My Youth episodes 7 and 8 review — Heartbreak, missteps, and small joys on the road to love

My Youth delivers two episodes that are at once charming and frustrating. Episodes 7 and 8 push the main romance forward but expose how fear can corrode love when left unchecked. The story alternates between tender, hopeful moments and exasperating mistakes, while also digging into the family history that shaped Sunwoo Hae.

With only four chapters left, the series is preparing to test whether love can survive illness, regret and years of buried pain.

Fear takes the wheel and love stalls in My Youth

Episode 7 of My Youth moves with a steady and deliberate rhythm. Sunwoo Hae tries to protect Seong Je-yeon by retreating, convinced that loving her while facing a serious illness will only bring her pain.

The show lets us watch that fear from the inside. Hae’s silence is not cold indifference but panic disguised as selflessness. Yet the effect on Je-yeon is brutal. She feels the distance growing but cannot understand why, holding on to affection while being brutally pushed away.

Despite the emotional heaviness, the episode does not feel padded. Work scenes and family moments fill the gaps, and My Youth keeps its momentum without resorting to filler or endless circles of miscommunication.

A painful misstep that could have been avoided

Episode 8 of My Youth slows the pace and turns frustration up a notch. Hae stops looking like a scared man and starts acting like someone cruel to the people who love him. His illness explains his fear but not his harshness. Watching him shut out Je-yeon and even lash out at his sister is hard.

It takes a shock to break through that wall. Je-yeon’s bicycle accident forces Hae to confront how short and fragile life is. The moment lands, but it comes with a bitter taste. The woman he loves should not have to get hurt for him to finally see the truth he has been running from.

The writing wants us to empathize with his terror, yet it risks alienating viewers who want to root for him. It works on an emotional level but leaves frustration behind.

Family fractures and buried trauma

Episodes 7 and 8 of My Youth also deepen the long shadow of Hae’s past. When he learns that Nu-ri sought out her father, he confronts the man, desperate for clarity after years of distance. There is also the return of Nu-ri's mother.

When confronted, the father crumbles instead of giving answers, revealing guilt and weakness rather than strength. The scene reframes their relationship, showing that the man Hae once might have hoped to rely on is just as broken and fearful as he is.

Earlier in My Youth, we learned that Hae’s childhood was marked by financial ruin and betrayal. His mother trusted the wrong people, lost money and ended up drowning in debt. The weight of that failure, combined with social humiliation, drove her into despair and ultimately cost her life. Hae grew up with loss as his first language. He learned that trust can destroy and that love can end in abandonment.

This history bleeds into every choice he makes now. His instinct to push Je-yeon away is not simple cowardice but the defense mechanism of a boy who once watched love turn fatal. The show does not excuse his cruelty, but by revealing this wound it helps the audience understand why intimacy terrifies him and why vulnerability feels like danger.

Small joys in the shadows

While the main romance wavers, the second couple keeps My Youth from drowning in misery.

Mo Tae-rin and Kim Seok-ju bring air and light, especially in their charming bubble scene that turns simple playfulness into a tender promise of happiness. Their dynamic is not just comic relief. It acts as a mirror for what the main couple is missing: honesty, presence and the courage to reach for love even when the future is uncertain.

Watching them inch closer offers hope that the story will not end in pure tragedy.

Building momentum for the final act

With four episodes left, My Youth seems ready to cash in on all this emotional investment. Hae has been shaken by loss and forced to confront the cost of hiding behind fear. Je-yeon remains resilient, still willing to fight for the love she believes in. The second couple’s warmth (Mo Tae-rin and Kim Seok-ju) promises to balance the heartbreak while the show edges toward resolution.

If the writing continues to weave family trauma, romance and gentle levity without tipping into excess, the ending could feel both cathartic and earned, paying off the pain these characters have carried since the very beginning.

Rating with a touch of flair: 4 full hearts and 1 broken heart learning to beat despite fear.