Jisung recalls guilt about his father Jeong Jae-seong.
On the 10th episode of MBC's Friday-Saturday drama The Judge Returns (planned by Jang Jae-hoon, written by Kim Kwang-min, directed by Lee Jae-jin and Park Mi-yeon), episode 4, Lee Han-young (played by Jisung) summons a heartrending memory related to his father Lee Bong-seok (played by Jeong Jae-seong).
In the previous episode 3 broadcast, Judge Lee Han-young sentenced serial killer Kim Sang-jin (played by Bae In Hyuk) to death, consoling the victims and their bereaved families. The case also brought Lee to the attention of the malicious judicial figure Kang Shin-jin (played by Park Hee-soon) and Haenal Law Firm CEO Yoo Seon-cheol (played by Ahn Nae-sang), lighting the fateful fuse for uprooting great evil.
As cases testing Lee Han-young's abilities continue to come in, the stills released on the 10th (today) reveal a bitter facet of Han-young's past, prompting curiosity about a hidden story between him and his father that took place in the courthouse. Earlier, young Han-young encountered Bong-seok, who had sided with the protesters after working as hired muscle for S Construction's redevelopment protest.
In contrast to the confident, warmhearted Lee Han-young of 2025, the young Han-young (played by Yoon Jae-chan) sits tense in the gallery, staring at Bong-seok in the defendant's seat. It raises curiosity about the tragic backstory that led ordinary family man Lee Bong-seok to stand trial and why Lee Han-young came to bear such heavy guilt toward him.
Meanwhile, presiding at Lee Bong-seok's trial is the steely-eyed associate judge Kang Shin-jin, drawing attention. The scene suggests that the feud between Lee Han-young and Kang Shin-jin has existed for a long time. The trial that upended a family's fate raises questions about what the story was that day and the attention is on the outcome.
As the long-standing cycle of enmity that bound Lee Han-young and Kang Shin-jin continues into the present, interest builds in how this trial may have turned Han-young's life upside down. The narrative, where past tragedy and present counterattack intertwine and surge forward, naturally heightens desire to watch the live broadcast.
[Photo] Provided by MBC
[OSEN]