From the get-go, Confession was promising. The first case was exciting, given the unpredictability of the suspect. And so that path led the characters to other, overlapping ones, and they led to the final destination. The writer gave liberty to the audience to explore various scenarios along with the characters. Next thing you know, you are invested in the plot. My favourite occurrences happened in the court - it was a pleasure to see Choi Do Hyun / the lead cleverly handle affairs. Sometimes, particularly in the first half, you would expect the plot to go another direction, and may even want that to happen (like myself), but the second half ensured me that the writer knew what they were doing. The pace was maintained - it may have slowed in the middle, but not unnecessarily. The characters had connections with each other due to a single event - it's nothing new in kdramaland. yet it was impactful. I had a few complaints with regards to how distant the characters felt, but my worries were eased by episode 11.
I was torn about how I should rate the acting. The actors were not given roles that were complex, but they were not simple either, so I was satisfied but not won over. I was about to settle with 8.5, but one performance stood out to me, and I believe I will not do the actor justice by being greedy. He had a small role, but it has left an impact on many, including me: the suspect in the first case, played by Ryu Gyeong Su. He stole the spotlight. He was the character I was most drawn to, and I anticipated his appearance each episode. Of course, the main cast did good with what they were given. Lee Jun Ho was persuasive in his composed portrayal, and others stayed true to their respective roles. What I appreciated was the female leads' harmonious teamwork, and their guts, especially Ha Yoo Ri.
I liked the instrumental they used. It could be loud in certain instances, but I liked how it added to the moment and nature of the drama. The OSTs were not played, so I have no comments on that.
I am not sure if one would rewatch it, knowing all the progressions in plot. If you are someone like me, you might want to watch Choi Do Hyun being a smartass in court.
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Clever as a devil?
Jun Ho's character, Do Hyun, is a figure of heroic magnitude and energy. He deliberates, resolves and exults. His "spirit" bears up unbroken, resting on its own energy and requiring no support from anything external, not even from hope itselfHe undercuts his opponents by questioning what they had previously taken for granted. At times, he seems to be the only character who thinks, or in whom I best recognize what it feels like to think
The power to entangle and excite the audience is an observable feature of his figure. The greatness of his intellect lies in his intemperateness and ferocity
His heart is a tempestuous ocean, its "spirit" of justice/revenge the prow of a gallant ship, its sympathy the waves caressing the shoreline, and its determination the stormclouds that darken the horizon and bring the promise of cleansing rain. The "spirit" of justice/revenge is enhanced by the strain of something approaching tenderness. We see it again when Jun Ho (Do Hyun) is moved towards sympathy for those falsely accused of a crime. His will-power is not the expression of a nature irrevocably hardened or incapable of gentle emotion
What's missing? A season 2. Or a BL spin-off starring a man who will mend Jun Ho (Do Hyun)'s heart and wipe away his tears
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I really liked the characters from the lawyer, the detective, and even the criminals. The characters were well written and acted. I didn’t have even one moment when I thought a character was naive/not making sense. There is nothing more frustrating than that! All characters were smart and good at their roles. This drama even had you sympathizing with the criminals who were affected by the main villains.
Anyway, if you love corruption and criminal dramas, you should definitely watch it. It reminds me kind of the drama “Stranger” that I really loved and also recommend.
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I wish I could give this show a rating of 100/10.
Loved the story, the cast, their acting, the ost, the chemistry of all four leads with each other, the relationships they formed, the development in their lives over the course of the show, EVERYTHING.LOVED Lee Jun-Ho's chemistry with every single person in the show, LOVED THE FATHER SON BONDING MOMENTS BETWEEN HIM AND HIS ACTUAL FATHER, AND ALSO BETWEEN HIM AND DETECTIVE CHUN-HO, in most of those scenes I was sitting with a big smile on my face!!!
LOVED watching Madame Jin, her role was perfection, and the actress was tailored for it and I loved watching a woman in a role like that.
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Recommended 100%
The acting was really good and the story was quite entertaining as they revealed bits and pieces of info so that it wasn't just me waiting for the main characters to find out who the culprit is, I was trying to find out too. I don't normally listen to the music so I just gave it an 8 and I believe it is really entertaining. It is definitely on my list to rewatch but I might not because I believe a bit of what made the plot really entertaining was the slow reveal so knowing who the culprit is might make the show more difficult to enjoy.Was this review helpful to you?
I love it
It’s a kdrama you won’t see in suggestions because it doesn’t have romance but I LOVED the story and all the characters. I love Junho as an actor so that was a plus and so I watched it in 2018 when it came out, it’s indeed a great mystery, law and adventure kdrama!The acting is amazing and the story keeps you hooked, like you want to watch the next episode immediately after the other.
As I said there’s no romance but it’s has heartwarming moments and if I remember well I also cried during an episode.
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Came for Lee Junho, stayed for everything else
Confession is not a slick KDrama pushed out by platforms like Netflix that tries to be flashy to grab attention, but rather, Confession is crime in its purest form, and I highly respect and appreciate that.I was on a Lee Junho drama marathon, and therefore stumbled upon this one without too many expectations and my God was this binge-worthy. I've seen plenty of Korean Crime dramas, and this show quickly became one of my favourites which is why I'm surprised this does not seem to have much hype (perhaps it's too realistic?)
Knowing that Yoo Jaemyung (who played Ki Choonho) is also a talented actor that I've seen in plenty of other dramas, it certainly lived up to my expectations. The story writing stood out most to me - the way that the plot seemed to veer into many unrelated paths in the beginning, only to all come back tying nicely together for the finale. The pacing was on point, not too slow nor long. Each episode left viewers with many questions, just like the characters themselves, but also leaving us wanting more - as though we are trying to solve the puzzle alongside the characters which really gets the viewer invested.
Going back to my realistic point, this show is definitely no frills no fanciness typically found in other KDramas (like Vincenzo - don't get me wrong I love Vincenzo for the extravagance and humour). This show is just pure focus on fighting corruption and rooting for justice to prevail. We actually don't find out much about the character's personalities or personal lives other than what is relevant to the story. However, this didn't prevent the viewer from becoming invested in the show. To some, this might make the characters feel a bit unfinished (?), but I feel like this was an intentional decision to keep the focus on the already complicated story, rather than being distracted by the characters' personal lives. This really worked in favour for the show.
On a side note, I was also impressed with Junho's acting. Confession, to me was the drama that really solidified his career and transition from an idol to an actor. By far his acting in Confession is miles better than his previous roles. It got to the point where I actually forgot he was Lee Junho from 2PM, but Choi Dohyun the Lawyer (whereas in other dramas, I'm still painstakingly aware that he is Lee Junho). Well done Junho.
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The style of storytelling follows such that there is a main arch in the story which becomes the focal point of investigation interest by the lead characters (which I find the most skilful way of writing a crime/investigation stories because you are less likely to end up with problematic plot holes). There are no filler cases that are thrown in between because everything serves a purpose/puzzle case to the main story arch (so in that way, it's praise-worthy very neatly done). The other law drama that has multiple filler cases thrown in and therefore dragged or loses steam midway in its storytelling of the main antagonist is Suspicious Partner. You can be assured that didn't happen here. Side note: you must watch Hello Monster if you liked Suspicious Partner (same writer but miles better).
The biggest strength of this drama is its plotline, it's so incredibly sophisticated. Stranger skilfully develops its story and events around multiple main characters who are shaded to be the main culprit, whilst in Confession, the writer identifies the antagonists head-on but shades their level of involvement in the main story arch. In both stories there are similar themes: 1) crime cases that lead to a bigger corruption case and 2) support cast antagonists who are involved in a murder case and have an association with the main culprit.
That being said, although I am a huge fan of the writer's skilful writing, I find the writing of the characters incredibly dry. This is the first of anything I have seen Lee Jun Ho in, and I must admit that he's a very strong actor, but his character is very bland and often times stoic. There were only a few moments where we get to see him loosen up with Detective Ki, but they were very limited! There's also very limited chill interaction between Choi Do Hyun and his other teammates at the law office which I find regretful because there was definitely a potential to make their interactions much more interesting. What made me pulled through most times is really the gorgeousness of Lee Jun Ho (in physicality besides his great acting).
In that sense, the quartet is only brought into the story to add usefulness to the main investigation, and they were not given enough colours/layers to add balance or loosen the overall tension/mood/temperament of the story. This is why by the time I arrived at the last three/four episodes, I was already very exhausted from watching it and moved around shows a lot until I finally landed on Doctor Prisoner (which I happen to finish first without intending). True enough, the eventual downfall of the main villains in this story felt slightly lacklustre in the last two episodes given their evil forms are not given enough impact - again, it's the problem with the way of their characterization rather than the story itself.
What I am saying here is, if you want to see how the main/support characters can be incredibly interesting or tastefully written in a revenge thriller drama, then Doctor Prisoner is THE place to go to.
The BGM at the end of every episode is really great and fit nicely to the overall temperament of the story, and the rewatch value for this one is probably average due to the nature of the genre itself.
The last scene, ouhh the last scene by Choi Do Hyun wearing that uniform in the court was such a blessing to the eye. Not giving any spoiler here, but that man is just so gorgeous! The ending is so nicely done, and now this drama is complete to me, LOL.
Overall, I'd say in a heartbeat that this show definitely sits in the top tier of law K-Dramas of all time. I had no choice but to deduct marks because the characters can be too bland/stiff to my liking, but the story itself is definitely worth 9 stars and above (especially if what bothered me does not bother you).
Enjoy your watch!
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okay
One of the most vanilla mystery/law/thrillers, it plays it very safe throughout. It tries to be as friendly to the viewers as possible. Not necessarily a bad thing but sometimes it can come across as too ordinary especially the 2nd half. Speaking of ordinary, the characters, none of them had the special spark or the x factor. They needed more "character" in them.Was this review helpful to you?
