TRIGGER WARNING!
An excerpt from Desmond Tutu's book goes like, "If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse, and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality." Courage could be as fierce as fire, but bullying is as weak as smoke. For some, it could be a foregone past which they might forget as a flowing wind, but the it hunts down the victim for the rest of their lives. The consequences of such cases can be as serious as a war and it's been evidenced. The drama depicts this through the tale of a revenge game.Adapted from an animated movie of 2011 of the same title by the same author, "KING OF PIGS (돼지의 왕) [2022]" is a revenge cum chase thriller drama. Produced by 'Studio Dragon' & 'Hidden Sequence', the drama was distributed by TVING as an original OTT content.
The story follows a series of mysterious murder cases, that connects to one single person namely Hwang Kyung Min (Kim Dong Wook), who was a victim of heart-wrenching, continuous school bullying incident, 20 years ago. As the police attempts to track down the culprit and assemble pieces from the past, the circuitous involvement of one of their own people, detective Jung Jong Suk (Kim Sung Kyu), comes to surface, who was also the victim of the same. Kang Jin Ah (Chae Jung An) is a quick and intelligent detective who is a part of the investigative team. While the thrilling quest and chase for a criminal furthers, the unfolding of truth takes us, into the depths of school violence, the roles of different people in it and their outcomes.
There are many other familiar faces in the supporting roles as well but remarkable praises should be credited to all the child actors, playing the teenage counterparts of the current characters, all invoved in the school violence case. Special mentions for Lee Chan Yoo, Shim Hyin Seo and Choi Hyun Jin, playing Kyung Min, Jong suk and Kim Cheol, respectively.
Plot development was amazing. The Story straightaway starts with a death and gradually leads to subsequent investigation and then to another series of killings. This enables the furtherance of investigation and facts about these events start surfacing in fragments. The pilot episode served its job of captivating the attention of the viewers, and the further evolution is engaging. I don’t think there was any episode which didn’t have me awe, the performance, the characters, the stories and everything else was so masterfully drawn, that it makes you keep going. There were also many instances which I found triggering and had to pause or put on hold, so that I could recover, but thankfully I was able to bear them. There are several peak moments in the drama, from both the past and present, the former enraged and saddened me to extents whereas the latter made me relieved and angry. Coming to the ending sequences, it was magnificently plotted and excellently executed, leading to satisfactory outcomes. In simple words, the way it ended was very good and in fact, atypical and rare of the Kdrama trends; I am beyond convinced. In a way, I wish it were longer than 12 episodes but on the other hand I was relieved the trauma was over.
Tak Jae Young jakkanim debut as a young and budding writer through this drama, and though the drama is adapted, we must not assume that his job had been easy. Book to live action adaptions being the most difficult task, we could tell that an animation film to drama adoption would have been less unchallenging, however, they are still different. I wish jakkanim all the best for his future endeavours.
As one of the most talked directors, Kim Dae Jin PDnim has been active for over a decade and half, "Kill Me, Heal Me" being the most acclaimed. In my opinion, this drama is his second best though it was released on a web platform and poorly marketed, otherwise would have gained more attention. Oweing to his skills, the execution, screenplay management, scenario establishment, flow of story, connecting plots, revelations and flashbacks between past & present have been well handled. Tbe cinematography with dark hue was a great fit and exhibited visual pleasure through the acts. The sound and screen editing are of high values as well. The pacing is perfect.
What I liked…
# The plot development is compelling and intriguing, for it uses unique methods of revealing and unfolding truth, of the past, through detailed investigation in the present by relating to the foregone story that took place 20 years ago. The storytelling method with two perspectives, of Kyung Min and of Jong Suk, the differential narratives, and the monologues are what make it an interesting & engaging as well as a nail-biting watch.
# Kim Cheol, the character, is something that all of us unaskingly fell in love with, no? His existence itself adds to the value of this show as a whole; his rise in the class, from a mere slacker to the king of pigs and then his downfall finally leading to a forever memorable (for the characters of the drama) god, is a journey that I will never forget. The way his story was told, especially through the acts of Kyung Min, was gripping and enthralling. He is the real hero of this drama.
# Kim Dong Wook as Hwang Kyung Min, has, once again, left me baffled with his skills, no doubt he is one of the best in terms of acting. He, in both sane and insane state, performed so smoothly and comfortably that it helped me to survive the traumatic events in the drama. His emotions, his angst, his eyes, his expressions, his dialogue delivery and everything he did was so on point, it’s like his act felt the only hope left, for the world he lived in. Kim Sung Kyu and Kang Jin Ah also did very well, for they are already good actors.
# The young actors have great importance in the drama as they and their story of the past share about 45% of the screentime the approx. 600 minutes show. Again, special mention must be credited to Choi Hyun Jin who played Kim Cheol, for he delivered a justified and splendid performance, and I don’t think anyone else could have match him. Other than the ones playing Kyung Min & Jong Suk, the actors playing young bullies also did a good job portraying their parts and it felt real and engrossing.
# The song sung by Lee Ji Hyun (Kim Pu Reum), Park Sung Jin (Hwang Man Ik)’s niece in the 8th episode (the only song of the rdama) was melancholic, touchy and enraging at the same time. It was a call for help, to rescue the souls of the ones who has to go through the unfortunate and heartbreaking days, spending their time in school with fear and trauma, dismay and terror of which also follow them for the rest of their lives.
# Kdramas based on school bullying or having the elements in it has been very common, being placed in over hundreds of shows over the last 2 decades, but this stands out for many reasons. First and foremost, this is solely based on school violence, as it tells a foregone story of 3 victims of several bullying incidents that took place over years. Secondly, the present day events, that has caused headache to the cops, roots back to the past incident only, resulting in an extremely brutal revenge game. The show attempts to dissect the entire scenario by performig RCA (root cause analysis) and shows to a great deal, the consequences, the bullying cases can inflict for both the victims and the perpetrators.
# I loved the way the title of the show has been justified throughout, from the beginning to the end, through the storytelling and the acts by the characters. The immensely dark story with portrayal of real bullying cases could be hugely triggering but it is truly thought-provoking and, in a way, demands reforms in laws and awareness in society. Provided that it is based on a real story, makes it a sad thing but I feel, everyone needs to witness it in order to be made aware and learnt.
What I didn’t like…
# The character arch for adult Jong Suk is very roughly done and not llikable. I mean obviously, for the story, he has his parts of flaws, but as an audience watching a story, I could not get used to many a things that he attempted to do. It did not indicate his insanity to me, rather some technical drawbacks which could have been avoided.
# The investigative methods felt absurd sometimes, particularly after the 7th episode, there is little to no contribution by the other members of the team. It was only Jin Ah and Jong Suk who were doing everything, that too independently; plus the state of mind in which Jong Suk was, he should not have been a part of the investigation to begin with, also provided that he was somehow related to the incident.
# I wanted moreeeeeeee.
Final Remarks… “THE KING OF PIGS” is a solid and extremely heavy watch, and a treat for whoever is into such dark genres with a cogent story and plausible plot development. Screenwriting, direction, performance and the overall outcomes are praiseworthy and all the efforts have been reflected through the mighty values and well paid off. This actually deserves more attention since not many were watching when it was on air. If you are planning to start it, make sure you are mentally prepared to receive what it offers, and watching in small doses might make it easier. MUST RECCOMENDED!
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The true definition of a hidden gem
Oh. My. God. Where do I even start!? This was a ride I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish.This spine chilling and nail-biting thriller is fast-paced, addictive, dark, gory, and filled with revenge aka the best combination for a drama like this.
It's a very solid and well-made series, not a single episode is a filler, each scene and episode shocks you, it will infuriate you, upset you and satisfy you all at once.
At first, the synopsis didn’t really scream anything out to me and I wasn’t sure what to expect, but wow was I blown away... I liked seeing the perspectives of two interesting, mysterious people (one being a killer and the other a detective) with dark pasts. You’ll find yourself constantly questioning things and the plot will have you engaged the whole time.
It contains extreme bullying which I usually avoid as I find it upsetting and hard to watch, but I'm fond of how the scenes switch between flashbacks and present day, it balances out the disturbing vibe well and doesn't completely overwhelm you. Bullying isn't a new concept to base a drama around, however, this one was created in a fresh and unique way and was executed superbly. Also, I don’t condone any type of violence but I rooted for the killer.
The acting. It's outstanding in my books. The cast was picked perfectly. Kim Sung Gyu is so charming, every scene he appears in, he grabs my whole attention, from "Kingdom" to "One Ordinary Day" and now this... The younger cast deserves a shoutout because holy moly they can act (and their presence is very memorable)!! The pure fear, anger and detached feeling is well conveyed by the child cast to the adult cast. No character in TKOP is in the right, they have all done something bad, but you'll still have people to root for, even if it feels wrong at times.
To sum it up, this drama is INSANE. I can't believe people are sleeping on this, it deserves more recognition, so I highly recommend watching this if you like thrillers and the things I mentioned above, you won't be disappointed (or at least I hope not haha).
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This review may contain spoilers
a masterpiece that's it
Oh my fcking gosh! That's all i'm saying for the end. This drama is depressed, dark and it has a very hard content! 2022 kdramas are so weak and very awful so far, but this one is amazing!Perfect cast, amazing acting, great music, well written & interesting plot. The child actors oh my god, i think they are in the same age like me, like wow, they are insane, i think their career will grow. I watched it because of Kim Sung Kyu, because he is my favourite actor of all the time & well it worth it. That man is an amazing actor, all of his dramas are a masterpiece. Also Kim Dong Wook's acting, goddamn, he's really talented as well. I don't know a lot about Chae Jung An, but all i've seen was a beautiful & talented woman who deserves to be casted in better dramas.
About the plot + characters: Maybe this drama is hard to watch for some people, bullying/school violence is a really "important" thing in this kdrama sadly, and the ending was a heartbreak. I have to say the female lead wasn't so important, tbh she isn't really a lead character, she is just here. The two male leads, oh gosh both of them are a rollercoaster. But i think both of them deserved better. I've seen the movie but this is way better!! Cheol had more screentime, he deserved it. But i thought only Hwang Kyung Min will die and then Jong Seok watches it. But sadly no, both of them died "did what Cheolie always wanted...". Also the way Kyung Min said "let's go to see Cheolie" broke my heart. Then i started to cry and i guess i'm not the only one. The last scenes of the kids made me cry as well. This drama deserves higher rating, ranking and it deserves to be popular. I don't wanna compare this drama to 2521 but this drama deserves that 8.9 rating more than 2521 (imo, please don't k-word me i love KTR with my whole heart). That's a 10/10 from me!
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This drama should be getting more attention
Somber and thought-provoking, The King of Pigs is the kind of drama that forces the viewer to come face to face with one of the ugliest part of our society. It doesn't offer any comfort, it doesn't try to make itself more palatable: it's brutal and depressing since the beginning with no heroes, only flawed and broken characters that you can't fully blame nor justify as the difference between victims and perpetrators gets thinner and thinner.School violence isn't seen as an independent phenomenon, it makes it clear that it's a reflection of our society, that the blame is broader than it may appear; it touches on social gerarchies, bad parenting, vile teachers that aren't worth the seat that they occupy and least, but not least, a shared blame that we may all be guilty of: normalizing such behaviors and looking the other way. It's definitely a drama that has lots of food for thought and not an easy watch.
Was is truly flawless? No, probably not. But then again, I have yet to find a show that doesn't have some weaknesses. But to me it gets as close as possible to being perfect and it deserves to be called a masterpiece. But the flaws should be mentioned, instead of completely disregarded: the policewoman, although not as bad as some people say because she still fulfilled a role in the story as a sort of witness/narrator, and her investigations are without a doubt the weakest part of the drama; it's where the writing gets a sloppier and not as strong as the rest of the script that was truly without faults (and it's even more impressive when you think about the fact that this is the first work from the screenwriter). An example is the policewoman being uncommunicative and doing things on her own, even when it may lead someone else in danger, getting clues a bit randomly and not taking her gun out when it should be needed. But like I said, this kind of inconsistencies are more common in tv shows and movies than one may think, and they're hardly enough to ruin a well done drama, but this is a long topic and this review is already long enough on its own.
Now, onto the good things:
The script: I already said that this is the first work from the writer and he did an excellent job. He made some very bold decisions that were very much needed, even if it may make the viewer uncomfortable. He wrote some excellent dialogues that are hard to forget and leave an impression. The pacing was solid, I never felt bored, never felt the need to look at my phone (which is saying a lot for me because I get easily distracted): it was slow enough to not make it rushed, but fast enough to keep things as intense as possible for 12 episodes. And more importantly, it never felt formulaic. As I said before the differences between heroes and villains gets more and more blurry, there aren't any fixed roles (like can you even tell who is first lead and who is the second lead among Kyung Min and Jong Suk? Are they even heroes? Who is the main villain?), it isn't afraid to put its characters in a bad light, there aren't any forced cliffhangers that end up getting repetitive and predictable toward the end, no overkill of plot twists and new informations that can make the drama feel convoluted, no unnecessary melodrama or moving montages put there just to buy some time and get to the established number of episodes. These facts alone are enough to make it worth praising.
Directing, editing and cinematography: someone told me that they liked how the drama was put together and edited because it looked smooth, especially in the way the past and the present are intertwined because it had a good continuity and it made it seem as if the past wasn't a distant and unrelated past, but something that is still pretty much present; and of course I agree. And I think that this quote from Kyung Min deserves a mention here: "the past is present and future". Clunky translation aside, this quote fits the show so well and we can truly say that The King of Pigs successfully managed to stay true to this quote even in terms of editing. I also loved the work that the director did as he often framed the characters between objects, behind stained windows and broken glasses, in mirrors and with their faces being doubled and fragmented by some reflection present in the scene. All these things did a great job at emphasizing the tension and the characters fractured minds and mental state. Even the way all the kids were often framed like littles soldiers in the way they were aligned (this is especially evident in a key scene that I'm not going to spoil) as to make it clear that what we were watching was abnormal and the result of a toxic mentality. I also love the coloring used for the scenes set in the past because they make it look so unhealthy and suffocating. And the close-ups, out of focus shots, dutch angles all used in the right times to make the scenes more intense and convey a turmoil of emotions.
I think that this drama did visual storytelling in the right way and the director made the story truly immersive. There are many examples but I don't want this review to have spoilers.
Soundtrack: another thing I love is that it doesn't overuse its songs, so the music never felt repetitive and random to me. It was never distracting and only used at the right moments. It knew when a scene needed to be silent and when, on the other hand, the soundtrack was necessary to give a stronger impact. Also kudos to who picked all the songs at the end of each episode, they were all so powerful and reflected the episodes so well; I rarely watch the ending credits, but here I couldn't skip them because I felt that they were an important part of the drama too as I sat there, staring at the black screen, thinking about what I had just watched, as I got emotional over a song whose lyrics I couldn't even understand.
Characters and performances: with the sole exceptions of Chae Jung An (Kang Jin Ah), who was good, especially in that one scene in the ending (again, no spoilers here), but not outstanding as the others, all the performances were simply breathtaking. Even most of the supporting characters did so well.
Kim Dong Wook playing Kyung Min managed to convey so many emotions with just his eyes alone: you could feel the rage, the tiredness of man who is not a killer by nature and the pain in his eyes as they changed from a heartless gaze when he looked at his oppressors to a more sorrowful expression when he was in front of his friends. Those rare outbursts of emotions were very well done too. This is for me by far his best performance (sorry Hwa Pyung, I still love you) that shows the acting range he has.
Kim Sung Kyu, Jung Jong Suk in the story, played the part of a broken and unstable man so well that sometimes I really worried about the actor's mental state as his character became more and more immersed in his past memories and lost his composure. His teary, angry eyes will be hard to forget. I hope he will have more main roles from now on because his talent is wasted as a supporting actor.
Choi Hyun Jin (especially), Sim Hyun Seo, Lee Chan Yoo and all of the kid actors also did an outstanding job as they were really able to keep up with their adult colleagues as if it were nothing. They had a very difficult task because the materials they had to work with was important, heavy and not easy at all, and yet they managed to do it perfectly and professionally. I sincerely hope that they will have a bright future ahead.
Rewatch value: I think that this is a rather subjective point, but anyway, I think it has a high rewatch value. I was doing a rewatch for the finale and it was just as emotional as the first time, if not even more. Knowing what will happen makes every scene carry even more weight.
Finally the review ends here. Sorry if it was long and thank you if you really managed to read it all and reach the end. I'm not expecting to get much attention because I'm fully aware that I can't summarize to save my life. I never wrote a review here, partly because the shows I've watched had already many reviews, partly because this is the first time I get so emotional about an ongoing drama so I really wanted to share my thoughts. So, back to the important stuffs, if you're unsure about watching it because it's not that popular, but if you like dark thrillers, then give it a try! You won't regret it :)
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“Violent delights have violent ends”
Emerging from the darkness, covered in brutality, comes the King of Pigs and whispers “There is no creature in the world more cruel than human being”. And just like this, it haunts you. It makes sure that watching this drama will be something you won’t forget anytime soon.‘The King of Pigs’ is a psychological thriller drama that is, as already implied, not for the light-hearted. It contains a lot of violent, gore and psychologically heavy scenes which make it almost unbearable to watch. Prepare yourself, because what you are about to watch is a very rough ride.
The story
The drama’s story is based on a 93 minutes animation film ‘The King of Pigs’ by Yeon Sang Ho which is also based on a true story. As I’ve watched the animation film too, I can say that the drama is lightly based on it. Actually, it feels like the drama took the original story, evolved it and ended up making its own and unique story. Thus, there is no point in comparing them.
Without giving away the plot, the story deals with the trauma caused by intra-school violence and how it affects the victim and the perpetrator. Specifically, the story explores a series of events of school violence which took place 20 years ago and the results of these events in the present.
The uniqueness of the story is that it doesn’t refer to these events passively, as something that happened in the past, but as something that started in the past and is still progressing. In other words, the story emphasizes on the dynamic nature of these events and successfully manages to show how greatly the victims were stigmatized and how even the perpetrators were affected by it.
The story denotes that an act of violence is not a simple act. It’s an act which opens the Pandora's box and destroys everyone involved without an exception, because an action always provokes a greater reaction. Thus, in the end, “these violent delights” can only “have violent ends”.
Moving on to the structure, the story has great coherence. As the story is dealing with trauma, it has many flashbacks that interrupt the present story. The transitions from the present to the past were very meticulously made so they don’t end up as tedious flashbacks but on the other hand, they help the story develop and escalate making the story impactful.
The story’s pace can’t be called fact paced because the events don’t unfold quickly yet, as the episodes are very tense, it can’t be called slow paced either. What is certain, is that the drama pace is balanced and manages to keep your attention until the very end.
Lastly, it has to be noted that the story isn’t perfect. In fact, it has some minor flaws as some illogical things occur. Fortunately, they don’t affect the general plot and also, they can easily be ignored or pass unnoticed by the audience.
The production
From my point of view, the production of the drama is almost flawless. ‘The King of Pigs’ is one of the most well-made and well-executed dramas I've ever watched. The directing is on point and manages to perfectly render the dark tone of the story’s theme. The drama consists of beautiful frames, great scene transitions and camera angles which combined with the dark color palette, make the drama visually stunning. The drama’s soundtrack is the cherry on top, as it works as the last stimulus which makes you shudder and frequents you emotionally with the moment.
As far as the acting is concerned, every actor did a pretty good and decent job as every emotion was delivered with great success, the interpretations felt very realistic to the point that the scenes became more traumatic and tense. Both Kim Dong Wook and Kim Sung Gyu had great chemistry and were great in their roles. It has to be mentioned though, that the young actors, especially Choi Hyun Jin, Sim Hyun Seo and Lee Chan Yoo, stole the show.
Conclusion
‘The King of Pigs’ is technically speaking, a very decent drama which deals with a very sensitive and heavy theme. Thus, it is a drama you can’t watch easily just for enjoyment and also, it may not be to everyone’s liking. If you are a thriller lover, I believe that you should give ‘The King of Pigs’ a try. For me, ‘The King of Pigs’ is a very impactful and unique drama that really deserved my time.
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This review may contain spoilers
This drama is a fucking masterpiece
What an excellent drama!I was hooked to this drama. It was dark, gritty, and brutal.
The plot of this drama essentially focuses on the cat and mouse chase between a "criminal" and the cops.
Hwang Kyung-min is a taxi company CEO who is on a mission to extract revenge from those who bullied him in school. In the process he contacted Jung Jong-seok who was his friend in the school, and now a cop.
The rest of the drama focuses on uncovering the truth behind the death of their third friend, Cheolie, and how Kyung-min takes his revenge, closely followed by Jong-seok and Kang Jin-ah, another cop.
What I liked about this drama is the brilliant narration style by the director Kim Dae-jin. Every episode ended with a cliffhanger, which is not rare, but what made this part is the tone at which the episode ended. In particular, I liked the 10th episode. It revealed so much, and it was great how the event were built to come at that moment. Again, this is the brilliancy of the director.
The actors of this drama were amazing. Each and every one had done their job perfectly, in particular Kim Dong-wook. I don't have enough words to praise Kim Dong-wook's acting in this drama. He was expressionless while killing his bullies, but at the same time his eyes carried that lingering pain.
The child actors too were brilliant. To act so extraordinarily speaks a lot about their talent. I hope they will have a bright future ahead and hope to see them in other dramas soon.
OST of this drama, even though wasn't much diverse, it was spot on. I particularly liked the theme music that played in the background, the one that played during the start of last episode.
The cinematography was dark, which perfectly complemented the tone of this drama.
This drama was so much more than just another revenge drama. It explores how the certain events can forge the future of kids. Bullying is a widespread problem in South Korea and one of the main reason for that is because of the inefficiency of schools to come up with a system to eradicate such problem. It's the duty of teachers to ensure that no child is hurt in the school. And yet, some teachers ignore the bullying in their class, which in turn destroys the life of the kid who is being bullied.
This drama shows too polar opposite humans. One who was bullied as a child and that affected his adult life. And the others, the bullies, who continues to live as if nothing happened.
While I condone the violence and murders, but I can't help but root for Kyung-min. This is the brilliancy of this drama.
Amazing drama. I will highly recommend it.
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1Dark, Darker, Darkest...
This is the type of drama that will make you (or me) feel a lot of rage and kind of loose all hope for humanity... It is dark, bloody as... making me want to cover my eyes...The first couple of episodes had me feeling completely lost not knowing where this was going at all but as the plot unraveled, the twists became easier and easier to guess, it was still interesting well done and had me yelling what the ***** + why would you do such a thing!
It has some pretty interesting symbolism and bible references here and there, and does teach the audience a lesson or ten about all kinds of stuff that would be considered spoilers so I will let you figure those out on your own. This is not for the faint hearted but definitely worth a watch.
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A cruel and deep story about school violence victims
(no plot spoilers) This drama will be reminded as a masterpiece of its kind. It's shocking and insane. It will make you emotional and anxious for most of the time. You will watch it without knowing how it will end up... it's an unforgettable ride.Bullying... is something we saw frequently, and something that many of us sadly went through. I did too, and I still have emotional scars that I try to forget, but I can't. You can't help somehow to cheer for the main guy, even if it's wrong. You end up to think at what they had to go throught, about what is wrong and what right. About how society and school fail so many times to protect innocents. And what if you lose yourself- It's so scary to even think about it.
The theme of the self and the others is something present for the whole drama. Are you a pig or a dog?
Are you a victim or a perpetrator? Are you someone ready to fight for justice or to survive in exchange of your own conscience?
The main characters of this drama are victims of a system that didn't protect them and ruined their life forever.
The acting is really stellar, I couldn't ask for better actors. From the kids to the adults versions.. everything felt so perfect.
Violent and cruel, I don't think it's something for everyone, but I can't help myself from suggest it. You, have to watch it.
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This review may contain spoilers
‘’Pigs are born to be torn into pieces’’
The King of Pigs is a 2022 korean series based on the animated film with the same name that got released in 2011. I think the best way to write this review is by dividing it into three parts, taking into consideration the three different stories that get interconnected throughout the series.The past: A part of the series takes place during the school years of our protagonists, showing the difficulties they had to endure. From a technical aspect, the directing, colour grading and cinematography are phenomenal. Acting-wise, it was a very good call to not choose older actors to portray the characters and personally I ended up being fascinated with the performances of all the young actors, without a single exception. I would dare say that their performances were haunting, in a way that it was sometimes a bit disturbing to watch. However, if I had to pick the best performance, then it would be that of Choi Hyun Jin who portrayed Kim Chul, the mysterious third friend of our main protagonists. Plot wise, this is the most interesting part of the series, since it is veiled with mystery and it is focusing on the darkness of human nature in a very raw manner. It reminded me of the saying that "the school is a miniature society".
The Present: The present story changes between the serial killings that are being orchestrated by Hwang Kyung Min and the investigation from the police done by Jung Jong Suk, an old friend of the killer.
The killings: From a technical point of view this part is also quite well done, with some very good editing and a darker colour palette. The acting is excellent, especially Kim Dong Wook’s performance as the bullied child that decides to take revenge from his bullies. The other actors also did a very good job, with two of them standing out the most; Oh Min-Suk portraying the adult Kang Min and Bae Yoo-Ram portraying the adult version of Park Chan-Young. Plot wise, this part of The King of Pigs is quite well-written, keeping the viewer on the edge of their sit with all the brutality and the darkness of the human nature that is being showcased. It also raises some dilemmas regarding justice and what it really is.
The investigation: Unfortunately, all good things come to an end with the investigation being the weakest part of the drama. From a technical aspect, the directing and cinematography are pretty lacklustre. There are some scenes that are way too bright or don’t fit with the atmosphere they have created. There are also scenes were the colours are way too bold, like the parts with the coroner where the blue colour looks unnatural. Many times it felt like they were trying too hard to create an atmosphere to fit the dark aura of the series, but since they didn’t manage to do it, it ended up feeling artificial. Acting wise it is not anything extraordinary with the performance of Kim Sung-Kyu (Jung Jong-Suk) being the only noteworthy one.
Chae Jung-An starring as Kang Jin Ah ruins this series the most for me. Her performance is pretty bad, since she is having only two expressions in the entire show no matter what is happening. Every time she was on screen I got reminded that this is a series and she is an actress trying to portray her character and failing. Plot wise, the investigation is also the weakest part. There are things happening way too conveniently to make the story move forward and once again the character of the female police officer that is being portrayed by Kang Jin Ah has no reason of existence. She is being used time and time again from the writer to make the plot move forward and as a result her actions are nonsensical.
One last thing I want to mention is the lack of censorship. The King of Pigs deals with many triggering topics involving murder, bullying, sexual harassment, suicide, animal cruelty and yet it is not your typical kdrama where everything is blurred. With the exception of one scene, where censorship was necessary, everything else is being shown in its most violent form. The fact that the series doesn’t shy away from brutal and bloody scenes is a huge plus, taking into consideration the topics in discussion.
All in all, the king of pigs could have been a phenomenal series with fantastic performances, if they focused on the past and the serial killings and not on the police investigation, a weakly executed part in almost all aspects.
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Criminally Underrated
A drama that takes an interesting route towards bullying. The topic may not be rarely seen, but "The King of Pigs" provides a unique take on the atrocity, and beyond question it did not limit how disturbing the content can go. Some scenes can be triggering so watch at your own risk (tw // graphic violence, suicide, murder, bullying, brutality, school violence, sexual harassment)."The King of Pigs" keeps you thrilled from start to finish as there is more to it than what actually seems to be. It gradually depicts each and every section of the past in align with the phenomena at the present. It perfectly portrayed how school violence can affect someone, and even turning a victim into a perpetuator. The drama explores how trauma from such situations could induce actions that would take you aback.
The directing was absolutely brilliant in presenting the flashbacks and escalating the emotions felt by the characters- the switches and transitions between the past and the present were very smooth and easy to understand as they would always correlate to each other. The timing was always perfect and keeps the suspense strong. Every revelation was climactic and never disappoints.
The only significant flaw was some parts of the investigation, mainly those related to Kang Jin A. There were some stupid parts that would displease you. But almost everything else exceeded my expectations so I couldn't be more satisfied with the drama as a whole. Certainly, there were dramatized scenes. The drama isn't the most realistic one you'll see, but it surely added to how intense the story is.
The leads' acting was insane. Kim Dong Wook's subtle yet spine-chilling facial expressions impressed me terrifically. I have watched a few of his works yet never have I been frightened of his stare alone until now (I'm specifically talking about when he met Jongbin and was observing him). Kim Sung Kyu perfectly portrayed his mentally deranged character. The child actors, including the bullies who effectively enraged me immensely, were amazing as well. I wasn't amazed by Chae Jung An's acting, but it's possibly because of her badly written character.
Overall, it's a great dark drama with minimal flaws on a particular side. It would make you feel mentally and emotionally exhausted, but it's definitely worth the watch. The story is like no other, I have never seen a drama like this which explains why the recommendations aren't exactly similar with this one (they're only similar in a way that they're both dark and there are murders). It could however, twist your moral sense so please bear in mind that this is a fictional drama. Do not let it distort your perspective on murderers and topics related to the story. Keep everything within the drama only.
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This review may contain spoilers
TERRIFIC
A drama that from the first episode captured and surprised me and each episode was getting better and better, I have no complaints about this drama.The plot, acting, development was so well executed, the whole cast did an excellent job but the ones that left me speechless were the child actors, a performance that is rarely found even in the most popular actors, those children definitely have a great future ahead of them.
I have already read many comments that if this drama would had been on Netflix it would have been a success, and I totally agree, tving did a great job tho, without a doubt.
About the events of the drama there is much to reflect and much to think about, the worst thing is that is not something far from reality, its devastating that some children suffer with this burden all their lives but those who did the damage can live a peaceful life.
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A gripping thriller..
There is an highlighting dialogue in the drama, The Dog's are meant to be Loved and the Pigs are meant to be slaughtered, no wonder, that may be the truth of the nature, But it has so much meaning when it coming to this story of Hwang Kyung Min and it was a very intriguing and exciting journey which something most of us are desperately looking for, Simply One of the best Emotional Thriller of the year maybe for the time being let's say An Underrated Thriller..Plot maybe disturbing to some people. So many doesn't interested in school bullying and violance, i mean this is a statutory warning, those people don't go near to this drama. It's very brutal in terms of the content which they have showed in past incidents . What will happen if a school violance victim wants to take revenge after 20 years..? Seeking the justice for violance by violance sounds so interesting for a fictional story right..? The whole drama is about his revenge like i said in a very brutal way...
Story narration was one of the very attracting factor of the drama. Drama is moving forward with the present and past. You always curious about the things happened in the past, it's very gripping throughout the end. Some twists and turns also ended everything with a very satisfying climax..
If you're a thriller drama fan then don't miss out this..
Excellent Thriller ?
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