I always get so confused, and honestly a little frustrated, whenever I'm watching those vertical transmigration dramas on YouTube and then I look at the comments.
For anyone who hasn't fallen down that rabbit hole, a transmigration story is usually about someone from our world waking up inside the body of a villain from a novel. Sometimes they have a system that gives them missions. Sometimes they're told, "Finish the story and you'll be able to return home," usually with some ridiculous reward like a million dollars.
The thing that always gets me isn't the story.
It's the comment section.
People will get genuinely angry because the villain's family or fiancé starts treating her better after she's transmigrated. They'll say things like, "They were horrible to her before! They don't deserve forgiveness!"
And every single time I'm sitting there thinking...
...this isn't even the same person anymore.
Yes, it's the same body.
But it's an entirely different soul with a completely different personality.
Of course people are going to react differently.
I was recently rewatching one of my favorite dramas where the female lead transmigrates into the body of a villainess. She has a system forcing her to make everyone hate her just like they hated the original villain.
The problem?
The system glitches.
Her parents, her four older brothers, and her fiancé can all hear her inner thoughts.
So while she's outwardly insulting everyone because the system forces her to, they're hearing things like:
"I really hope I can save my family before they go bankrupt because I know all four of my brothers are going to die if I don't."
Or:
"I feel so bad for my fiancé. His mom and grandmother are going to die, and then his so-called female best friend is going to manipulate him, cheat on him, and use him for his money."
They realize almost immediately that what she's saying and what she's actually thinking are complete opposites.
Naturally, they start treating her differently.
Not because they're suddenly saints.
But because they're interacting with a completely different person.
Even when she's trying to be "mean," she's nothing like the original villain. The original version of her was genuinely cruel. This new girl is awkward, compassionate, and obviously forcing herself to act like someone she isn't.
So when I see comments saying, "I still hate the family. Why are they being nice now?" I'm always confused.
Because... why wouldn't they?
If someone you thought was selfish suddenly became kind, considerate, and started worrying about everyone else before themselves, you'd probably start treating them differently too.
That's just cause and effect.
Now, there are stories where I completely understand people's frustration.
For example, the ones where the original daughter is abused because she was switched at birth, or everyone believes the fake daughter over her without ever investigating anything.
Or when the original soul is reborn before everything goes wrong, and suddenly her family starts appreciating her only after hearing her thoughts.
Those stories are frustrating because it's the same person who was mistreated all along.
The family simply never cared enough to understand her.
That's completely different.
But transmigration stories?
You're literally dealing with a different human being.
It's almost like someone moving into a house. The address stayed the same, but an entirely new person lives there now.
So yes...
People are going to respond differently.
Honestly, it always makes me wonder if some of the people in those comment sections have never experienced this in real life.
I've had friendships completely change because I learned who someone actually was.
One of my closest friends from middle school ended up spending years telling people I was a liar. She claimed I made up stories about my family, even though she'd literally been to my house, met my grandmother, my aunt, my dog, and even talked to my parents over FaceTime.
I only found out because another mutual friend finally told me everything.
The moment I learned the truth, the way I treated her changed overnight.
Not because I randomly became mean.
But because the information I had about her changed.
I no longer saw her as the trustworthy friend I'd known for years.
I saw someone who smiled to my face while talking behind my back.
Of course I became more distant.
Of course I stopped trusting her.
Eventually, other people noticed too, and many of them started distancing themselves from her as well.
That's just how relationships work.
People respond to who you are.
So when I watch these dramas, I don't understand why it's so difficult for some viewers to accept that the exact same thing would happen there.
If the person inside the body changes completely, then the relationships around them are naturally going to change too.
Whether those relationships become better or worse depends entirely on how this new person treats the people around them.
That's one of the most realistic parts of the entire genre.
The body may be the same.
But the person everyone is interacting with isn't.
