I watched Kiss Sixth Sense out of nostalgia. When I began watching Korean dramas in the early 2010s, so many of my favorite shows were like this one: contemporary romantic comedies with a workplace setting and a speculative or low fantasy spin on the central relationship. Back then, it was common to see two aspiring love birds communicate telepathically (I Can Hear Your Voice), swap bodies (Secret Garden), or travel through time (Rooftop Prince, Queen In Hyun's Man), and these outlandish scenarios were hilarious, of course, but the showrunners would also use them to tease out deeper or more complex themes, like the role of destiny in our lives, how we all perform gender, and the discovery of connection in the unlikeliest of places. Now, it seems as if this style of romantic comedy is falling by the way side, and shows like this, Jinxed at First, and Link: Eat, Love, Kill represent a dying breed.

Sadly, just as this sub-genre has receded into background, this drama paled in comparison to its predecessors.

In the beginning, I was charmed. I hadn't encountered Yoon Kye Sang in anything before, so even if this was one of his weaker performances, as a few of the reviews here mention, I couldn't tell, and I found myself enjoying his unexpectedly grounded, realistic portrait of the stereotypical cold boss ML. More surprisingly, this show really leans into the throwback version of this trope: Cha Min Hoo is a legitimate workplace bully, whereas today this type of character is watered down and far from toxic (see: the ML in Business Proposal). Obviously, this behavior is unacceptable in real life, but I thought his low starting point hinted at more character development.

Seo Ji Hye brings a similar levelheadedness to her performance as Hong Ye Sul, the long suffering employee working directly under Cha Min Hoo, and I enjoyed how the polished, more lifelike leads acted as a counterweight against the offbeat premise.

From the start, it's easy to see that Ye Sul needs to go on her own journey of professional growth: she doesn't stand up for herself when she's bullied by her superiors or targeted by undermining, jealous co-workers. She's a detail-orientated, hard working employee who doesn't whither under her boss' endless criticism or impossible standards, but she has yet to find her voice or emerge from beneath the safe umbrella of Min Hoo's mentorship. When she leads a meeting in front of important clients and they question her presentation, it's Min Hoo who steps up and lends her credibility. I was excited to see how this drama would show Ye Sul fighting these (often sexist) standards and confidently coming into her own.

From the beginning, I was fully hooked, watching episode after episode with interest. I was especially impressed with the scenes leading up to, during, and immediately after Ye Sul and Min Hoo's accidental first kiss. The scenes beforehand, when we see Min Hoo's intense preparedness during the weather snafu, pull double duty: revealing how he may have secretly looked after her for years and suggesting that this diligence may have contributed to his success in this industry. Then, we get this fantastic tension between the panic of the rainstorm and the sensual scenes of Ye Sul's first vision of their future, which are unexpectedly hot (not hot-for-a-Korean-drama, but hot-HOT). Afterwards, their varied reactions are intriguing: Ye Sul is understandably shocked to see Min Hoo in such a wildly different context while he's avoidant and distant, suggesting a whole new set of mysteries and backstory.

In the middle of the drama, once the couple get serious about their relationship, things started to wobble. For me, the biggest problem was the lack of relationship development between the main leads. Do we see Ye Sul gradually fall in love with her longtime antagonist? No, not really. Instead, there's this pervading sense that she's simply giving into the curiosity stirred by her sexy visions (really, who can blame her?!). When they agree to date, the decision reads like it's "legitimatizing" their future sexual relationship, rather than coming from a place of increasing emotional intimacy. Enemies to lovers romances require careful relationship building and scenes in which the characters go through phases of connection until their once-hostile bond is grounded in romantic love (Alchemy of Souls and Mad for Each Other are GREAT at this!). Here, we're fast tracked past the best parts of this trope for...what, exactly?! I couldn't tell. Zipping through the relationship building ill-serves the pace of the drama later on, that's for sure.

Smaller wobbles build elsewhere: the sabotage subplot outlasts its welcome, the stalker's delusions don't fit beside his otherwise high functioning life, and Lee Joo Yeon's "toxic love rival" role is dated (for a reason!) and pointless, since it's clear that Min Hoo isn't interested, like, at all. Ye Sul and Min Hoo's coded kiss cues are fun enough, but feel juvenile after the steamy blast that we know we're headed for. Small potatoes like these are fine, as a side dish, however here they're often served as the main course, which simply isn't enough to satisfy.

There are other opportunities lying around, as Kiss Sixth Sense possesses a deep bench in its strong supporting cast, yet this potential is repeatedly squandered. Kim Ga Eun is as cool and effortlessly watchable as usual and I found myself charmed by her gender-flipped, fast-burn secondary romance with Tae In Ho's "aw shucks!" good guy doctor, but at the last minute, their subplot runs straight into a big brick wall and her character is reduced to an inexplicably unfeeling, one-dimensional distraction. Worse yet, what the show does with Kim Mi Soo is downright criminal: asking a talented actress with a broad range to speak in a baby voice and cry through 12 episodes is an unpardonable sin. I'm also a huge fan of Hwang Bo Ra's eccentricity but here she's either terribly miscast or poorly directed (or both?) since her wild energy never matched Seo Ji Hye's sophisticated aura. It was impossible for me to envision those two characters as workplace buddies.

However, if this drama had knuckled through with its humdrum efforts, my rating wouldn't be so low. I could've tolerated the lack of relationship building, the misuse of talented actors, and even the poorly executed bits and bobs which this show wants to substitute for the main event (i.e., a well built romantic arc!). After all, the central theme -- that romantic relationships are unpredictable and it's impossible to guess their final outcome, yet we must remain hopeful and courageous regardless -- sits well with the supernatural premise. This concept is reinforced smoothly by Ye Sul's personal hesitancy and her questions about the role of fate and free will in her visions. Min Hoo's struggle to open up and share his own unusual power or disability is similarly poignant. Unlike a lot of reviews on MDL, I thought these themes fit the actors' ages perfectly. Like a lot of people in their thirties, they've "settled into" themselves, but it has taken on an edge of complacency, wherein Min Hoo's secretiveness and Ye Sul's self-doubt limit their ability to connect with one another. Again, if this now-mediocre drama had floated along on the back of good stuff like this, I would've given this show a 7.

But, no. First, the show panics and acts as if it doesn't have any material left (let me say once more: propelling past much-needed relationship development to rush the couple together was a bad idea!). Then, the script becomes totally and completely unglued. I expected this show to follow through on its own concepts, like revealing how Min Hoo grows out of his abusiveness at work. I was also really, really looking forward to seeing Ye Sul find her voice, earn her accolades independently of Min Hoo, and speak up for herself during confrontations. Her jealous co-workers repeatedly bring up this idea that she owes all of her success to Min Hoo and their mentorship isn't based on the quality of her work but her ability to attract him as a woman, which is gross and sexist. But then, the drama doesn't do anything to refute that perspective! Instead, Ye Sul achieves career advancement through Min Hoo's intervention, mimics his abusive communication as a boss, and behaves in an extremely childish way when she encounters her partner at the office. Episode 12 convinced me that she should be fired, tout de suite -- which should NEVER be the final note of a workplace rom com!

After the complete mismanagement of plot and pace, this drama makes a last ditch effort to find material by introducing an entirely new theme, halfway through its last episode. In a tone deaf turn towards realism, Kiss Sixth Sense wants its audience to contemplate how relationships require emotional work, compromise, and re-commitment after the initial Happily Ever After. Which is both a true fact of life, and a concept that wouldn't be out of place in a second chance romance or naturalistic prestige drama, but this show isn't either of those things. Oh, and it also wants to sell us this nonsense in 30 minutes. What do we get? Pure chaos, and not the good kind. We're subjected to a half hour of these mature, thoughtful actors running around like chickens with their heads cut off, fighting bitterly and insulting one another over imagined conflict. It's more than enough to convince me that this pair should've never gotten together in the first place, completely undermining the story that this drama has been telling for 11 1/2 episodes. By turning Ye Sul and Min Hoo into obnoxious caricatures, Kiss Sixth Sense abandons its own story, and when showrunners show such disrespect for their projects, it disrespects the audience who has been faithfully following along, and I can't stand that.