No Gain No Love episode 8 review: Nothing new or surprising in Shin Min-ah and Kim Young-dae’s show

Story:

The reason for the very noob kiss seen in episode 7 gets explored in episode 8. Meanwhile, Hae-yeong’s ex U-jae is suspicious and wants to find out what is the real relationship between Hae-yeong and Ji-uk. Can he? Figure out.

Review:

Episode 8 of No Gain No Love commences with Ja-yeon (Han Ji-hyun) and Secretary Yeo (Lee You-jin). Their contrasting reactions do not set the tone for what is to come. Her story and how she ended up becoming Eun-ok (Yoon Bok-in)'s foster child is explored this time. With that, we meet Ha-yeon's father, played by Lee Seung-joon, too. He does well for a brief appearance.

Hae-yeong (Shin Min-ah) and Ji-uk (Kim Young-dae)'s kiss is revisited in the episode. There was a reason why the kiss was nothing like what a first kiss should be, and that is still disappointing.

The real kiss comes in this episode, and finally, it is beautiful. Young-dae, in his role of Ji-uk, is heartbreaking to watch.

Go-woon's U-jae enters the convenience store that Ji-uk once worked at, and no, Byeon Woo-seok is not back. But, there's a lot of sarcasm in the scene, and that's fun to watch! Go-wook eventually works in the scene, but it is not the highlight of it. Doubts creep into Yi-lin (Jeon Hye-won)'s mind, but it is Go-wook who kills it in the scene with her.

Young-dae trying to act macho but ending up as a cute puppy is core him, and that works in all the scenes with him in this particular episode. Ji-uk meeting Hae-yeong while she has breakfast with her sisters is one funny scene, mainly because of Min-ah's expressions and Young-dae complimenting them. Joo Min-kyung's Hui-seong has a punchline in the scene, and needless to say, it's perfect to set the mood.

Lee Sang-yi's entry as Gyu-hyun showing his powers in front of Secretary Yeo is one fun scene because of how the latter still behaves in front of the boss. The minute Ja-yeon enters the scene, you know things aren't going to end well. Thanks to a situation, she shines in the scene eventually. They end up having their first romantic moment in tragedy, and somehow, that works.

Eun-ok and Ji-uk share a cute moment, but that is brief. The focus shifts to Ji-uk trying to be manly in front of Hae-yeong and failing miserably. PS: There's Lovely Runner reference in the scene, and that comes as the most pleasant surprise in the episode.

Gyu-hyun's father once again leaves major hints about Ji-uk and his son's relation. Bok gets to know about Manager Jang (Yoon Seo-hyun)'s situation, but his reaction is not as epic as Ji-uk's. Lee Il-hwa's Jung-a is here, and she's her usual self.

While Ji-uk and Hae-yeong are usually pleasing to watch, their matter simply keeps dragging on in this episode, making it a slightly boring watch. Similarly, although Gyu-hyun getting zoned out and blushing in the middle of the meeting is typically his character, it is not impressive. The next scene with Hae-yeong and Gyu-hyun being themselves is the episode getting back on track, and you cannot miss U-jae's reaction either.

Ji-uk and Hae-yeong going mattress shopping is a cute moment, for they finally turn kids around one another. Their romantic moments continue thereon, and both the actors nail it.

There's a moment of thrill between U-jae and Hae-yeong as the series almost comes to an end. The minute she finally gets her revenge becomes a memorable point. On the other hand, Ja-yeong receives the biggest shock of her life, and her expressions are noteworthy too.

And the big secret is finally out. Ji-uk, Hae-yeong as well as Gyu-hyun shine in the scene. The epilogue this time tries to be cute and works but only slightly.

Verdict:

Once again, No Gain No Love fails to impress. It is an episode where all the obvious happens, so there’s barely any surprise factor and when there is one, it is not impressive. You can definitely skip this episode and you wouldn’t miss a thing.