[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Because This Is My First Life" Episode 2

Faced with the tremendously awkward prospect of living with a member of the opposite sex which they are not especially attracted to, Se-hee and Ji-ho choose to address the situation in terms of fundamentals, rather than overthinking the whole gender issue. Ji-ho needs a quiet, clean place to focus on writing. Se-hee needs a functional roommate to help pay the bills and not destroy the apartment. They are so ideal it's obviously foolhardy for either of them to try to find an alternative elsewhere.

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So instead, they get in deeper. I really loved the cliffhanger here. It's so shocking in context, yet in full perspective of all the personal and professional problems Ji-ho and Se-hee deal with, the solution they come up with really is the only logical one available. Above all else Ji-ho and Se-hee most value their ability to move through their lives without having to go through the trouble of having to explain everything to family and co-workers.

Just observe the divergence of reactions, as the information that Ji-ho and Se-hee are the opposite genders ripples through their social groups. Ji-ho and Se-hee themselves think deliberately about the practical impacts this has on their lives, and observe that gender has little to do with their being functional roommates. Ji-ho and Se-hee are only ever in the same room together during leisure time and what do you know, they have the same hobby- watching soccer games.

But everyone else constantly gossips, sometimes even to Ji-ho and Se-hee directly, overthinking everything, and generally annoying both of them. "Because This Is My First Life" very instriniscally grasps the introvert mindset in a way I am not used to seeing. It is made very clear that Ji-ho and Se-hee sincerely love their more extroverted friends and family members. Yet their desire to keep a safe distance from their loudness is nothing personal.

Also note how Ji-ho and Se-hee are wholly different people in spite of their sharing introverted character traits. When Ji-ho and Se-hee talk about their not being mutually attracted, honestly? I believe them. Se-hee is fascinated by the idea of drama in the abstract, but hates it in real life, and is stimulated by a constant change of focus. Ji-ho just wants to hang out with his cat and solve all of his problems with cold hard logic. They really do not make sense as a couple at all- except in the purely utilitarian sense, and what is marriage if not utilitarianism?

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Review by William Schwartz

"Because This Is My First Life" is directed by Park Joon-hwa, written by Yoon Nan-joong and features Lee Min-ki, Jung So-min, Esom, Park Byung-eun, Kim Ga-eun, and Kim Min-seok.