1. Taesul’s enemies
Let’s do a recap of the people going after Taesul
a. Control Bureau
Don’t want Taesul dead because of his social clout. But they do want Seohae dead because she’s an illegal traveler. Sniper Jung Hyunki is tasked to shoot her dead.
Note: they didn’t kill Mr. Park.
But wanted information from him.
Mission: To end illegal time traveling
b. Sigma
Suitcase password: 203102
First time traveler; arrival witnessed by Taesan.
The train/cat/monkey man
Was #1 tattooed on his left upper arm?
Was he humming Schubert’s “Trout Quintet”? lol.
Artistic
He became rich because of lotto and stock market
No known family — Maybe that’s why he doesn’t care about the destruction of the world. He wasn’t loved as a child.
Approached Kim Donghyeon
Likes to eat canned Pacific Saury (mackerel)
Hmmm… he doesn’t look like he came from a moneyed class.
Messy habits, but organized with his plans to take down the society
Have access to drugs
Doesn’t want Taesul killed because he wants Taesul to create the uploader
The content of his suitcase
Mission: To facilitate Taesul’s creation of the uploader that will start the nuclear war
Is this his calling card? He didn’t look like the type to have a calling card, but oh well…
c. Assassins from the future
Sniper at Busan, plus three deformed ones
Knife attacker
It’s unknown whether they’re part of an assassin group, collaborating together or working as independent contractor.
Mission: To kill Taesul to stop him from creating the uploader.
I don’t think they’re working with the Sigma/train/cat/monkey guy because their missions are diametrically opposite each other. One wants Taesul alive to create the uploader; the others don’t.
Or is this their calling card?
The crescent is missing, though.
lol. It should have been a “chi” or an “X.”
d. Seojin and her ninjas
Currently out of action because Seohae killed her minion with rubber bullets.
e. Mr. Park and his Asian Mart minions
Mr. Park is temporarily out of action, too, because he’s been captured by the Control Board.
New information:
He and CB chief crossed paths when they were younger.
According to CB’s record, he was “in a holding cell after getting arrested for murder, and avoided a nuclear war.”
He has a family.
CB Chief: It’s an honor to have such a famous person here with us.
Park: You’ve grown a lot.
CB Chief: You too. (telling others) He’s grown a lot.
This seems to indicate that they crossed paths when they were younger, and probably “respect” each other in their own way.
CB Deputy: Park Hyeongdo. You were in a holding cell after getting arrested for murder, and avoided a nuclear war. How lucky.
Hmm…is this why Park didn’t want the downloader shut down? Was he expecting his future self to arrive shortly before October 31/nuclear war? If so, who did he kill? The CB Deputy’s family?
CB Deputy: As for your family… (looks at picture) Wow. She’s pretty. Should we pay her a visit?
Park: (laughs)
CB Chief: If you cooperate with us, we won’t play any cheap tricks.
Park: We’re working in the same field, you know. Cut me some slack. (Chief and Park laugh) Hey. You. (addressing Deputy) I can find your family, too.
CB Deputy: (hits him with baton)
If they touch Mr. Park’s family (either wife or daughter), his future version will come back and kill Deputy’s family for revenge. According to the report, Mr. Park survived the nuclear holocaust because he was in the “holding cell.” The prison is built like a bunker anyway because illegal travelers are radioactive.
2. Who is Taesul willing to save?
According to his hyung, as long as he could save Taesul, he didn’t care what happened to the world.
Also according to his hyung, Seohae didn’t care whether Taesul died or not if she could save the world.
However, the hyung must have misjudged Seohae, because according to Seohae’s diary, she must save Taesul. “Listen carefully. There’s something we must do. Take the uploader and go to the past. Save Han Taesul. If he lives, the war can be stopped. Only you can do this. Protect him from Sigma. Don’t ever lose him. Whatever happens, overcome it. You can do it. Please protect the person I love.”
Of course, she loved Taesul. Why should we be surprised? She traveled back in time because her former version asked her to protect the man she loved. The current Seohae was already more than halfway in love with him when they met. Remember? She didn’t want to follow her dad’s orders to avoid Taesul.
Notice however that the difference in priorities here.
The hyung was willing to risk the world for Taesul. Seohae was willing to risk her life for Taesul.
But what about Taesul?
While both the hyung and Seohae loved Taesul enough to everything for him, Taesul was willing to risk his life for….Sigma. lol.
TS: What’s with you? You said you wanted to stop the war. We must catch him then.
SH: If you don’t make the uploader, there won’t be a war. That’s why they’re after you. Just don’t do anything.
TS: Okay. Fine. Speaking of the uploader, where is it? You used that to come here. We can just go find it.
SH: I don’t know.
TS: Try to remember.
SH: Don’t change the subject.
TS: I’m going to find Sigma even if I have to risk my life.
There!
SH: If we fail, there’ll be war again. Then everybody’s going to die. Don’t you care about that?
TS: No.
SH: (stunned) How can you be so selfish?
TS: I didn’t do anything.
SH: If I were you, I’d stay hidden until everything is resolved. I told you I’d protect you. Don’t you feel guilty?
TS: Why should I feel guilty?
SH: Everyone will die because of you, even my mom–
I think Taesul misunderstood her here. He believed that her mom was her #1 priority. He didn’t know that he was her primary reason.
TS: I didn’t do anything yet!
Meaning, he can’t feel guilty for a crime he hasn’t yet committed. She can’t get mad at him for something he may or may not do in the future. It’s possible that he won’t make the wrong choice.
TS: That jerk’s been hovering around me the whole time. He mocked me behind my back. He’s fooled me and my brother all this time. So how can I forgive him? I’ll catch him and –
For me, Hyunki’s advice should have been etched in his mind. Hyunki told Seohae, “No matter what I do from now on, forgive me. That’s the only way you can win.”
SH: This is exactly what he wants you to do. I said I’d help you find your brother, not Sigma.
TS: It’s the same thing.
SH: It’s not. If you keep going after Sigma…you’ll die if you do.
That is a significant pause. I think Seohae doesn’t want to tell Taesul that she’s going to fail to protect him. She’ll be forced to make a difficult choice between saving the world or saving him.
He sensed that she was holding something back from him, but he couldn’t tell what it was.
Well, she could hardly tell him that she was going to die because of him, right? It would sound as if she was asking for sympathy.
Besides, the Very Important Person here wasn’t her, but him.
SH: October 31. It’s the day you die.
TS: (confidently) There’s a lot of time left.
Ha. Famous last words! He sounds so sure that they’ve plenty of time. Meanwhile, Seohae knows that time’s running out. She sits down, looking defeated. Her birthday is the following day.
3. Grrrr. The props director
Darn the props director! Did he mess up the photographs again?
Here’s the photograph that dropped from the diary. No writing on the back.
But in the next frame, the photograph she held up was the one with the message she scribbled to Taesul, “I don’t want to get married to you either.”
Darn it.
4. The flashback on September 30
This is my take –
Seohae was dreaming. In her dream, she relived her last birthday spent in the post-apocalyptic world.
That day, she spent it in an amusement park. When she went home, she found her father sick. She went to raid an infirmary for antibiotics for her father. She was chased by the Control Bureau’s counterpart in the future. She fell from the roof of an old building. She went exploring. She discovered her diary at her grave.
This watch is NOT the same watch as the one given to her by Jaesun.
This was Jaesun’s watch. It had a gold strap and it had wings for the watch’s hands.
When she touched the skeleton, the skeleton glitched.
The glitching was the time paradox. I told you this already, didn’t I? “It’s their bodies and memories getting mixed up.”
He answered, “Time paradox.”
Also notice that another skull was visible beside Seohae’s skeleton inside the coffin. I think that the extra skull belonged to Taesul who was buried beside Seohae.
Now, after touching the skeletal remains of a former Seohae, the current Seohae received the memories of the dead Seohae. It’s the time paradox.
That’s why the current Seohae suddenly had visions flashing in her head: she and Taesul. A gun. A laughing Sigma.
Then, the current Seohae started to cry. (The mother and Hyunki teared up, too. I assume that’s a rule. When a person’s previous life catches up with the current one, she’s emotionally moved to shed tears of sadness, of regrets).
The current Seohae had visions of all the significant moments that her dead/skeletal version had lived through. She’s shocked.
As for the viewers, they shouldn’t be shocked to see that the current Seohae was only reliving everything exactly as they happened in the past.
That’s the whole point that this story is a myth. I pointed this out in my First Impressions.
I said that, with the creation of myth, there’s a fluidity of time. We don’t know for certain how many times Seohae has gone back in time. It may be her second, third, fourth, five time travelling to the past. Who knows, really? Her first-ever encounter with Taesul has become a long-distant memory.
However, each time she goes back, *I’m hoping* that the past is never recreated in the same exact way. I’m hoping that she’s making little differences and alterations. Like, a gold wristwatch instead of a leather-strapped wristwatch. Or the same pink diary but with a different trinket. I want her to leave her own personal mark everytime she loops back in time.
This is the purpose of a myth: to explain why things are the way they are. For Seohae, the original encounter with Taesul has faded in time, but she can keeps holding on to the memory to explain her existence and her purpose. The myth gives meaning to her life so that even if she has to repeat this Sisyphean task forever, she won’t abandon all hope.
Hah! @pkml3 I just posted on the diary in the other thread. Thanks for this. Will read slowly after lunch.
I had to post this to get it out of the way. I should do one for Ep 7, too, but it’s all jumbled up during the rewatch.
Are you ready for the rewatch on the other thread?
Oh, I missed this before the ep 8 rewatch!
Great recap. Finally saw the prop error (or is it?) on the handwriting at the back of the photo and the absence of it. Are we being shown 2 versions of this event? Of the changes that SH makes as she goes into the time loop?
At first, I said eww, why would you touch a skeleton? But I realized she is a forager of stuff so she wanted to check if there’s anything important buried with the bones. She was not afraid of touching any remains and she collects trinkets as shown in their messy bunker.
What a coincidence (?) it’s her grave she found and her remains (with Tsul?). Then both of them die? It would have to be in the future to be buried on top of the forested building. TSul will be in the future then? Who buried her/them? Her dad?
I haven’t had time to rewatch Ep 7 and 8, and I could be imprecise.
Quickly: the text behind the picture.
If it’s a mistake, it’s a big one. So-Jin’s diploma, still pass, but there!!!
Or is it also a time glitch?
Seo Hae’s diary: this confuses me, because it looks like the one that was lost in the river (page erased by water).
*** Theories of the time loop, currently, two possibilities: ***
1 – The loop has reproduced itself an infinite number of times without variation and is doomed to reproduce itself.
2 – The loop has reproduced itself an almost infinite number of times, with variations, but the chances of getting out of it are so slim that it has not yet happened.
*** Time travel theories: ***
1 – Time machine teleports back in time with a fixed number of years. Example, 20 years back. (most probable number).
2 – The machine allows you to choose the date of return OR the date of arrival has a random factor.
3 – New: The machine works on the principle “the first will be the last”. Idea compatible with one of PM3’s previous articles. I don’t know the time differences.
This means here that Sigma is both the first to arrive in the past, but also the last from the future. His birth date could be in 2020 in this case. A clue suggesting this: Sigma would rather eat a can of food than fresh food. He has a habit of burning unnecessary money.
*** Theories about Sigma: ***
1 – Sigma is Sun! In this case, take “Time travel theory 2 or 3”. He has time to age after 2021. The only connection is the character’s propensity to use games of chance. For some traumatic reason, today’s Sun has changed and become evil. On top of that, he may not have endured his jealousy.
2 – Sigma was born in 2020, “time travel theory 2 or 3”.
3 – Sigma was born before normally, no estimated date. His birth date should just correspond to his age as we see it when he arrives in 2001, and according to the time travel theory used. So, a character like the others in the drama.
4 – Sigma is a “casual loop”, as GB says. Sigma is a paradox, but a self-resolved paradox.
*** Case 4, explanations: Here is how Sigma fits into time: ***
– Past (before 2001).
– 2001 : Appearance of Sigma, coming from the future.
– 2001 to 20XX: if temporal theory 1, 20XX is 2021. if temporal theory 2, rather 2041.
During this lapse of time, Sigma lives normally, except that he does not age.
– 20XX: Sigma uses the time machine and returns to the past in 2001, however, he MERGE with himself. We can even say that his natural state is to be merge, that’s why he doesn’t age.
– Future (after 20XX).
The reason why Sigma merges with itself:
Because it is the “sum of everything”, and also the sum of himself. The first to arrive (likely to control the loop, if time loop theory 2), and perhaps last to leave. The higher the impact of a character on time, the more the merge effect is accentuated. Here it is total, it is also the summation of the loop. Sigma is therefore a perfect Sisyphus, just as he can be the force that maintains the loop, and turns the rest of the characters into Sisyphus.
This means several things about this character:
– He was never born.
– He will never grow old and never live a life beyond the moment when he returns in time.
– He lives only during the time of his time loop.
– He is a fixed, invariant character, like he was created ex-nihilo in this eternal state.
– He knows the time loop perfectly because he lives it forever. This makes him an almost invincible antagonist, capable of foreseeing everything, but also a prisoner of the repetition of events.
– This is an attractive theory, but perhaps incompatible with the character’s objectives. Shouldn’t he try to get out of the loop? Or maybe he has realized that this is impossible.
Damn, I can’t post properly, sorry, I forgot to add this (information given by someone to me).
Sun-Sigma theory : Sigma is originally called “San” in Greek.
I love reading your thoughts on this drama. Gives me a lot of clarity. I rewatched both eps already, that’s how much I like the drama despite all the flaws.
Another prop disaster is the her bag… Sun gave a black bag during the ep 7, that I think supposed to be her bag during the party. But it’s completely different. Or am I missing something here?
I also thinks that everytime she goes back in time a bit of something changes, hopefully in time the changes are significant enough to avoid the war.
Also I think sisyphus is sigma… because he must also continue the time loop in order to ensure the plot that he desire. So he must roll the ball over and over.
Hopefully Seo Hae finds out when sigma arrived in the past. The only way to stop everything is to stop Sigma when he begun, which is 2001.
The theory of Sun is Sigma is intriguing, that would be a major plot twist. No more sadboy second lead. Hehe
Thanks, WEnchanteur.
I like your idea about Sigma being the “sum of everything.” I was rather astounded by what our “genius” Taesul deduced when he saw the Sisyphus painting.
TS: Wait a moment. “Sigma” Now I know what it means. Sisyphus. He is an eternal sinner in Greek mythology. He pushes a boulder up a mountain only to see it roll down. Then he pushes it up the mountain again, only to see it roll down. Then, he pushes it up the mountain again and it rolls back down. Again and again. He receives eternal punishment. Forever.
My initial reaction was: Are you kidding me? Are you telling me that he’s sigma simply because “S” is the beginning letter of Sisyphus??!!
My next reaction after my indignation subsided was: Oh! I get it. It’s about a series of repetition, that may or may not have a definite end. Just like the limit isn’t known until the equation is solved, the ending or termination of Seohae’s never-ending time loop is unknown until they figure out a way to save the world at the same time save Taesul.
As for Sigma himself, I agree with you that he seems to exist ex nihilo (or he came “out of nothing”). As such, he is an invincible antagonist. But as you rightly said, he’s also a prisoner of this circular event.
Perhaps he’s trying to find a way out of this existence and he believes that destruction is the only answer.
He said this. “Money burns. People don’t.”
On one level, his remark could be understood as sinister and portending evil. He’s been trying to find a way to extinguish human existence once for all, but he couldn’t.
But on another level, his remark could also attest to the indomitable spirit of human existence. No matter how hard he tried and how meticulous he planned everything, he just couldn’t “burn” people like he could burn paper money. He’s angry that “romantic” people like Taesul and Seohae strive to alter events despite little to ZERO odds of success.
He can’t get out of the loop himself because of Seohae and Taesul.
To me, Sigma’s lack of enjoyment for life says a lot about his dark character. He’s the complete opposite of Seohae, who’s bright and colorful, hopeful, and patient. Seohae gobbled up her food. She ate the skin of the banana. Sigma on the other hand had been eating canned sardines though a sumptuous meal was in front of him.
While Sigma bides his time for the coming of the end-of-the-world, Seohae is doing everything in her power to stop the end-of-the-world.
And the most damning part of it all: Sigma doesn’t love anybody and is not loved by anyone. But Seohae loves her mother and her father, and is loved by in return.
I think Sigma’s true nemesis here is Seohae. 🙂
Thanks! And you’re right. It’s absolutely the WRONG bag!! Good eye, @starb82.
No wonder the bag didn’t look familiar to me. When I first saw it, it didn’t register that it was the same party bag. I thought Jaesun borrowed one of his sister’s bags and plopped the gun in there.
Her bag at the party wasn’t a zippered one. It was a boxy bag with a flap closure.
I love all your theories and commenters theories!!
I love the show despite reading some other reviews and recap. It’s very different than other Korean shows although it tries to add a sprinkle of typical romcom and a dash of generic foes. I’m fine with all that because I expected it from Kdrama. I also expect that time travel writing is very difficult and will always have errors and produce more questions, but I’ve never let that stop me from enjoying the theories. It reminded me of Terminator before the reference was brought up (T-2 was one of my favorite movies). And it reminded me of Looper as well as Edge of Tomorrow (the going back in time several times for who knows how many times because each time can change something). So for a drama to try this angle, it’s great to watch! Thanks for your recaps.
@WEnchanteur @pkml3
I agree that Seo Hae is Sigma’s nemesis. As @pkml3 notes, she’s his antithesis. Where he actually has no personal name or family, comes fully prepared to make money, kill and corrupt for his own ends, and remains alone and successful joylessly, Seo Hae comes from a loving family, without a plan except to follow her diary. She’s totally at the mercy of anyone who may help or betray her, but she gets on by her wits and resourcefulness, making friends/allies along the way, and is able to laugh from time to time.
I like the idea of sigma as summation. I was looking up what it means. It is the sum of a series. The series that we do have is a series of time loops and paradoxes.
The lower case sigma is a statistical measurement of variation in data from a mean/average, also known as the standard variation. IE sigma is also a measure of how far data deviates from the average/norm.
If Sigma (the man) wants to attain full summation of control over time and possibly immortality (who knows since he’s still a closed book), then it will be Seo Hae who’s endless attempts to change history, who will bring in the deviations to the standard, that will thwart his plans.
(From Wikipedia )
(Sigma: A series can be represented in a compact form, called summation or sigma notation. The Greek capital letter, ∑ , is used to represent the sum.
Sigma is a statistical measurement of variability, showing how much variation exists from a statistical average. Sigma measures how far an observed data deviates from the mean or average; investors use standard deviation to gauge expected volatility, which is known as historical volatility.)
🙂 Thanks. You reminded me of another post that has been languishing in my draft box for days. I should finish it today.
Posters here tend to write very long pieces on “theories” and analyses. It takes time to write all these down. GB breaks the episodes down by subject matter. I believe WEnchanteur translates his work from French to English. Nrllee has the saucy and sassy recaps. Royangi does the research.
And the way this is going…Janey will probably want a rewatch every night. lol.
I’m truly grateful to all the posters for taking the time to share their thoughts and ideas. I’m very happy that we’re all patient writers…and readers.
I don’t mind theories. I’d rather have them than incessant babble on cute oppas and feelings. And if the theory doesn’t work…oh well. That’s fine. No harm done.
Welcome to the blog.
Hi @Malfie,
Welcome to BOD. I seem to have stopped looking at reviews and comments made elsewhere. Partly I have no time, and I’ve lost interest in being ‘affected’ by other points of view. There’s so much to think about just from this one blog alone!!
This show has give us what will make us forgive all the plotholes, illogical stuff and prop errors: great characters to get behind, a balanced hopeful yet serious tone, and an overall compelling plot. On top of that, it has moments of levity, that make the characters more human and relatable, and lots of clues strewn around for sharp-eyed clue hunters like Bitches. This is certainly an enjoyable watch
(and re-watch!)
Seo Hae being the true nemesis of Sigma : Yes yes yes I agree..!
Since the one who really want to see the doomsday is Sigma. While the one who clearly want to avoid that is Seo Hae.
@WEnchanteur.. regarding the theories about sigma.. I hope it’s not the #1. How ironic it would be to see Sun becoming a man like Sigma. 😔
My theory #4 has a first flaw: why doesn’t Sigma commit suicide to end this? But one could also ask in the Greek myth, why doesn’t Sisyphus commit suicide instead of enduring his torment?
– Of course, if the loop is invariant, he can’t kill himself, everything has already happened, since always, without him killing himself.
– On the other hand, if he is a merge and has retained memories, he must be able to make a choice. And he doesn’t.
– Either he tries to commit suicide, but it fails. Why, how? A mystery.
– Or he has simply accepted the absurdity of his situation, as described by the philosopher Camus in his book on this myth: The absurd does not lead to suicide, and Sisyphus overcomes his fate with contempt.
A second flaw: in order to be a prisoner of the loop, and if we model Sigma as Sisyphus with the Greek myth, there must have been a moment when he committed an act that displeased the Gods. A priori, this act should be out of the loop. I suppose that being “out of the loop” means living at a time when time is linear and time travel does not exist. This suggests that the loop has not always been infinite, and my theory is even less valid.
So, it’s a nice theory, but I should rather keep it to write another story, lol! But you never know, there is a small probability that it is true? Anyway, it would be a good idea, otherwise I’ll regret not having discussed with the scriptwriters to convince them before, haha! It would be a blood-curdling villain by its very nature.
We see the character enter the time machine, he is completely alone. Is this before anyone else enters? Or is he the very last one to enter?
In a previous theory (old now), I assumed that Sigma was a concept. A force that allows the loop to repeat itself. And the character in the drama, called Sigma, is like a servant of this concept, a servant of the gods, helping the loop to repeat itself to avoid temporal chaos. It appears now, that he is rather also a prisoner of the concept.
So Sigma remains a mystery, with some theories around him.
I have no certainty about its real purpose. Wanting to bring about the apocalypse? Something rings false in that. It’s like it’s incidental, either a necessity or something inevitable. Maybe it’s just that the apocalypse is part of the loop? He doesn’t try to provoke it out of desire, but simply notes that it is inescapable?
My first theory about the invariant loop: I then assumed that the loop was variant. And now, I fall again on the first theory. Especially when I see how Seo Hae got her diary, and how everything is perfectly entangled in the repetition. This drama spends its time playing with us!!!
The drama deviates a little from science fiction with this principle of “merge”, transfer of memories. It’s all very convenient for scriptwriters: it’s the kind of thing that’s a bit vague, an adjustment variable with no hard rules.
@PM3, Your character role proposal:
It is indeed a character in line with Seo Hae in the opposition: Fatality / Hope.
We see his fatalistic side at the end of episode 7 too, when he makes a bad joke during the funeral scene.
Another idea about Sigma. Case n°2 in my previous list.
I say Sigma would have been born in 2020 for this case, I forgot to give the explanation:
– Sigma’s suitcase code number.
– The man he meets (and uses to do his financial transactions) has a wife who is about to give birth. Someone asked: why this man rather than another? Because he is his father.
@Malfie, GB
Already, hi Malfie!
There are two types of dramas:
– The ones I like, which are enjoyable (Many dramas on this blog, randomly Start-up, Hotel Del Luna).
– Those in which I fall head over heels. Which is very rare. The last one commented here was Memories of the Alhambra. Or also “Diary of a psychopath”, but for that one, I wasn’t in a drama period: I binge-watched it later and read the articles afterwards. Finally, a few others that are not reported on the site, like Penthouse, or Love In Sadness.
From the moment I fell into it, it implies superior qualities, which I may not be immediately aware of, or which I could not specify. But the effect makes me stubborn beyond belief.
No matter what anyone says on any site, I don’t need to answer, and my only thought is:
AH AH AH AH AH AH AH !!!!
Why this laughter? Because I realize very quickly that people say nonsense, that they do not understand anything, that they do not see anything! Artistic intuition at the level of the daisies. On Sisyphus, I saw many people who wanted to nitpick. Like the DNA test story. Which turned out to be realistic. But what’s the point? The nitpicking is mostly there to support an opinion rather than to bring a determining element. I know, I have made this mistake too, and I have a friend who often makes this mistake.
When someone has a preconceived notion, they will always look for something to support their belief. This is a behavioral psychology problem used by professional manipulators. The fact that once someone has made a decision, they have difficulty changing it. And there are ways to induce a decision in a person. A wrong decision is likely to be followed by a disaster. It happens every day to many decision makers, companies go bankrupt because of it! Nobody wants to change his mind, it is humiliating, and hurts the pride. More than that, it is a belief, like a religious belief. No matter how things get bad, the decision is maintained, with the illusion that it will lead to a good result once the hard times are over.
To make matters worse, this is reinforced by the mass effect, in other words: cognitive dissonance. If the herd is going in one direction, even if it is the wrong direction, each individual follows. This is how lemmings jump into the water in Australia. If a group of people say that a square is a round, the single individual ends up saying that it is a round, even though he knows it is a square. Originally, this is a survival reflex, the cohesion of the group takes precedence to create a homogeneous society capable of overcoming challenges. But like any quality, it can become a flaw if followed by a blind instinct. Of course, it can be used too by manipulators, if they have big influence power means.
Yet, even with the (real) flaws of Sisyphus, there is nothing to prevent one from appreciating the drama for its qualities, which far outweigh these few blunders. I will not enumerate them for the Xth time.
Here, we note some mistakes (the prop director should be fired, it seems ^^).
I sometimes visit a French website about cinema which resumes all the mistakes in the movies. The big movies! That cost tens of millions, that should be perfect! There are lots of mistakes, changes of shot, clothes that change, details that don’t match. It’s a very common thing.
Only in Sisyphus, you notice them much more because you are really attentive to the details. And Packmule3 is a kind of coroner of dramas! Besides, we know that a lot of details matter. And the director made the mistake of saying that there were “Easter Eggs”. The props guy must have pooped his pants that day. 🙂
Prop designer Lol @wenchanteour
I wish there was a feature to like/dislike/haha on comments. I hardly ever have any theories to add to discussion but gosh, I appreciate reading it here.
@WEnchanteur – on the theory that Sigma is the son of the fund manager and the suitcase code is the son’s birthday 203102… that conversation when he said his wife is pregnant was after the nasdaq listing which was in 2010. So that son will not be Sigma.
I do not have theories on who Sigma really is and the connection with the rest of the folks. I hope he is not just a random evil person.
Oopsies on the props person! Nothing will escape the eagle eyes of the BoD.
@Janey,
It fit even more the theory. Sigma is older than 20 years old. So, 2010 birdth make in 2020 : 10 years old. Then grow up more, then come back in time. If 2040, it make him 30. Of course, in this case, suitcase code don’t mean birthday date. But why all these suitcase should have birthday date ? These people lack imagination ? or basic security needs that say : never use your birthday as a password ?
So, for now, Ive X theories, and even not sure there is one good amnong.
Let’s see. 😉
@Malfie, @WEnchanteur @GB
Same here, despite the flaws, I really appreciate this drama. The thought of going back to the past to correct past regrets is very relatable. This is the first one I watch on air, and have no chance to binge through to find answers. I am very grateful to be able to read the high quality comments on this site, very on topic.
If the dealer guy is Sigma’s father, Who killed him? Would it be Sigma’s doing? The wife didn’t seem to like Sigma much. He is also quite cold to the dealer guy. Would they be the parents he never met?
The deformed people, would that be the result of nuclear explosion?
Would the sin committed here is to cheat death? Is it possible that someone has escaped death using the uploader/downloader? Who is the one receiving punishment here? Is the punishment here is to have your hope squashed eternally, loop after loop?
Mr Park – is he the good guy or the bad guy here? So far I like him more than the Control Bureau. I didn’t see him manipulate people like the Control Bureau boss. Who did he murder, is that his regret?
@WEnchanteur
True. I think that’s why I was no longer interested in reading other opinions no matter how well written. I also had the sensation that I needed to be a lemming. In order to find a few good comments, I had to wade through so much that wasted time.
Hahaha! I’d actually like to work for props and camera in this show. I’d love to leave red herrings and clues and leave everyone guessing as to why the camera stayed so long on that banana peel.
Yup we are all coroners here, taking apart the body of the show to see how it lives or dies.
@Viva
From the little we saw, it was un-deformed or normal looking people who were in the Upload centre. We assume that upon Download, they had to be ‘reassembled’ somewhere in the open. If the reassembling went awry, or they landed in a wall or piece of furniture, they’d be deformed or grotesquely partially trapped in something and likely dead.
A couple of us (including me) have been bouncing this guess about. Since Sisyphus was punished for cheating death (among other things) then we look to see who are the characters who are cheating death here.
I made a list somewhere else, but off the top of my head when I consider these characters NOT wanting someone to die who SHOULD die, then I’d say Chairman Kim and Seo Jin are big culprits. They want to keep the dying wife/mother alive at ALL costs.
The humane Seo Hae wants to stop the war from ‘killing everyone’. If the war is meant to happen, then she’s also guilty of trying to cheat death.
I’m not sure if Tae Sul was sure to die,… but Tae San is keeping him alive by hiding the blue print to the Uploader. So Tae San is a culprit too. He will also do anything to save his brother… it’s the saving a life at ALL costs that’s also part of the crime. Who and how many innocents are to die, in order for 1 or for a concept of peace, or for a community to survive?
So it’s a very different way of looking at who is being punished or not… The people who want to cheat death may not actually be out and out bad people. They may be making the choices that punish themselves so for eg. we see Chairman Kim kill himself. The looping may not be a punishment at all, just the physics of time travel and the paradox at work.
In fact the villain of the show, Sigma, is the only one who does not want to cheat death, in terms of preventing the death of others at all costs. However, he may be out to cheat death for himself ie he may want to stay alive forever and thus wants the uploader for unlimited time travel or something. We do not know at the moment, what his full and true motives are.
As for Asia Mart CEO Park, he has his own agenda, but he has personality (it comes with this particualr actor actually, he’s chatty and friendly-like in many of his characters) and a deceptively good-humoured way of getting what he wants. He can/will kill a person with a warm and friendly smile on his face.
GB, thank you very much for the answers! I did a bit of rewatch yesterday and digested more comments. I think in my other post I used the word selfish, but now I think may be it is a little too strong. TS is always upfront about himself not being a good person. He never planned to be a hero. From his perspective, he hasn’t made a choice that causes the war yet so may be it is harder to see it. I guess we all have times in our lives someone told us we should make a better choice, but we just couldn’t see it at the time.
I noticed TS has grown a lot more compassionate to SH’s injuries in ep 8. I hope this is a sign to show his character has developed – that he is more open to others struggles and conclude to a better choice this loop compared to the previous loops. I appreciate your explanation that the loop is not a punishment but the consequences of time travel. Possibly the time loop is also a result of SH has never given up on getting TS to make a better choice.
About Mr. Park, him telling his female staff never to leave their bunker and reminding her to keep the machine working no matter what meant he probably expecting someone, in addition to wanting her to escape the apocalypse.
The rabbit and wolves….😅 didn’t expect that post nuclear bombing.
I am finally catching up. I thought Sigma said, “money burns easily…people don’t.” When he said that I thought he meant that people die horrible deaths in nuclear war. Like those horrible burns people got when Hiroshima happened. 😬
I always wince when people grab knives with their hands…how? And where did the mutant assassin go after the bricks fell from the rooftop? With a slice like that she would need stitches…but magic bandage cures all 😂
Also how does he have access to all those family videos of SH? 😂. But okay.
Not sure how the bag of chips survived when the people were incinerated. That backpack must’ve been fireproof or something. Why take the stairs when you can just levitate down the stairwell? Wingadium leviosar. And SH singlehandedly takes out a legion of incompetent guards (who are they anyway? Self imposed government?) who can’t shoot for peanuts. SH is Markswoman extraordinaire. She never misses. And she exits from the hospital foyer straight into a forest in the dead of night… Thanks be to the Hounds of Hell for her escape. But you know, to make it authentic, you couldn’t have SH escaping unscathed so she has 3 scratches on her arms for her efforts.
And the writing on the back of the photo…I thought it was deliberate? The photo had no writing before and then the writing appeared in the next shot. To suggest a merging of the past and present? She glitched and remembers all the events that we have watched so far. That’s how I interpreted it.