Completed
Rita95
5 people found this review helpful
Jun 5, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
This review may contain spoilers

I came out feeling somewhat satisfied.

After watching the trailer and teasers, I was very excited. I get a mafia/legal crime drama with not only Song Joongki (SJK) but there is also Ok Taeckyeon (OTY) [SIGN ME UP!!!] You kind of get what your expecting but then some curve balls are thrown in. The story overall was somewhat predictable but still holds your interest. Some of the plot twists just come out of left field and it is glorious. There is a lot more comedic relief than one (one meaning I) would have expected. A lot of the characters have complex backgrounds and developments which is really nice. Netflix has a record for only giving few characters depth and I am glad more of them were incorporated . Acting was good overall. I know times that its not always the acting is bad but its the way the characters are written and directed. If there were cases of bad acting then it was the production/writing time this time. I have seen the main leads acting before , so I can tell the difference. When the comedy parts come in , the secondary characters/actors steal the show.

The music was good. I liked it more than I thought I would. Now that I am trying to remember any of the songs that were played , I can't really do it. Some songs were really good but sadly not really rememberable .

Overall, Vincenzo was a good watch and I don't have any regrets watching it. That being said, I have several problems with the show. Some could be just because tropes or flaws of the written characters. I for one like the violence (fight scenes, torture, etc.) especially if it was JK and TY. It is a "watch only once "type of drama. I may watch the last episode again if there is a another season just to refresh but not otherwise.

Things I didn't like (possible spoilers not sure):

(1)What I didn't like was the need to make the main leads into a couple (love interests). I would have like a platonic relationship between the two. They didn't have a couple chemistry but they did work well with each other. The writers wrote in several ...and I mean SEVERAL cases of bisexuality but used them for comedic humor. I would have made sense if Vincenzo was written as a bisexual character. And if not bisexual, maybe bi-curious at the least. The only verified lgbtq+ representation was in the "closest" and an serial assaulter. Yeah, that's a no for me.

(2) Some of the comedic relief scenes where just plain dumb and over kill.

(3) For me, the female lead was so annoying closer to the middle. The character had so much potential but they decided to make her a cliché. How do you start out so annoying yet badass to just plain annoying. I saw development in her but it was an overnight flip of the switch type of development. One to were it hits you how quick her selective moral change. They tried to make her intimating but that fell through because she was used for too much of the comedic relief before hand. She was going to be one of my fave characters but they ruined it.

(4) Why did the fact that Vincenzo being in the mafia become a public thing. there were scene where they would openly talk about him being in the mafia in public places (stores, bars, restaurants, the damn street). FOR WHY!!!!?

(5) There is one more thing but I can't explain why it irritates me without giving more spoilers. So I'll stop here.

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Completed
ManaSura
5 people found this review helpful
May 6, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 5
Overall 7.0
Story 5.5
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 6.0
Vincenzo might not be the first noire drama out there, but it sure went full throttle with the genre, what with Mafia, deep state corruption, torture, revenge, murder and everything in between. But other than the usual noire that mixes in a pinch of drama, and a dash of romance, it mixed quite a large dollop of comedy. Whether the recipe works or not, depends on each viewer, so while some might have found the dose of comedy a tad too much, others found it was just the right amount and loved the drama all the more for it. I for one, could have appreciated a more balanced recipe, but I still enjoyed it all in all.

From the drama's kickoff, you become attracted to the original premise, the fast paced plot and the sleek execution. An Italian mafia family's consigliere of Korean origin heads back to Korea to retrieve a vault full of gold.
The first few episodes while a little slow paced served well to introduce the characters and pave the ground for the story, and during that phase the comedy was just to the right level and served its purpose, to show the sudden shift in the hero's life and the jarring difference between his background in Italy and what he finds himself thrown into in Korea. I was laughing with tears at vincenzo's demise upon arriving at Korea, and enjoyed the comedic relief in the simple interactions with the side characters and even simple moments like our mighty hero begging a pigeon to shut up so that he can go to sleep, only to have the pigeon raid his bedroom.
The start of the drama was craftly done to show the gap between our hero's true identity and past, and how his move to a different environment surrounded with simple common people affected his demeanour, state of mind and even somehow his priorities. The more he dived deeper into the lives and struggles of the simple plaza tenants, the more he drifted a little further from his dark mafia background, though eventually he relied on his mafia expertise but this time for nobler causes.

As I said, earlier on in the show the comedy served a purpose and was to a degree well-balanced, giving the right amount at the right time. For example, I was LOLing at the scenes where the undercover NIS agent with a Mafia-mania spying on Vincenzo always seemed to see things from an angle that made him mistake vicenzo for an angel in disguise, a mafia with a huge soul and a good conscience.
But the more the drama progressed, the more I guess the writers wanted to stay true to their forte or something, and slapstick comedy started to hit in huge doses. I have no problem with mixing comedy with other genres however serious and heavy they might be, but the right formula depends on the type, amount and timing of the said comedy. In Vincenzo's case, the comedy scenes were sometimes so sudden and ridiculous they kind of felt like a hit in the face especially if they came right after a tragic and intense scene, it left me sometimes with an urge to rub my eyes in disbelief. Comedic relief is one thing, but it should never be so sudden and so slapstick that it totally takes you out of the mood of the drama and pulls you away from the story. (Side mention, the excessive PPL as usual was extra distractive. ugh!!!!)

Putting the comedy aside, like any thriller the main plot relies on a series of confrontations, of attacks and counterattacks. The antagonists plot a scheme, and the protagonist hits back. This format is expected, but unfortunately in vincenzo's case it eventually caused a certain sense of repititiveness. The more the plot progressed, and the more complicated and elaborate the attacks became, the more it relied on unexpected twists and fake cliffhangers, where it essentially became a loope of "the bad guys plot against vincenzo > a cliffhanger shows vincenzo in a pinch > flashbacks in the first few minutes of the following episode show that vincenzo was informed or expected the bad guy's plot and was well prepared and that the whole thing was a ruse and he comes out without bearing even one scratch". While the first few times it felt cool and smart, the more such gotcha moments increased the more it started to feel annoying, repetitive and strangely and ironically predictive. Having our all-mighty anti-hero always conquering and ending up having the upper hand does feel good, but having it happen in that manner most of the time could end up dampening the suspence and killing the thrill, as if the writers start a huge fire only to dump water on it after mere seconds before it even reached a point of being thrilling. You're left watching not worried whether or not he will come out fine, but rather wondering what he has up his sleeves this time.

The acting overall takes a 7, a special shoutout goes to Taecyon for his marvelous performance, hands down the strongest out of all the cast. SJK as usual gave a very solid performance, though at times a little monotone, which I think was mostly due to the writing than anything. The FL's performance was my least favourite among the the main cast (more on that later), first drama for her and I am no fan.

In terms of characters;
First, Vincenzo was a very well written anti-hero and SJK was perfect in the role. He was charismatic, cunning, smart, mysterious and strong-willed, The perfect villain to fight off villains, though to be honest I would have preferred it if the writers had toned down his invincibility level a bit, he doesn't have to lose the fight, but at least show him with a more serious injury than a little scratch every once and a while you know. the background story of his birth and upbringing while very brief, still helped flesh out his character and give it more depth. In terms of character development, under layers and layers of endless charisma and coollness, SJK was able to portray the slighest hints of change of heart nothing major to call development though, and eventually the drama stuck to the point and chose no major redemption, which personally I found more convincing and believable.

The FL on the other hand I had mixed emotions concerning her. I started off hating her and not because of how intially she was ambivalent to justice and rude to her father, but simply because her whole personna felt obnoxious and her nonchalant attitude was sometimes over the top and annoying. The actress' comedy portrayal felt somewhat theatrical and ridiculous, she was supposed to be a smart, strong and competent lawyer, but she sometimes came out as naïve, noisy and spoilt brat. There were moments early in the drama where I genuinely doubted if the actress was doing an impersonation of Jun Ji Hyun in Legend of the Blue Sea, that'show much comical her acting was, she felt like a mermaid out of sea ?. I did eventually manage to come around and accept her only to start questioning her principles in aiding vincenzo's agenda wholeheartedly the way she did, no matter how brutal and lawless it became.
But unfortunately one impression that never changed when it came to the main leads.... was the lack of chemistry between them. I never truely felt a spark between the two of them, but it might just be me, cause he acted so cool and composed all the time, and she was so over the top with her reactions and expressions, that I felt he surely must be annoyed by her as much as I am (LOL), also I never bought the fact he developed romantic feelings for her, it felt kind of forced. And although It is always a downer not to feel enough chemistry to be rooting for an OTP, but thank God this is not a rom-com and romance was never the center plot here. The first kiss scene was pretty good though I gotta admit :)

The side characters (Geumga Plaza tenants) were mostly endearing and I was especially grateful that the writer chose not to delve too much deep and give each of them an episode with a detailed story like other dramas choose to do. Above all they served as a catalyst to Vincenzo's purpose in staying in Korea, helped give him a certain sense of beloging and taught him the meaning of trust, and later became sorta his secret sidekicks, which might have been fun at first but later I found was a bit of a stretch and overdone on the writers side, like others pointed out here in the reviews, having all these people with hidden fighting abilities somehow gathered under one roof by chance was too farfetched!!

Last but not least, the villains (since the show had its fair share of those, 80% of the characters were evil for God's sake) some of them were portrayed too evil and too much lacking a conscience to a degree that was hard to swallow, but they still somehow came out believable, and thankfully they never felt as incompetent like in other shows, which was a great feat considering vincenzo was literraly undefeated all the time lol.
Though personally I would have preferred a bit of an origin story for lawyer Choi, other than being a weird ajumma who dances zumba in public, since imo she was the most worthy adversary to vincenzo. And considering the fact that the drama already had its share of bornt-psychopath main villain, not being provided with any background knowledge of what turned lawyer choi to the path of evil (to a murderous degree at that) made it feel like we had two murderous psychopaths that just happened to cross paths and join hands.

The OST (mostly instrumental) had a bunch of cool tracks, and some were very well utilized to enhance the comedy scenes.

Vincenzo was a drama loaded with originality in terms of premise, interesting characters, and an overall thrilling vibe. although it suffered from minor issues with the plot, the pace and the balance of the comedy, I still have to admit I appreciated its originality and high end production, and overall enjoyed watching it, flaws and all.
I apologise for the lengthy review.

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Completed
sapphicdisaster
5 people found this review helpful
Jun 5, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 9.5

The best dumb fun I have ever had

The second I saw the trailer I knew, that I would love this series. And I do, I honestly and truly love Vincenzo. It's been a while since I have had this much fun with a drama. But I am not going to sit here and pretend like this isn't an incredibly dumb show.

Vincenzo is an experience that is kind of hard to put into words. At first, I had problems connecting with this drama. I wasn't sure what to make of it. The first few scenes promised a high-stake thriller with a sinister feel. Then it suddenly turned into an off-beat comedy just like two scenes later. But Vincenzo is both of these things and neither. It's too gory to be a comedy and way too silly to be a genuine action thriller. The tone of this show is all over the place. But weirdly enough it sort of works.
As I fell in love with the quirky cast of this drama, I caught myself forgiving all of Vinceno's shortcomings. Those shortcomings include: A completely nonsensical plot with countless plotholes, cheesy dialogue, an overpowered lead, rushed plotlines, and confusing character arcs. This might all sound harsh but all my critique doesn't change the fact that I was incredibly entertained throughout the entire series. At times I laughed at the show, at times I laughed with it, but in the end, I always laughed, so who am I to complain.

Yes, this show has some fundamental problems. I have said before that it is riddled with plot holes but a big one is Vincenzo himself. The show is so scared of letting Vincezos fail at anything, that the incredibly high-stake premise starts to feel a bit pointless at some points because you always know that Vincenzo has the upper hand anyway. All attempts by our villains to bring him down get destroyed, oftentimes in the very same episode or even just ten minutes later. That makes Vincenzo feel less and less like an actual character and more like a Mafia version of Superman, a hyper-competent, invincible, supernatural being, everyone, and I mean absolutely everyone in the show, is in love with (the homo-eroticism in this drama is undeniable). I also wish we could have seen more bad-ass Hong Cha-young moments. She's supposed to be this super successful smart lawyer but 80% of the time, Vincenzo does all the work . I know that it's just one of the tropes that come with a Korean romance drama but watching her having to get saved by him time and time again did get a bit old.
While I love this huge and entertaining cast, it did feel like this show bit off a bit more than it could chew, which honestly is kind of amazing because it is so long and it still didn't really get the chance to develop each character. Some plot-lines here did feel a bit rushed as a result of that. This sadly also was the case with the romance between the two leads, which is a shame because I think they definitely had chemistry. I felt like their dynamic could have been explored more but unfortunately, the drama had more than enough on its plate already.

Still, while this show does get pretty dumb, there is a lot I sincerely like about it. I think the villain in this, while he is comically evil, is super fun and you can't say that the actor didn't give it his all. His over-acting is part of the charm here, to be honest. I thought Choi Myung-he was also a really fascinating, three-dimensional character and I enjoyed every scene with her. I also love a good redemption arc and a lovable himbo and this show offered both in one. The cast in general was really fun and different and there were many lovable characters to root for. The last few episodes were especially satisfying to watch and the finale didn't let me down either. While I have argued that Vincenzo's character was ridiculously overpowered, it would be a lie if I claimed I didn't love just watching him toy with the bad guys. And last but not least, I have never really gotten Korean humor, but in this show most of the time it worked for me. Others referring to Vincenzo as "corn salad" instead of consigliere will always crack me up.
While remarkable cinematography or editing isn't the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about this show, it still looks pretty cool and most shots get the point across while looking stylish, without feeling too showoff-y. The editing often adds to the humor and quirkiness of the show and the action scenes are also very well-cut.
The actors were great, of course. Vincenzo's actor really did try his best with his Italian lines so I gotta give credit where credit's due. I have already mentioned the villain's performance but his acting especially stood out to me and I just loved watching everything he did, no matter how insane it was.
I should probably say something about the OST as well but I honestly can't remember a single song from this show so I assume it was neither particularly great nor bad.

After I finished this drama I just sat down and asked myself: "Would I recommend this show?". And the answer is kind of. But you need to know what you're getting into. Don't come to Vincenzo and expect any realism. Don't expect anything believable or particularly meaningful from this show, otherwise, you will be disappointed. Just embrace it for its wackiness. Vincenzo promises an absolutely insane premise. And it delivers. The setup is insane. The characters are insane. The villain especially is insane. Everything about it is so over-the-top and off-beat, I don't think it's possible to not have at least a tiny bit of fun with this. But you gotta meet the show where it's at. Don't question anything. I am serious. Turn your brain off for those 20 episodes or your head will hurt.

I enjoyed Vincenzo the most when it leaned into its insanity. I couldn't really bring myself to care about all the times it tried to be depressing or deep. I had the most fun when it was just trying to entertain.
I feel like oftentimes films and TV shows are so dead-set on being edgy and clever, that they forget to be fun. Sometimes, after a long sad day, I don't want to see something witty and award-winning. I don't want to be out-smarted. I want to watch a Korean man try really hard to convince me that he knows Italian. I don't like that we measure art by how contrived it is. There's a time and space for dark, realistic, gritty stuff, obviously, but there should also be a time and place for a silly action show like this.

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Completed
ZeroIndexed
6 people found this review helpful
May 3, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 6.0
This review may contain spoilers

Very good one time watch

Minor Spoilers Ahead.

Could it have been better? Yes
Is it over the top? Very much
Did i like it? Yes

Know what you're going in for before you start watching. It's just your regular hero saves the day kind of drama. But it's entertaining and that's what i wanted.

Story could have been so much better. Had a lot of scope to make the title character a cold blooded killer. They did show some shades of it at the end. But if they'd dived into that part a bit more i would have liked it. Kind of like Dexter.

Overall it's a good drama and deserves a watch. 8.5/10

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Completed
Sarah G
6 people found this review helpful
Mar 10, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 10

You need to watch this. It’s lit ?

It’s just so cool. It gives you a thrill knowing that they are going to fight for justice but, they have to fight fire with fire. It’s not done yet but, this will be on the my list of rewatching over again. I can’t wait for all the episodes cause it’s killing me waiting every week for the next episode. I need to have all the episodes now, all the cliffhangers especially on episode 6 is killing me. I might die from it. Like how can I not want more Song Joong Ki. Everyone wants some shiiiiiii
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Ongoing 17/20
Cardoor
18 people found this review helpful
Apr 18, 2021
17 of 20 episodes seen
Ongoing 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

BEST. DRAMA. EVER

This drama is not getting enough hype. Cannot believe it didn’t get more noms for awards. (Only best actor nom). The MUSIC ! The DIRECTION! The special way some scenes are shot. ? Un freakin believable. What a roller coaster ride this show is ??? AND what a great comedic actress Jeon Yeo-been is. Oh My God! She is brilliant. I will watch this drama over and over again. I am begging for a complete soundtrack❗️ ALL THE MUSIC. Not just the main songs but music even from scenes that the songs have no words and it’s just playing behind the scene
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Completed
Citygirl_27
3 people found this review helpful
Jul 27, 2022
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Most satisfying series ever

I have watched it 4 times and it’s still one of my most favorite and go to series. I loved it a lot and it’s extremely satisfying! The whole cast deserves kudos!
I wish and hope they release a season 2 for this! My non kdrama family watched it and fell in love with this series that they now recommended it to their relatives!
I can’t express how addicting and satisfying this series was. If you haven’t watched it yet, please go and watch and be a little patient till episode 4. The story picks up so good around ep 4.
WATCH IT NOW!!!
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Completed
Laly
4 people found this review helpful
May 10, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 2
Overall 7.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 3.0

Not my cup of tea !

I didn't like how story progressed ! Sometimes it was fun but absurd ! Inzaghi saving Vinshenzo ? WTF! I was skipping many scenes ,because each time it became quite draggy and boring .

Sincerely I had high expectations for Song's new drama after watching him in Arthdal ​​Chronicles,(I need season 2 T-T ) but I didn't feel that attraction for his character, like when you say wow he's great! It didn't happen to me!

Instead I was more shocked by how they portrayed the villain, the president of Babel, the actor did a good job and his step brother was charismatic ~ I expected a better ending for him because we did see his growth through the drama :c

I'm the only one who thinks that the romance was unnecessary ???? I mean their relationship as an "avengers team " was enough. I didn't feel chemistry between them as a couple !

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Completed
Ijustwantwhattheyhavetbh
4 people found this review helpful
Jun 20, 2022
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 8.5
This review may contain spoilers

It's extremely overHATED.

its extremely overhated ??
i really needa stop listening to these reviews cuz that made me go in ready to dislike the show and it ended being one of my favourites.
yall saying its trying to be too many things at once?They stated that in the genre section, its so hard to please u ppl why dont u go write , produce and direct a movie then.?
anyways the main villans did a good job cuz i hated them smmm and i was praying on their downfall ✋
im not good at giving detailed feedback but 10/10 i would definitely reccommend tho i suffered emotional trauma due to a specific death in the show ?.

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Completed
Dinny
4 people found this review helpful
Jun 24, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
This review may contain spoilers

Good story and cast but wayyy to long

At first when I start watching this drama, I felt this was just pure hype. A mafia guy, fear by the all country (Italy) was being played like I child when arrives in Korea. I thought the rest of the cast annoying, basically I disliked everything but gave a second chance and end up loving all the cast.

Positives: The people fo plaza made this drama for me. They all so friendly and funny, I laught like a mad woman in all their scenes, I like that they start helping Vincenzo on his revenge plans.
The acting of Taecyong was amazing, he improved so much I was so suprised.


Negatives: This drama is wayyyy to long. 20 episodes, each 1h25 min is too much. I usually love drama with long episodes but the story line here dragged ALOT. Everythinng could have end in 16 episodes and I dare to day even 13 episodes would be enough. I see people saying this drama dosen't feel too long when watching when it airs and I totally agree. Is near impossible to bringe watch this in one go, i sjust the same plot all over again.
The romance.... why inclued romance in this? KDRAMAS writers never learn. Just because this is a drama, we don't need a romance between the leads. They would be perfect as friends but no they added romance for no reason and gave us only 2 kisses and an open ending.. JUST WHY?

Overall: 7
Watch this if you want to have a good time, the plot start moving around episode 17 everything else is just fillers.

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Completed
manicmuse
7 people found this review helpful
May 2, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 4
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Perfect Score because it's Perfect for me.

"Vincenzo" is my ideal drama. It is suspenseful and ridiculous. It is a revenge thriller, a comedy, a romance, filled with action and touching moments, and some of the most literally mouth-open-shocking moments I've ever seen in a drama. It's actual LOLing and cheering moments. It's plot twists I could have never guessed. It's a cast full of characters I can never forget. I didn't even hesitate to give this all 10s. From beginning to the end Vincenzo did not disappoint and even exceeded all of my expectations. I was hooked from the start.

The cast is amazing, but Song Joong Ki as Vincezo is pretty iconic. He's so cool and nonchalant with his signature gold lighter that I totally bought into the Mafia consigliere plot from the very first scene... even with what is probably not the greatest Italian ever spoken (lol) I was sold. I love villains with depth and this drama is filled to the brim with them. Vincenzo, even with his mostly unbothered attitude, was such a nuanced character. Joong Ki with just a subtle facial expression would reveal so much. I loved this about him since "Sungkyunkwan Scandal". He is matched with Jeon Yeo Bin as Hong Cha Young, a lawyer of questionable morals, who I also instantly loved. She is strong and smart and completely goofy and can keep up with Vincenzo without crossing the moral line. Their chemistry is incredible, you can feel it through the way they just looked at each other, and although romance is never exactly the center of this drama the way their connection grows from beginning to the end makes it one of the things that made me love watching so much. They are a dream team - an ideal partnership. Think of any romance in this drama as growing love and respect more than cute moments, although there are a few replay-worthy classic romance scenes. Rounding out the leads is Ok Taec Yeon who is also brilliant and I was surprised I loved him so much in this. Is this a love triangle situation? In many ways yes, but definitely not in the way you probably expect. This is definitely a breakout role for him. Just the way he would call Ms. Hong "Sunbae" is an example of the subtle things that he did so well. All three of these characters have moments that are over the top ridiculous, super intense, as well as more intimate and emotional, and they each showed so much range. I was extremely impressed with all 3.

The rest of the cast is equally amazing. Again, many of these characters are super over the top but they still manage to add layers to make them feel care-worthy and relatable and not just characters to REALLY hate or comic filler. The villains are satisfyingly and even frighteningly evil. The heroes are unexpected and hilarious (think Kung Fu Hustle). I wish I could give every single character specific praise but that would lead to spoilers and the less you know when watching the better. This cast has absolutely no weak links. Not one.

That brings me to the writing and directing which I applaud for keeping me excited for every single episode. 20 episodes later, with each episode over an hour-long, I still wasn't ready for it to end. Normally I'm not that interested in business corruption plots but because it was so character-driven I couldn't help but care. There was a perfect balance of scenes that made me cry and laugh and gasp. The ending was also well done and so satisfying without making things too happy or too depressing. If you're looking for a realistic story just remember this is campy as much as it's suspenseful so some scenes are unbelievable in the most entertaining way. There are tropes but they are done so well it reminds me why those tropes work. The pace made every episode fly by. The cliffhangers at the end of each episode made the time until the next episode drag. I was anticipating how certain characters would get what they deserved and I loved how creative the revenge was. Those who get to just binge it all now are super lucky. Speaking of binging...

Would I watch this again? I already did. lol. Once I got super hooked I decided to rewatch older episodes during the week while waiting for the new ones. Yes, I was that obsessed. Yes, It was still good the second time, and some moments were even better when already knowing what was to come. I can see myself easily watching this multiple times.

I thought the soundtrack complemented this drama perfectly too. Whether pumping up the action sequences or the sweet and sentimental "Is this love" song or the music to end each cliffhanger or the monks' wedding song... I thought the music always worked so well with the story and was enjoyable but never too distracting.

My only complaint, and it's a minor one, are the ridiculous product placements. The show is so campy that it almost felt like a wink to the audience, but there really are so many obvious product spotlight moments. I say this even as I purposely made myself a cup of maxim coffee (yes the yellow packet) to watch the finale. Lol. I also had Makgeolli several times while watching. Con-grat-u-laaaaa-tions, they totally got me!

Overall, this is the most fun drama I've watched in a loooooong time. Please note that when I say fun I don't necessarily mean cute or light but rather exciting and thrilling. At its core, this is still very much a revenge thriller with lots of violence, action, and brutal deaths. If you're squeamish the violence is never too gratuitous but it isn't tame either. Also, If you like action and fight scenes there are lots. Even what looked like a nod to Bruce Lee that I appreciated.

Three strong themes that impacted me...
1. It takes a devil to take on a devil.
2. Things are rarely what they seem to be on the surface.
3. The importance of family.

The last part really got to me. I caught on pretty early that a show focused on a Mafia anti-hero would probably be about family but this theme, even in its silliest moments, really touched me. If you can handle rooting for a not-so-good guy, and the violence (which isn't too excessive but definitely the kind you should expect from a Mafia revenge story) this is a must-see drama. Without a doubt, "Vincenzo" is one of my new drama favorite dramas of all time. I think I even love corn salad after watching this! "Vicenzo" definitely lives up to the hype. I would be extra hyped if there were plans for a 2nd season, but even though I already miss it, and the ending certainly leaves room for one, that's probably overkill and I would also hate to ruin such a good thing. As it stands now this is a drama that ends on a high entertainment note and gets a standing ovation and multiple "Bravos" from me!

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Completed
Avanya
3 people found this review helpful
May 2, 2021
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Something really special about this drama!!! Must watch!!

Ok, wow just finished it...I am in shock mostly. This was an incredible drama in so many ways! It was incredible from start to finish, and there were just so many moments where I was in genuine shock and literally had "jaw-drop" moments! The story, characters, and overall feel of the drama was out of this world! Every moment of the drama felt thrilling, and not once was there a slow moment or anything that felt unnecessary. Overall, I want more!! I definitely want more of Hong Cha Young and Vincenzo!!! Hong Cha Young is my queen, one of the strongest female leads I have ever seen and I want to be just like her when I grow up! I absolutely love her and adore Jeon Yeo Bin's portrayal of her! I want more of all the tenants --> all of whom I love dearly!! Omg, this kdrama was something else! I think the chemistry of the entire cast and production staff was really good and is what made the drama so freaking good! I absolutely love every single character, the good and the bad, and the actors that played them did an absolutely incredible job!! I feel like I'm still in shock, I haven't processed everything that's happened. Still, though I love this drama. A LOT. It's something special! (I need more VinCha romance and babies though!!) Also, the soundtrack of this show was *chef's kiss --> so so good!!! 'I'm Always By Your Side' by John Park is the embodiment of what a love song should be, it is an OST that deserves awards! Ahhh, I love Vincenzo so much!!

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Vincenzo (2021) poster

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  • Score: 8.9 (scored by 84,678 users)
  • Ranked: #102
  • Popularity: #15
  • Watchers: 150,485

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