* This review contains minor spoilers for episode 7 and 8 of Destined With You.
In last week’s episode, Shin-Yu (Rowoon) and Hong-Jo (Jo Bo-Ah) tried to ignore the effects of the spell, but it proved too difficult. Shin-Yu’s fiancé Na Yeon (Yura) tries to reconcile with him, while Hong-Jo discovers Jae-Kyung (Ha Jun) has moved into the apartment below her.
Trying to get their lives back on track, Hong-Jo and Shin-Yu attempt to break the spell, but their effort ultimately fails. Jae-Kyung discovers them together and assumes Shin-Yu is cheating with Hong-Jo. Shin-Yu confesses that he is in love with her, shocking everyone.
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Where the story picks up
Jae-Kyung is upset by Shin-Yu’s acknowledgement of the “affair”, and threatens to tell Na-Yeon’s father, the mayor. The situation gets tense, until Hong-Jo decides to tell Jae-Kyung about the spell, which is the reason for Shin-Yu’s behavior.
We then get a hilarious scene where both Hong-Jo and Shin-Yu try to convince the incredulous Jae-Kyung about their situation. For a moment the dialogue gets very meta, as he points out that “time slips and parallel universes” make more sense than a love spell. He challenges them to prove their story by having Hong-Jo cast a spell.
She casts a “fair skin” beauty spell, but Jae-Kyung doesn’t notice any difference and declares their story can’t be true. At the same time, he and Shin-Yu challenge each other over their feelings for Hong-Jo. Both Ha Jun and Rowoon give amazing performances as two jealous men fighting over Jo Bo-Ah. Shin-Yu begins to doubt whether he really is under a spell, and Jae-Kyung and Hong-Jo later share drinks on the roof. The evening brings them closer together, intensifying the love triangle.
A “neural coupling”
The next day, Shin-Yu asks his doctor if his illness could have caused brain damage that led to his feelings for Hong-Jo. The doctor suggests hearing the fantastical story about magic and spells may have caused a “neural coupling” that simulated false emotions. Shin-Yu tells Hong-Jo of this, but neither of them appear convinced by it.
At the same time, the rest of the office has found out that Shin-Yu is dating Na-Yeon, although they do not know that she is really his fiancé. Hong-Jo’s colleagues begin to treat her nicely, saying that she must be “heartbroken”. They wrongly assume she was pursuing Shin-Yu all this while. Hong-Jo is confused, and the comments make her reconsider her true feelings towards Shin-Yu.
Na-Yeon learns of the “affair”
Someone sends Na-Yeon photographs showing Shin-Yu and Hong-Jo almost kissing. An angry Na-Yeon questions Shin-Yu, but he refuses to explain. She confronts Hong-Jo and slaps her, accusing her of “stealing her boyfriend again”.
In a shocking twist, we learn Na-Yeon herself is not so innocent. She has been carrying on her own affair with Lee Hyeon-Seo (Kim Kwon), the owner of the construction company that Shin-Yu defended in the first episode. This makes us question all that we know about Na-Yeon, and her motivation for wanting to continue with her marriage to Shin-Yu.
An angry Hong-Jo later meets Shin-Yu to discuss the new development. However, she ends up admitting her growing feelings for him. They finally kiss, but she walks away, saying she needs time to think. Jo Bo-Ah gives an excellent performance here, perfectly expressing Hong-Jo’s conflicting feelings.
The next day, Hong-Jo meets Na-Yeon and tries to explain the situation to her, leaving out the fact that she and Shin-Yu kissed. She later tells Shin-Yu that they need to set boundaries and distance themselves from each other. Shin-Yu tries to find out who sent Na-Yeon the photos.
Hong-Jo has a stalker
Shin-Yu believes Hong-Jo is being stalked by the plant nursery manager from the previous episode. The man has increased his advances towards Hong-Jo, and Shin-Yu threatens him with legal action if he doesn’t stop.
Later, acting upon a suggestion from the shaman, Shin-Yu and Hong-Jo try to return the ancient box to its place at the former shaman’s hut. Hong-Jo trips and breaks it, revealing another hidden spell book filled with curses. They then discover a straw figure hanging from a tree at the site. The figure is wearing a stolen pair of Hong-Jo’s pajamas, and a piece of paper with Shin-Yu’s name is stuck on its chest using a knife.
They report their find to the police, and Shin-Yu urges Hong-Jo to protect herself. They decide to go on a ‘pretend date’ in order to lure her stalker. While on their date, Shin-Yu goes back on his earlier beliefs about the “neural coupling”, saying he doesn’t want his feelings for Hong-Jo to be temporary. Hong-Jo reminds him that they should stay apart, and the two have a painful goodbye.
Shin-Yu later goes to confront the plant nursery owner, suspecting that he set up the straw figure. He later goes missing. Meanwhile, Hong-Jo has a terrifying experience where she is followed by a mysterious figure.
What we liked this week on Destined With You
We definitely enjoyed the big dramatic moments here. The twist that Na-Yeon was having an affair certainly gives an excuse for Shin-Yu to pursue Hong-Jo. And we also got to see the love triangle grow between Hong-Jo, Shin-Yu and Jae-Kyung.
This week’s episodes of Destined With You also showcased the subplots involving Hong-Jo’s colleagues and Shin-Yu’s parents. We find out that Hong-Jo’s bosses Mr. Gong and Ms. Ma might be playing their own romantic games, while her two female colleagues continue to pine in vain for Shin-Yu. We learn that Shin-Yu’s mother is becoming increasingly frustrated with his father, while also growing closer to her son’s former classmate.
The stalker situation which was set up earlier has also paid off, and we’re certainly looking forward to seeing how that gets resolved. We also want to know if Hong-Jo will use the curse spell book in order to defend herself. The preview for the next episode shows Shin-Yu has been hospitalized, while Hong-Jo continues to get menaced by her stalker. We will also finally get to see the events of the past, and what really happened between Shin-Yu and Hong-Jo’s Joseon ancestors. In particular, we’re looking forward to seeing Rowoon and Jo Bo-Ah portary star-crossed lovers across two different eras.
Join us in finding out what happens next week on Destined With You!
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