This review may contain spoilers
Not perfect, but close
I’m not a fan of baseball or prison stories, so you’d think this drama wouldn’t be for me.
You’d be wrong. It's excellent.
PRISON PLAYBOOK walks a narrow line-sometimes basking in sappy pathos, and at other times careening into hilarious caricature.
The creators of PRISON PLAYBOOK get it mostly right-with a few flubs. Is it always believable? No. But the story is original and entertaining enough for viewers to overlook the relatively few flaws.
Park Hae-Soo nails it as Je-Hyeok, a lovable, honorable lunk-head, who winds up in prison. But shows he has some brains when push comes to shove.
Jung Kyoung-Ho's portrayal of Je-Hyeok's loyal best friend is so convincing and touching that I now want to watch every drama he's ever been in. Another stand-out was Choi Moo-seung. He brought tears to my eyes more than once. What an incredible performer!
Captain Yoo, played by Jung Hae-In, enters this drama as a supposed vicious murderer. Yeah, right. This sweet-faced actor is about as scary as a kitten. In every other drama, he plays the perfect boyfriend - see LOVE NEXT DOOR. Not to worry. He improves throughout--as do most of the others.
A few negatives: Lots of product placement going on-which mostly didn't interfere with the meandering plot. The wrestling and fighting between the cell mates often looked staged. And when Go Park-sa was suddenly rushed out the door, a promising secondary plot involving corporate malfeasance was cut off at the knees. What was that all about?
Soundtrack: When a mournful oboe is wailing in the background or a saccharine piano melody is plucking at our heart strings - additional sound effects interject a note of humor and frivolity (dharma drums, off-key chords), as if to say, "You guys aren't taking all this too seriously, are you?" Nice.
I could have done without the incessant bird whistles.
In a real prison, things aren't quite as benign as presented in this series. Or so I’ve been told.
Here, the seven or eight rotating cell mates-a unique collection of lock-down losers-are all endearing and likable. Most are societal victims. Some get justice, some don't.
Sort of like life.
You’d be wrong. It's excellent.
PRISON PLAYBOOK walks a narrow line-sometimes basking in sappy pathos, and at other times careening into hilarious caricature.
The creators of PRISON PLAYBOOK get it mostly right-with a few flubs. Is it always believable? No. But the story is original and entertaining enough for viewers to overlook the relatively few flaws.
Park Hae-Soo nails it as Je-Hyeok, a lovable, honorable lunk-head, who winds up in prison. But shows he has some brains when push comes to shove.
Jung Kyoung-Ho's portrayal of Je-Hyeok's loyal best friend is so convincing and touching that I now want to watch every drama he's ever been in. Another stand-out was Choi Moo-seung. He brought tears to my eyes more than once. What an incredible performer!
Captain Yoo, played by Jung Hae-In, enters this drama as a supposed vicious murderer. Yeah, right. This sweet-faced actor is about as scary as a kitten. In every other drama, he plays the perfect boyfriend - see LOVE NEXT DOOR. Not to worry. He improves throughout--as do most of the others.
A few negatives: Lots of product placement going on-which mostly didn't interfere with the meandering plot. The wrestling and fighting between the cell mates often looked staged. And when Go Park-sa was suddenly rushed out the door, a promising secondary plot involving corporate malfeasance was cut off at the knees. What was that all about?
Soundtrack: When a mournful oboe is wailing in the background or a saccharine piano melody is plucking at our heart strings - additional sound effects interject a note of humor and frivolity (dharma drums, off-key chords), as if to say, "You guys aren't taking all this too seriously, are you?" Nice.
I could have done without the incessant bird whistles.
In a real prison, things aren't quite as benign as presented in this series. Or so I’ve been told.
Here, the seven or eight rotating cell mates-a unique collection of lock-down losers-are all endearing and likable. Most are societal victims. Some get justice, some don't.
Sort of like life.
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