When Life Gives You Tangerines- Episodes 3-4
Runaways, Ring Tosses, and One Epic Swim
Episode 3 picks up right in the chaos—Ae-soon and Gwan-sik, busted and bruised from their attempt to reclaim their stolen things, find themselves hauled off to the police station. But surprise! They’re not the only ones there. Gwan-sik’s mom has tracked them all the way to Busan and she’s not in the mood—especially after learning her prized “golden frog” has gone missing. (Yep, Gwan-sik took it. Oops.)
Meanwhile, the scammer couple’s shady operation starts to unravel. The woman pawns off the stolen goods—including said golden frog—just before Gwan-sik’s mom shows up at their place like an angry storm cloud. Things escalate, a fight breaks out, and the police swoop in again, this time arresting the scammer who turns out to be a repeat offender. Justice: served.
The trio heads back to Jeju, but home isn't any easier. While Gwan-sik only gets suspended from school, Ae-soon gets the harsher blow: her school enrollment is permanently terminated. Gwan-sik confronts her grandmother, only to be hit with a bitter truth—when boys run away, it’s considered bold. When girls do it? Shameful.
Determined to stand by her, Gwan-sik announces he’ll marry Ae-soon. But his mother, worried for both their futures, gently tries to steer Ae-soon away. Later, when Gwan-sik formally asks her uncle for her hand, Ae-soon stuns everyone by refusing.
The rejection leads to something worse—a blind date with a much older man who’s basically looking for a live-in nanny for his kids. He dangles college tuition in front of her like a carrot. Ae-soon is crushed. This is exactly the life her mother never wanted her to end up with.
When Gwan-sik finds out, he completely loses it. He storms into her family’s home, demanding they stop the marriage. He finds Ae-soon walking with the man and pulls her aside, begging her to reconsider. He slips a ring on her finger. She instantly yanks it off and hurls it into a field.
Then comes the gut punch: “If you want me to be happy, let me go. You’re standing in the way of my freedom.”
Gwan-sik walks away, shattered. Later that night, Ae-soon returns to the field and searches for the ring. But it’s gone.
The next day, she’s reluctantly picking out a wedding dress. Gwan-sik, meanwhile, leaves for the mainland to compete in an athletics event. It’s then revealed that Ae-soon lied about not wanting him—Gwan-sik’s mother had told her he had real potential, that marrying her would destroy his shot at a better future. So Ae-soon let him go… to protect him.
But plot twist—Gwan-sik only cared about sports because he wanted to win medals to support her. Now, without her, the dream means nothing.
Cue the big romantic payoff.
Ae-soon races to the harbor to stop him, but she’s too late. The ship is already leaving. In a classic, heart-thumping K-drama move, she yells his name across the water. Gwan-sik hears her, spots her running—and jumps off the ship, swimming back to her as the villagers erupt in cheers.
They embrace on the shore, soaked and defiant, ready to fight the world—starting with Gwan-sik’s disapproving family.
Flash forward to the present: Gwan-sik’s sister casually drops the bomb that Ae-soon’s daughter was conceived that very night. Cut to young Ae-soon and Gwan-sik doting on their baby, Geum-myeong, as she narrates how her parents gave up everything to raise her.
And in the epilogue? Gwan-sik had secretly gone back to the pawn shop to buy back the wedding ring. The episode ends with them picking out wedding clothes, finally sealing the deal with a real ceremony.
Tricycles, Bruises, and a Kick to the Shin
Episode 4 jumps ahead a few years, and married life is no fairytale for Ae-soon. She’s now juggling motherhood andsome seriously difficult in-laws. But she still finds time to help someone unexpected—Na Min-ok, her former stepfather’s wife, who’s just had a baby.
Surprise twist: Min-ok, once cold and dismissive, has mellowed over the years. She married Ae-soon’s stepfather a decade after Ae-soon’s mom passed, and now she’s a mother to Ae-soon’s half-siblings. The two women don’t exactly bond over tea and secrets, but there’s a quiet understanding between them now. Past tensions? Buried. For now.
Ae-soon returns home bearing gifts, including a tricycle Min-ok gave for little Geum-myeong. But when she tries to get her daughter excited about it, Gwan-sik’s grandmother shuts it down. Girls shouldn’t ride tricycles, apparently. (Yes, really.)
Later that night, Ae-soon vents to Gwan-sik. She doesn’t want Geum-myeong trapped in the same stifling expectations she grew up with. She begs him: let their daughter ride the tricycle. Let her taste freedom.
The next day, Gwan-sik makes a quiet but powerful move—he buys another tricycle, this time expensive enough that no one would dare sell it for taffy money. Geum-myeong gets her ride. Ae-soon gets a small win.
Flash-forward to 1996. Geum-myeong is now an adult, and the narrator of her mother’s journey. She’s got a new job, a fiancé, and a soon-to-be mother-in-law who oozes judgment. When the woman demands Geum-myeong quit her job after marriage, she pushes back. She’s not marrying for status—especially not at the cost of her independence. She later tells her fiancé, flat-out: I don’t need to marry you that badly. Mic drop.
Back in the past, Ae-soon and Gwan-sik are expecting baby #2. But just as life seems to be settling, Ae-soon finds out her in-laws are trying to turn Geum-myeong into a haenyeo—just like her. Rage mode: activated.
Ae-soon storms in, shouting that her daughter will not die the same way her mother did, sacrificed to the sea. Gwan-sik’s mother slaps her. Gwan-sik walks in right then, sees everything, and finally snaps. He takes Ae-soon and Geum-myeong and walks out—for good.
They move into a tiny rental with barely enough space to breathe. But then, a mystery: someone’s already paid three months’ rent. They don’t know who—but they take it.
Then things take a darker turn. Gwan-sik comes home with a broken finger. Ae-soon brushes it off at first—until she notices more bruises. Turns out, Gwan-sik’s been working for Sang-gil (yep, the same guy Ae-soon almost married), and the man is abusing him. Even after Gwan-sik injured his hand, Sang-gil refused to stop the boat.
Ae-soon doesn’t wait around. She storms down to the dock, catches Sang-gil mid-humiliation, and announces Gwan-sik’s done working for him. But Sang-gil can’t help himself—he throws one last jab at Gwan-sik.
Big mistake.
Ae-soon fires back with a swift kick to the shin. Chef’s kiss moment.
Back in 1996, we see Ae-soon gently caring for Gwan-sik, who now walks with a limp from a life of hard labor. The episode closes on a quiet but emotional note—two people still standing, still fighting, after all the years and all the battles.
DramaZen's Opinion
Episodes 3 and 4 took the emotional rollercoaster to a whole new level. Episode 3 had everything—runaways, heartbreak, a thrown ring, and that iconic ocean swim. I mean, Gwan-sik literally jumped off a ship for Ae-soon! If that’s not love, what is? Their reunion scene was pure K-drama magic.
Then Episode 4 slowed things down but hit just as hard. Watching Ae-soon fight to protect Geum-myeong’s future, even over something as simple as a tricycle, was powerful. And Gwan-sik? Quietly showing up for her again and again, even while getting abused by Sang-gil. That kick Ae-soon landed on him? 10/10. No notes.
These episodes prove why this drama hits so deep—it's not just about love, it's about sacrifice, survival, and the quiet fight for dignity. I'm not okay, but I’m also obsessed.
