02x06 - Ken Learns Korean

[bunniefuu]

Ah. Mrs... Pae?

Oh. No deductible? [Chuckles]

They should call you Mrs. Co-Pay.

[Chuckles]

[Speaking Korean rapidly]

Call the Korean translator.

Already did. He's on the way.

So, what's up?

Hey. I'm the translator.

Oh, thank God.

Oh. Uh... sorry.

We needed a Korean translator.

Yeah. I get that a lot.

[Speaking Korean]

[Speaks Korean]

Uh... yeah.

Mrs. Pae's had stomach pains for the last few days, can't keep anything down.

Also, she wanted to apologize to you.

She assumed you were Korean.

I am Korean.

[Speaks Korean]

[Chuckling] No!

Yeah.

[Speaks Korean]

[Both laugh]

[Speaks Korean]

What'd she say?

Oh, you wouldn't understand. It's a Korean thing.

[Both laugh]

Just tell her I'll see her in two weeks.

[Speaking Korean]

[Speaking Korean]

Bye-bye!

She says, "Bye-bye."

Okay.

What was that about?

[Scoffs] Luke Cage over there had to translate Korean for me.

Ken, do you know any Korean?

Mm. Sí, sí. Un poquito. Mas o meno.

I keep telling him if he wants to learn more, he should go to Korean class with Dave.

And I keep telling her, "No, no, no, no, no, no."

Look, when I was a kid, my dad made me go to Korean school every Saturday morning, and it was sheer t*rture!

While my friends were watching cartoons, I was getting yelled at by the hardass teacher.

She'd make me stand in the corner for cracking jokes.

That's a good idea. We should start doing that.

Fine. Don't take the class.

But then don't whine every time you feel ashamed for not knowing Korean.

[Scoffs] It's my process, Allison.

I whine, my laziness kicks in, the bad feelings pass, and I cozy up in denial until the next time I don't feel Korean.

That's how I do!

I know I say this a lot, but... hang in there, girl.

Love this.

[Chuckles]

Okay, so you know Kathleen Parker, the nurses union rep?

Well, she resigned... messy divorce, tragic.

And guess who got elected.

[Inhales sharply] Me.

Really?

Mm-hmm.

You're going to negotiate the nurses contract?

Hey, I will have you know I am a deft negotiator when I need to be.

I convinced every high-school girlfriend I had that we should save ourselves for marriage.

[Chuckles]

Is it true?

Am I actually gonna be negotiating the new nurses contract against you?

Wait, what?

You're representing management?

Yes, I am.

Wounded gazelle, meet hungry hyena.

It's feeding time. [Chuckles]

Oh. And congratulations on being elected.

That's quite an honor.

But still... feeding time.

Ooh.

I have to negotiate with Pat?

Oooh.

He is vicious!

I know!

I dated him, and somehow he always had a way of getting what he wanted.

I didn't even want to date him!

[Woman speaking Korean]

Hey, pal. What are you watching?

A Korean soap opera.

My teacher says it helps to hear it spoken.

That man's no good for you, Young-Mi!

She always goes for the bad boys.

You can follow this?

Yeah.

The writing is pedestrian, but I do love my stories!

[Gasps]

Whoa, Dave. All that salt can be deleterious to your health.

Whooooa!

Someone's been boning up on her SAT vocab.

Spoken with veracity, Mom.

When I was prepping for the SATs, my parents would try and stump me with big words, but [chuckles] they never could.

Well, Mom, I bet I could lambaste you in a verbal concours.

Oooh! Comin' for the queen.

[Chuckles]

Someone's sounding vainglorious.

Now you're just being supercilious.

[Scoffs] You're both being super silly.

Oh. My friends are coming for card game tonight.

Living room off-limits.

What?! So I have to stay out of my living room all evening?

Well, not all evening.

Come back around 9:00 with a big bag of ice.

Can you believe that?

I know. The card game? It's awesome!

In what way?

My dad's been playing Go-Stop forever with those guys.

They're super-cool.

I always wanted to be in that group.

They're like the Korean Expendables.

[Chuckles]

Except they're not expendable.

They need each other to play the game.

You'll see when you come back with ice.

I'm not getting ice.

Whoa!

Or you can take that frosty tone of yours and just yell at some water... then we'll have plenty of ice.

Look, I didn't say anything when he invited himself to move in or when he forgot to move out.

I even kept quiet when he ruined three doorjambs by putting in pull-up bars.

Sure, your dad is jacked, but this is crossing a line.

Well, fine.

I'll just tell him he absolutely can't have his game here.

Chul can't make it tonight. We need a fourth.

You want to play?

Oh, my God! Yes, Papa! Yes!

Ken, say hi to the guys!

Dad! I was gonna! Now it's gonna seem forced.

Hi, guys.

Thanks for letting me play. It's a real honor.

Oh. Chul can't make it.

I had to scramble for a replacement.

Less than ideal.

I'm just happy to be here.

Thanks! I just got it cut.

Yeah. We could use some rain.

Uh, uh, a little slower and one at a time?

My... name... is... Bum-Kun.

What... is... yours?

[Laughter]

All: Dave!

Dave speaks good Korean.

I don't know. His accent's all over the place.

[Chuckling] Okay, guys. I know you're ragging on me.

Oh, no. They say nice things.

Really?

Yeah.

And they also say, "Happy Opposite Day!"

[Laughter]

[Chuckling] "Opposite day."

Can we just start the game? [Chuckles]

Okay.

Ken. Rules here are same as in Korea. Mm?

Okay.

Oh. Sorry.

That's the peninsula country in Asia... where we come from!

[Laughter]

Bum-Kun: "Peninsula"! "Korea"!

[All speaking Korean]

This Saturday, I'm going to Korean school with you.

Good for you, Dad. We can explore our heritage together.

[Scoffing] Yeah. And I'm gonna shove it in their smug faces.

And the heritage thing, honey.

Good afternoon, Welltopia board members.

I know you've had a chance to look at our proposal... our main points being shorter shifts and a more reasonable nurse-to-patient ratio.

I think the shifts are the right length, and studies I've seen back me up.

Sorry... which studies are those?

Hold on. You think I made that up?

No. I-I...

Are you questioning my integrity?

No. I was just wondering...

I think you're questioning my integrity.

Seems like you're questioning my integrity!

Why don't we just ask some people who are definitely objective if you're questioning my integrity?

Guys?

Well, there you go.

They're not objective. They're...

Whoa! Whoa, whoa!

It's one thing to go after me, but Lex, Harley, and Carol, they did not sign up for this.

Okay. Let's just stop and focus on nurse-to-patient ratio.

What about it?

Well, as you can see, it needs to be improved.

Well, the thing I'm hearing again and again is that it's just great.

Where are you hearing that?

Well, from Lex and Harley and Carol.

Carol just can't shut up about it.

Well, see, the nurses don't agree with that.

And you've got studies?

There are several studies. We actually cite some in our...

Oh, so you get to use studies but I don't!

I am sorry. I am so sorry.

I thought this was gonna be a civil negotiation.

I did not know that he would come in here using his mind games and try to bat me around like some sort of cat toy!

I-I... I-I... I wasn't!

Look, could we please just get back to shorter shifts?

[Sighs]

You're right.

We won't make shifts longer.

What?!

No, we were trying to make them shorter.

[Laughing] Well, not longer is shorter.

So we agree... shifts stay the same.

All right, people, let's come back to this tomorrow, all right?

You know, just to dot the I's and cross the T's.

Well, this guy would probably want us to dot the T's and cross the I's, am I right?

[Laughter]

Hey, this was fun.

"Ken."

We're counting.

Oh.

Four.

In Korean.

[As D.K.] Four.

That's just an accent.

And offensive.

Oh, I'm not mocking Koreans.

I'm mocking my dad, who happens to be Korean.

That's called satire.

Teachable moment.

Dr. Park, did you study the material that the school e-mailed you?

[Gasps] I'm offended you think just because I'm Korean, I love to study.

Satire again. Reclaiming the stereotype... No?

Dr. Park, it seems you neither speak nor understand any Korean.

No! I'm just a little rusty, Mrs. Ahn.

Come on, Teach... teach!

Whose dad is that?

Hey, Mom. Fun top.

Are you feeling effervescent today?

Ohhhh!

Vivacious or enthusiastic?

No. If anything, I'm a little lugubrious.

Aw. Sad and mournful?

Maybe because of your insufficient verbosity.

Can you believe her impudence?

No.

[Speaking Korean]

Who can translate that?

Oh, oh! I think I know this. Uh...

"Where... is... the... zoo"?

That's my dad!

Okay, Dr. Park. Now can you answer it?

Answer what?

"Where is the zoo?"

Okay.

Where is the zoo?

Uh, you take your... "cha."

Vroom vroom.

Uh... [Speaking gibberish Korean] 101-South-ya?

[Speaking gibberish Korean] Glendale-Freeway, ya?

[Speaking gibberish Korean] Zoo Drive exit-ya.

The phrase I was looking for is "Over there."

Dr. Park, can you say "over there"?

Oh!

Sorry. I have an itch.

[Whispering] Psst. Korean Three. Hook me up.

[Inhales deeply] Ttong-koo-mong.

Dad!

[Laughter]

What'd I say?

Apparently, the zoo has been relocated to my bottom.

Dr. Park, go in the back corner.

Not again.

[Laughter]

Hey! How are negotiations going?

Hey.

Suckily.

Whenever I start to talk about our proposal, he finds a way to words my twist.

See? He is in my now right head.

God, this is hopeless.

Clark, you know what?

If you can't stand up for yourself, stand up for the hundreds of nurses who are counting on you.

You're right. They need me.

Yeah, they do!

I have to be strong for them.

There you go!

I have to do whatever it takes.

Absolutely!

Even if it means a strike!

That's... Wait, what?

[Scoffs] No, no, no, no, no.

A strike would shut this whole place down.

I can't afford not to work.

What happened to standing up and being strong?

Well, okay. Do that on your own damn time.

I gots to get paid.

You messin' with my wig money now, boy. You trippin'.

Dad! We're gonna be late for Korean school.

Yeah, listen.

I'm done with that.

You're quitting? Why?

"A"... I'm old.

"B"... I'm a moron.

"K"... Korean is freaking hard.

You're just frustrated.

You feel like it should come naturally, and it doesn't.

It should. I'm Korean. I'm owed this.

But you're getting it.

You were able to say "Where is the zoo"?

[Scoffs] Yeah. Before I did my time in the corner.

You think it was easy for Grandpa to learn English when he came here?

But he didn't give up.

I don't know, Dave.

Okay.

You want to know why I'm taking the class?

Is it that quiet girl... Korean Seven?

No. You know I'm spoken for.

I'm doing it because it connects all of us... me, you, Grandpa, everyone that came before us.

I don't want to be the one who breaks the chain.

Do you?

Damn!

Son, you don't play around.

You know what?

Let's do this. [Chuckles]

I'll go get the "cha."

Attaboy, Dad.

Remind me... 101-ya to Western-ya?

Ya.

How am I supposed to get all my wigs...

Clark: Oh, so you're gonna be mad at me now?

What's going on?

Oh, we're reading the nurses newsletter, and Norma Rae over here wants to shut the whole place down.

I told you... I don't want to, but Pat won't budge on our demands.

We have no choice.

By the way, when did everyone start reading Nurses First?

Just... because no one read it when my poem was in there.

Oh, we read it.

Look, I'm sorry, Clark, but the bottom line is, nobody wants a strike.

I'm with Damona.

Me too. Sorry, Clark.

But in order to treat those patients, we need...

You heard them. No one wants a strike.

You stand alone. Like the cheese.

You know. "The cheese stands alone."

No "Farmer in the Dell" fans here?

Well, it's still a good song.

Wait.

I've got something to say.

What? More of your mind games?

Pat, enough!

I represent the Welltopia Nurses' Union.

I was elected by 127 nurses to speak for them.

And nothing... nothing is more important to me than getting us what we need to care for our patients.

This isn't just about higher salaries or longer breaks.

We're not doing this for ourselves.

We're doing it for patients like... like Audra Middleton, diabetic, mother of two.

And when she comes in here for her insulin management, she deserves better than an exhausted nurse that just saw 30 patients in the time they should've seen 12!

Or... or Heather Michaels, an E.R. nurse who became a patient because she fell asleep at the wheel after working a double shift in our understaffed E.R.

And then the irony is, she came back to that E.R. in an ambulance, only to be tended to by other exhausted nurses.

So on behalf of all of those patients and all of the dedicated nurses that take care of them, I am going to do the right thing, even if that thing is a strike.

You know what?

I'm with Clark.

Me too.

He's right.

The patients come first.

[Sighs]

Uh...

You know, when we started this, I assumed it was all just a money grab, because... well, it always is.

But not with you, huh?

You really value patient care above everything else.

I'm a nurse.

That's what we do.

Yeah.

Well, I can't b*at that.

We'll draw up a new contract.

Thank you.

Well done.

Oh, my God! Did you guys see that?! That was amazing!

[Laughing]

I feel like my knowledge of vocabulary adumbrates a good SAT score.

Yep. Me too.

You don't know it, do you?

No. You stumped me.

"Adumbrate... to foreshadow or portend."

Ha! Thanks for playing, Mom.

Hey, maybe you should call Yale, ask them for a refund?

Hilarious.

But I'll gladly lose a silly competition if it helps you with the SAT.

And you're gonna do great.

Thanks, Mom.

[Chuckles]

"Adumbrate." You're a dumb brate.

Guys are here. We need ice and scotch.

What?! Another card game?

No. I-I got to put my foot down.

You need to show me more respect than that.

Ah. Respect.

[Smacks lips] Almost forgot.

Here... house cut from last time.

[Scoffs] What... you think you can just buy me off with a few...

Whoa.

O-Okay, D.K. Have a great game.

[Chuckles]

Yeah, I'll get some ice.

And scotch, was it?

Hello, Father.

Hey.

Gentlemen.

Hello, American Ken!

[Laughter]

How... are..you?

[Laughter]

All: Ohhh!

Oh, you learn that sentence from Korean book. Big deal.

Yeah, you got me... ttong-koo-mung.

[Laughter]

Oh, snap! He got you!

In your face!

Ah. Sit down, Ken. I'll deal you in.

Really?

Yeah. You're one of the guys.

You see what I did there? I used the formal tense.

[Chuckles] Yeah, Mrs. Ahn told me use to formal tense when I talk to old people.

Don't worry. Chul will be back next week.

[ Woman shouting in Korean]

[All gasp]

Young-Mi has a long-lost twin?

Yeah... Mi-Young.

Clever.

Wait a minute... I thought she d*ed when she gotten eaten by that escalator.

Yeah, but they put it in reverse, and it brought her back to life.

Ah. That checks out medically.

Ohhh! No, she didn't!

Oh, yeah, she did!

Classic Young-Mi.