The Good Bad Mother (Season 1) Episodes 1 & 2: K-dramas have gained immense popularity worldwide in recent years, with fans from different countries eagerly devouring the latest shows. These dramas are known for their compelling storylines, excellent acting, and immersive cinematography, which often tackle themes of love, family, and personal growth. With streaming platforms like Netflix making these shows more accessible, the popularity of K-dramas shows no signs of slowing down.
The recent addition is the first season of The Good Bad Mother, which follows the story of a single mother and her strained relationship with her only son, whom she has devoted her life to. However, the show does not simply focus on one character’s hardships. It also explores the son’s struggles and how he copes with life’s challenges using his sharp analytical thinking skills, which resonate with today’s generation.
What sets these K-dramas apart is their ability to quickly establish characters’ depth without dragging it out. Within the first two episodes, we get a clear understanding of who each character is and what they are up to. Despite this, the characters remain mysterious, leaving room for further character development.
In this article, we discuss the first two episodes of the show,with a detailed explanation of the ending of episode two.
The Good Bad Mother (Season 1), Episodes 1 & 2 Recap:
Episode 1
In the first episode of The Good Bad Mother, Jin Young-soon starts by drawing a comparison between pigs and humans, highlighting their similarities. It’s the year 1986, and Jin is employed in a delivery business. She is known for her compassionate nature, which makes her popular among her clients. Alongside this, we are introduced to Choi Hae-sik, a pig farmer who is in love with her.
One day, Choi Hae-sik gathers the courage to propose to Jin by tying a ring around one of his piglets. However, their romantic moment is interrupted by Jin’s boss, and the piglet runs away. The following scenes depict a frantic search for the piglet as Choi had placed the ring on its neck. Eventually, the piglet is located in a restaurant serving pork belly, and Choi retrieves the ring. He proposes to Jin in front of everyone in their village, and she happily accepts. Soon after, the couple gets married.
Choi and Jin lead a happy life together, pursuing their passions. As they eagerly await the arrival of their first child, Choi is filled with excitement at the prospect of becoming a parent. While he keeps himself busy with household tasks, Jin is always willing to assist, but he insists that she rests as much as possible.
However, their happiness is soon disrupted when representatives from Yongra Constructions arrive at their doorstep. They inform Choi that his pig farm is in the middle of the route for the upcoming Olympics Torch Relay and must be removed to avoid embarrassment for Korea on a global platform. Despite Choi’s protests, the men are adamant that the farm must be removed.
Choi becomes anxious and furious at the news of his pig farm being removed, but the Yongra Constructions boss tries to bribe him with an imported American cigarette, which he refuses. That night, the men return and set fire to his farm. During the trial against Choi and Yongra Constructions, it becomes apparent that the boss has bribed all the witnesses in the village to avoid facing the consequences of his actions. Unfortunately, Choi loses the trial.
Desperate to gather evidence against Yongra’s corrupt practices, Choi approaches each family in the village and secretly records their conversations. He also speaks to reporters and learns that Yongra’s boss has similarly manipulated others in the past. He compiles all the information and presents it to his lawyer, along with his savings, which were intended for his son’s birth to cover the legal fees.
Unbeknownst to Choi, the prosecutor, Oh, is working with Song, the boss of Yongra Constructions. Oh informs Song of Choi’s actions, and on his way home, Song and his men surround Choi and kill him by hanging him from a tree, making it appear as a suicide.
Jin Young-soon is devastated upon learning of her husband’s death. She seeks out Oh for answers, but he tells her that Choi had visited him drunk and returned the bank passbook he had given to him earlier. Heartbroken and without direction, Young-soon decides to start afresh and moves to a new village. There, she sets up a new pig farm and studies law by herself.
However, the villagers are opposed to the idea of a pig farm in their community, fearing that it would kill the beauty and cleanliness of the village. They gather together, armed with pitchforks and guns, intending to destroy the farm. However, upon seeing a pregnant woman running the farm all by herself, they are moved to stop their attack.
As one of the men threatens Young-soon, she stands her ground and cites the laws that the villagers are breaking every day. A heated argument ensues, but just as it reaches a boiling point, Young-soon goes into labor and delivers a healthy baby boy, whom she names Kang-ho. Soon after, another local pregnant woman goes into labor and gives birth to a daughter named Mi-joo. Sung-ae, who has a young baby boy named Sam-sik tied to her back, helps the new mothers and tells them that the babies are his younger siblings.
The villagers come forward to help, and they all become good friends. They even help Young-soon keep her pig farm. Over time, they begin to understand the value of the farm and how it helps to sustain their community.
The story then fast-forwards to when Kang-ho and Mi-Joo are in junior school and still very close. Sam-sik continues to bully Kang-ho for being a studious and hardworking student. During a confrontation, Sam-sik insults Kang-ho’s fatherlessness, which angers Kang-ho. He responds by swearing at Sam-sik, which leads to Young-soon disciplining him when he gets home. She tells him that he needs to remain focused on his studies, and if he becomes a prosecutor one day, people will respect him. Young-soon is very strict with Kang-ho, not allowing him to go on school trips or eat until he finishes all of his work. Frustrated with his mother’s strictness, Kang-ho writes “bad mother” on his school trip application.
In another part of the story, Geum-ja is being abused by her husband, which angers Mi-joo. While her sisters are dancing, Mi-joo goes to confront her father at the dance club, where he’s with a well-manicured woman. She looks at the manicure, and later that night, she notices her mother’s bare and dirty nails, so she colors them with a red pen. As the story jumps ahead, we see Mi-joo continuing to color her mother’s nails through her teenage years. Mi-joo shares a birthday with Kang-ho and steals gimbap, a snack eaten on picnics, from her kitchen. At school, Kang-ho goes to the supply closet, where Mi-joo is already hiding, to study during off periods, but Sam-sik plays a prank and locks them inside.
In the supply room, Kang-ho abstains from overeating, stating that his mother believes it would make him too drowsy to concentrate on his studies. Mi-joo thinks this is ridiculous, and Kang-ho agrees with her. When they try to leave the room, they realize that the door is locked. Meanwhile, Young-soon has prepared a grand feast and a cake for her son’s birthday, and she anxiously waits all night. At midnight, she becomes concerned and searches the village for Kang-ho and Mi-joo. The village chief speculates that they might have run away together.
When Young-soon finally goes to Sam-sik’s house, he learns that Mi-joo is also missing and breaks down in tears. Inside the closet, Kang-ho is engrossed in his studies while Mi-joo tries to catch his attention. Feeling hungry, she eats a piece of candy and plays with a hula hoop. Unfortunately, the candy becomes lodged in her throat, and Kang-ho performs the Heimlich maneuver to dislodge it. As luck would have it, Sam-sik unlocks the door at that moment and is shocked to see the two teenagers in that position. Sam-sik is heartbroken and envious of his mistake in locking his crush in with his enemy. Meanwhile, Young-soon is furious that Kang-ho skipped his extra classes and packs his books. She discovers the notebook in which he was drawing pictures of Mi-joo.
Upon returning home, Kang-ho sees the food his mother has cooked for him, but he tells her that he has already eaten gimbap. Young-soon reminds him not to eat too much, warning him that he might get too full and will be unable to study. Later, we see Young-soon dropping Kang-ho off for his law exam and spending the day at her husband’s grave as she prays for her son’s success. Mi-joo comes to visit Kang-ho and gives him gifts and words of encouragement. She even paints one of his nails yellow, believing it to be his lucky color for the day. However, as Kang-ho walks away to take his exam, a bike hits Mi-joo. He rushes her to the hospital, but he misses his exam in the process. When Mi-joo wakes up, she feels sad about the missed exam. Kang-ho explains that he can take the exam again next year and kisses her.
Later, at home, Young-soon is extremely angry and disappointed with Kang-ho for missing his exam. She tells him that he is wasting his life and that becoming a prosecutor is the only way out for him. Kang-ho argues that he has no life and that she has already predetermined his destiny. He tells her that becoming a prosecutor is her dream, not his. The next scene shows Young-soon praying for Kang-ho to win his ongoing trial. We learn that Kang-ho has become a ruthless prosecutor, working with Director Song, who has framed the defendant, just as he did in the past.
Episode 2:
In the second episode, Young-soon repeatedly tries to contact her son, who is now a busy prosecutor, but the calls keep getting disconnected. Despite this, she comforts herself by assuming that he is simply busy with his work. Meanwhile, Kang-ho takes steps to clear Director Song’s name from negative press. However, when Song considers making Kang-ho his heir, Kang-ho hesitates to hand over evidence he has on the defendant’s phone, as he has a history of accepting bribes from Song, such as a car and a large house.
When Song asks Kang-ho to stay and play catch with him, Kang-ho becomes anxious, thinking that Song may be aware of the evidence. However, Song only wants to play catch, and during the game, Kang-ho reveals that he became a prosecutor in order to meet Director Song. In a casual conversation, Song suggests that Kang-ho become his son, and Kang-ho agrees.
As Young-soon continues to call her son without success, she decides to cook his favorite dishes for him. Unfortunately, she falls in the kitchen while reaching for something in the cupboard. The village chief offers to help her, but his wife has a habit of saying frightening things that unnerve those around her. The chief then asks Young-soon why her son has never visited the village since moving to Seoul.
Meanwhile, we are introduced to Ha-young, a ballerina who is dating Kang-ho. She repeatedly calls him but is unable to reach him. Ha-young goes to a salon to get a pedicure from Mi-joo, who works there with her friend Sun-young. When Mi-joo accidentally chips Ha-young’s toenail, she becomes furious and kicks Mi-joo. Ha-young demands that Mi-joo apologize and bow in front of everyone, but Mi-joo refuses and demands that Ha-young apologizes for kicking her. When Ha-young still refuses, Mi-joo scares her off with a karate kick.
Later on, we see Mi-joo and Sun-young drinking together when Mi-joo reveals her dream of opening a nail salon in Seoul and being reunited with her children. We then discover that she is a single mother with two children, and her older sisters are also divorced. Mi-joo’s father has run away with another woman, and her mother is ashamed of their situation, so she lies to everyone that Mi-joo is married to someone in the USA while she takes care of her children alone.
Meanwhile, the women are playing cards, and Geum-ja and Sung-ae are praying for Sam-sik, who is about to be released from jail. When Young-soon arrives with food, Sung-ae becomes envious of her prosperous life. Young-soon shares that it is her son’s birthday and that she has invited him to celebrate. Mi-joo’s mother suddenly remembers that she forgot her daughter’s birthday and calls to apologize and send some money.
Afterward, we see Young-soon driving to Seoul, but when she arrives at her son’s home, he instructs the security guard to tell her that he is not there. Young-soon gives all the food she brought to the guard and asks about her son’s well-being before leaving her phone number in case he needs any help. The guard is touched by her kind gesture. Young-soon, who is limping due to her earlier fall, goes back to her car and eats a chocolate bar for dinner. Meanwhile, Kang-ho is watching the news, and he learns that Ha-young’s father is winning by a large margin in the election, and we discover that it is Prosecutor Oh Tae-soo.
The episode then takes us on a flashback where we see a young Kang-ho attending a seminar by Prosecutor Oh, who emphasizes the importance of being passionate and empathetic. Afterward, Kang-ho is introduced to Oh by some fellow students and reveals that they both attended the same university. Kang-ho tells Oh that he has memorized all of his theses. Before leaving, Oh feels like he has met Kang-ho somewhere before, but Kang-ho denies ever meeting him. Later in the episode, it is revealed that everything seems to be part of Kang-ho’s plan.
It appears that Kang-ho had planned on dating Ha-young, as she introduces him to her father, Oh. However, after a light dinner chat, Oh excuses his wife and daughter to speak privately with Kang-ho. During the conversation, Oh insults Kang-ho for coming from the dirty background and demands that he break up with his daughter within seven days. Later, when Ha-young shows up at Kang-ho’s house, he becomes extremely cold and ruthless towards her, leaving her confused when he abruptly closes the door and warns her not to interfere with his plan.
In the next scene, we see Kang-ho presenting the original paternity test report to Director Song, who confirms that he will proceed with the plan. Kang-ho then goes to meet Ha-young and tells her that he will marry her, but she refuses to listen to him. Meanwhile, Oh Tae-soo is furious after learning that Kang-ho has become Director Song’s legal son and vows to take revenge. He asks his secretary to find any evidence against Kang-ho and starts plotting against him.
Later, Kang-ho meets with Soo-hyun and her newborn baby and takes them to a safe location. He offers her a drink, and she soon passes out. Kang-ho then pushes the car with Soo-hyun and her baby inside into a river, making it look like an accident. Tae-soo becomes suspicious of Kang-ho’s involvement and starts investigating the matter.
Meanwhile, Young-soon returns to the village and shares her disappointment with her friends about her unsuccessful attempt to meet her son. Mi-joo’s mother calls her and wishes her a belated birthday, but Mi-joo is still upset with her for lying about her marital status. The episode ends with Tae-soo discovering the car with Soo-hyun and her baby in the river and realizing Kang-ho’s role in the incident.
The Good Bad Mother (Season 1), Episode 2 Ending, Explained:
What happens to Kang-ho when he goes back to his village?
At the same time, Mi-joo and her friend successfully open their nail salon in Seoul. In the village, Kang-ho and his fiancée arrive, and everyone is thrilled to see them. Young-soon is busy preparing food for the couple, and everyone is eager to help her. However, Sung-ae questions why Young-soon is going to such lengths for Kang-ho when he has never done anything for the village.
We learn that Sam-sik had once been caught stealing and begged Kang-ho for help, but he didn’t offer any assistance. Despite this, Young-soon promises Sung-ae that she will speak to her son about getting Sam-sik a job once he is released from jail. Sung-ae is moved by this and even goes out of her way to cook Kang-ho’s favorite pancakes and style Young-soon’s hair. In a surprising turn of events, the women are shocked to see that Young-soon has bought diamond jewelry for her future daughter-in-law.
As the couple arrived in the village, the residents began their eccentric behaviors to create a cheerful atmosphere. However, Ha-young and Kang-ho felt uncomfortable amidst the chaos. Ha-young noticed that her boyfriend’s mother had forgotten to remove the price tag from her dress. Soon after, they were taken to a room where Young-soon presented Ha-young with a jewelry set, but the gesture left her feeling disgusted.
Kang-ho requested to speak to his mother alone, and he handed her an adoption paper, stating his intention to become Song’s legal son. Young-soon was taken aback but signed the document, promising to do anything that made him happy. Kang-ho promptly got up to leave, but his mother pleaded with him to stay for a family dinner. However, Kang-ho reminded her that they had never shared a family meal together, and he refused to accept anything before storming out. He even removed all the expensive gifts from his car and left them behind.
Before leaving, his mother takes the pancakes and keeps it in the car’s backseat, and he drives off leaving the residents in shock at the unexpected turn of events. While driving back to Seoul, Ha-young becomes irritated by the smell of the pancakes and worries that the scent might stick to her clothes. In frustration, Kang-ho stops the car and throws the pancakes into the river. Feeling exhausted, Kang-ho asks Ha-young to drive and quickly falls asleep after drinking some water.
Ha-young is still bothered by the lingering smell in the car and opens the window to air it out. Unfortunately, her scarf is blown out of the car by the wind, prompting her to pull over by a cliff to retrieve it. As she steps out of the car, a truck suddenly crashes into it, causing the vehicle to plummet off the cliff with Kang-ho still asleep inside.
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