Mercy for None

? Mercy for None: Stylish Fights Over Substance

Rating: 7.5/10
Recommended for: action junkies, background bingers, or anyone craving intense visuals.
Not for: lovers of layered storytelling or emotional nuance.


If you're in the mood for a visually gripping binge with intense action and minimal brain work, Mercy for None might just be your weekend filler.

The series centers entirely around revenge and while that’s a classic motive, the storyline doesn’t offer much beyond that. There’s little to no plot development or depth, and if you’re someone who watches for clever twists or emotional arcs, this might fall flat. It’s a straight road from Point A to Point B, with fists flying all the way.

That said, the fight choreography is incredible. Stylish, brutal, and sometimes over-the-top to the point of being unrealistic but that’s part of the fun if you’re in the right mood. It’s one of those shows where you won’t care much about what’s happening as long as something’s exploding or someone’s getting kicked through a wall.

The acting is strong, which is no surprise given the star-studded cast. They make even the most cliché moments watchable. But even their performances can't fully compensate for the lack of a compelling story.

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Overall a bit linear, with too many hurdles that circled around too much
The gore was funny, everyone was crazy and it became a bit underwhelming the contrast of the veterans vrs the newbies

A woo dohwan tho would’ve made it more interesting, or even kangjoonie stopping his too uwu and going full dark mode



I need something super girly after this

A spoiled brat and a sheltered brat..


I wonder if it’s a new trend or if it was always like this but fan sites didn’t do it
The “twist” being a guest or side character low in the ranks, before they’d make all villains as the 2nd or 3rd
I’m here rooting for hot ahjussis when their spoiled brats want the power…
Like you didn’t work for it as much as they did and once they reached the power they realized how bad it was
Now they tried to steal the power and ended up killing their dads and getting played…

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Fighting fighting & fighting.

If you like bloody fighting to the death, this is your series. You can't help but get hooked on how Ji Jun get's out of every situation he's in, whether he's facing one person or an entire room of people. After a while, though, it does get a bit tiring how he just keeps killing every single person he comes in contact with. I think the story becomes a bit lacking ... leaving just the fighting to watch as entertainment, but not too much in the way of substance.
The supporting cast give a good back up to all the fighting. Jun Mo played by Gong Myung makes you really wish for a painful death on his part ... which he eventually gets!
Young Woo, who I've become a big fan of, gives us a dark and sinister character of Geum Son. He does a great job at showing his acting ability with a personality he has never shown before.
I wish the writing would have equaled the acting & fighting ... but it did make for some good action, and lots of blood!!!!

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"Mercy For None" is a drama about Gi Jun, a former gangster who has lived in seclusion for 11 years, but when his brother suddenly dies, Gi Jun returns seeking revenge.

The drama only has eight episodes, and this ends up being one of its problems, because everything is developed too quickly, which greatly hinders the story. There was no effort whatsoever to show the past of Gi Jun and his brother Gi Seok, and for me, this was essential: to show their relationship, to make sense of Gi Jun's motivation for revenge, to show how much his brother mattered to him.

The fight scenes are very good, quite bloody, but they included too many, it was a bit overdone, and at one point I wondered if it was humanly possible for Gi Jun to endure all that over and over again. When he goes after Jun Mo, that scene is incredible because he was avenging his brother's death. It had meaning, but seeing him fight with basically the entire cast became repetitive, and Geum Son didn't convince me as the drama's villain; the character was very dull.

So Ji Sub is the perfect actor for an action drama; his movements as he kills are like a dance, you can't take your eyes off the screen. I loved seeing Lee Bum Soo acting again; the last time I saw him was in "LAST," and he's still as fantastic an actor as I remembered. <3

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Action packed, but writing left much to be desired.

Mercy for None began with a strong first episode filled with tension and intrigue, and it immediately lured me into the world of gangs and underworld crimes in Seoul, South Korea. Unfortunately for me, that was as good as the story got, because everything went downhill from there.

What I liked:
• A revenge story. I have a soft spot for this trope.
• The actors. It was nice to see a cast of mostly veteran actors in a kdrama.
• The fight scenes. I thought those were very well choreographed.

What I did not like:
• A poorly written script. This drama was littered with predictability (the audience was always two steps ahead of all the characters), plot holes (some events didn't make any sense at all), and plot "twists" (many of them fell flat because the writers failed to set them up properly.)
• Underdeveloped characters. Both the heroes and villains lacked depth, consistency, and intelligence. This probably could have worked in other stories, but in a story like this one — driven by human emotions such as grief, anger, and the need for revenge — this left much to be desired and really made the finale less satisfying.

In short, if you're expecting a new twist on a gangster revenge story that will blow your mind and leave you speechless or a story with complex and compelling characters — this drama is not it. It is, however, only 7 episodes long and it will keep you occupied and entertained if you need something to kill time.

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Great Revenge Drama fueled with crazy action

Mercy for None is a gritty revenge thriller filled with John Wick style action sequences and a story that portrays punishment to those who betrays the honour.

The story is about Nam Gi Jun who leaves his gang to lead a peaceful life, only to come out and take revenge on those who killed his brother. The main character, So Ji Sub as Nam Gi Jun is absolutely magnetic. The guilt and rage on his face was enough to ride the show, even with a predictable ending.

The tone of cinematography is dark, as it should be. While the action was good and the pace was smooth, some characters could have been explored more via backstory or something. The series does include a number of brutal scenes, which may not be suitable for everyone, but these moments contribute significantly to the overall impact of the story, enhancing its intensity and emotional weight. Each scene is crafted to elicit strong reactions, making the viewing experience even more immersive and keeps you on the edge of the seat.

Overall, Mercy For None is not the best revenge series that I have seen, but is a strong addition to the revenge fueled series that I have seen over the years.

My Rating : 4/5

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Non-existent plot

I'm a thriller fan, but even this show is abit much for me. 0 plot and I repeat 0 PLOT. It's just a guy mindlessly fighting waves and waves of baddies all in the name of "revenge". There's some political intrigue sprinkled here and there but it's predictable and falls flat on its face. The storyline and writing (and dare I say acting as well?) is clearly an afterthought in this show.

I'm not sure if its the acting or the writing or maybe both, but Gi-Jun just comes across as robotic with the same glazed over expression throughout the whole show. There are many similarities between this show and the John Wick series - with the central character being virtually invincible in his quest for revenge. The difference is that John Wick shows his humanity and is vulnerable with his allies. We only see Gi-Jun's softer side towards the end and it's not enough to get the audience to root for his character. It's just scene after scene of fight scenes which got repetitive real quick. I love a good thriller but this is not it. Not to mention the gratuitous violence and over the top scenes of blood spurting out of various orifices which in my opinion is HIGHLY unnecessary. Sure John Wick had plenty of violent scenes too (infamous pencil scene) but I don't recall screentime dedicated to showing blood spurt out in various methods and angles for a few seconds?? Especially from random side characters?

Anyway. I was entertained but not something I would rewatch. It's one of those shows you watch and then forget about because nothing noteworthy happens. Everyone dies in the end. The end

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Good action drama - nothing more

The drama stays true to its title till the end. The fighting scenes were amazing, as was the acting, especially Young Woo and Gong Myung, who were my favorites. It's easy to binge-watch the drama as the episodes are very short.
To be honest, it did not leave much of an impact on me, as I did not care about the characters. They could have told the story better, so you could feel for the characters, as they did with *The Worst of Evil*, which I loved. It's a shame, as it was promising but didn't deliver, except for the great fight scenes. Also, it was refreshing to see a revenge featuring adults drama and not a high school theme. Not that I don't like those, but they are missing, as there aren't many dramas like this.
Overall, a good revenge action drama, but will not remember in a few day.

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Only for action fans

Great show if you're looking for pure action. It reminds John Wick, not only in style, but also in some story moments. But "Mercy for none" doesn't have any interesting characters, or plot twists. You've seen such stories many many times. It's a typical revenge story with silent, sad, overpowered main character. And also some gang wars in the background.

Acting here...is mediocre. It's not bad, but it's not mind blowing, you won't find here any complicated characters. Music is also..mediocre- not bad, but not great.

So, why 7? Because of action - it's beautiful, gory and stylish. Pacing in the first four episodes is great, but in later episodes it became slower. More story elements was added..and because it's not really interesting, later episodes were a bit boring. But nevertheless action scenes were still fun to watch.

To sum it up - if you're looking for something similar to John Wick, but korean - go watch it. It's short and fun to watch. But if you're looking for a serious crime drama - you won't find it here.

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No mercy, for real

I actually wanted to give this drama a 7 as a rating but 0.5 is for the brother that showed up for 10 minutes in total and stole the show.

The characters are interesting but almost all of them were wasted. A character would get introduced, some backstory and bam, dead.

The prosecutor, gang leaders, dead brother, no one got used to their full potential.

The action is great and fight scenes are well choreographed but after episode 4 it gets repetitive. There's no thrill and everything conveniently goes in just one direction.

I don't mind the sad ending but I need more backstory, character motivation and depth. Even after finishing the drama, dead brother is still a mystery. Why did he want to leave? Did he know he would die? Is that why he went to see his brother?

I have a lot of questions for almost every character.

And yes, this is a drama full of bashing skull's but that doesn't mean it can't have a complex story.

Overall, this is a simple story with satisfying fights.

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If you just want to watch gore, action filled revenge drama, this is for you.

'Mercy for None' is an adaptation of a manhwa 'Plaza Wars'. It is a revenge drama which follows Gi-jun in his quest to find out more about his brother Gi-seok.

The plot in the drama is different from the source, although the characters are the same (some exception, the Japanese killer, Shimane, is a Chinese-korean who wants to bring his family with him to korea from China).

In the manhwa, the story begins on the same tone as the drama, just bloody revenge, a one destination mind. But along the way it transforms more from an all must die for my revenge type story and more into an underworld, political and sophisticated one. If a character dies, it has depth. A serious crime drama, where action have consequences.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not criticising the drama here. It has perfectly replicated the character and the action scenes as they were meant to be. The story although different does flow. But something still feels like missing.

For example- What is Lee Geom-Seon's plan to tarnish the border between light and dark?

Some scenes were also left off from the manhwa, like Gijun fighting the Japanese killer in front of the Blue House as a show for some politicians, Not everybody dies and Seong-cheol and Chun-seok actually support the mc carry out his revenge.

Overall, it is good, no doubt, but still could be more. Justfies the title to be fair. 'Mercy for None'.

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