This review may contain spoilers
This was, hands down, one of the best dramas that I've seen this year, at the very least. The music and sound mixing was fabulous, the cinematography incredible, the characters so lovable and engaging that when the end finally came, I didn't want to leave their world. It made me very, very happy!I loved all the twists and turns of the story, the supernatural side of it, but mainly, I loved the relationship among and between the various characters, their friendship and their closeness - and their romance! And not just between the secondary characters but between the main two, Yi Kang & Hyun Jo, too.
Theirs was one of the most wonderful romances that I've ever seen. It was very mature and without a single "I love you" or a single kiss, and yet the feelings that they had for each other ran through the whole drama like a red thread, manifested in the lengths they were willing to go for each other. It was absolutely amazing!
I also loved the ending, it was everything I wished for - and more! It was really, truly, honestly perfect! Down to the tiniest hint of Goo Young possibly finding a new love in Hyun Jo's little sister! The way he ran from her was hilarious!
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Where Grief Hangs Low Like Morning Fog
I went into Jirisan expecting a mystery, maybe a thriller with sweeping shots of cliffs and peril. What I didn’t expect was grief — not loud, not devastating in a single moment, but grief that settled in slowly, like mist gathering in the folds of the mountain. The kind that stays long after the trail is empty.The pacing felt deliberate, sometimes frustratingly so. Episodes moved like weather — still one minute, roiling the next, then still again. But that uneven rhythm worked on me. It gave space for loneliness to take root, for silence to say what words couldn’t. Each pause felt like a breath held before another climb, another call, another loss.
Jun Ji-hyun and Ju Ji-hoon never reached for melodrama, and that restraint deepened everything. There was so much left unsaid between them — pain, guilt, tenderness that never tipped into confession. It didn’t need to. Their grief wasn’t performed. It just existed, constant and heavy, like the mountain they kept returning to.
And while the cinematography was breathtaking — vast ridgelines, shifting light through endless trees — it was the rangers who became the real landscape for me. Watching them walk into danger again and again, not for glory, not even purely for duty, but for something deeper, something unspoken. Sometimes guilt. Sometimes hope. Sometimes just the stubborn knowledge that if they don’t go, no one else will.
The timeline jumps got messy. The mystery lost urgency at times, looping back on itself until it frayed. But by then, I wasn’t watching for the puzzle. I was watching for the people. Their choices. Their small, weary victories. Their grief, which never fully resolved but kept moving anyway, step by step up the trail.
Jirisan wasn’t a thriller at its heart. It was an elegy. A quiet prayer for everyone left behind, and for those who go looking anyway, knowing some people can’t be saved but refusing to stop trying.
By the end, I wasn’t just thinking about the mountain. I was thinking about every silent place inside us that no one else sees. And the people who choose, day after day, to walk into that silence for someone else’s sake.
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The Writer & Director - Nuff Said
Knowing that the writer of this also wrote Signal and Kingdom you should know what to expect: a moving, deep and well written story that moves very slowly, developing characters and building tension. This alone negates any review less than an 8.5.This drama in particular suffered from what many other great shows suffer from: a plague of whiny antifans that for whatever political reason took every chance to nitpick it nonsensically for the entire duration on the message boards even after they had long dropped it. Complaints about CG- I didn’t hear any complaints on 2 other dramas I am currently watching that had terribly rendered CG animals. But here, nobody would shut up about it. If I had to say anything negative about it, I would say there were times it felt a bit like an ad for parks and services, but nothing experience breaking. It also suffered from releasing on a Chinese network which brought in a lot of haters, and didn’t help by creating confusion over which networks were airing it- it aired on Viki late.
The acting was top notch. There was very little romance or romantic tension so don’t expect it. Just a great little mystery will a cool supernatural twist. It will constantly keep you guessing. Highly enjoyable from beginning to end, with the beautiful backdrop of Jirisan. A very different drama experience compared to any of the other offerings this year, and easily one of the best.
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Well written piece on rangers and poorly executed thriller mystery.
The drama did a lot of things well, but failed in a similar number. The plots surrounding the daily work and the challenges of rangers, the team bonding - all done in an excellent manner that made me care about these characters and their struggles. On the other hand, the whole supernatural murder mystery was so mediocre and poorly written, I am surprised it came from the same author as Signal.What was the problem with the mystery? Starting from the bad pacing - sometimes we had a whole episode focusing on the case, sometimes it was completely overshadowed by other issues and not addressed at all. It never felt like a big part of the overall plot, never made me curious what the truth is behind the past events, nor who the killer is. By the end, when the story was finally explained, all I could think was: ok. It’s not like with the revelation of the murderer everything in the plot clicked into the right place, all hints made a complete picture. We were told close to nothing during the show, so the end fell flat.
What I enjoyed about the drama were the characters. Seo Yi Kang is for sure one of the more exciting characters to watch. Her determination and skill set made me want to root for her. Not to mention her amazing chemistry with Kang Hyun Jo. Being on the subject of the characters, Hyun Jo was such a waste of Joo Ji Hoon’s talent. He barely felt like a supporting character.
That said, the show was carried on the backs of the supporting cast. For me, the fun part has been to watch the rangers just do their work, bicker and interact with each other as they perform their duties. What I find curious - with the majority of the rangers being male, the writer decided to kill the few female rangers we were able to see.
The performance that stood out the most to me was Oh Jung Se’s portrayal of Jung Goo Young. The only storyline that truly made me feel sad, the only character I wanted to see happy, the only part of the plot that I was able to connect to on a deeper level. Yes, I had fun watching others too, but the depth of emotions they were able to evoke in me never got even close to Oh Jung Se.
Production value was obviously high. The shots of the mountain were breathtaking and a true feast for the eyes. Some initial CGI and green screen were questionable, but the use of special effects was better executed later on. Is the show being beautiful enough, though? Technically speaking, I can search for YouTube videos of the mountains and get a similar experience.
Overall, I feel like Jirisan ended on a disappointing note. It did not mix well the realistic approach of the rangers’ experience with a serial killer on the loose supernatural plot. I don’t even want to think about Disney ending with everyone being cured of whatever problem they had.
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9/10 would reccomend.
Story :I really like the story. It shows 2 mountain rangers of Jirisan and a killer in the mountain. I really like the multiple 'present' trope . Did I ever get bored? Maybe, not really. Hyunjo as a ghost roaming the mountain was a really good idea. The scene were Hyunjo was trying to grab the microphone and speak to Yigang was so emotional tears were pouring out of my eyes. Also I don't know why everyone's complaining and saying Signal was so much better. We got robbed bla bla bla. I haven't seen Signal but I don't know why y'all are upset. Probably because of thr multiple present bit, but it won't be good if they pulled that on this storyline. Because just no...
Acting :
So good could never get a better fitting cast than them.
OST :
Comeon u know the answer Yours by Jin and the other songs were so good I'm an army btw.
Rewatch value :
I don't rewatch mystery because yeah I just don't but I really would on this one the plot isn't all tied up agaisnt the mystery so you'll totally see me rewatching it.
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Mysteru drama with backforth plot, not confusing,, but curiousing
Mystery drama with a back and forth plot, but not confusing, just make you curious, from the beginning the drama makes us wonder why this is like this , why is like that, is he the mastermind or is he the mastermind?, Even though the plot goes back and forth now and in 2018,2017,1991,1995, but the story is pretty clear, just curious,,not twisting brain,,, and actually i already guessed who the killer from the storylineWhen I saw them climbing the mountain, all I thought was "aren't they tired?" ,, but they did not disappoint their tiredness, the editing was also quite good, everything should be displayed is shown,, only LYS ..... Where is she?
And the soundtrack Even it's not much, it really gets the point of the feeling,,, mystery ost, and the last eps gugyeong ost
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OST IS PERFECT ⭐
Tbh...I started watching this drama because of BTS JIN'S OST YOURS..However, I found out that this KDrama has amazing plot and storyline that keeps you hooked!
Very well drafted and nice OST by Jin! (Yours)
I liked every episode..it wasn't like the other kdramas, no unnecessary drama, every scene had a meaningful essence! I like it a lot!
Thanks to BTS Jin for introducing me to this KDrama..
Jun Ji Hyun's acting also amazed me.. I wish to see BTS Jin someday in a Kdrama like this...
Very well scripted.. I'm happy with the outcome!
Give a listen to Jin's ost Yours please!
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This review may contain spoilers
The Mountain Is Calling And I Must Go
I put off watching this drama for ages because while it sounded interesting, the synopsis was also quite vague and I didn't know what I was getting myself into. I am officially kicking myself for delaying even one second. It has been so long since I've watched a drama that captured me the way Jirisan did. The story, the acting, the music, everything just came together almost perfectly, for my taste at least, and created such an amazing experience. I truly don't remember the last time I obsessed over a drama like this, analyzing all the events and who the murderer could be. I loved every second of it.The story is overall pretty solid. In general, its a murder/mystery with some supernatural elements thrown in. Its a bit murky in the beginning, there are a few inconsistencies like they hadn't quite worked out all the kinks in the story and how they wanted things to flow, but after the first few episodes, it seemed to find its stride. The time change was also a tad confusing initially, bouncing between 2018 and the present, but once I got used to it, I didn't have any issues following. The whodunnit aspect of the story was quite fun initially but did start getting just a tad wearing toward the end with the shots that kept making you second guess who you thought the killer was. At that point, it really wasn't necessary since you either knew or you didn't. The pacing was good, I never got bored and as I said, once it found its stride, it stuck to it.
The acting was superb. Both Ji Hyun and Ji Hoon were phenomenal as Yi Kang and Hyun Jo, respectively. Their chemistry was fantastic. They just played off of each other so beautifully. And while the rest of the supporting cast was also wonderful, I really have to comment on Jung Se. The man can act. He is just so good and so believable there were a couple of times when he had me in tears solely because of his acting skills.
I really enjoyed all the characters and even with a relatively large cast, I felt that they overall did a good job with allowing the viewer to get to know everyone as much as possible. The one character I would have liked to have gotten to know a little more was Hyun Jo. Probably because she was so tied to Jirisan, we got a very in depth look into Yi Kang as she grew up. I have no objections to that, other than a few scenes were repeated more than once which probably wasn't necessary, as it did show her character growth over the course of the drama. That being said, I would have liked to see more of Hyun Jo's past, his family, how he grew up, etc., as a way to get to know the character better and as a contrast to Yi Kang.
One of the things that I appreciated about this drama was the lack of romance between the leads. Not every drama needs it and I really loved their camaraderie and friendship and seeing it grow. And by the end, when there's a hint that there might be more from the way the two of them are looking at each other, I honestly couldn't protest because they did such a good job of building their relationship up. I like that it was left up to the viewer as to where things may have gone from there, whether they remained friends or took things to the next level. And I actually liked the ending. Yes, it would have been nice and less abrupt to see them going through their recovery, but there was something about them seeing each other and not needing words to communicate that just summed up their whole relationship so perfectly.
On the topic of romance, I did adore Goo Young and Yang Sun's romance. I liked both their characters individually and when they got together, I thought they were perfect. I was so sad when they didn't get the happily ever after that they deserved. That being said, I was super happy at the hint at the end that he may find happiness with Hyun Jo's sister. I was literally cackling as he took off running from her.
The various villains were all interesting, believable, and, in some ways, relatable in their own ways. Sol, of course, was the most interesting, and I really appreciated the way his childhood was used to shape him and turn him into the person he became. Obviously his reasoning for killing people was absurd and made no sense, but that it made sense to him and in a believable way was appreciated. It was sad to see how the people of Black Bridge Village ruined not only his life, but also their own lives through their greed.
The cinematography was absolutely stunning. I now have an overwhelming desire to go visit Jirisan. It just looks like such a beautiful mountain to explore.
I actually really enjoyed the music for the most part. Again, in the first episode or two there were a couple of choices that I wasn't overly impressed with, but as it progressed, I felt it became more consistent. In particular Falling by Kim Jong Wan has been playing on repeat for several days now.
As I said, I absolutely loved this drama, but naturally there were a few things that weren't quite perfect. As I mentioned, once you get into the story a bit, it becomes clear that the first episode or so wasn't fully thought out. It's eventually revealed that Hyun Jo's visions are related to the murderer as he's killing off the the former residents of Black Bridge Village. However, in the first episode, he has a vision of where the kid is even though he has nothing to do with the village. Not a huge deal, just a bit of a plot hole/inconsistency. The CGI was pretty bad at times. Again, first episode, there's a rock fall that is some pretty bad CGI. Considering how they made the rest of the weather and disasters seem more or less realistic for the most part, those few times where the CGI was off were quite obvious. There were more deaths than were strictly necessary, in my opinion, particularly women. This drama definitely had a more male heavy cast, so the fact that three of the four main/supporting women were killed and really only one of the men is kind of sad. I understand why they didn't/couldn't do it, but there's a part of me that would have liked a little more of an explanation for how and why Hyun Jo ended up as he did as well as why sometimes people could see him and other times they couldn't. Was he really like some kind of Angel of Death or was it something else? Not really a negative there so much as it would have been interesting.
Obviously this drama is fiction, none of the events actually happened, but I really have to applaud the productions attention to detail and their authenticity. Watching it gave me a whole new appreciation for what rangers do and the level of skill, both physically and mentally, that they must have and maintain. They are truly amazing human beings. Huge respect for them and the work they do.
Normally a drama like this is a one and done. You've seen it, you know who the murderer is, you know how it all turns out, and the mystery is gone. I don't feel like that's the case with Jirisan. I have a feeling this is one of those dramas that you keep picking up on new things each time you see it. And if nothing else, the cinematography makes it worth watching again. But even more than that, I think the characters themselves will keep coming back to watch again, to see them grow and know that even though in the end everything's not perfect, it's still a happy ending.
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A documentary like thriller.
This drama is kinda like a documentary because it shows a large part of the wilderness and history of the area but then it’s also like a thriller as it takes us right into the minds of the people and actors in this drama. It just hooks you in. It is so outstanding. I have loved it from the very beginning . It’s a mystery, thriller. There are so many well known actors who are awesome in this.What is happening in this area is that many people go missing. It is popular for a variety of reasons. Hikers, Trampers, sight seer, plant collectors, snake collectors, suiciders and even murderers who cover their murders by making it look some kind of accident. This is whom the lead actors are looking but it is very difficult for them,
We are only in episode 5 and my goodness what a shake up there has been in this short time.
This is so very stressful but so incredibly superb. Cinematoloy is stunning. Scenery takes your breath away.
So many tragedies one after another, Reminds me of our cultural saying"I am the river and the river is me. I am the mountain and the mountain is me”. She tried to leave but the mountain keeps calling her back.. Come home!! Come Home!! I feel like that.
Every time an episode end I can’t help but think. So good.
This drama is not for the faint hearted. Lucky none of of my fave actors are in it or I’d be distraught. I can watch like an ordinary viewer thinking that this is a documentary and I’m seeing it as if it has already happened and this is a reenactment. That is my way of thinking about it. I love it so much. One of the more written scripts. Congratulations writers I don’t often say it so treasure my words.
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For national park enthusiasts, with a dash of spiritual fantasy
Loved this drama for portraying the daily work of rangers at national parks, and the charms of Jirisan, but having mixed feelings on the spiritual fantasy part of the ML’s soul remaining on Jirisan.I enjoyed hiking and have done some hiking at national parks before, and of course visited the parks’ visitor centres at the start of the hike for hiking permits (if needed), and to meet our hiking guides. But I have never thought what the daily work of park rangers comprised of, nor have I seen any show on the daily work of park rangers.
Thus, this drama is an eye opener for me. The park rangers don’t just man the information counters at the park’s visitor centre, but are also involved in the education of visitors on park safety and conservation, check that the amenities in the park are weather-worthy, warning signs of impending heavy rain, snow are put up clearly, patrolling, and the arduous work of evacuation and rescue operations.
I enjoyed those parts of the drama on the natural disasters and rescue operations of trapped or injured hikers - those are done meticulously, portraying the perilous rescue operations in the midst of extreme weather conditions, not falling behind western movies on disaster rescue operations.
The mystery part involving the murder cases on the mountain adds to the mystery of nature and Jirisan. But, gotta deduct 0.5 point for the spiritual fantasy part of the ML’s soul remaining on Jirisan. For me, the spiritual fantasy part dented the credibility of the dangers of Mother Nature at Jirisan and the arduous rescue operations. I strongly feel that using a more credible way to crack the murder case would serve better for an otherwise enjoyable disaster docu drama of movie film-quality.
p/s:
1) I hope I will have the opportunity to hike Jirisan and witness its majestic sunrise one day.
2) Love the two leads, especially the FL Seo Yi Kang, and only realised recently they were both casted in Kingdom - another fave drama of mine.
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Mysterious & Beautiful Mt. Jiri
JIRISAN was a wholly original drama and was as mysterious as it was mesmerizing. Honestly, the cast is really great, BUT I must say, it is Mount Jiri that is by far the true star of this series. Jirisan, the place, is truly breath-taking and incredible. I found it difficult not to be distracted by the rolling landscapes in the background of any scene taking place out doors.That aside, this series was incredible for many reasons, such as cast and acting performances, such as Ju Ji-Hoon (of Kingdom/ Hyena fame) as Kang Hyun Jo the newbie Park Ranger and Jun Ji-hyun (of Kingdom/ Snow Flower and Secret Fan/ Il Mare fame) as Seo Yi Kang, or "Demon Seo" the veteran Park Ranger. They are partners that grow into a unique relationship while working with one another through many mysteries that take place on Mount Jiri. Many of the side cast is memorable as well, and you gradually begin to care for them. All very believable characters.
My few complaints is at times it felt a little lacking in terms of the main paranormal plotline and the ending felt a bit abrupt to me. Maybe there will be another season coming?
For a thriller, it is a bit slower paced, but I appreciated the pacing, allowing the mystery to slowly unravel and reveal itself, all the while exploring both mountain and human psyche alike. I have never seen a K-Drama quite like this one. Perfect setting, wonderful concept, great writing, excellent cast, superb cinematography, realistic costumes and settings, interesting mysteries, great bunch of characters, awesome music. Everything was really on-point. Overall, Jirisan was a great drama.
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