Figgo
Florida
Enjoy the Downward Spiral
I don't like the categories for rating on here. My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.
After reading the synopsis, I was hesitant to watch this drama because I didn't want to see minors in sexual situations and engaged in very serious criminal activity. I was worried it may glamorize these kinds of lifestyles. Once I finally decided to give it a try, I almost dropped the drama after the 1st episode. It just didn't grab my attention and I felt the male lead's character and his motivations were boring and typical. Eventually, I gave it another shot and watched episode 2 and from then on, I was hooked.
Acting/Cast: I think this is my 1st time seeing most of these actors... at least in major roles (except for 남윤수 Nam Yoon Su). They all did a great job. Watching the male lead's personality unfold, stood out to me the most. I also liked watching the interactions between the female lead and her mother. 9.5/10
Writing: This category can be broken into 2 parts - character writing/dialogue and story writing. I feel that the character development was the strongest aspect of this drama. The psychological genre is my favorite when it comes to Korean dramas because of their ability to write compelling characters that grow or change in realistic ways during the course of their experiences. This drama is great example of that, especially in regards to the male lead's character. Unfortunately, with how great the character writing is, I felt the actual story writing was lacking in comparison. There were storylines that I was really interested in learning more about (mainly more about the female lead's mom and that industry and about Mr. Lee's background), but they were left unexplored. The ending was also done in a way that seems as though they were setting it up for a 2nd season, which would make sense as to why some major details of the story felt unfinished. Regardless, I'm typically not a fan of endings like that. It feels incomplete and I'm left wanting more. If they're not doing a 2nd season, then 10 episodes weren't enough to really flesh out this story. On a positive note, the things that I was worried about before even beginning the drama, turned out not to be an issue. However, I could see some potential for criminal activity/prostitution being glamorized (for instance, prostitution didn't seem like a big deal until it was an underage girl doing it.) But every time the characters started to seem "cool" or too much like protagonists, something horrible would happen that would put everyone back where they belong. That reminds me, It was difficult watching a drama with no real protagonist. I felt bad rooting for anyone. I would just feel resigned and I would say "well...that's what you get for engaging in criminal activity." I'm not going to feel bad rooting for Mr. Lee though. 7/10
Direction/SFX/Music: The production was great; it felt very high quality. There were some clever dream sequence scenes that I really enjoyed. They didn't feel like your typical dream sequence. I usually can't stand them. The music really added to these strange scenes, as well. I don't care about music so much, but I do take notice when it heightens the experience for me (or worsens it). I think the OST played a huge part in giving this drama a very captivating vibe. 8/10
Entertainment Value: After I got past that 1st episode, it was a crazy ride. It was like watching a train wreck (but in a good way?) So much anxiety...very unpredictable. A fun but scary, stress-inducing ride. I don't want to say anything more about it because I don't want to give anything away. 8/10
It was difficult to give a final rating for this drama - it's either an 8/10 or an 8.5/10. I chose 8 more for personal preferences, which I don't want to expand on because it may be a bit of a spoiler.
After reading the synopsis, I was hesitant to watch this drama because I didn't want to see minors in sexual situations and engaged in very serious criminal activity. I was worried it may glamorize these kinds of lifestyles. Once I finally decided to give it a try, I almost dropped the drama after the 1st episode. It just didn't grab my attention and I felt the male lead's character and his motivations were boring and typical. Eventually, I gave it another shot and watched episode 2 and from then on, I was hooked.
Acting/Cast: I think this is my 1st time seeing most of these actors... at least in major roles (except for 남윤수 Nam Yoon Su). They all did a great job. Watching the male lead's personality unfold, stood out to me the most. I also liked watching the interactions between the female lead and her mother. 9.5/10
Writing: This category can be broken into 2 parts - character writing/dialogue and story writing. I feel that the character development was the strongest aspect of this drama. The psychological genre is my favorite when it comes to Korean dramas because of their ability to write compelling characters that grow or change in realistic ways during the course of their experiences. This drama is great example of that, especially in regards to the male lead's character. Unfortunately, with how great the character writing is, I felt the actual story writing was lacking in comparison. There were storylines that I was really interested in learning more about (mainly more about the female lead's mom and that industry and about Mr. Lee's background), but they were left unexplored. The ending was also done in a way that seems as though they were setting it up for a 2nd season, which would make sense as to why some major details of the story felt unfinished. Regardless, I'm typically not a fan of endings like that. It feels incomplete and I'm left wanting more. If they're not doing a 2nd season, then 10 episodes weren't enough to really flesh out this story. On a positive note, the things that I was worried about before even beginning the drama, turned out not to be an issue. However, I could see some potential for criminal activity/prostitution being glamorized (for instance, prostitution didn't seem like a big deal until it was an underage girl doing it.) But every time the characters started to seem "cool" or too much like protagonists, something horrible would happen that would put everyone back where they belong. That reminds me, It was difficult watching a drama with no real protagonist. I felt bad rooting for anyone. I would just feel resigned and I would say "well...that's what you get for engaging in criminal activity." I'm not going to feel bad rooting for Mr. Lee though. 7/10
Direction/SFX/Music: The production was great; it felt very high quality. There were some clever dream sequence scenes that I really enjoyed. They didn't feel like your typical dream sequence. I usually can't stand them. The music really added to these strange scenes, as well. I don't care about music so much, but I do take notice when it heightens the experience for me (or worsens it). I think the OST played a huge part in giving this drama a very captivating vibe. 8/10
Entertainment Value: After I got past that 1st episode, it was a crazy ride. It was like watching a train wreck (but in a good way?) So much anxiety...very unpredictable. A fun but scary, stress-inducing ride. I don't want to say anything more about it because I don't want to give anything away. 8/10
It was difficult to give a final rating for this drama - it's either an 8/10 or an 8.5/10. I chose 8 more for personal preferences, which I don't want to expand on because it may be a bit of a spoiler.
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