Hierarchy

A FAILED ATTEMPT AT A KOREAN REMAKE OF ELITE

***DISCLAIMER: THIS IS JUST MY OPINION. YOU DON'T HAVE TO AGREE AND I'M NOT HERE TO ARGUE WITH ANYONE.***

A/N: This review is long so please bear with me or just skip to the “final thoughts” section.


OVERVIEW:

The drama opens with a scared boy running away from somone who seems to be chasing him. It flashes back to some memories of him shouting at someone saying "you're all crazy". Then when he finally runs outside he is hit over by a car and bleeds to death. The camera zooms in on his ID card from Jooshin focusing on the motto which says “noblesse oblige” This is from French meaning, “nobility obligates” which touches on the belief that the wealthy and privileged are obliged to help those less fortunate. The boy who was killed is In Han who we eventually find out is the protagonist, Kang Ha’s brother. He then enrolls at Jooshin to exact retribution on those guilty and obtain justice for his brother.


GENERAL COMMENTARY:

The drama was, to put it mildly, unremarkable.

First things first, the high schoolers racing around a track driving million dollar sports cars in episode 1? Come on, be for real. This show is such a joke. That added nothing to the plot and I think they blew the budget on unnecessary things.

The FL irritated me. Although ML was seemingly in love with her, she only has tunnel vision for Ri-An. Watching her be so resolute was upsetting, especially in the beginning when everyone thought Ri-An was involved in In-Han's murder. It was clear that initially Jae-i was using Kang Ha to get over Ri-An, and she shielded him out of guilt that he might be related to In-Han. I was so annoyed by her passion for Ri-An but it just goes to show that someone can do everything for you and you’ll still mean nothing to them. I didn’t understand why Kang Ha didn’t just let go of her. He tried protecting her when on the flipside she told him she didn’t care about protecting anyone except Ri-an. I had assumed that the writers would have written the story that she was in love with In-Han (similar to Elite) but apparently not. It was just your typical rich boy in love with a rich girl and both willing to go to any lengths to keep the other safe.

It’s so ironic to me how she almost had to abort their baby because she couldn’t face her father’s wrath and yet she was still in love with him? Make it make sense. She knew they could never truly be together and so she breaks up with him but at the same time she still loves him and would do anything to protect him even if she knew he had a hand in In-Han’s murder? I’m sorry but Kang Ha deserves better.

This drama just shows that the rich will always have eachothers backs and do whatever it takes to step on those beneath them.

Which brings me to the another point, I don’t understand why she was so shocked / stunned to speak when ML finally revealed the truth than In-Han was his brother. That much was so obvious and even she was shown to have had a slight suspicion that he was related to him in some way because he continued to provoke the rich and popular kids.

I believe Roh Jeong Eui tried to create visuals similar to Han So Hee and Bona. However, I believe she overdid her plastic surgery, which is why her emotions don't translate properly onscreen. She was expected to play a cold, unfeeling and disinterested character but character lacked flavor and she had same expression throughout the drama. During the scene where she and Ri-An were lamenting the loss of their baby together, she cried but did not show any emotion on her face. It was quite unpleasant to watch ngl. Ji Hye Won reminded me very lot of Song Ha Yoon from Marry My Husband. She did her role justice and her performance was superior to FLs if I’m being honest.

Some claim Jae-i had no chemistry with either of the boys. That is not entirely true, as there was steam between her and Kang-Ha in episodes 1 and 2. I disliked how they built up the kiss so nicely in episode 2 and then nothing because the headmaster, Ri An, and Woo Ji had to intervene. But, while I agree that the chemistry / spark faded after that, her “slight” fondness for Ri-An and her friends was still somewhat present in the flashbacks. She tried but it just wasn’t good enough.

The show felt so flat and the romance between Kang Ha and Jae-i was just unnecessary like how did he let a trivial crush hinder his ‘revenge’? I swear so many characters needed to STAND UP. I hate how both of the guys were just pathetic simps for Jae-i. I had to ask myself if I was He-Ra in this situation? Bc I could not stand her AT ALL. Lmao those boys needed to bffr!

I will never see the appeal of Ri-an (I don’t get why Jae-i was so taken with him) I honestly preferred Kim Jae Won’s performance in KTL more. He was arrogant and insufferable not to mention the main reason for the violence on the less fortunate scholarship kids at the school and I doubt he was actually sorry at the end, he was just sorry he got caught. Imo he was just a one dimensional pretentious bastard and it took him learning that his baby died for him to break down his walls and have a heart? Spare me with the lazy writing fr.

Additionally, I couldn’t understand why Ri-an liked Jae-i and why her love for him was unwavering. I didn’t feel any warmth or real emotional or even physical attraction pass between them in the 7 episodes. I wonder if it would have been different had Chae Min played Ri-an and played Kang Ha. Idk why but I kept on thinking this through the entirety of the drama. The casting directors made a certain choice and I’m not sure if it was the best one. Chae Min would have carried the drama and stood out either way and so I applaud him for giving this role his best. Usually the poor characters have that wide eyed bambi look much like Ri-An and Chae Min has that evil / gold spoon look in my opinion. I also don’t think 2MLs acting is that strong of an actor. He needs more training so he can improve. People were raving about his acting in episode 6 especially and to me it was just a mediocre performance that felt quite stony and flat.

I was not surprised that the teacher and Woo-Ji had a hand in In-Ha bring killed. From episode 2 they were the most suspicious to me not to mention the most taboo / disgusting couple. The moment I saw them sleeping together that right there was a 0/10 for me. 18 in korean age or not… (which is 17 in international age) IDC THAT’S A WHOLE ADULT AND A MINOR… EW!

The teacher was pathetic. She only cared about Woo-ji and then fakes empathy in front of the kids at school like she even gives a singular f*ck about In Ha dying… LIKE BITCH YOU WERE THE ONE DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE.

I got so sick and tired of her patronizing attitude. She must feel so accomplished to be f*cking a student half her age and then trying to hit over the girl Woo-ji loves after she is forced to resign? Did she want to be charged for a second hit and run? Lmao. She was the definition of immature and unserious.

Jae-i’s back story of wanting to abort the baby then having a miscarriage is sad but the build up towards that took too long. Everyone knew or could infer that she aborted or lost the baby. I get that she was grieving and couldn’t face Ri-An, but if she just communicated imagine the difference that would have made. Idk the plot was just unnecessarily dragged out and she quite literally treated Ri-an like she hated him for more than half of the drama.

The resolution was terrible. It's a massive eye roll that they always manage to have Ri-an look like the "cool guy". It was so cheap and performative of him to acknowledge his part in bullying at the last minute. Dramas like this constantly give the impression that problems are easily fixed. Someone literally died for God sakes! Furthermore, I don't think 2ML's acting is that good. While I thought his performance in ep 6 was merely passable, many were praising him.

I find it cliche that the writers always make it out that the rich are envious of the poor because they can do whatever they want and find joy in the simple things in life. I could have told you I saw that scene coming from a mile away.

The farewell scene between Jae-i and He-ra was unnecessary. Imo they spent almost the entirety of the drama being horrible to each other so I stopped caring about them & didn’t want to see them rekindle their fake friendship.

“Take care of yourself, my mean and beautiful friend." lmao, this was such a backhanded compliment that I side eyed. The FL had the opportunity to finally express her actual emotions in that scene, but she failed. Like she even finds it difficult to smile? Bffr.

The bike scene between Ri-an and Jae-i annoyed me because that was literally Kang Ha and Jae-i’s thing. Ugh is nothing sacred anymore? Honestly I couldn’t care less about Jae-i and Ri-an. But I suppose they suit each other in the way that they’re lowkey the same / have the same trashy morals. Imo their chemistry is nonexistent and it felt like the writers were trying to force their relationship down everyone’s throats. She didn't even appear to be enjoying the "toast" either — like girl not even you believe it’s good.

“Kang Ha once told me that I should find and protect whatever makes me happiest in life. So I thought about it and that’s you Ri-an.” they need to stop forcing this actress to be endearing because she can’t do it. Also I find it ironic how it took Kang-ha sharing his advice for her to realize it. Jae-i is pathetic if you ask me.

I hate that knowing each other since childhood trope that they use to show that two characters “belong” together or are “destined” to be together. I also dislike the fact that there’s no real reason that they like eachother other than that they are familiar and comfortable with each other. This is a case of the “just ‘cause” syndrome again. Like yes, give us absolutely NOTHING. I would have preferred they stayed broken up. It was annoying how much screen time they took up in the final episode, as that was where the drama became a complete drag.

The scene where Ri-an and Jae-i say farewell to their baby by allowing the ultrasound to float into the river was not moving (to me) at all. I believe both actors are inexperienced and have not dealt with a similar situation, hence it didn't translate properly on screen. I wanted them to delve into their grief and actually communicate. I needed Jae-i to open up him about how she felt about keeping the secret and how she felt when the baby eventually died etc. She mentioned it to Kang Ha, but we never saw her explain herself to Ri-an. A lot was missing and that scene seemed to lack a lot.

I said it once and I’m gonna say it again; dramas doing these sacrificial love arcs need to quit while they are ahead because it never hits especially with no real backstory or build up. I think 7 episodes hindered them from doing that but they could have cut out the unnecessary drama and tried to create more multidimensional characters. Even Kang-ha’s home life beyond his memories with his brother. We didn’t see his living situation with his uncle or what happened to his parents. I feel like the writers could’ve explored this more.

I hated the scene where Kang-ha pitifully asked Jae-i if there was ever a time she had real feelings for him and she just smiled and he figured she was lying. Enough with that bs! It’s sad especially when you realize she only felt guilt towards him and that’s because In-han was so good to her and she saw similarities between the two.

The scene between He-ra and Kang-ha came out of the blue but I believe the writers threw it in at the end because they wished they explored that dynamic / pairing more. It was cute but unnecessary imo.

Not Kang-ha running pathetically towards Jae-i when she’s about to leave and confessing / apologizing for the 100th time. She needs to put in the work and chase him. Mind you she should be the one apologizing to him! I think he needs to get over her. I didn’t care that she finally admitted she had feelings for him because it means nothing and if it came down to it she would still chose Ri-an. I hate how they wrote him to be a loser simp… like he really lost sight of his revenge all because of her?! BE SO SERIOUS.

To be honest, I don’t ship Kang-ha with any of those mean rich kids. He deserves so much more than to be a mere option / someone’s sloppy seconds!

I’m glad that Jae-i left on her own accord to find herself and ended up going to visit her mom but imo, the ending was just bathetic. I mean we don’t even get to see her mom’s face? Bye.

After the credits they showed another murder with Kang-ha smiling at his phone “appearing” to send a message to Ri-An which said “you look shaken up” was so dissatisfying. It’s obvious they’re teasing S2. I’m so over it. NEXT!

Throughout the entire drama I was thinking what if ML played Ri-An and vice versa. Usually the poor characters have that wide eyed bambi look like Ri-An and Chae Min has that gold spoon look. I can’t explain it but the casting directors certainly made a choice because at least if Chae Min was Ri-an we’d actually see some chemistry or sparks (like in that final hug)


LIKES:

The cinematography was good but I felt the color grading at times was a tad harsh on the eyes and made the FL appear like she belonged in the Addams Family. Her skin was super pale which emphasized her ghastly demeanor. She was emotionless and she looked like the FL of a horror film.

I liked the scene in which He-Ra viewed the video of Jae-i and Ri-An. Rather than using it as a weapon against them much like Jae-i's cruel brother, she scolded and then slapped him. I had mixed feelings while watching because I thought I'd hate He-ra forever for wanting Ri-an for herself and then trying so hard to get back at Jae-i for many episodes, but that scene alone showed me how much she still cared for her and was hurt knowing all that it was all she was dealing with. On the other hand, she has feelings for Ri-An as well, so imagine how she felt seeing them be happily in love. She had to put her feelings aside because she knew that the intimate moment between the two should never get out and should not have been recorded in the first place. He-ra is a complicated character, with some layers. She's not the textbook bitch I assumed she was.

The more experienced actors in this drama ate down. Lee Chae Min and Ji Hye Won never disappointed. They both carried the entire drama on their backs. Jae-i’s father (Choi Won Young) and Ri-an’s mother (Yoon Se Ah) nailed their roles. I was also impressed with the headmaster (Bae Hae Sun) and her son (Seo Bum June) I also liked Kim Min Chul's portrayal of In-ha and Kang-ha's friend Tae Ho (Yoon Seok Ho) The bullies also did a good job.

I loved the ending cameo of Oh Na Ra as the new principal of Jooshin.

I also enjoyed the OST, that for me was one of the best things about the drama.


FINAL THOUGHTS:

The concept of this drama and it's execution does not stand out to me. You may have seen similar scenes in movies and tv shows in western media.

I don't think this idea is unique in Korea, which has had its fair share of aristocratic high school dramas (Bitch x Rich, Sky Castle, Heirs, BOF etc.) with affluent kids doing inconceivable things. But I still believe that younger audiences would appreciate this style of entertainment as that they now have a drama for their generation. Imo more recent dramas like Pyramid Game and The Glory do this type of plot far better.

Overall episodes 1-2 were the best, 3 was ok, 4-5 started dragging and had buildups that led nowhere / were resolved quickly, 6-7 were rushed, choppy and anticlimactic. I believe this drama is a waste of potential. The teaser seemed interesting, but the drama was a total letdown.

Imo the original Elite series is so much better than this, specifically seasons 1-3. I thought it would be a total copy of the plot but they changed things and put their own spin on it. For eg. I thought In Han was in a secret relationship with Jae-i and he was the father of her baby. This would've been more interesting and would explain how he got killed by Ri-an but it turns out they had other plans with the teacher being the culprit. That was predictable for me because when first came on the screen she looked very suspicious.

Hierarchy is not good by any means but not so atrocious that it’s completely unwatchable either. I think some persons can possibly relate where I couldn’t and find enjoyment in this series but sadly it was a miss for me. I’m not sure if this drama will be renewed for S2, if it is i’ll be very surprised.

In my opinion, this series is skippable. If you don't trust reviews then you'll just have to watch it for yourself and go in with little to no expectations. I say give it a try if you’re looking for something to binge quickly. This drama is primarily geared towards a younger audience, so beware if that is not your preferred genre. If it’s dragging for you then I suggest speed watching or watching something else entirely. Either way the choice is yours!

With that being said I give this drama a 4/10 and only because of effort from the more experienced / talented actors.

Thanks for reading and happy watching!

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚


__________________

SIDENOTE:

This is simply my point of view and I don’t intend to offend anyone who thinks differently.

‎ ‎ /) /)
( ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ )<(thank you!)
/ づ づ ~ ♡

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Easily one of the worst dramas that I've watched.

❥ This is solely my opinion and it is not necessary that you should agree with this.
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I had very low expectations for Hierarchy after watching the trailer and that's why it did not let me down. I did not enjoy watching this show one bit. Not even a single minute. This show was a whole trashcan and I'm being generous.. I mean, why did they even release this? This script should've been kept in the drafts. I think this would've been slightly better if it weren't for the cast.. or am I wrong? The show was very messy and all over the place which was why I couldn't enjoy it. So many illogical things are taking place here.. This also had an iffy vibe (mainly school scenes) making the drama less watchable. Netflix original shows are getting worse nowadays (like Chicken Nugget) and nothing could save this horrible drama.

☆ STORY:
Was there even any story here? Yeah, I don't think so. The "plot" was garbage, and it was definitely full of flaws. So many dumb things happening and the characters were written very poorly. It looked like they recycled a western teen romance show into a Korean drama and let me say it happened to be an utter failure. Btw I'm not giving out any spoilers. Also was Kang Ha even the main lead? He looked like an SML at this point. I was watching this in English dub because I did not feel any k-drama vibe here. The ending was done badly too.

☆ ACTING:
The only person who could act here was Ji Hye-won (Yoon He-ra). Roh Jeong-eui (Jeong Jae-yi) remained unexpressive throught the show. She failed to portray the character she was given to play and let me say her acting was insufferable. Kim Jae-won (Kim Ri-an) wasn't any better. They both are pretty good actors, but what happened here? Is it because of the bad script? Lee Chae-min(Kang Ha) was pretty mid, I guess. I did not feel any chemistry between the leads. Jae I did have a teeny bit of chemistry with Ri An tho. Their scenes were more fun to watch. Roh Jeong-eui and Lee Chae-min are acting in a show together once again and I hope that's a good one.

☆ OST/BACKGROUND MUSIC:
Background OST's were okay. I did not like the intro song, but the OSTs were actually quite good. I personally don't listen to music every single day cuz I don't have time but I do every now and then. I liked Junhyeon's (TIOT) OST the most. (I'm probably biased lol) Its called Ruin Life. I liked almost all of the songs except for 1 or 2 ones.

What I liked:
✔ Production: The production was pretty good. It felt expensive and cool. Their outfits were not bad. Its kinda sad knowing that they used a lot of money for this dissapointing show. The production kept the drama alive in some way.
✔ Cinematography: They did a great job on the cinematography. I liked how they managed the lighting and the color grading, it looked pretty nice.

What I did not like:
✘ Characters: As I said before, they were written very poorly (or idk if it's the acting) which I did not like. The couple lacked chemistry and all of them got on my nerves (especially Jae-yi) everytime except for Kang Ha. Also I'm still shocked by the fact that they're born in 2007.. ahem. Also the teacher and the student? That was the most creepiest thing ever. I initially thought the teacher was a student because of her face but turns out she's not.
✘ Direction: The direction just felt flat and I think it's one of the reasons why it felt like a western series like how their expressions go. It's not the worst thing here, but I wouldn't say it's particularly good either.


And yeah. That's pretty much it. I guess you should watch it for yourself. But if you ask me I do not recommend this show. You most probably will be left dissapointined. If you enjoy teen dark american romance shows with a synopsis like this then I guess you would enjoy it, or most likely not. That's all. And would I re-watch this? Never. With all of this, Im giving this drama a 3.5/10.

Tysm for reading and have a great day <3

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

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So infuriatingly mid

It reminded me of HBO's The Idol in that it looks stunning - of course it does, it's the same director who did Alchemy of Souls S2 - but there was no substance beyond that.

My biggest issue is with the plot. It was a mess. Period. I was so confused watching this, not knowing what the point of it all was. Our main character Kang Ha gets introduced as a cunning guy with a plan for revenge, but what does he even accomplish in the 7 veryyy long episodes of this show? Pine for some girl who may or may not have been involved in the murder of his brother. He keeps talking about how he's going to change things and expose the people at the school, but he does no investigation - no nothing. He conveniently gets all the evidence handed to him on a silver platter by another person and is then credited as the genius behind the whole thing. HE DID NOTHING!!! It makes me mad. He had so much potential, because it really did seem like he had a some kind of plan in episode 1.

The acting definitely left something to be desired. Go girl give us nothing. Jae Yi was mysterious and intriguing in the first episodes but it got tiresome very quickly. She is pretty. I really didn't get much else from her character. It's a shame, because her backstory and all she's gone through is really interesting, but all she does is just stand there. Yoon He Ra was a joy to watch, because the actress was acting her boots off. She's also the only person with some semblance of character growth (slay h&m fashion queen).

The tension felt so artificial with the whole: "I have a bow and I'm ready to release the arrow" "I'll stand ind front of him and take the arrow" - like cmon I couldn't take it seriously, because NOTHING HAD HAPPENED FOR SEVEREL EPISDOES WHILE THIS DUDE JUST KEPT MAKING EMPTY THREATHS. and it wasn't even his "bow"??? dude did nothing this entire show.

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If God is real, why did he let me see this?

I struggled to watch it to the end just to be able to criticise it without some loudmouth saying "if you haven't seen the whole thing you can't have an opinion" and I feel like I wasted my life, I feel like I could sue for emotional damages.

The only two things I liked were the set design, I thought it was quite aesthetically pleasing, the locations looked elegant and luxurious, plus, the male actors along with Byeon Seo Yoon and Pyo Young Seo served face and looked great in every shot. I also liked the way the parent-child relationships were portrayed, I know from someone close to me that those rich people are usually like that with their children. And that's all the good I can say, all of it.

Things I didn't like in no specific order:

+ The make-up: What the hell happened to them? Those pink blushes they put on He-ra, I understand if they wanted to make her look exaggerated, but it looks more like a hate crime towards the actress because she looks stupid, my mother thought she was playing the role of a drunk middle aged woman when she passed by me. At times I could see the 7 make up masks they put on the main actress, she looked like a plastic doll, it made me sick to my stomach, it was like watching a soulless doll that for some reason WAS ON THE SCREEN 90% OF THE TIME, MORE THAN THE PROTAGONIST. It was horrible.

+ The execution: I feel that I didn't see a drama, but a collage of various scenes that perhaps should have been approached and ordered differently. Revenge is supposed to be the central point, so where is it? It's the worst story of its kind, Senior High (Filipino series) did it better. 5 episodes went by and no one did anything either for revenge or protection, I don't remember a single interesting or shocking moment in all this, it got to a point where I just gave a dead stare at the screen and used it as a backdrop to do the dishes. Revenge is relegated to make way for nothing, because I don't feel like they built good characters, only He-ra was interesting to me, she was the only one doing anything in particular besides... Talking? Remembering? That was all the rest of the people did beyond looking cute. They should have put all that luxury of the sets, the cars and the outfits into the story and its development as well, make it all dramatic and fake like they are rich in real life.
I remember this scene where the lead actress touches the main character's bracelet and remembers that the dead scholarship kid had the same one, I almost cried from laughter and anger. Are you telling me no one else noticed? No one? If they were bullying him they should have at least noticed that. Besides, how come that idiot Ri-an didn't think of who shot that video? Pay some brain cells with that money please. If it's a private residence just for one person's family, IT'S OBVIOUS WHO THE MAIN SUSPECTS ARE. I guess they wanted to go slow so that everything would explode in the final chapters, but even that didn't work. If you want to do that you should at least put effort into your characters and the story, the background of everything. The only redeemable thing was Ri-an's handsome friend being the traitor, what a bastard.

+ The protagonist: If someone is the MC they should be the one with the most development and story, they should be a good character even if they are there for me to love or hate with every fibre in my body. Kang Ha is the main character, but it's not until chapter 6 that we are let to know Kang Ha for a 1 minute scene revolving around that girl, the FL, I didn't even learn her name, even He-ra feels more real as a character. I understand that there are more main characters, but damn, it's even Kang Ha who is talked about in the synopsis, where is he then, why does he appear so little? We know next to nothing about him, his personality, how he was raised to have that "I don't care if someone so rich threatens me" energy because he seems to think he's going to be resurrected if the rich decide to annihilate him. It would be nice if they had shown that, also that maybe he had taken fighting classes when his brother died, because it seems like he went into that school without a plan or skills to get out of there unscathed. The type of protagonist in these stories should be brave and smart, or at least thoughtful and brave, not just daring. Or AT LEAST GET ON SCREEN AND ACT, even if he's just going to be an observer at first before he puts a plan together, he needs to do something on screen, show us where he lives and the information he's gathered, the allies he gets in the shadows, SOMETHING. The only chapter where he is really the protagonist is in chapters 6 and 7, when he is trying to create a revolt of the scholarship students, but that doesn't make sense either. They hated him because he broke the rules that protected them all, there were never any interactions that would bring Kang Ha closer to them, he's a selfish person and it's obvious to everyone, he even prefers to protect the plastic face girl over them, why would they join him for anything? What nonsense. If you want to make a kind of story where the oppressed are liberated, at least take a history book, a country like Korea knows what struggle and revolution is, why would you make something so bland and shallow then? Don't make a story like that just because you think it's cool. AT LEAST GIVE A GOOD PROTAGONIST. The fool even put revenge aside for a girl who really has no charm, how can two men fight over chicken breast soup with no seasoning? It's just water with tasteless chicken.

Not much more to say, nothing happened. Although, what was that moment of evangelising those rich kids at the end? Does anyone really think that rich people care that much about karma? Those people are aware of who they are, they don't give a damn about the damage they do, don't make me laugh. There was so little chemistry between the men and women here that they might as well have made a bl and at least had something interesting.

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This is practically a waste of time but still a personal opinion

Omg I loving the reviews so much, Thier literally taking all the words out of my mouth so I don't even need to write much,I can say that at the end of the drama,I hated all the characters, and I mean all ,I initially just liked kang ha because he was so keen on what he wanted "revenge" but then he literally started wavering for jaei , like what???????? What happened to all the determination he had in the beginning,omg I can't even write all I want to but like him wavering for jaei was so dumb,like broooo whatsup with the plan!!!!! please I agree that I wasted my time watching this and I simply regret, watching episode 1 and 2,I thought it would be nice seeing the exhorbitant budget that was made for the film , but later on , everything just seemed like a waste, the main message they were supposed to pass down,that the rich have to be accountable didn't even get shown,they basically all owned up because someone died and they all had serious things to hide like the rich always do ,if not kang ha's presence wouldn't have shook a thing(and they didn't even own up at the end, cause I can say they didn't serve anything), overall I give this drama a 3/10 , for wasting my precious time and I'm not giving it a complete 0 to the exhorbitant budget used, that's all ,and now a season 2????? I haven't said ughhhhhh so much in a k drama so much like this . I will have to commend Hera's acting,Hyewon(the actress) was the only one who portrayed her character well and held me , though she became too annoying at some point but at least she acted🙄. Rian was just a minor character to me because what did he do in this drama please????
Him and jaei just made this drama unbearable to watch,they built up so much tension and mystery from the beginning but everything just proved to be worthless in the end , they didn't even explain what was going on , generally it didn't even have a plot , because in the beginning we were in support of Kang ha since he was going for revenge but then they revealed too much in the First 2 episodes and then they just brought a romance that was so pointless between Kang ha and jaei , honestly at some point,I just felt jaei was insane, because why did she leave ri an at First if she was still going to go back to him ,the Grand entrance at her going away party holding his hand????? Gurllll I thought you were better than this 😒😒. Then the way they portrayed the rich like all they do is suffer in secret and envy the poor ,yes I know everyone has problems but they just put out the privileges they have to.
I can't overemphasize the lack of emotion in this film please,and I hope they do not take this route again in season 2 because I would hate to see them wasting so much money on another wild goose chase since from the scenery of season 1 ,we can see they spent a lot. I really have a lot of feelings about this series but I think I'll stop here .
*WHILE THIS IS A PERSONAL OPINION,I WANT TO SAY THAT EVERY VIEWER CAN'T COMPLETELY DISAGREE WITH EVERY POINT IN ALL THESE REVIEWS*

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todo mal con el prota y la historia

este k drama lo mire porque me aparecieron muchos edits, despues mirándo de que trataba me llamo la atención porque SUPUESTAMENTE se trataba de una venganza por parte del prota hacia un grupo de ricos que mataron a su hermano (obvio me llamo la atención eso)
teniendo en cuenta de que iba la trama, tuve demasiadas expectativas sobre el prota, porque su objetivo era lograr entrar a esa escuela de ricos, lo cual logró siendo becario, así que no aceptaban a cualquiera tenía que ser super inteligente (terminó siendo un puñetas para mi gusto >:x) ya logrando entrar a la escuela me espero que el wey tenga un super plan (descubrir quien mató a su hermano, desenmascarar a los culpables y hacer que paguen) pero no, el prota siento que era súper impulsivo, tonto y débil. se supones que vas a VENGAR A TU HERMANO y terminas enamorándote de una tipa que podría tener algo que ver con la muestre de tu hermano ??? (la tipa no tuvo que ver directamente pero era consciente del trato hacia los becarios de la escuela y el bullying que puede que le hicieron al hermano del prota)
según el wey quiso como meterse con la novia de uno de los tipos más ricos y que lideraban la escuela para investigar la muerte de su hermano pero se involucró sentimentalmente con ella, perdiendo el tiempo todo para que al final no lograra saber nada (pq lit la tipa ni su ex sabían nada)

los personajes me parecían muy insípidos como la tipa la jae, según la querían hacer como la misteriosa, callada pero neta que me daba una flojera, tambien la maestra no le encontré chiste y el ri an me parecia muy tonto, siento que como para tener carácter era forzado, no se, no tenían chiste ni nada

conforme fue avanzado la historia se convirtió en un fokin drama de romance, neta que mal me cae que hagan eso, si se supone que es de venganza porque haces que la trama principal quede en segundo lugar por querer hacer un triángulo amoroso que neta no tenía base ni nada, para empezar el prota se enamoró de una tipa que no le daba la hora y que no se de donde se convenció sin pensar que la tipa no era como las demás (o sea, esas ricas con ego, groseras y clasistas, sabes como??) siento que forzaron un vínculo que no tenia base para darse, si la tipa ya tenía historia con un ex al que queria porque de pronto iba a tener sentimientos por el prota que apareció de pronto (no me quieran vender el cliché de que le gusto porque el prota era pobre, él la entendió y se dio cuenta que no era feliz en su vida de rica , tenía traumas y así porque neta que mamada) se enfocaron demasiado en cosas que no aportaban nada a la trama (a mi que me importa los traumas de la tipa, ni que su mamá la abandonará, que se tenia que casar con un wey eso que we)

mucho dinero para los carros, la ropita, las locaciones pero que tal para la historia? nadota, mejor le hubieran puesto empeño al guion porque desperdiciaron una trama interesante.
neta no se lo vean esta bien tonto, yo me lo termine para no dejarlo pendiente pero ni de pedo lo veo de nuevo, de hecho mire que según habría segunda temporada, la verdad solo lo vería porque ya mire la primera (luego terminó quejándome pero ya que ;p)

lo único que me gusto además de la ropa fue la pareja secundaria que se dio, siento que hubo más química que con el triángulo forzado amoroso que hicieron, neta que él woo jin se me hizo bien guapote y esos labios que tiene se ven bien besables que onda 🫦

en resumen: me creo bien pro para vengar la muerte de mi hermano pero soy tan wey que terminó enamorándome de una tipa que es sospechosa, todo para que al final ni me pelara y resultara que la asesina es la maestra :)?

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All style, little substance

TL;DR:
Visually stunning but emotionally hollow — Hierarchy sets up a juicy elite school revenge plot but fizzles out with weak payoffs, shallow romance, and forgettable characters.

The story kicks off with a dramatic moment: a student fleeing a party in fear, only to be hit by a car. That event sets the stage for a dark high school drama centered around Jooshin High School, a hyper-elite institution for Korea’s wealthiest and most powerful families. The school operates on an unforgiving social ladder — and if you’re not born rich, you’re barely even seen.

The main character is a scholarship student who enters this world with a hidden agenda: he’s investigating the death of his brother, who he believes was a victim of bullying and systemic cover-ups by the school’s elite. His mission is clear — expose the hierarchy, shake the system, and get revenge.

But along the way, things get complicated. He falls for Jung Jae-Yi, one of the elite girls — who also happens to be the girlfriend of the boy he believes is responsible for his brother’s death. To make things messier, Jae-Yi and her boyfriend actually did love each other, and their breakup happens over a flimsy, unconvincing reason. Even when she starts to develop feelings for the main lead, the shift feels rushed and emotionally shallow. Her romantic arc ends up feeling wishy-washy, which weakens the impact of both the romance and the revenge plot.

Despite the show’s attempts to explore class division, guilt, and justice, most of the characters feel more like pieces in a melodramatic chessboard than real people. The emotional core — especially around the love triangle and the main character’s grief — never quite hits the depth it promises.

That said, the production value is top-notch. From the luxurious sets and polished cinematography to the elite fashion and moody lighting, the drama looks incredible. It gives off serious “expensive Netflix drama” vibes. The heroine is visually striking and carries a strong presence, even if her character is inconsistently written.

Acting-wise, performances are okay but not particularly standout. Most actors deliver their lines competently, but there's a lack of nuance, especially when it comes to conveying emotional tension or trauma.

Hierarchy is the kind of drama that looks like it has something to say, but doesn’t commit to any of its themes. What starts as a promising revenge plot tangled with class politics becomes a muddled romance with unconvincing turns and a disappointing resolution. It’s worth a watch if you’re drawn to dramas set in elite schools with dark undertones — just don’t expect much substance beyond the aesthetics.

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NOTHING HAPPENS.

Well so guess what? NOTHING HAPPENS. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. Well until maybe the last 45 mins of the drama.

Well the cinematography was amazing. The drama is full of some really stunning, creative shots. 10/10 on that front really. But really, didn’t expect anything else from a Netflix production. The coloring really suited the “tone” they were going for, kinda greyish and dark. We have this very sudden change of coloring whenever we have romantic scenes which is okay I guess maybe but it kind of just highlighted again why I really can’t stand romances in these type of dramas unless the people creating it actually know what they doing. IT JUST DOESNT FIT. It doesn’t fit so much that we have to create an almost seperate space for this romance to exist through doing things like changing the colouring. I don’t know if I’m making any sense but that’s how I saw it.

The acting was really good. Like actually amazing. Best performance for me goes to Hye-won. She completely nailed her character for me. The actresses and actors are so beautiful. I was blown away so many times through out the drama cause of it. They look great. Unfortunately and obviously that isn’t enough to save this show.

It was a mess. I’m not sure the writers knew what they were doing with this one. First of all we start of with a great premise. An angry brother looking to avenge his brother who he believes was murdered by students at a school of the elites. Come on now who doesn’t love a good revenge plot with rich and powerful people too. But here the problem already starts, there barely was any revenge.
This supposedly angry and devestated brother gets so caught up in a romance that he forgets what he is even here for. The drama shifts the plot of the drama from this ‘revenge’(which we only really gains traction in the first episode until slowly and slowly shrinking in relevance) to exploring Ha’s feeling for Jae-i. In less than 2 episodes Jae-i manages to become as important to Ha as his brother. It was absolutely stupid.
I loved Jae-I’s character but was I the only one that thought she was slightly insane? Like why were we pretending like Ri-an wasn’t that bad? Yes he wasn’t hitting these kids but he he played a huge role in it but I was supposed to what? Still swoon over him and the strong and amazing feeling he had for Jae-I???
The drama spent so long trying to evoke pity and sympathy for characters who really didn’t deserve it. At the end of the day they were horrible people and no matter how sweet they are to each other THAT will never change. But the drama seemed to act like they had given these characters a redemption arc even before they actually had given them that redemption arc(they never really do even get a redemption arc).
The plot was boring. Nothing interesting. It just dragged and talked about the same things over and over. Even the plot twists were so mediocre. Ha was too busy trying to be a “good person”(it was really only cause he liked Jae-I) he didn’t do anything interesting enough and well good for him but not so good for the drama. I think what Hierachy taught us all is you can’t do revenge plots without morally grey characters. It doesn’t work. In my opinion Seon-woo should have led this plan. He seemed to be the only one willing to actually set this shit on fire WHICH IS WHAT I CAME FOR NOT WHATEVER THIS WAS.

Most of the drama and chaos only really happens in the middle of the last episode . We finally get to see some sort of justice coming in to play and even that was so horrendously anti climatic and before you know it we are back to where we were before. And then guess what? When you think it’s all over, WE ARE BACK TO THE ROMANCE. What did the writing team even want for the outcome of this drama.
And the most annoying part of it all? The final gag of disappointment? The fact that it wasn’t even one of the kids that killed In-Han. They literally ruined and took away the one thing that was gonna make this show interesting.

It’s just a romance drama really, with a side story. That’s it (I should have listened to that Netflix tag, dammit)
Also some of the clothes these characters wore? It was worrying.

This was just a shell of a show, made of hopes and dreams that they didn’t know how to keep up with. And that’s just too bad.

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Hierarchy: A Colossal Disappointment

3/10

For some context, I have watched a lot of dramas and series and lowest score I've given up until now was a 4. I like to categorise and rank all dramas I watch according to the rating I give them. This show opened a new category lol.
I watched this drama in 2x speed, I never do that. That just shows how bad this show is.

One of the reviews I raid said, "It's a pointless love triangle story marketed as a murder mystery". And I agree because it's just that. This had so much potential yet the writers didn't capitalise on it. I'm not gonna lie but the show had a pretty good build up to the plot in the first 2 episodes, but they just lost it mid way through.
The death of the lead's character also has no effect to the overall plot here. I mean the teacher accidentally killed him? Where's the spice in that? Her character is near irrelevant to the plot here. I know the bullies confessed and apologised and were held accountable for their part. But seriously thats it? And some of the scene, man... Did the writers want the us viewers to sympathize with these condescending rich bullying pricks?

This show is the definition of being mediocre. The acting, the characters, the plot, everything felt lacking and were mid at best. I mean the lead actress was expressionless throughout the show, a corpse has better expression than her character. And also zero chemistry between leads. Characters in wattpad stories have better depth to their characters than the ones in this show. The only thing that was decent in the show was the soundtrack. It was good.

We've had many dramas similar story to this such as Bitch x Rich, Revenge of Others, Soloman's Perjury etc. and each and every one of those dramas, blows this one out of the water.

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Another rich kids drama

Where do i begin, i won't dive on all the other obvious points that Where mentioned by others reviewer, the lack of acting skill of fmc and her baby daddy, sorry i forgot all of their name this is how irrelevant they were, the only character i liked and remembered was He-Ra. What i would like to talk about is the plot rather than the characters. We were promised a revenge, we were promised justice but nothing EVER happened, there was no real consequences for the rich kids action, they basically all got away with it, the fact that they focused on the "less rich" idiot and the scholarship kid who was forced to do all the rich kid dirty work, how disappointing, like i did not expect them to achieve The Glory level of genius and satisfactory storytelling, but come on, at least they could have take some note, and i guess they were banking on the serie being successful enough to have a second season so they arrogantly did the last scene like to tell you the story was not over but just beginning.

And this is where i completely loose it and actually get mad, because one thing i absolutely hate is when producers and directors take their audience for idiots, it's like they were convinced if they had great visual, if their actors where super hot, and of course korean, it means we would eat it up, because of course as the korean culture has gotten so popular, it means we as an audience are willing to consume any trash, but that's where they are wrong, korean culture and arts got popular BECAUSE it's amazing, the shows or music artist, movies, books etc... that are now representative of Korea got their flowers because how brilliant they were, even more when you were comparing it to the lazy trash the western media was producing, that's why people jumped on the bandwagon of Korean shows and movies, we were tired of the us mediocre shows. So to have this kdrama being written exactly like the mediocre shows we hate in western media felt like a punch in the face.

They blow out their entire budget by investing in the visual, casting elite actors Bae Hae Sun (the school principal), Choi Won-Young (fmc mean father) and they had the best acting in the entire show (and still they did not explore their characters enough, so maybe they didn't have enough money to pay them to appear in an entire episode) but they did not have money left to hire good writers, so the plot basically felt like something generated by ChatGPT if you ask it to write you a korean fanfiction version of elite and gossip girl and any privilege kids tv show and you have this, a very robotic 7 episode series.
Even when it was revealed that fmc had gotten pregnant and lost the baby i know it's cruel to say but i simply did not care (maybe the actress did not know how to portray the emotions correctly for me to feel her pain) but when it was revealed i was more like "that's it? You are making all this drama because of this? Some one was actually mvrdered as a consequence of the bullying in school (and eveif the teacher was the "killer" if they didn't bully, it would not have happened, so really the teacher was just the bullet and the school the gun giving them no consequences and kids where the one pulling the trigger) fmc was the bystanders who never did anything but wanted to act like this good morally correct character, and mmc who had such good promise with his revenge mindset, fold so quickly for this girl???? Who was just as guilty... wow, anyway next...

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