This review may contain spoilers
Adrenaline-packed, high-octane and incredibly exciting!
I'm going to give my two cents on this show and it's my honest opinion - it's amazing and anyone thinking about watching it, should. We rarely get good Korean comedies, much less action-comedies, and this was the best of the season.
This show felt like an homage to all those awesome Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and wacky Stephen Chow movies, and it's sad that a few people can't see that down in the comments. The fights are how they are because of this - full of adrenaline, high-octane and exciting. Hell, I think it's mentioned somewhere that Yun Ga Min practices Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do style of martial arts. If you've watched Stephen Chow's movies, like Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer, you'd understand how flying about while crushing your opponents toes in place, or punching their chest into the concrete floor at an unnatural pace is the foundation for some of the best choreographed fights. It takes a lot to adapt these for screen - it's not tacky, it's a stylistic choice and Hwang Min Hyun manifested it all fantastically.
Talking about Yun Ga Min. People seem to think he's plain dumb, but I think that's a very shallow understanding of who he is. It took him brains to fight too, guys. That scene where he flipped the leader of the school disciplinary gang was actually well thought-out. He's just bad at tests, and it's clear he has some anxiety related to that. I know people just like this - they're brilliant, but get incredibly anxious during tests, causing them to score low. More than anything, he wasn't one dimensional - sure, he was often the smiling idiot who was blissfully unaware of things, but when things got serious, he was confident enough to buckle down and take charge. Honestly, I liked everything in this show, acting included . I enjoyed it for what it is, and it got me kicking my feet like my twelve year old self when watching Shaolin Soccer.
Lastly, don't expect the show to be Weak Hero Class 1. Study Group is in a different genre. This is an action comedy, and Weak Hero is an action drama. Bullying is a common element, but it's dealt with differently in both. Study Group is somewhat idealistic, and that's fine. We need a break from the nitty-gritty sometimes, and the show gives us the satisfaction by answering the question: "what if the good guys won period?"
Put aside all your seriousness, grab some popcorn and enjoy the adrenaline.
This show felt like an homage to all those awesome Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and wacky Stephen Chow movies, and it's sad that a few people can't see that down in the comments. The fights are how they are because of this - full of adrenaline, high-octane and exciting. Hell, I think it's mentioned somewhere that Yun Ga Min practices Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do style of martial arts. If you've watched Stephen Chow's movies, like Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer, you'd understand how flying about while crushing your opponents toes in place, or punching their chest into the concrete floor at an unnatural pace is the foundation for some of the best choreographed fights. It takes a lot to adapt these for screen - it's not tacky, it's a stylistic choice and Hwang Min Hyun manifested it all fantastically.
Talking about Yun Ga Min. People seem to think he's plain dumb, but I think that's a very shallow understanding of who he is. It took him brains to fight too, guys. That scene where he flipped the leader of the school disciplinary gang was actually well thought-out. He's just bad at tests, and it's clear he has some anxiety related to that. I know people just like this - they're brilliant, but get incredibly anxious during tests, causing them to score low. More than anything, he wasn't one dimensional - sure, he was often the smiling idiot who was blissfully unaware of things, but when things got serious, he was confident enough to buckle down and take charge. Honestly, I liked everything in this show, acting included . I enjoyed it for what it is, and it got me kicking my feet like my twelve year old self when watching Shaolin Soccer.
Lastly, don't expect the show to be Weak Hero Class 1. Study Group is in a different genre. This is an action comedy, and Weak Hero is an action drama. Bullying is a common element, but it's dealt with differently in both. Study Group is somewhat idealistic, and that's fine. We need a break from the nitty-gritty sometimes, and the show gives us the satisfaction by answering the question: "what if the good guys won period?"
Put aside all your seriousness, grab some popcorn and enjoy the adrenaline.
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