#i have two drafts due on friday and here i am writing 1000+ words on han seo's brotherly relationships

[deonideatta]

@vinchenzoquassano Here’s my analysis on the juxtaposition of Han Seok and Vincenzo as brother figures to Han Seo! It got a bit long, so I’m putting it under a cut.

So we all know that Vincenzo and Han Seok are meant to contrast each other a lot, whether it’s fire imagery vs ice imagery, caring about family vs seeing family as a tool, or having everything under control vs being reckless and impulsive. And I think one of the things that really highlights the difference between Vincenzo and Han Seok in ways of thinking/treating others is the way they relate to Han Seo.

From the first interaction between the Jang brothers, we see that their relationship is based on threats, violence, and fear. It is not a sibling relationship, the only thing that connects them as siblings is the fact that they share the same dad. There are none of the usual characteristics of a healthy relationship between siblings, none of the fun, none of the support, no familial love, no empathy, concern, or worry. And their relationship most likely never resembled a proper siblinghood, as we know that Han Seok tormented Han Seo from a young age. Additionally, to begin with Han Seo is just ‘Han Seok’s brother, the puppet chairman’, the shadow of his brother even though ironically it’s Han Seok who remains in the shadows in the beginning. We only see him begin to shine as his own character when he starts to actively plan against Han Seok with the help of Mr Han, and this is only amplified when he starts to look up to Vincenzo.

This is why what Han Seo gets from Vincenzo is so important to him, even to the point of not betraying Vincenzo once Han Seok is out of the picture. It’s all there in that scene where they’re drinking together in episode 18. It’s poignant because the things Han Seo lists that he feels comfortable about with Vincenzo are all things that he’d had bad experiences with when they were with Han Seok. Both duos have scenes involving hockey, but in the SeokSeo scene Han Seo is very much in a lower position of power as he stands unprotected in a suit in contrast to Han Seok’s full hockey gear, getting hit by hockey pucks (we see this contrast again when Han Seo is the one wearing the hockey gear and hitting pucks at executives in suits, more on that later). It’s their first scene together, and it’s a pretty good image of their relationship. Han Seok has always had the high ground, and Han Seo has always felt vulnerable and unprotected from his volatile nature. 

In contrast, in the VincenSeo hockey scene both of them are wearing hockey gear, albeit without the helmets. This already shows that at the fundamental level this is a very different relationship, despite there still being a power imbalance. And the absence of the protection of a helmet also implies a level of trust, again in contrast to the way Han Seok had one, both to hide his identity but also to symbolize further distance. We see that Han Seo is at ease to the point where he feels comfortable enough to tease Vincenzo about Cha Young, and make quips/casual comments. Vincenzo is only mildly annoyed, and the atmosphere is far less charged than in the SeokSeo hockey scene. Most notably, even though Vincenzo does hit a puck at Han Seo, does trip him up, and does get annoyed at him, none of it carries the venom it does when Han Seok does it. It’s almost playful, it feels like something real siblings would do together (speaking from experience here), and Vincenzo is never hostile towards Han Seo. When Han Seok does things like that it doesn’t feel like sibling bickering, it feels like abuse. There is real malice in the way Han Seok treats Han Seo in general, and the hockey scene is no exception. So for Han Seo to be able to be in a space which he has always associated with pain/punishment and find himself at ease, not feeling threatened or worried, it must have meant a lot (which we see in the way he cant stop smiling after the hockey scene), and further serves to illustrate the difference in Han Seok and Vincenzo’s behaviour, right down to Vincenzo catching Han Seo when he falls, and Han Seo’s heartfelt thanks to him for helping him see how stupid he’d been.

It’s the same with all the other things he mentioned in the drinking scene. Eating scenes always say something about relationships in this drama (and in kdramas in general actually, but especially so here), and whenever we see Han Seo and Han Seok eating together, it always feels like Han Seo has to walk on eggshells, he can never relax or let his guard down, because he has to worry about Han Seok’s potential outbursts. Like in the scene where Han Seok flips the table and forces Han Seo to hold a knife to his neck, or the scene where they drink together after paying respects to their father. That scene was notable because it’s the scene where we find out that Han Seok killed their father. Han Seo asks Han Seok outright if he’d kill him off too if he got in his way. It’s one of the few times early on that he lets his perceptiveness show in front of Han Seok. Han Seok’s response is not reassuring at all, and he even goes as far as to belittle Han Seo's intelligence, stating that if he was just a little smarter he would have been nicer to him. This is again contrasted by Vincenzo encouraging Han Seo to learn more, and telling him that the mind is one's greatest weapon.

Han Seok's response also makes Vincenzo finally replying that he won’t kill Han Seo because he believes he’s changing for the better all the more impactful. With Han Seok it was always he won’t kill me so long as I am of use, because he needs me to take the fall for him, but with Vincenzo it’s now he won’t kill me because he sees value in me as a person and not a tool. We see this in how Vincenzo gives Han Seo advice, and complements him, albeit in a very roundabout way. I think despite his generally neutral face during their interactions, Han Seo is definitely growing on him. It’s even to the point that he allowed Han Seo to call him hyung, and even beyond that, to see him as a brother. I definitely think both of them need more time to grow as people and learn to relate to each other before this can actually be a proper brotherhood, but you have to start somewhere.

For the first time Han Seo is in an environment where he can let his guard down and confide in someone who is both a role model and a friend to him, even if that person is Vincenzo ‘i can’t ever show my emotional investment’ Cassano (though he has really come a long way since the beginning of the drama). Vincenzo represents all the things Han Seok never did for Han Seo as a brother, whether it’s giving him advice or letting him treat him with familiarity. Which is also an important contrast, that Han Seo calls Vincenzo Vin-hyung from the get go, while he mostly calls Han Seok hyungnim. The fact that Han Seo felt comfortable enough to ask Vincenzo if he could call him like a brother, sulk about it when he said no (”Ok Vincenzo Cassano nim” lol, no one can convince me that Han Seo isn’t a sass master), and then go directly to abbreviating Vincenzo’s name (Vin hyung) really tells us a lot about how much more comfortable he is with Vincenzo. 

It is also worth noting that even though Vincenzo is often snarky with Han Seo, their interactions still carry some level of comfort that is completely absent in Han Seok and Han Seo’s scenes, despite the fact that when Han Seok is not being violent he actually treats Han Seo normally (well as ‘normal’ as it can get for them), like when he gives him the watch, when Han Seo is watching him get his hair cut, or when they go hunting. But despite the veneer of that normalcy, their interactions always carry an undercurrent of danger, as we and Han Seo all know that anything could cause Han Seok to explode, like he did in the scene where they were eating together, quite suddenly and very aggressively. That underlying tension is always there, even when Han Seo is seemingly smiling and reacting well to Han Seok, because we know that Han Seok is only tolerating Han Seo because he is of use to him, and will not hesitate to hurt him if he annoys him, or get rid off him should he cross him or cease to be of use. Whereas with Vincenzo, Han Seo is at ease. There is no hidden danger, no fear of an outburst. Vincenzo is someone Han Seo looks up to and feels he can trust enough to go behind Babel team’s backs to collude with. This also highlights once again the way that even Vincenzo's emotionally limited treatment of others contrasts Han Seok's complete disregard for them. He never yells at Han Seo or belittles him in a cruel way, and increasingly their interactions are more casual. Though he's still a bit closed off, Vincenzo also listens to what Han Seo has to say, unlike with Han Seok, where Han Seo can never say what he really thinks.

Lastly, there’s the influence that both Han Seok and Vincenzo have on the way Han Seo behaves. We see that whether he realized it or not, Han Seo imitated and was influenced by some of Han Seok’s behaviour, from hitting hockey pucks at executives (and bullying the executives in general, most likely to feel more powerful), to throwing tantrums/having fits of anger and yelling, ordering a hit on Vincenzo and Cha Young and finding the Babel victims’ information. Likewise, we see that once he decides he’s jumping off that train and siding with Vincenzo, we gradually begin to see his behaviour change. He’s always had a playful/bratty streak, seen in how he was so happy about dodging the thing Han Seok threw at him that one time, in many of his interactions with Mr Han, and in the scene when he comes to Jipuragi in 80s clothes to show off his battle scar. That side of him still manages to appear even around Han Seok, so when he’s around Vincenzo and he doesn’t have to focus on avoiding Han Seok’s outbursts it comes out fully, and we get things like him distracting Vincenzo by calling out Cha Young’s name to score a goal, grinning like a little kid when Vincenzo chased him, and his joy at getting to call Vincenzo Vin hyung.

Additionally, we see that the more closely Han Seo works with Vincenzo, the more brazen he gets around Han Seok. He gets more flippant, and he almost openly praises Vincenzo, he becomes less obedient to Han Seok. All this culminates in the scene where he confronts Han Seok about the Elizabeth Holmes thing and tightens his handcuffs. By finding a role model in Vincenzo, as well as knowing he has the support of someone more powerful than Han Seok, Han Seo was able to finally cut off the puppet strings. We even see that he consulted with and listened to the board/company executives, contrasted to how he’d forced them to eat spicy food and hit hockey pucks at them before. He’s unlearning the volatile and violent behaviour he picked up from Han Seok and applying the advice that Vincenzo gave him, namely that your brain is your greatest weapon. Han Seok always seemed like a dangerous villain because of his violent tendencies and his position of power and influence, but we’ve seen how Vincenzo manages to corner him again and again, and how his irrational actions (coughcoughkillingmrsohcoughcough) are no match for Vincenzo’s strategic thinking. Han Seo sees this as well, and he begins to emulate Vincenzo’s behaviour.

Vincenzo is right that Han Seo is changing for the better, and he is most likely the catalyst for it. We see that from the get go Han Seo is determined to break free, and in the end what gets him there while making sure he doesn’t simply become an ineffective chairman or Han Seok II (with arguably less murder lol) is the appearance of Vincenzo as a reliable brother figure. Now whether or not Vincenzo is actually a good brother figure is a different debate, and I do think he also needs to develop in the area of relating to others before he can truly fulfill the role. Still, so far his influence on Han Seo has been largely positive, and I think given time Han Seo will probably also have a positive effect on him.

In conclusion, if they kill off Han Seo in the end it will be my villain origin story. Thanks for reading! Do share any thoughts/additions!