Shadow Beauty Episodes 7-8 Season 1 Recap & Review- Summary
Shadow Beauty follows the story of a high school girl who leads a double life online, presenting herself as a glamorous influencer while hiding her true identity and dealing with the pressures of maintaining her secret.
30/05/2024
Everyone in the class immediately thinks Mi Jin is Genie; the girl doesn’t deny it until Ha Neul speaks up and says she isn't Genie. Until then, Mi Jin still implies that Genie's identity is a secret and that no one could know who she really is. Ae Rin realizes that even though Mi Jin is very pretty, she still has her insecurities and wants to be someone else. Mi Jin really enjoys the attention she receives and approaches Ae Rin during the break to ask her to hang out.
Ae Rin sees Ho In at his house, and they talk about how Mi Jin's behavior was weird. Ae Rin considers deleting the Genie account, but Ho In says that will make Mi Jin become the real one. Ha Neul calls Ho In and feels like he is with someone else; she rushes over but Ae Rin has already left. Ho In continues acting uninterested, making Ha Neul even more insecure.
After school, Ae Rin goes to a gathering with Mi Jin and some other classmates, even Sae Hee, who often bullies everyone with Ha Neul. Someone brings up the fact that she and Ha Neul are bullies, but Sae Hee subtly blames all of it on Ha Neul, saying she forced her to do it. Ha Neul feels they are being fake; at this point, Mi Jin suggests that they should let Ha Neul experience bullying.
Ae Rin asks her why she would want to cause trouble for others and walks away; Mi Jin follows and says that she was also bullied at her old school. Ae Rin deliberately asks why someone as famous as she would be bullied, still hoping that Mi Jin will tell the truth and admit she is not Genie. But Mi Jin uses the excuse that she is afraid of social media and does not want people talking about her social life.
At home, Ae Rin decides to reactivate her account and posts a photo from the coffee shop with Ho In. Ha Neul is happy to see Genie active again, but she also realizes that all the products Genie posts photos of are the ones she got from Ae Rin. She also notices that the location in Genie's recent photo is the same as in Ho In's profile picture.
The next day, Ha Neul secretly pays more attention to Ae Ri, asking Genie about the photo at the coffee shop and requesting a video call. Ae Ri makes an excuse and refuses to accept the call because she is eating, but Ha Neul asks her to send a picture of the snack she is eating. Ae Rin does, but when she runs downstairs to go back to the class, Ha Neul is already waiting for her at the stairwell; she realizes the snack in Ae Rin's hand is the same one Genie sent her. A flashback of Ha Neul reveals her parents' past. Her dad fell in love with her mom at first sight when he saw her perform in a play. They soon got married, and Ha Neul’s mom has always worked hard to support their family and her dad's failing business. Eventually, the business improved, but her dad betrayed her mom and left them for another woman.
Meanwhile, Mi Jin takes Sae Hee to a hair salon and manipulates her into cutting her hair, claiming it will suit Sae Hee's face. Despite Sae Hee being disappointed with the result, Mi Jin continues to manipulate her, convincing her it was the right choice.
At school, when classmates laugh at Sae Hee's new hairstyle, Mi Jin pretends to defend her but actually provokes more laughter, while portraying herself as kind and attractive.
Simultaneously, it seems Ha Neul has discovered that Ae Rin is still the genie, but she keeps this secret and messages Ae Rin about her suspicions of Mi Jin's deceit. Ha Neul asks if Ae Rin can promise never to lie to her.
Ae Rin feels guilty for having lied too much to Ha Neul. After school, Ha Neul meets Ho In and asks if he knows about the genie; he lies and pretends ignorance. When Ha Neul mentions Ae Rin, Ho In claims he was just following the teacher's instructions to prevent Ha Neul from bullying Ae Rin.
Ha Neul grows increasingly convinced that Ae Rin has photoshopped images of herself and is the owner of the genie account. She regrets sharing all her secrets with the genie, who is also Ae Rin.
The next day, Ha Neul visits the cafe where Ho In and Ae Rin had been for a photoshoot. She talks to an employee who doesn't recognize the genie but reveals that Ho In was at the cafe that day.
Meanwhile, Sae Hee and Mi Jin start causing trouble for Ha Neul. Secretly, Ha Neul takes pictures of Ae Rin and leaves the class, stunning everyone. Ho In finds Ha Neul's location and shows it to Ae Rin during recess.
It turns out Ha Neul was heading to Ae Rin's old school. She goes there to inquire about genie, and just then, genie video calls her. Ha Neul is surprised to see the genie speaking to her on the screen.
Ho In and Ae Rin had timely set up an augmented virtual reality for Ha Neul to see the person talking to her as genie, although it was actually Ae Rin. This disrupts Ha Neul's suspicions about Ae Rin being genie. However, just then, the homeroom teacher calls Ae Rin for leaving class, causing the call to be disrupted. Ho In immediately tries to turn off the phone, but it's too late.
Ha Neul resumes her suspicions of Ae Rin and continues to seek information about her at her old school. At that moment, Ha Neul's mother calls, and she has to return home.