see, Mi-hyun already got busted by Doo-sik and she confessed to being ordered to get close to him. Technically, Mi-hyun failed the mission but she continues to hang out with Doo-sik. They even go for dinner and get donkatsu.  This must be why she chose to open a donkatsu restaurant.

The Episode Review

We are now in a new chapter that focuses on the parents of the kids.  We have started with Mi-hyun and Doo-sik’s relationship. It is fascinating to go back in time and see the parents in a new light. What piques our curiosity in this episode is why Doo-sik ignored the call for help from Sang-gu. Is it tied to the plane bombing of 1987? Why did he go rogue and try to save the people on the plane?

We also would like to know why Mi-hyun chose to rescue the informants. There is a lot we are hazy on but hopefully the next few episodes will give us more answers.

Yong-jun makes a great cupid but he must have a greater plan at the back of his mind. What was his ultimate goal? His job is not easy, there are instances where he comes off as a hero and sometimes a villain. It is hard to know the intention behind his orders. However, no matter how diabolical he seems; it looks like he cares deeply for all his agents.