Powered by Park Hae-soo’s intensely layered acting and explosive word of mouth, ENA’s Monday–Tuesday drama scarecrow is on a frightening upward trajectory.
Episode 3, which aired on the 27th, showed Kang Tae-joo (played by Park Hae-soo) witnessing the death of the sixth victim in the serial murder case, Kim Min-ji (played by Kim Hwan-hee), triggering a harrowing awakening.
In the broadcast, Kim Mi-yeon (played by Kim Gye-rim) testified, saying, "The culprit personally killed five people." In the urgent situation, Kang Tae-joo begged Cha Si-young (played by Lee Hee-jun) to let him rejoin the missing-person search, putting his resignation on the line. After much deliberation, Cha Si-young decided to give him a chance.
Despite Kang Tae-joo’s desperate pursuit, Kim Min-ji was ultimately found as a lifeless body. The death of Kim Min-ji—who had pleaded, "Do you really have to quit being a cop? Please, sir, just catch the killer"—plunged Kang Tae-joo into deep despair and blazing fury. From that moment, he was filled with grim determination to catch the perpetrator no matter what.
Seo Ji-won (played by Kwak Sun-young) decided to run as a story the photos she secured while facing off with the culprit during a sting operation. Although the image was blurry and couldn’t clearly identify the face, she judged it would put intense pressure on the real killer.
The production team teased, "In Episode 4, airing on the 28th, Kang Tae-joo reaches out to Cha Si-young, kicking off a nail-biting joint operation," adding, "Thanks to a decisive clue found by Seo Ji-won, suspicion will begin to form around an unexpected figure."
According to ratings research firm Nielsen Korea, Episode 3 of scarecrow recorded 5.0% nationwide and 4.8% in the Seoul metropolitan area, with minute-by-minute peaks soaring to 5.4%. The series ranked No. 1 among Monday–Tuesday dramas and No. 1 across all channels in the same time slot, proving its explosive, word-of-mouth-fueled success.
Meanwhile, Episode 4 of scarecrow airs on the 28th at 10 p.m. on ENA and is also available on Genie TV and TVING.