In Daily Dose of Sunshine, Kim Seo-wan is the patient whose death shakes the entire psychiatry ward and drives Da-eun into depression. Roh Jae-won plays Kim Seo-wan.
Kim Seo-wan is a patient whose mind is trapped in a game called Lost Valhalla. He imagines that he is living in that game. During his time at Myungshin University Medical Center, he gets close to Da-eun.
Seo-wan calls Da-eun the Mediator, a character from his game. For him, she is the best nurse in the psychiatry ward, and he trusts her the most.
Even Seo-wan proves to be a great human being. Whenever Da-eun is working too much or is feeling down, he puts effort into bringing a smile to her face.
Kim Seo-wan’s past
Seo-wan’s past reveals that he is a civil service student who has taken the test seven times and failed. He studies hard and comes close to passing the exam, but ultimately fails. The exams keep giving him hope that he can pass if he studies harder.
Seo-wan was a great student in school, always scoring excellent grades. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the privilege to pursue further studies abroad like his friends. He was always busy working part-time jobs to pay for his tuition.
Seo-wan didn’t have an enhanced resume like his friends, so he wasn’t able to get hired for high-paying jobs like them. In exams like the civil service exam, one’s resume doesn’t matter, and he saw this as his only hope of getting a high-paying job.
Overstudying is the reason why Kim Seo-wan is in the psychiatry unit of the hospital. The exams affected his mental health. When he continued to fail the exam while his batchmates passed, he found solace in the video game Lost Valhalla and then landed in the hospital.
Kim Seo-wan’s death
Kim Seo-wan’s mental health improves with time. He no longer feels that he is a mage in a video game. He begins calling himself a civil service student. Even though he fears that he has missed a lot of time, Da-eun encourages him to pursue civil service exams again.
Da-eun helps him by bringing the books he needs to study. Kim Seo-wan eventually gets a day out. After revisiting the academy where he studied and meeting some of his friends, Kim Seo-wan returns to the hospital, sick again.
Da-eun figures out that Kim Seo-wan is pretending to be sick when he calls her by her name, not the Mediator. Seo-wan is eventually discharged, as letting a patient hide behind their illness after they have gained insight into it won’t do the patient any good.
Seo-wan apologizes to Da-eun for lying. He says that he wasn’t brave enough to start studying again or to admit that he couldn’t. Seo-wan moves on and begins treatment as an outpatient. He switches to a hospital near his house so that he can have more time to study.
Seo-wan keeps doing better. In the end, he gives up on the civil services exam and calls Da-eun to ask her to meet. Da-eun is with Go-yun at that time. Seo-wan claims that it’s okay if she is busy; they can meet some other time.
Seo-wan ultimately loses control of his mind and regresses. He ends up jumping off the top of a building. In his room, he leaves a note saying, “I am sorry.”
Also Read: Daily Dose of Sunshine review: Accomplishes most of its goals
