Had I Not Seen the Sun Ending Explained: Why Did Jen-yao Choose Murder? Who is Hsiao-tung?

Had I Not Seen the Sun Ending Explained: In this Netflix Taiwanese series, a young documentarian finds herself in the midst of a heartbreaking love story derailed by trauma and abuse as the past rushes back to correct the present.

The series has a total of 20 episodes and will be released in two parts on November 13 and December 11. Each episode has a runtime of 50 minutes.

Had I Not Seen the Sun Ending Explained

The season opens with novice documentarian Chou Pin-yu, having just moved into a new home, finding herself getting a chance to interview serial killer Li Jen-yao. She is excited by the prospect, but also finds her mental health suddenly affected when she starts to be haunted by a young woman. Although she doesn’t know who this person is, she continues to interact with Jen-yao to get more information on why he committed these crimes.

In the midst of this, we get flashbacks to Jen-yao’s past, wherein we see his relationship with model student Chiang Hsiao-tung developing, as well as her relationship with her best friend, Yun-chen. In a surprising twist, we see that Yun-chen is Pin-yu’s cousin, who knew about the entire ordeal with Jen-yao from the start.

Although all the episodes are yet to be released, we are shown a significant amount of backstory to make us come to a conclusion.

Why did Jen-yao turn to murder?

From the start, Jen-yao is shown to be a misunderstood youth who has a good heart but is bullied relentlessly by his other classmates. Although he doesn’t take the abuse lying down, the added stress of his terrible home life leaves him rather heartbroken, until he meets Hsiao-tung. She brings light into his dark life that gives him hope beyond anything that he has ever felt. He also falls in love with her warmth and innocence.

However, when she is raped by the bullies who also put a false drug case on him and have him expelled, he refuses to take it lying down and seeks revenge on them. At first, it’s shown in part 1 that he stabs Ouyang Ti, but considering he ends up killing everyone later on, it’s yet to be shown what triggers that ordeal.

What is Pin-yu’s role?

At first, Pin-yu is simply shown as an outsider looking in, but it becomes clear that she is somehow connected to the entire case. Hsiao-tung takes a special interest in her and possesses her to tell her tale, despite there being other people she could’ve reached out to. Although we don’t see why exactly, it’s clear that she’s an important part of the tale and will have a big impact on how the story ends in the second part.

What do the moths signify?

Moths/butterflies & light/dark are a big part of the series, as they signify Jen-yao and Hsiao-tung’s personalities. It showcases the contrasts between light and dark and innocence and guilt, and how easy it is for innocence to be taken away from the youth. Jen-yao constantly calls himself a moth while Hsiao-tung is a butterfly, as he has only seen hardship and abuse, while she has seen warmth, which has turned her into a wonderful and empathetic human being who only sees the good in others. These symbolisms are extremely important for the series they define these characters thoroughly.

Where does the series leave us?

The series ends on a bittersweet note as Jen-yao stumbles upon Hsiao-tung. At first, he is unsure, but something pulls him to her. Now blind and with a new name, he escorts her to her job and is able to identify her thanks to the butterfly tattoo on her finger. Is this really Hsiao-tung, or is it someone else? If she is still alive, then why did Jen-yao murder his schoolmates? Do they harm her again? The series leaves us asking these questions in the end, and we will have to wait till December to get the answers.

What are your thoughts on the series? Let us know in the comments below!

Also Read: Had I Not Seen the Sun Review: A Deeply Emotional and Moving Mystery