Recap Korean Drama "Doom At Your Service " Episode 2

Doom At Your Service episode 2 picks up right where we left off, with time actually reversing while Myul-Mang and Dong-Kyung walk together. Hand in hand, the pair avoid the busy street and just keep on walking until they arrive at a cafe. The whole time our doom-bringer tells her not to let go. If she does, then she’ll die.

Dong-Kyung is still not convinced, believing she’s hallucinating and doubting this man’s abilities. To seal the deal, Myul-Mang conjures comets out the blue and sends them hurtling down to Earth. Well, until Dong-Kyung stops him that is.

Myul-Mang reminds her that he’s evil but is forced away by a more pressing matter. Just before he leaves, Myul-Mang gives her a red bracelet and tells Dong-Kyung she needs to hold his hand once a day to “recharge” what’s keeping her alive.

Myul-Mang shows up at the prison and stops an inmate from dying. He claims to be his doom but it’s not initially clear why he did that. Anyway, she walks away with the inmate screaming at him to return. Elsewhere, Myul-Mang heads back to the hospital where he finds that same strange girl again, Jo Ye-Ji. He boasts about “winning the lottery” and finding a girl who wishes doom upon the world.

Meanwhile, Dong-Kyung heads home and speaks to Ji-Na, who’s hysterical after losing her work. You see, that earlier comet and power outage meant she’s lost all the writing she was working on. Oh no!

After the girl settles down and starts anew with her writing, Dong-Kyung receives a call from the doctor again. He warns that things are going to get worse for her. The medical condition she’s suffering from comes with nasty side effects and she needs to be ready for that.

Well, one of those nasty side effects comes from her ex boyfriend, who shows up at Dong-Kyung’s work with a placard calling her a nasty homewrecker. It’s a pretty horrible moment for Dong-Kyung, one that sees the other workers silent and trying not to make a big deal about this.

The silence is so awkward and eventually Dong-Kyung writes up a letter of resignation. Only, with no Mr Park there, she’s unable to actually hand it in.

That night, Myul-Mang shows up at the street where Dong-Kyung happens to be. Holding her hand, he tells her that it’s time for her to recharge. “What happens if I break this contract?” She asks, as Myul-Mang turns and faces her.

Nonchalantly, he tells her that if she breaks the contract then someone else will die other than her. She pulls away from him in disgust, calling him a fraud. And just like that, the white truck of doom suddenly materializes again. This sequence of events is all Myul-M,ang’s doing of course, and he’s intent on teaching her that fate is cruel to everyone.

Slapping him in the face, Dong-Kyung calls Myul-Mang a scumbag and walks away, calling him cruel. Consumed by anger, Dong-Kyung struggles to keep control of her life in the wake of what’s happened. With her time running out, she heads back to work where she admits to the others that she’s criticized Jijo King’s (the writer) book.

The other workers however, have all been out for lunch discussing Dong-Kyung’s issues. Having not told anyone about her limited time left on the planet, she looks at her diary and deliberates on Myul-Mang’s intent of her coming up with a wish.

Speaking of which, Myul-Mang speaks to Jo Ye-Ji at the hospital, where she’s resuscitated and brought back from the brink. She tells Myul-Mang after that she doubts she’ll live to see her 20th birthday. It seems this girl is a deity and Myul-Mang’s role is above that, designed to bring about doom.

That evening, Dong-Kyung has her picture taken and framed; a perfect photo to remember her by when she dies. Myul-Mang is with her, and he eventually encourages Dong-Kyung to hold onto his hand. He tells her that his very existence is that of bringing about doom. It seems his role on Earth is the same as the grim reaper from Goblin.

After dropping her off back home, Dong-Kyung’s drunk ex shows up asking for her back. He starts singing, prompting Myul-Mang to laugh along. Until the picture frame is smashed.  Now he’s not smiling anymore.

Myul-Mang walks over and decides to pretend being Dong-Kyung’s husband. Eventually the drunken buffoon leaves, but the damage has already been done to the picture.

Dong-Kyung cuts her finger open trying to collect the glass up, but thankfully Myul-Mang is there to help patch it up, just like he did in the hospital. Just like that, Myul-Mang walks away but Dong-Kyung stops him. She asks him to live with her, as the episode comes to a close.

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The Episode Review

Doom at Your Service returns with a solid follow-up episode as the Goblin vibes start bleeding through into this drama. The whole Grim Reaper/doom comparisons are quite palpable and the tortured soul idea works wonders for Myul-Mang’s character. As a huge fan of Goblin, this drama hits all the right notes so far.

Dong-Kyung is such an easy character to empathize with too and she has had a horrid string of luck across the show. Hopefully her luck is about to turn and her bold suggestion that Myul-Mang come and live with her is certainly enough to raise some eyebrows.

Then again, the preview for next week’s episode seems to hint that we’ll be getting yet more Goblin comparisons. The idea of Dong-Kyung staying at Myul-Mang’s lavish apartment definitely feels like it’s been ripped right from the wildly popular k-drama’s repertoire.

Despite that, the show has enough mystery and intrigue to make for a solid and enjoyable watch. There are a lot of good elements to this drama and the balance between comedy, fantasy and romance has so far been really good.

Whether Doom at Your Service can step out of Goblin’s shadow to produce something wholly unique and exciting however, remains to be seen. One thing’s for sure, this is shaping up to be a really solid drama!