It's one of the best movies of 2025 all over the world I've seen so far, not just Korean (it might be just the best Korean movie of the year, but I haven't seen No Other Choice yet). I didn't like some scenes with North Koreans, sometimes it looked like cheap propaganda trying to dehumanize them. But overall it's a really great film: writing, acting, irony (Koreans prefer slapstick comedy, but this time farcic nature of the movie did work and happened to be a right choice).
Sul Kyung Gu was brilliant as usual. I also liked Ryu Seung Beom as a clownish KCIA director (and remebered his great drama, Family Matters, but his role was very different there). Jeon Do Yeon was only in one scene, but she totally stole that scene. She seemed to do really nothing, but I couldn't stop laughing, it was a very biting and sarcastic depiction of certain women in power all over the world (not just in Korea). Now I want Jeon Do Yeon to do big subtle comedy role, she definitely has chops and it doesn't look silly or ridiculous.
Anyway it was like a cup of water in desert, especially with overwhelming majority of Hollywood movies of last 5-10 years as background. Despite being farcic, the comedy and its message was surprisingly refreshing and grounded. Nobody died, so that's good news.
Does anyone think the show might seem a bit too meta for a stranger/outsider? Does Kim You Jung play herself? Some people will compare the actress in real life and her character, it's just inevitable. Does KYJ try to do something new, something challenging for herself as an actress, something risky? Or is it narcississtic tongue-in-cheek vanity fest? It's very intriguing.
I hope they have made season 3 more in season 1 vein, a bit more serious and dramatic with bigger stakes, than season 2. Season 2 was good too, but for me it tried to be too cute and inoffensive, season 1 was really better.
The FL says it in the mid-credit scene. I wouldn't trust it though. The shows' ratings were so-so at best, and in the past I saw such announcements without continuation. Like some Marvel stuff or Rock-n-Rolla of Guy Ritchie.
Happy ending? Mark as spoiler thanks in advance, and yea not a cliffhanger or anything right?? Mark as spoiler…
Pretty much yeah, it's happy ending for protagonists. There are almost no cliffhangers, they finished the case and start to discuss a new one which may or may not be connected with the main storyline of seaon 1. In the mid-credit scene the FL says the show is going to return. But there is at least one loose end in the drama the writers tried to show viewers, so they could continue the main storyline in season 2. Or they could just drop it and move on. It depends.
I wouldn't say this show is great, let alone among the greatest K-dramas I've ever seen, probably it's not even very good. But it has a lot of funny and cute moments and has been generally enjoyable.
Pros. In my opinion. James is the best Park Hee Soon's character. The man was able to play a lot of different personas in one show, and they were very extravagant and uplifting instead of his usual morally grey or straight up bad people in other shows. Chemistry between protagonists was amazing.
Contras. They leaned toward comedy too much. And that's the issue for me, because South Korean comedies are often concentrated on slapstick humor. I guess it's cultural specific. But I would like to see less farcic comedies. There might be comedy elemenst in dramas, and they often work for some reason (but I had to drop Vincenzo after episode 1, for example). That's why I watch a few-to-none South Korean comedies and many dramas. I don't know, Taxi Driver also has comedy relief, escpecially season 2, they also have a team of tricksters with golden hearts, but they did it just better (and I hope season 3 will be doing it too).
Actors often overact. Especially Park Ming Young and especially in the 1st half of the show. I don't have anything against the main actress and blame writing and directing. They cooled it down in 2nd half though and it did make the show better, but, IMO, still not enough.
Writing was imperfect in general There were many loose ends. For example, how were all cases connected to each other? I expected something like Again My Life with the protagonist(s) destroying foundations of the antagontist's criminal empire, his sources of income and power, before confront him personally. But they have never really explained it, except the picture.
Why did the antagonist play with the FL in her childhood, what were those masked people, how did he organize it, how did he get the helper inside (the guy who was eventually killed)? It was way too suspicious, sophisticated and complex for the explanation we got, and I expected some huge conspiracy with many participants and global goels. Will that story continue in season 2?
I also want to see more internal mechanic of their scams with more attention to logistic, details, problems and challenges. It generally looks like some magic just happening.
Good end,just like all the missions they did,the last one is also successful with no problems
I beg to disagree. I mean the end is pretty much happy for the entire trio. But I wouldn't say there was no problem at all.
The main antagonist vanished, we haven't seen his body. It was specifically said the police hadn't found him. In some genres, like this (or comic book adaptations) it may or may not mean the character is alive. Or dead. It depends of contract negotiations, schedules, writers' ideas and so on.
They definitely set things up for season 2. The FL literally said they would return in the mid-credit scene. I'm not sure if it's true, because ratings weren't impressive. On other hand, the show wasn't lucky with its release time, so Amazon suits might give them a second chance. Especially if it gets attention after its release in a next month or two. If so, I could see the antagonist returning in next season.
Can someone clarify that the victims (the mother and daughter pair) whom Song Jihyo's character scammed were real…
I don't remember whether it was episode 1 or 2. but the FL did come to the mom and returned her money (maybe with some bonus, it wasn't told, but it was a huge amount of cash), then she met the daughter privately and adviced to stop faking her illness because of her panic.
Actually protagonists try to help victims in every case of this show.
Now we're sucking diesel! It's like the show has gone from 0 to 100 for two episodes.
I mean first three episodes made an impression writers didn't have anything meaningful to say. Yes, they had good story-wise and character-wise moments here and there (for example with the mother-in-law and the president), but sometimes the show seemed to be writtern by ChatGPT. Again I mean writing, not performances or production value.
These two episodes have just changed everything. I know MDL isn't the best place to discuss it, however the show has sent some very right and powerful messages, but also hinted on some interesting things about South Korean society, politics and government, Interesting for foreigners, of course, I think Koreans themselves won't see it as news.
Will it be a Korean version of "Taken," but on TV?
"I don't have any money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you."
dude, nov is gonna be such an amazing month!! we will have Taxi driver 3 and the manipulated released!! that's…
I saw statements it would be released in November several days ago. I mean it's just 6 episodes, Disney+ could handle them in 2 or 3 weeks. Like, set the release date for Wednesday, November 5, the finale is going to be release on November 19 at latest, then it's The Manipulated's turn since November 26.
dude, nov is gonna be such an amazing month!! we will have Taxi driver 3 and the manipulated released!! that's…
Allegedly "Made in Korea," but it would be on Disney+ too, so I guess, not in the same time. "As You Stood By" on Netflix. Maybe Netflix's "The Price of Confession" too.
Sul Kyung Gu was brilliant as usual. I also liked Ryu Seung Beom as a clownish KCIA director (and remebered his great drama, Family Matters, but his role was very different there). Jeon Do Yeon was only in one scene, but she totally stole that scene. She seemed to do really nothing, but I couldn't stop laughing, it was a very biting and sarcastic depiction of certain women in power all over the world (not just in Korea). Now I want Jeon Do Yeon to do big subtle comedy role, she definitely has chops and it doesn't look silly or ridiculous.
Anyway it was like a cup of water in desert, especially with overwhelming majority of Hollywood movies of last 5-10 years as background. Despite being farcic, the comedy and its message was surprisingly refreshing and grounded. Nobody died, so that's good news.
Pros.
In my opinion. James is the best Park Hee Soon's character. The man was able to play a lot of different personas in one show, and they were very extravagant and uplifting instead of his usual morally grey or straight up bad people in other shows.
Chemistry between protagonists was amazing.
Contras.
They leaned toward comedy too much. And that's the issue for me, because South Korean comedies are often concentrated on slapstick humor. I guess it's cultural specific. But I would like to see less farcic comedies. There might be comedy elemenst in dramas, and they often work for some reason (but I had to drop Vincenzo after episode 1, for example). That's why I watch a few-to-none South Korean comedies and many dramas. I don't know, Taxi Driver also has comedy relief, escpecially season 2, they also have a team of tricksters with golden hearts, but they did it just better (and I hope season 3 will be doing it too).
Actors often overact. Especially Park Ming Young and especially in the 1st half of the show. I don't have anything against the main actress and blame writing and directing. They cooled it down in 2nd half though and it did make the show better, but, IMO, still not enough.
Writing was imperfect in general There were many loose ends. For example, how were all cases connected to each other? I expected something like Again My Life with the protagonist(s) destroying foundations of the antagontist's criminal empire, his sources of income and power, before confront him personally. But they have never really explained it, except the picture.
Why did the antagonist play with the FL in her childhood, what were those masked people, how did he organize it, how did he get the helper inside (the guy who was eventually killed)? It was way too suspicious, sophisticated and complex for the explanation we got, and I expected some huge conspiracy with many participants and global goels. Will that story continue in season 2?
I also want to see more internal mechanic of their scams with more attention to logistic, details, problems and challenges. It generally looks like some magic just happening.
I could have write more, but that's it.
The main antagonist vanished, we haven't seen his body. It was specifically said the police hadn't found him. In some genres, like this (or comic book adaptations) it may or may not mean the character is alive. Or dead. It depends of contract negotiations, schedules, writers' ideas and so on.
They definitely set things up for season 2. The FL literally said they would return in the mid-credit scene. I'm not sure if it's true, because ratings weren't impressive. On other hand, the show wasn't lucky with its release time, so Amazon suits might give them a second chance. Especially if it gets attention after its release in a next month or two. If so, I could see the antagonist returning in next season.
Actually protagonists try to help victims in every case of this show.
I mean first three episodes made an impression writers didn't have anything meaningful to say. Yes, they had good story-wise and character-wise moments here and there (for example with the mother-in-law and the president), but sometimes the show seemed to be writtern by ChatGPT. Again I mean writing, not performances or production value.
These two episodes have just changed everything. I know MDL isn't the best place to discuss it, however the show has sent some very right and powerful messages, but also hinted on some interesting things about South Korean society, politics and government, Interesting for foreigners, of course, I think Koreans themselves won't see it as news.
"I don't have any money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you."