Fast-Paced and Thrilling, but Lacking a Standout Lead
Honestly, I think Duty After School is one of the better survival/monster-themed Korean series I’ve watched compared to others in the same genre.
What stood out the most to me was the pacing and storyline. I’ve watched many Korean survival dramas where the characters spend too much time talking, and the tension ends up feeling weak. But in Duty After School, the story moves quickly and includes a lot of action, which makes it genuinely exciting to watch. The comedic moments added throughout the series also helped balance the tension nicely.
Another major strength is the CGI—it’s surprisingly good and makes the monster scenes much more immersive and believable.
I also appreciate the characters in this drama. Unlike many survival series where the cast can be frustratingly weak, selfish, or simply a burden, the characters here are actually competent and brave. They feel capable, useful, and much less annoying than what I usually see in this genre.
However, my biggest issue with the drama is its character focus.
Even though the show technically has many main roles and supporting roles, the screen time feels distributed almost equally among everyone. If I hadn’t looked it up online, I honestly wouldn’t know who the actual leads were.
Because of that, no single character feels properly highlighted. What frustrated me even more is that some of the most impactful and important scenes are often given to supporting characters instead of the supposed main leads, which makes the main characters feel less significant.
On top of that, the “main leads” are constantly grouped together with supporting characters rather than being given their own distinct focus, so the spotlight feels too scattered. As a viewer, it becomes hard to know who I’m really supposed to care most about.
Usually in survival dramas, there’s at least one standout character I become attached to—but here, I couldn’t connect strongly with anyone because no one was given enough individual prominence.
Overall, Duty After School excels in pacing, action, tension, CGI, and competent characters, making it a very entertaining survival drama. But its inability to properly establish and emphasize its main characters makes the emotional experience feel weaker than it could have been.
What stood out the most to me was the pacing and storyline. I’ve watched many Korean survival dramas where the characters spend too much time talking, and the tension ends up feeling weak. But in Duty After School, the story moves quickly and includes a lot of action, which makes it genuinely exciting to watch. The comedic moments added throughout the series also helped balance the tension nicely.
Another major strength is the CGI—it’s surprisingly good and makes the monster scenes much more immersive and believable.
I also appreciate the characters in this drama. Unlike many survival series where the cast can be frustratingly weak, selfish, or simply a burden, the characters here are actually competent and brave. They feel capable, useful, and much less annoying than what I usually see in this genre.
However, my biggest issue with the drama is its character focus.
Even though the show technically has many main roles and supporting roles, the screen time feels distributed almost equally among everyone. If I hadn’t looked it up online, I honestly wouldn’t know who the actual leads were.
Because of that, no single character feels properly highlighted. What frustrated me even more is that some of the most impactful and important scenes are often given to supporting characters instead of the supposed main leads, which makes the main characters feel less significant.
On top of that, the “main leads” are constantly grouped together with supporting characters rather than being given their own distinct focus, so the spotlight feels too scattered. As a viewer, it becomes hard to know who I’m really supposed to care most about.
Usually in survival dramas, there’s at least one standout character I become attached to—but here, I couldn’t connect strongly with anyone because no one was given enough individual prominence.
Overall, Duty After School excels in pacing, action, tension, CGI, and competent characters, making it a very entertaining survival drama. But its inability to properly establish and emphasize its main characters makes the emotional experience feel weaker than it could have been.
Was this review helpful to you?
