The Last Performance
Is Ri-Eul guilty?
The Sound of Magic is a mystery series that begins with the discovery of a dead body at the reservoir. The police are waiting for DNA test results to come in but it would appear, according to Ha-Yoon’s dental records, that it’s her. To make matters worse, her personal items have been found near the theme park as well.
Ha-Na goes to the police station to report her abuse, sporting nasty bruises across her neck where Ri-Eul choked her out. It seems that Ri-Eul is the guilty party here, and things are starting to heat up. ..
Ah-Yi heads to the theme park where she finds Ri-Eul’s journal. She uncovers numerous schematics, and she manages to find a hidden compartment under the stage. Ri-Eul is there with his parrot, Bella, and he’s distraught. Bella is in a rough way and looks to be dying. Ah-Yi suggests taking her to see a vet but he refuses. Bella’s last wish is to die peacefully.
The police are going to raid the place shortly. Ri-Eul promises her that he wasn’t responsible for the mugging, and as he pleads with Ah-Yi to believe him, she’s not so sure anymore.
Who is the magician?
Ri-Eul allows the police to take him and he goes willingly. Ah-Yi is still in denial but the police have done their homework and tell Ah-Yi exactly who this man is. His real name is Ryu Min-Hyuk. He’s 30 and was born in Seoul.
Min-Hyuk is a high school dropout who went missing 10 years ago from a mental hospital. He was investigated twice as a suspect in a missing student case in Seongmi-Dong 3 years ago, and he’s been in and out of the police station since. The penny drops for Ah-Yi when she realizes that Ri-Eul, the man she thought was magical, is just a crazed maniac. ..
Who is the pregnant woman? How is she connected with the magician?
Ah-Yi is determined to find out more about the pregnant woman she gave her number to earlier in the season. But who is this pregnant woman? Well, it turns out her name is Jin-Soo and she went to high school with Min-Hyuk. ..
He was a top student back then, but something changed during school. The overwhelming pressure of exams or the societal expectations thrust upon him by his parents; either way, it’s too much for Min-Hyuk who suffers from malnutrition and over studies, worried about letting his parents down.
Min-Hyuk had a mental breakdown on the roof of his school the day before the mock CSAT exam. He saw butterflies and a field of yellow flowers, which took him to the school roof. He survived, and was subsequently taken to hospital. Jin-Soo admitted this was the last time she saw him, at least for a while.
Jin-Soo insists that he is not the type of person who would be violent and commit those atrocious acts of assault. Min-Hyuk recovers and is taken to a psychiatric hospital.
Where does Min-Hyuk run off to?
Detectives Il-Deung and Ah-Yi are investigating the murder of Ri-Eul when they notice that he has disappeared. They search for him and eventually find him in a different part of the building. ..
Ah-Yi listens to Jin-Soo’s words with a sense of understanding, realizing that Min-Hyuk never wanted to grow up but also didn’t meet the required standard to be an adult. The pressure was just too much for him.
As our great magician Min-Hyuk returns to the theme park, the detectives arrive but he shrugs off their pleas for him getting treatment and an attorney. Instead, he decides to do magic for them.
What happens to Min-Hyuk?
The standoff between the detectives and Ah-Yi continued until she finally stepped up to the stage and asked for a moment with Min-Hyuk. ..
Ah-Yi steps up to the mic and begins singing with Min-Hyuk. The police are all completely shocked, but they watch on as the two of them belt out a beautiful rendition of “The Snowman.” ..
The song is about Ah-Yi’s journey from despair to hope. He has faced many challenges in his life, but he has also come to terms with his true identity and abilities. He has finally accepted that he is a real magician and has helped Ah-yi believe in magic. This has been his goal all along, to help others like Ah-Yi see past their despair and unenviable pain. He wanted her to believe in something bigger than herself.
Just before Min-Hyuk is taken away, Ah-Yi asks Min-Hyuk if he believes in magic. Everything comes full circle, as Ah-Yi takes the large robe by her side, wraps it around him and allows Min-Hyuk to disappear before their very eyes.
Who killed Ha-Yoon?
After Ri-Eul and Min-Hyuk leave, Ah-Yi and Yoo-Yi pay their respects to Bella, who sadly passed away. The police have found something from the cameras in the theme park. Two months ago, they uncovered footage of the real killer. Remember Doo-Sik? The man who abused Ah-Yi earlier in the season? Well, it turns out he’s the real killer! ..
What happened to Ha-Yoon?
Ha-Yoon used to work at the convenience store with Doo-Sik, who caught her stealing cigarettes and cash. Despicably, he tries to assault her but Ha-Yoon had the upper hand. She actually recorded the whole thing. ..
Doo-Sik was so angry after the woman died that he killed her and dumped her body in the reservoir. He even admits to it in front of the police, and given they have CCTV footage of him, he doesn’t really have a leg to stand out.
On the night of July 10th, Doo-Sik attacked Min-Hyuk at the theme park. Min0Hyuk fought back with a knife, but Doo-Sik never stabbed him. He was trying to protect himself.
As Doo-Sik took Min-Hyuk’s costume and framed the poor magician, the real misdirection was on us, the audience, given that Min-Hyuk was innocent.
The footage from the CCTV they managed to obtain was actually from the time Min-Hyuk turned all the lights on and started the fireworks around the amusement park. Remember the Aladdin-esque ride on the Mery-Go-Round in episode 3? For those 4 minutes, it appears that “bright lights” were not faked after all. But is Min-Hyuk really magic?
What happens to Il-Deung at the end?
Il-Deung drops out of the academy after a fight earlier on in the finale. He doesn’t want to be given anything or taken advantage of by the Dean, he wants to pursue this himself and tackle life head-on. This also sees him turn away from Ah-Yi too.
Does Ah-Yi keep the magic alive?
Ah-Yi decides to switch up who she’s messaging, writing letters to her mom, Min-Hyuk, and Bella equally. She’s become a “boring adult” but also trying to keep the magic alive by writing letters through the “magic letterbox.” ..
Ah-Yi, a young girl who does magic for children, asks Min-Hyuk, the young boy she works with, if he believes in magic.
Is there a post-credit sequence?
Yes, there is! The show features a theatrical performance with musical influences, one final encore for all the characters as they take to the stage and sing and dance for the audience. ..
The Episode Review
The Sound of Magic comes to a close with an excellent final chapter that rounds out the whole story with a neat little bow. Throughout the show, we’ve been misdirected over who Ri-Eul/Min-Hyuk actually is and also whether magic is real in this show or not. By the end, we’re no closer to finding out, but it’s interesting that this show takes on the same tone as something like Miracle on 34th Street. ..
The show constantly flits back and forth between this idea of Ri-Eul being this magician and actually being a master of deception, and by the end we’re none the wiser to either. Personally, I’d go for the latter, given his chatter about misdirection (which is partly directed toward us, dear readers!) and that pretty much everything could be explained through magic tricks. In-universe of course.
Did Ah-Yi really set off on a horse and travel across Seoul? It’s hard to say for sure, but it seems unlikely. Did Ri-Eul have a lot of fireworks ready to set off to wow Ah-Yi? It’s hard to say for sure, but it seems likely.
The Sound of Magic is a show that takes on societal pressure and how it affects people’s lives. It has layers of depth that make it seem simple on the surface, but it has a more complex story hidden beneath its glitzy surface.
Netflix has announced that they have picked up another great K-Drama, this one from South Korea. The show is called “The Great Gatsby” and it looks like it will be a great success.
