A delicate story about mental illness and finding yourself (with a few loose ends)

I only started watching The Eighth Sense last week, but I quickly fell in love with its grounded yet somehow dreamy atmosphere. The cinematography and lighting were truly phenomenal. This drama felt more like a movie than a show, and I appreciate the care the cast and crew put into creating it.

The OST was simply wonderful, too. I found myself looking for the songs after I finished each episode. I'm listening to The Story by Conan Grey as I type this.

Onto the show itself. I really enjoyed that surfing was what brought Ji Hyun and Jae Won together. The last time I personally experienced surfing in media was either The Shallows or Teen Beach Movie. (And I won’t complain about seeing the actors in wetsuits). It was something fun and different.

Despite having such a lighthearted premise, The Eighth Sense approached mental health and childhood trauma in a delicate yet realistic manner. It is clear that Jae Won has been struggling for a while, and I loved that they depicted his relationship with his therapist throughout the series. I like it when a show doesn’t shy away from characters using prescriptions for mental health issues, too. It goes a long way in reducing the stigma around an unnecessarily taboo topic. Ji Hyun has his own share of trauma as well, and the two of them become each other’s safe space.

Honestly, the plot wasn’t particularly complex. It has a basic boy meets boy, boy is attracted to other boy and is confused about it, they kiss, an ex is introduced, they break up, they get back together structure. But what makes this show special is the 3-dimensional characters. So much of the story comes from the characters themselves that it doesn’t matter that the plot is just the same skeleton wearing a different skin.

Ji Hyun, my wonderful boy. He has the patience of a saint. He starts off as this timid, country mouse, but he grows into his own by the end of the drama. He’s learned that it’s okay to be afraid as long as you don’t let it stop you. Jae Won was a big part of that. Props to Oh Jun Taek, too. His performance was wonderful, and the chemistry between him and Im Ji Sub was amazing. You could feel the tension when Jae Won and Ji Hyun so much as looked at each other, and it translated beautifully to their blossoming relationship in episode 10.

I really have to give it to Im Ji Sub, though. He’s mastered the lifeless stare so well, and it’s heartwrenching to watch him recede into himself after Ji Hyun’s accident. Everything about his performance was amazing. Jae Won’s false confidence, the mask he projects to the world to protect himself slowly being broken down by Ji Hyun. It’s all on his face. And the breakdown he had when his camera was smashed? Terrible. Awful. I hated it (Spoiler alert: I didn’t hate it).

And the friends! Ae Ri and Yoon Won are the best side characters, no question. Yoon Won is Jae Won’s only real friend (because we’re not counting Ji Hyun), and they’re both so good for each other. I actually didn’t like Ae Ri at first because she came on so strong to Ji Hyun, and I was worried she was going to act irrationally because of what I assumed was the crush she had on him. However, I grew to love her when she and Ji Hyun settled into their friendship. Also, I’ll throw an honorable mention out to Ji Hyun’s boss. She was wonderful as well and acted as a mother figure to Ji Hyun and Jae Won at the end of the show.

I’m also impressed by the skinship in this series. We got some great kisses sprinkled throughout. My favorite scene would have to be the end of episode 9 though. The Story by Conan Grey was the perfect song to encapsulate Ji Hyun and Jae Won’s relationship and finally break through to Jae Won. It culminated in one of the best kisses (or series of kisses) I’ve ever seen in a BL. It’s definitely in my top three. I’m glad it didn’t stop after one emotional scene. We continued to see them kissing, hugging, and cuddling like any other couple. I also loved that Ji Hyun took charge in multiple scenes. So happy they let him be the big spoon because Jae Won deserves to be held just as much as Ji Hyun.

That was the good of the series. As much as I loved it for all of these reasons, the finale left me wanting. The conflict between Jae Won and Ji Hyun had been building since Ji Hyun was released from the hospital, but after they kissed, everything was fine. Although I was frustrated with Jae Won for avoiding Ji Hyun after the accident, I understand why he did it. And I understand if he couldn’t explain why he did it just yet. Depression can make you think irrationally, and that’s not his fault, but I wish he could have at least apologized. He caused both of them so much pain, but it was completely glossed over aside from a line in which Jae Won vaguely promises not to make Ji Hyun sad in the future. I wanted some sort of resolution or conversation in which they talk about what happened between them. Living with a mental illness is tough, and not communicating makes it even harder to navigate for both parties involved. I’m glad they got their happy ending, but it feels like they skipped a few steps in the middle.

Another thing that didn’t sit right with me was the whole situation with Eun Ji. I was confused about when Jae Won agreed that they were back together because, unless I missed it, he never directly said anything. His friends all thought they were back together, too, and relayed that information to Ji Hyun. Then Ji Hyun saw Eun Ji kissing Jae Won and was visibly upset, but Jae Won never confronted him about it even though he knew Ji Hyun was there. You’d think that if she was kissing him without his consent, he would tell Ji Hyun so as to not cause any further misunderstandings. But alas, it was never brought up. At that point, Ji Hyun and Jae Won were still “together,” or at least they had shared intimate moments at the beach and hadn’t defined what they were. It must have been so upsetting for Ji Hyun, yet he never searched for an explanation. Maybe he thought it wasn’t worth getting into because Jae Won hasn’t shown any further interest in Eun Ji, but it was frustrating for the viewer.

There were also a few scenes that I felt were edited poorly. Particularly the scene in episode 6 where Ji Hyun gets injured. I had to rewind it multiple times to figure out what had happened, and I still don’t really understand. Did he pass out and nearly drown? Hit his head on a rock? We don’t see anything except him sinking underwater from his POV. It was just a bit hard to follow. Then people act as if he’s dead, but we find out he was in the hospital with a neck brace. I really can’t figure out where the injury came from. If anybody has an idea, please tell me!

Then there’s Tae Hyung. Nothing about him was likable. If Jae Won could act objectively, I’d say he should have cut him out of his life instead of accepting his peace offering, but leaving a toxic friendship is just as hard as leaving any toxic relationship. Tae Hyung is so clearly jealous of Jae Won, and he’s taking his resentment out on him even though Jae Won can’t control his family’s status. Jae Won has known Tae Hyung for years, and, honestly, I can’t fault him for forgiving him because I would do the same for the sake of the friendship, however fragile, and the familiarity.

Lastly, I’m so curious about what really happened to Jae Won’s brother. Obviously, it’s not the focus of the story, nor is it truly necessary, but knowing would be an interesting look into Jae Won’s psyche. Extending this to his whole family situation, what is up with his dad? We’ve heard that he’s aggressive, but we don’t know much more than that. I hope that we’ll learn more about Jae Won’s past if we get a season 2.

Overall, I enjoyed this drama. Despite my grievances, it left me with a lot of thoughts and feelings. To me, that’s the mark of a good show. Or, at least, one that has done its job. I would recommend this show to anyone who is interested in a character-driven story with a side of romance and self-discovery. It really was a delightful ride. I hope to see it gain some more traction!

Thank you for reading my (way too long) review! I just had a lot of thoughts and no one to share them with. Also, go watch the deleted scene on YouTube if you haven’t yet! It shows more of Jae Won’s breakdown.

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