Episode Title: Empty from What I Couldn’t Let Go
Heartbroken by Se Na’s betrayal, Ra Ik disappears from her life. Overwhelmed with guilt, Se Na is left alone - until startling news about Jae Hui reaches her.
(Source: Viu)
- Aired: January 12, 2026
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Idol I Episode 7 Reactions
Raik is starting to piss me off with his habit of making the most reckless, self-sabotaging decisions ever. I need him to show some character growth by the next episode, or I'm losing it. What gave him the confidence that he could survive an interrogation without any legal counsel? We get it. He doesn't want to work with Sena, and he doesn't want to be represented by anyone appointed by Hyejoo, but he knows damn well that he sucks at defending himself. Seriously, he needs to sort out his priorities if he wants to prove his innocence. I'm rooting for him to find peace of mind, but he can't keep this up. It won’t be easy, but he really needs to get his shit together for his own good.
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Him beinbg upset by the lie by omission I totally get but going to a police interview without a lawyers is absolutely nonsensical no matter how you slice it.I was also annoyed at the cliche trope of having Chung Jae admit his feelings for Se Na. WHY??? why do the writer's always do this?
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The setup - spoiled brat diva trying on his ownSe Na suffering never forcing him or expecting anything I wrote so many posts - search for them
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You need to watch to pick up a couplr of things that happen, but almost all the time is spent on the ludicrous idea that he feels betrayed that she liked his music and is willing to go to jail for life rather than behave like anyone else in the entertainment industry would. Such a wasted episode in an otherwise really enjoyable show.
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Episode 7 feels like a full emotional breakup. There’s a lot of crying, a lot of hurt, and several moments that completely shift the trajectory of the story. Ra-ik’s disappointment in Maeng Se-na isn’t about her lying — it’s about the fact that she made him believe. Given his past, it’s painfully clear why trust doesn’t come easily to him.
For Maeng Se-na, letting go of being a fan isn’t just about honesty — it means letting go of happy memories, comfort, and a part of herself that helped her survive darker times. With her history, that loss feels especially heavy.
Park Chung Jae chooses this exact moment to confess his feelings, and while we see that their connection goes back a long way, the timing couldn’t be worse. In the aftermath, Se-na throws herself into work, becoming almost obsessively busy. One quiet but telling moment is her making a phone call to request a meeting with someone — it’s left intentionally vague, but personally, it read to me like she might be reaching out for professional support. Given everything she’s been through, that would make a lot of sense.
Ra-ik insists he won’t see her again… and yet he ends up standing outside her law firm, then following her home as she drowns her sorrows. His resolve clearly isn’t as firm as he wants it to be, which only makes everything more heartbreaking.
On the murder front, I’m still none the wiser. Choi Jae Hui disappears, clearly knowing more than he’s letting on, and the CEO’s urgency to find him before anyone else is deeply unsettling. When Choi Jae Hui is later found unconscious after his car goes off a cliff, the news reports it as a suicide attempt — but I don’t buy it. I lean more toward the CEO protecting a hidden secret, possibly one that requires silencing more than one band member. The manager and CEO remain far too shady for comfort, and I’m fully expecting another plot twist.
Lastly, Kwak Byeong Gyun continues to frustrate me. Earlier episodes hinted at flirtation toward Maeng Se-na, but after being scolded, he suddenly presents himself as an incompetent prosecutor — disturbingly similar to his father. Learning that his father once framed Se-na’s father only adds to the sense that history is repeating itself. I can only hope that this time, justice is finally served.
At this point, it feels like the truth isn’t just being hidden — it’s being actively buried by people with enough power to rewrite narratives and erase inconvenient lives.
For Maeng Se-na, letting go of being a fan isn’t just about honesty — it means letting go of happy memories, comfort, and a part of herself that helped her survive darker times. With her history, that loss feels especially heavy.
Park Chung Jae chooses this exact moment to confess his feelings, and while we see that their connection goes back a long way, the timing couldn’t be worse. In the aftermath, Se-na throws herself into work, becoming almost obsessively busy. One quiet but telling moment is her making a phone call to request a meeting with someone — it’s left intentionally vague, but personally, it read to me like she might be reaching out for professional support. Given everything she’s been through, that would make a lot of sense.
Ra-ik insists he won’t see her again… and yet he ends up standing outside her law firm, then following her home as she drowns her sorrows. His resolve clearly isn’t as firm as he wants it to be, which only makes everything more heartbreaking.
On the murder front, I’m still none the wiser. Choi Jae Hui disappears, clearly knowing more than he’s letting on, and the CEO’s urgency to find him before anyone else is deeply unsettling. When Choi Jae Hui is later found unconscious after his car goes off a cliff, the news reports it as a suicide attempt — but I don’t buy it. I lean more toward the CEO protecting a hidden secret, possibly one that requires silencing more than one band member. The manager and CEO remain far too shady for comfort, and I’m fully expecting another plot twist.
Lastly, Kwak Byeong Gyun continues to frustrate me. Earlier episodes hinted at flirtation toward Maeng Se-na, but after being scolded, he suddenly presents himself as an incompetent prosecutor — disturbingly similar to his father. Learning that his father once framed Se-na’s father only adds to the sense that history is repeating itself. I can only hope that this time, justice is finally served.
At this point, it feels like the truth isn’t just being hidden — it’s being actively buried by people with enough power to rewrite narratives and erase inconvenient lives.
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Episode 7 makes the series’ core problem impossible to ignore. Throughout the story, fan devotion is the emotional engine that connects the leads. Yet suddenly, that same devotion is framed as “problematic” without clear motivation, reflection, or consequence. This is not a critique of fan culture—it is a convenient narrative switch used to prolong the romance.The idol’s reaction lacks coherence: he shows indignation and emotional distance without articulating why, never reflecting, communicating, or acknowledging the support he receives. This is not complexity, but weak characterization serving the script rather than the character.The female lead suffers a similar issue. Written as a competent adult professional, she is repeatedly stripped of agency and boundaries, portrayed instead as emotionally unrestrained and romantically self-sacrificing. Her reactions are never questioned by the narrative, turning what should be tension into romanticized regression.There is no real critique of idol culture, fandom, or industry pressure here—only melodrama and symbolic gestures replacing meaningful development. By this point, the series asks the audience to stop questioning its characters in order for the romance to work, revealing a fundamental narrative flaw.
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