Run Into You

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Synopsis

Yoon Hae Jun is the youngest anchor of his broadcasting station. He’s a straightforward journalist and kind person. Baek Yoon Young works as an editor at a publishing company. One day, they end up traveling back in time to 1987. There, they try to solve a serial murder case, while uncovering secrets about their own families.

My Opinion (No Spoiler)

Run Into You is a great mystery drama with a thriller vibe and a romantic touch. I really feel like it’s underrated! The plot is full of twists (like the real identity of the serial killer), and unexpected revelations until the very end. I was really drawn to the story and couldn’t stop watching to be honest. Despite the serious topic (murders), there’s was all along a positive and lighthearted atmosphere that transpired through the leads’ bond with the inhabitants – among which their parents and grandparents. The romance was also perfect! Not too much or too little, as well as properly incorporated into the overall narrative. I can only recommend you watch this drama, it’s a hidden gem!

Analysis

• The murder case
  The victims and suspects
  The real culprit
• The mysteries
  The clues
  The red car
• The secrets
  Baek Yoon Young’s family
  Yoon Hae Jun’s family
  Ko Mi Sook’s past
• Time travel and second chances
• The romance
• The title

The murder case: Run Into You is the perfect mystery drama. Back in 1987, a series of murders took place in the quiet village named Woojung. The culprit was supposedly arrested and sent to prison for years. But on the day of his release, he meets anchor and journalist Yoon Hae Jun (Kim Dong Wook) who doesn’t believe he’s the real killer. The reason behind Hae Jun’s willingness to trust the actual criminal, and to accept he’s innocent stems from one extraordinary discovery he has made. I’ll explain the plot more into details later, but let’s start by giving some factual context regarding the murders.

The victims and suspects: When Hae Jun starts investigating, Woojung Murder Cases in 1987 have several victims and 3 main culprits. The victims are all women, who have been tied up with a red thread and on which a mysterious matchbox from ‘Bong Bong Tea House’ – a notorious coffee shop in the village – has been found. In each of them, the police discovered a message that reads ‘Women who read are dangerous‘. Considering the few clues left behind by the murderer, the police force struggles to name a real culprit. Despite that, they arrest and interrogate 3 men who could be the potential killer. The first one is Baek Hee Sub (Lee Won Jung), a young free-spirited student whose older brother seems to have tense relationships with the police/government. The second one is another student, Yoo Bum Ryung (Joo Yeon Woo), whose behavior is suspicious especially around women. Finally, there is Ko Mi Soo, a perverted rich young man who will eventually be convicted for the murders (although he’s claimed he was innocent all his life).

That being said, the story takes another turn when we learn that Hae Jun and Baek Yoon Young’s mother are actually victims of the same killer in 2021. This means that the murderer has never been caught, an innocent is in prison, and someone needs to rectify that. That’s when time travel comes into play. Hae Jun gets his hands on a car that allows his to go to the future, witness his death from that same killer, and go back to the past to stop him once and for all.

The real culprit: I would have loved to keep the mystery alive as long as I could in that review, but I’m afraid I will have to break it to you now. The real identity of the killer came as a shock to me. I honestly never would’ve suspected him – and I suspected literally everyone else. Long story short, it turns out that Yoon Hae Jun reunites with his family when he travels to 1987. He meets his grandfather and his own father, two relatives with whom the relationship has unexpectedly and mysteriously always been complicated, cold and tense. Upon finding that his father is the person behind the same murders he’s trying to prevent, it all comes to light for Hae Jun. On top of that, the fair and upright truth seeker discovers that his grandfather himself has covered for his son by destroying evidence and letting someone else be arrested. Once again, Yoon Yeon Woo (Jeong Jae Kwang) – Hae Jun’s father – was the last person I would’ve accused. He was a kind, brilliant man, who was even trying to fix Hae Jun’s time traveling car. He also appeared to be a kind and warmhearted lover towards the owner of Bong Bong Tea House. Well, looks can be deceiving as they say. In his childhood, Yeon Woo’s mother used to care more about books than him, she abandoned him, and left him with a deep trauma that turned into hatred towards reading women.

The mysteries: The plot is punctuated in every episode by a new mystery and/or clue that takes our main leads, Hae Jun and Yoon Young, closer to the truth until they actually uncover it.

The clues: In regards to the murders, the drama drops a lot of hints along the way. First, you have the matchbox from Bong Bong Tea House and its message. Though it’s not understood as a signature from the culprit right from the start, it rapidly becomes an effective way to identify the victim as one of the Woojung killer. That’s why, Yoon Young understands that her mother was killed by the same person as Hae Jun in 2021. It was indeed not a suicide.

Second clue is the red thread that becomes relevant at the very end of the drama. Hae Jun’s mother aka Bong Bong Tea House owner Chung Ah (Jung Shin Hye) aka Yeon Woo’s pregnant girlfriend comes to realization that the man she loves is the killer because of that key element. Upon hearing she would be able to start a family soon, the orphan woman starts knitting clothes for her unborn baby. But that same thread proves to be used in the killings by the murderer. That and the matchbox, and it was just a question of time before Chung Ah uncovered the truth. Last but not least, the young woman had letters from Yeon Woo in her possession that displayed his true handwriting. Indeed, he would disguise it to everyone else by using the other hand. That helped him get away at first.

The last clue has to do with the book Ko Mi Sook (Kim Hye Eun) starts writing in 2021 and that her editor Yoon Young is reviewing. In it, she depicts herself as a character who witnessed a murder. Though Yoon Young thinks Mi Sook is the real killer at first, she quickly realizes that she’s in fact a key witness to one of the murders.

The red car: The greatest mystery of the drama for me is actually the red car found by Hae Jun. The item allows him to time travel and solve the case; but I had so many questions about it throughout the drama. And I only got my answers in the last episode. Yoo Hae Jun stumbles upon this red car in the middle of nowhere in a dark tunnel during a rainstorm. The driver door is wide open, and there’s even a manual on how to use it and what it’s for. Apart from that, we have no information on the reason why it was there, who created it and left it here, if there’s a specific purpose to it, when it was put in the tunnel, etc… The big reveal occurs in episodes 15/16 when another visitor from the future meets Hae Jun in 1987. He tells that he is actually his son (that he has with Yoon Young) and that he left the car there for his father to use, so he would right the wrongs of the past. This was an incredible twist that really added another dimension to the story, showing that time is a circle and that everything (timelines, people, events…) is intertwined.

The secrets: On top of the clues regarding the killings, there’s another and more personal layer of mystery in the drama: Family secrets.

Baek Yoon Young’s family: In present times, Baek Yoon Young’s family dynamic is off. She and her father are estranged for some unknown reason. The latter has always spent his time out of reach and drinking leaving Yoon Young’s mother and herself in great solitude. Similarly, Yoon Young can’t communicate well with her mother, and ends up hurting her unwillingly when her parent shows kindness and generosity. The main twist in Yoon Young’s life is the supposed suicide of her mother – which turns out to be a murder later on. Desperate and devastated by the news, Yoon Young sees in her time travel the opportunity to save her mother by making sure her parents would never meet. However, she discovers a lot of hidden truths along the way that explain her parents’ behavior and make her understand them better.

There are 3 main secrets in Yoon Young’s family that the heroine unveils little by little. First, her uncle Baek Yoo Seob (Hong Seung An) used to be politically involved against the dictatorial regime of the time. Hence the arrest of his brother Baek Hee Seob (Lee Wong Jung) who was tortured in his brother’s stead, so he would reveal where he was hiding. Hee Seob refused to denounce his brother to the police and kept his mouth shut. The outcome of that event was a broken leg (and heart) that never healed. As Yoo Seob was his only remaining kin, Hee Seob felt he had a debt towards him and always put him first, even before his own family.

The second and third secrets have to do with Lee Soon Ae (Seo Ji Hye), Yoon Young’s mother. All her life, Soon Ae concealed the fact that she had an older sister Lee Kyung Ae (Hong Na Hyun) who was a victim of the serial murderer. Out of fear that their remaining daughter would be a collateral damage, Soon Ae’s parents stopped mentioning Kyung Ae and buried her existence. Their mother fell into depression and was never the same.

Finally, the last secret revolves around the first book written by Ko Mi Sook (Ji Hye Won). Indeed, her first novel gained popularity quickly and allowed her to become famous in the writing field back in 1987. However, Ko Mi Sook was never the author of the manuscript. It was actually Lee Soon Ae whose precious story was stolen. The content of the book is deeply intertwined with the narrative, as Lee Soon Ae talks to a character named Y. The letter refers to Yoon Young’s own name which is proof of the link between Soon Ae and her daughter’s favorite book.

Yoon Hae Jun’s family: Yoon Hae Jun is the truth seeker of the drama. He’s the one responsible for Yoon Young and his time travel, as well as for the solving of the serial murder case. Unfortunately, he’s also the one who suffers the most from the hidden truths. Indeed, the journalist discovers that his own father is the actual murderer and that his grandfather covered him to protect his family. This explains why Hae Jun’s family has never been harmonious and why he’s always felt lonely and distant from his family members. On top of that, Hae Jun finds out the identity of his mother who abandoned him upon knowing his father was a criminal. Not only is Hae Joon the key to solving the murders, but he’s also at the center of all lies.

Ko Mi Sook’s past: Early on in the drama Ko Mi Sook appears as a rather ambiguous character. She is gloomy and dark, willing to denounce her brother as the criminal or steal someone else’s hard work. The more we actually learn about her, the more empathetic you feel. Ko Mi Sook’s brother is abusive and violent. Despite that, no one in her family tries to stop him. She is desperate and wishes to get out of her misery by any means possible. Although she selfishly puts herself before others, you can’t really hate her entirely. She’s a tortured and wounded adolescent who just needs to escape. Of course this doesn’t justify her actions, but allows us to understand more where she comes from.

Time travel and second chances: Time travel in the drama actually allows characters to do more thank just uncover their family pasts and secrets. It provides them with the opportunity to right the wrongs, save lives and bring about a better future life for themselves and their family. Baek Yoon Young has the chance to befriend her parents, help them overcome the struggles that come their way, and thrive towards a better future in which they have fulfilled their dreams and can focus on their relationship. Yoon Hae Jun uses time travel as a way to save himself from his future murder, arrest his father and prevent his grandfather from covering his tracks. Not only do the two of them save their family, but also their future selves.

At the end of the drama, injustice has mostly been corrected. Knowing that they are still allowed one last time travel, Yoon Young and Hae Jun make the decision to go back to May 16th 1987 to save the victims they couldn’t help (May 16th is the day of the first crime). Indeed, now that they know the identity of the real killer, they can act upon it.

On top of that, the cycle is complete with Hae Jun and Yoon Young’s son. He reveals that he’s the one who left the car for his father to find, because he didn’t want him to live with regrets. Indeed, Hae Jun actually didn’t die after being assaulted by the killer. He survived and met Yoon Young. Their son is the reason why they could travel to change the past.

The romance: Talking about their son, the drama showcases a very sweet romance in my opinion. Hae Jun and Yoon Young were allies, partners, friends and lovers. They slowly built a strong bond, as they shared the burden of knowing the truth and suffering from it. A good point in the drama is that the romance didn’t overtake the mystery and action. The blend between both genres was perfectly executed and the outcome of their romance is at the core of the story aka their son and his red time traveling car.

The title: The literal title of the drama is ‘Met You By Chance’ which makes a lot of sense, as Yoon Young and Hae Jun end up traveling back in time when they don’t even know each other. Only to discover that they are actually connected and meant to be. Other translations have been given like ‘My Perfect Stranger’ and ‘Run Into You’ my personal favorite. The reason is because when you run into someone it’s a coincidence. You don’t plan on doing it. Turns out Yoon Young and Hae Jun constantly run into each other: At the beginning before they go back to 1987, then in the streets after they arrive, etc… Even if they had not met in the past, they were meant to run into each other in the future. Moreover, the title doesn’t necessarily suggest that Yoon Young and Hae Jun are the ones running into each other. It could be Hae Jun running into his grandfather, father and mother; or Yoon Young into her own family. All of which happens at some point.