LEE JOON GI AND IU
A TOUCH OF
MAGIC
IN
HOTEL DEL
LUNA
REUNION
LEE JOON GI AND IU
A TOUCH OF MAGIC
IN
HOTEL DEL LUNA
REUNION
Lee Joon Gi and IU have brought a touch of magic to their onscreen reunion in tvN’s Hotel Del Luna. In their heart-pumping scene in
Episode 3 of the horror-fantasy-romance drama, the two have reignited their
spell-binding chemistry, however brief it may be. It is the thrilling reunion
that fans still hanker for since the day the two superstars mesmerised them
with their superb romantic performance in Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo in 2016.
Fans of Lee Joon Gi have been impatiently waiting for him to
appear in the drama on 20 July. Watching the drama without English subtitles
in the live streaming site was tedious. If one had blinked, one would have
missed Lee Joon Gi when he appeared. Truth be told, when the scene suddenly rolled
out, one was tempted to burst into laughter.
The scene is that hilarious without the subtitles. However,
upon re-watching it with the subtitles, one realises the full seriousness of
the religious scene.
The most gorgeous-looking priest in Kdramaland
The much-awaited segment of the drama unfolds with Jang Man
Wol’s (IU/Lee Ji Eun) announcement on the imminent arrival of Ku Chan Seong
(Yeo Jin Goo), the new manager of the hotel.
Best dressed hotel owner
As the story goes, Jang Man Wol, the 1,000-year-old CEO of Hotel
Del Luna with a glamorous wardrobe, has been hard-pressed to find a new manager
to assist her. The Hotel Del Luna, which overlooks the breathtakingly
beautiful city of Seoul, boasts a lovely beachfront and a pretty interesting
sky bar. The public are ignorant about the preternatural hotel for the dead. It sometimes attracts the living. The humans who have unwittingly arrive there
have to be hastily shooed away or they would end up dead. An appropriate candidate, who is able to deal with the living and the dead, is needed for the
job.
The announcement brings a cry of protest from Kim Seon Bi, the Sky
Bar bartender, who is the longest-serving employee of the hotel. He argues that their
special hotel requires a manager who is fearless, unlike someone with the likes
of Ku Chan Seong, whom he perceives to be faint-hearted. Although educated at
Harvard and having served in what Forbes considers to be one of the best hotels in
South Korea, Ku is also not the candidate that Jang Man Wol prefers. The bartender
raises the issue of their perfect candidate, a handsome but fiery Roman Catholic priest (portrayed by Lee Joon Gi). Choi Seo Hee, the housekeeper, nods in agreement.
Unlike Jang Mang Wol who straddles two worlds - the real world
and the supernatural world, the priest lives in the real world. Favouring the priest, Jang Mang Wol has gifted him with the ability to see ghosts.
Unfortunately for Jang Mang Wol, the pious Father immediately
loses sight of everything except the pursuit of his hallowed ambition of being
a ghostbuster, oops, exorcist. When life offers the priest a more soul-stirring
option, it is not unreasonable to want it badly. An exorcist’s job, like that
of an ordinary priest, is a blessed calling except that it is more thrilling.
For some time, the holy Father has been indulging in his
fantasy of exorcising a certain powerful demon from a man’s body. That
particularly annoying demon has given him enough work to keep him very busy.
The excitement in the drama skyrockets when the good Reverend-cum-exorcist, looms large in the dim, candle-lit room of a church. The
priest seems eager to use his rare power of driving that demon from the
body of the possessed man. The presence of the lovely Jang Mang Wol did not distract him. The unfortunate possessed man
has been securely tied to the bars at the head of the iron bed, lest he, and
not the demon, escaped.
The Roman Catholic priest starts with the usual prayer of invoking the three
persons of God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit to fill the room. Many religious
items to help with the exorcism rites have been carefully prepared. A statue of Mother Mary. A cross made
of rattan. Holy water. A crucifix has also been
placed on the heaving chest of the possessed man.
Holding a rosary in one hand, the holy Father bellows to the
demon to detach itself from the writhing and convulsing body. He then covers the
glassy-eyes of the man with a band of blue cloth with an embroidered cross.
The irreverent and waspish but beautiful Jang Mang Wol is bored with the monotonous
ritual. She could hardly bear to listen to his solemn prayers in Latin yet
again. Unable to stop herself, she orders him to cease his pompous chants.
The holy Father chastises her for interrupting the very
important sacred rites. He knew exactly the motive and intention of the attractive lady
boss. He pre-empts her request for him to occupy the privileged managerial position of Hotel Del Luna. The priest tells her that she’d better snap out of
it; he definitely would not be returning to the hotel until he has impressive
credentials to show or at the very least, conducted a successful exorcism rite. She could hardly conceal
her resentment and displeasure.
He proceeds to sprinkle more holy water over the already
sweat-drenched man. Another round of prayers in the language of the ancient
Roman empire is in order. Wow! The jaw of the holy Father starts working again. With an almighty roar, the High Priest of Exorcism commands the demon to reveal
its name. 'Answer me! Answer me!' The tension escalates. At this time, one
thinks of the pressure cooker. Any time now. But, alas, the rebellious demon
has already made itself at home in the man’s body and refuses to leave.
Though Jang Mang Wol is a woman who will stop at nothing to get
what she wants, she is compelled to temporarily abandon her idea of persuading
the handsome but celibate priest to be her right-hand man; she is more
frightened of the fanatical priest than the demon that he is
trying to exorcise.
Lee Joon Gi’s scene, though brief, is the dominant part of
Episode 3 of Hotel Del Luna. Lee’s audience never ceases to be amazed by his
undeniably powerful presence in his dramas. And, he certainly has that
special style that naturally spices up his priest-exorcist character in this
drama. The supertalented actor knows exactly how to make his fans yearn for more. Are
there any more episodes to come?
Half the year has gone. Fans wonder if Lee Joon Gi is going to
announce his own project soon. What drama would be perfect for him? A
romantic comedy, in which he portrays the scion of a chaebol family. The car
industry, perhaps. A hip-swinging and strutting
hero with singing talent. Lots of beautiful people. Lots of laughter, fun and action.
UPDATED: 23 JULY 2019
312,000 people were streaming Hotel Del Luna Episode 3 live using a China app. That
was triple the number of people who streamed Episode 2 (109,000)
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