"This Life Is Our First Life" Episode 3 recap

In a fairly effective reversal, "This Life Is Our First Life" reminds us that just because montage and thematic framing make it obvious that Ji-ho and Se-hee are soulmates doesn't mean they're at that point. Mind, I am not using the term soulmates in a particularly romantic sense. Ji-ho and Se-hee are soulmates in that they have extremely similar life philosophies. They mainly want to go through their daily lives and unmolested and then come home to rest somewhere nice.
All the philosophical talk about marriage, whether it's Ji-ho wondering about the concept in the abstract or Se-hee discussing the topic in terms of investment, really does rest on this point. To people their age, love isn't a priority. It's not that they don't want love. Of course they do. It's just that there's so much else going on their lives requiring constant maintenance it's hard to want to dedicate time to something that may well end up being a total pipe dream.
It doesn't help that the workplace sexism is such a big commonality that it kills the prospect of a convincing romance even further. I'm really liking Ji-ho's friend Soo-ji (played by Esom), who has a reputation as a highly competent company woman. Because that's the problem. Soo-ji is a woman. She is reminded as much every single time she has a conversation or is referred to in the abstract by co-workers. The microaggressions wear Soo-ji down and agitate her.
But the lack of serious reprieve is the more existential problem. Even when Ji-ho is able to take a moment to unwind with her girlfriends, there's always that sense of dread and finality, this idea that all her coping mechanisms are just that- temporary coping mechanisms for problems that are too built-in to really be solved. Ji-ho can't even take satisfaction in telling off her bosses because the whole sociological structure is built around the assumption of people being nice out of obligation.
When that's taken into account, so what if Se-hee's out niceness is just a matter of explicit self-interest, and he admits as much? This is what make Ji-ho and Se-hee such fun to root for as a couple even in the absence of any apparent romantic chemistry. There's a powerful sheer honesty in their conversations that just does not show up anywhere else. Whether the excuse is business or love, that's a hard personal connection to just give up on.
Review by William Schwartz
"This Life Is Our First Life" is directed by Park Joon-hwa, written by Yoon Nan-joong and features Lee Min-ki, Jung So-min, Esom, Park Byung-eun, Kim Ga-eun-I, and Kim Min-seok.

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