This review may contain spoilers
I could give it a lower rating, trust me. But I'm trying to hold onto the good things about this show so I don't turn out being unfair because, when it's all said and done, Missing 9 isn't THAT bad - the huge problem is that it had potential to be the BEST DRAMA in the last 10 years but all that potential was slowly being flushed down the toilet as we watched. As many others, I had hude expectations set for Missing 9, expectations that were given to me BY the show itself, in its first couple episodes. I didn't have a clue where I was poking at when I started watching this show but I LOVED what I saw and all that mystery got me addicted effortlessly. It's only natural, then, that I got EXTREMELY disappointed to have all my theories shattered mercilessly one by one, apparently done on purpose too, like this evil plot was set by the writers from the very start.
Around halfway I lost all interest and strength to keep watching the torture Missing 9 became but since we were so close around the finish line, I kept pushing myself forth... and TRIED to watch it from a different perspective but... it didn't work as expected. Nonetheless, I was able to finish and now, that I'm no longer angered by such a waste of fine art, I can talk about it objectively, so let's start by what's GOOD about this drama:
1) ACTING:
Some people complained about the prosecutor being a bad actor but I was pleased by his natural performance. It's not the actor's fault if the character they're given doesn't have a coherent reply to one thing or another (if you look closely, the same happened to most characters). Everyone did a great job with what they had at hand and made it quite believable. Except maybe for Chanyeol. I was biased of him once and even then I never bought his acting so don't come throwing rocks at me.
2) COMEDY:
On spot. When they decide to be funny it's always a success! It's an innocent, silly kind of comedy - my favorite. For most part unexpected too so, when you're hoping for some depth... they explode on your face with comic displays that couldn't be any more displaced. And yet... you can't help but laugh.
3) SHOOTING:
Dunno if that's the right name to call it. All that deal with angles, action, timing, image, et cetera. Should I call that production? I'm torn because production failed in many aspects so I really dunno but... what I'm trying to say is that it's a nice show aesthetic-wise. (?)
4) MYSTERY:
Even though all that smoke clears around episode 5 or 6 and leaves you thinking "That was it?!", they did a great job with those cliffhangers, making us wonder and create crazy theories about every damn thing, from all the beige they wore at start to the colorful lights in the forest we found out to be... garden dwarfs, probably.
5) POTENTIAL:
Yes. Why not? If you watch it you'll figure out at least 3 different lines Missing 9 could've followed to be the next best thing in Korean entertainment. But no. Of course they would've pushed it downhill. No kidding, man. That can't be normal. I'm starting to think someone might have paid the producers to screw things up that bad just so some other show would remain on the spotlight. And who the heck would that be, considering SM is involved, huh? I'm thinking JYP... oh. That would turn out to be a great drama to watch!
Now... let me get to what's TERRIBLE about this show.
[ WARNING!!!!!! ~~~~~~~ BEWARE OF SPOILERS LMAO ~~~~~~~ RETREAT NOW IF YOU CARE ]
[ Synopsis ] So we have a group of spoiled ass lil idols in beige and they ALL survive a plane crash because they're basically immortal although they're good for nothing weakling humans and we'll prove that to you by all means needed.
1) (and this ONE may get lengthy, so forgive me beforehands;) STORYLINE:
How do I start? Missing 9 had a great start, really. But as the plane crashed down, so did everything else. Honestly, everyone knows "no dramas are realistic" - yes, yes - but there's a tolerance level that can be sustained and this drama completely disrespected its viewers by kicking those basic logic standards to the moon. I already went on how MIRACULOUS it is to survive a plane crash even if you follow all security protocols and shit but ALL of our leads made it out UNHARMED even though they were shaking inside that huge can like alive sardines on a frying pan. They even managed to survive several days alone before finding each other and they barely even get dirty or messy at all - funny, eh? I'll leave all the illogical character profiles for later so, moving on... they're lost in a deserted island and nothing feels aggravated, not even when they find out there's a killer among them, not even when they find out WHO the killer is. Everything is peace and pancakes, jokes, colorful clothes and what not.
Later on, they ALL manage to leave the island and while Bong Hee was found alone, it took several days to find the others all at once and... didn't they all leave together? What the hell happened? They were in the same freaking boat, they all went to the same freaking hospital and yet... nothing makes sense. NOTHING.
And then everyone's suddenly back to their regular lives as if nothing happened, all the trauma Bong Hee expressed in the beginning is only justified due to her lack of memories because, clearly, to everyone else, all that horror was nothing but spring vacation and now they're undergoing a new kind of nightmare under big bad boss who could've easily anihilated the rest of them one by one but after being too smart, he was acting too dumb. And what's with that sudden head shave? Wtf? They made it seem like it was such an important event, lol. And there we have again the psycho crazy villains, right? And now that we're back home we should try and make them pay for their crimes so we can live.
Damn... should've stayed in that island, man. The good guys can only win where there's no money or power. (Unless they have money and power, ofc.)
Summing up, back at Seoul, Missing 9 became a total different drama leaning towards political, investigation and law themes, the same old same we are sick of watching in all the others.
And that ending... we're clearly missing MORE than "nine" here. This drama is clearly about how they are all dead and delusional. I mean, that's so clear after that final scene. Who in their right minds would laugh like fools while painting each other in a big after party INCLUDING the person who tried to kill them all (but that's so easy to overlook, right? NOT.) and who was supposed to be locked away in a mental facility? Well... we can only conclude they ALL joined him there as we were suddenly back to all the beige... patient's wear. The writers are just too genius to leave all that in between the lines. Got it? *smug grin*
2) CHARACTER INCONSISTENCY:
Most character also make no sense at all. We have Bong Hee, the belated professional stylist who was fearless and conveniently a PRO at living in the wilderness. She could fish, make a fire, a tent, swim, save people, patch wounds, she was in her right mind all the time to save food and water, she was so strong for someone the size of a peanut (she even takes out Tae Ho in a fist fight with much ease!), she never got sick despite all that, always in a good mood... there was nothing she could not do! I'm surprised she didn't sneak into the control room to avoid the crash in the first place.
Then we have Joon Ho, a shallow good for nothing too-old-to-be-an-idol person everyone's so keen to avoid. He's so selfish to the point of eating all the food and letting the girl do everything by herself but at the same time he's too good to be human I can only assume he's Jesus reincarnated. I mean... he's so quick to forgive a criminal who literally stabbed him on the back, killed some of his friends, framed him and ruined his career, tried to kill his beloved and a couple sentences from him was enough to make the assassin repent... sigh. Suuure.
Tae Ho. When we think he's trying to survive (and that's understandable), he reveals he's completely broken and abnormal. Everything he does proves that he is a psycho and yet sometimes they break him out of the blue and make him look normal and just... ????????? Make up your mind! Someone can't be psycho and sane at the same time! That just doesn't happen!
Ji Ah. For someone with such a strong personality, she's too passive at times and fades in the background with ease for a main character. I missed her development. She's been made useless by the writers.
So Hee: Too stupid for a smart fox.
Good CEO: Immortal.
Evil CEO: ?????? Cartoonish? We still don't know if he was the one behind the crash or not but that's a long shot for a plan, don't you think? It would be so much easier to kill Sohee and Good CEO if all he wanted was to take over business. He just doesn't make sense.
Investigation Committee: LOL what a messy joke. They kept making evidence out of statements, turning the whole thing upside down as soon as a new survivor came around, just... *rolling eyes forever*
Prosecutor: At some point he completely forgets all about his dead sister and replaces her with Bong Hee.
3) PRODUCTION:
They must've be low on budget because you can easily spot they're in no forest - it's a garden; no ocean but a pool (it even echoes terribly); the toy boat in a tank; the storm with no wind; the burning plane parts on the shore after it crashes into the ocean; colorful lights in the forest that should be crazy dark to justify the lamps everyone was carrying; domestic bunnies in the wilderness and many, many, maaaaany others.
4) PLOT HOLES:
Was the plane crash a coincidence or not? It is said to be cursed????????? Nothing was explained. Did their time in the island matter at all? If you take it out, nothing would be harmed. It all started because of Jaehyun so the island deal is just... pointless. It's what they used to make it look new when it's not.
5) LOGIC HOLES:
Apart of everything that's already been discussed, the sea brought everyone safely to the island, as well as their conveniently packed with food luggage but had no problem taking Yeol far, far away so that he was never found again; a boat that could only accommodate 4 people, LEFT with 4 people to rescue another 2 and managed to return safely with everyone on board. Tae Ho desperately needed the boat and destroyed it. We have a killer among us but hey let's let him sit with us and laugh together. I was just stabbed on the back and the killer is still perfectly fine but this is the perfect time for a romantic song to play while a sweet talk this lady before me (who's still in danger, let's not forget that). I'm being accused in this trial but no one tries to stop me when I stand up and walk away in the middle of the whole thing. Speaking of... a TRIAL? Perfect time to play this sexy song match for sensual scenes because why the hell not!
Oh boy... I could go on forever... trust me, I could. But I'm sick of typing at this point and you are sick of reading, I'm sure of it. At least now you get it why I said I could rate it lower, considering I haven't even numbered ALL the reasons why this is crap. Because, in the end, it's not. Gold comes out from muddy rivers. Missing 9 isn't a shitty drama, after all. It has its value, yes it does. But it's not a good drama either. Not average at all considering all the craziness. It's like a soup you make saturday night containing the left overs from all weekdays prior - comedy, tragedy, mystery, romance, political, law, investigation, survival, suspense, action... a mix of way too many genres that kept outshining each other, just like flavors that, despite being unquestionably delicious, when put together result in something that tastes like shit and has no identity. Yes. I trust that metaphor wraps it up quite well.
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This drama had me excited all the time and when there were no new episodes I was so curious as what would happen next.
The story is well written in my opinion. There are three main arcs, I'd say. The past, the island and the present which was very enjoyable. I was already scared they would make the plane crash into a little flashback and build up the story from there but it wasn't like that and that was what made me really like the drama.
The acting and cast was perfect for this story. Baek Jin Hee was simply such a cutie and probably the best in this drama was our dear Choi Tae Joon. He really proved his acting skills in Missing 9, wow.
After the show ended I immediately searched for the instrumental OST because it really blew me away. For every scene they had a fitting piece that build up the emotions even more. Plus, the OST was very well done which is almost the most important thing for me after the story.
Even though so many people don't like this drama that much, I do. That's why you should maybe try to watch this for yourself as everyone has a different taste.
PS.: All my friends who watched this, enjoyed it a lot! So maybe it's a country thing... haha.
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Okay, the premise sounded very interesting, and the drama started out very well. I enjoyed the back and forth between past, plane crash etc, and present. All the characters had substance. Loved it for the first, say, 6 or so episodes.
Then stupidity happened. Lots of it, on the part of the writers and the characters. Failed logic, the frustration of those 'trapped w/psycho killer but too stupid to hide from him" horror films I hate, total leaps of idiocy - I almost stopped watching this by episode 9.
Then it got better, somewhat. The island scenario finished, so the above mentioned stupidity vanished. It became a recognizable suspense plot, complete with scheming chaebols & corrupt prosecutors. Not very original but since the acting was excellent & I like most of the cast I could manage. By episode 14, EUREKA! Some brains emerged! I liked that episode!
Then the writers got hit once again by the stupid bug, which eroded the logical progression of the narrative into increasingly WTF moments, concluding with what has to be the most insane, ridiculous, maddening ending I've ever seen in KDrama.
I had held out hopes of one of our supposed murder victims being resurrected - which would have made as much if not more sense than what the writers forced on us, plus made so many of us much happier - but noooo, that was not to be :(
Do not waste your time on this, really, unless plot actually means nothing to you. On the plus side, the interactions of the characters in this show was excellent - I totally enjoyed watching them as long as I forgot whatever plot point was supposed to be happening.
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I had so many wtf moments watching this for example everyone keeps reappearing in the most unlogical ways and whenever something traumatic and horrible happens next thing I know is that they carry on living as if nothing has ever happened. Their mourning moments are rushed and overshadowed by random comedic scenes with a need of making this drama funny - even if it was totally inappropriate at that time. Am I the only one that didn't even have one character they completely liked? Rushing the plot made me suspicious about every single character since you couldn't really tell what they were thinking and planning on doing.
Also wtf were they trying to do with constantly making Taeho look like a complete psychopath but then wanting the audience to feel sympathy towards him near the end. Ain't nobody going to like him if he keeps getting rid of the whole community? And some tears are not going to change this. He needs to repent but instead they just wanted to evoke pity towards a handsome protagonist even though he doesn't deserve it? I couldn't help but feel a bitter aftertaste after seeing that.
Needless to say, even if they wanted to make the plot seem fancy and well thought out, they failed miserably in the end. 16 episodes were far too many for what was presented it was like they kept repeating the same old shit like surprise! someone! else! is! dead! but no one is getting smarter about handling the issue! They didn't use their screen time wisely, rushed when it was neccessary to slow down and drifted off into scenes they should have better left out.
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Survival of the fittest
Great story! Great Actors!It's tackles about survival and its connection to moslow's hierarchy of needs.
The story is about how will you survive in a small Island which depicts the basic and psychological needs. And then to the city which depicts the addition to the hierarchy, the self fulfillment needs.
I like the comedic approach to make the story light since the plot is too heavy. Plus all the actors give justice to the role they portrayed.
This drama should received recognition!
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Story-7.5/10: The plot was not the best in execution. But the characters were well written. There were parts throughout the drama that I felt was a little random. But there were moments that were very satisfying to watch. There the suspenseful scenes were well done.
Acting-9/10: This was the best part of the drama. The actors/actresses were doing their character justice. The chemistry between the cast was fantastic. I give praises to Jung Kyung Ho, Bak Hee Jin, Choi Tae Joon, Lee Sun Bin Oh Jung Se and Kim Pub Lae. They were the best characters and best acted out of them all. There were a few others, but these were the ones I paid attention to most. Bong Hee was such a strong, awesome women. She can kick some butt. Seo Joon was cute, smart but also intense(when it came down to it). Tae Ho was super intense, scary and a bit vunerable. Ji Ah was a sassy but strong character as well. Ki Joon had a great back story. He was a comedic, caring type of character. Do Pal was intense, creepy and sly character. Everytime Do Pal and/or Tae Ho were on screen, I was scared about what they would do.
Music-9/10: This was also the best aspect of this drama. What I liked about this OST was that most of it was BGMs(background/instrumental music). A lot of the this OST really set the tone of the scenes and it was in the right place each time.
Re-watch or not?: Nah. It was a roller coaster ride. Regardless of the plot, it was intense, suspenseful drama.
Overall score-8/10: You should watch this drama for the character development, the actors/actresses, and the survival type of drama.
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Where is justice when a monster all throughout the series is included in the ending scene with a happy vibe? I'm sorry, but I just can't accept that.
It was good, great even, except for that scene. What was the writer thinking giving people that ending?
What a major let down!
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This review may contain spoilers
This drama is an interesting examination into the question: "What if a drama was created purely for the purpose of trolling its audience?" Let me just say, regardless of my general distaste for it (more on that later), I'm actually grateful it exists and was attempted. Do I think it was a successful attempt? ....Uhhh no. But there's enough brilliance in here that I think if someone was to know what they were getting into and had ZERO expectations (also if they were a forgiving drama-watcher), they *might* like the journey. It starts off with EXTREMELY stereotypical characters that have no real depth to them, plus there's so many people in the cast that at times its a bit discombobulating. But probably its greatest strength is evolving these stereotypical characters into really well-rounded and likable characters--especially the leads. Their group connection as the drama progressed really rang true. The female lead is such a strong character throughout and it was brought to life brilliantly by Baek Jin Hee, her dynamic with Jung Kyung Ho's character felt EARNED and was a wonderful portrayal of pure friendship. Jung Kyung Ho in particular really impressed me; his insistence on seeing the best in people, his dedication to the group, and just how he executed this character was great. He also had some really great moments with Oh Jung Se's character. I loved how their connection/friendship manifested in some extremely funny and laugh out loud moments throughout the drama's entire run.
I actually REALLY loved the comedy and parody on drama cliches that were sprinkled in throughout this drama (aka the slight trolling). I honestly wish it focused MORE on that because that's when this drama went to really interesting, human, and heart-felt moments oddly enough. When it wasn't taking itself so seriously, those were the moments where I sat up and thought, "Huh, that was actually quite clever." Unfortunately, most of the time it focused on REALLY serious and scary stuff with the approach of absolutely NO logic whatsoever--it's biggest (and fatal) flaw.
It felt like you were CONSTANTLY waiting for the shoe to drop on these characters with really predictable outcomes. I would have been fine with no logic if it was interesting and also unpredictable throughout, but it wasn't. You could easily tell when something was going to go the survivors way and when it wasn't--I also saw all the twists that happened about a mile away. It was never surprising, but ALWAYS frustrating. Frustrating in that they kept siding with and forcing these characters to be around a character that was an absolutely TERRIBLE and UNFORGIVABLE human being. I give MAJOR props to Choi Tae Joon; he really shined as the villain in this drama in a role I'm never-ever going to forget. But it's MADDENING how his character was handled and I completely understand the people that down-rated this to a 1 or 2 for simply that reason. I understand that the drama was trying to play off the bond between Tae Ho and Joon Oh's characters, but it crossed too many lines to be believable. Delving into details would go into spoiler territory, but I'll just say that the ending is a pure WTF moment. I legitimately thought for about 15 seconds that the characters were all in a psych ward and that the entire drama that came before it was just their made-up 'story.' O_O ....THAT would have been brilliant and understandable. ....Unfortunately, that's not how it ended.
This is truly and honestly the weirdest kdrama I've ever watched. I ended up rating it higher than I thought I would (I gave it a 5.5 rating), but unfortunately its uniqueness and great leads couldn't save the script from the individual(s) responsible for......this. o_O
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The story was a bit blunt. I especially liked the first part in which most of the footage took place on that deserted island, however back in mainland Korea, they stretched it too much in my opinion to finish that total of 16 episodes. However the acting of the actors was quite good to outstanding with some nice OST attached to it.
And what happened to Park Chan Yul as Lee Yul? It felt like he was completely forgotten until that last reference in episode 16, which was a bit disappointing to me.
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