Alright folks, time for us to create some hypotheses:
Will the Crimson Bird and the prostitute (I’m so sorry, I am not going back to find their names) get revenge before or after Inu makes a decision? Let’s look at the facts:
Inu - silenced by violence and oppression in his youth, free to work outside of the Kuroda family but haunted by his past with Jun, he is given the choice to rise above his true lineage. Another set of chains it may be, but he could have more movement in his career and honor to his name. He’s never been free of the Kuroda family and admitted that his body was broken by Jun, but he can still salvage his honor in the face of the pervading ideals during the Japanese occupation. His face is always half covered, his mouth never smiles, and his sense of self is tied to passing fair judgement despite being mired in oppression. Does fairness matter? Will anything come of his attempt at equity? Or would it be better to grab honor when offered and accept that resistance is useless?
Jun - clearly shooketh by his conversation with Mugyeong, he’s grappling with self-hatred that has long been stabbing at his insides. He’s known he was never the head of the family and lashed out at everyone weaker than him - Inu, Mugyeong, Yukio. He doesn’t actually hate Joseon people, but because they have less honor than him, he collects and abuses them to make himself feel like he has control. He won’t kill himself, or he would’ve shown something of that earlier, but rather he’s so sure of his superiority over Joseon people that he regularly exposes his vulnerability in front of them, almost asking to be betrayed. But will he be betrayed or will he voluntarily turn himself in? What will he do if Inu takes the proposition?
Crimson Bird and prostitute: These two have been plotting revenge for over a decade it seems, and CB has been consistently successful in his campaign against the Japanese. Unlike Jun, who chooses specific targets but is rather more involved in his personal drama, CB sees all Japanese people as the enemy. His goal is to regain Joseon independence by forcing the Japanese people out through terrorist attacks on their government. The prostitute, bullied by his own people, chose to regain a sense of independence by trading his body for money and revenge by betrayal. The only person he cares about is CB, so those two will go the path together until they either succeed or die. Will it happen before Inu makes a decision? Will CB target Inu if he betrays Joseon?
Mugyeong - he’s a tough nut to crack, but he’s still a boy, still impressionable, still full of feelings that he has no idea how to interpret much less express. He’s given up on being pardoned because he refuses to betray Yukio’s wishes. He had no hopes or dreams, rather he existed previously on the euphoric sensation of running and preserves his sense of self in quiet resistance. He’s very sentimental, loyal, and has pride in being a Joseon person. He’s not attached to the world in the same way that Jun is or Yukio was, and refuses to be exploited by others, even if he dies for it. I’m sure he mourns Yukio, but more than that I think he is sitting with the realization that Yukio showed him a pureness uncommon to most people, especially “the enemy”. “Not everyone is as uncomplicated as you,” he told his hallucination of Yukio. Even if he is pardoned, what will he do? Where will he go? It looks like it’s the end of the road for him, but is it?
Alright folks, time for us to create some hypotheses:
Will the Crimson Bird and the prostitute (I’m so sorry, I am not going back to find their names) get revenge before or after Inu makes a decision?
Let’s look at the facts:
Inu - silenced by violence and oppression in his youth, free to work outside of the Kuroda family but haunted by his past with Jun, he is given the choice to rise above his true lineage. Another set of chains it may be, but he could have more movement in his career and honor to his name. He’s never been free of the Kuroda family and admitted that his body was broken by Jun, but he can still salvage his honor in the face of the pervading ideals during the Japanese occupation. His face is always half covered, his mouth never smiles, and his sense of self is tied to passing fair judgement despite being mired in oppression. Does fairness matter? Will anything come of his attempt at equity? Or would it be better to grab honor when offered and accept that resistance is useless?
Jun - clearly shooketh by his conversation with Mugyeong, he’s grappling with self-hatred that has long been stabbing at his insides. He’s known he was never the head of the family and lashed out at everyone weaker than him - Inu, Mugyeong, Yukio. He doesn’t actually hate Joseon people, but because they have less honor than him, he collects and abuses them to make himself feel like he has control. He won’t kill himself, or he would’ve shown something of that earlier, but rather he’s so sure of his superiority over Joseon people that he regularly exposes his vulnerability in front of them, almost asking to be betrayed. But will he be betrayed or will he voluntarily turn himself in? What will he do if Inu takes the proposition?
Crimson Bird and prostitute:
These two have been plotting revenge for over a decade it seems, and CB has been consistently successful in his campaign against the Japanese. Unlike Jun, who chooses specific targets but is rather more involved in his personal drama, CB sees all Japanese people as the enemy. His goal is to regain Joseon independence by forcing the Japanese people out through terrorist attacks on their government. The prostitute, bullied by his own people, chose to regain a sense of independence by trading his body for money and revenge by betrayal. The only person he cares about is CB, so those two will go the path together until they either succeed or die. Will it happen before Inu makes a decision? Will CB target Inu if he betrays Joseon?
Mugyeong - he’s a tough nut to crack, but he’s still a boy, still impressionable, still full of feelings that he has no idea how to interpret much less express. He’s given up on being pardoned because he refuses to betray Yukio’s wishes. He had no hopes or dreams, rather he existed previously on the euphoric sensation of running and preserves his sense of self in quiet resistance. He’s very sentimental, loyal, and has pride in being a Joseon person. He’s not attached to the world in the same way that Jun is or Yukio was, and refuses to be exploited by others, even if he dies for it. I’m sure he mourns Yukio, but more than that I think he is sitting with the realization that Yukio showed him a pureness uncommon to most people, especially “the enemy”. “Not everyone is as uncomplicated as you,” he told his hallucination of Yukio. Even if he is pardoned, what will he do? Where will he go? It looks like it’s the end of the road for him, but is it?