The Queen
With just two episodes to go, Mystic Pop-up Bar has stepped up its storylines as more truths have come forward and people are revealing their true intentions. So far, the series has managed to keep a decent pace and remained enjoyable and original throughout, with great characterisation and some shocking twists too. Episode 10 of Mystic Pop-up Bar starts in the past with the Queen angrily confronting Weol-Ju about her actions and ordering her to never set foot in the royal grounds again. The Queen then later announces to her son that a marriage has been arranged. He tries protesting as his heart belongs to someone else but she dismisses it, telling him to erase her existence or she will do it for him. In the present, Guibanjang is speaking with the woman who stopped them. She reveals that she is the reincarnation of the Queen and since she had an accident, she has been remembering her past life. She is sorry for what she did to him in her past life as she didn’t understand his feelings. He tells her that it happened 500 years ago and explains that he has been trying to fulfill a promise he made a long time ago. In the bar, Kang-Bae suggests continuing helping people after they reach 100.000 people. Weol-Ju tells him that she needs to go after this and explains that she has been doing this for another reason as she needs to end the suffering of someone close to her. While walking to the bar, Guibanjang remembers the day he died when he begged Yeomradeawang to send him where Weol-Ju was. She told him he deserved to go to hell but because he killed Won-Hyung who would have ended up causing the death of many, she will send him to the afterlife police. If he serves them well, then she will consider sending him to Weol-Ju. In the pop up bar, Weol-Ju talks to Kang-Bae about Yeo-Rin and tells him not to give up. He replies that he hasn’t and that he is planning to take his time. Guibanjang arrives in the bar too and drops his necklace which has a similar jade ring to the one he was planning to give Weol in the past. The next day in the supermarket, Weol-Ju sees Yeo-Rin smile when she notices that Kang-Bae is back at work. She tells the girl she knows she likes him and that they should start dating as he likes her too. In a flashback, we see Weol-Ju finding out from Samsin that Yeo-Rin is the Cinnabar. She then realizes it makes sense as it is the reason why his powers didn’t work on her. After Yeo-Rin leaves, Guibanjang arrives and sees that she is the Cinnabar. Both then decide to come up with situations for the two to get together. Unfortunately, they all fail. That evening in the bar, they discuss their failed attempts and Guibanjang decides to teach Kang-Bae how to talk to girls. However, it turns out to be a failure too. The queen ( Shin Ji-Hye) arrives in the bar and Weol-Ju instantly recognizes her. She tries to get her to leave and explains to Kang-Bae that she has the same face as the woman who had her mother killed. Guibanjang re-enters the bar with Death and is startled to see her. He lies and tells Weol-Ju that she is a fashion designer who helped him pick an outfit. They both leave to discuss the situation. Shin is surprised that he hasn’t told Weol-Ju that he is the crown prince yet. Guibanjang explains that Weol-Ju needs someone to assist her right now as she is almost done repenting for her sins. In the supermarket, Yeo-Rin comes face to face with one of her exes. He tells her he remembers how creepy she made him feel and shows her to his new girlfriend. After overhearing the exchange, Kang-Bae comes to her rescue by holding her hand, calling himself her boyfriend and making him apologize to her. She is surprised by his actions and unable to say anything else, prompting her to run off. In the evening, Weol-Ju leaves to look for a new spot for the bar. Guibanjang is surprised when he sees that Kang-Bae is distant and not touching any customers. Guibanjang confronts him about it and tells him that if he helps Weol-Ju, she will soon be able to fix him. Kang-Bae then blurts out that he is trying to make sure she doesn’t get sent to Hell and tells them the truth about her new contract. Guibanjang runs off angrily while Death realizes that Weol-Ju only has to help 2 more people until she gets sent to Hell. In a flashback, we see that Won-Hyung has indeed possessed his father. Guibanjang runs to find Weol-Ju and berates her about the contract she signed. She tells him that because of the sacred tree someone may be suffering. He dismisses it and tells her to stop helping people until he can find a way to cancel the contract. At the same time. Death visits Shin to convince her to help out Weol-Ju. He suggests letting her go in her dreamworld to show her that the crown prince didn’t do anything wrong. Guibanjang heads to see Samsin next and begs her to give him the contract. He berates her for letting Weol-Ju sign the contract but she tells him to stop as he has done enough for her. At work, Kang-Bae takes Yeo-Rin to have some cake. There, they have a heart to heart and tell each other what they went through growing up. Yeo-Rin explains that the boys she dated always ran away and Kang-Bae tells her that he used to be called the cursed boy. They both admit to liking each other which he later relays to a very happy Weol-Ju. Shin comes back in the bar and manages to convince Weol-Ju to make her drink the magical water by telling her she was engaged to a man whose parents didn’t approve and who ended up marrying someone else (a very similar story to Weol-Ju’s). In the dreamworld, Weol-Ju recognizes the place straight away and sees the queen and herself having a conversation. As she watches the prince getting ready for his arranged marriage, Guibanjang arrives and takes her back to the living world. They wake Shin up and Weol-Ju asks her just what she wants from her. Shin tries to tell her that she needs to know the truth but Guibanjang interjects and orders her to leave. Guibanjang later berates Shin about her actions and tells her to stop; if Weol-Ju reaches her quota, she will be sent to Hell. He tells her to live her life and leave them alone. He rushes to see Yeomradeawang next and begs her to let him take responsibility for Weol-Ju as he hasn’t paid for making her die alone. He then begs her to let him go to hell for her. He rushes back to the bar to tell Weol-Ju the good news but lies that he managed to nullify her contract by giving up names of corrupt higher-ups to Yeomradaewang. He explains that she won’t go to hell if she finishes her punishment. Death is there too listening and is, of course, not happy about it. He decides to pay Shin a visit and decides to kill her. In the supermarket, Weol-Ju watches Kang-Bae and Yeo-Rin together. She hears very familiar words from Kang-Bae which reminds her of what the crown prince once said to her in the past. She then asks Kang-Bae where he heard those words and he tells her Guibanjang gave him the idea as it had worked for him previously. Remembering all the recent conversations she had with Guibanjang, she starts understanding who he is. When she arrives in the pop-up bar, she sees Guibanjang and tearfully asks him who he is as the episode ends. With just two grudges to settle now, the final two episodes promise to be quite emotional and thrilling. We can expect the last two to be people we already know such as Weol-Ju, Guibanjang or perhaps Kang-Bae. Although I am thinking more of the first two as the latter seems to be doing great with Yeo-Rin. Their story arc has been quite enjoyable to watch too, especially now that they’re finally on the same page. The final confrontation will certainly happen during the last episode with Won-Hyung revealing himself to the trio and it promises to be very dramatic. It will be sad when Kang-Bae eventually has to say goodbye to his friends, but after all it is necessary for him to lead a normal life. Mystic Pop-up Bar has been a fun drama so far, one that I highly recommend – let’s hope it ends with a bang!
