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Brilliant crime/mystery similar to "Broadchurch"
I watched this series after watching Flower of Evil. I thought Lee Joon-gi was superb in the series but was puzzled that he lost to Shin Ha Kyun. So I watched Beyond Evil to satisfy my curiosity.Beyond Evil is highly recommended if you are looking for crime/mystery with brilliant writing and phenomenal acting. This drama is in my top 5 kdrama list.
What I like:
1) Sublime acting by Shin Ha Kyun. I was mesmerised by his performance (various facial expressions - he even once fooled me!) and and handsomeness. I sound silly but my gosh, he was very handsome in this series.
2) Brilliant writing - there were many twists & grey areas. It's hard not to side with Dong-sik despite some of his dubious decisions. This series reminds me of British drama series called "Broadchurch" because of the similar premise (murder in small town). Supporting characters were well-written too,
3) Han Joo-won's characterisation - I enjoy seeing his character development and conflicts that he faced,
4) The score - one of best scores for a drama series regardless of country of production. I love 'Who is Monster', 'Beyond Evil opening theme', '2000 Mayang' very much that they are in my music playlist.
5) I love the interrogation scenes. Interesting to see strategies deployed to get statements or info.
6) I learned about makgeolli from this series. When I travelled to Busan in 2023 and saw makgeolli, I thought of this series.
What I dislike:
1) I think at one point, I thought there were too many red herrings that I was slightly lost in the plot.
Favourite scene:
The arrest scene in the final episode remains my favourite scene. Emotional punch!
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Amazing :)
I don’t often use my time to write a review because I’m not really good with words but it will be a shame not to write one about this show.First, it’s amazing! The actors really did great in portraying the roles that I always want to go inside the screen and stab them myself lol
I also like the way they drop the twists at the end of the episodes. They always caught me off guard, I was like “ohhh so he’s the one” THEN WHAT THE FUCK HE ISNT!?????!!!??
The music was good too!!!
One thing I dislike about it tho is sometimes they go in circle and like they are dragging it too much to reach 16 episodes BUT THEY WERE ABLE TO GIVE JUSTICE TO THAT. Actually on the late episode my thought was, please dont end 😭
overall this is one of the shows that is really worth your time so please go and watch it!
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A profound and poignant series.
I have to say that Korean series excel in thriller, suspense and detective genre.Here I must say that this overall has a superb production, direction and themes are dark which goes in line with the story being told.
We discover a small town supposedly quiet but with a name attached to a bloody and heavy history.
This story goes back to a series of disappearances and murders that happened 20 years earlier.
I must say that the direction is great, we got flashbacks at the most critical moments, the tension is at its height and these flashbacks not being omniscient, they can be misleading and leave us with lots of questions for the future.
So we have a narration of the facts of 20 years ago in parallel with the resurgence of this case which has never been resolved in current day.
A young detective, not so innocent as that, takes the initiative to continue this case, which leads to an unfortunate situation and the plot becomes more complicated. Especially since it turns out that one of the suspects from 20 years ago is now one of the small town police, and he's as dark and deranged as his reputation suggests.
I'll leave the plot here, without saying more, but I must tell you that the story and script were very well written, especially to highlight the acting of the characters.
Having dark tones, the main characters are just as dark, especially those of the small town, who carry a heavy sadness, a lot of pain due to the disappearances and the questions that have never been answered.
Over the course of the series, we begin to suspect everyone - which often happens in detective series - and sometimes with good reason.
The character of Shin Ha Kyun is overwhelming, he is very complex, intelligent and raw, we can feel his pain, his hopes and doubts. He definitely deserves his Best Actor - Television at 57th Baeksang Arts Awards. His character is striking, and it is difficult to forget such a performance.
He is joined in this series with a young actor, Yeo Jin Goo, who plays the young detective ready to stir up the past. Who also delivers a beautiful performance, his character struggles a lot in the series, to know who to trust, but above all how to discover the truth. He has amazing chemistry with Shin Ha Kyun.
For the secondary characters, they are all equally mysterious, complex and their characters have been well written and acted.
To sum up, if you like good productions, plot and character driven, in very dark, mature and complex police and human tones. Then this series is for you.
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A second watch review
The series is just as good as I remember so I've kept the score the same. Although there are plenty of crime series out there, this one shines for multiple reasons:-- The lineup of actors are fantastic and they all mesh really well together. The bonds between the group is weighed heavy but this is also why it feels real.
-- Although the series revolves mostly around the mystery of a violent crime, almost each episode just slowly peels off one layer of the unknown at a time with great pacing.
-- There are many times I really want to reach into the screen to grab the arrogant and young male lead... and just shake him really hard. His actions and mentality were so irking but you will eventually empathize with him as his past unravels and as he learns to face himself.
-- Although the situations feel quite depressing at times as you are introduced to many individuals with some heavy and complex trauma that they live with, it also manages to create a nice wrapping of warmth. Our "darker" male lead will also give you quite a few laughs just because of who he is.
-- Although a tad gruesome at times maybe for some, there isn't an over-dramatization of crime scenes. It isn't one of those that tries to play CSI but it still respects common sense. I really appreciate this actually. It didn't need any of the unnecessary addition for it to be intriguing.
My only nits are that they sometimes repeat flashback scenes a little too much but this is probably needed if you aren't binge-watching. And as mentioned above, the young lead just irks you quite often with his personality for quite some episodes but also as mentioned, he does make up for it well. Highly recommended for those who enjoy crime dramas without all the showy aspects. Even at a second watch, I still didn't feel the need to speed up any of the episodes.
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Hands down best crime show I put my time into.
Sure, it's a slow-pacing story, BUT it's worth it. The plot twist is interesting too. Every action they make is essential to the story, down to the point where Lee Dongsik didn't show up to eat that night with the rest of the group and knew all along, to the point where it wasn't even Park Jung Je that killed LYY. It was all so interesting that I had binged this within 2 days' time. I was captivated, the relationship between the two main characters was also interesting, as how they were portrayed and how they acted.Han Juwon and Lee Dongsik have a relationship that I NEED. They both had gone from blaming each other to taking the blame for each other. I can never forget who or how they are, the way they act is stuck in my mind, especially in the last episode. All the episodes of this show made me think so hard. they were all definitely a 9/10 AT LEAST for each episode.
Love the characters, episode, story, and relationship. Character development is important in this as well as relationship development.
This show also displays how many risks some people would go through to not ruin their reputation. To be honest, if I could, I would erase this show from my memories just to watch it again.
(Also I love "The Night" so points for music)
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It was a story about humans and human nature, defects of the legal system, morality and family relations.
"The blood is thicker than water."
A play of expressions and symbols.
The camera work was beautiful; it struck me in the very first episode.
The characters were complex and well played out.
Music really amazing not only as a use in the story, but also a in itself.
Overall, one of the best ones I've watched.
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It reminded me a bit of Twin Peaks.
As in:
A new cop goes to a weird small town, in which everyone seemes to have secrets.
I'd say Beyond Evil and Twin Peaks cross eachother somewhere, but are going elsewhere.
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Heavy story but clever. Solid Acting from MLs. Weak logic on subplots, though.
Love how the plot keeps twisting time and again. Just when I think I’ve figured it out, it flips to another direction. And these twists don’t rely on cheap tricks like hiding information that other characters already know.However, there's this part that feels off, which is Ji Hwa’s past marriage. It comes out of nowhere near the end and feels unlikely. There’s no real setup between them earlier, so it’s hard to believe they ever had feelings for each other.
Another relationship that doesn’t quite land for me is between Han Joo Won and his father. The story doesn’t build enough foundation for their conflict, so his hostility toward his dad feels confusing at times.
Overall, the story feels heavy, but clever, thoughtful and layered.
Note: The acting of the congresswoman is pretty annoying. She overacts and, as a result, looks fake.
𓂃 ✦ 𓂃
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A hidden bromance
It justifies the title 'Beyond Evil' in the whole show🤌🤌. I read many reviews stating that it was very slow paced, which I would agree but it doesn't hore you. There's that excitement to know more and by each episodes, I had my jaw dropped. The landing of the twists were so fine. I overall loved the show.The factor of knowing what would happen next is completely taken away from you; while I would be guessing something the complete opposite would be happening.
That man....Lee Dong Shik he looked so good the entire show even if he is old.
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First kdrama I ever watched and it's still my favorite. The mystery actually kept me on my toes! I was actually surprised at most of the twists, however the real stand out in this series was the relationships between the townspeople.
Lee Dong-sik is still one of my favorite male leads in any drama I've seen since this. The performance was so versatile, complex and very well done. I felt for him, my heart broke for him as he watched what was left of his family seemingly fall apart. The scene where he lost the chief actually made me cry. They built such a wonderful character that was flawed and full of capacity for love and hate. He really wanted to take care of everyone in the town and, when Han joined the force, he was brought into that circle of protection, whether he wanted to be or not.
Han seemed like the typical aloof, cold guy character. He refrained from making connections because he wasn't comfortable with them. The townspeople's closeness obviously was a lot for him, but he came to accept them in his own way. His partnership with Lee Dong Sik was wonderful to watch!
I loved Jae-yi and her story broke my heart. The connection between her and Lee Dong-sik as they both bonded over loosing important women in their lives was very well written. She was also such a strong character.
The villains seemed a bit one note but as the show really dug into their lives and motivations, they get more complex. The overarching cause of pain in this series was largely due to greed and how that motivated people to let an unspeakable evil continue terrorizing their community.
One of the most surprising elements of this show for me was that there was no romance in this. The deepest, most well developed relationship in it was the partnership between Lee Dong-sik and Han Joo-wan and the actors had wonderful chemistry.
A big recommend from me. I still think about this show often.
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One of the best and most underrated bromances
It was everything! The story kept you on edge, and the acting from both ML's were so good. We were introduced to Yeo Jin-goo through this drama and have since almost watched all of his works. Such an awesome actor. The story keeps you guessing until the very end and it's worth it. The last two to three episodes will spike your anxiety, and then give you a bittersweet ending.We will say that not everything may seem as it is with Han Joo Won (in a good way).
He honestly does everything because he works by the books.
In the start, we thought he was either working with his father or had it in for Lee Dong Shik.
The OST was also brilliantly done. It only adds to the emotions.
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After reading so many rave reviews, I was convinced that I would love this drama, unfortunately that wasn't the case!It started off really well, with a rural setting that I liked, and I followed it with interest until episode 8 (I was surprised by the revelation so early on), but after that it was so irritating and downhill.
The cast was excellent, I don't doubt that, but I found the actors really too "relegated" to their roles:
Lee Dong Shik has all these ambiguous expressions to make us believe something we ultimately know he didn't do, I found his sinister laugh and grins, repeated to the point of exasperation, forced and theatrical;
Han Joo Won is also a character who is very difficult to empathize with, he comes across as so unlikeable! I read that there was a bromance between the ML and I wonder if I saw the same thing as the others...I found their relationship, with its repetitive hostility and distrust, unnatural and tiring. Obviously I blame the direction and the script, not the actors.
As I said, after episode 8 there was almost a change in style that confused and bored me. The long scenes of the table conversations between the congresswoman and the slimy CEO were soporific for me, who detests these political and bureaucratic power games.
Some scenes seem cut off halfway, I imagine intentionally to create suspense and show them "complete" later, to surprise the audience, but I simply found them poorly edited.
After giving up at 12, I read the ending and am glad I didn't waste any more time.
Not even a particularly brilliant story; it was deliberately convoluted and difficult to follow (due to the flawed script), soporific, and failed to intrigue me or connect with the characters. In the end, I didn't care what happened next, and that's the worst thing for a thriller.
I don't even remember the music, so nothing memorable in my opinion.
I apologize for any grammatical errors, english is not my native language.
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