‘Why Her?’ Episode 2: A Breakdown of Gong Chan’s Tragic Past and Murder Case

Gong Chan changed his name after being set up for a heinous murder in 'Why Her?' Episode 2. The case and his wrongful conviction are what led Gong Chan to Soo-jae and his new life.

by Gabriela Silva

Published on June 7, 2022

3 min read

‘Why Her?’ Episode 1 hinted Gong Chan and Soo-jae met during a criminal case

The first episode has Soo-jae demoted due to an untimely death. The victim claims Soo-jae’s client sexually mistreated her. The way she handled the case has the firm believe Soo-jae caused the young women to step off the roof. Tarnishing the firm’s reputation, Soo-jae becomes an adjunct professor at a local law school.

While Soo-jae and Gong Chan met before at a local fish market, he realizes who she is when he reads her name on the blackboard. In Why Her? Episode 1, fans learn Soo-jae was his lawyer while she was still a newbie. But fans are unclear why Gong Chan is in jail and under a different name, Kim Dong-goo.

In the episode, Dong-goo claims he does not want a lawyer because no one will believe him and has a fit of anger. Soo-jae consoles him with music and says she believes him. Why Her? Episode 2 reveals the tragedy that befell Gong Chan.

Gong Chan looks for his sister one rainy night in ‘Why Her?’ Episode 2

https://twitter.com/Viki/status/1532708684639371264

While walking through an alleyway at night, it begins to rain. Gong Chan revisits the past that changed his life forever. Why Her? Episode 2 goes back to when Gong Chan was a teenager known under his real name Kim Dong-goo. One rainy night, he goes around the neighborhood looking for his sister Na-jeong.

He goes to the convenience store where she works. The on-shift employee says she was gone before he arrived. She is also not answering her phone. While combing the streets, Dong-goo finds her sneaker, leading him to a construction site.

Calling her phone, he finds Na-yeong unconscious and possibly dead. Dong-goo calls for help but is struck by an unknown figure from behind. The June K-drama ends the flashback as Gong Chan snaps out of it and looks sad and with teary eyes.

Dong-goo is wrongfully accused of murdering his sister

As Soo-jae takes care of an assault case on campus, Gong Chan is reminded of his past. The police are unable to find Na-jeong’s body. They suspect Dong-goo of her murder. He was found on the beach covered in her blood and surrounded by her bloody clothes. In his hand is a knife. Authorities discovered his and Na-jeong’s DNA on the blade and his DNA on her underwear, implicating assault.

The police find motive as Dong-goo and Na-yeong were step-siblings. His adopted parents do not believe him and curse him to hell. In prison, Dong-goo’s cellmates beat him. Filled with rage and giving up, Dong-goo admits to the murder. The flashback ends.

At the end of Why Her? Episode 2, Gong Chan takes a leap of courage and professes his interest in Soo-jae while in an elevator. Fans soon learn why he has feelings for her. Soo-jae and Dong-goo are heartbroken over the guilty verdict back in the past. But Soo-jae holds his hand and tells him, ” become powerful, and you must have substance. You and be both. If we don’t want to wander around.”

The flashback ends a year after his conviction. Authorities catch the real killer, and Dong-goo is set free. Looking for a new start, Dong-goo changes his name to Gong chan and begins working at the fish market and studying to be a lawyer.

Why Her? is available to stream on Viki.