[HanCinema's Drama Review] "My Secret Hotel" Episode 8

Sadly "My Secret Hotel" does not live up to the insane expectations created by the last episode. It's mostly back to business as usual here, though the script does make frequent references to how utterly nutty the last episode's plot developments were. We've got Sang-hyo frequently asking whether it was all just a dream. I don't generally like when dramas point out their own absurdities like this but in this case it's warranted.

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We still haven't managed to clear any of the characters as suspects. Well, it's probably not Soo-ah because she was presumably too far away from the scene of crime to make for a believable suspect, but after what we've learned about her character lately it's impossible to guess where anybody's coming from. At the very least I doubt all the crimes were committed by the same person. It's just hard to imagine what the consistent thread could be.

The seriousness of the murder plot thread does a lot to undermine the general silliness of the last episode as well as its general spillover into this one. These people have a rather unreasonable fixation on their jobs and romantic tribulations that they manage to be so unbothered by everything that's going on in the murder situation. I'm frankly a little surprised that this doesn't represent more of a public relations crisis. Although then again there are definitely people out there who think it would be cool to get married at a murder scene.

The main trouble with all this is that I can't really guess how to adequately relate the murder plotline to the general satirical elements that were so strong in the last episode. All the elaborate nonsense of the impromptu staged wedding was straining believability, and tossing the murder plotline on top of all that just makes it that much more difficult to take the drama seriously. The murder mystery at this point really isn't dark comedy. It's a serious, unpleasant investigation, and given that the victim in this case was almost kind of likable, well, it just feels kind of awkward.

Regardless, "My Secret Hotel" is better off having awkward moments than frustratingly stupid ones. And even if this episode doesn't hit the manic energy of the last episode, it's not all that terrible. The pacing just feels kind of off because there's too many elements introduced here that don't really have a very good immediate payoff. I just hope the pattern doesn't get too obvious. It would seem that at least one more murder or attempted murder will happen before the drama's done, but that kind of predictability really goes against the drama's strengths.

Review by William Schwartz

"My Secret Hotel" is directed by Hong Jong-chan, written by Kim Do-hyeon and Kim Ye-ri-II and features Yoo In-na, Jin Yi-han, Namkoong Min and Lee Young-eun.

 

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