The first two episodes of season three brought Single’s Inferno into new territory (literally, a new island), but at the end of the day, the contestants still have the same goal: Try to get the person you like to like you back. As always, some people are being straightforward with their romantic approach, while others appear to be playing an emotional tug-of-war. Let’s get into our latest round of matches and dates, shall we?
This episode picks up with the latest matching results from the original Inferno. All the guys have picked Gyu-ri, but she picks Min-kyu. (The fact that Hye-seon chooses Min-woo means the poor guy has now missed out on two trips to Paradise.)
Over on Inferno II, everyone has an hour to meet up and chat before making their choices. Won-ik directly signals his continued interest in Si-eun, who points out that he’s being a bit awkward. He admits that he’s feeling shy.
Cut to the least shy people in the cast. Gwan-hee and Ha-jeong are both brimming with confidence, wondering if they’ll ever even get the chance to be left behind in Inferno. It also feels like they’re competing to show who cares less about the other. Gwan-hee appears to win this round, deciding to leave to go talk to Si-eun. But first, he asks if there’s a guy Ha-jeong wants to talk to that he can call over as well. “You,†she says, pointing. That’s a big admission in their game of push-and-pull, so she laughs and sends him off to Si-eun instead of expanding on her feelings.
Gwan-hee playfully kicks Won-ik out for his one-on-one with Si-eun, who is more talkative with him than we’ve seen her so far. She not-so-subtly suggests that Gwan-hee is close to her ideal type (a man with a puppy-like face who is easy to talk to and has a lot of confidence and self-esteem … come on). Gwan-hee’s face is hard to read.
Meanwhile, Ha-bin is once again pressing Ha-jeong for details about her Paradise date with Min-kyu. I get that contestants will be curious about how things are progressing between their crushes and their competition. But it’s early enough in the show that I can’t understand this instinct, especially when she’s already avoided the topic before. Do you really have to know exactly how much fun she had with another guy? It’s only day two. Your time might be better spent trying to show off your own charms. Ha-bin affirms his interest in Ha-jeong, but the panel astutely points out that she doesn’t do her signature flirty chin move throughout the whole conversation.
Min-young doesn’t seem to have really connected with any of the guys on Inferno II. She does clarify her previous description of Jin-seok to the other women, though — apparently, she said he was like a sibling because of how quickly they became friends. Now, on an island of strangers, she misses that sense of comfort. It seems like she’s open to viewing it as a romantic connection again. If I were Jin-seok, I wouldn’t necessarily be thrilled about this assessment, but it’s better than being fully brother-zoned.
Si-eun and Won-ik successfully match, which isn’t shocking. Even though Si-eun seems to have feelings for Gwan-hee, we have to remember how hurt she was about being left behind yesterday. She even tells the girls she might cry if she doesn’t make it to Paradise this time. It just makes sense that she’d go for a safe choice; someone she knows will pick her. (I’m also excited to finally learn more about these two, but unfortunately, we don’t get to see their date in this episode. Guess I’ll have to wait a little longer to associate Won-ik with something other than his lil’ curl.)
Ha-jeong and Gwan-hee both smirk when they hear that they’ve matched with each other. They walk off, with Gwan-hee flirtily agreeing that they can share if there’s only one bed (mind you, he wouldn’t even sleep in the same room when he was with Hye-seon). A fly buzzes around Ha-bin as the pair leaves, which just feels like the universe kicking him while he’s down.
Off to Paradise! Gyu-ri reveals that she is 28 and working as a model. It turns out that her connection with Min-kyu does go beyond that cucumber joke. They’re looking for similar things in a partner: someone who they’re comfortable with and who also motivates them to live life to the fullest. When they head to the pool, Netflix inserts a really intense needle drop. I personally wouldn’t soundtrack a first date with lyrics like, “You can be my baby / Then you can have my babies / And we can start a family for real,†but maybe that’s just me.
At one point, Min-kyu brings up Min-woo. Gyu-ri vaguely explains that she isn’t sure about Min-woo despite the time they spent together. Again, it feels too early to be asking about other contestants like this, so I’m glad Min-kyu has enough emotional awareness to gauge her reaction and drop the topic. The rest of the date goes well. They end the night in the same room but separate beds, still chatting and complimenting each other with the lights off. Some panelists think they’re being too calm for the connection to feel romantic, but I think these kinds of conversations sometimes feel more intimate than physical touchiness. (I prefer it to the hot tub scene where they showed their toes off to each other, that’s for sure.) For her part, Gyu-ri says she’s sad at the prospect that they might be split up the next day.
There’s more tension on our other Paradise date, with Gwan-hee and Ha-jeong making a show of asking pointed questions over dinner. They both admit to knowing they would match with each other within a minute of meeting that morning. Gwan-hee wants to know if that means Ha-jeong had feelings for two men. Of course, even though he was in the same situation, it’s apparently different because he knew he was exploring his options. Gwan-hee then mentions that he still wants to see Hye-seon again since they had a good time together, and Ha-jeong pretends not to care.
Gwan-hee also wants to know more about Min-kyu — not out of jealousy, he clarifies — but because he’s heard that he and Min-kyu are similar. When pushed a little, Ha-jeong essentially confesses that Gwan-hee is more her type. There’s a hiccup when she says she likes quiet men, and he abruptly declares that they aren’t a good match because he’s really talkative. It almost seems like he’s trying to wrap up the dinner right then and there. But then he says that Ha-jeong is close to his ideal type, and their pattern of flirting/fighting continues. (Side note: Ha-jeong sometimes stops doing her chin-eye combo if she sees that Gwan-hee isn’t looking her way. She’s really intentional with that move, huh?)
Gwan-hee says he’s not the type to initiate relationships, while Ha-jeong says she normally just goes for it if she’s interested in someone. Confident as ever, Gwan-hee reflects that he made a great first impression on her and that she must like him even more now. Maybe he’s met his match, he says. He wishes her luck doing “the rounds†but is convinced she won’t pick anyone else: “Why bother?†These types of declarations make the petty part of me wanna see him get rejected, but Ha-jeong seems fine with it, declaring that he’ll pick her in the end, too. Doesn’t he think so? Gwan-hee’s eyes dart from side to side, and the camera cuts before he responds. Oh, geez.
Next episode’s preview confirms that the two Infernos are eventually merging. Now, there could’ve been room for more drama if we had a couple more days where people kept switching back and forth. But I am kind of ready for everyone to meet each other and see their full options, especially those who haven’t made it to Paradise yet. Bringing everyone together does seem to cause some interesting new developments. Though we don’t know how Won-ik’s date with Si-eun went, we do get a glimpse of Min-woo touching Si-eun’s lips. Ha-jeong appears to be glaring at Hye-seon feeding Gwan-hee, who might be getting in trouble for some fuckboy behavior. (Is anyone surprised?) Also, a new female contestant is on her way, and we hear our first declaration of love … yeah, I’ll be seated when the next episodes drop. See you next week!