'Better Late Than Single' Finale Recap And Ending: Are There Any Successful Couples? 

It’s finally here, the finale of the first-ever season of Better Late Than Single, and the results aren’t that surprising. I definitely noticed the judges having more fun in these last two episodes, and seeing them super excited in some moments made me smile and laugh a bit too. The final 2 episodes definitely felt a bit unexpected, because they break away a bit from the rest of the show. But I still think this show has a more interesting structure than Singles Inferno, I feel people are truly getting to know each other rather than simply basing their decisions on first impressions and solo date nights. This is not to diss the popular show; I just feel like this one’s a bit more relatable in the realistic choices of contestants who feel more human and ordinary, for lack of a better word. I don’t mean ordinary in the sense that they’re not as “cool,” but the lack of overconfidence just makes it feel more real, if you know what I mean. But I’m going to stop ranting and get into the recap of the final two episodes.

In typical dating show fashion, when somebody becomes more popular than the others, they get the most screentime, and this is what happened with this show as well. So, in general, it feels like the final two days are spent just chilling a little bit, with the main focus on the two “leading” couples of the show so far. The Jeong-Mok-Ji-Yeon-Do drama is certainly quite entertaining, but I’ll have to admit it’s a little bit disappointing to see Do cry so much over a guy she’s barely known for 3 days. This is not to undermine her feelings, but because I’m rooting for her, I wish she were able to get over it sooner rather than later, especially since he’s so sure about Ji-Yeon that he’s already making marriage proposals. Meanwhile, the way he didn’t tell Min-Hong his true feelings also made the situation quite messy, and it’s totally fair to see her get mad at him for it (she’s still my favorite contestant, and I wish her the very best haha). Do has a word with Jeong-Mok and sorts her feelings out, but Jeong-Mok doesn’t bother doing the same with Min-Hong, which ticks her off further. I do appreciate that, though Do is struggling on the inside, she tells Jeong-Mok clearly that she would be uncomfortable being friends with him after the show. She’s happy for him, but she’s still going to have the “be myself” attitude. 

Episode 9 offers the contestants a shocking new date—an overnight one. Those who choose each other can go spend the night at a fancy villa. Because it was obvious there would be only two couples who would remotely consider doing something like this, it was a bit of a surprise that Ji-Su told Seung-Li that she wouldn’t be comfortable going off to a villa, and she’d rather just chill with everybody. I really appreciated her being honest, and Seung-Li took it well on the surface. But honestly, I feel like he should’ve clarified to Hyun-Kyu that the reason they weren’t going wasn’t because she didn’t choose between the two boys. I don’t know; that’s what I thought he went to his room for. It confused me a little bit.

So while the whole gang is chilling and having a nice dinner together, where Jae-Yun gets to be his charming self (honestly love that for him; he’s come so far), Ji-Yeon and Jeong-Mok are having their perfect overnight date. These two are so lovey-dovey, it’s a bit hard to believe they’ve never dated before. I just mean it seems to come to them so naturally. Think it’s all scripted? Honestly, watching the hosts’ reactions to this couple is the best part of this episode. They make everything seem genuine and actually exciting, even if it’s just a small thing like linking fingers in a car (I was feeling a bit embarrassed like Car, not going to lie). 

But while one couple is having their dream romantic night, the other is sitting so far apart that nobody would believe they’re a couple. Ji-Su never told Seung-Li she didn’t want to spend time with him; she might’ve just felt like being in a villa so far away, just by themselves, might be a bit uncomfortable. Seung-Li makes more than one mistake this night, though. First, he doesn’t even talk to Ji-Su all the way through dinner (yes, I know, she could’ve tried, but this is South Korea), but later he forgets a very important thing she told him about herself. She told him about her trauma and therapy, and he just nonchalantly suggested they change the subject when she brought it up. Sure, he was drunk; you can forgive it, but later, when she asks him about it when he’s sober too, he’s completely forgotten about it. It’s interesting to see how Han-Na and Eun-Ji have opposite opinions about which boy they would pick too. I think I’d side with Han-Na, too. I think if I were in Ji-Su’s place, I’d need somebody to put in double the amount of work rather than be indifferent. But the most scandalous bit of the episode was that Ji-Yeon and Jeong-Mok shared a bed at the end of the night and kissed under the blanket, which made the judges absolutely lose their marbles. 

The final episode begins with the love between Ji-Yeon and Jeong-Mok on an overnight date. But, on the other hand, Min-Hong is very angry about not being given a definitive no, and Do is still genuinely upset. Before leaving, Ji-Yeon apologized to both girls and even cried about it, because she felt bad for hurting their feelings; however, she definitely deserves a happy ending, and if that’s with Jeong-Mok, then the girls have to be supportive, and they really are. In this final episode, everybody gets to have a date with someone where they can share their final feelings; it’s like a closure date. Hyun-Kyu and Ji-Su’s date is particularly funny, because he acts as if he’s dated her for years and tells her, “I liked you,” with his hand up, walking away from her like a K-drama star. On the other hand, Min-Hong tells Jeong-Mok that she didn’t appreciate him not being honest with her when she specifically asked him about how he felt, but she tells him she’s rooting for him and Ji-Yeon. She definitely gives off cool elder sister vibes on the show. With Do, things don’t go as smoothly. She does end up crying, and she tells him that she believed they were destined to be because she went through a hard time with Seung-Li before Jeong-Mok, who was then so eager to be with her. However, there’s no bad blood. 

Ji-Su tells Seung-Li how she truly felt about him forgetting such an important detail, and he lightly apologizes. He does know he’s made a mistake, but honestly, for a sensitive person like Ji-Su, it would’ve been quite frustrating. So this makes everyone uncertain if Seung-Li and Ji-Su are going to be a couple or not. On the final night, the gang gets to play a game of truth or dare. Jae-Yun gets his redemption because he gets asked about lying to someone in the hope of being kind. He tells everybody what he told Yeo-Myeong, and they all empathize. She also understands where he came from now, but it’s a bit too late for these two. There’s some tension when Jeong-Mok gets asked some questions and the answer to both of them is Do, and when Do’s asked who she would go on a final date with if she had the chance, she says Jeong-Mok, causing a stir. However, the air is cleared when Jeong-Mok grabs Ji-Yeon’s hand in front of everybody. Then, when they’re asked if they’re sure they’ll see each other after leaving the show, they both say yes. But when the same question is asked to Ji-Su and Seung-Li, she says she’s 90% sure, specifically because of everything that’s gone down since the previous night. This is what finally makes Seung-Li worry. Ji-Su also cries because she asks the boys who chose her if they resented her for making them wait; they all say no, though Seung-Li hesitates for sure. 

In Better Late Than Single’s ending, each member’s supposed to leave their photocard in the book of the person they want to leave with in the 5-minute library. Most of the girls forfeit, because they know none of their choices like them back, but the boys choose to put their pictures in the slots for those whom they’ve liked anyway. But we all know that there are only two possible couples walking out of this program, and they are Ji-Yeon and Jeong-Mok, and Seung-Li and Ji-Su. They do add a lot of drama in the last few minutes, making it seem like Ji-Su decides against being with Seung-Li, but she does show up at the end. I don’t know if this couple will last very long, but it’s really interesting to see how drastically different both the ending couples are. Jeong-Mok and Ji-Yeon are so sure of each other that they think they could get married, whereas Ji-Su and Seung-Li haven’t even held hands yet. Guess “like” takes a lot of different shapes, and that’s what we get to see in Better Late Than Single. Were you satisfied with the ending? Who did you wish to end up together?