In the packed Dynamite Kiss finale, a queen rises, amnesia surprises, and Jihyeok and Darim return to their beginnings.
Dynamite Kiss crams everything it’s got into its last episode, including a missing kid and a last-minute memory loss plotline. Kim Jooheon makes a cameo as Jihyeok’s doctor.
Also Read: Pop Corner: Dynamite Kiss Episode 1 Recap: A Chemistry Lesson
Evil plan thwarted
Taeyeong’s plan is finally revealed through a phone conversation with a foreign investor: with his shares outweighing Jihye’s, he plans to sell Natural Bebe.
At the shareholder meeting, Jihye exposes Changho for embezzling funds and being an abusive husband. Jihyeok then steps in to expose Jihye and Taeyeong, as he was listening to Darim’s voice recordings and heard Mr. Ma report to Jihye that he had sent the email from Darim’s computer. He also brings in In-ae, who confirms that Changho has taken control of her funds and says that she has now filed for divorce. Because Changho can no longer legally control her shares until the divorce is finalized, the meeting lacks quorum, and the vote is null and void.
In his rage, Taeyeong intentionally runs Jihyeok over with his car. Jihye sees this and reports him to the police, causing Taeyeong to be arrested and jailed.
Forget me not
Jihyeok lies unconscious in the hospital for a month, while Darim never leaves his side, caring for him everyday. When Jihyeok finally comes to, he has forgotten all his memories from before he met Darim. Darim tries to convince him that they’re dating but he doesn’t believe her.
The Mother TF team try to recreate scenes from Darim and Jihyeok’s relationship: picking up tangerines dropped by a pregnant woman, getting stuck in a closet to hide from some thugs, kissing with grapes during their home date. Nothing works. Though Darim wants to stay by his side until his memories return, Jihyeok says it’s better that they end this way. He has become once again, someone who doesn’t believe in love.
Loose ends
When Changho asks Jihye why she sold him out, she finally lets out all her suppressed feelings. She tells him how hurt she was that he only cared about her after her mother died, and only so that it would alleviate his own guilt for abandoning them in the first place. She leaves him all alone in their house.
In-ae told Changho that she would drop her lawsuits if he agreed to divorce her and resign as chairman. After Jihye’s departure, Changho finally signs the divorce papers.
Meanwhile, Taeyeong is in the same cell as the loan sharks who had chased Darim down for her organs before. They now descend upon him.
Hayeong is ready to leave for the US but she gets a call from Seonu that Jun has disappeared. She looks all over Seoul, only to find him in a playground structure where he had fallen asleep while playing hide and seek. She comforts him and takes him home. Seonu comes home to find them both asleep in Jun’s bed.
Flash forward
As Myungsun and Darim are finalizing the sale of their house, they find out that In-ae is the buyer. In-ae reports that Natural Bebe won the baby carrier lawsuit and invites Darim to return to the company. When Darim politely declines, In-ae suggests that she start her own company instead and gives her back the deed to their house as an “investment.”
One year later, Darim has started her own baby products company. A friend spots her sister Dajeong working as a tour guide in Jeju. Darim goes to Jeju to find her, though a colleague of Dajeong’s tells her that Dajeong also works as a server on her days off. And so, Darim finds herself again at the hotel where she and Jihyeok had their first dynamite kiss.
Darim had brought along her blue dress intending to return it to the store, but she ends up wearing it to be able to get into the party where Dajeong is. And of course, who does she meet but Jihyeok? He accuses her of stalking him, but the lights, the dress, and the atmosphere all start to trigger his memories. Someone knocks Darim into him and their lips touch. Upon remembering their dynamite kiss, Jihyeok asks Darim the iconic question – “Shall we do that again?” – and they’re back together.
Happy ending
Darim moves in with Jihyeok, and they eventually get married. They build a life and a company together with the other Mother TF team members. Gwangmin and Goeun eventually have a kid of their own. Seonu becomes an accomplished photographer. He insists that Hayeong is just a friend, while she also insists that she is something more.
The series ends with one final kiss between Jihyeok and Darim, while their kids watch with exasperation. There’s also a fun cast dance party over the end credits.
Final Thoughts
Obviously, this was a very silly ending to a drama that was also, at times, very silly, among other things. Dynamite Kiss proved that it could also be gut-wrenchingly sad, hilariously random, and touchingly heartfelt. It had its crazy tonal shifts (from peaceful art exhibit to disaster scenario), its plot holes (where is Dajeong?), its nonsensical situations (like being kidnapped by loan sharks who want your internal organs).
But overall, was it a fun watch? Absolutely. The performances ground the crazier parts, making the genuine moments of love and pain quite believable. We all felt bad for Jihyeok being the last to know the truth, laughed at Darim and Hayeong’s drunken night, and felt the thrill of the many, many kissing scenes. It’s been said many times before, but the off-the-charts chemistry between Jang Kiyong and Ahn Eunjin does a lot to sell the viewer on the whole ridiculous ride of Dynamite Kiss.
While certainly not perfect, Dynamite Kiss is an entertaining drama well worth the watch if you’re in for a laugh and a flutter of the heart.
Source: SBS Play, SBS Now Twitter/X
