Trigger (2025)

Trigger Pulled, but the Aim Was Off

Trigger kicks off with a gripping premise—what if South Korea, a country known for strict gun control, suddenly got flooded with illegal firearms? It’s bold, timely, and pulls no punches with its action or social commentary. The first few episodes had me fully locked in.

But the more I watched, the more I questioned the villain’s logic. Moon Baek’s entire revenge plan stems from his mother abandoning him... and somehow that turns into punishing an entire nation? I get the trauma, but the emotional leap just didn’t feel believable. It made him feel more like a symbol than a person.

On the flip side, Kim Nam-gil as Lee Do was such a solid anchor. Quiet, thoughtful, and the only one who felt like he had a moral compass in all the madness. And yeah—watching that reckless reporter get his downfall? Lowkey satisfying. He was basically chaos in a suit.

The pacing dips near the end, and while it raises good questions, some resolutions felt a bit too neat imo. Still, Trigger is the kind of drama that sticks with you. It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely a ride.

Read More

Apocalypse

I’ve just finished it, and it left me with a lot to think about—not through action, but through the idea behind it. I don’t know if the screenwriter intended it this way, but to me, it feels inspired by the story of the Apocalypse.
The Apocalypse not as an end, but in its true meaning — Apokalypsi, a revelation, a truth — a harsh light brought through chaos. What remains afterward? A world that might begin anew. Or one that sinks even deeper into its wounds, frustrations, violence, pettiness, anguish, anxieties, despair.
Sometimes, the one who smiles the kindest, who seems to help the most and asks for nothing in return, is the very one who lights the fuse.
And maybe, in that gesture, lies the most sincere gift given to a world that has done everything it could to destroy him.
It’s not the best series I’ve ever seen, but it’s certainly one of the most compelling portrayals of the Apocalypse, and one of the most powerful portraits of Lucifer.
Lucifer—the one who felt betrayed, abandoned, used, wounded—and who asks only that people have the courage to look in the mirror and truly see themselves, with both the good and all the smallness buried in their souls.
He places them before the ultimate choice, because “we each have a trigger in our minds.”
Some choose to pull it, others don’t.
Among those who don’t, some long to, but lack the courage or choose to obey laws and moral norms. Others reject the possibility altogether.
A new world may rise from chaos—or from honestly facing the mirror.
There’s nothing mystical about the story.

Read More

Trigger is a story about what happens when stress, inequality and buried trauma collide with easy access to guns.. But it’s not just about the weapons, it’s about what drives someone to reach for one in the first place.. When grief, injustice and silence build up over time, anyone can reach a breaking point.. It’s less about who’s holding the gun and more about what pushed them there.. Trigger explores a bold and unsettling scenario.. How quickly chaos spreads once a long standing taboo is shattered.. I liked how the main leads are shaped by their contrasting beliefs and personalities.. They are people on opposite ends of a moral line..

I think the drama presents a really interesting moral dilemma and plays it out in a provocative way.. The concept itself is terrifying.. What Trigger does well is show the darker side of human nature and what people are capable of when pushed too far.. And honestly the scariest part wasn’t the drama itself, it was the thought that something like this could actually happen.. Hopefully it never will.. Right?

" If you want to be loved.. Always wear a smile.. "

Both MLs were great.. Kim Nam Gil really stood out.. His action scenes had an aura that's undeniable and everything he did felt natural.. Him with a gun was too good, looked professional.. Kim Young Kwang as Moon Baek was menacing.. I really liked his character.. He was quite good as the antagonist, bringing a Joker like joy to his madness.. But his English accent was a letdown.. I think he could have worked on it more.. It didn’t feel convincing..

" I want to live in a utopia of equality where everyone owns a gun."

I liked how they paced the first episode.. Slowly building the world and introducing the characters.. By the end of it, it was intriguing enough to keep you going.. Its 10 episode length is both a blessing and a curse.. It’s a fairly breezy watch and doesn’t feel draggy but because of that, the story ends up feeling a bit underdeveloped.. We don’t really get much characterization for anyone besides Lee Do and Moon Baek.. Some characters completely disappeared by the end and I am not sure why.. They could have been used better.. Especially during that riot scene..

Not saying this was the right way to handle things.. But people do need to be held responsible for their words and actions.. You can’t just go around hurting others and get away with it.. There has to be consequences.. Is it really that hard to treat people with basic decency?? I felt like the message of the drama is clear, Be Good To Others..

From a darker perspective, many of the people who were killed deserved it?? And honestly, the one person who probably deserved some serious reckoning but didn’t die was Kang Seong Jun, the bully.. I just hope whatever happened has given him enough trauma and shook him enough to think twice for the rest of his life..

Bullying.. It’s something we have seen in so many Korean dramas and movies that it almost feels like a normal day to day thing over there.. And that’s what makes it even more disturbing.. You can’t help but wonder why is no one ever seriously punished or held accountable??

It was a bit disappointing how the show portrayed the Government as hopeless and the cops as completely tactless in the final ep.. Realistically you would expect the authorities to handle a situation like that much better.. I get that it’s a drama and things need to be exaggerated for impact.. But still it felt a bit too far fetched..

Like I said, the drama started off good stayed good all the way through.. Until the final episode.. That’s where it lost me.. The conclusion was not satisfying at all.. After everything that built up, it felt like the story ran out of steam right when it mattered most..

Overall, it’s an impressive drama with Kim Nam Gil delivering a stellar performance.. Is it perfect?? No.. But for me, the issues I had, some unrealistic scenes, a bit of awkward dialogue here and there.. Don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things..

Read More

Ridiculous, pointless drama saved by amazing acting

I found this drama through Kim Nam-Gil, my favourite actor. Was this drama bad? Yes. Do I regret watching it? It's complicated...
Just as I pointed out in the headline, this drama, if not for the amazing acting delivered mostly by the lead actors, wouldn't be so popular. Although the acting and the high budget, that seemingly went into all these action-packed scenes was very visible, the plot itself fell flat. It was genuinely so ass - so ridiculous and absurd. I guess it just didn't fit my tastes, but I would definitely drop this drama after the second episode if not for Moon Baek's appearance.
I continued watching it out of curiosity about Lee Don and Moon Baek's relationship, that was really fun to see at the beginning. I really hoped to see a silly lead x serious lead dynamic, bonded by their similar unresolved traumas and in a small conflict over their beliefs. This part about the show was definitely my favourite, so I was extremely disappointed seeing Moon Baek's sudden shift into a typical, cynical antagonist that works for the Americans.
The shooting scenes itself were really good - they were unimaginably immersive, especially the one in the school. I was genuinely stressed over them, as they pretty realistically portrayed the awful, awful violence the guns bring in our world. But besides that it was sooooo absurd. Moon Baek knew that the school student would go to the city centre near a shooting club, so he organized a street fight, stole a gun from the nearby bar and started throwing cool ass moves to impress the young kid.... What the hell?
The mafia story was very forgettable and really Whatever. I guess the actors were playing really well, but I feel like the drama itself would survive without the whole mafia plot, really.
And the ending... The ending was genuinely so pointless. Don't get me wrong, I love Lee Do's whole character - I'm a big fan of savior complexed, hopeful characters, that would rather protect the innocents than kill the main antagonist, that caused the chaos in the first place. But what the hell? The ending was so unrealistic, since in the real world nobody cares after seeing scene of crying children comforted by adults in midst of war. The whole point of the show was that the society nowadays is so doomed, that they would easily become violent if they ever got the opportunity. So why would the citizens, the insensitive society that straight up ran to get guns to kill each others and get their "justice", suddenly shifted their mindset after seeing one video of it?
Overall, definitely wouldn't rewatch it. Why did I finish the show? Out of sheer curiosity about what else this drama has to offer, since, really, this show was pure comedy. So much lost potential and waste of talented actors and the massive budget - it would be amazing if it went into something more realistic and really hopeful, something with a message about our society and the long history of violence instead.

Read More

Trigger: Deep Themes, Plot Holes, and Great Acting

Trigger is another action–crime drama from the Korean entertainment industry, but this time it revolves around a central question: “Does a gun bring justice to the oppressed, or does it instead bring catastrophe to the world?” Personally, I really like the idea and the message the drama is trying to convey. However, I wouldn’t say the execution is flawless or anywhere near perfection, even though the concepts of “trigger” and “gun” were delivered quite clearly.
The main theme leans more toward the grey areas, making it a sensitive subject that requires depth and nuance in order not to end up on the wrong side. Unfortunately, the drama lacks that depth, with plot holes here and there that make certain parts feel questionable.
Lee Do is a police officer and a former elite soldier who once served in a conflict zone. After being forced into a life-or-death decision with a gun in his hand, he vowed never to pick up that weapon again. He also has a dark past since his whole family was killed by a shooter when he was a kid. While his overall character is fine, he doesn’t leave a strong impression on me. Like many other action-drama heroes, he’s portrayed as highly skilled, kind-hearted, and brave—but without much that makes him stand out.
Moon Baek, on the other hand, is a character with a tragic and twisted past. Abandoned by his mother, he ended up in a child organ-trafficking ring before being recruited as a teenager into a foreign gang involved in illegal arms trading. He later returns to his homeland with the mission of making guns accessible to everyone, exploiting the oppressed and desperate to create chaos. I actually enjoy villains who go all out without remorse, especially when they’re smart—and I must admit, he’s also a hot villain.
As for the acting, everyone from the leads to the supporting cast—delivered excellent performances. Kim Nam Gil is undeniably a brilliant actor, particularly in action roles, though here I felt his performance left me wanting a bit more. Kim Young Kwang, however, stood out. This is only the second drama of his I’ve watched, but I really liked the strong, nuanced aura he gave to Moon Baek.
Overall, the drama is still enjoyable despite its flaws and moments of illogical storytelling. Since I’m more of an emotional viewer, my ratings and impressions lean on how much I feel during and after watching. I empathized with many characters and was impressed by the acting, which helped me sit through it all. It’s definitely not a solid masterpiece, but it’s still worth a watch.

Read More

No cast in the world can safe this nonsense

The storyline sounded rather intriguing, but I drop this after episode 4, I really can't take this non-logic and nonsese anymore.

Episode 1: a guy finally snaps (understandable to a degree even) and runs amok shooting 20, 30 people in the Goshiwon he lives in. He has automatic weapons, and when the police arrive, he has already shot all these people there, it's a splatter feast for the police to SEE when they arrive, they see all the bodies and blood and brains everywhere. So, in whatever country in the world, in this case, any police would have not only the right but the obligation to have a full shoot to kill - permit.
What happens here? The inspector has clear view on the target, he could shoot him right away, but instead? He does this cat and mouse game with him, trying to make the shooter use all his ammo and almost gets shot himself? No, seriously, in such case, with the shooter still armed and shooting, any police would shoot to kill and rightly so.

In between: loads of 'shibal shibal shibaaaaal!' and not much else.

Episode 4: They are doing it again? The perv from episode one now also got gift boxes full of automatic weapons, yaaay.
After realising this, our same detective is urgently looking for him, he's in the middle of the city and some lady is trying to guide him via CCTV cameras, and tells him where the suspect was last seen. Our detective does at some point realise that the pervi is going straight to the police station. And what would any normal person do now? He would immediately CALL there and inform the station that a madman is coming with loaded guns and for them to lock the station down right away. But no, he does not inform them, so to fit the absurd storyline, the perv can really freely walk into the police station and start shooting police officers there without hinderance. And again, our detective arrives there, he and his superior have their guns pointed at the shooter directly, the shooter, who has just brutally shot many of their colleagues OBVIOUSLY , is pointing his still loaded automatic gun at them and they....?? do NOT shoot him, instead they start talking to him, let him curse for half an hour and tell him to put down the gun? They still don't shoot him and instead wait for the perv to start shooting at them? I can't really, this is beyond stupid, unbearable. I even said it out loud in front of the screen, what bs is that?

So, as this is so dumb it is not good for my blood pressure (which is normally very low) I drop this immediately, and can only recommend this to viewers who absolutely do not care for any kind of intelligent and logic story that would make any sense in ANY universe.

Read More

Not-so-subtle American Propaganda

American and Korean soldiers invading the Middle East to kill children but let's make it pallatable by putting a gun in a child's hand so now killing brown kids is heroic and a matter of duty. A Korean child who was sold to America grew up and started distributing guns illegally in SK. Let's make sure everyone knows he's evil by making him wear a keffiyah similar to Palestinians to depict he's scary and evil. Well done Netflix! After kpop, it's kdramas trying to normalise genocide.

Now besides throwing in forced nudity (and yes Trigger is no exception), we also have to be forced to see American war propaganda in Korean dramas thanks to Netflix?

After successfully killing 99 people in the Middle East, our ex-soldier cop grows a conscience vowing to never kill again. Except he'll kill again or else why are we watching a show called Trigger?

Let's get to the main plot. One day, someone starts distributing guns to people who seem frustrated by their circumstances. Instead of a vigilante siltuation where he personally decides to help people, he lets them take matters into their own hands by giving them a gun. On one hand he is giving a bullied school kid and a bullied nurse a gun, on the other hand he sends one to a violent man who comitted a sexual crime. He sends one to someone who lost their son to bad company safety regulations and also gives guns to gang members. There is no logic. You don't need to create a sad backstory for a person who just wants to create chaos due to his childhood circumstances.

But remember he's a bad guy. He illegally taps everyone's guns through hacking of their phones. Only American and other governments are allowed to do to spy on their citizens using Israeli Pegasus software. No one should have access to people's personal information except private companies like Spotify demanding your legal ID. Also remember 3 letter agencies are the good guys. They rescue internationally trafficked kids and definitely don't ship off civilians to a prison in Cuba or Alcatraz.

This show has a lot of senseless violence and killing including school violence. Ironically the bullies and scammers survive amidst all of that. Yay!

If the point was that guns are dangerous and civilians should not hope for legalization of guns, then the solution should be to root out the reason why a civilian would need a gun by creating strong laws. Protect children from being bullied, prevent human trafficking with harsh punishments to traffickers as well as scammers, give longer sentences to rapists, etc. Improve the law and you'll have order. This show really lost itself and the point that it was trying to make by creating an extremely unlikely and absurd scenario where people get a gun and don't question why it was even sent to them. They don't question anything and just start shooting.

Someone else mentioned this that when our smart cop knew a gunman was headed to the police station, why didn't they lock it down? Also, why didn't they alert everyone there? Just shows their inadequacies rather than heroism.

I also found it strange that at the first shooting site, our hero cop sees an opportunity to shoot the killer and he just goes back out. It reminded me of a real incident in a US school shooting where the cops wouldn't go into the school and prevented parents from going in to save their kids as well.

The reason I keep bringing up real life issues especially political ones is because this is a politically charged drama and ignores the reality that those that are trained to kill aren't exactly our saviours.

I'm sure there are better dramas where you can see heroic cops save the day without this much American propaganda push. I normally love everything Kim Nam Gil does but him chosing this project was disappointing.

If you want to mindlessly watch some action then go for it.

Read More

Good start but weak buildup

The show starts with a promising two or three episodes. It makes you question your whole view on a safe society and how it affects ordinary people. But soon goes sideways with unnecessary plot points and characters. It's like the creators lost their vision halfway through and got back to it on the final Episodes but it was kind of late and couldn't give it a good wrap up. The ending episode especially seemed so weak especially for the two main characters. They could have spent more time exploring these two main's point of view and the affect of the whole situation on the society. But all they showed was chaos and a weak climax.
The strong point of the whole serie was the acting and the effort actors put in their roles although the creators made most of them so basic and Black and white. They needed more depth. Honestly no rewatch value cause what's the point? It's one of those series that you give it a shot and forget about it in a few months.

Read More

give it a shot and you wont regret it

it was a very enjoyable experience the story, the acting everything was great the ending is a bit disappointing it should've been more exciting but still it is not that bad overall it was a great series indeed one of the strongest kdrama of the year. i will definitely rewatch it at some time.
the whole idea of using guns and how it affects the security and peace of countries is really terrifying this series depicts and shows how dangerous it is to let those guns be in the wrong hands to be used freely at a time like this and in a world where people could get upset and angry very quickly it can open the path for grudges and envy to rise which will by its turn create a motive for them to commit crimes and killing one another in the name of justice which of course doesn't work that way. still it shows us the cruelty of our world but despite all of this we should never let our fear or anger blind us from being humans.it was a nice idea and a cause to discuss to help the viewers be more aware.

Read More

A Bold “What If” Drama

I just finished Trigger on Netflix 30 minutes ago and it really stuck with me.

The premise alone is powerful: what if South Korea, a country with some of the strictest gun laws in the world, suddenly found itself flooded with illegal firearms? The show dives into how quickly society can unravel when that line is crossed and it does so with intensity and thoughtfulness.

What makes Trigger so engaging is the clash between its two leads. On one side, a principled ex-sniper who believes in justice through law and restraint. On the other, a mysterious figure who sees chaos as the only path to fairness—arming the powerless and letting them decide the fate of their oppressors. Their ideological battle gives the drama both heart and tension, and the performances are phenomenal.

The show doesn’t just focus on action, though. It raises bigger questions about justice, morality, and how fragile order really is when weapons land in everyday hands. That’s what makes it so unsettling and unforgettable.

If I had one critique, it’s that the ending felt deliberately vague. It’s not entirely clear if true resolution was reached, which makes me wonder if a Season 2 could be possible. Either way, the ambiguity fits the theme, leaving you with a lot to think about.
Bottom line: Trigger isn’t just a thriller, t’s a social mirror. Tense, sharp, and emotionally charged, it’s one of those rare dramas that entertains while also making you reflect long after it ends.

Adding here: Didn't help the "villain" was so damn attractive lol.

Read More

Good but overrated

I have to admit I watched this because of the many edits I've seen for moon baek and because I really love Kim nam gil.
Sadly, it falls short to the mark~

Acting was the only good thing about it, KNG and KYK were great in their roles but the drama tried so hard to be so philosophical which made it lose it's charm halfway through it ~

It revolve around a hypothetical scenario when rules and laws fails us, can we obtain justice with our own hands? Kinda like the batman dilemma.

The end is extremely sugar coated, unnecessarily and unrealistically ~

Read More

Thrilling show that has some dystopian elements

From the get go the show caught my attention and i was never bored for each episode. Everything was done well from start to finish, and the development of the main character was wonderful.

They show you two sides of the same coin but how vastly different they both ended up in life. The Hero and The Villain. Both with similar backstories yet completely different till the end. Such a captivating story.

The ending had me crying too, it was so wholesome! I love how the main character served as a symbol of peace in the end. If Trigger ever gets a season 2, I will definitely be tuning in!

Read More