I think the show is a combination of two things - psychological warfare + systematic oppression like you mentioned.…
Oh for sure. I’m using psychological in more of a supernatural sense. Think Twilight Zone. Think Girl From Nowhere, Step-ford Wives etc. The psychological/ominous vibe I was picking up on in the earlier episodes made me think there was a non-human (supernatural) element to it but I’m starting to realise that as creepy and otherworldly as Ha Rin seems, she’s human. The pyramid scheme is a microcosm of the worst sides of humanity. It’s what people scrambling for power are willing to allow and perpetuate. It’s what the ruling class at the top will do to force people to conform so that they have power and control over the masses.
I found myself thinking about that Charlie Chaplin speech about oppressive regimes. About how the power they took from the people can be returned to the people. Specifically the lines, “Don’t give yourselves to brutes - men who despise you - enslave you - who regiment your lives…. Don’t give yourselves to these unnatural men - machine men with machine minds and machine hearts…dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people…Now let us fight…..let us all unite!”
This is a good analysis Peronally I also leans towards the message of addressing systematic opression but I find…
There’s definitely a psychological aspect to it. I previously thought it was going to be a psychological horror mindf**k for the FL and that Ha Rin would turn out to be a supernatural being like in The Girl From Nowhere. That’s what I meant.
Absolutely agree. The aspects of salvation and divinity was also what I liked most about the series too. I think they explored this really well and might have been the only strength of the series (aside from the acting).
Episode 7 and 8 have changed everything I thought about what’s going on.
Previously there was a sort of ‘ominous’ tone to a lot of the characters and the school environment that made me second guess everything (like they were putting on a show). Now I think differently.
It’s mostly because of Ja Eun’s character. Something felt off about her which made me suspect she wasn’t as innocent as she seemed and may be in cahoots with Ha Rin. I also thought she might have bullied Ha Rin when they were younger and that’s why Ha Rin wants to punish her now.
After watching the last episode and thinking about Ha Rin’s motivations for what she does, the penny dropped. It’s far more likely that the opposite is the case. It’s far more likely that Ha Rin despises Ja Eun not because she was a bully to her in childhood but because she was too nice.
I no longer think Ja Eun being ‘nice’ is an act and when I think about it, someone being kind, caring, nice and unyielding to manipulation, unwilling to become cruel, is something that would majorly p*ss off someone like Ha Rin who likes to play people like puppets.
I think I see where this is going. Ja Eun and Soo Ji are very similar in this way. They both will not conform. This is why they are seen as a threat and a source of annoyance to Ha Rin because they will not fall in line.
Once I realised the strong theme of conformity and right vs wrong is what’s at the forefront of this series, I realised the show is leaning towards a more political/ moralistic message, rather than leaning on the psychological thriller aspect of it being a creepy school.
At one point I even thought there might be something supernatural at play (stepford wives vibes) but I no longer think this is the case. My view now is that this show is essentially a chess game about how one can change an oppressive system. How having allies and strong morals and capacity for kindness and forgiveness is what wins the day even against a tyrannical, psychopathic mastermind with unchecked power. Just like how oppressors can manipulate the masses to become the worst versions of themselves; so too can the masses be influenced to become vehicles for change and help to topple an oppressive system.
I’m just stunned that a k-drama kept their plot consistent and followed through with where their clues were leading without making an abrupt U-turn. Credit to the creators. It’s truly rare in Asian dramas.
JW always gave obsessed psycho vibes....Looks like NaEon's boss had something to do with it too maybe she got…
This was what I thought would be the reason if it turned out to be him and it turned out to be him. It looked like he didn’t mean to push her over the edge too. He looked shocked and surprised. I theorised before that he was the attempted killer but that it might have been an accident/unintentional.
✅ Na Eon unintentionally did something 5 years ago that set stuff in motion, which lead to the death of temple girl and set Eun Ho on the path of revenge.
✅ Jung Woo is the masked rabbit who was possibly sent to scare Na Eon but ended up almost killing her accidentally.
✅ The female director is the mastermind/villain (granted, she’s in cahoots with the young CEO but although he’s petty and slimy, I still think the female director has bigger plans than him and is the true mastermind). I think she’s cooking up something with Rabbit Guy from the first episode. I think she wants control of both companies herself once they do the merger.
✅ Na Eon unintentionally did something 5 years ago that set stuff in motion, which lead to the death of temple girl and set Eun Ho on the path of revenge.
Jung Woo is the masked rabbit who was possibly sent to scare Na Eon but ended up almost killing her accidentally.
✅ The female director is the mastermind/villain (granted, she’s in cahoots with the young CEO but although he’s petty and slimy, I still think the female director has bigger plans than him and is the true mastermind). I think she’s cooking up something with Rabbit Guy from the first episode. I think she wants control of both companies herself once they do the merger.
SIDE THEORIES
* The spirit/shadow is not clinging on to the FL out of maliciousness but as a cry for help. Temple girl’s spirit is the shadow and she’s been trying to lead them to the truth, not haunt/harm the FL. The FL is scared of it because she thinks it’s her guilt trying to smother her.
* The fire that killed temple girl is fishy. I think someone else had a hand in it. Either by accelerating the fire or by preventing her exit.
This is how they format their episodes. It doesn’t mean both the episodes will be available. For example kiss usually adds the next episode number when the upcoming episode is due to be released. So if episode 11 is due to be released, they’ll also add a tab for episode 12. While waiting for episode 11 to be released, their current countdown will be visible on both episodes 11 and 12 (confusing..i know). Once episode 11 is released they’ll add the episode to the episode 11 tab and restart the countdown for the episode 12 tab. Rinse and repeat.
Detectives actually do work here and not just drag on a single case. Even trash reporter is reformed, i never…
It’s the first kdrama I’ve seen where the police work is top notch. Even though ML solves the crimes before the team sometimes, it’s clear the detectives are never too far behind. Unlike in other kdramas, this police team would do just fine without a lead to save the day. I’m speaking specifically about the FL’s team though. The rest of the police in that precinct are either incompetent, cowardly or corrupt.
FL’s dad is a better person than I am. I’m petty as hell. I wouldn’t go back. Nor would I allow them to ease their guilt by reinstating me. I’d go on every news program and make it my life’s mission to talk about how the police are corrupt at best and incompetent at worst. They’d be paying until the day I die.
1 
I found myself thinking about that Charlie Chaplin speech about oppressive regimes. About how the power they took from the people can be returned to the people. Specifically the lines, “Don’t give yourselves to brutes - men who despise you - enslave you - who regiment your lives…. Don’t give yourselves to these unnatural men - machine men with machine minds and machine hearts…dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people…Now let us fight…..let us all unite!”
Previously there was a sort of ‘ominous’ tone to a lot of the characters and the school environment that made me second guess everything (like they were putting on a show). Now I think differently.
It’s mostly because of Ja Eun’s character. Something felt off about her which made me suspect she wasn’t as innocent as she seemed and may be in cahoots with Ha Rin. I also thought she might have bullied Ha Rin when they were younger and that’s why Ha Rin wants to punish her now.
After watching the last episode and thinking about Ha Rin’s motivations for what she does, the penny dropped. It’s far more likely that the opposite is the case. It’s far more likely that Ha Rin despises Ja Eun not because she was a bully to her in childhood but because she was too nice.
I no longer think Ja Eun being ‘nice’ is an act and when I think about it, someone being kind, caring, nice and unyielding to manipulation, unwilling to become cruel, is something that would majorly p*ss off someone like Ha Rin who likes to play people like puppets.
I think I see where this is going. Ja Eun and Soo Ji are very similar in this way. They both will not conform. This is why they are seen as a threat and a source of annoyance to Ha Rin because they will not fall in line.
Once I realised the strong theme of conformity and right vs wrong is what’s at the forefront of this series, I realised the show is leaning towards a more political/ moralistic message, rather than leaning on the psychological thriller aspect of it being a creepy school.
At one point I even thought there might be something supernatural at play (stepford wives vibes) but I no longer think this is the case. My view now is that this show is essentially a chess game about how one can change an oppressive system. How having allies and strong morals and capacity for kindness and forgiveness is what wins the day even against a tyrannical, psychopathic mastermind with unchecked power. Just like how oppressors can manipulate the masses to become the worst versions of themselves; so too can the masses be influenced to become vehicles for change and help to topple an oppressive system.
✅ Na Eon unintentionally did something 5 years ago that set stuff in motion, which lead to the death of temple girl and set Eun Ho on the path of revenge.
✅ Jung Woo is the masked rabbit who was possibly sent to scare Na Eon but ended up almost killing her accidentally.
✅ The female director is the mastermind/villain (granted, she’s in cahoots with the young CEO but although he’s petty and slimy, I still think the female director has bigger plans than him and is the true mastermind). I think she’s cooking up something with Rabbit Guy from the first episode. I think she wants control of both companies herself once they do the merger.
✅ Na Eon unintentionally did something 5 years ago that set stuff in motion, which lead to the death of temple girl and set Eun Ho on the path of revenge.
Jung Woo is the masked rabbit who was possibly sent to scare Na Eon but ended up almost killing her accidentally.
✅ The female director is the mastermind/villain (granted, she’s in cahoots with the young CEO but although he’s petty and slimy, I still think the female director has bigger plans than him and is the true mastermind). I think she’s cooking up something with Rabbit Guy from the first episode. I think she wants control of both companies herself once they do the merger.
SIDE THEORIES
* The spirit/shadow is not clinging on to the FL out of maliciousness but as a cry for help. Temple girl’s spirit is the shadow and she’s been trying to lead them to the truth, not haunt/harm the FL. The FL is scared of it because she thinks it’s her guilt trying to smother her.
* The fire that killed temple girl is fishy. I think someone else had a hand in it. Either by accelerating the fire or by preventing her exit.