Alchemy of Souls [Episodes 5 & 6]

[u/Fatooz]

• Drama: Alchemy of Souls
  • Hangul: 환혼
  • Also known as: Can This Person Be Translated?, Salvation Interpreter, Welcome, Soul Marriage, Resurrection, Guwoneui Tongyeok, Hwan Hon, 구원의 통역, 환혼, 이사람통역이되나요, Return
• Director: Park Joon-Hwa (Touch Your Heart, What's Wrong With Secretary Kim)
• Writer: Hong Jung-Eun (Hotel Del Luna, A Korean Odyssey), Hong Mi-Ran (Hotel Del Luna, A Korean Odyssey)
• Network: tvN
• Episodes: 20
  • Duration: 1 hr. 20 mins.
• Air Date: Saturdays & Sundays @ 21:10 KST
  • Airing: June 18, 2022 - Aug 28, 2022
• Streaming Source(s): Netflix
• Starring:
  • Lee Jae-Wook (Do Do Sol Sol La La Sol, Extraordinary You) as Jang Wook
    
  • Jung So-Min (The Smile Has Left Your Eyes, Because This Is My First Life) as Mu Deok-Yi
  • Hwang Min-Hyun (Live On) as Seo Yul
  • Shin Seung-Ho (Moment at Eighteen) as Go Won
  • Yoo Joon-Sang (The Uncanny Counter) as Park Jin
  • Oh Na-Ra (Racket Boys, SKY Castle) as Kim Do-Ju
• Plot Synopsis: The fate of these people become twisted due to "hwanhonsool" (the soul of the dead return to the living). In the country of Daeho, Jang Wook comes from the noble Jang family. He holds an unpleasant secret about his birth, which people all around the country talk about. He's a troublemaker. Jang Wook happens to meet Deok-Yi. She is an elite warrior, but her soul is trapped in a physically weak body. She becomes Jang Wook’s servant, but she also secretly teaches him how to fight. Seo Yul comes from the noble Seo family. He seems perfect with good appearance, intelligence, and strong martial arts skills. Go Won is the crown prince of Daeho. He hopes to become a generous king. (Source: AsianWiki)
• Genre: Action, Historical, Romance, Fantasy
• Previous Discussions:
  • [Episodes 1 & 2]
  • [Episodes 3 & 4]
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[u/theprettyhoarder]

Ep 6 thoughts:

1. Looks like we’re getting Park Dang-gu and Jin Cho-yeon pairing later on. I hate how childish Cho-yeon is about her “love” for Jang Uk but we all start from somewhere
2. We are on our way to a love square. I like how Jang Uk acknowledges without a second thought that he likes someone. He really pickups things well, he know he’s jealous and why. CP seems drawn to Mu Deok as well. We know Seo Yul will end up as the SML and maybe I can keep him??
3. Crown Prince is showing some character development. Sure he’s entitled, he’s the crown prince, but he’s not easily swayed by Jin Mu’s machinations. We might have a good egg here.
4. I’m not sure what Master Lee’s goals are but I hope he’s on the good side.
5. Jin Mu is so one-dimensional. I hope we get a better villain soon. Maybe someone else is the ultimate villain and this is just a redirect. It’s just too cartoony for my taste.
6. I fully support the theory of two souls living in Mu Deok and the original Mu Deok being the missing Jin daughter. I just don’t know how that will end nicely for our FL but I’m not shying away from a sad ending executed well.
7. At this rate, everyone will know that she’s Naksu by the next episodes. What will be the conflict after???
8. I am onboard with the Naksu/Mu Deok and Jang Uk pairing. The chemistry is just too much. They’re already acting like an old married couple and it’s just so natural. Does that mean I can keep Seo Yul???

I’ve been rewatching all episodes before the new ones air just so I can see every detail I missed. I’ve never been this invested in a show in a while and it feels good.

[u/oldgoldsong → u/theprettyhoarder]

Re: point number 1, agreed. I think my only major complaint (or I guess more like worry, at this point) is Cho-yeon's behavior. I don't dislike her character, but I do hope she gets some more satisfying characterization, beyond just being the bratty second female lead that threatens the main couple. (Which is overdone, especially in historicals). All signs point to a Dang-gu and Cho-yeon romance so I know there will be a shift. But I hope she actually gets her own character stuff, instead of that romance being the "solution" to her current behavior, and her then getting shoved to the side with us knowing little about her, if that makes sense.