We are seeing a lot of comments online saying that Shin Hye Sun (Ban Ji Eum) is not able to do justice to her character while Bo Hyun Ahn (Mun Seo Ha) is acing it. We have not read the webtoon that See You In My 19th Life is based on, but we have gained a skeletal understanding of it from the criticism. Apparently, according to the webtoon, Mun Seo Ha was someone who dealt with constant health issues; therefore, the fans were worried that Bo Hyun Ahn, who is known for his athletic physique, would not fit in the role. But once the series started airing, the criticism went towards Shin Hye Sun for not being on par with her character. We believe we have the answer to that, in her defense. Considering that contrary to the webtoon, Seo Ha is a healthy man; we are assuming that Ji Eum’s character must also have been written differently for the screen. Even if that is not the case, in the four episodes so far, we have not seen Ji Eum do anything except confess her love again and again to Seo Ha. That is fifty percent of all their interactions, with the other half being her making vague statements about her past lives. Ji Eum’s personality doesn’t seem to be anything other than a bunch of memories. Whether her character in the webtoon is different or not, we don’t know how else Shin Hye Sun could have done justice to Ban Ji Eum, who was unfortunately written in such a limited way. On the other hand, we are quite enjoying Bo Hyun Ahn’s wide-eyed act and the way his character is warming up to Ji Eum, as presented through the recap of episode 4.
Spoilers Alert
What Happened In Ban Ji Eum’s Previous Lives?
We keep seeing one of Ban Ji Eum’s lives quite frequently: that of when she was Han Wol. That must have either been her first or second life because when she remembered her previous lives’ memories for the first time, it was her third life. The child had rushed to look for his mother, but since this was a new life, no one had recognized him. We believe that this is one of the other times when two of her lives crossed each other, contrary to our previous assumption that it only happened in her 18th and 19th lives. This must also mean that Ban Ji Eum’s assumption that she was probably murdered as Ju Won must be from a previous experience. She does say that Cho Yu Seon was her favorite mother of all, probably because she reminded her of when she was Han Wol.
In the present day, when Seo Ha spots her with tears in her eyes, he holds her hand and runs, probably using her trick of outrunning bad memories. Once they stop, Ban Ji Eum opens up about her familial situation in her present life. When Seo Ha asks her why she is so focused on his happiness, she tells him that this is why she was reborn this time. This reminded Seo Ha of his first meeting with Ju Won when she told him that it wasn’t her first life either. As they part ways for the night, Ban Ji Eum knows that Seo Ha has started thinking about her.
Seo Ha goes straight to Do Yun’s place to spend the night, and for some reason, Do Yun is uncomfortable having him around. He is not inhospitable, but it is clear that he would like to push back on the friendship to keep things purely professional. But that doesn’t happen as he continues teasing Seo Ha about Ban Ji Eum’s effect on him. Do Yun says that Seo Ha is not depressed about coming back to Korea as he usually used to be. The only thing different this time is Ban Ji Eum, so she has to be the reason for his continued lightheartedness. As for Ji Eum herself, she wants Seo Ha to love her as her 19th-life self, but she is in for some confusion when she discovers just how much Seo Ha used to love Ju Won.
It is not just Seo Ha who is noticing her similarities with his first love. When Ji Eum meets Cho Won the next day, she remembers bits and pieces of the previous night when Ji Eum took care of her. She also finds it odd that she is at her parents’ house, where she never goes when she is drunk. Cho Won senses a familiarity with Ji Eum, and it is equally baffling for her. On the other hand, Ji Eum offers Seo Ha three chances to agree to date her. In her own words, she would ask him out again three more times, at opportunities of her choosing, and if he rejected her all three times, she would stop pursuing him. This is one of the saner things we have seen her say since See You In My 19th Life began airing.
Meanwhile, when these people are not going through their love dilemmas, Seo Ha has to deal with the problems at his hotel. Ms. Jang’s son is forcefully escorted out of the hotel on Seo Ha’s orders when he defies his blacklist and steps foot on the premises. Ms. Jang is understandably annoyed, but there is a challenge between Seo Ha and her to see who comes out on top in the situation. As for the Chairman, he is relying on Do Yun to keep an eye on Seo Ha, but he is getting increasingly annoyed at his lack of submissiveness. As the episode comes close to its final leg, things return to Seo Ha and Ji Eum’s love story when he spots her running away from a man on the street. When he follows her, he sees that it is her brother who is demanding money from her. Seo Ha and Dong Woo get into a fight that leaves the former with a busted lip. A furious Ji Eum tackles him and drives him away. She has long severed ties with this family of hers and wants nothing to do with them.
Why Does Seo Ha Refer To Ji Eum As Ju Won?
Ji Eum and Seo Ho go drinking together, and once again, Seo Ha recollects the time he spent with Ju Won every time Ji Eum so much as even breathes. The way she talks, the way she lays down her coat for him, and the way she always takes care of him remind him of Ju Won. Seo Ha is rather drunk, and he holds Ji Eum’s face, telling her about Ju Won. It might be the first time that he is flirting back with Ji Eum, though she holds back to save him the regret. Ji Eum has a bet to win against him, and she wants him to like her present self. This means that she cannot take advantage of him.
Seo Ha opens up to Ji Eum as he tells her about the accident in his childhood and how Ju Won’s body was over his for a while till help arrived for them. It is now that Ji Eum is coming to know the details that followed in the aftermath of her death in her 18th life. She tries to carry a drunk Seo Ha home, but when that proves impossible, she calls Chu Won for help. Ji Eum places Seo Ha in the front seat and tells Chu Won that she is doing that because of his trauma. Chu Won is surprised that Ju Won knows, but an additional fact is that she herself never knew this before. At the end of episode 4 of See You In My 19th Life, Chu Won and Ji Eum take Seo Ha home and find that his passcode is 0423. We wouldn’t be surprised if this also has something to do with Ju Won. When Cho Won and Ji Eum settle Seo Ha into the bed, he holds Ji Eum’s hand and calls her Ju Won, remembering the final moment after the accident when her body was being taken away, and he knew that he had lost her forever.
Final Thoughts
We understood nothing from the precap of Episode 5 of See You In My 19th Life, but we think that some long-pending supernatural stuff is finally going to come to the surface. Ji Eum said that she doesn’t know why she keeps reincarnating. Maybe she is about to discover it, courtesy of the man who seems to have the magic bells in his hand. Things are also going to get messy on Seo Ha’s end, with Ms. Jang and his own father being against him. Yet, it is Do Yun who makes us most curious as he walks around, possibly double-crossing everyone. Let us see what is in store for everyone.
