This review may contain spoilers
A mixed bag
I loved the look of this series, especially the first half. The cinematography, the settings, the styling of the characters. The art studio, the main character’s house, the prison rooms were so fittingly and realistically set, it pulled you right into the story. An Yusu’s hippie styling in contrast to Moeun’s dreary look worked very well.
The pacing was also a great element throughout it, even during the less interesting second-half. It kept you going.
In terms of the story, it’s like a common revenge tale with a clever twist. It would’ve been much more enjoyable if they had cut about 1/3 of the episodes and tightened up the narrative. Some side plots just didn’t feel necessary, and a lot of tropes ended up repeating again and again. It dragged on after the first half, and by the time you got to the end, the killer reveal just wasn’t impactful. The killer killed because Yunsu’s husband wouldn’t apologise? I mean....come on. The last thing I want to see after 12 episodes of a who-done-it chase is that some random side character did it because they have psychiatric issues. That’s always the easiest way out for any crime story. I would’ve preferred the husband’s lover did it, or Yunsu herself, anything but that.
Lastly, for me, the narrative felt preachy by the end of it and that was the worst element tbh. “Divine punishment” was a recurring motif, and it was like we were being instructed by the narrative to”forgive" or "not forgive" each character. Everyone’s basically good, the main characters deified and their revenge justified, except for the psychos who are just born evil and deserve to die. There’s no realism to that, I would much prefer if they told the story without all these far fetched details (meant to make us sympathise with the characters). Human violence always exists in a gray zone, there is nothing black and white about it.
The pacing was also a great element throughout it, even during the less interesting second-half. It kept you going.
In terms of the story, it’s like a common revenge tale with a clever twist. It would’ve been much more enjoyable if they had cut about 1/3 of the episodes and tightened up the narrative. Some side plots just didn’t feel necessary, and a lot of tropes ended up repeating again and again. It dragged on after the first half, and by the time you got to the end, the killer reveal just wasn’t impactful. The killer killed because Yunsu’s husband wouldn’t apologise? I mean....come on. The last thing I want to see after 12 episodes of a who-done-it chase is that some random side character did it because they have psychiatric issues. That’s always the easiest way out for any crime story. I would’ve preferred the husband’s lover did it, or Yunsu herself, anything but that.
Lastly, for me, the narrative felt preachy by the end of it and that was the worst element tbh. “Divine punishment” was a recurring motif, and it was like we were being instructed by the narrative to”forgive" or "not forgive" each character. Everyone’s basically good, the main characters deified and their revenge justified, except for the psychos who are just born evil and deserve to die. There’s no realism to that, I would much prefer if they told the story without all these far fetched details (meant to make us sympathise with the characters). Human violence always exists in a gray zone, there is nothing black and white about it.
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