Sumith Prasad
The second season of Apple TV+’s period drama series ‘Pachinko’ ends with Noa’s life-altering decision concerning his identity and future. Koh Hansu’s efforts to make him a powerful politician to follow in his footsteps come to an end when the university student realizes that the people around him have been lying about his life ever since his birth. The realization forces him to disappear from his loved ones, including his mother, Kim Sunja. The episode, titled ‘Chapter Sixteen,’ also sheds light on the strengthening relationship between the older Sunja and Kato. As the installment concludes, the truths she learns about his new “friend” make her choose a different life path! SPOILERS AHEAD.
Pachinko Season 2 Episode 8 Recap
‘Chapter Sixteen’ opens a window into Noa’s life at Waseda University. He impresses his professors and fellow students by being the brightest in the class. He also cherishes an intense companionship with his classmate, Nakazono, sneaking around the university to share intimacy with her. Noa has been visiting Koh Hansu regularly since he joined the educational institution. His girlfriend is intrigued by this mysterious benefactor, who remains hidden from her boyfriend’s companions at the university. After plotting the murder of his father-in-law, Hansu rises to new heights and becomes an influential person within Japan’s political and commercial spheres.
Kurogane, who wants to marry Hansu’s daughter to hurt him, becomes his associate and awaits his commands. Meanwhile, Kim Chang-ho sends several letters to Kyunghee, only for Yoseb to hide them. Even though he gave the former his permission to get together with his wife and leave him, he chooses to conceal the rebel from his loved one. However, after a point, he realizes that his intervention isn’t really significant. He does the right thing by giving the letters to Kyunghee, who receives the same wholeheartedly. Solomon Baek is celebrating his revenge against Katsu Abe with Mamoru Yoshii. This newfound partnership unsettles the young man’s father, Baek Mozasu.
Mozasu meets Yoshii and demands to free his son from the latter’s clutches. The familiarity between the both establishes that they know each other very well. When the businessman doesn’t yield to the father’s request, he clarifies that he will destroy the former. Mozasu’s revelation that Yoshii became who he currently is because of his mercy indicates the existence of a long-lasting acquaintance between the two. Noa’s dinner with Hansu is interrupted by Nakazono’s arrival. Since she is the daughter of the foreign undersecretary, the tradesman happily welcomes her to their table. He even joins her to convince Noa to become a politician.
Pachinko Season 2 Ending: Does Noa Learn the Truth About His Father?
Yes, Noa learns that his biological father is Koh Hansu rather than Baek Isak. After the dinner with his benefactor, the university student confronts Nakazono about crashing their meeting. She asks him why he is not seeing the truth in front of him. When he asks her what it is, she reveals that Hansu is his real father. After learning about the existence of a mysterious benefactor in her boyfriend’s life, she must have used her father’s political contacts to find out why the former is helping the university student. Even if she hasn’t done it, an intelligent mind can easily infer that the influential and wealthy man is not in Noa’s life for no particular reason.
If that’s the case, why has Noa not realized the truth about his father? Over the second season, the young boy thinks about why Hansu has been helping his mother and family. His gradually growing presence in their lives has given birth to doubts. However, he may have subconsciously distanced himself from the possible truth to avoid hurt. He has no reason to disbelieve or question his mother, Sunja, who has boiled her blood to look after him. But when Nakazono reveals the truth, Noa cannot run anymore. He is forced to confront reality, which makes him meet Hansu again.
Hansu sees the opportunity as a way to connect with his son. He believes that Noa will finally be able to accept him, which motivates him to tell the truth. His ever-ambitious mind thinks all about what’s ahead of them, especially when he is gaining trust and power in every influential area of Japanese society. Hansu believes that by confirming his son’s doubt, he will finally be able to cherish the relationship Sunja asked him not to build. Unfortunately, the truth conquers Noa’s senses differently. After meeting his mother for one last time, he disappears from his parents, leaving them wondering whether he is dead or alive.
Why Does Noa Change His Name? Why is He in Nagano?
After disappearing from Sunja and Hansu, Noa appears in Nagano, around 225 kilometers away from his university. He walks through a busy marketplace without a destination in mind. When he sees a pachinko parlor, he asks the proprietor for a job. He even lies that he is not Korean to find employment there. Noa then introduces himself as Ogawa Minato. The young boy changes not only his name but also his identity and existence as Hansu’s son. He cannot tolerate himself as the child of the brutal, cold person who can mercilessly bash a fellow man and justify it.
Noa is dealing with an existential crisis. He grew up believing that he was the son of Baek Isak, a compassionate man who helped his fellow humans by using religion as a tool. He has always been proud of Isak because of the latter’s selflessness and generosity. Isak even forgives the man who betrayed him, setting an example for Noa. On the other hand, Hansu is the exact opposite of the Protestant minister. He is a selfish goon who will go to any lengths to get what he wants. All he sees in people is what he can gain from them, which is one thing Isak has never done. These actions make him a condemnable man in Noa’s eyes.
Therefore, Noa cannot accept himself as such a man’s son. He seemingly hates himself for being associated with Hansu. The thought that the blood that flows through their veins is the same frightens him. By disappearing from his biological father, Noa is escaping from these truths and realizations. He then embraces a new identity that doesn’t burden him with his relation to Hansu. In the young boy’s mind, Noa is dead. He separates himself from his parents and past by becoming Minato, who has nothing to do with his father.
Why Don’t Sunja and Kato Get Together?
Sunja and Kato’s burgeoning relationship has been a significant relief for the former, who can no longer deal with her loneliness. After bidding adieu to several of her loved ones, including her son, Noa, and the two men she ever loved, she has reached a point in her life where solitude is intolerable. This realization leads her to consider leaving for the United States with Kato and building a relationship with him. However, when Mozasu lets her know that her new companion is a murderer who joined a group of soldiers to kill over a hundred American soldiers brutally, their friendship gets severely affected.
Sunja doesn’t get together with Kato because she cannot separate the latter from his past. Even though the World War II veteran has his reasons and justifications regarding the murders he committed, they are not enough to remove the stain from her heart. When Sunja looks at him, she can only see a man who is trying his best to hide the truth that he is a murderer. She cannot battle loneliness with the more difficult battle of accepting him. Principles is one thing she has always embraced. She had said no to the man she loved with all her heart because she could only see him as another woman’s husband.
Similarly, Sunja sees Kato as a murderer. She gives up the plants she has grown with him, indicating that he no longer exists in her life. The old woman accepts her loneliness and finds comfort in the realization that she has Mozasu and Solomon to share her life with.
Why Does Abe Kill Himself?
Naomi’s resignation from Shiffley’s enables Solomon Baek to exact his revenge on Katsu Abe, who used his influence to ensure that the young man wouldn’t work in the financial firm. When Naomi departs, the businessman loses the only source of support he has inside Shiffley’s. Solomon and Tom Andrews take advantage of the predicament and indirectly force the firm to sanction Abe. Without a loan from the company, the businessman doesn’t have many prospects to hold onto. The land he acquired to build the hotel becomes controversial, ending his plans.
Abe stoops to hopelessness when Solomon fulfills his vengeance. Tragically, the lack of options to rebuild his career forces the businessman to kill himself. The suicide, however, doesn’t excite Solomon. Even though he wanted to see the businessman’s fall, he didn’t want it to be from a cliff to death. The turn of events stuns the young man who aspires to replace Abe in the commercial realm of Japan by teaming up with Mamoru Yoshii. If he immerses himself in guilt, Solomon may not be enthusiastic about being Yoshii’s partner. His ambitions and plans may take an unexpected turn that places him in a new direction in life.
Read More: Pachinko: Do Kim Sunja and Koh Hansu End Up Together in the Novel?
