Addicting
I'd like to keep this review short and 'sweet.' Firstly, if you have triggers of ||implied rape, sexual assault, cults, violence, blood, suicide|| and more, please do not watch this drama!The storyline is not really complex, but it still gets you to feel like it is complex. The only problem I have with the storyline is that sometimes I felt like it was dragged out (with some filler episodes); if this was remade into a movie or originally was a movie, I would not be complaining at all. (That is the main reason that this is short 1 point from 10 stars). The only thing I enjoyed about it NOT being a movie is the amount of Seo Yeji, Taecyeon, and Woo Dohwan we got. Moving on to the cast and characters, I think Seo Yeji portrayed Sang Mi perfectly. All the supporting and side characters were also perfect. I'm honestly kind of sick of seeing Jo Jae Yoon everywhere/hj, and his character in this one makes it worse.
Anyways, this drama made me crave more Seo Yeji and Woo Dohwan. I highly RECCOMEND this, but it is not for the weak-hearted.
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This review may contain spoilers
I’m speechless…
This drama was so addictive! I’m definitely going to start watching more thriller/action dramas cause I was on the edge of my seat the entire time!! I was pissed off 90% of the time, but the end was pretty satisfying! I wish Apostle Kang got punished too tho!! She literally drugged people, killed her husband, and was an absolute NIGHTMARE!!! I don’t get why nothing happened to her! Also they gave Han Sang Hwan all the praise in this drama, but Deok Cheol did ALL the important heavy work, by staying in harms way 24/7 living in that awful place WILLINGLY to save Sang Mi!! He should have gotten thanked at LEAST!! I don’t even think Sang Mi thanked him, she said it to Sang Hwan tho. If anything Sang Hwan messed up the most! He couldn’t control his temper and would hastily do things that caused MORE issues for EVERYONE like taking Sang Mi to the police station! I just feel that Deok Cheol deserved more credit than he really got!! Also I was hoping Colonial Sanders would suffer more than he did! Anyway I will definitely not be watching this again only because I feel like my blood pressure skyrocketed while watching this and it’s just not good for my health LMFAOOO!!! 🤣🤣🤣Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Not all people that go to church are christian
be careful. because not all people that go to church are christian or muslim or others religions and not all that love God because most of them they go to see they friends or to show they clothers even pastors are not real most of them they hide their true selves.what are the top reasons you no longer have church
Judgement. There is so much judgment going on in the church between members. Down to it's core, there is so much gossip going on and there is so much hurtful things being said between members. I always thought it was a place of love, but members can be cruel at times.
Dress Code. They always say “Come as you are” as long as your wearing a white dress shirt with a tie. It’s not really a good thing to do especially when certain members can’t afford or don’t feel comfortable with certain colours. I personally can afford a white shirt and tie but I disliked the colors. I loved to wear and dress up in different suits, wear certain brands and just dress my Sunday best. I ended up leaving the church because they called me out in front of a group of people after wearing a nice white, Valentino dress shirt, with Khaki pants and wonderful Tom Ford shoes, but didn't wear a tie.
Prayer. There is a certain way you have to pray and there is nothing really you can do about it. I love to pray, I love to pray and have a conversation with God without having judgement and being forced to follow a guideline.
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A masterpiece. A k-drama that has k-movie standards.
DUDE. THIS KDRAMA WAS PERFECT.I've been WAITING to say this for awhile cos the last few dramas that I watched was...ugheeeh subpar and forgettable (HomeCha, Nevertheless, My Mister, Vincenzo-- sorry if they're your favs >< )
I didn't have many expectations for this drama as I wasn't particularly a fan of any of the actors here, I also find kdramas that try to cover 'taboo' topics to be really half-assed and over-simplistic. The only thing that piqued my interest was that it's about ...cults haha.
First episode in and I wasn't immediately a fan of it. I found it to be "too much" and I could not really take it seriously.
But when the story of Sang Im's family kickstarted, there was like no turning back. Every single sub-plot just had a domino effect to the next plot and to the next, you just have to keep going...and it was just SO SO SO interestingg..
*side note: the opening plot of Sang Jin being bullied was honestly so...well-done. I've watched a few kdramas with bullying backstories but it always feels so cringy and stupid. Or...extremely over-exagerated. This was one somehow managed to communicate itself in an honest and real way.
I frankly did NOT expect it to cover such a ... controversial topic in such depth. To be honest, I found it to be more interesting and nuanced than a typical cults documentary.
I myself have bad experiences with similar cultish practices, and I was genuinely surprised to see such nuanced fleshing out on TV. They don't really really go too deep to explain everything, so for someone who's completely new to these practices, they might find it confusing. But for me, it was genuinely so interesting to learn that cultish practices do not look too strange at first.
I also like how they never used the "cultishness" as a mere plot device to make the whole drama feel abit darker-- it is in fact a very integral part of the drama that the audience is forced to confront themselves with.
In general, Save Me is one of the rare kdramas out there that stays consistent to what it sets out to cover, without compromising themselves for fan service or product placements or anything that netflix-produced dramas does not seem to get these days ==
It is genuine, heartfelt, but also very very daring and bold in covering such a sensitive subject. but the best of it all-- it is careful to not be self-indulgent in making itself a 'makjang' drama...which I think many kdramas seem to do nowadays...
I must mention that there are still some flaws in the drama that makes it very skippable. Some scenes DO feel like it's just trying to make it more nerving without any real substance to the plot. Some characters literally do not make sense. and some scenes just feels abit naive... like if they were THAT scary (from ep1-7) how can they be so dumb in certain scenes??
Nevertheless, a perfect drama for me and I am sad that it will be awhile before I say this again. Had loads of fun binging this within 3 days. Thanks for the mmrs :')
**extra-side note on acting: I didn't like Taecyeon in Vincenzo (not just cause he was the bad guy, like i genuinely found him annoying in earlier eps) but he came off as rather charming to me here. Woo Do Hwan always knew how to charm me <3 but this might be my fav role of his. Didn't know Seo Yea Ji before but I really enjoyed her acting here! Was also pleasantly surprised to see Jeon Yeo Been here! (She is SUCH a shapeshifter, she looked SO different here I almost couldn't recognise her. Really liked her in Vincenzo and esp Be Melodramatic.) Park Ji Young (Apostle Kang) also gave a commendable performance, I honestly think she was the best out of everyone. Sang Mi's father was also not bad, I was so scared of him. I was more scared of the father than the cult leader tbh.
the -1.5 in acting was because I did not like the rest of the cast's acting...they felt really tacky.
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Watch seasone 2!
Regarding season 1:I found it to be very flawed from all angles and it only served as a learning experience for those who carried on with the second season. Its portrayal of a cult lacked a compelling thematic foundation, opting instead to draw inspiration from cheap rip-off D-grade movies themed around cults. Where cults are extremely over-dramatized to the point of crossing the supernatural territory. The cult apparently possessed super powers of hypnosis with only a few words spoken, even towards people who weren't perceptible to religious and spiritual beliefs. Everything surrounded the cult came off as cartoonish even within the context of a 'drama'. The narrative itself struggled to carry its own weight, particularly as it primarily focused on the perspectives of the outsiders. It always felt as if it was building up towards something bigger but it never got there. For a 16-episodes run, it needed a proper world building and foundation for the cult. Establishing a distinct "character" for the cult would have provided a stronger identity. Back to the outsiders, having the drama led by teenage characters was another weak aspect of it. Bland and cardboard characters. The mystery element was a crucial part of the drama yet it was lacking and under-delivering. The first season would have fared better as a standalone one-off movie rather than a drama. It doesn't make any sense why the drama was rated this high, according to MDL standards, especially when season 2 effectively addressed most of the issues with the cult and delivered an overall better package!
Regarding Season 2:
It managed to deliver a much more compelling package than season 1. The most important part is that it handled the cult theme properly. The characters and the cast were a lot more appealing than season 1. Having a more adult leading characters rather than teenager was a plus. Uhm Tae Goo was a perfect casting choice for his character. The story had a better and more natural progression than season 1. However, it got sloppier the closer it got to the ending. Speaking of the ending, it was a bit underwhelming and not as grandiose as I hoped it would be. Second season should have been a stand alone drama unrelated to the first one, not even in the name. If you don't feel like watching two seasons then you can ignore the first one and just watch the second.
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GREAT ACTING BUT DRAGGED OUT TOO MUCH
man this is such a HEAVY kdrama.it makes u wanna rip ur HAIR out. super interesting and sad its about a cult.
the actors are superb in this like only for the acting I would give a 10 BUT it had so many unnecessary scenes that it DRAGGED OUT too much.
super slow paced. I know everyone is praising this but for me it was not an enjoyable watch lol.
they should have wrapped it up in 12 episodes really. 16 was too much. I love my trio tho.
It delivers a happy ending FINALLY.
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Riveting Cult Story
I started this drama because I had just finished 'The Guest' and wanted to watch another horror type of kdrama. This did not disappoint. While it is not exactly a horror it is a psychologically horrific drama that makes you frustrated, want to throttle not only the antagonists but also the main character, and makes you want run screaming from religious fanatics (if you didn’t already want to). It is highly addictive. I finished the show in about three days, but it is also draining. The show depicts a family that gets sucked into a religious cult and I thought it felt really realistic. The rewatch value is the lowest of all my ratings because of how draining the show is and how much you want to pull your hair out from all the things that happen that make you want to go into the tv and slap some sense into the characters. I will also say that the drama has some major themes that can trigger or be uncomfortable to watch such as bullying, suicide, murder, sexual assault. If you want to watch a mature drama that is addictive with great acting and see how brainwashing can not only scar but break people watch this. If you want to watch how people overcome trauma and fight past not only the people in their lives who try to control them but injustice as well, watch this. Also, because it is important for me to know and might be a factor in people’s decision to watch this the show does have a HEA but it takes a while to get there and there are a lot of painful events before we get there. The show doesn’t really have romance but what I found to be one of the most entertaining and enticing aspects was the friendship between the two ML’s. For me their relationship was one of the best to see. At the core of this show is the friendship of four boys and how doing the right thing can hurt but if you have the support and love of friends you stand a chance. I wish we could see the FL develop her friendship with the four boys more, but even so the drama was riveting especially since these boys could have abandoned the FL but despite everything they came through. The music was good but I do not find it all that memorable. It did fit the vibe of the series. Overall, great drama!Was this review helpful to you?
I'm also amazed with the actors, they all got great acting chops, both protagonists and antagonists, I like Seo Yea Ji's (Sang Mi) acting, it's very convincing, and Woo Do Hwan (Dong Cheol) is such an "oppa" material istg. I love his character here, his heart of gold behind a bad boy look.
Overall, "Save Me" is not your typical K-drama that is all cutesy and filled with hearts and romance, it has dark and heavy theme which you either like or not at all, there's no in between.
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One of the best dramas I've ever watched
Such a good story and great acting. I did wish there was romance, but its still great. The actors were great and the music was spot on.Was this review helpful to you?
A very good psychological thriller
This is a psychological thriller, that’s what it is.The first episode was a little patchy and all over the place. I had a hard time keeping track of what I thought was forgettable characters (including Seo Ye Ji, who is the reason I watched this show in the first place.
Came episode 2 onwards and bam, I got hooked! It’s a show you can easily binge-watch because almost every episode ends on a cliffhanger.
Be prepared to be slightly disturbed by the cult doings in this show because they are evil. But the acting were all executed so flawlessly.
Don’t worry about the ending. No cliffhanger and is all good.
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Everything about Save Me is captivated, they have built up the world for the viewers to be invested in perfectly. Save Me is the type of show where every details and every information will make sense at the end. I was worried that the show will get me lost in details, but thankfully it didn't.
All the actors were phenomenal except, for me, Ok Taecyeon. I've never seen him act before, but his acting got better after the first couple episodes so that was a relief. The villain actors have done their characters so well that you can't help but hate them! And that's coming from someone who loves villain characters.
Would I rewatch it? Yes, but not soon as I need to recover and watch something tooth-achingly sweet after it.
Would I recommend it? YES! Even to people who don't watch kdrama often.
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Cast - I loved the cast so much! I have never seen any of the cast in anything other than this and I have officaly become a fan of all of them lol.
Rewatch - I never rewatch shows, unless its a very rare exeption, and I can tell you in a year or so I see myself definietly re watching this!
Music - I loved the music, it wasnt overplayed and played at the right times.
Overall - This drama is definitelty my favourite drama ever! Its fine that it doesnt have romance, I feel romance would take away from the story if it was in this drama, though I did ship Dong Cheol and Sang Mi. :3
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