Lookism: Why and how did Daniel Park get a second body?
While the Lookism manhwa might seem like it has changed its course theme-wise, the essence of the acclaimed webtoon still remains: the effect of prejudice and social discrimination on the basis of a person’s looks.
Daniel Park, an unpopular kid who isn’t conventionally good-looking, one day finds himself in a handsome new body. Turns out, Daniel has the unique (well – almost unique) ability to switch his consciousness between his original body and the alternate one by sleeping.
Since chapter 100, we haven’t really touched upon the enigma of this body-switching phenomenon. But the mystery of Daniel Park’s two bodies is the most urgent and important question in Lookism to date.
The most likely explanation to why and how Daniel Park suddenly got a second body is connected to Charles Choi or Elite, the founder of the 10 Geniuses. Daniel’s two bodies might be the result of some kind of experimentation done by the Chairman.
There are several theories floating around the internet about this, and today I’m going to get into the ones that make the most sense.
Is Daniel’s second body James Lee?
Daniel’s second body is not James Lee. The theory was debunked by James Lee himself.
In episode 358, DG, the legend of the 1st generation, reveals to Daniel that James Lee was actually his first identity which he discarded after he defeated his contemporaries from the 1st gen.
James Lee became a recognizable face by the other members of the 1st gen, and so he disappeared after he achieved his goal.
After a few years, he reappeared in Seoul, becoming a part of Charles’s 10 Geniuses, taking on a new alias: DG.
It’s possible though, that although the body is not James Lee i.e., DG, it could have been the same body that was used by him. While DG ended up becoming a K-pop idol, his previous body ended up with Daniel (explained below).
Why did Daniel think his second body was James Lee?
During the Daniel Park’s Death arc, Daniel, while in his second body, is rendered unconscious after Jiho pushes him off a building.
Daniel wakes up in his original body and tries to smash his head to lose consciousness again so he can transport back to his second body. It doesn’t work.
This is because Daniel’s second body has not just passed out, but is in a coma. Daniel finds his second body at the hospital, where the police are struggling to identify him.
Eventually, the police place him to be James Lee, and Daniel thinks that the body could have been an actual person. On the police records, he even has a social security number and information that his parents live overseas.
Is Daniel’s second body not really his?
There is a possibility that Daniel’s body is not really his. More accurately, it’s not just his. Maybe, the body was created to be worn like a suit – previously it was worn by DG, and after he was done with it, Charles Choi programmed it so Daniel could use it.
Charles Choi’s group of 10 Geniuses consists of only the best individuals, ones with special skills and abilities.
Maybe Charles used multiple DNA strands from people he thought had extraordinary powers and formed a pair of bodies, one male and one female, to be used by people from his gang.
The female body, which is now used by his daughter, Crystal Choi, might also have had a previous story before this one.
After DG was done using the body which he called James Lee, it must have been reprogrammed so it could be used by Daniel.
This would explain why the second body people know as James Lee has an address and other identifying factors – because it was one used by DG to be another person, just as Daniel currently does.
The main thing that supports this theory is that in chapter 176, when Daniel follows the trail from James Lee’s given address, he finds Charles Choi waiting for him at his own house.
In chapter 177, Charles seems to know why Daniel has come and what he wants to know. He knows all about the extra body, and is actually angry with Daniel because he thinks he’s wasting his “gift”.
So, perhaps the body is just that – a gift, given to Daniel, which has nothing to do with Daniel himself. Just as Charles Choi says to Daniel:
James Lee doesn’t exist. He has nothing to do with you. I made it all up… to hide your second body.
When Daniel demands to know about why he got the second body, Charles says that he would have to surpass DG, the person he treasures most because he makes him a lot of money.
But since he’s become too big now, probably Charles is looking to replace him with Daniel.
Is Daniel’s alternate body a perfect version of his own?
Daniel’s second body could be the perfected version of his first one, just like Crystal’s second body might be the perfected version of her original.
They could have been designed by collecting the genes from Daniel and Crystal, and then experimenting on them so they represent the full potential of them both.
The two perfect bodies are benchmarks for who they could be, as well as a means for them to “rise from the bottom” and escape the inherent lookism in society.
But this theory’s purpose would be defeated, because in chapter 324, it’s revealed that Daniel has been training his fat body and has become somewhat of a hunk.
At the same time, this could also be a good set-up for a Daniel vs. Daniel face-off.
About Lookism
Lookism is a South Korean manhwa by author Park Tae Joon. It is published on Naver, LINE Webtoon, and other services. It started out in 2019 and is still ongoing.
Netflix will stream an anime adaptation of the series in November 2022. It is about a high school student, Daniel Park, who is a fat and ugly student who gets frequently bullied. One day he wakes up in another body that is so handsome that he realizes how looks matter.
He tries to keep his two bodies a secret and navigate through school life but not without getting involved in a ton of problems.
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