Recap: Touch Episode 1
Welcome to a new series of recaps we’re going to be trying in the new year. I’m going to try recapping just the first one or two episodes of a new drama. We’re hoping that this can help you all decide whether or not a drama you’re curious about is worth giving your time to. For the first article in this series, I’m going to start with the drama Touch starring Joo Sang Wook and Kim Bo Ra.
Touch Episode 1 Recap
The drama starts on an airplane. A man sits watching a young woman fidgeting nervously across the aisle from him. He tries to ignore her but can no longer stay silent when he sees her reach for her make-up bag. The girl has acne spots that he knows the make-up will irritate more. He starts out giving her a few skincare and make-up tips, but in the end he finds that it is simply easier to do her make-up for her.
Upon exiting the plane, we learn that the man is none other than the great Cha Jung Hyuk, make-up artist to the stars. He has been overseas doing the make-up of a famous actress. (Side note, the actress’ make-up looks horrible, lol) As our lead walks through the airport, we see how he analyzes every woman he sees, judging their make-up.
Miracle Survival Show
The next scene introduces us to our female lead. Han Soo Yeon is competing in an idol competition called Miracle. All the other girls from her trainee agency, Window Entertainment, have been eliminated. Soo Yeon is her company’s final hope despite only ranking in 7th place. She arrives at the studio for the final episode completely bare-faced as instructed. Every other girl shows up having been ordered by their agencies to wear make-up to that day’s recording.
Outside the studio, a drunken Kang Do Jin (played by Lee Tae Hwan) arrives to his throng of adoring fans. He is warned by his manager to get in control after allowing one fan to hold his hand for a moment. Do Jin is clearly a handful. Meanwhile, Han Soo Yeon has snuck out to apply some make-up. She’s embarrassed being the lone competitor to show up bare-faced to the day’s filming. We learn that Do Jin and Soo Yeon are friends from the same company.
Cha Beauty
The team at Cha Jung Hyuk’s company is organizing to do the make-up for the idol trainee competition. We are introduced to a number of different characters who work for Mr. Cha as they tote boxes and bags. The salon is large and classy and clearly very high-end. In the office we see the many awards Mr. Cha has won for his abilities as an artist.
Miracle Studio
At the studio, Cha Jung Hyuk scopes out the location and sets for the final episode of the survival show. The producer suggests that Mr. Cha do the make-up for the top 3 girls as a sort of reward for placing in the top. Mr. Cha wants to chose for himself which girl he will work with.
On stage for rehearsal, Han Soo Yeon imagines her parents in the audience watching her as she finally achieves her dream.
Seeing her on stage, Cha Jung Hyuk trades for her with another make-up artist. Seeing her in person, he feels she has something different that he can work with.
Backstage, various artists and teams from Cha Beauty work with the 9 remaining contestants. Mr. Cha approaches Han Soo Yeon and realizes that she has scars and bruises on her face and body. He works to cover them up, pausing only to compliment her on her perfect eyebrows. We learn that she loves to do make-up often working on the other trainees in her company. Her final look is admired by everyone, but Han Soo Yeon feels that it is too bold of a look for her.
At the rehearsal, Soo Yeon watches footage of her fans cheering for her. They all love who she is. The fans say that seeing her persist after 10 years as a trainee gives them hope for their own lives. It makes Soo Yeon question her make-up even more.
Backstage
Soo Yeon’s concern is cemented when a close friend doesn’t even recognize her with this new makeup on. Worried that her fans might vote for the wrong person, Soo Yeon decides to lighten the make-up. In the process, she winds up removing the eye make-up entirely. Quickly, she replaces it with the design originally intended for her.
On Stage
Kang Do Jin starts the show, introducing the future Miracle Girls. Soo Yeon’s family cheers from the audience. Cha Jung Hyuk however is annoyed to see that the look he created for her has been removed. Watching from backstage, Do Jin is happy for his friend when the performance goes off without a hitch.
Kang Do Jin comes out to interview Cha Jung Hyuk and asks him what he thought of the make-up. Annoyed, Mr. Cha goes off about how bad the make-up on stage looks. Do Jin quickly saves the conversation and moves on to another topic while Jung Hyuk runs backstage to confront Soo Yeon. When she sees him backstage, Soo Yeon runs away. Jung Hyuk chases her down and tells her he knows she’s going to lose.
Window Entertainment
In the office of Do Jin and Soo Yeon’s management company, staff look through pictures of Kang Do Jin’s various girlfriends. A reporter has threatened to expose the “nation’s boyfriend” as a philanderer. This time no amount of money will stop the reporter who needs a big exclusive story. The CEO of the company decides to throw Han Soo Yeon under the bus. In order to save the career of his biggest moneymaker he’ll let go of his 2nd ranked star.
Miracle Competition
Back on stage, Kang Do Jin announces the 5 winners who will make up the final Miracle Girls group. Soo Yeon’s family quietly begs for her to be chosen while Cha Jung Hyuk prays for her to lose. When Do Jin announces that Soo Yeon has come in 3rd place she bursts into tears of happiness.
Flashback
Soo Yeon remembers a time when she cried on the rooftop of Window Entertainment. She remembers Do Jin comforting her. He comforts her again on the stage, encouraging her that he knew she could do it.
Backstage
Cha Jung Hyuk tries to confront Soo Yeon but is stopped by a bodyguard. Meanwhile, Window Entertainment prepares the scandal that will ruin her career and save Do Jin’s. We learn where the scratches and bruises came from. Video footage of Soo Yeon fighting at a club has been released on the internet. She has been kicked out of the group. Do Jin and the staff run through the building searching for her desperately. In his office, Window’s CEO does a great job of gaslighting poor Soo Yeon. It seems she wasn’t fighting herself, but rather trying to break up a fight between two of Do Jin’s girlfriends.
The CEO then does a number on Do Jin. Do Jin wants to clear his friend’s name with an interview and explain that Soo Yeon wasn’t to blame. The CEO tells Do Jin that he can’t. Since Do Jin has told the press that he’s never dated anybody in his life, the truth would be a scandal.
Later that Night
Heading home, Mr. Cha reads about Soo Yeon’s scandal and the fact that she has been removed from the group. He is still trying to figure out who it was that re-did her make-up for the stage that night. His assistant knows that nobody in their company would dare to correct Mr. Cha’s work.
Meanwhile, Soo Yeon’s family continues to try and reach her. She sits outside of her family’s old home unsure what to do next.
The Next Morning
Cha Jung Hyuk wakes from a nightmare where Soo Yeon was interviewed telling everyone that she did her own makeup after Mr. Cha ruined it. He arrives at his office determined to find Soo Yeon and ask her why she removed his design. Once at the office though, he reads about her scandal online. Seeing people’s comments about her, Mr. Cha feels guilty for telling her that he hoped she would be eliminated.
Han Soo Yeon rides the bus back to the village her parents currently live in but can’t bring herself to see them. She heads to the beach and remembers all of the hard work she put into becoming an idol. Soo Yeon remembers the promise she made to support her parents and to get their house back for them. In the end though, she’s had enough. She gives up her dream.
Cha Beauty
Mr. Kim and Mr. Cha argue in the office about yet another assistant quitting. They are both such perfectionists that they frighten off all their talent. Their assistants all leave for other companies with franchises where they can rise higher in the ranks. Manager Yang suggests that they begin to franchise their company out so that they can promote their assistants to be team leaders. Unfortunately, Mr. Cha shoots him down saying that he wants to maintain the company’s quality.
In the hiring tryouts, makeup artists are shown a picture for 10 seconds and asked to recreate it on a paper. In a room full of artists, only six of them pass the audition. One of them creates a look that goes beyond what they were looking for and really excites Mr. Cha and Mr. Kim. It turns out the artist is none other than Han Soo Yeon. She tries to hide her face with thick glasses but Mr. Cha sees past her disguise.
Final Thoughts:
I’m not sure where I fall on this drama. I really appreciate the way that Mr. Cha sees Soo Yeon’s talent almost immediately. The drama makes it clear that he’s bothered by her redo of the makeup not just because he is arrogant, but because even he can see that it really suits her better. He clearly sees her talent. The drama itself is nothing unique, but it tells the story well and has an interesting concept. It’s not really ground-breaking, but not everything needs to be.
It seems from the previews that this is being set up as a romantic relationship and I’d really rather it stayed as a mentor/mentee situation. If there has to be a romance I’d rather see her with Do Jin or maybe 1st assistant at Cha Beauty, Lee Hyun Joon. I don’t generally worry about age gaps in drama casting. However, in this drama their 17-year gap feels like a real chasm. I personally think that I might wait to see how it ends up and then binge it when finished since I am currently watching a number of other dramas.
What do you think? Will you be checking Touch out? Did you find this recap helpful in making your decision? Let us know in the comments. If you did find it helpful, you might want to check out some of our other recaps as well.
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