Feeling grateful to have picked this drama! We get a perfect ending with The Devil Judge episode 16. There are times when you watch a drama and the ending is good but you are left with the feeling of wanting more. With this drama that is not the case. I did not even feel a tinge of dissatisfaction with the way things went. So many twists and with the OST being used beautifully to heighten our feelings, it was a full packaged delivery. Let’s get right into the events unfolding in The Devil Judge episode 16.
Kim Ga On makes his way to Elijah and calms her down. It is sad to see her crying and thinking the truth of Kang Yo Han killing her parents came out. Kim Ga On lets her know that is not what happened. He admits his fault in getting Kang Yo Han arrested. I think it is important to note how Jung Sun Ah is not malicious enough to bring the truth of the church fire to Elijah. She threatens Kang Yo Han with it. And if she wanted to break him down badly she could have gone ahead with saying the truth. But she does not, her feelings even though she hates him are strong when it comes to Kang Yo Han.
Kim Ga On tries to give his statement to the police hoping that they will release Kang Yo Han. But he quickly realizes that the effort is wasted as the government has control over the police. We see Kang Yo Han is being taken to his prison. It is sad in a twisted way that as a judge he put away so many people and now he is among them too. Kim Ga On confronts his professor and we get to know the way Jung Sun Ah roped him into this plan.
His morals are skewed and his hatred for Kang Yo Han made him do questionable things. And once he was in, he had to cling to the path because if not then that would make him shatter thinking he did something wrong and Kang Yo Han was right all along. Human brains are complex and sometimes they choose to be delusional over accepting the truth.
Looks like Kang Yo Han’s life at the prison will get more difficult because of a police officer whom they threatened during Cha Kyung Hee’s case. Jung Sun Ah is praised by the other members of the foundation. They all are celebrating Kang Yo Han being arrested and the President is surprisingly subdued. This sparks suspicion in Jung Sun Ah’s mind, she wonders why the others are still entertaining the president. She also has a feeling that the president is not one to back down easily. Shockingly enough she is right as we see the wives of the men in the foundation are talking about some farm and investing money there for good profits. It is the president’s idea and his wife is helping him get some support.
Kim Ga On meets up with the lawyer from Kang Yo Han’s team and he asks for his help. The lawyer is suspicious of Kim Ga On rightfully so but he agrees to help. Kim Ga On plans to find out the secret behind the dream project, he assumed that it will be something big. So if released to the media outlets then the attention will be off Kang Yo Han and then they can save him.
He writes a letter to Elijah letting her know that the church fire was because of a faulty circuit. Kim Ga On tells her how Kang Yo Han took the blame on himself so that she would have someone to hate. And that hate will make her strive to live. He asks her to be nice to Kang Yo Han when she meets him again. Kim Ga On promises that Kang Yo Han will be back.
I like that even without revealing the truth Kim Ga On made sure Elijah knew Kang Yo Han loves her which is so important. Kang Yo Han ends up in a fight with Kim Choong Sik in the prison. But we already know he can hold his ground so there is nothing to worry about. Kim Ga On infiltrates the Dream medical area where suspicious things are going on. He has an angel watching over him for sure in this episode.
If you remember in the starting episodes, he was able to sneak into Kang Yo Han’s office easily. These skills come in handy in The Devil Judge episode 16 where he is roaming recording things with the camera, and not getting caught. I find it a little funny how easy it is for him to be stealthy. Also the successful way he was able to not only acquire information but also save the young girl from Kang Yo Han’s team who got captured.
The truth Kim Ga On finds though is staggering, just when I keep thinking this is the end of the President’s depravity he stoops lower. The people are brought to the Dream Medical facility for conducting clinical trials on them. Testing the various viruses on live human bodies and getting the result to sell it out to other countries. Also giving away their organs if they do not make it. All of this is the business scheme that the President started. He truly is the real evil, the other foundation members are in it too for money. Jung Sun Ah witnesses this side of the truth while seeing the kids she gave the speech to in the past in that Medical area. This affects her personally and we see her getting emotional.
The writer is genius in the way that he made her the top villain in The Devil Judge episode 15. But in this episode, she comes off as the lesser evil. We see Kang Yo Han is cornered by a man with a knife. The next thing we know is the press announcing that Kang Yo Han is dead. Honestly, I was a little taken aback but did not believe this as it was too much of an easy way for him to go.
If the writer wanted to kill him off then it needed to be on a grander scale. After hearing this news though Kim Ga On finds it hard to accept and tears up. Jung Sun Ah also cannot hold back her shock and gets emotional but she puts a lock on her feelings. She accepts that on the path she is sacrifices are necessary and he is one of them.
The foundation members are pretty happy with this outcome. But one of them acts out of character and suggests that they should commemorate Kang Yo Han in the place he held his trials. They invite Jung Sun Ah too and she accepts the invitation and gets ready to take a gun with her. She knows to not trust them and that she needs to protect herself. Oh Jin Joo makes the professor go to his old office where Kim Ga On is waiting for him. It feels suspicious when Kim Ga On asks Oh Jin Joo to leave the building.
Kim Ga On catches the professor by surprise and ties him up. And then he tells him the craziest plan he came up with. Kim Ga On has a bomb attached to him with a timer and he is ready to die with the professor. He also had put things in motion by scheduling the information he has to reach the media outlets after the bomb goes off.
Wow, at one point I could not believe what was happening. Yes, he lost his love and then he feels responsible for Kang Yo Han dying but killing himself too that’s too much. But the best thing happens right before the bomb is about to go off. Kang Yo Han comes in to save him. It is a sight to see how shocked Kim Ga On is by his entry. As we are watching the scene we can not help but grin about the efficient way he saved Kim Ga On. I think this is my favorite moment, just the relief we see in Kim Ga On’s eyes finding Kang Yo Han safe. It is a pure good moment of The Devil Judge episode 16.
Kang Yo Han is a man of many talents. He already had a contingency plan for when he will be going to prison. You cannot help but love the way his mind works and the lawyer was in the know all along. It is funny how he did not let Kim Ga On know even though he knew Kim Ga On’s extreme plan. After this crazy twist, I was itching for his confrontation with the foundation members. It was such a treat to watch them celebrating his death and him suddenly coming forward. Jung Sun Ah must have felt a little bit of sense of relief but she did not show it.
Kang Yo Han holds the final broadcasting into the Dike app. Letting people know the truth about the president and his evil schemes. He also tells the people about Jung Sun Ah being a murderer and the professor aiding in her plan. Everything is out in the open and there is no way out of this. We know his punishments are always unique and well he does not disappoint in The Devil Judge episode 16. On the other hand, Kim Ga On lets the professor go asking him to live in misery and with the knowledge that people know what he did. I found it very fitting.
Kang Yo Han goes all in with the punishment of his final trial. He announces that there are bombs attached to the room. And when the votes will reach 10 million, they will go off. People are already voting for the punishment to go through because of what they saw. All the foundation members and their wives are terrified. Even sitting in a room which will blast away Jung Sun Ah remains calm. I knew one of the foundation members was acting out of character and it seems Kang Yo Han made a deal to let him go. As if that would be the case, shockingly for everyone Kang Yo Han joins the room holding the remote for the bombs.
He puts across a chance for them to leave the room where he says the one fastest person can leave. Not surprisingly all of them are fighting off each other trying to be that one. Purely selfish, purely looking out for themselves. Kang Yo Han was able to create the same scenario that happened during the church fire. This time no one he cares about will die but the selfish people who could care less about others will. Jung Sun Ah is watching all the dramatic things happening from the podium. I think she understands his reasoning for revenge in this manner. When no one can get away, the president starts making a case for himself.
It is genuinely hilarious that he is begging Kang Yo Han to save him after everything. But another best part of The Devil Judge episode 16 follows where Jung Sun Ah walks from her place with a gun in hand and shoots the president. It is the best because I needed her to be the one to put him down. I am so glad she did that and it gets intense when she moves the gun towards Kang Yo Han. They are at an impasse, he holds the remote to the bombs and she holds the gun that could kill him. Even thinking about what follows after is bringing tears to my eyes. I did not see it coming at all but somehow it makes sense for it to have happened that way.
Kang Yo Han finally calls her with her name and in the softest voice, he says come with me Sun Ah. It feels like he is asking her to die with her. But that one moment of him saying that statement triggered something in Jung Sun Ah’s mind. She says goodbye to him and ends up shooting herself. And it is such a haunting moment as we are taken to the flashback. We see a memory where young Kang Yo Han was nice to her. I think this is the moment where she fell for him but she had other aspirations so she went on a different path.
In a way, I feel it is monumental that finally, Kang Yo Han expresses real emotion towards her after her death. He always faked his emotions when he was with her. So being real when she died makes you feel glad for her. Because he acknowledged her in the end. No matter how twisted she was, her character was strong enough to make an impact on us.
Kim Ga On comes inside the room suddenly and he witnesses the dead bodies and the others begging for him to save them. He wants Kang Yo Han to not die, but Kang Yo Han says an actor should disappear with the stage. And he pushes Kim Ga On outside of the room where the police squad holds him from running back inside. Then the blast happens and we see Kang Yo Han looking over the destruction. At this point, I was not convinced about him dying because he would never leave Elijah alone. She matters to him so much and dying with a bunch of greedy people feels so futile. And Kang Yo Han is not one to be impractical.
Kim Ga On is left in shock but he goes to Kang Yo Han’s house to check on Elijah. Though he does not find her. But then he notices a blueprint of the live court building with Kang Yo Han’s notes about an exit during the explosion. Kang Yo Han is devious. Not even telling Kim Ga On about this part of the plan and acting as he would sacrifice himself. Kang Yo Han never fails to surprise us. Sneakily I feel these attempts of him fake dying and not letting Kim Ga On know of the plan is a punishment for him doubting Kang Yo Han. I would not put this past him. The house lady tells Kim Ga On that Kang Yo Han made it back home safe. And he took Elijah and went out of the country.
Seeing Elijah and Kang Yo Han hug and finally being sweet to each other is nice to see. He takes her to a rehabilitation center in Switzerland. Kang Yo Han leaves a message for Kim Ga On asking what will he do now. Well, we see Oh Jin Joo leaving for her hometown deciding to be part of a local department. Kim Ga On is the national hero as Kang Yo Han made sure to give him the credit for disclosing the truth. We see a meeting happening between the new party in power and Kim Ga On.
It shows us how the cycle is likely to repeat because there is something fundamentally wrong with people in power. When you cut one head down another similar to it grows. I think this is a realistic message this drama leaves us with. People in power need to change for good so the right things will stick. But even when we look at the world we live in, it always feels like the choice is between bad and lesser bad. It is never choosing the good guys because who are the good guys?
Kim Ga On wants to create a world where people will not need Kang Yo Han. The next thing that happens is Kang Yo Han randomly shows up. And speaks to Kim Ga On faintly that if things do not change he will be back. It is the emphasis on he is the devil who will keep the evil people in check. I like this notion, tells us how the devil is necessary so that evil does not have a free reign. Kim Ga On is shocked to hear Kang Yo Han’s voice and he follows him outside the room.
It is funny how quick Kang Yo Han is. For a second even I thought it is a figment of imagination. But bless the writer’s heart he gave us the most special moment. When Kang Yo Han leaves without meeting Kim Ga On, the only thing that kept me going was the fact that there was still enough time for a surprise quick meet before the The Devil Judge episode 16 ended. And well we get what we want. So much has happened and them looking at each other with emotions present in their eyes, it is so beautiful and a honest feeling. I adore this moment. Kang Yo Han walks away leaving Kim Ga On smiling.
It is perfect because even with an open ending it leaves us with an assurance that they will have each other in their lives. And eventually, the family trio will be back after Elijah completes her rehabilitation. It is such a comforting notion. It is been a wild journey if you think about it, going back and forth about Kang Yo Han, feeling anxious about Kim Ga On’s choices, and just reeling from all the crazy twists. All’s well that ends well! Kudos to the complete team of The Devil Judge, Thank you for bringing to us this spectacular drama with awesome visuals, story, characters and the perfect OST.
You can watch The Devil Judge episode 16 on Rakuten Viki.
Still Deliberating Whether To Watch “The Devil Judge” Or Not? Read here
Our episodic The Devil Judge K-Drama reviews, click here.
Read all our review/rant on Mouse K-Drama series.
Check out full series review of:
- Beyond Evil K-Drama Review – The Most Gripping Drama of all Time!
- Move To Heaven K-Drama Review – All You Need Is A Good Cry!
- Mr. Queen K-Drama Review – Takes you on a Hilarious Medieval Journey!
- Hospital Playlist K-Drama – Wholesome, Heartwarming, and Feel Good!
- Record Of Youth K-Drama – Captures The Essence Of Passion
- True Beauty K-Drama – Cliché but worth watching for the laughs
- Flower of Evil – Review
- Private Lives K-Drama Review
