This review may contain spoilers
Korean Thriller/Crime Genre at its finest
Story, acting, directing, characters, ending....all perfect.
The story quickly pulls you in within the first few minutes of episode 1 and it keeps you hooked until the last second of the finale, with a well-woven story that covers different themes; thriller/suspense, crime investigation, imprisonment, revenge and psychological. Each theme is highly well written, with a perfectly balanced pace and immaculate writing that provides ample mysteries and cliffhangers to keep the viewer on the edge of his seat at all times. The drama is highly bingeable so good thing I only enjoyed it after it completed airing.
The Acting was top notch by all the cast, I was particularly mind-blown by the 2 Female lead duo, their performance is accolade-worthy, with the slightest of facial expressions and gaze speaking volumes. Kim Go-Eun above all takes the cake here, boy oh boy did she manage to freak us out, leave one with shivers running down the spine, feel her pain and sorrow, fear her and pity her at the exact same time. you could be watching her just laying back gazing at the sky through a hole in the prison yard shades, and you feel like you can see her inner feelings through her gaze. Then to see how that daydreaming gaze switches to apprehension and animosity within seconds; that was a feast for the eyes.
I also really appreciated how both characters were written, and while their development arcs especially Mo Eun's might have had some blank parts lacking details but I respect the writers choice to leave the intricate details up to the imagination of the viewer. And despite both female leads being at opposite ends personality, conscience and nerve-wise, to see how their relationship shifted and enjoy their moments together on screen, It had been a while since I enjoyed such a relationship dynamic so well crafted.
If I had any trouble with the plot or the story writing it would be really small gripes not worth fretting over; for example the final motive behind her husband's murder was surprisingly lacking, I was expecting the motive behind his murder would be romantic, financial or to keep him quite from exposing someone's crimes like fraud or embezzlement. But I chose to convince myself that choosing that motive was to show how mentally unstable individuals could be not just driven to commit murder for such flimsy motives, but even worse chose to commit further crimes to cover up their tracks.
Another point that I would have appreciated had this drama steered clear from, is the writing turning to the miraculous capturing of the moment a crime is being committed or a person is incriminating themselves. I hate it when the main plot's mystery is solved thanks to a lost video or recording that managed to capture the significant moment to indict or acquit someone.
The first murder lacked such evidence, and we were told forensic evidence was tampered with by the perpetrator (only to find out police had tunnel vision and did not do a proper job gathering evidence). As for the second murder I believed they could have easily chosen to prove her innocence by one of several means; 1) proving he was still alive and well after she had left the murder scene, thanks to his interactions with his gaming friends , 2) Using the fact that he was gaming both chatting and talking with his friends and was actually shown to have stated he had met her and lived.
I know it is not a major thing, and many a drama chose to easily opt for the non-deniable easy evidence in the form of perfectly timed and positioned captured media, but precisely because as a viewer who had been appreciating the masterful writing of this drama such as the autopsy scene mentioning freezing the body hindered accurate determination of the Time of death but the state of digestion of food in his body suggested death happened 2 hours after consumption, you can say I was a lit bit annoyed when none of these clues were used.
Still all things considered, I really enjoyed this drama and loved the intense suspenseful mood it provided, and the deep and rich characters and their relationship dynamics.
To sum up, this is a drama I would strongly recommend to anyone, especially crime/investigation/psychological thriller fans. Give it a watch
The story quickly pulls you in within the first few minutes of episode 1 and it keeps you hooked until the last second of the finale, with a well-woven story that covers different themes; thriller/suspense, crime investigation, imprisonment, revenge and psychological. Each theme is highly well written, with a perfectly balanced pace and immaculate writing that provides ample mysteries and cliffhangers to keep the viewer on the edge of his seat at all times. The drama is highly bingeable so good thing I only enjoyed it after it completed airing.
The Acting was top notch by all the cast, I was particularly mind-blown by the 2 Female lead duo, their performance is accolade-worthy, with the slightest of facial expressions and gaze speaking volumes. Kim Go-Eun above all takes the cake here, boy oh boy did she manage to freak us out, leave one with shivers running down the spine, feel her pain and sorrow, fear her and pity her at the exact same time. you could be watching her just laying back gazing at the sky through a hole in the prison yard shades, and you feel like you can see her inner feelings through her gaze. Then to see how that daydreaming gaze switches to apprehension and animosity within seconds; that was a feast for the eyes.
I also really appreciated how both characters were written, and while their development arcs especially Mo Eun's might have had some blank parts lacking details but I respect the writers choice to leave the intricate details up to the imagination of the viewer. And despite both female leads being at opposite ends personality, conscience and nerve-wise, to see how their relationship shifted and enjoy their moments together on screen, It had been a while since I enjoyed such a relationship dynamic so well crafted.
If I had any trouble with the plot or the story writing it would be really small gripes not worth fretting over; for example the final motive behind her husband's murder was surprisingly lacking, I was expecting the motive behind his murder would be romantic, financial or to keep him quite from exposing someone's crimes like fraud or embezzlement. But I chose to convince myself that choosing that motive was to show how mentally unstable individuals could be not just driven to commit murder for such flimsy motives, but even worse chose to commit further crimes to cover up their tracks.
Another point that I would have appreciated had this drama steered clear from, is the writing turning to the miraculous capturing of the moment a crime is being committed or a person is incriminating themselves. I hate it when the main plot's mystery is solved thanks to a lost video or recording that managed to capture the significant moment to indict or acquit someone.
The first murder lacked such evidence, and we were told forensic evidence was tampered with by the perpetrator (only to find out police had tunnel vision and did not do a proper job gathering evidence). As for the second murder I believed they could have easily chosen to prove her innocence by one of several means; 1) proving he was still alive and well after she had left the murder scene, thanks to his interactions with his gaming friends , 2) Using the fact that he was gaming both chatting and talking with his friends and was actually shown to have stated he had met her and lived.
I know it is not a major thing, and many a drama chose to easily opt for the non-deniable easy evidence in the form of perfectly timed and positioned captured media, but precisely because as a viewer who had been appreciating the masterful writing of this drama such as the autopsy scene mentioning freezing the body hindered accurate determination of the Time of death but the state of digestion of food in his body suggested death happened 2 hours after consumption, you can say I was a lit bit annoyed when none of these clues were used.
Still all things considered, I really enjoyed this drama and loved the intense suspenseful mood it provided, and the deep and rich characters and their relationship dynamics.
To sum up, this is a drama I would strongly recommend to anyone, especially crime/investigation/psychological thriller fans. Give it a watch
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