“Cafe Minamdang” shocked us last week with the surprising revelation that the real Gopuri is Prosecutor Cha Do Won. He is a born psychopath who is brainwashed into thinking that he is supposed to punish those who break the law in order to create peace in the world. He has been murdering people all along, with the help of Gu Tae Su. This time, he killed Auntie Im and framed Han Jun for her murder.
Spoilers Ahead
Why Did Seung Won Kidnap Jae Hui?
After Auntie Im traps Han Jun and Jae Hui in her temple and makes them unconscious, Do Won leaves Jae Hui behind and takes Han Jun to Cafe Minamdang. Gu Tae Su and Auntie Im are with him as well, and as Han Jun had predicted, Auntie Im dies when Gu Tae Su kills her on Do Won’s orders, and they put the blame on Han Jun. Do Won changes his attire and arrives at the cafe as a prosecutor right when Jae Hui and others arrive from Auntie Im’s temple. Do Won tells them that he received a tip from Gu Tae Su that Han Jun killed Auntie Im. All of them really see Han Jun with a knife, and Auntie Im dead in front of him. Prosecutor Cha arrests him as it is his duty.
Han Jun sits in the lock-up and starts thinking like the profiler he is and finds the answer that leads him to Gopuri. He needs to go to the prosecutor’s office the next day but tries to stall the time by telling the police officers that he has an upset stomach. As they take him to the lavatory, he escapes with help from Su Cheol. He calls Jae Hui and tells her that he ran away because he thinks that there is a spy among them. Do Won has been listening to the conversation, but Han Jun doesn’t mention his name. The police officers start suspecting each other, and a fight breaks out between them.
Seung Won has proof that Do Won and Tae Su killed Auntie Im as he had been following them and had recorded Do Won’s face in his black box footage. Seung Won wants Do Won’s shares of the company, but Do Won wants something more from his brother than just the footage. He tells him to kidnap Jae Hui and bring her to him along with the footage. Seung Won calls Jae Hui for a meeting, but she gets kidnapped before she can meet him. Han Jun was on a stakeout outside Seung Won’s office and followed the van. They lose the van at an intersection, and Han Jun calls Do Won for help.
Cha Do Won thinks they have all been trapped in his plan, but he is the one who is going to get caught. Han Jun has already figured out that Do Won is Gopuri. He analyzed all of Gopuri’s cases and found a pattern that led him to Do Won. However, he confirmed it only after Hye Jun hacked Seung Won’s black box and saw Do Won’s face clearly. He informs everything to Jae Hui’s team, and they come up with the plan of Han Jun running away and bugging Do Won’s cell phone when they fight with each other over the accusation of being a spy. Jae Hui was kidnapped deliberately as they had a plan.
Both Seung Won and Do Won plan to kill each other after their work is done, but Han Jun doesn’t let Seung Won reach the location. Su Cheol and Detective Na dress up as Seung Won and his secretary. Jae Hui has been kidnapped, but she is not worried at all. Her team has already reached the location and is keeping an eye on her while others prepare to put on a show. Detective Na passes out after drinking too much resuscitation drink. His senior takes his place as the secretary, but his partner gets caught by the kidnappers. Their plan isn’t getting executed perfectly, and their final show is their last hope. Do Won and Tae Su have been monitoring the location but don’t find anything suspicious. They don’t even recognize that Seung Won is a fake one. They see Seung Won and Han Jun stabbing each other, and Do Won thinks that he has served justice once again.
Does Do Won Kill Han Jun?
Do Won walks up to Han Jun and, after sharing some narcissistic comments with him, is surprised to see that everything was fake. He is about to get caught, but Gu Tae Su has a gun and protects Do Won. Jae Hui gets angry when she sees bruises on her colleague and beats up the kidnappers. She reaches out in time to kick Gu Tae Su, who had pointed his gun at Han Jun to kill him. She also catches Do Won, who tried to run away, but Gu Tae Su fired at her, but thankfully, it was not lethal. They catch Gu Tae Su, but Do Won runs away.
A search warrant has been issued against Do Won, and they have found a lot of evidence in his office. The psychiatrist’s diary and CD are also seized, and they find out that Do Won was brainwashed and maybe he could have led a better life had he not. Do Won’s face is all over the media, and many people have reported seeing him. He has been seen walking around the same area of Sinpyeong market, but his purpose is not clear. However, after decrypting his hard disk, his purpose becomes clear. Do Won has a list of people he needs to punish, and all the people who reported seeing him are on that list.
Han Jun, Jae Hui, and their team start searching for him, but he traps them one by one. He misleads two of Jae Hui’s team members, and they get stuck on a cruise. He kills one of the people on the list, and Su Cheol finds him, but Do Won locks him inside the store. He also knocks out Hye Jun and Na Dan to stop them from getting access to CCTV cameras. Jae Hui and her senior go after the illegal Chinese immigrant and get caught in a gang fight.
Han Jun is now left alone, and Do Won gets the right opportunity to murder him. Do Won thanks Han Jun first for giving him enjoyable moments and making him feel like a friend. He feels bad that Han Jun won’t be alive to see how Do Won changes the world with his judgments. After a tough beating, both Do Won, and Han Jun still have a fight left in them, but Jae Hui comes in and ends the fight by knocking out Do Won.
‘Cafe Minamdang’ Season 1: Ending Explained – Will There Be A Season 2?
Cha Do Won gets caught and is waiting for his trial. He has no remorse for his actions and shamelessly talks with Jae Hui about Jae Jong’s murder. Han Jun has gained more popularity as a shaman after this incident, but he has decided to take a break and go on a trip. Jae Hui’s team gets appreciated for cracking a huge case, but after seeing the expense sheet, their boss sends them on compulsory leave. This works out for Han Jun as he gets to take Jae Hui on a trip with him. They have been enjoying their trip but cannot help but head back when they find another case of a serial killer.
“Cafe Minamdang” Season 1 ends with another serial killer’s case, which might or might not be converted into a sequel. The series was supposed to be a mystery-comedy, and the comedy part of it has done better than the mystery. The mystery peaked at Auntie Im’s revelation, and the only thrilling scene in the entire series was Cha Do Won’s revelation as Gopuri. Despite a strong cast, the series fails in the script, and the flaws are visible on screen. The story reflects the efforts in the writing of independent cases but crashes while trying to connect them. Gu Tae Su, Nam Han Jun, and Nam Hye Jun are the only remarkable characters in the ensemble. A sequel would be good only if it came with a better storyline.
See More: ‘Cafe Minamdang’ Episode 1 & 2: Recap And Ending- Who Is The Popular Shaman, Nam Han Joon?
