This episode hurt my feelings. I don’t even know where to begin. Granny passes away in the hospital, Ah Jin breaks up with In Gang in his time of need and then he takes his own life. I suspected it would happen, especially with In Gang’s history of depression, but that doesn’t make it hurt any less. Dear X has a way of making me feel hopeless just like Ah Jin. It does too good of a job at holding up a mirror to the real world, the darker side of human nature, and the lack of justice that’s ever present in society and how that lack of justice continually breeds victims and perpetrators.
What can I say? Episode eight was heavy so my review will be too.
YES to Choi Jeong Ho’s character
I thought he’d want revenge. Who could blame him? But he tells Ah Jin at Granny’s funeral that he spent his time in prison coming to peace with her using him to kill her father. In fact, he feels pity for her because she must have been going through something horrible to come up with that plan. He says if she had at least one good adult in her life she might have turned out differently. And he vows to be that good adult, pitying and cheering her on from afar. Ugh, this scene was like a punch to the gut. Jeong Ho is a golden human through and through, and I wish Ah Jin had someone like him and/or In Gang’s grandmother growing up. But it’s too late. Ah Jin tells him he missed his one chance at revenge, thanks him for opting out, and walks away. I’m not gonna lie, her responses to things are both devastating and infuriating in this episode. She’s so cold, she can no longer feel the warmth of others.
I’m really happy with Choi Jeong Ho as a character, though. He’s well-written and his arc makes sense. I understand why he decided not to get revenge—I’d even say he’s better off for it. But it’s disheartening to think he spent five years in jail for trying to help someone, and now has to live the rest of his life as an ex-con.
YES to Ah Jin and In Gang’s figurative goodbye
I’m going to talk about everything that led up to this point under my “NO”, but wow. This scene was cathartic. After In Gang takes his own life, Ah Jin goes into his apartment and sits on the edge of the bathtub where his body was found. It’s a beautifully shot scene. The room is bathed in soft blue light and Ah Jin envisions In Gang in the tub. She looks at him and says, “Everyone ends up abandoned and broken in life. You were just too weak. I just couldn’t fall apart with you. Please understand me.” As she speaks, a tear falls down her cheek and I can’t breathe because isn’t this her entire character in a nutshell?
Ah Jin truly doesn’t feel guilt for most things. She puts herself before everyone else. She refuses to be “weak”. But she doesn’t take pleasure in hurting those she perceives as “weak”. (One could say she chose Choi Jeong Ho for her dad’s murder because he was mentally strong). In a way, they remind Ah Jin of herself. So she’s legitimately sad about In Gang. There was no one around to see her cry, but the tears fell because she experienced grief.
I have never felt such conflicting emotions for a character before. I’m furious with Ah Jin at this point. I don’t blame her for In Gang’s suicide because I don’t think something like that can be blamed on a person, but she wreaked havoc on his family with her manipulation and lies. Now him and his grandmother are gone, and his poor little brother has no one. And yet…I can’t help feeling like Choi Jeong Ho. I pity her and think to myself, “If only she’d had a good adult…”.
YES to Jun Seo’s mom apologizing, but it’s too little, too late
I was just as wary as Ah Jin when Hwang Ji Sun strolled into her apartment, dropped to her knees, and apologized for how she treated Ah Jin in the past. That’s why I wasn’t surprised to find out she was only doing it to get Jun Seo off her back. She doesn’t care about anyone but herself either—not even her own son.
Once again, we get a peek into Ah Jin’s psyche. Ji Sun’s calloused, fake apology triggers her, and she knocks books off her coffee table, clutching her head and laughing manically. She admits hating the times Ji Sun was nice to her because it gave her false hope, and hope was never something she wanted to hold on to. That is soul-crushing! Yes, childhood trauma (and let’s be real: continued trauma into young adulthood) doesn’t excuse what Ah Jin has done, but it’s impossible to deny that when someone is abused as a child those scars stay with them for life. And just like scars harden, Ah Jin hardened too.
NO to every single thing that happened to Seo In Gang
From his grandmother passing away to suspecting Ah Jin of having something to do with it to their breakup, In Gang suffered greatly. We watched him get closer and closer to the edge. It was really hard to watch the breakup scene because he was still grieving, and she was so incredibly cruel. I wanted to smack her. I’ve been watching dramas for decades, and I can confidently say that was one of the most brutal break up scenes I’ve ever watched. I understand she was extra harsh so he’d let her go, but it was still painful. And I gasped out loud when I saw the engagement ring In Gang bought by the tub. He was another good dude who didn’t deserve to be swept up in Hurricane Ah Jin.
Final Thoughts
It looks like another man who’s obsessed with Ah Jin will be introduced in the next episode. He’s keeping tabs on her, and his men even beat up Jae Oh when he caught them following her. He doesn’t seem mentally sound either, so I wonder if he’s a sociopath like Ah Jin. My guess is that he sees himself in her and they’re going to get engaged so Ah Jin can win back public favor or at least cut ties with Longstar Entertainment.
Lastly, I knew Ah Jin didn’t push granny down the stairs! Jae Oh and I knew she wouldn’t, and now Jun Seo knows too because of the security camera one of the neighbor’s had. This is part of my frustration with Jun Seo. He’s supposed to know her the best, but thinks she’d murder an old lady when she’s never murdered or wanted to murder anyone other than her dad and that stalker who tried to assault her.
Anyway, I’m looking forward to the next episode. We’re in the home stretch, but there’s still time for plenty of chaos!
More Dear X Posts
- REVIEW: DEAR X EPISODE 7
- REVIEW: DEAR X EPISODE 6
- REVIEW: DEAR X EPISODE 5
- REVIEW: DEAR X EPISODE 4
- REVIEW: DEAR X EPISODE 3
- REVIEW: DEAR X EPISODE 1 & 2
