this world is mad

Please realise this scene 🙏🏼

A lot of the time in (K)dramas the “naive ugly duckling”/“loser” type of main character with not the best sense of fashion gets like this insane makeover, no matter if it’s a romcom or an action thriller, were they get all sleek and elegant and “hot” or whatever to make them look more badass. E.g. Vincenzo

Of course the actor (YSY) is attractive regardless but they could’ve easily chosen to change his style to match Seo Inwoos by the end of it. Give him some tailored suits and shorter/gelled back hair but no!

Did he get more confident in himself, his abilities and his moral code? Yes absolutely! He did change over course of the story! But in the end he stayed true to himself. And especially in sight of him not only taking on Seo Inwoos persona but also that of multiple movie characters … I think that’s quite significant and beautiful.

It looks like a rather random and insignificant scene, in which these two characters just run the stairs up/down, to some over dramatic music… but i think it’s a pretty good summary of the show over all.

For context: This scene happens when both characters find a major clue to figuring out who YDS really is and run after him in to confirm their suspicion. Neither can catch him and leave dissatisfied. However their reason and ultimate goal is quite opposing. And this short scene encaptures that. Let me explain:

Seo Inwoo sees a red notebook, similar to his, fall out of Yook Dongsiks bag. He is shocked into immobility for a couple seconds and Yook Dongsik just grabs it and walks to the elevator.

Seo Inwoo in both fear and excitement of who YDS might really be, now tries to catch him before the door closes, can’t, so he runs down the stairs to catch him at the entrance.

At this point Seo Inwoo doesn’t know anything but that YDS has a notebook that suspiciously looks like his own diary… the one he writes down his murders. He can’t know for sure whether it just happens to be the same brand as his, not what’s written in it and certainly not that it is genuinely HIS.

But what he DOES know is that he wants. He WANTS the notebook used for the things his diary is used , WANTS Yook Dongsik to be like him and most importantly WANTS Yook Dongsik to join him, be his partner in crime.

Shim Bo Kyung on the other hand had just talked to Seo Inwoos “friend”, who had treated both YDS and SBY like lesser. This friend had told her “what a psycho” YDS really is.

Shim Bo Kyung, in fear of who YDS might really be, now tries to catch him before he leaves, the elevator is talking too long, so he runs up the stairs to catch him still in the club.

At this point Shim Bo Kyung doesn’t know anything but that Yook Dongsik had fought off “five gangsters”, “pretended” to have amnesia and shows other signs of psychopathy according to her research. She can’t know for sure if “psycho murderer” is just sth of a casual phrase someone would call someone else after having fought with them or more.

But what she DOES know is that she wants. She WANTS there to be a logical and plausible explanation for all these clues, WANTS Yook Dongsik to be like her and most importantly WANTS Yook Dongsik to join her, be her partner against crime.

In other words both Seo Inwoo AND Shim Bo Kyung are trying to reach Yook Dongsik, demand answers and finally have their happy ending. Both are unaware of the other.

In other words: Seo Inwoo wants him to be(come) a murder and thus drag him further down to hell. Shim Bo Kyung fears him to be a murderer and wants to help him up, to heaven. They are the respective angel and devil on Yook Dongsiks shoulder.

Meanwhile Yook Dongsik is completely unaware of either of their troubles. He, himself had already decided to exit the elevator for a quick bathroom run.

And this scene albeit small is the perfect metaphor for the entire show: This push and pull between are we inherently “good” or “evil”. Do we even have agency of it or is it predetermined? And the show answers it even in this small screenshot. Even without showing the main character.

And the best part is that WE the viewers are fooled for a second as well, thinking we already KNOW Seo Inwoo will catch up with him. After all, we learned how fast he runs and thus is entirely able to outrun a full elevator, as well as Shim Bookyun running in the opposite direction. Just as we expect till the end for him to murder at least ONE of the bad guys, even if it’s Seo Inwoo. But neither of this happens.

I love them just so much and the show was so good and it had potential to be so much better but I after they talked about only the first 4 episodes having been planned it makes sense lol

Water is way more hydrating than soda, but soda is more hydrating than nothing. A balanced meal is way more nutritious than ice cream, but ice cream is more nutritious than nothing.

Something is better than nothing. Some hydration is better than no hydration. Some nutrients are better than no nutrients. Some produce is better than no produce.

“But there are dark, untouched corners within all of us. Sex can be very exciting in one moment and barely tepid the next. It can feel like love but not be love. It can feel like possession and then the person walks away. You can’t possess another person. You can’t make another person not die. If nothing else, at least my vomit fetish is mine. It’s mine and it’s real.”