Welcome to the Open Thread, everyone! Thanks for joining this group watch! ❤️

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ZERO SPOILER POLICY

Only events that occur in the episodes discussed here may be referenced.

No future developments, relationship outcomes, mythology reveals, major twists, or “just wait…” hints — even vague foreshadowing can affect first-time viewers.

If you’re ahead of the group watch, please keep that knowledge to yourself. Let’s protect the innocent! 😉

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Without further ado, here are my reactions to this set of episodes. Have fun in the comments! ❤️

My thoughts

Episode 7

E7. Well, this was a pretty great episode; I feel like I couldn’t really ask for anything more of Show, right now, and that’s very impressive, considering I’d had no idea how Show would work itself out of the bind it had written for our characters.

I love how Show manages to save Yul, while keeping everything within the believable confines of our story world.

It’s like Show was giving us a tour of its house, and talked itself into a corner, and then turned around and revealed a hidden door, behind which there’s a whole other section of the house that we just didn’t realize was there. 😁

That’s what it feels like to me, as we explore this arc of how Yul gets saved, when there had appeared to be no way to save him.

Sure, some of it is because Madam Jin had lied, and said that there was no way for someone with the blood parasite settled in their energy torrent, to survive.

But there are other parts too, where Show reveals possibilities that we just didn’t know existed, in this drama world.

Maybe not all viewers like that sort of thing, but I find myself perfectly happy to roll with the stuff that Show is serving up.

Rather than think of Show as trying to deceive me, or keeping things from me, to manipulate my perspective, I’m happy to just think of it as Show and I.. never having had any reason to talk about these details, in the past. 😁

I just love that instead of waving a magic wand and making all our troubles disappear (hello, deus ex machina), Show takes the time to demonstrate why its solution works organically within the world it’s created.

The new things that are revealed to us (the magic orb that can carry Yul’s energy, for example) feel absolutely believable as things that would exist in this drama world.

And on top of that, our characters stay in character, and don’t suddenly start acting like completely different people.

Brownie points for all of that, seriously.

I would absolutely believe that Uk would storm any place, in order to save Yul, never mind what place that might be, and whether there are a ton of mages poised to fight against him.

In fact, I found myself feeling quite mesmerized by the sight of Uk methodically advancing through the armies of mages set up against him.

There’s something both intent yet kinda languid about it, which makes it all the more badass – because he knows – and we know, too – that he doesn’t need to unleash his full power, in order to overcome anyone and everyone who places themselves in his way.

The only thing that feels a touch off, to me, is that no one seems to take issue with the fact that Uk is using the power of the ice stone for his own personal agenda.

I mean, his sword is drawn, and he’s injuring and killing people, and this has nothing to do with catching soul shifters, and yet, no one says anything about it.

On this point, perhaps Uk is just that powerful, that everyone knows it’s futile to point it out? Because he could just annihilate them if he wanted to?

That’s the explanation that I’m settling on, in my head, at least for the time being.

In any case, I still felt a stab of gratification, to see Park Jin come out in support of Uk, when he’s storming Cheonbugwan, along with a whole army of Songrim mages.

I also liked seeing how the Crown Prince asserts himself and talks Jin Mu down, when Jin Mu tries to evade responsibility for the blood parasite that’s killing Yul.

Thereafter, watching Jin Mu eat humble pie, and beseeching everyone for help, in order to save himself from being killed by Uk, was pretty satisfying to watch as well.

What can I say? I find that I just like seeing Jin Mu suffer. 😁😅

The reveal, that Uk had gone to all this trouble, not because he’d been out of Jin Mu’s blood per se, but because he wanted to use Jin Mu to move Madam Jin’s hand, is quite satisfying too, if only for how disgruntled this makes Jin Mu. 😁

It’s a bummer that Madam Jin demands that Uk agree to send Bu Yeon back to Jinyowon as a condition for her help, but like Bu Yeon says, it’s not something that I didn’t see coming.

This is absolutely something that Madam Jin would do, since she’s never been in favor of Bu Yeon marrying Uk, in the first place.

One of my favorite highlights, this episode, is the whole thing where Bu Yeon has to carry the orb in her mouth and therefore can’t talk, and this is when Show decides that it’s time for Bu Yeon and the Crown Prince to meet each other properly, as themselves, and not as a shaman woman and a eunuch. 😁

I love how Show manages to keep the circumstances of this meeting organic to what we’ve been told about the situation, and the antics around it, relevant to our developing story, WHILE teasing out the funny, from this whole scenario.

This, to my eyes, is the Hong sisters at their best.

This all still drives our story forward, but the hilarity is organic, and not for a minute forsaken, despite the gravity of the situation at hand. Really, really well done. 🤩

Similarly, I love the detail, that the reason Uk has all that gold handy – which is exactly what our rescue team needs right now – is because he’s stashed all his rewards from the Crown Prince, in that random room in Jeongjingak, due to the fact that he just.. can’t be bothered.

This makes the convenient appearance of that large amount of gold feel organic to our story, instead of a stroke of narrative magic. I like it, anyway. 😁

I’m relieved that Yul lives, not only because I’d like him to survive, but also because this girds my preference and belief that Show won’t kill off other main characters too, like Bu Yeon / Naksu. 😅

I’m gunning for a happy ending, in case that wasn’t clear before. 😅

And in the spirit of that happy ending, I somehow felt a good amount of hope, while Uk was angsting, this episode, over Bu Yeon’s departure.

Also, isn’t that flickering lantern like a tongue-in-cheek take on the trope of how a mopey main character tends to flick the light in their bedrooms on and off? 😁

I love that Uk comes to realize that he misses Bu Yeon, and doesn’t want to be apart from her, and goes to Jeongjingak to see her.

I really felt a good amount of satisfaction, to see Uk waiting there for Bu Yeon, when she goes to retrieve Songrim’s Spirit Plaque.

I do love how the way Uk explains his feelings to Bu Yeon uses the flickering of the lantern; the lantern is used to such great effect, in this scene! 🤩

“When it is on, I am sane. It is clear to me that I must send you back as I promised. But I go insane when it turns off. I just pine for you. That is why I came to see you.”

That’s such a great laying of the foundation of the scene, so that when Bu Yeon responds by blowing at his face, and saying that she wants to turn it off, Uk (and us too!) immediately understands what she’s saying.

She wants Uk to miss her; she wants Uk to pine for her; she wants Uk to go crazy for her.

And the kisses that come afterwards, completely bring forth that intensity and longing; of “I need you,” “I can’t do without you,” “I’m crazy for you.” 🔥🫠

So much believable sizzle and crackle, in all of the skinship touches. 🔥

The unhurried, sensual nature of the kiss; the way Uk holds her face; the way she grabs the back of Uk’s robe, as if she’d like to be even closer to him still.

Faint. Puddle. Swoon. 🫠🫠

Episode 8

E8. I’ve heard it said that there are two main camps when it comes to the OTP loveline between Uk and Bu Yeon.

Apparently, there is one camp that feels that Uk falling for Bu Yeon negates the love that he’d declared for Mu Deok / Naksu, since he’s falling for Bu Yeon while thinking that she’s a legitimately different person.

And then there’s apparently the other camp, who doesn’t care too much about the logic of it, and is just in it for the skinship and feels.

I don’t see myself in either of those camps, though if I had to pick a side, I’d probably land more in the second camp than the first.

The thing is, why can’t we have a third camp?

I’m actually quite happy to think of it as Uk being drawn to Naksu, regardless of what body she inhabits, and regardless of whether he’s cognizant that it’s her.

He’s just drawn to her regardless, and I’d like to think that that’s what’s happening here, with him falling for Bu Yeon like this.

Isn’t this a very romantic, Fated Love sort of kdrama notion?

And so, for the record, this is the lens that I’m wearing, while watching the romance unfold between Uk and Bu Yeon, and it’s working very well for me. 😁

Backing up to the top of this episode, I had absolutely no problem at all, with Show indulging a little more kissy-touchy between Uk and Bu Yeon, now that he’s cognizant of his feelings for her, and has embraced them.

I also do love how the prospect of Bu Yeon having to return to Jinyowon creates this extra layer of tension, longing and angst that gets poured into their skinship.

Every kiss feels extra hungry, and every touch feels extra precious, because of their awareness of their situation and probable impending separation, and that just amps up the feels and the sexy, not gonna lie.

Daze. Swoon. 🔥🫠

Also, the way Show shifts from Uk and Bu Yeon being in the thick of swoony, electrifying kisses, to them gently pausing, because Bu Yeon feels the energy of the ice stone within him, and Uk apologizes (for wanting to die), and thanks Bu Yeon (for getting him to a place where he no longer wants to die).

And then, there’s how the tone shifts so deftly, to something lighter and more comical, with Bu Yeon trying to get them back in the kissy space, by blowing on Uk’s face, telling him to switch off (the lantern).

Hee. I was quite amused by this, and also, impressed at how deftly Show is navigating such significant tonal shifts. Quite masterful, I thought.

I love the cuteness of Uk and Bu Yeon blithely walking hand in hand afterwards, where she kind of natters at him, and he just kind of agrees to everything she says, like when she tells him to sleep at home every night from now on, he just amiably agrees.

I love that dynamic.

My favorite bit of this conversation, is when Bu Yeon tells him that she’s stored up a whole bunch of honey biscuits in her room, because she’d always buy some (because he likes them), and asks him to go eat them.

Aw. That’s such a practical, everyday indication that she’s been thinking about him, a lot, and I like it. 🥰

On a tangent, I do love how our writers have such a good grasp of all the various soundbites between our OTP, and plant them so judiciously, in Bu Yeon’s words.

Like the way she artlessly tells him, that she knew that he was her husband, at first sight, echoing what Uk had once told Naksu / Mu Deok, that he’d known that she was his master, at first sight.

I imagine that that must take a good amount of careful narrative plotting, and yet, the Hong sisters makes it feel so natural, like it’s part of the conversation in the present. Very nicely done.

I’m glad that Yul intervenes to make it possible for Bu Yeon to stay with Uk for the time being, but.. the whole thing, where he and Madam Jin are just biding their time until Bu Yeon’s soul disappears, is uncomfortable to watch.

At least Yul looks torn up about it, and acts all awkward, when Bu Yeon is friendly towards him.

He doesn’t tell Bu Yeon the exact truth about her identity, and what he’d planned to do to her, if they’d actually gone to Danhyanggok, but he does drop a few hints, that the truth she’s seeking, isn’t a happy nor pretty one.

In that sense, because Yul’s honest, even as he watches over an about-to-dissipate Bu Yeon, I can’t blame him too much, because I believe that he’s doing the thing that he feels is the most right, and just.

Of course, that’s not going to stop Show from revealing the truth to Bu Yeon, and soon, because we are running out of screen time.

Which is how Yun Ok goes from sweet benign character in Part 1 of our story, to a more dissatisfied, meddling sort of character, in Part 2.

I don’t love what Show’s doing with Yun Ok as a character, because I’d believed that Yun Ok would have stayed kind, despite being heartbroken over Uk, but.. I can rationalize that given when she’s seen and been through, that she might act out like this.

I feel bad for Bu Yeon, this episode, because she regains all these painful memories that she then has to deal with.

I do appreciate though, that before this context is drawn in, thus crippling her in her ability to embrace Uk, her empathy for Uk is so warm and strong, like when she spots the scar on his torso, where Naksu / Mu Deok had stabbed him before.

While Uk’s first reaction to her staring at his bare torso, is to think that she’s keen to continue exploring the kissy-touchy side of their relationship, she’s transfixed, more than anything, because she’s so consumed by how painful and terrible this scar, and therefore, this memory, is for Uk.

Augh. I really do like her a lot. 😍

I hate that Uk’s being sent away to the North Fortress, to get him out of the way, but I can’t help thinking that the Crown Prince isn’t truly cooperating with Jin Mu, and might be biding his time, until he can fully pin Jin Mu’s crimes on him.

At least, that’s my hope. 😅

I also don’t like how Yun Ok’s inserting herself into the situation, and getting involved in testing Bu Yeon, but, I geddit, we’re almost out of screen time, and Yun Ok’s meddling is a good way of speeding up Bu Yeon’s recovery of her memories.

I would also like to say that I find myself really enjoying Go Yoon Jung’s portrayal of Naksu, as she regains her memories, and the context of her existence.

While we do get a bit of hard edges with her now, like when she thinks about Jin Mu, and resolves to face him, I actually really like that, by and large, what we get from this current version of Naksu, is a great deal of softness and overt emotion.

I’d like to think that this is the person that Naksu would have grown into, if Jin Mu hadn’t ever taken her, and groomed her to be an assassin.

And this context, makes for a great explanation for why Go Yoon Jung’s portrayal of Naksu, is so different from Jung So Min’s portrayal of Naksu. I love how organically that all comes together! 🤩

Although I don’t actually want Bu Yeon to cut herself off from Uk, I can understand why she would do so, now that she’s regained her memories.

I mean, if she remembers killing him, how could she act like everything’s ok and normal with him, right? I can see why she would feel like she needs to distance herself from him, and punish herself, in a way.

And there’s also that layer, which she indirectly admits everything to him, except he thinks that she’s talking about another man.

Oof. The irony. 😭

I appreciate that Uk’s instinct is to tell Bu Yeon that it all doesn’t matter to him, and I also appreciate that Bu Yeon emphasizes, that it matters to her. So it’s not just a matter of Uk accepting her as she is, it’s really also about Bu Yeon accepting herself, as she is.

On a tangent, I do love how the Hong sisters lay foundations for even the smaller things in our story.

Like this episode, where, in the beginning, when things hadn’t become so angsty just yet, Bu Yeon had told Uk to climb the walls of Jinyowon to visit her – and that’s exactly what he does, later in the episode, because she wouldn’t see him when he came to the door.

This attention to little details gives me a bit of a thrill, and I clearly can’t stop talking about it. 😅

For the record, I’m glad that the old trope, of the OTP not meeting because one party refuses to see the other, is nicely turned on its head here, because Uk breaks into Jinyowon, just like Bu Yeon had asked him to.

I can believe that Madam Jin would find herself talked into a corner by Jin Mu, with the Crown Prince backing him up, and therefore find herself in a situation where she is being asked to surrender Jinyowon’s special plaque.

I’m not sure how confident Bu Yeon actually is, in agreeing to the test that Jin Mu proposes, but more importantly (to my eyes, at least), is that we see the stone egg on her person activate, so we know that it’s calling Uk to her.

AND, we see Uk actually living up to something else that he says, earlier this episode, that there is not a single place where he cannot go.

That proves to be literally true, coz he’s found his way to Gwido, which feels like an entire dimension away from Daeho, all because he felt Bu Yeon’s stone egg calling him.

I love that.

And, it seems like Uk finally clues in that Bu Yeon might be Naksu herself, since he finally sees the blue marks in her eyes.

Ahhh! I’m really curious to see how this new information affects Uk, and his feelings for Bu Yeon.

Also, for the record, I do like the idea that there’s a way to save Naksu, but I don’t like the idea that that involves Uk using sorcery to keep her soul, while getting rid of Bu Yeon’s soul. 😬

Surely Show will find a different way out..?

Final Open Thread will be up on: Sunday, 7 June 2026!