Edited by Kim Won Hee
Translated Kim Hoyeun
When we see the characters carrying out an exorcism, the works exude endless charms despite the genres. KBS’s Sell Your Haunted House is a real estate exorcism about a licensed real estate agent who is also an exorcist joining hands with a con artist to drive out ghosts from haunted houses. With its distinctive storytelling, the series certainly evokes the desire to watch. But what are the eye-catching points of Sell Your Haunted House?
First of all, the attractive exorcism materials catch your attention. Sell Your Haunted House presents its unique exorcism setting. Exorcist Hong Ji Ah detects the unrested spirits by taking advantage of the fact that the body temperature drops to the point where she breaths out a cold breath when they are nearby. But her exorcisms involve a physical body. When the unrested spirit steps into the psychic’s body, she stabs the psychic’s heart with her binyeo that contains the spirit’s name. In the process, Hong often gets into a physical brawl with the psychic. And her thrilling action sequences add to the fun.
If the exorcism succeeds, Hong’s binyeo burns into ashes. At that point, the spirit’s only remaining memory transfers to the exorcist. This memory is the thoughts or regrets that the deceased had till their last breath, and it is why they turned into unrested spirits. Not only memories but also the spirits’ late habits enter the exorcist’s body. For about a week, she copies the spirits’ behavior without realizing it, and she frequently visits the place that the spirits had a strong attachment to.
The characters that firmly support such a setting are also quite fetching. Hong Ji Ah, played by Jang Na Ra, is a cold-looking and cool-headed exorcist. She is unfriendly, a bit grumpy, and always puts on black outfits. Her mother, Hong Mi Jin, is the one who taught Hong Ji Ah everything she knows about exorcism. But when Hong Mi Jin had been killed during an exorcism when Hong Ji Ah was still young, she became a vengeful ghost who now roams in her daughter’s house. Currently, Hong Ji Ah always puts on a defensive attitude as if she has built a wall to push other people away. However, she is a delicate person who speaks her true feelings to her mother and calms the anger of the resentful spirits.
Oh In Beom, played by Jung Yong Hwa, is a fraud who doesn’t believe in ghosts. As he starts a con that involves exorcism, he runs into Hong Ji Ah, a real exorcist. Soon, he realizes that he was a psychic. With the exceptional gift that distinguishes him from the other psychics, he joins Hong Ji Ah. His psychic power is strong enough to turn the salt into vivid blue, and he effortlessly goes up the stairs at Hong Ji Ah’s house, which all the other psychics failed. Yet, he can’t see the ghosts. He absorbs the memory that’s supposed to go to the exorcist. But the most important thing is that he raises Hong Ji Ah’s body temperature with a simple touch when it drops significantly during the exorcism. Cheeky Oh In Beom shows the complete opposite of Hong Ji Ah, enlivening their chemistry.
The unrested spirits’ stories double the fun. In each episode, Daebak Realty accepts the request to sell a haunted house. But with each house, Sell Your Haunted House points out various problems in society related to real estate. For example, the first episode covers the story of a man who was after unearned income through real estate speculation. When his plan falls through and he loses everything, he becomes a vengeful spirit. The latest episode introduced a vicious building owner who kicked out young bakery owners from the building by using reconstruction as an excuse. Soon after, he opens the store with the same name in the same place. By adding exorcism to the intriguing characters, the series resolves the unfairness within society and gives us both the fun in genre and thrilling satisfaction.
Suppose you’re hesitant to watch the series because you’re not a fan of ghosts, no worries. You will be startled the moment ghosts show up, but that will be it. Sell Your Haunted House is a work that is fun to watch. So far, the Hong Ji Ah and Oh In Beom have worked on their teamwork. Meanwhile, it has been revealed that their past is somehow related to Hong Mi Jin’s death. What fate awaits the two? What stories will unfold in the remaining episodes?
Verdict: A delightful collaboration of a mysterious exorcism and a realistic story (7/10).
Edited by Kim Won Hee: I am a person who needs more than 24 hours in a day because there are so many things I love. I am amassing various genres in the jewelry box in my heart.
Translator Kim Hoyeun: If you are a fan of K-drama, K-movie, and K-pop, I am your guy. I will continue to provide you with up-to-date K-entertainment news.
Jang Nara is so beautiful !