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[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Oh My Ghostess" Episode 6

The nature of the ghostly possession gives "Oh My Ghostess" a nice blend of episodic and climactic formats. Soon-ae and Bong-seon develop depending on who is in control of Bong-seon's body whilst the rest of the action continues to flow forward. The tension comes from the developing (probable) murder mystery, the developing romance that alternates between Soon-ae and Seon-woo, and Bong-seon and Seon-woo, and the characters overcoming personal milestones.

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Seon-woo has a large person hurdle to jump over: he was bullied as a kid and still harbors grudges against the bullies . It plagues him and makes him insecure. Most people have something from childhood that looms over them and causes self-doubt and insecurity. The way Seon-woo's plot thread plays out is relatable to almost anyone's daily life. He has a chance to exact revenge by showing off and rubbing his success in an unsuccessful bully's face. What Seon-woo shockingly realizes is that it doesn't make him feel better at all. What does is forgiveness and kindness that helps the bully offer a sincere apology. Soon-ae gave him that courage by telling him not to take life for granted, something the virginal ghost knows well. I love that Soon-ae isn't just here to be the victim of a mysterious murder or to provide hysterical sex humor. She also helps those around her learn and grow. After forgiving the bully Seon-woo begins to treat his very insecure sous chef much better as well. An inch of kindness can go a long way. And a fully grown man can still grow up a little more.

A great deal of tension in this show is that the OTP (one true pairing), isn't quite the OTP. Soon-ae wins Seon-woo over with her intelligence, cuteness, and incessant pestering. He teaches her to cook and starts to genuinely care for what he believes to be Bong-seon's "manic side" during scenes of the utmost romantic comedy cuteness. The tension enters with the realization that Bong-seon isn't the recipient of any of this attention; neither does she get to live her life as Soon-ae always preaches about doing. It's the best kind of waiting for the truth to be uncovered. Bong-seon's reaction to her lost days and her newly amorous Chef is to be anticipated as well as his discovery of her possession.

The Bong-seon/Soon-ae split also works in reverse. What Soon-ae is working to build with her father can be shattered by Bong-seon's ignorance of her personal and family situation. "Oh My Ghostess"'s strength is taking a sad, but not uncommon, family situation and making it relatable, understandable, and one we can sympathize with - a motherless family whose eldest child is mysteriously killed. Those left struggle to live. I love that the every day is mixed in with the ghosts and still retains the feeling of being close to reality and situations that we, the audience may find ourselves in.

A few things that are utilitarian are the fact that one of Bong-seon's co-workers likes her and minorly interferes with her relationship with Seon-woo. It's just enough to perhaps instigate something in the future when Bong-seon has control, but mostly it's unnecessary. Another is how incessantly Seon-woo's mother calls the shaman, Seobingo. It'd like to see Seon-woo and his mother work on their relationship, but the mother/shaman pairing allows for the paranormal to more quickly enter Seon-woo's line of sight.

Lastly, we now know that Seon-jae definitely has something to do with Soon-ae's death, or perhaps the ghost that may or may not be possessing him. If it is a ghost that murdered Soon-ae, then it might guess that Soon-ae is possessing Bong-seon. The mystery is definitely rising up from below the surface of the plot.

Now our ghostess and her earthly host are at a crossroads. Soon-ae is caught by the shaman and Bong-seon has her body back and needs to decide how to regain her life.

Written by: Raine from 'Raine's Dichotomy'

"Oh My Ghostess" is directed by Yo Je-won, written by Yang Hee-seung, and features Cho Jung-seok, Park Bo-young, Lim Ju-hwan, and Kim Seul-gi

 

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