My Youth episode 3 unravels the fate of Hae’s mother and the role of his stepmother. While there are dark moments, his step-siblings and former on-screen sister lighten up his days. Above all, Je-yeon is there to catch him.
Trigger warning: This episode mentions suicide.
The episode starts with Hae gazing out the window of a bus as Je-yeon sits quietly in a taxi. Inwardly, he whispers his gratitude: “My path wasn’t so dark, thanks to you.”
My Youth Episode 3 Recap: Pushed Up the Daisies
After a meeting, Pil-do asks Je-yeon about the man she was seen with the other night. Je-yeon admits it was Hae and explains they’re discussing a documentary. The CEO instructs her to draft a proposal.
Je-yeon then informs Tae-rin who gets upset that the documentary is finally moving forward only because Hae agreed to participate. She’s also worried it will keep her trapped in her child star image. Je-yeon reassures her, and Tae-rin eventually calms down.
Pil-do and Seok-joo also discuss the documentary. Years ago, Pil-do attended the vigil for Hae’s mother who had taken her own life after being caught in a fraud case. Angry investors stormed the vigil which added to Hae’s humiliation.
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Sisters as Sunflowers
Back in the present, filming for the documentary kicks off. Hae and Tae-rin happily reunite in front of the flower shop.
As part of filming, the PD instructs Je-yeon to pose as a customer, but after several failed takes, they abandon the idea. Instead, the focus shifts to Hae and Tae-rin. But as cameras zoom in, Hae loses focus and stares directly at them, triggering a painful memory of cameras flashing at him during his mother’s vigil. The shoot grinds to a halt, and the PD asks Je-yeon to talk to Hae about staying focused.
Afterward, Hae hitches a ride with Je-yeon and Tae-rin to go to Geon-no’s bar. During the ride, Tae-rin reveals she also went to the same high school as them. She asks why Hae avoided her back then, and he admits he didn’t want to bother her.
Tae-rin then films for a drama scene. She unexpectedly breaks down, not because of the script, but because her co-star’s chewing noises reminds her of her strict dieting.
Nu-ri visits her brother’s flower shop. Finding the closed sign up again, she adds her own creative touch as the shop’s social media manager.
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Bubbles and Blossoms
Je-yeon rests on the rooftop with her earphones. Seok-joo also shows up for some air. As other employees there gossip about Tae-rin, Seok-joo blows bubbles in their faces to drive them off. He then warns Je-yeon to be careful.
Pil-do formally introduces her son Seok-joo to Tae-rin, who is stunned. She’s even more surprised when Seok-joo sends a flower basket to Hae’s shop. Curious, Je-yeon and Tae-rin ask Hae about his connection to Seok-joo. Hae explains that they’re stepbrothers.
Hae later meets Pil-do at a park. This transitions to another flashback: in his 20s, Hae begged his father and stepmother to look after Nu-ri while he had to serve in the army. Pil-do coldly told his father to handle it himself. Going back to the present, Hae hands back the allowance she had been sending him for years.
When the article about the documentary is released, Chan drops by the flower shop. The publicity sparks public concern, and Je-yeon receives a call about the issue. She rushes to find Hae.
Another flashback follows; it reveals that Hae’s mother was scammed by a CEO and a film director. This prompted her to take her own life.
Meanwhile, Hae receives a call asking if he’s okay. He insists he is, but memories overwhelm him, and he suffers another panic attack in his flower shop. Just in time, Je-yeon arrives to catch him as he collapses.
She apologizes, but Hae asks her to stay. The episode closes with the two of them in an embrace.
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My Youth Episode 3 Reaction
As My Youth episode 3 confronts Hae’s painful memory of his mom’s death, it makes his father’s abandonment and neglect even more infuriating. Yet even as the story wades into darker territory, it doesn’t linger there too long. By the end, the mood lightens with Seok-joo playfully blowing bubbles to de-stress. In this episode, the hero isn’t the one doing the saving, but the one being saved instead.
What do you think of My Youth’s third episode?
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Source: JTBC
