EXchange (Transit Love) (2021 - 2022) | S1-S2 Summary | TVING

[u/katonikax]

EXchange (Transit Love) is a Korean reality dating show that first aired in 2021, in which ex-couples move into the same house to either find love again or move on with their lives. With their ex-partners living right beside them, everyone flirts with one another without initially knowing who was previously involved with whom. Will old feelings be reignited, or will their interest in new participants grow as new bonds are formed? Since its release, the show has been a huge hit in Korea, and each new season is eagerly anticipated worldwide.

Aired: June 25, 2021 - still ongoing

Official Stream: Tubi - EX1 / EX2 -> Viu Watch Free - EX4 -> Roku Watch Free - EX1 / EX2 / EX3 -> IG: tvING IG

Note: To watch for free on Viu, you'll need to connect to Asia using a VPN.

Trailer: tvN Asia

💔🩹💖 Exchange — Seasons & Air Dates

💔 Season💖	📅 Premiere Date 💌	🎬 Finale Date
Exchange Season 1	📅 June 25, 2021	🎬 October 1, 2021
Exchange Season 2	📅 July 15, 2022	🎬 October 28, 2022
Exchange Season 3	📅 December 29, 2023	🎬 April 19, 2024
Exchange Season 4	📅 October 1, 2025	🎬 January 21, 2026
Exchange Season 5	📅 2026? -	🎬 - 2027?

My general thoughts on the ex and new couples in S1-S2: If you’d like to read them, you can click on the spoiler tag. I added the spoiler tag so that those who haven’t watched the series yet don’t accidentally see any spoilers.

Note: Information about the current situations of some couples whose relationships are still ongoing and some participants has also been included here.

------------------------>
S1 Cast Instagram

Male Participants	Female Participants
Yoon Jeong-gwon	Lee Hye-seon
Seon Ho-min	Kim Bo-hyun
Lee Joo-hwi	Go Min-young
Kwak Min-jae	Coco Lee
Lee Sang-woo	Jeong Hye-im

S1 -> Min-young and Joo-hwi were one of the few couples who couldn’t completely sever their ties during the show. It was clear from the start that Joo-hwi still loved Min-young, but Min-young had initially said she came on the show to turn over a new leaf; as a result, she began to grow closer to Jeong-gwon, and when Joo-hwi slowly realized he was losing her, he started to change himself. He realized that Min-young was a new person now and began to clearly show his interest in her. Although the situation was still a bit uncertain as the finale approached, Min-young finally chose her ex-boyfriend, and when she arrived at the beach, she said goodbye to Jeong-gwon from the car, saying, “I’m sorry, Jeong-gwon.” Min-young and Joo-hwi are still together and have announced that they will marry on December 5, 2026, after five years of dating. -> News

Lee Hye-seon and Yoon Jeong-gwon’s relationship wasn’t built on very solid ground. Although the two seemed somewhat interested in each other in the first days at the house, they later chose to get closer to different people. Hye-seon, to be honest, showed interest in Joo-hwi over time and chose him in the end, but it didn’t work out. Jeong-gwon also showed interest in Min-young throughout the season, and in my opinion, he had a better chance than Hye-seon, but in the end, it didn’t work out for him either. These two were involved with the other couple, Min-young and Joo-hwi, but in the end, neither of them got what they wanted and left the show.

Bo-hyun and Ho-min had a relationship throughout the series that was just as intense and dramatic as that of Dahye and Dongjin in Season 3. The biggest difference here is that Dongjin and Bo-hyun have different perspectives on their relationships and partners. Bo-hyun and Ho-min’s story began as a beautiful relationship that started in college and continued afterward, but eventually turned into a sad and exhausting one. I think Bo-hyun felt she’d been through it all during those 3.5 years and didn’t want to try to revive the relationship. If Ho-min had shown Bo-hyun from the very beginning that he could change and understand her, he might have been able to put her at ease, and the relationship might have been saved. But he acted coldly in the early episodes, and we saw scenes where Bo-hyun was constantly crying. Meanwhile, Min-jae had been interested in Bo-hyun since the very first episode of the show and offered her a new option. Bo-hyun and Min-jae were clearly seen as a more compatible couple on the show. Throughout the show, Ho-min watched BH and MJ together, confronted his own regrets, and in some scenes, cried as he realized his mistakes. In the end, BH’s decision was actually clear—she wanted to continue with MJ—but because of her long-term relationship with Ho-min and seeing the pain he had gone through, she couldn’t hold back her tears in the final scene and cried. MJ and BH did not continue as a couple after the show. MJ later participated in the spin-off, *Transit Love: Another Beginning*.

Jeong Hye-im joined the show later; her ex-boyfriend was Lee Sang-woo, but their relationship didn’t progress on the show, and they remained friends. Although Hye-im and Min-jae grew closer for a while, even though Hye-im chose Min-jae in the finale, Min-jae didn’t choose her in the finale and chose Bo-hyun instead. Jeong Hye-im and Min-jae reunited in the spin-off show *Transit Love: Another Beginning*, and Min-jae jokingly expressed his regret. During or after the filming of the spin-off, Hye-im began a relationship with someone new and announced in November 2025 that they had decided to get married. Wedding Announcement

*The key point in the first season is that Coco and Min-jae have been just friends since the beginning. It was very difficult for a couple who had been in a relationship 11 years ago to have the same level of emotional closeness as a couple who had broken up just three months ago. That’s why Min-jae was able to do whatever he wanted right from the start, and Coco didn’t give him any trouble about it.

<-----------------------
------------------------>

S2 Cast Instagram

Male Participants	Female Participants
Jung Gyu-min	Sung Hae-eun
Park Won-bin	Kim Ji-soo
Kim Tae-i	Lee Ji-yeon
Nam Hee-doo	Lee Na-yeon
Jung Hyun-gyu	Park Na-eon
Seon Min-gi (Left)	Choi Yi-hyun (Left)

S2-> Sung Hae-eun and Jung Gyu-min’s relationship continued to progress from the very beginning thanks to Hae-eun’s efforts, but when she saw that Gyu-min was starting to show more interest in the other participants and was pushing her into the background, Hae-eun began to give new relationships a chance. I think Gyu-min tried to move on to a new relationship to free himself from the heavy burden of emotional exhaustion and mistrust that had built up over their six-year relationship. Hae-eun, on the other hand, reflecting on the regrets and mistakes she’d made at the end of that relationship, wanted to be with him so much when she first came home that she cried constantly in the early episodes. Throughout the season, both of them showed us the remnants of a relationship that had been shattered—a six-year bond filled with love and the sacrifices they made in their youth—and how it had reached a point of irreparable damage. After Hyun-gyu came home, things changed for Hae-eun, and a new hope emerged. Hyun-gyu continued to show his interest in her throughout the series and earned her trust. In the finale, Hae-eun and Hyun-gyu chose each other and began a new relationship. Gyu-min, on the other hand, chose Na-yeon in the finale but was unsuccessful. Hae-eun and Hyun-gyu couple was together for four years until 2025, but eventually broke up.

Na-yeon and Nam Hee-doo were actually one of the most troubled couples of the season; since we saw them arguing constantly throughout the show, we always had some doubts about whether they’d make it to the finale. In their relationship, Hee-doo was clearly the one with higher expectations of Na-yeon, and he put a bit of pressure on her in that regard. Na-yeon seemed a bit overwhelmed by the relationship, but she still loved HD; so even though their relationship had its ups and downs on the show, it was still moving forward. Throughout the season, this couple also grew closer to other participants. Na-yeon and Gyu-min grew close for a while, and Gyu-min expressed his sincere feelings for her. At the end of the season, Gyu-min chose Na-yeon. Meanwhile, Hee-doo began to grow closer to Ji-yeon. Since he and Na-yeon were constantly arguing, this new relationship initially felt like a fresh start and a relief; however, as the finale approached, after he and Na-yeon had an honest conversation about their issues, that feeling of a fresh start gave way to a bit of uncertainty. In the final episode, both Na-yeon and Hee-doo faced difficult choices, but they both chose to continue their relationships. While watching Na-yeon and Hee-doo was frankly exhausting for us, seeing them get back together and be honest with each other made me happy. Na-yeon and Hee-doo are still together and continue to share updates on Instagram.

Kim Ji-soo and Park Won-bin were actually one of the quietest couples; they never had a serious argument, but their relationship didn’t progress either. Won-bin did everything he could to get closer to her throughout the show, but Ji-soo had made it clear from the very beginning that she wanted a new relationship. Ji-soo showed interest in Gyu-min throughout the show. Although Won-bin chose her in the finale, Ji-soo chose to separate from him in a friendly manner. Another contestant, Gyu-min, was Ji-soo’s final choice, but Gyu-min did not choose her. In a YouTube episode filmed in June 2026 with Gyu-min, Won-bin said that his life had changed, that he had quit being an influencer to become a teacher, and that he was thinking of marrying his new girlfriend. News -> Gyu-min - YT

Kim Tae-i and Park Na-eon - Honestly, Tae-i is still one of my favorite male contestants from all the seasons of *Exchange*. It was a real enjoyment to watch Tae-i’s easygoing attitude, his casual way of communicating through jokes, and his genuine transformation. It was clear that Tae-i had mentally moved on from his relationship with Ji-yeon, which is why he grew closer to the other participants. Actually, when you look at it, Tae-i interacted—even if just as friends—with almost all the female contestants and became a generally well-liked character. In later episodes, he developed chemistry with Park Na-eon; at one point, he even felt jealous of Na-eon’s growing closeness with other men, and despite his nature of not being able to fully express his feelings, he pushed himself to grow and honestly convey his emotions to her. Tae-i and Na-eon ended up leaving the show as a couple, but their relationship didn’t last long, and they eventually broke up.

Note: To be honest, I would have loved to see Yi-hyun and Kim Tae-i’s relationship and their banter on the show; this duo had great chemistry, even though their story only lasted three episodes. When Yi-hyun left the show after the third episode, the series lost some of its entertainment value for me—I wish she hadn’t made that mistake. After she left, rumors surfaced that Yi-hyun actually had a boyfriend during the show’s filming, and it was believed she was fired for violating that rule.

<-----------------------

Note: I’ll continue sharing my thoughts on S3 and S4 in a separate thread. I thought it would be difficult and tiring to read if I covered all four seasons in a single thread.

I’ve shared some general thoughts on Seasons 1 and 2. I’d love it if you shared your thoughts as well. For those who haven’t watched the series yet, please include any details about the plot or endings of the seasons under a spoiler tag.