Ever since it was confirmed that Si-eun and Su-ho were actually in love, reactions online — especially on TikTok — have been really mixed. Some people are happy about it, while others seem disappointed or try to downplay it, saying their bond was just platonic or a strong friendship. I even saw someone say it was “stupid” and just fanservice.I’m honestly confused. Didn’t the director say something about them playing it like a melodrama? it’s been years since I first watched the series. Back then, I shipped them so hard, and I was so excited when Season 2 came out.Now that I’ve rewatched it ( as i got older), I’ve started noticing all the subtle queer undertones — like that moment when Su-ho was in the hospital after he got hurt. He said, “What is this feeling?” and then added something like, “The way you talk, move, your face — it makes me cringe.”. It felt like he was overwhelmed by feelings he didn’t quite understand. Or " were we married "The way the camera focuses on Si-eun watching Su-ho with so much quiet attention… it felt intimate. Romantic, even. Like a quiet kind of awe.And then that last scene where he opens the door before saying " see you tommorow. It didn't feel platonic at all Sorry, I’m rambling. I’m just trying to make sense of all these😭
Hihi~ No worries we're all not normal about shse in this house HA 🙂↕️ (lmao im gonna answer you like an essay review dont mind me)
Online reactions to SHSE being canon: Yes i've seen a fair bit of online public being upset over it too. I'm afraid this is a very common reaction to any queer ships in fandoms these days (wenclair from Wednesday, jayvik from Arcane etc). When aziracrow from Good Omens was confirmed canon in the show with a whole kiss scene, a lot of first reactions were downright hateful. The public had the same reaction to SHSE being canon: Why did they have to make them gay/queer? Can't they remain close friends? The source material did not dictate this -> All of these were said even though the co-author of the Good Omens novel and showrunner of the series, Neil Gaiman (bleugh another story) greenlit aziracrow's relationship being romantic. Sounds familiar? Bet.
Back to WHC, whatever the public's reasons are, we cannot dispute words said by the cast and directors. We can read a lot of their interviews as ambiguous, but what the director says in the WHC2 play-by-play review "(수호) 시은이의 첫사랑", literally and simply means, "(Suho) is Sieun's first love". I cannot make this shit up and I have a conversant grasp of Korean. I've gotten used to and tired of to this portion of public, which in turn is pretty fucking tiring as a queer.
Queer undertones in WHC: BET. Queer overtones, in fact. I think everyone who watches it and feels that SHSE are more than friends, have different interpretations of how they came to be. The most important aspect is that all paths still lead to the conclusion that they love each other romantically and platonically. The parts you point out, they are valid evidence! So valid they're used in every SHSE edit out there. Though, I especially agree with you on the "see you tomorrow" sequence. There is just too much tension in the air to wave it off. The way they're looking at each other is so contradicted with pain and sacrifice specific to the flavour of love, all for the sake of protecting each other.
We can't ship fictional characters anymore because we're making them gay even if the directorial board says they'll start tonguing each other in the next episode. Homophobia and allergic to fun, really.
And wrt fanservice, as someone online that's snarkier than I am said in a response/comment: Yes and I'm the fan being serviced. Keep this party going.