Bonding comes in many different shapes and forms and there’s several ways you can build that connection with one another. Our team experiences firsthand the many arts to bonding and just how beautiful it can be. Even in the most challenging circumstances and situations, bonding can still exist. Bonding is a beautiful thing.
Kkondae Intern: Episode 7 Recap
After the huge commotion in the office, some of our team members are punished for their actions and transferred to the worst place to ever exist, the waiting room dungeon. Tae-ri is reprimanded for purchasing their competitor’s food, Yoon-soo is accused of whistle-blowing unintentionally, and Yeol-chan is at fault for not being able to control his own team. Tae-ri finds it unfair how they were the only ones punished when the campaign was introduced by Executive Ahn. In a meeting with Chairman Namgoong, Joon-soo, and Executive Goo, they all discuss on what their next steps should be. How should they combat all the news coverage and attention that the food company is gaining? With that, Chairman Namgoong decides to pin the blame on Yeol-chan. The company puts out a statement that they had no involvement in Yeol-chan’s campaign of forcing his own team members to purchase products from the company and that it was all Yeol-chan’s own doing. The rest of the team watches the news station report on their situation and grow conflicted. What should they do next? Should they transfer to another department? Right at that moment, a man walks into the Marketing and Sales Department and introduces himself as Manager Mr. Cha Young-seok (Park Young-tak). He’s been appointed to assist the team.
Back in the waiting room, Yeol-chan, Yoon-soo, and Tae-ri receive updates about their status. They’re permitted to wait at home instead of in the waiting room due to some complaints that were filed to the Inspection Department. Although Tae-ri denies any participation with the complaints, she was the one who requested for Jung-eun to file them before she left for the waiting room. Lol. Tae-ri, always two steps ahead of everyone else! With our trio now released, they make their way back to the office. Everyone is relieved to be reunited, but Yeol-chan isn’t so happy at the sight of Mr. Cha at his desk. Why is he sitting at his desk? Mr. Cha informs Yeol-chan and his team of their new situation. Since Yeol-chan has now been suspended, Mr. Cha will be filling in for him at the moment. He even follows up with Jung-eun on how their upcoming food business show in Malaysia is coming along. Although Yeol-chan’s been working hard on the event and had plans to attend the show himself, it doesn’t seem like that might be the case for much longer. With Yeol-chan suspended and Mr. Cha as the new team leader, things could change.
Yeol-chan confronts Executive Goo about Mr. Cha’s transfer to his department. He’s uncomfortable and unhappy at the thought of him being replaced by Mr. Cha. He even questions if it was a decision that Chairman Namgoong had approved which throws Executive Goo off. Does Yeol-chan not trust her anymore? Plus, with Yeol-chan out for now, the show still needs to go on. Mr. Cha can sit in on the two upcoming events they have for work. They can’t wait and rely on Yeol-chan.
Jung-eun, Man-sik, Seung-jin, and Assistant Manager Oh all have a team dinner to welcome Mr. Cha to the department. Of course, Mr. Cha has no interest in actually joining the team and ends his boring video call with the team after a few seconds. The team even invite Yeol-chan to join them, but Yeol-chan is in no mood to celebrate. While driving in the rain, he once again glances at the huge billboard of his favorite restaurant. Just like before, he stops by the restaurant to grab some food and drinks. He needs to vent and get everything off his chest again. However, just as he sits down, the owner of the restaurant flags Yeol-chan down. The owner notes that a lady with bushy, curly hair and a white purse just exited the restaurant which excites Yeol-chan. He runs out of the restaurant in an attempt to find the lady. Even if it’s pouring and Yeol-chan is soaking wet, he continues the search.
Yeol-chan is reminded of the time when he first visited the restaurant. It was five years ago after he cried on the bridge and vowed to not give up on life despite the many struggles he was going through with his internship. It was then at that restaurant where he first encountered the lady with bushy, curly hair and found himself fascinated and attracted to her. However, since he never caught a glance of her face and only noticed her hair and purse, that was all that he knew about her. The ramen lady – as they call her – served as a lucky charm of some sort for Yeol-chan so he’s been waiting for her ever since that day. However, Yeol-chan’s search for the woman is unsuccessful and he’s left soaked in the rain.
Now that Yeol-chan has been suspended, he’s aware of the strategies that his enemies have implemented to try to eliminate him. He decides to recruit Yoon-soo and Tae-ri for a work trip to Mokpo. During this trip, they’ll develop a new product to prove and redeem themselves. Tae-ri brings up the idea of inviting Man-sik along as well so Yeol-chan agrees to it. The next day, the four all meet up. Man-sik’s prepared and ready to go as if he was embarking on a backpacking trip of some sort. Tae-ri carries her white purse with her, but she’s also brought a huge suitcase with her too. Before taking off, they discuss logistics such as drivers for the trip. Who will be driving? Although there’s 4 members on the team, only Yeol-chan and Man-sik can drive. Lol. Tae-ri and Yoon-soo aren’t as familiar with driving so they don’t dare to even try. Haha. Before getting into the car, Yeol-chan notices Tae-ri’s white purse that looks awfully similar to the ramen lady’s white purse. He pesters Tae-ri about it for more information by teasing her, but concludes that Tae-ri can’t be the ramen lady. They both seem too different.
And so the adventure starts! Woo hoo! After some driving, they make a rest stop to snack on some food. Yeol-chan decides to stay in the car to get some more sleep while Yoon-soo, Tae-ri, and Man-sik munch on some snacks. At that moment, Man-sik receives a call from Joon-soo. Joon-soo wants Man-sik to visit him at his office to discuss what their next plans shall be. Man-sik is at first confused by Joon-soo’s sudden request, but he finally recalls what he had told Joon-soo the night before during the team dinner. Man-sik had a little too much to drink and he called Joon-soo on a whim. He complains about how Joon-soo tried to push him out, but Joon-soo defends that he only did it since Man-sik sided with Yeol-chan. To make up to Joon-soo, Man-sik proposes that he’ll visit his office the next day so they can work things out again. However, with Man-sik not being in town, there’s no way he can make it. He then reveals the truth to Joon-soo about the road trip he’s embarked with Yeol-chan. Joon-soo takes interest in the trip and inquires for more information. However, when Man-sik misses Joon-soo’s calls and doesn’t pick up, the man takes it upon himself to figure out the senior intern’s location by tracking him down.
Our team resumes their trip after the rest stop. The four continue to bicker with each other after Man-sik accidentally misses a stop and there’s no peace in the car. Thankfully, they make it safely to their next stop: the motel they’ll be sleeping in overnight. All the boys sleep in one room together while Tae-ri gets her own room to herself. From the bathroom to the bed to Man-sik’s underwears, Yeol-chan gets the dibs in everything first. Yeol-chan isn’t even willing to share blankets and he has a tug of war fight with Man-sik over it. Lol. That night, Yoon-soo and Man-sik end up sleeping on the floor while Yeol-chan rests comfortably on the bed. However, Man-sik upgrades himself to the bed in the middle of the night and lays himself next to Yeol-chan’s side. He too deserves a good night’s sleep after all the driving he did. Back in Tae-ri’s room, she washes up and takes a shower. While showering, her hair gets wet and it transforms into a big, curly bush of hair. Could she possibly be the ramen lady who Yeol-chan has been looking for?!
The next day, our four team members dive into doing some work. They visit various restaurants serving different types of ramen dishes. From ramen with octopus to chicken and seafood to skate to lobster, they try out all the ramen there is. Of course, Yeol-chan doesn’t forget to remind everyone what they should check for and evaluate with each ramen noodle that they taste. At their last restaurant, Man-sik pleads for Yeol-chan to stop it with all his nagging. They’ve had enough; can’t they just simply enjoy their food without having to hear Yeol-chan tell them what to do? Lol. After an entire day of traveling to different restaurants and eating all types of ramen noodles, our team calls it a day. Of course, the work never really ends and our interns have to write up a report to Yeol-chan that’s due the next morning.
While our team brainstorms and discusses their thoughts and opinions on each of the ramen dishes, Yeol-chan does some work back in his room himself. He reviews the packet for their upcoming event in Malaysia and grows nervous at the thought of Mr. Cha possibly taking over. He calls Jung-eun for updates and learns that Mr. Cha has already gotten some significant amount of work done for the event. Through Jung-eun’s updates as well as a list of documents that Mr. Cha emailed Yeol-chan himself, Yeol-chan learns that Mr. Cha’s already contacted distributors and buyers and have scheduled meetings all within a span of two days. This is the first time Yeol-chan’s felt threatened by someone.
Our interns finally finish their reports after pulling an all-nighter. Of course, Yeol-chan isn’t happy with this and he scolds his team for not handing him the reports in time. Lol. For day two of their trip, they pull up their sleeves and go out to sea themselves to grab some seafood for their ramen noodles. Well, it’s really just Man-sik who does all the work with his cool and charismatic fishing skills, but still, they all participate in one way or the other. Everything tastes so much better since they’re doing the work themselves and not just eating at a restaurant. Eventually, they make their way back onto land for another round of ramen noodles at a restaurant. However, it’s cut short due to Yeol-chan’s nagging and our team is left with another report to write up that evening.
While Yoon-soo works hard on his report and stays quiet the entire time Man-sik and Tae-ri are complaining, Man-sik and Tae-ri can’t keep their mouths shut. They complain about Yeol-chan’s nagging and pushy behavior. To take a break from all the work, Tae-ri walks outside for some fresh air. She encounters Yoon-soo who looks concerned and worried. He’s been trying to get in contact with the landlord for his apartment so that she can feed his puppy. However, she hasn’t been picking up and she’s probably forgotten at this point. They move on to chat about the unfair dismissal complaint that was filed to the Inspection Department. Yoon-soo assumes it was Tae-ri who submitted it, but Tae-ri denies the accusation. She took some part in it, but it wasn’t her who filed the complaint. Tae-ri’s curious about Yoon-soo and questions why he puts up a wall around Tae-ri. Yoon-soo has distanced himself from everyone because he doesn’t want to invest his time and emotions into getting to know others. It becomes burdensome after a while.
Eventually, the two separate when Yeol-chan scolds them for being outside and not working on their reports. To end the conversation, Tae-ri decides to call Jung-eun to help feed Yoon-soo’s puppy. Since she lives in the same neighborhood as him, she could make a quick stop to run the errand. Although Jung-eun is initially outraged at Tae-ri’s request, she comes to enjoying it when she does stop by Yoon-soo’s studio to feed his puppy. She even hangs around to play with the puppy for a little bit. Aww.
Back with our team, our interns has had enough. Man-sik brings up the idea of staging a coup d’etat; Yeol-chan should work on the report himself as well. So our three musketeers storm over to Yeol-chan’s room and demand that he work on the report with them too. Yeol-chan – who was busy putting a face mask on – calmly agrees to the request. The four of them sit in his room and work on the reports together, but it’s not like what they imagined or wanted. Yeol-chan continually nags at them to get things right, whether it’s the actual report itself or the way that Yoon-soo staples his report together. LOL. Man-sik eventually gives up and admits that they’re better off working on the report without Yeol-chan. Lol. So Yeol-chan goes back to relaxing with his face mask on while our three interns continue to work. Yoon-soo and Tae-ri commend Man-sik for at least speaking up and saying something to Yeol-chan. Although Man-sik is praised for his efforts, things aren’t going so well for him either. He continues to receive phone calls from Joon-soo which he doesn’t want to answer. Leave him aloneeee. Haha.
On their third day of ramen tasting, Yeol-chan announces his decision to have them break up into pairs to continue their research. He needs to get back to Seoul by the weekend so that he can go to the Malaysia event so they’ll be much more efficient and quicker by dividing up the work. Through an unfair game of rock-paper-scissors, Yoon-soo and Tae-ri cheat their way out of going to an island called Manji Island with Yeol-chan. Man-sik is the chosen one and he has no choice but to accompany Yeol-chan to the island. On the way to their car, the four encounter Joon-soo who parks right next to them in his own car. After using some kind of excuse to explain his appearance, Tae-ri invites him to join them in their trip. He has his own car and he can drive so it’s perfect! Joon-soo takes advantage of the opportunity and devises his plan to bring down Yeol-chan. While viewing the schedule for Manji Island, Joon-soo encourages Yeol-chan and Man-sik to take the boat to visit the island. They can just simply eat some ramen noodles at the restaurant over on the island and then take the last boat of the day back. It shouldn’t be too difficult, right? However, what Yeol-chan and Man-sik aren’t aware of is that there’s been a high seas warning issued for that day. Those who leave might not be able to come back because of the raging weather that is bound to attack soon. With this information in mind, Joon-soo encourages Yeol-chan and Man-sik to set foot on the boat to the island.
And so our boss and senior intern gets on board the ship to Manji Island while Yoon-soo, Tae-ri, and Joon-soo stay behind on land. While on the boat, Yeol-chan receives a phone call from Executive Ahn who announces the end of his suspension. Yeol-chan can return to the office which means he can attend the Malaysia showcase. Things are going well for Yeol-chan so far. When they arrive on the island, they arrive at a restaurant known for their infamous ‘Grandma’s Ramen.’ The dish is delicious and Yeol-chan and Man-sik remember to tie work back into the food they’re eating. Eventually, they pay up for the food and rush to make it back onto land. However, there aren’t any boats coming in which puzzles Yeol-chan and Man-sik. Where’s the last boat that was supposed to come in?
Two villagers nearby announce the bad news to both men. There’s been a high seas warning issued all the way until the next week so chances of going home are slim to none until then. But wait, what about the boat that the two villagers are standing in? Can’t they possibly take it to go back to land? However, it’s too risky and they’ll die if they were to go out in the water with the small fishing boat. Yeol-chan and Man-sik’s hopes are diminished the longer they wait on the island. The same two villagers refuse to go out with their boat when Yeol-chan and Man-sik pester them later on that night and there’s no other way for the two to escape the island. The strong and severe winds only make things worse for the two. While waiting on the sea shore, Man-sik and Yeol-chan make a camp fire and thankfully, Man-sik’s come prepared with his huge backpack so he has a bun for Yeol-chan to eat. However, the senior intern accidentally trips and falls and so does his bun (oh nOOO). Eventually, the only hope they have left is a flying helicopter that reigns above in the sky. The two men use the light feature on their phones to flash it at the helicopter as a last resort. While yelling out ‘S.O.S.’ on the top of their lungs and flashing the light at the helicopter, our two men are desperate to be seen. It’s now or never.
My Thoughts:
Haha, talk about bonding! Being stuck on an island will for sure be a great way for the two frenemies to connect and bond as they figure out how they’re going to escape the island. Of course, that means literally waiting on the island until the high seas eventually calm down as there is no other option available for our two guys. I can’t wait to see the two get closer while stuck on the island. They’re not going to pull each other’s hair out and scream at the top of their lungs in frustration, right? Man-sik and Yeol-chan will surely get along, right?
Moving onto the episode itself, this episode was such a wonky and funny and silly episode, but that’s what I love about ‘Kkondae Intern.’ It never takes itself too seriously and it always goes above and beyond with the ridiculous antics it utilizes to ramp up the humor. I heavily enjoyed this episode thanks to the trip that our interns and their boss embarked on. It made sense plot wise because they were suspended (excluding Man-sik) so they needed to do something to prove themselves of their worth and value to the company. However, it was also entertaining to just see them spend time outside of the office and to do something fun while they were at it. From all the nagging at each restaurant to the interns’ coup d’etat to Man-sik and Yeol-chan’s struggle to leave the island at the end, there were so many comedic highlights throughout this episode. ‘Kkondae Intern’ has always been a funny and humorous show, but I’m always fascinated and amazed at how it levels up the comedy with every passing episode. Who would have ever thought that Yeol-chan and Man-sik would be stuck on an island together with no way out? Who would have thought that the two would be stuck not only in the office together but even when outside as well?
This brings me to my next point which is that ‘Kkondae Intern’ has become an obsession of some sort for me at the moment. Of course, I’m also enjoying ‘Dinner Mate’ and ‘Oh My Baby’ and the three are charming in their own ways, but I never thought I would be as into ‘Kkondae Intern’ as I currently am. I started off the drama with little to no expectations, but found myself enjoying all the comedy and anticipating the upcoming episodes with every watch and every recap. The show has really grown on me with every passing episode which I was not expecting at all. Every episode has been a pleasant surprise for me and I’m glad that my interest in this drama has only gotten bigger. ‘Kkondae Intern’ really knows how to draw its viewers in and keep us entertained throughout the many situations that our characters are thrown into. Just when one challenge is finished, our characters are faced with a new one. They’re never given a break which means we viewers aren’t either. We’re always on the edge of our seats, but the best part is that we get to laugh along while everything is unfolding.
Everyone seems to be so ready to betray one another in the company which makes it hard for trust to be a thing. It now makes so much more sense when Yoon-soo commented that he viewed Tae-ri as a competitor and not a friend. Even Executive Goo who we thought was Yeol-chan’s ally is secretly and subtly trying to take him out. She too has been on Executive Ahn and Joon-soo’s agenda of overthrowing Yeol-chan because she also wants that leadership position once Chairman Namgoong leaves. It’s difficult to trust anyone in this company, especially when everyone is busy looking out for themselves. The betrayal is real in this drama and it’s frustrating to watch everyone waiting for Yeol-chan to be taken down. He’s so competent and qualified with his job that he’s viewed as a threat by many.
Can we also take a moment to appreciate Park Hae-jin’s face and acting in this drama?! His comedic timing is awesome AND he looks SO good! 
However, Man-sik is turning out to be the real VIP in all of this. Along with the honesty and integrity he put into the ramen campaign in the last episode, he came well prepared for this trip. He drove hours on end on their trip and even advocated for himself and his team due to the unfair treatment that they were receiving. Plus, Man-sik even packed carefully for the trip so he had some snacks prepared once they were stuck on the island. It’s also even getting harder for him to trust Joon-soo and Executive Ahn who he completely sided with in the beginning of his internship. However, as Man-sik eventually saw, he faced a reality check when he was dismissed and thrown aside because of the few times he succeeded for Yeol-chan. There’s really no one you can trust in the company other than yourself which is proving harder and harder to process the longer you are in the company. However, hopefully the trust between our team will build and grow to the point where they can trust both themselves and one another. Maybe a few more trips with everyone will be a possible outlet and source for that trust to build. Maybe our team can reign as the winners in between all of this competition, backstabbing, and rivalry.
The drama continues to move forward with the love line between Tae-ri and Yeol-chan which I feel guilty for enjoying. As much as I find them adorable on the surface level, I’m constantly reminded of the power imbalance between the two so I feel this sense of guilt for rooting for them to be together. Regardless, I find Tae-ri and Yeol-chan adorable and I’m glad we got some insight on their history with each other which stemmed back to five years ago at the ramen restaurant. It was then that Yeol-chan first noticed Tae-ri and became inspired to be where he is at the moment with Joonsoo Foods. Because he found himself in another unfortunate and difficult situation in life, he was desperate to reunite with his lucky charm who helped him back when he was suffering at his internship. Although it hasn’t been confirmed just yet whether Tae-ri is ramen lady or not, it seems as if the drama is leaning towards that path which is exciting. Yeol-chan and Man-sik’s bromance set sail (literally) in this episode, I’m hoping Yeol-chan and Tae-ri’s ship will be next.
Extra screenshots from the episode~
MaryMeKpop 