Great Leads, Disappointing Writing
My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.
I decided to watch this drama because I saw a clip from the opening scene. Dramas that start with a “jumper” scene get me hooked. Don’t ask...I like depressing shit.
Acting/Cast: A solid cast with good acting. Too bad most of the characters aren't likable at all. Easily, the best thing about this drama is the leads. Actually, it may be the only thing I liked about this drama. Uh oh... Well, there were two other characters that I really liked...but apparently the writers didn’t. Their stories didn’t play out so well… 7.5/10
Writing: This isn’t really a zombie plot. They’re more like vampires. And the story is more about the psychology of the people in the apartment building rather than the infected, vampire people. So this drama is not very scary and the infected people aren’t much of a threat. I was only scared once, which was during “The Thing” scene (if you know, you know). I did like that they were more like vampires that struggle to curb their thirst for blood and are able to stay human if their willpower is strong enough. I thought that was an interesting concept because there’s still a chance for that character to survive and continue to interact with healthy characters while creating different dynamics between characters. I also like how the relationship between the two leads developed. They had a really sweet best friendship that slowly turns into something more. Seriously, it is relationship goals for me…I’m jealous. Okay, now for the bad, which is everything else. I really like “trapped in a building” plots and “hostage plots” because I like seeing a group of various characters develop through the course of the drama and learn to work together to survive (My favorite K-drama is White Christmas if that tells you anything.) This drama has that kind of plot, but instead of getting well-developed characters that grow on me as I watch, I got mostly unlikable characters that get worse over time and a couple likable characters that get neglected or completely ruined. It was so disappointing for me. The two leads are the only decently written characters that stay that way throughout the entire drama. The “villains” in this drama aren’t typical either. Is there really a true villain? There’s so many characters in the drama that are terrible people. It’s to the point where I really don’t give a shit about the security of the building. Let them all get infected. They deserve it. It reminded me of that movie The Mist (I hated that movie). There’s this stupid twist toward the end of the drama...that’s when the drama really lost me. We already have so many “everyday people” turning into murderers, we don’t need any more thrown into the mix. Just...why?? I guess you would call that an “overkill”. The writers killed the story with that stupidity. I mean, the cops letting a known murderer run loose around the building from the beginning was stupid enough. Oh yeah, they also kept referencing COVID in the drama, which really annoyed me. As if COVID is anywhere near comparable to this infection. 2/10
Direction/SFX/Music: This drama is well-produced. The SFX is well done. I was also pleasantly surprised to see some cool actions scenes from the male lead, Park Young Sik (박형식). The soundtrack is so good. It’s rare for me to say that. It has a fun, action-y vibe to it. Maybe the soundtrack is the reason why I enjoyed this drama as much as I did. 8/10
Entertainment Value: Despite the lack of likable characters, it was entertaining. I binged this drama. I got pissed off by the end though, which drastically lowered its score for me. It was like a beam that broke the camel’s back, so to speak. After all that work I did overlooking a lot of smaller irritations here and there, the writers rewarded me by punching me in the face. Thanks for that… 5/10
Overall, I gave this drama a 5.5/10. Even though the writing was bad, I really liked the leads and their chemistry together. Their relationship was so sweet. But, are the leads alone enough for me to recommend this drama? I don’t think so.
I decided to watch this drama because I saw a clip from the opening scene. Dramas that start with a “jumper” scene get me hooked. Don’t ask...I like depressing shit.
Acting/Cast: A solid cast with good acting. Too bad most of the characters aren't likable at all. Easily, the best thing about this drama is the leads. Actually, it may be the only thing I liked about this drama. Uh oh... Well, there were two other characters that I really liked...but apparently the writers didn’t. Their stories didn’t play out so well… 7.5/10
Writing: This isn’t really a zombie plot. They’re more like vampires. And the story is more about the psychology of the people in the apartment building rather than the infected, vampire people. So this drama is not very scary and the infected people aren’t much of a threat. I was only scared once, which was during “The Thing” scene (if you know, you know). I did like that they were more like vampires that struggle to curb their thirst for blood and are able to stay human if their willpower is strong enough. I thought that was an interesting concept because there’s still a chance for that character to survive and continue to interact with healthy characters while creating different dynamics between characters. I also like how the relationship between the two leads developed. They had a really sweet best friendship that slowly turns into something more. Seriously, it is relationship goals for me…I’m jealous. Okay, now for the bad, which is everything else. I really like “trapped in a building” plots and “hostage plots” because I like seeing a group of various characters develop through the course of the drama and learn to work together to survive (My favorite K-drama is White Christmas if that tells you anything.) This drama has that kind of plot, but instead of getting well-developed characters that grow on me as I watch, I got mostly unlikable characters that get worse over time and a couple likable characters that get neglected or completely ruined. It was so disappointing for me. The two leads are the only decently written characters that stay that way throughout the entire drama. The “villains” in this drama aren’t typical either. Is there really a true villain? There’s so many characters in the drama that are terrible people. It’s to the point where I really don’t give a shit about the security of the building. Let them all get infected. They deserve it. It reminded me of that movie The Mist (I hated that movie). There’s this stupid twist toward the end of the drama...that’s when the drama really lost me. We already have so many “everyday people” turning into murderers, we don’t need any more thrown into the mix. Just...why?? I guess you would call that an “overkill”. The writers killed the story with that stupidity. I mean, the cops letting a known murderer run loose around the building from the beginning was stupid enough. Oh yeah, they also kept referencing COVID in the drama, which really annoyed me. As if COVID is anywhere near comparable to this infection. 2/10
Direction/SFX/Music: This drama is well-produced. The SFX is well done. I was also pleasantly surprised to see some cool actions scenes from the male lead, Park Young Sik (박형식). The soundtrack is so good. It’s rare for me to say that. It has a fun, action-y vibe to it. Maybe the soundtrack is the reason why I enjoyed this drama as much as I did. 8/10
Entertainment Value: Despite the lack of likable characters, it was entertaining. I binged this drama. I got pissed off by the end though, which drastically lowered its score for me. It was like a beam that broke the camel’s back, so to speak. After all that work I did overlooking a lot of smaller irritations here and there, the writers rewarded me by punching me in the face. Thanks for that… 5/10
Overall, I gave this drama a 5.5/10. Even though the writing was bad, I really liked the leads and their chemistry together. Their relationship was so sweet. But, are the leads alone enough for me to recommend this drama? I don’t think so.
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