Figgo

Great Suspense Building, Eerie, Sobering

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I went into this drama completely blind, which I would suggest to do it that way. I'll try not to say too much in this review. Also, be in the mood to watch a drama that builds suspense gradually. If you're in a rush, you may find it slow. I didn't find it slow at all. I think this drama builds suspense very well. I was also completely unaware of the world behind this drama (I had no idea it was connected to another drama) and that seems to have affected my opinion of this drama.

Acting/Cast: The cast is what attracted me to this drama. Good cast with good acting. I don't think anyone in particular really stood out to me through their acting alone though. There are many different characters in this drama, so the scenes between each character don't last very long before switching to the next. There are certain storylines, however, that stand out. 8/10

Writing: I was able to figure out very early on what was going on. It's not much of a mystery. I'd say that this drama is mostly psychological, which is good because that's my favorite Korean drama genre. I like the writing style of this drama a lot - how they give us little pieces at a time throughout the drama to put together ourselves. The way it's done makes this drama extremely emotionally heavy, with it becoming more and more distressing as the drama goes. This is not a happy drama by any means, but there are times of hopefulness. The best way I can describe this story is that it's psychologically realistic. It doesn't sugarcoat anything, but it also isn't overly dramatic. The story does start to get confusing towards the end. This may be because I have no prior knowledge of the webtoon universe this story comes from. There's a cameo at the end, which caused me to realize this drama is part of something bigger. I don't feel like I can fully appreciate the story now. 7.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama is very well-produced. They did great in creating a very eerie, somber, and a sort of nightmarish atmosphere through the lighting, SFX, and music. There is a point where the drama switches to black and white. I'm not sure why. I wasn't a fan of it though. 8/10

Entertainment Value: This drama changes genres a bit through its course. I don't know if that helped it or hurt it. However, for me, I think I would have preferred it to keep more of its initial vibe throughout the entire drama. I'd imagine it would have made a greater impact emotionally and it would be interesting to see how the writers intermingle the two opposing ideas (horror and despair vs love and hope), but then again...maybe it would have resembled Sweet Home too much. In any case, this drama held my attention through to the end. Eight episodes is a perfect length for this story. It didn't feel rushed. It didn't drag. This drama is emotionally heavy and, for me, it was that way from the beginning. I was confused toward the end though, not knowing what was "real world" and what wasn't and not understanding the world that this story is apart of. 7/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 7.5/10. I liked it much more than Moving (which I had rated a 6). It doesn't feel dragged out like Moving does. I like the thought-provoking nature of the story. It does a good job at straddling the fence between hope and despair.

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Cute, Simple, Cheesy

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

Among short, surface-level romances, this drama is one of the better ones. Despite its MANY flaws, it was a nice binge watch.

Acting/Cast: This is probably the strongest category. Good cast and acting. The secondary love story was nice to watch, as well. The male lead was great, even though I found myself wishing it was Hyun Bin instead, but obviously he's too big of an actor to play in a drama like this. Maybe I was just thinking about Memories of the Alhambra too much...8/10

Writing: Maybe it would have been better if it had more episodes. There would have been more time to flesh out characters and the pacing could have been improved. The drama felt very rushed and sloppy. For instance, when the male lead comes to the realization that he has feelings for the female lead, it seemed very sudden and I felt like I had missed a scene or something. A slow burn romance would have worked better with his personality type and both of their childhood traumas. Unfortunately, like I said before, not enough time for that. I would have also liked to see more of the growth of the relationship between the male lead and the AI over the years of his life. Also, the ending was too...childish? Immature? Idealistic? With the premise of the plot being about AI, loneliness, and being disconnected from people, the writers could have went really deep with the psychological issues and the effects of these technologies on human relationships and the world. It could have taught the audience a profound moral message. However, the drama barely scratched the surface of these aspects. It seems like a waste of a plot that could have taught us so much. But I guess if they wanted the vibe to stay more on the cute and cuddly side , they succeeded. To me though, it feels too childish, too simple. I like it when dramas can really get me thinking. 2/10

Direction/SFX/Music : The SFX was good for the most part. There was one scene where the green screen looked terrible, but that's about it. The direction could have been better; scenes could have been cut better to illustrate emotional build up and help the audience connect with the leads. For instance, the scene where the male lead sees his mom for the first time since childhood. The camera should have been on his face for most of that scene, especially his initial reaction. I don't need to see his mom; I don't have an emotional connection with her--I need to see HIM see his mom and then his acting would be a tearjerker moment for the audience. As for the OST, it's pretty good. It wasn't good enough to enhance the drama on its own, but still good. 4.5/10

Entertainment Value: It was a quick watch that was able to keep me interested throughout. The lightness of it was the most boring thing about it to me. There was stupid romance stuff like running in the woods, having a panic attack, and now the male lead needs to carry her on his back. It made me roll my eyes. But, luckily it was mostly toward the end where I was getting annoyed. The ending itself really annoyed me though--very cliché. 4/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 4.5 out of 10 due to it's superficiality, rushed story-telling, and cheesiness. I found myself comparing it to Are You Human, Too? (a similar sci-fi plot about AI) and I had liked that one much more (I had given Are You Human, Too? a 5 out of 10). I also couldn't help but compare it to Memories of the Alhambra (a sci-fi about augmented reality becoming real), which is miles better than both My Holo Love and Are You Human, Too? (I had given Memories of the Alhambra a 6.5 out of 10).

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Feels Low Budget, But Has Decent Characters

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I watched this drama for Lee Dong Wook (이동욱). I stayed for everyone else.

Acting/Cast: This is the only good aspect of this drama. I enjoyed the characters. However, I'm not a fan of the female lead, Lee Joo Bin (이주빈), as she seems to only have two facial expressions. I felt that she and Lee Dong Wook didn't have much chemistry together either. Surprisingly, Lee Dong Wook was the weakest character in this drama. Why was he even in this? Did he even want to be here? Lee Dong Wook, blink twice if you're being held hostage! The rest of the cast outshined the leads. Even Kim Won Hae's (김원해) character, who was really annoying in the beginning, grew on me. 5.5/10

Writing: The set up for this plot isn't great. I was bored by it, but I somehow made it through. The character writing and dynamics between the characters are much more entertaining. However, the romantic storyline between the two main leads felt forced. The conflicts between them felt even more forced. I enjoyed the romantic storylines between the other characters more and those storylines kept me from dropping this drama. Unfortunately, the payoff for these other romances isn't great either. Aside from the romance, the main plot is just so-so. This drama is about divorce. I can't relate. Maybe that's a big reason why the plot wasn't doing it for me? Seemingly random situations would happen, too. I think it may just be the comedic style of the drama though. 1.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: The editing is bad...obviously bad with confusing scene cuts. I think it's the worst editing I've seen. There's also tons of PPL to the point of even having a commercial (for roadside assistance or something like that) that interrupts the drama. This drama one of the worst offenders for PPL I've ever seen. Not the absolute worst, but it's definitely right up there. This drama feels very "made for TV". It feels low effort and low budget with the half-assed editing (which actually does improve later on in the drama). The OST is surprisingly good. It adds some much needed charm to the drama. 1.5/10

Entertainment Value: I thought I would be dropping this one, but surprisingly I stuck with it. It's because of the cast and their characters. They had good chemistry as a group. Their dynamics together were entertaining enough to keep me watching. The ending is a bit disappointing though. I don't know if it was worth it... I definitely would have dropped this drama if I had been watching multiple interesting dramas at the same time. I was only watching The Witch at the time and that drama's not great either. This one's worse though. 2/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 2.5/10. I didn't hate it...but it wasn't good. I liked the characters even though the plot was kind of lame and the editing and PPL is terrible. This drama feels like it was just thrown together and the actors had to make it work.

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Unrealistic Plot Points, But Good Chemistry

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

Every once in a while, I'll watch a melodrama. The plot seemed weird but interesting. This is also an older drama and those are nice to watch from time to time.

Acting/Cast: Decent cast with good acting. I think this drama's greatest strength is the chemistry between the two leads. The male leads acting is exceptionally well done. He was realistic and came across as being genuinely in love with the female lead. The female lead's speech pattern was strange. I guess it's her character, but she spoke so slowly that it was frustrating. It's like she's trying to sound poetic with everything she says. I had this same problem with the female lead in Born Again. Other than that, the acting was well done for all of the characters. 7/10

Writing: This drama didn't play out the way I wanted from the beginning. So, I wasn't really hoping for any particular ending. This story could end in one of three ways: Realistic ending (sick people die or everyone dies), Movie ending (person with the greatest sin dies as redemption or punishment), K-drama Ending (unrealistic and overly happy ending to appease fans). I was actually surprised by the ending they went with. And even more unexpected, I think viewers were mostly irritated by the ending. I didn't care though. The reason I didn't care is because of how I saw them treat the Secretary Wang situation. She did something so disgusting and criminal and everyone just brushes it off like it's no big deal. The female lead has got to have Stockholm Syndrome. That's the only way to explain it. What is everyone else's excuse though? Once I saw that shit going down, I was no longer invested in the drama. This drama does get frustrating because the female lead is so gullible, there's stupid things that happen (such as what happens with the loyal best friend and the secretary), and parts of the plot are weak (such as the villain's motives), but the writing surrounding the love story is actually very well done. This drama does have strong incest vibes and not just vibes...so it gets weird and uncomfortable, but only for a little bit. I know exactly what I would do to easily fix the issues I have with this drama. I'll add it at the end of this review since I think it'll be a bit of a spoiler. 4.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama had a really nice vibe. It was nostalgic to watch. It is a slower drama because it's a melodrama. I got halfway through and I thought 'how are they going to stretch this out for another 8 episodes?'. But they did it and they pulled it off surprisingly well, too. The music is definitely not my style - the overly romantic and dramatically sad type. It would make me laugh. 5/10

Entertainment Value: It took me a long time to get through this drama. It's a melodrama so it's supposed to be slow going. Despite it taking me so long, I preferred to watch this drama over the drama When The Phone Rings (which I've now dropped). I've never even thought about dropping this drama. Of course, with the change I would make to the plot, I think this drama would much more entertaining. 4/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 4.5/10. Things happen that would piss me off or make me roll my eyes. It gets too incest-y. The ending is...I don't even know what to say about that. But, there was something beautiful about this drama hidden amongst the junk.

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Spoilers Ahead

Ok now for my change to the plot. It's simple. I'd make it so that the female lead figures everything out very early on. Maybe even right away. However, she chooses to go along with it because she doesn't have much time left and he gives her the ability to experience things she was never able to experience. This way, they can have all the sexual tension without it feeling too incest-y. On top of that, the female lead would feel less pathetic and instead it would change the power dynamics in the household. Those that ran her life had all the power, and now because of her 'brother' entering the picture and her being the only one that knows truth about him, she now has the upper hand for once. Her 'brother' would also be unsure the entire time about whether or not his con has been compromised. (Even the audience could be unsure if she knows or not, which would be entertaining for us as well). Also, I'd make Secretary Wang pay for her crimes, naturally... I mean, wtf were the writers thinking??

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Childhood Connection Trope Done Right

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I loved Eom Tae Gu’s (엄태구) character and acting in Save Me 2, so I was happy to see him again. I was watching this drama while watching Dreaming of A Freaking Fairytale (which has a similar zany, cartoonish vibe and even share the same second male lead) and I ended up liking this drama more.

Acting/Cast: A great cast of characters. They’re all very distinct from one another but are believable as a family. I enjoyed getting to know all of them. I liked the leads a lot as well as the second male lead. I think they were the strongest actors. 7.5/10

Writing: I wasn’t sure how to feel about this drama in the beginning. I typically don’t like over-the-top cartoony style comedy, but this drama ended up being really cute. I was so impressed by the character building and relationship building. It was refreshing to see such good character development in a rom-com. I’m a bit of a sucker for “enemies to lovers” romances though. I like what they did with the second male lead’s character. It was different from how I expected it to go. Yes, a lot of dumb, cliché things happen in this drama, but the overall plot is really sad yet beautiful if you think about it. I really like the childhood connection trope in this drama. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it written as well as this. It’s really meaningful to the story; it isn’t just throw in. Also, their childhood connection isn’t why they love each other – they actually fall in love with who each other are in the present before finding out about their past connection. I can say that I didn’t like the ending. My only explanation for how it ended is that they’re leaving it open for a second season. I don’t think it needs one though, so I wish they would have wrapped up the drama well. They leave two hinted side love stories just hanging there with pretty much zero development. The main love story is left unfinished, too, which is unsatisfying. I also think the male lead needs to care more about his own life since there’s so many people that rely on him. Please stop taking L’s for psychotic unrepentant criminals. Sorry, I don’t find it sweet or heroic at all. Something I don’t like about dramas that are too sweet or feel-good is that they try to give redemption arcs to antagonists even when it doesn’t make sense for them to have one. Sometimes you just got to let the villains villain. 6/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama has a very cartoonish style. To put it in perspective, the main villain purposely acts and looks like the 90s cartoon version of Batman’s Joker. He even says “Why so serious?” if anyone had still been wondering who he’s doing a parody of. The drama also has a vintage feel, as if I were watching something from 2016 or earlier. The pacing was a little slow in the beginning, as well. I actually thought I would end up dropping this drama because of all these reasons; it’s not the type of drama I usually watch. However, the exceptional writing saved it. The music is decent. There is one song in particular that I really like – See The Moon by LeeZe. 4.5/10

Entertainment Value: It was a little slow in the beginning. I actually thought I would end up dropping it. Although, once I accepted the style and saw what they were doing with the story, it became a very enjoyable watch. It wasn’t too light or too heavy. I liked watching all of the characters, especially the leads. By the end, however, I started getting bored because the ending was looking like it was going to be a pretty cliché one, unfortunately. For the most part, I had fun. That playground scene in the earlier part of the drama was hilarious, by the way. Give me more of that. 6/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 6/10. On my scale, a rating of 6 and above is in the ‘would recommend’ zone. Very cute with great leads and a sweet story, but the ending disappointed me.

I made a short music video for this drama that captures what I really liked about the plot. It’s on YouTube and it’s called “My Sweet Mobster | End Of Beginning” and my channel name is The Enablers (@theenablers3846).

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Decent Action, Underwhelming Plot

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I decided to watch this drama because I was in the mood for something darker and this one is only 8 episodes. So why not? I’m kind of also trying to get a sense of Han So Hee’s (한소희) acting ability because I haven’t liked anything I’ve seen her in so far.

Acting/Cast: The acting is fine, but the casting of the female lead could have been better. She’s supposedly 5’5” but she seems even smaller in the drama. It makes no sense for her to be able to take on all these dudes at once. There’s a scene where she’s picked up and thrown into a wall like a ragdoll. She looked so tiny...I can suspend some amount of belief but this is ridiculous. I think Guem Hae Na (금해나), who plays Min Hye in A Shop For Killers, would have been perfect for this role. She’s awesome at action, whereas Han So Hee (한소희) had a few kicks and hits in there that lacked any power behind them at all. Then, the sound effects added in just made it cringey. I could see Claudia Kim (김수현) from The Atypical Family and Gyeongseong Creature as a potentially better option, too. Anyway, it was a pleasant surprise to see Ahn Bo Hyun (안보현) in this drama. I liked his character and I felt the drama got significantly better once he came into the picture. The major gang member characters had good acting, but Park Hee soon’s (박희순) character came across as too overly dramatic for me. 4/10

Writing: The plot is pretty lame. A lot of holes, basic, predictable. Just unintelligent writing all around. And the ending came across as lazy and uninspired. The plot became interesting for a second when the female lead’s identity gets revealed but unfortunately it doesn’t last long. They should have exposed her earlier on in the drama (at least to her partner) and played around with themes of “going by the book” versus vigilantism mixed with elements of understanding, love, and the struggle of saving a traumatized soul. But...a plot like that would have taken a lot more thought to write; it’d have to be heavy in psychology, character development, character growth, and dialogue that really hits. Another issue I had with this drama (surprisingly) was all the blood. How can someone get stabbed, cut, and shot so much and not pass out from blood loss? Especially for a girl as small as her. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate seeing fight scenes with a female character that gets visually messed up (swelling, bloody, scars, stitches, messy hair, etc.) - but realistically, she wouldn’t be able to keep going day after day losing more and more blood like that. 1/10

Direction/SFX/Music: No huge issues in this area except a couple times where some sound effects sounded cheesy. However, comparing the action in this drama with the action in The Worst of Evil, there's a clear difference in quality (with The Worst of Evil taking the prize here). The music was fine, not memorable though. I think this drama would have done much better as a movie, since the plot is severely lacking. I think as a movie, all of the holes in the plot may not have been as obvious. 5.5/10

Entertainment Value: They really got the cliffhangers down in this drama. Good cliffhangers are important; do not underestimate their power. I can binge watch a terrible drama easily as long as there’s good cliffhangers. A lot of action, too, so that always helps with keeping me entertained. And a hint of a romance (that probably should have stayed at ‘just a hint’). Nevertheless, I got through this drama very quickly and was highly entertained despite all of the plot issues. However, I don’t think this drama will be very memorable to me in the long run. 6/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 4/10. I found myself comparing this drama to The Worst of Evil. I liked the plot of My Name better in the sense that it wasn’t as depressing. However, the action in The Worst of Evil is so much better and the writing is technically better (with more of a focus on psychological aspects). If you want to watch this just because it’s a girl kicking ass, then ok I get it. But because of the casting choice, it doesn’t seem believable here. I would recommend A Shop for Killers for that.

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Clever Writing, Movie Quality From Start To Finish

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

(This is a review for Part 1 and 2 together)
I watched this for Park So Dam (박소담). It’s been so long since I’ve seen her and she’s so cute. However, in this drama, she’s playing a character that’s not so cute. I was curious to see how she’d do. I wasn’t disappointed.

Acting/Cast: Great and unexpected cast. I was so happy seeing all the familiar faces and they all performed exceptionally in their roles. In particular, I think Kim Jae Wook’s (김재욱) character was so well done that he could have a drama or movie of his own. He was like every iteration of the Joker rolled into one. The styling, the suave body language, the confidently demented personality, the high-paying hobby with a horrifying secret—he was very much his own mini movie. I think the main actor, Seo In Guk (서인국) overacted at times, but it could have been more of a directing choice. 9.5/10

Writing: The writing was extremely well done. The story had a movie quality to it due to how neatly everything was laid out and then wrapped back up. I had no idea what to expect when going into this. Except, I knew it was going to have a body swapping theme, which I usually don’t like. I thought it would be another cliché plot. Not at all. There is no sugar-coating with this drama. It doesn’t pull any punches. Be advised- this drama is not for the faint of heart. There is a ton of gore…shocking gore, too. That’s something I also don’t normally like, but I think the shock value added something much needed to the idea behind this drama – the fear of death--or the reverence of death. I don’t want to say too much because I don’t want to give anything away...but this drama is about suicide. Suicide is a sensitive topic that is difficult to address. It’s a subject that I am very familiar with, so I tend to be particularly critical regarding how it is approached. I felt like this drama portrayed the internal struggle of a suicidal person fairly well. Towards the end of the drama, my cynicism caused me to think that “this would only be an effective message for those who have at least one good parent in their life or a significant other that truly loves them. What about the people that have nobody? What’s their reason to live?” Despite my negativity, after watching this drama, I immediately typed up my reaction or my ultimate take-away from the story: “Watching all of these people die so suddenly...so easily…and watching them fight for their lives…made me think that the time we have alive can be seen as a gift or an opportunity. We really have a short, temporary life that can end at any moment. So why cut it even shorter? It'll be over before we know it anyway. ‘It's ok if we fail, as long as we don't give up.’ (a quote from the drama)” I need to mention the ending here. A little predictable…ok maybe more than a little, but not bad. This feels so out-of-character for me to say, but I think that an open ending would have worked really well for this story. Wow, this is the one time I’ve actually wanted an open ending. 8/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Watching this drama felt like watching a long blockbuster movie. Not only because of the writing, but also because of the high production value. Immediately, we see stunts, action, explosions, blood, and all out insanity. I was shocked. Why was I under the impression that this was going to be a romance? At times, I even thought it was too much--too over-the-top. Just think if this drama had a badass OST... I mean even Bad and Crazy had one awesome song that made the drama super memorable even though I didn’t really like the drama. Same thing with Tale of the Nine-Tailed. This drama just needs that one badass song to really make it unforgettable. 6.5/10

Entertainment Value: I waited for this drama to finish airing before watching it. I knew it would be binge-worthy. It does slow down quite a bit in the end, but I wasn’t complaining. I needed a break from all the insanity anyway. Sometimes, it was a bit tough to watch. I don’t like gore. I had to look away a lot. It also has a very depressing theme. I’m glad I was able to get through it quickly. I feel when I’m watching a drama, it’s sort of like a part of me is in that world until the drama’s over. So, I’m glad I wasn’t in that world for very long. 8.5/10

Overall, I gave this drama an 8/10. There’s a lot of violence and gore. It feels over-the-top at times. The topic of suicide is really tough to navigate, but I like the fearlessly aggressive approach, even if I don’t necessarily agree with everything. I don’t like it when drama creators are too afraid of the audience to do anything risky. It could have really used a badass OST though…

I made a 2 short music videos for this drama. They’re on YouTube. One is called “Serial Killer Thirst Trap | Death's Game | DPR IAN” and the other is called "Multi K-Drama | Spitting Off The Edge Of The World". My channel name is The Enablers (@theenablers3846).

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Strong Foundation But Still Managed To Lose Its Footing

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I really had high hopes for this one. I love Rowoon (로운); I think he's a great actor. I saw some short clips of this drama that highlighted his portrayal of a quirky character in an unfortunate but comical situation. It seemed very charming. So despite my dislike for the female lead, I decided to give this drama a shot...

Acting/Cast: This is going to sound so harsh...honestly, the only positive in this category is Rowoon (로운), the male lead...and even he struggled. I don't know if it's his fault or the writing or the direction or all of the above, but he couldn't hold the character. It was such a unique character, too, with an extremely distinct personality and it just...fizzled away as the drama progressed. I would catch glimpses of his former self here and there but it only served as a depressing reminder of what once was. Jo Ba Ah (조보아), who played the female lead, wasn't any better. I had really disliked her after watching her ruin Tale of the Nine-Tailed with her horrible acting. At least she had improved in this drama. I was surprised that she wasn't the reason this drama failed. The villains - all three of them - are lame. The side characters tried so hard to be likeable and they just couldn't pull it off. Oh, I almost forgot about that poor 2nd male lead... a K-drama pet peeve of mine -- disrespected 2nd male leads. 1/10

Writing: I'm so sick of the "we loved each other in a past life" trope. It's so over done. It's seriously becoming another huge K-drama pet peeve of mine. The writing and plot started out strong. It was an interesting premise with a dark, ominous undertone. Unfortunately, this all goes away pretty early on in the drama and it just becomes a boring, typical romance...with a stalker cliche. I think it fizzles out around episode 8 or 9. Ugh...the beginning was so good...I'm so disappointed... 3.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama does have good cinematography and production quality. This is definitely the strongest category. The OST is decent. Direction though, I did not agree with. Going from unique, quirky, cute, with some creepy and even adult vibes to a cookie-cutter romance. I forgot the ending. It's only been a few days and I already forgot. That's how unimpressed I was. 6/10

Entertainment Value: Getting through the 1st episode wasn't quick for me. I don't know if it was the drama or me. However, after the 1st episode, I really got into the story. I was excited to watch it. I really loved the male lead's character and the dynamic between the 2 leads. I thought the plot itself was very engaging. Then, I reached the 2nd half of the drama and as I continued watching to the end, I experienced all the hope within me slowly shrivel up and die. 4/10

Now I'm sad.
Overall, I gave this drama a 3.5/10 due to the complete disregard for the solid foundation that had been established in the beginning of the drama.

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Learning to Shine as Ourselves

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

A charming drama with a great message. I'm so glad I didn't pass this one up.

Acting/Cast: This drama has a great cast with acting that feels very natural. My favorite is probably Choi Hyun Wook (최현욱) and his portrayal of his character, Ha Yi Chan. I loved watching him on screen. He is such a strong and unique male lead - he's pure, joyful, passionate, tough, caring, and childlike. I keep thinking of that scene where he randomly starts spinning around and yells "TORNADO" for no reason. His character was such a breath of fresh air - no angst, all fun. His chemistry with Yoon Cheong Ah seemed so organic and the way his relationship with Ha Eun Gyeol developed felt realistic and heartwarming. I would say Choi Hyun Wook is this drama's MVP with Seol In Ah coming in at second. The entire cast just seemed like they were really enjoying their time while filming this drama and watching them have fun made it so much more fun for me. However, I would say the weakest link in this area would be Ryeoun (려운) who plays the male lead, Ha Eun Gyeol. While his character was written well, his acting was noticeably weaker than the other lead actors. He didn't have that effortless, natural feel to his acting that I felt while watching the others. Fortunately, this did not hurt his chemistry with Ha Yi Chan. 8/10

Writing: The characters are extremely well written and developed. The plot is interesting. Because it wasn’t predictable, it kept me engaged. I don’t think I’ve seen a drama with a plot and characters quite like this one. The story had a good progression of events and good pacing. There are only a couple issues I could point out in this area: One is towards the end of the drama - there is a scene that shows what had happened in the original timeline of events, but it feels a little jarring and I had no idea what was going on at first. I thought I had skipped an episode. The other issue is the ending itself – it went in a direction I did not expect, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I felt it was like an alternate or fake reality because it seemed like too much of a change and more on the unrealistic/idealistic side. 9/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This is definitely a well-produced drama. The special effects were good, the music was good, the art was good, the styling, even the name of the band. Like I mentioned above, there was a scene toward the end that felt jarring. I would have shot it differently, like with a filter and effects to indicate that it was a different timeline of events. There was also another scene toward the end that involved a bad case of staring that I felt didn’t fit or feel authentic to the situation. However, these are just minor gripes. 9.5/10

Entertainment Value: A binge-worthy drama for sure. The fantasy aspect gives it a bit of mystery and the characters are so well written and acted that I just wanted to keep watching them. The fun vibe of this drama also makes for a fairly stressless watch. The ending though, caught me off-guard (like I mentioned before) and caused me to feel some kind of disconnection with the story. 8/10

Overall, I gave this drama an 8.5/10 due to my issues with the acting of the main male lead and the ending. This drama has a wonderful message about family, friendship, life, and self-acceptance. It’s very encouraging and healing while being entertaining. Also, I love the sign language aspect of this drama and how integral it is to the plot. I really like the direction they went with it.

I made a short music video for this drama. It’s on YouTube and it’s called “Twinkling Watermelon | Beautiful Things” and my channel name is The Enablers (@theenablers3846).

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Subtlety is Key in This Drama's Synergy

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

Surprisingly, the many different interplaying facets within this drama work extremely well together and make for a highly enjoyable watch.

Acting/Cast: The acting was probably the strongest aspect of this drama. The male lead (played by Yoon Gye Sang 윤계상) quickly became a likeable and endearing character for me. The acting of the cop (played by Park Sung Hoon 박성훈) also stood out, which didn't surprise me because I had recently seen his exceptional acting ability in The Glory. As for the child actress (Yuna 유나), her acting felt very believable given the circumstances of her character. The cast had great chemistry together, as well. This was especially important for this father-like kidnapper and daughter-like victim plot. It was fun watching the interactions between the "kidnapper" and the "victim" with their opposite and exaggerated personalities. 10/10

Writing: The plot is right up my alley - a little bit sci-fi, a little bit hostage situationy. It's not just another cliché filled rom-com with an emotionless male lead, so, personally, it's a breath of fresh air. The writing balances out the different themes in this drama extremely well. The plot itself is very dark, involving child abuse, but the writers manage to keep a lightness about it that doesn't feel as though they are minimizing the seriousness of the plot. They were able to do this through humor sprinkled throughout the drama - just enough to break the tension and to keep things from getting too dark. It made for more of a fun but dangerous action hero adventure vibe rather than a terrifying and hopeless vibe. The corrupt police in cahoots with the villain cliché (or completely incompetent police cliché) is something that I have been sick of and this drama unfortunately has that. However, the writers kept my frustration at bay by writing in a good cop character that isn't undermined at every turn, as well as a team of good competent cops backing him. I really liked how the ending was handled by the writers. I was worried about it since the beginning of the drama, but I think they were very fair with all of the characters' fates. The court scene at the end packed quite a punch as well, which is something that was missing from Mother (a drama with a similar but darker themed plot). I felt satisfied after completing this drama as opposed to how I felt after I had completed Mother. Another thing that I was worried about was the possibility of the highly intelligent child character coming across as irritating, condescending, obnoxious, and just overall unlikeable. However, she was written extremely well; she seemed like a typical kid while also coming across as intelligent and dignified. The writers and her actor did well portraying these different facets of her character. Now for the negatives: The mystery aspect of the plot is barely there; it's pretty predictable. Instead, the real focus of the drama is the relationship between the two main characters, the importance of love and family, and healing from childhood trauma. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but because the mystery is weak, the villains are as well. I mean if you think about it, the real big baddie is disposed of in the very beginning. Another complaint I have is that I feel as though some subtlety was beginning to be lost towards the end in regards to the portrayal of the unusual relationship between the "kidnapper" and "victim". The interaction between them became a little overdramatized when in the presence of the cop character, which made it begin to feel a little cheesy. 7.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: No major complaints here. This is definitely a well-produced drama. I can say that the music didn't stand out to me personally. I thought it neither improved nor hurt the drama. A strong, distinctive OST would have made this drama even more memorable. 8/10

Entertainment Value: I began watching this when it was still airing, so I couldn't binge it. If I could, I would have. Watching the relationship develop between the two main characters was fun and the humor was great (and unexpected). There was a nice small twist in there that I really liked as well. The mystery is pretty obvious though and doesn't add any suspense to the drama. Also, the lack of a really intimidating villain doesn't do any favors for the entertainment value either. 9/10

Overall, I gave this drama an 8.5/10. It was a very entertaining and unique drama with great acting. I wish that one of the villains (I won't say who) had more of a character arch/ redemption arch because I thought he was an interesting character that could have had some complexity to him. I think they kind of did him dirty.

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Primarily A Healing Drama

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

When viewed strictly as a "healing drama", it's pretty good. It's all about dealing with grief and guilt and learning to accept the bad things that happen in life, to forgive, and to love yourself again. I think it gets this message across well. If you expect a romance, it's disappointing. This drama really isn't about that and it takes a major back seat to the main goal of the drama. This is a bad thing and a good thing - bad because I wanted a cute romance with 김영광 (Kim Yeong Kwang) and good because the two leads really didn't have enough chemistry for a romantic relationship.

Acting/Cast: I watched this solely because 김영광 (Kim Yeong Kwang) is one of my favorite actors and this is another drama that shows the reason for that. His acting and his character carried the drama. He did so well in his portrayal of a cute, innocent, carefree, goofy young adult that his good acting only made the poor acting of other cast members more noticeable. Most notably, the female lead's acting was...stiff and strange. I'm not sure if it's the actress (since I've only ever seen her in Mystery Queen, which I really liked) or a directing choice. But, whatever the reason is, her "acting style" became increasingly annoying as the drama went on. I'll just give a quick example of what I mean: Someone will tell her something emotionally heavy (like a confession/apology) and she'll stare at them the whole time they tell her. Then, immediately after they've finished speaking, she quickly says something like "that's ok I forgive you/not your fault/etc." while still staring at them without any change in facial expression. It's as though she's just waiting to read her lines. But also, the lines don't even feel very natural as to how someone would actually respond. I also don't feel as though the female and male leads had much chemistry. Especially, when you compare the male lead's chemistry with his dad, his minion, and even with the lunch ladies. I even think the female lead's younger self displayed better chemistry with the second male lead. 4/10

Writing: Like I mentioned above, some of the dialogue from the female lead specifically, didn't feel authentic. The writers may have been going for a super feel-good story where everyone has super awesome communication skills and can understand each other as if they can read each other's minds, but it's not realistic. And really, I think that taking out the realism--using the characters to model healthy behaviors for the viewers--ultimately takes away from the healing message of the drama. It won't feel like something that's obtainable to the viewers because none of us are nearly that perfect in real life. By the end, I started getting bored...I felt like I was watching an episode of Full House or Barney or an after school special. Regarding the fantasy aspect of the plot, it remains a mystery - there is no lore, no rules, that can help us make sense out of the situation. That's ok, the story isn't really about that either, it's about the healing. But, I wish we could have just made peace with that right away instead of being given the run-around in the beginning, thinking we can figure out what's going on. The focus should have only been on her younger self's purpose for showing up in the future instead of wasting time on how she can go back. 3.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Like I said before, I don't know if some of these issues are directing choices or bad acting. I want to blame the direction. Music was nothing special. Regarding SFX, no issues stood out. OH YEAH...this bothered me...So there's this scene in the beginning where the female lead is outside in the sun, in nature, around wild flowers taking photos and she has her hair in a long, single braid over her shoulder. She also had these freckles that go well with her look. I'm sitting here literally thinking about how beautiful her hair looks. And then, later on, she's basically told she's ugly...so she gets a makeover, cuts all that pretty hair off, and replaces it with a short, flat, predictable hairstyle and covers her freckles with concealer. I was so annoyed. Actually, now that I think about, that's when my interest in this drama started declining. It's like that was a metaphor that signaled that they were removing the personality out of the drama. 3/10

Entertainment Value: It was a rough start, but the male lead single-handedly kept me from dropping this drama in the beginning. The younger self character and her relationship with the female lead grew on me and helped me keep interest in the drama. In the end, surprisingly it was Anthony (the second male lead) and his story that kept me interested in finishing the drama. So I guess, the baton was handed off a few times during this race. Ideally, everyone should be running together and crossing the finish line at the same time, but at least I was able to make it to the end. I was pretty bored through those last few episodes though. 3/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 3.5/10 mainly due to the weird acting/dialogue in the second half of the drama, the lack of chemistry between the leads, and the lack of interest I had toward the end. However, I think it had a really good message as a healing drama.

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It Gets Worse

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

Full disclosure: I am not a fan of Squid Game. I didn’t like the 1st season (I had given it a 4/10). This drama has felt, from the beginning, like a poorly executed version of deadly game plots (such as Hunger Games and 3%).

Acting/Cast: The cast is decent. A lot of big actors. However, this season, there’s not many characters left. Unfortunately, we end up stuck with a bunch of expendables and VIPs. Really? They think this will carry the drama to the finish line? The VIPs are the worst. Who, in the process of filming, watched these scenes back and said “Yeah, this is good”? I’m assuming it’s the director/screenwriter. I haven’t seen anything else he’s worked on and now I would never want to. 4/10

Writing: The writing is so bad, they tried to use the VIPs and the owner of the games to gaslight us into thinking it makes sense. Anytime something stupid, boring, and/or unrealistic was happening, one of those characters starts explaining why it’s not bad writing. Like when the insufferable voting system pops up again, they cut to a character saying something like “this is the most interesting part of the games.” What are you smoking?? This is literally the dumbest, most boring, dragged out waste of time in this whole series. I think they finally realized that and started cutting the voting short. It literally doesn’t matter and has no effect on anything, especially this season. Another example, is when the owner of the games would explain the psychology of the characters’ decision-making, in an attempt to convince the viewers that it makes sense. No, it still doesn’t make sense. None of this makes sense. At this point, everyone should either be completely out of their minds, begging for their life, or committing suicide. I mean, they are literally being tortured for days on end in a hopeless situation. They also use the idiotic VIP characters to give us a play-by-play on what’s happening in the games. It’s like having that annoying person that won’t shut the hell up sitting next to you in the theater. They break intense scenes with these stupid ones, completely ruining all of the buildup and tension. The dialogue writing for the VIPs is so terrible, along with the acting, that I felt like I was watching cut scenes from a video game, and not a good one. If AI really is writing scripts these days, I’d think that this is a good example of what that would look like. If I were to write this drama, I’d have the VIPs as silent observers that we see quick glimpses of here and there. Maybe they cheer sometimes, maybe they just give condescending golf claps, maybe they become involved in the direction of the games. I mean, anything but what the writers actually had them do. We don’t need them to have dialogue for us to know that they are psychotic; just them being there already proves that they are. The cop character, by the way, remains completely useless and dumb. He never does anything cool, so don’t hold your breath. Also, all of the players die in very predictable ways. I didn’t feel anything for any of them. Actually, the one character that we’re ultimately supposed to feel something for is a freaking CGI baby. 1/10

Direction/SFX/Music: The CGI baby is the worst. I can’t feel emotion for that thing. The CGI dog was terrible as well. Can we please either get a bigger budget for trained animals or real looking effects or just write this stuff out of the story all together. The bad CGI just ruins it. 1/10

Entertainment Value: Definitely the least entertaining of the seasons by far. I still got through it pretty quick, though, in hope that something cool would happen at the end. Like maybe seeing the VIPs get murdered or thrown into the games themselves. That would be fun. Or the cop character saving some people in the games. Nothing cool happens though. This drama is a tragedy. I’m not a fan of tragedies. 2.5/10

Overall, I gave this season a 2/10. It lost whatever charm it originally had and basically became a slasher. It’s not about using skill to win games anymore, but about murdering people in hand-to-hand combat. So boring, so uncreative. Everything is predictable and nothing cool happens. I would be surprised if it was proven that AI wasn’t used to write this trash.

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Intense Feelings of Hopelessness

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I'll preface this by saying I am not a K-pop fan. I didn't even know a K-pop star was starring in this drama until I got near the end of the drama. And now that I know the lead female is a rookie actress and considering this drama is her first time playing a main role, I am impressed. Also, I will say that my all-time favorite K-drama is White Christmas, which is also a hostage plot, so this type of story is right up my alley.

Acting/Cast: I'd say one of the best things about this drama is the casting of the spies. Perfect casting, especially the male lead spy. I couldn't imagine anyone else playing that character. He has this innocent look about him, but he can also have an intimidating presence, which is essential for the role. His ability to convey emotions through his eyes and facial expressions was vital to the role, as well. I think everyone inside the dorm (for the most part) had good acting. I didn't even have a problem with the rookie female lead's acting. Those outside of the dorm are another story. I think the worst thing about this drama is Park Sung Woong (박성웅). I hated every time he was on screen. His acting was over-the-top obnoxious. My brain's reaction to his presence would be to automatically start tuning him out. I actively had to fight against it. Him, as well as others on the outside of the dorm, really brought an unwanted cheesiness to the drama, which actually has a very serious plot that I think should have been taken more seriously. 7/10

Writing: For the most part, the story is pretty well written. The foundation that was built in the beginning was very solid except for the two important ANSP agent characters. I didn't care about them at all in the beginning. I didn't know exactly what to expect with this story, so once the hostage situation began, I was shocked and hooked. I think the writing begins to get shaky toward the end. I kept thinking "I wish the female lead had more of a role." She was great in the first half. She felt like a realistic, but strong female lead. She was trying to fight back, figure things out, even manipulate others to save her friends. The only thing potentially unrealistic about her behavior would be that if I were in her situation, I would be deathly terrified of the male lead. I wouldn't even have been able to look him in the eyes. I'd be way too traumatized and ashamed about the whole thing. However, toward the end, it's as though the female lead becomes more of a background character who looks sad all the time and is silently hating herself. I wouldn't have been surprised if she had tried to take herself out at some point...I think that would have been realistic. I mean, it's a deeply depressing and traumatizing situation for her specifically. Another reason I thought the writing got shaky toward the end was because of the excessive twists. I don't think it was necessary to put in twists toward the end; the main plot itself is engaging and complex enough and should have been fully embraced as it was. Also, toward the end, the intense feelings of hopelessness that I felt from the whole situation had increased too much to where I was almost unable to see any light at all at the end of the story. I think that's a bit more of a personal taste - I need a certain amount of hope to keep me on the edge of my seat and not lose interest. On a positive note, the political aspect of the drama became more interesting to me as the story went on (usually stuff like that bores me) and the two ANSP agents became much more likeable. I found the politics in this drama to be very thought-provoking. What kinds of events in real life have governments and media worked together on to cover up or spin to win elections? 9/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama definitely had a higher quality of production, which I really look for. I will drop a drama 20 minutes in if the production quality isn't doing it for me. There are a lot of guns, bombs, blood, I love the set and the time period. The OST is okay. It didn't stick out too much for me. The only complaint I have here is that sometimes the music didn't fit the situation, especially in the beginning. There's a gun fight and blood and chaos but romantic sounding music is playing. How is this romantic? 9.5/10

Entertainment Value: I was hooked for a majority of the drama. I stopped watching other dramas to binge watch this one. It was only toward the end (maybe episode 14) that I wasn't exactly excited about watching it...more scared to watch it I guess. 9.5/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 9/10. It's rare that I ever rate a drama this high. I think this one won't soon be forgotten. I wish there had been more of a sole focus on the dynamics inside of the dorm, such as relationships between the girls, and how their personal bonds helped them to survive. This person being an ANSP agent or that person being a northern spy or this person doing something bad in the past or that person having some past connection that I don't care about -- to me it was just a bunch of unnecessary Korean drama clichés that didn't really add much to the plot.

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Great Acting, But For What?

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

Although I don’t really like crime dramas, I decided to watch this one because I like both of the male lead actors. I particularly love seeing Ji Chang Wook (지창욱) in action roles. He’s amazing at it and it’s been a long time since I’d seen him do action.

Acting/Cast: Ji Chang Wook (지창욱) did not disappoint. His fighting sequences were not only exciting, but his acting was too real. I could feel all of his emotions throughout the entire drama. I think this could be the best performance that I’ve seen from him. Everyone else did great for the most part. The female lead’s acting was probably on the weaker side as well as the side character cops. 9.5/10

Writing: The psychological aspect of this drama was well written. However, that’s about it. The actual plot was not very interesting and didn’t make much sense realistically. The female lead really didn’t have much of a role. She was just the driving force behind the motivation for the male leads. All she had to do was exist. After finishing this drama, I felt confused as to what the purpose of the drama was. What’s the message? You must become evil to win against evil? Or that you shouldn’t do that? Or that we are the choices we make? If it’s that last one, then, I feel like the heroes are almost worse than the gangsters. The heroes had done something that was so completely heartless and shameful even by the gangsters’ standards. Maybe the mixed messages are intentional. Maybe the characters in the drama are just as confused as I am. 2/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Since this is a genre that I’m not particularly interested in, I didn’t think it would be able to keep my attention. However, the fight scenes would force me to bring my full attention back the screen. This drama definitely has a high production quality. The pacing is good. The OST didn’t stand out to me. 7/10

Entertainment Value: The action scenes were great. That's the only thing that kept me watching. However, the plot just feels pointless to me. I could predict what was going to happen a lot, too. I'm also not a fan of tragedies. This drama reminded me of Heartless City. Except, in Heartless City, the characters grew on me as I watched. The opposite happened for me with The Worst of Evil. 4/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 5.5/10. It might just be due to my own personal tastes - I don't usually like crime dramas nor tragedies. Amazing acting from Ji Chang Wook (지창욱) though.

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At Least It's an Ending

My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I loved the previous seasons. This has been my crack drama - even this season. This review and rating will reflect this season only and not the drama as a whole.

Acting/Cast: One of the major aspects of this drama that had made it so great in the past was its amazing cast. The two leads, the two other leads, and all the side characters had been phenomenal. The acting of the two main leads were undoubtedly top-notch. Watching them as their families are slaughtered and as they're dragged away into slavery was heart-wrenching, but captivating as I rooted for Eun Seom and Tan Ya, on the edge of my seat, to find a way to save everyone. Without their amazing performances (Kim Ji Won 김지원 & Song Joong Ki 송중기), this drama could have easily flopped before it even really began. When I heard that both of these lead actors were being replaced, although the story was already established, I was afraid that it wouldn't be the same without them. Then, when I saw the actors that were taking their places, my heart sank. The female lead was being replaced by one of the worst lead actresses in Korean dramas (actually...she may be the worst in my opinion) and the male lead was being replaced by an actor I've only seen one other time (Moon Lovers). But, I knew just the change in the female lead could single-handedly ruin this season (having seen Shin Se Kyeong (신세경) in many dramas and never liking her performances but continuing to watch her dramas anyway). On top of that, one of my favorite characters was also being replaced - Nun Byeol. Way to kick me while I'm down. At least Yang Cha made it back. That being said, the change in the leads wasn't quite as bad as I thought it was going to be, but that's not saying much since my expectations were basically at nothing. Lee Joon Gi (이준기) was decent as Saya, not as convincing as Eun Seom, but overall he was alright. As for Shin Se Kyeong (신세경) - it wasn't her worst performance; I could tell she gave a little bit of effort, but not enough to warrant too many close up shots of her facial expressions. A comparison could be made between how her scenes were shot versus how Ta Gon's scenes were shot. However, the casting, to my surprise, was not the biggest problem this season… 4.5/10

Writing: While watching, I felt as though the writers were trying to write out the characters whose actors had been replaced because they knew their performances would not nearly be up to par. So, they made Ta Gon and Tae Al Ha the leads this season. Saya’s character in particular changed a lot from the previous seasons. He used to have this alluring, mysterious aura about him. He had been in isolation for most of his life with the intelligence of an Igutu, giving him this innocent vibe which also felt very dangerous at the same time. Sadly, in this season, Saya didn’t feel like a threat at all. He no longer seemed cunning and conniving (which is where he needed to excel in order to compensate for his lack of physical strength and skill). I even thought that he seemed pathetic, which is such a disservice to a once uniquely captivating character. The same thing with Nun Byeol – the previous season had built her up as an amazing swordsman Neanthal sleeper cell badass, but then her actress was changed so the writers said “nevermind” and basically wrote her into a nothing burger. Yang Cha (another favorite of mine) previously had this unique and interesting relationship with Tan Ya - being her protector and the only one who really knows her, as well as the only person he can genuinely communicate with. Unfortunately, this season, the writers immediately threw away this engaging dynamic. In return, they gave him more of a storyline, but it felt cheap or cheesy... They should have just left him alone and let him stay a badass. Overall, the writing had a completely different vibe from previous seasons. It wasn’t dark at all and not as serious. It was even “comical” at times (or at least tried to be), which just felt strange and out-of-place. I would say that the writing started off decently and then worsened as the drama progressed, becoming more predictable and boring. It felt lazy and rushed as if they just wanted to give the audience some sort of conclusion to the story. 2.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Not only did the writing have a completely different vibe from previous seasons, but the directing did as well. And just as the writing was, the direction, the special effects, and overall cinematography felt cheap and cheesy. Instead of a dark, gritty, and intense atmosphere, it now had a bright and light-hearted feel. The special effects were so terrible that the only explanation is that the budget for the season must have been drastically reduced. Right away, there’s a scene where Eun Seom jumps into the air and freezes to shoot an arrow. There’s another action scene toward the end that does this same corny freezing in the air technique. They are also apparently unable to fill in crowds with green screens or CGI. There were multiple shots that were laughable, especially in context with the dialogue – characters talking as if there are a multitude of people and then the camara angle showing a crowd of around 50 people at best. The music is definitely one of the stronger aspects this season. 3.5/10

Entertainment Value: Despite all of the disappointment, I still really enjoyed this season. It still had that crack drama vibe for me. Maybe it's because I'm so attached to the characters and invested in their world. I hate how this drama gets me rooting for child murderers. It did in the previous seasons and I still found myself rooting for them this season. I think even the characters in the drama forget that Ta Gon and his people are all child murderers. But, I think that's a testament to how well the character and world building was done from the beginning until now. 8.5/10

Overall, I gave this season a 5 out of 10 stars. It probably deserves an even lower rating objectively speaking, but I still really enjoyed this season. (In order, I had given the previous 3 seasons or parts a 6.5, a 9, and an 8.5.) Although inadequate in many ways, at least this season was able to provide some closure to this epic tale.

A special thanks to the Momo tribe.

I made a short music video for this drama that features what I miss the most. It’s on YouTube and it’s called “Arthdal Chronicles | Paradise” and my channel name is The Enablers (@theenablers3846).

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