Our favorite top-rated Korean black comedy is back from a temporary hiatus and a crazy AF cliffhanger. After killing Vincenzo’s mother, Team Babel-Wusang is in for a rude awakening when the consigliere stormed into Jang Han-seok’s place with revenge and bloodshed on his mind.
How will Vincenzo deal with this grief? And what sick and twisted revenge does he have in mind? Find out all the answers to these questions with our review, recap, and real-time reactions! And as always, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below.
Remember: if you missed our recap and review of previous Vincenzo episodes, you can always go back to them HERE.
It’s exciting to be back after the k-drama’s mini-break temporarily halted its momentum. While nothing was going to top the insanity of the previous cliffhanger, Vincenzo episode 17 gave us a worthy follow-up to the not-so-shocking death of Oh Gyeong-ja.
There’s one word to perfectly encapsulate it all: revenge. It only took a short amount of grieving and Baeksang Awards-worthy tears before Vincenzo got back on his two feet to do what he does best. We left things last week with Vincenzo pointing a gun at the unsuspecting Babel-Wusang team after he found out that his mother was murdered. But since the show has one more week ’til the finale, everyone knew he wasn’t actually going to commit mass murder right there and then.
Instead, he promised that they were in for a world of humiliation before they die, which also doubled as an invitation for a “chess game” between them and Team Jipuragi.
And just to make sure they get his message, Vincenzo shot Han-seok in the ear.
So first up in Vincenzo’s revenge plan was to stop all the investments for Babel Tower from happening. A man wearing explosives crashed the investors’ party, and threatened to blow up the place if they didn’t comply with his demands. But this wasn’t just any man — he was one of the two people responsible for the death of Hong Yu-chan, who ended up becoming Vincenzo’s lackey.
Since Team Babel-Wusang knew that it was probably another scheme, they doubted that the bomb was actually real. So the man challenged them by saying that he was gonna make the cake explode to show them that he meant business.
Sure enough, after he had counted down to five, he was the one who exploded.
It was actually Vincenzo who pushed the deadly bomb-denotating button on the man, which made Cha-young feel quite uncomfortable. This stunt put every investor in a panicked state, so they flushed their agreements with Babel down the toilet… or shoved them down their throats to be more accurate.
And of course, Vincenzo wasn’t able to do the whole thing himself. The Geumga Plaza tenants came together in support of him after they learned that his mother died, and proclaimed themselves as the Cassano Family. How cute is that?! They even got matching mafia outfits.
I really felt the same way that Cha-young did watching this whole revenge scheme play out. We were so used to Vincenzo’s plan being so wacky and hilarious, so this one just felt different. Like uncomfortable different. It’s probably because someone was murdered in cold blood, and the sight of people eating paper was quite degrading to watch.
I get that the man killed Yu-chan, but knowing that we’re still supposed to root for Vincenzo is kind of tough to do after doing that. But sure, I’m gonna give him a pass since his mother just died, and it was a fascinating scheme to watch. What I’m more interested in are the increasingly obvious signs that Cha-young is not fully on-board with Vincenzo’s violent behavior.
To be honest, I’m surprised with how the Geumga Plaza tenants are all still drinking his Kool-Aid after he just killed that damn man!
READ: ‘Vincenzo’ Episode 16: Review, Recap & Reactions
You know who’s not drinking Vincenzo’s Kool-Aid though? Jang Han-seo!
He had quite the showcase in the second half of Vincenzo episode 17 when he came after the mafia consigliere hard. Han-seo was actually revealed to be Team Jipuragi’s insider about the investors’ party who helped them carry out their revenge scheme. But the dumb little Babel brother isn’t so dumb after all…
He and Han Seung-hyeuk have been carrying out a plot of their own. The latter met up with presidential candidate Park Seung-jun to reveal the location of the Guillotine File. This information, as well as Seung-hyeuk’s promise to help him out, was enough to force a major shake-up to happen within the ranks of Babel.
Park Seung-jun’s secretary, Mr. Kim, met up with Team Babel-Wusang to tell them how things are going to be from now on: first, Seung-hyeuk would be the Chief Prosecutor of Namdongbu. He also recommended that Jang Han-seo be the chairman of Babel… which is basically an order and not a suggestion.
I honestly don’t get why Park Seung-jun had such a big say on who would be the chairman of Babel. I’m guessing it’s because Han-seok has actually been a crappy leader, and a change in leadership was needed to satisfy business partners? If I got this part wrong, kindly fill me in the comments below!
But as Han Seung-hyeuk toasted his victory alongside Han-seo, he revealed yet another win under his belt: he was able to find a crime that Vincenzo was guilty for. This meant that the mafia lawyer would be arrested within 24 hours by Interpol. The most shocking thing about all this was Han-seo actually laughed and smiled at the news which meant that his temporary alliance with Vincenzo was no more than that. The betrayal!
The next day, Jang Han-seo called Vincenzo to meet him in the hockey rink where they had been conducting their secret meetings. It was a trap all along; Han-seo was actually planning to shoot him. But before anything could happen, the policemen from Interpol invaded the hockey rink.
And in an even more shocking turn of events, Han-seo did end up shooting him in the heart… or shoulder. You get the point. And that my friends, is where we ended Vincenzo episode 17.
I’m still not over Jang Han-seo’s betrayal. There is a small, very miniscule ounce of hope that I’m clinging onto that he actually planned the whole confrontation with Vincenzo. I mean obviously, the protagonist of our show is not dead.
So which one are y’all betting on: that (a) Han-seo conspiring with Vincenzo to fake his death, (b) Vincenzo is wearing something bulletproof and the blood is just a “special effect”, or (c) Vincenzo was actually shot and is going to recover in a hospital?
But even with how much hurt the betrayal caused me, I guess I’m kind of proud of Seung-hyeuk and Han-seo (whom I affectionally call Team Phoenix) for actually pulling this off? They were pretty much the underdogs of the whole chess game, and they managed to outsmart the other people in Team Babel-Wusang and Team Jipuragi.
Let’s just hope they don’t end up dead in a ditch somewhere. We all know Ms. Choi and Han-seok’s MO.
I just can’t accept that Han-seo, the sympathetic guy whom I’ve been rooting for the past weeks, would actually show his true colors in Vincenzo episode 17.
I’m not too worried about the whole Interpol/Vincenzo-getting-arrested thing, though. It was revealed that An Gi-seok’s boss, Tae Jong-gu, has been working alongside Team Jipuragi to get some inside info from Jang Han-seok. Jong-gu has also been instrumental in influencing important people to steer clear of Vincenzo’s way for some time now.
So I feel like that connection will serve as the key to Vincenzo escaping arrest.
Overall, Vincenzo episode 17 was a nice way to let off some steam after the death of Oh Gyeong-ja. If you like watching evil rich powerful people get their comeuppance, then the violent scheme-of-the-week would be enough to satiate your desire. Like I said earlier, the episode really doubled-down on revenge.
And then it slowly shifted to the game of power being played by our characters, with unexpected victors coming out on top. Who doesn’t love a good ol’ Cinderella story?
I’m gonna admit, the break from last week did cut off my excitement from the show a bit, but this episode did its job in bringing me back to the world of gray morals and delicious power struggles. Now I’m excited for some major conflict between Cha-young and Vincenzo!
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Vincenzo Episode 17 Rating: 7.5/10
1. The Geumga Plaza tenants come together for Vincenzo
2. Han-seo shoots Vincenzo
3. The Cassano Family walk together… mafia-style
1. WOW. It’s been so long, I completely forgot what the hell was going on in this show. I am READY though.
2. Of course he doesn’t shoot them! What’s the fun in that? I love them cowering in fear from Vincenzo though.
3. Exactly. Killing the mother is foolish because you just awakened the freakin’ BEAST.
4. I never realized how flawless Jang Han-seok’s skin looks.
5. So Vincenzo doesn’t get arrested for assaulting a police officer? Cool.
6. DAAAAMN! A shot to the ear is a good one. I’m ready for Han-seok to look like a real badass villain when he wraps that up with bandage.
7. Awww. Poor Vincenzo only getting to call her Mom when she’s already dead.
8. Seeing these fish breads (forgot what they’re called) sucks.
9. Song Joong-ki letting us know in this scene that he deserves that Baeksang Arts nomination!
10. Posthumous letters always tug at the heartstrings, man.
11. It hasn’t even been one minute since his ear got stitched, and Han-seok already slapped his brother in the face.
12. The audacity of Han-seok to get angry at Vincenzo after he and Ms. Choi planned the death of his mother.
13. I almost cried at the letter, but the solidarity that the Geumga Plaza tenants is showing Vincenzo is making my eyes wet.
14. Okay, now Han-seok just looks silly with that ear bandage on.
15. The Cassano Family team uniform is a SERVE.
16. I love how Team Babel-Wusang has never memorized the faces of the Geumga Plaza tenants even if they’ve helped Vincenzo many times.
17. I guess we’re getting our weekly Vincenzo prank early in the episode!
18. Who is this man?!
19. A bomb in the cake is classic!
20. No fucking way! Vincenzo just killed that man. I did NOT see that coming.
21. I told you all. Cha-young has been getting uncomfortable with Vincenzo’s violent behavior! The drama~
22. I’m just so not used to the protagonist having such questionable character (and everyone being okay with it)… much more in a k-drama!
23. Eat the rich? More like make the rich eat, amirite?!
24. “I’ll handle the second party” is code for “let’s do things in a non-violent way”.
25. So Jang Han-seo helped out Vincenzo with the latest scheme. Very interesting… just like how Han-seo looks with these bangs.
26. Is Han-seo gay for Vincenzo? I don’t mind it!
27. This is a cool shot. At the beginning of the show, I thought Vincenzo would be the ones influenced by the Geumga Plaza tenants. I never thought it would be the other way around! Look at our mini-mafia.
28. I don’t trust this showcase of brotherly affection. It’s a trap, Han-seo.
29. An Gi-seok’s boss is a hoot.
30. Wow, Han-seo just outsmarted everyone to be the Chairman of Babel! And the Guy with Glasses is now Chief Prosecutor.
31. I love this presidential candidate’s assistant. He brings good news!
32. Oh damn, Han-seo and Seung-hyeuk are NOT Team Vincenzo after all. I feel so betrayed!
33. My heart is racing. Is Han-seo betraying Vincenzo? Is he helping him? If it’s the betrayal, I’m gonna be heartbroken.
34. Okay, so it’s a Betrayal with a capital B! This is SO sad. I was rooting for you, Han-seo.
35. Han-seo shot… AGAIN. What a trigger-happy man he is. Meh, Vincenzo’s obviously not yet dead though.
What were your thoughts watching the 17th episode of Vincenzo? Leave them in the comments below! And if you missed it, you can view our reactions and review for other episodes here.
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