Soul mate : an undeniable queer story
Well, well, well, grab something to eat, something to drink, get all comfy because this is going to be a long one.
Tbh and unfortunately, I kinda expected to write something like this bcs this has been an issue for years in this communauty so I'm not surprised by the response, but still, I am slightly disappointed that we have to have this conversation in 2026. Regardless, I insist on writing this analysis bcs to me, it is important.
Just a little pitch of the show before we dive into it: Soul mate - 8 eps - follows Ryu and Hwang Johan who meet in Berlin under odd circumstances. The series spans a few years of their lives where we follow their adventures in Berlin, Japan and Korea.
Ok, so...people on the internet, a lot of them, too many of them actually, are trying to completely erase the queerness of this show, howling how they've been fooled, they've been wronged by the director and screenwriter, merely because guess what, there is no sexual intercourses, no kisses, no physical touches.
Wow, surprising yeah? [sarcasm]
Some say the queerness is subtext and while I agree some of it kinda is, especially in the physical acting, most of it is not. The queerness is in the text, it is actually present in the dialogues, it is explicit. Hwang Johan is canonically gay and one of the first introduction to his personal world and life is showing him being a regular in the gay bar, his gay friend owned. Mind you, a gay friend who teases him about this new person that makes him smile and happy, btw. A gay friend that fully embraces Ryu when he first meets him, acknowledging how important he is for Johan and that he wished they had met in different circumstances.
Besides, Johan's feelings toward Ryu are quite explicit from his early on flirty behaviour to his sweet attentions that scream domestic and partners for life.
When it comes to Ryu, his queerness is the first thing introduced in the series and you can read more in my Eps analysis but throughout the entire show, his queerness is there, in his words, his actions, his interactions but especially on how his friends, mostly Sumiko, perceive him and eventually accept him. It engulfs his entire being and of course is the seed of his relationship with Johan. He cares too, bcs he is as flirty and knows Johan is special enough to meet his family.
Now, don't get me wrong, evrything in this show is not great and the lack of physical intimacy can be a valid critique but simply not for Soul Mate. Imho, we could have been disappointed by the small running time for each episode and how it didn't allow to develop certains aspects of the story, for example asexuality, unconventional family dynamics. We can complain about the acting, the cinematography, the dialogues. Hell, we could even complain about the tragic shift of the ending because of course, I would have preferred for it to have a proper happy ending bcs media definitely lack queer happiness and joy, on that we agree 100%. However, removing the queerness of this show only bcs of its ending and the lack of physical intimacy is where I draw the line and where, for me, it is disrespectful.
Soul Mate quite literally followed some of the most classic romantic tropes so why am i seeing people saying it is is not?
In the end, what mostly pisses me off is that if Ryu was a woman, this conversation would not even be on the table. The tragic ending would not have been a mean to discredit the obvious love between the main leads and that is the issue, that is where it is wrong.
Don't you dare remove the love, the affection, the care from the silly dates, the countless calls, the meals and moments spend with Ryu's parents, the talks at night, the words of encouragement, the feeling of being seen, of finally being true to yourself, of not lying to oneself and still being embraced fully, loved unconditionally and supported. Don't you dare turn to void the smiles and laughs, the long nights and walks, the beautiful art of offering your heart, your soul, and protecting it like it is the most important thing for you.
Being with Ryu was Johan's truest form of happiness. Having Johan by his side, was for Ryu, token of never feeling lonely, bcs it did not matter where he was in the world or what the sceneries looked like, bcs, every single time and in every single one of them, he would see Johan there.
We literally see that in ep 8. How more obvious it should be.
Being with each other meant they would never feel alone. They had seen so much together, had so much fun, declared their love to one another in their fucking respective languages, had went through SO much and still they would chose each other regardless. They chose each other, again and again, even until the end.
This is what Hwang Johan did and felt. This is what Ryu did and lived. With each other. Them two. So don't do that just because it is two man and they don't kiss. Don't. Just don't.
Essentially, it is disrespectful to dismiss the queerness of this show or to speak about it as a mere bromance when so many scenes, and the characters are purposefully written as queer and canonically queer. Let alone all the parallels with the only heterosexual married couple being made left and right, further showing how that heterosexual relationship and the one from our queer leads are equals.
Before finishing my rant, I'd like to talk about Sumiko, a very interesting, imho, female character in queer media.
She is open, accepts Ryu and Johan for whom they are. She probably is the first one to know about Ryu's sexuality. She found and created with them a communauty, a safe space for her daughter, a new way of life, a rebirth and even when they eventually end up togetherish with Ryu, she sets him free for him to go to Johan, she encourages it, she knows better than anyone what they mean for each other. I am lowkey mad as to why she waited a whole year tho I have my suspicion on why...I could go longer on her character but that's not the main point of this post so I'll stop here. All I gotta day is Sumiko clocked them queer asses since the beginning and that's periodt!
If you read until now, well thank you. If you want to read more about the queer text in details, check these out:
Ep3/Ep4 : Mirrors & Sandcastle
Ep5/Ep6 : Rebirth & the galactic link
