Brain Sync
Seon’s fixation with fire and toy destruction leads him to become a loner in his early years, but he is not deterred. He continues to explore the world around him, picking apart things and seeing how they work. Eventually, he becomes obsessed with creating his own world, one where nothing is impossible.
It upsets the teacher because he feels that the boy is not getting the help he needs from his parents.
Sewon’s cognitive skills improve drastically off the back of help. However, his social skills leave a lot to be desired. The doctor there suggests she get him tested for autism, but that’s going to set them back 1 million won. The subtitles say it’s $1000 dollars equivalent, but it’s actually closer to about $850.
The mother of a young boy looks lovingly at him as a white truck suddenly plows into the side of her, killing her instantly. ..
Sewon doesn’t even register an emotional response, something that’s linked back to his abnormal brain scans. However, this abnormality also gives him incredible memory skills, including a recollection of the license plate and specific details of the accident itself, including what his mum said to him before she passed away (a whispered utterance of “Sewon.”). ..
Sewon is a brilliant mind, and his work in the field of telepathy is groundbreaking. ..
Ji-Woo Hong, a reporter for Science Magazine, enjoyed his lecture and asks him about his motivation for research. He’s pretty standoffish about the whole affair, eventually skipping out and heading back to the lab without really divulging anything about his past.
Sewon’s latest research involves moving memories from one rat to another. However, this process fails. This is because Sewon lacks empathy and is therefore cold and distant with the other members of his team. He leaves them to discuss how strange and different he is, alone. ..
Seon’s wife, Jae-Yi, and son, Da-Yoon, had a cat called Mika. Sewon’s wife is convinced that the cat helps the boy with his social skills. Unfortunately, the unthinkable occurs and Da-Yoon dies in a fire. Sewon’s wife spirals into a state of coma after learning of her son’s death. This has a knock-on effect on her health as she begins to lose weight and become comatose.
Sewon continues to focus on his research despite the death of one of his rats. After careful consideration, Sewon decides to pursue clinical trials with the rat brain sync technology even though it may be risky. This determination shows that Sewon is committed to his research and is willing to take risks in order to achieve results.
Dr Namil Hong and Sewon enter the morgue. Sewon uses the brain sync equipment to experience a frightening image of a bloodied rock being smacked down; a vision linked to the deceased. Sewon survives, thankfully, as Hong brings him back from the brink.
Seon’s wife was killed, and he’s still trying to piece together what happened. He’s approached by a private detective who wants to know what happened, but Sewon is not interested. He tells the detective that he is on private property and that he does not want to talk about it. The detective leaves, but Sewon continues to have strange visions that distort reality.
Jun-Ki’s death was ruled a homicide, but Sewon is still curious about what happened to him. He heads back to the morgue and enacts his brain sync again – this time to Jun-Ki.
Sewon can’t remember any of the memories either, recording all of this after on his Dictaphone. Interestingly, Sewon invites the others from work out for food… but only Dr Hong bites. He’s different now though, more sociable and even ordering drinks.
Sewon begins to realize that he is different from others in a way that he can’t quite put his finger on. He writes down his likes and dislikes on a whiteboard, determined not to let himself get confused by what he’s experiencing. However, the more Sewon tries to differentiate himself from others, the more confusing it becomes. For instance, he starts hallucinating frightening visions of the deceased. Additionally, Sewon seems to be feeling emotion for the first time.
According to Sewon, the memories of the dead are creating illusions for him, but he needs to strip all of that away and look for the truth. And just like that, a small child appears and tells Sewon that Da-Yoon – his son – is still alive. But is he really? Or is this all part of the illusions he’s been plagued with?
Sewon heads to the basement to find Jae-Yi, who is hooked up to machines and presumed comatose. Sewon decides to hook the machines up and dive in, hoping that this brain sync will work for Jae-Yi. ..
The Episode Review
The first episode of Dr. Brain was interesting, but there were some problems with the ending. Dr. Brain feels like a mix of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Mouse and Solaris, but the ending to this first episode posed some problems. There were also serious jumps in logic in this episode. ..
Jae-Yi is a character who was killed in the show, but her memory still lingers in the minds of those who watch it. The show breaks its own internal logic after we learn that the brain sync doesn’t work for anyone who’s still alive. So how is it going to work with Jae-Yi?
Despite the fact that Dr. Brain does an okay job introducing everything, the ending is a bit too predictable.
It’s still early days and there’s plenty of time for this to change, but right now Dr. Brain looks like an intriguing but flawed sci-fi horror. Let’s just hope the writing tightens up a little for the remainder of the show!
