This review may contain spoilers
A harrowing but ultimately hopeful tale about domestic violence and its ripple effects
I've been eagerly anticipating this for a while now and it did not disappoint. Lee Yoo-Mi is incredible in this - her portrayal of Hui-Su's pain and resilience is one I will remember for a long time. Jeon So Nee also delivers an incredibly grounded performance and her character is an important reminder of the effects that domestic violence can have on an entire family. Jang Seung Jo really shows his range here as both the abusive husband and the undocumented worker and as Jin-Pyo, he is absolutely terrifying the way he turns from violent to caring on a dime. Lee Moo-Saeng rounds out the core cast as the enigmatic bystander who becomes increasingly drawn into the lives of the two women and like Jeon So Nee, his performance is similarly grounded and empathetic.
The story itself has twists and turns but what is most memorable about this show is the way it treats the topic of domestic violence with so much care and empathy. While there are scenes of violence in the show, it never feels gratuitous and I really appreciate that we are shown enough to truly understand the brutality of Hui-Su's life without focusing solely on the violence. There's an important scene early on that really sets the stage for the tone of this show where Eun-Su asks Hui-Su why she never tried to leave and Hui-Su asks Eun-Su how she knows that she never tried, and I love the choice to include this scene because this is so often the first question survivors of domestic violence are asked. Hui-Su's response is so important because we see that she did try - multiple times, in fact - to leave. She tried to flee the country but was forced to return home when Jin-Pyo threatened her mother and she tried to file a police report but was scared off by his sister. I really love that the show reminded us that it's not always as simple as just leaving, and that even when people do try to leave, they're not always successful. Above all else, this show centers its focus on the survivors - not just Hui-Su, but also Eun-Su's mother and even Eun-Su herself as a survivor who grew up in an abusive household even if she herself was not physically abused.
The show also highlights that survivors of domestic violence have to endure not just the violence itself but the complicity of others who see what is happening but stay silent, and thus, allow it to keep happening. Even in this aspect, the show makes an effort to show the different levels of complicity. On one end of the spectrum, there is Eun-Su's complicity as a means of survival - she stays silent about her mother's abuse in an effort to protect her brother and keep her family together, and she initially stays silent about her wealthy customer's abuse in order to maintain her job. On the other end, there is Jin-Young and her mother's complicity as a means of maintaining appearances - they are not just complicit, they are also hypocrites who are aware of Jin-Pyo's abuse of Hui-Su but choose to ignore it for the sake of promotions and appearances while outwardly proclaiming to care about survivors. While I do like the message that silence is complicity, I don't particularly love the way the show kind of glosses over Jin-Pyo's crimes as the actual perpetrator to focus on his sister and mother in law as the villains in the second half. I get what the show was trying to do, but I do think it undercuts its own message a little bit by making Jin-Pyo die before he could face any legal consequences or serve prison time while his sister and mother had the very public fall from grace. Don't get me wrong, they got what was coming to them and I'm glad for it, but I just think it was kind of a weird choice to make a show about a man abusing his wife and then have the main villains be women. In this respect, the show is almost too realistic because we do see this a lot in our society as well, where a man commits a crime or behaves badly and then the news will oftentimes focus on the women in his life and ask them to explain his behavior or question why they didn't stop him.
As a American, I am typically immune to most copaganda but I have to give a special shoutout to Detective Choi Gyeong-Gu. I was cheering when he was leading Jin-Young into the police station and then purposefully ripped off her hat so that the angry mob could see her face clearly. KING SHIT!! The only good cop! Choi Gyong-Gu, you will always be famous!!!!
Ultimately, this is a show in two parts - the first 5 episodes focus on the direct survivors of abuse while the remaining 3 episodes focus on the bystanders who witness what is happening but choose to ignore it. While the last 3 episodes are a bit heavy on the makjang side for my personal taste, the ending more than makes up for it. The courtroom scene is especially moving because we are reminded that the law does not always deliver justice, that what is legal is not always what is right, but that there can be healing and growth in taking responsibility for your actions and atoning for them. I like that the show never makes light of the women's actions in murdering Jin-Pyo but also clearly demonstrates how everything lead them to the point where that was the only possible action for them to take. And that final shot of Hui-Su and Eun-Su standing side by side was just perfect. While there were many who stood by and did nothing, it was these two women who stood by each other's side through it all, and it was because they had each other that they were both able to survive and break the cycle of abuse.
The story itself has twists and turns but what is most memorable about this show is the way it treats the topic of domestic violence with so much care and empathy. While there are scenes of violence in the show, it never feels gratuitous and I really appreciate that we are shown enough to truly understand the brutality of Hui-Su's life without focusing solely on the violence. There's an important scene early on that really sets the stage for the tone of this show where Eun-Su asks Hui-Su why she never tried to leave and Hui-Su asks Eun-Su how she knows that she never tried, and I love the choice to include this scene because this is so often the first question survivors of domestic violence are asked. Hui-Su's response is so important because we see that she did try - multiple times, in fact - to leave. She tried to flee the country but was forced to return home when Jin-Pyo threatened her mother and she tried to file a police report but was scared off by his sister. I really love that the show reminded us that it's not always as simple as just leaving, and that even when people do try to leave, they're not always successful. Above all else, this show centers its focus on the survivors - not just Hui-Su, but also Eun-Su's mother and even Eun-Su herself as a survivor who grew up in an abusive household even if she herself was not physically abused.
The show also highlights that survivors of domestic violence have to endure not just the violence itself but the complicity of others who see what is happening but stay silent, and thus, allow it to keep happening. Even in this aspect, the show makes an effort to show the different levels of complicity. On one end of the spectrum, there is Eun-Su's complicity as a means of survival - she stays silent about her mother's abuse in an effort to protect her brother and keep her family together, and she initially stays silent about her wealthy customer's abuse in order to maintain her job. On the other end, there is Jin-Young and her mother's complicity as a means of maintaining appearances - they are not just complicit, they are also hypocrites who are aware of Jin-Pyo's abuse of Hui-Su but choose to ignore it for the sake of promotions and appearances while outwardly proclaiming to care about survivors. While I do like the message that silence is complicity, I don't particularly love the way the show kind of glosses over Jin-Pyo's crimes as the actual perpetrator to focus on his sister and mother in law as the villains in the second half. I get what the show was trying to do, but I do think it undercuts its own message a little bit by making Jin-Pyo die before he could face any legal consequences or serve prison time while his sister and mother had the very public fall from grace. Don't get me wrong, they got what was coming to them and I'm glad for it, but I just think it was kind of a weird choice to make a show about a man abusing his wife and then have the main villains be women. In this respect, the show is almost too realistic because we do see this a lot in our society as well, where a man commits a crime or behaves badly and then the news will oftentimes focus on the women in his life and ask them to explain his behavior or question why they didn't stop him.
As a American, I am typically immune to most copaganda but I have to give a special shoutout to Detective Choi Gyeong-Gu. I was cheering when he was leading Jin-Young into the police station and then purposefully ripped off her hat so that the angry mob could see her face clearly. KING SHIT!! The only good cop! Choi Gyong-Gu, you will always be famous!!!!
Ultimately, this is a show in two parts - the first 5 episodes focus on the direct survivors of abuse while the remaining 3 episodes focus on the bystanders who witness what is happening but choose to ignore it. While the last 3 episodes are a bit heavy on the makjang side for my personal taste, the ending more than makes up for it. The courtroom scene is especially moving because we are reminded that the law does not always deliver justice, that what is legal is not always what is right, but that there can be healing and growth in taking responsibility for your actions and atoning for them. I like that the show never makes light of the women's actions in murdering Jin-Pyo but also clearly demonstrates how everything lead them to the point where that was the only possible action for them to take. And that final shot of Hui-Su and Eun-Su standing side by side was just perfect. While there were many who stood by and did nothing, it was these two women who stood by each other's side through it all, and it was because they had each other that they were both able to survive and break the cycle of abuse.
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