Poong the Joseon Psychiatrist Season 2 Episode 9

Episode 9 of Poong The Joseon Psychiatrist season 2 begins with Poong and Eun-woo heading home together whilst holding hands. They assure each other that they like each other before heading in but Eun-woo’s mother overhears them. The couple is welcomed with giggles as the mother calls them inside for a drink. She starts complimenting Poong who is flustered but happy.

At Gyesoo, the widow Mak-jin who had volunteered to sign their petition feels uneasy and has insomnia as she thinks the Governor will target her. They tell her they will simply take her name out but she stops them and says she will wait for Poong to check up on her.

Meanwhile, Poong and Eun-woo share similar romantic feelings as they walk back to Gyesoo. The staff are happy to see them together and Jang-goon hugs Eun-woo. Granny thinks they are married and Poong says ‘not yet’ which has everyone laughing. She also wonders about Gwang-il who has gone back to Hanyang and is plotting with the Chief Royal Physician.

The Chief is angry that he failed and Gwang-il promises to destroy Gye and Man-bok’s ledger which contains the Royal Clinic’s misdeeds. The Chief deduces that Gwang-il hates Poong more than he does and the latter looks on angrily.

At Gyesoo, Poong treats Mak-jin while Eun-woo burns her petition. Mak-jin says she wants to help Poong and they tell her not to worry. As she rests at the clinic, she recalls being taken to Governor Ahn who threatens her as she is an immigrant from Qing. He gives her philter (love potion) telling her to give it to Poong and seduce him. 

During lunch, Gyesoo tease Poong and Eun-woo who keep sharing food. Gye finds it cute and orders Poong to look after the patients as he will submit the petitions. As he gets ready, Gwang-il returns and tells Gye that while he worked with Poong, they do not know each other and there must be some misunderstanding. Gye doesn’t fall for his excuse and deduces that Gwang-il probably saw Poong as a rival and studied hard but could never get to his level.

In a flashback, we see Gwang-il failing to treat a patient and Poong scolding him. He then performs acupuncture and announces that Gwang-il is not fit to be a part of the Royal Clinic. Gwang-il rants that no one trusts him even though he tries hard while everyone loves Poong. Gye advises him to focus on himself than others.

That night, Poong takes Eun-woo to the storehouse and gives her his diary and tells her that she should also write in it. They name the diary ‘Poong Woo’s journal’ which means facing hardships together. Mak-jin spots them together and tries to hurry up her plan, but she runs into Nam-hae and drops the philtered-drink. She is upset but Nam-hae is kind to her and brings her a sleeping tonic which leaves Mak-jin conflicted.

The next day, Gyesoo help Man-bok and Gye who are leaving for Hanyang while they wonder why Poong and Eun-woo are not present. Jang-goon tells them that the couple were up all night and their imagination runs wild. But he tells them that they were writing in a journal and everyone’s annoyed. Gwang-il sees them joking and laughing from afar and remembers meeting Governor Ahn who tells him that he has a clever plan.

Meanwhile, Nam-hae gives Mak-jin snacks and tells her she knows she is an immigrant as even Nam-hae is from her hometown and was bullied for being an immigrant too. She says you need one person to give you hope and that person for her was Gye. Mak-jin is sad and Nam-hae offers to help her. 

At that moment, Eun-woo runs to Gye and Man-bok before they leave Sorak and asks how she can help. Gye tells her that he has planted a fake ledger in his room and asks her to spy on Gwang-il. Meanwhile, Gwang-il spots Mak-jin and realises she is the spy that Governor Ahn planted. Mak-jin tells Poong she is leaving and asks him to drop her home.

At the palace, Gye gives the ledger to the King who thanks him for looking after Poong. Gye tells him not to open the ledger till he needs to as the petty crimes of his ministers could repulse him. The King thanks him again for his consideration and hopes no more problems arise.

Mak-jin makes a meal for Poong and secretly puts the philter in it. He says he understands what she must have gone through and tells her not to be disheartened as there will always be someone who will show up right when she needs help. She remembers Nam-hae and apologizes to Poong after he takes a bite of the food.

At the office, Mak-jin is on her knees and apologizes to Ahn as she never put the philter in the food she served Poong. He beats her and says that he will deport her. She says he cannot as she will tell everyone of his threats. He tries to assault her and she scratches his face. In a rage, he puts her in a chokehold.

Meanwhile, Eun-woo sees Gwang-il taking the fake ledger and going to Ahn’s office. He enters a room and then runs out in shock. Eun-woo enters and sees the room in disarray and bloody. She thinks the blood is Poong’s and runs after Ahn. At Gyesoo, Poong asks the staff about Eun-woo and shows them the philter he had found at Mak-jin’s after she had run away from him. Nam-hae is shocked and Gye suspects that Ahn must have threatened Mak-jin.

They start looking for Eun-woo as Gye is worried that she must have ended up at Ahn’s while following Gwang-il. In the woods, Ahn digs up a grave for Mak-jin. Gwang-il searches for him by following her blood and Eun-woo follows him from afar. Gwang-il shows up and scolds Ahn who says there will be no problem if no one finds out. At that moment Eun-woo makes a noise and Ahn spots her.

He tries to kill her but Gwang-il steps in. He tells her to get help as he holds off Ahn. But Ahn stabs him and runs after Eun-woo. He catches up to her and chokes her. Poong reaches Mak-jin’s grave and runs till he finds Ahn on top of Eun-woo. He pushes Ahn away and tries to perform acupuncture on Eun-woo who is unconscious but his hands start shaking as he picks up the needles.

The Episode Review

It may have taken almost all of season 2 but finally, we see why Gwang-il is the way he is. And while he may hold a petty grudge, it is good to know he at least draws the line at murder when he tries to stop Ahn from killing Eun-woo. While it is not enough to make him a likeable character, at least he won’t get in the way of our faves’ happiness anymore.

As for Poong aka Yoo Se-yeop aka the Top Acupuncturist in the nation, it seems that the time has come for him to regain his skills. While everyone was waiting since season 1 for him to get over his past trauma, the love of his life dying is a probable reason for him to get over his shaking hands and perform acupuncture again.

And with Poong The Joseon Psychiatrist being a rom-com first and foremost, there is no doubt that the finale will give us a happy ending for Poong and Eun-woo.