The Eighth Sense – K-Drama Episode 8 Recap & Review

Episode 8

Episode 8 of The Eighth Sense starts with Ji-hyun and Ae-ri in their Liberal Arts class, where the two make a presentation for the assignment. While the rest of the class is distracted during Ji-hyun’s presentation, the professor praises him for using his accident to reflect on the assignment. After class, Bit-na joins Ji-hyun and Ae-ri during lunch and the trio discuss the dissolution of the surf club. 

Jae-won is staring at Ji-hyun from his seat across from Eun-ji in the cafeteria. Upon noticing him, Ji-hyun flashes a smile at Jae-won but the latter ignores the freshman. Eun-ji is annoyed when Ae-ri brings up the upcoming hearing that was going to be held against Jae-won later that day. Before the hearing, Yoon-won and Eun-ji try to plead with Tae-hyung, asking him to take back his complaint against Jae-won.

Tae-hyung decides that he won’t be taking back the complaint and the hearing starts. Tae-hyung makes a statement about why Jae-won was in the wrong when he was just fulfilling his duty as a teaching assistant. Jae-won makes a neutral statement and takes responsibility for his actions. He apologises for hitting Tae-hyung and agrees to any punishment that he will be given.

The council members call Yoon-won in as the surf club’s representative to explain Jae-won’s behaviour but Ji-hyun volunteers and meets the council instead. Ji-hyun tells the members that he wasn’t trying to justify Jae-won’s actions but was here to give them an account of his usual behaviour.

Ji-hyun mentions that Jae-won is the only person in the surf club that was warm to him at all times and made a country boy like him feel welcome. The freshman adds that Jae-won got furious and assaulted Tae-hyung because the latter made an insensitive joke about Ji-hyun’s nasty accident. Ji-hyun finds it comforting that Jae-won defended him because he was really affected by a joke at his expense. 

The council consider Ji-hyun’s statement and punish Jae-won with community service. Tae-hyung is pissed and claims that Jae-won’s rich father has bought the council members and bailed him out again. Ji-hyun leaves without interacting with Jae-won and later drops him a text to check up on him. Joon-pyo snatches Ji-hyun’s phone to tease him but discovers that Ji-hyun wasn’t texting Ae-ri or any other girl but Jae-won.

Ji-hyun tells Joon-pyo that he is into boys and that Jae-won was the person he was seeing. Ji-hyun adds that he lied to Joon-pyo because he was afraid of losing his best friend for many years. Joon-pyo is sad to hear that Ji-hyun did not trust him enough. He claims that the gender of the person Ji-hyun was dating is not important to him as long as he likes Jae-won.

Joon-pyo admits that he is hurt that Ae-ri knew about Ji-hyun’s relationship before he did. Joon-pyo tells Ji-hyun that Jae-won was waiting by his hospital bed throughout his recovery and Ji-hyun is shocked. Ji-hyun tells Joon-pyo that he knows how much of a broken person Jae-won was and adds that he wants to help Jae-won recover from his traumas if he has the chance. 

Ji-hyun tells his friend that Jae-won is not answering his calls or texts after the accident, and Joon-pyo is not able to pinpoint what was going on with Jae-won. Ji-hyun promises to get Jae-won back, and later that night drops multiple texts asking to see him. The next day, Eun-ji finds Ji-hyun waiting outside her and Jae-won’s department, and scolds him for stalking Jae-won.

Ji-hyun claps back at her, deciding that he will only trust that she and Jae-won have got back together if Jae-won tells him so. Eun-ji is pissed at Ji-hyun when he mentions that her post attacking the restaurant Ji-hyun worked at prompted many more customers to visit the place, benefitting him and his boss. After work, Ji-hyun talks to his boss and Joon-pyo about wanting someone to love him back.

After some comforting words from his boss, Ji-hyun decides to talk to Jae-won. The next day, Ji-hyun waits outside Jae-won’s class and even threatens to cause a scene if Jae-won doesn’t talk.

Jae-won agrees to chat in private, and they visit the rooftop of Ji-hyun’s dorms. Ji-hyun confronts Jae-won about their hook-up during the trip and asks what their relationship meant. Jae-won has decided that all that happened during the trip was not really sincere because he wasn’t in the right mindset.

Ji-hyun is frustrated and confesses his sincere feelings for Jae-won. He asks if Jae-won likes him back but Jae-won denies having any romantic feelings for Ji-hyun. He asks Ji-hyun to maintain a distance and decides it would be better for the two to ignore one another. The episode ends with Jae-won leaving Ji-hyun stranded on the rooftop while Ji-hyun cries to himself. 

The Episode Review

I think the makers of this show are adamant that they do not want to see us, the viewers, and Ji-hyun happy. I hate the way Jae-won decided to take back all his feelings for Ji-hyun and claimed that everything that happened between them was him acting out. I feel that Ji-hyun knows that Jae-won is lying and I am hoping he will cling to Jae-won. But then I’m also sure that he will be hurt a lot more in the process.

Tae-hyung really is evil to his core and I wish he has to pay for the jealousy he harbors for Jae-won. Moreover, I know that Ji-hyun and Eun-ji will soon have a final showdown and I’m hoping Jae-won picks Ji-hyun in the event of said showdown, since there are only two more episodes left in the show.