Revenge of Others (2022)

flawed yet utterly enjoyable, uses narrative manipulation, explores the dichotomy of revenge/justice

i watched Revenge of Others weekly and one thing that cannot be denied about it is that it was incredibly enjoyable. the fast-paced episodes, the interesting characters, and the complex layers of mystery kept me waiting for the next episode. this show, in its essence, is an interesting exploration of the bullying culture that exists in South Korea that also tackled the themes of violence, justice, retribution, and revenge.

i will address 5 main points:

1) COMPLEXITY -- this show was a mystery/thriller so it is expected that there will be a lot of misdirecting and new pieces of information being revealed with each episode to build up the suspense. however, i think the show was too complex for its own good. everything seemed to be connected and it seemed like they willfully kept things complex and unresolved to keep the viewers guessing but even when we were at the halfway mark, nothing was revealed yet. by that i mean, there was no subplot resolution until the very end. on top of nothing being resolved, they kept introducing new plotlines and new characters to increase the complexity of the overall plot and add to the mystery. i was afraid they would leave the resolution of everything to the very end and of course, that was the case.

overall, the way they introduced information was (intentionally) disconnected, especially the flashbacks. the timeline of the flashbacks was very confusing. i knew they would end up leaving the resolution of everything to the very end but it’s still annoying how they have over-complicated things throughout the whole show just to add to the mystery. all the little clues that were given to the viewers to keep us guessing and all the theories didn’t matter in the end. i generally liked how they have misdirected the viewers at least a couple of times regarding who the murderer might be but there were just way too many variables and characters and storylines going on for there to be any actual thrill in trying to guess things about the plot. because it didn't matter and the clues that were given were only there to confuse us further and none of them actually led to anywhere. you just had to watch it and accept what the show gives you.

2) LOGICAL FALLACIES -- despite the overcomplexity i talked about above, i actually liked how detailed the main story of this show was. however, the main story and the characters' actions were full of logical fallacies that you would not even realize are there if you didn't actually question their actions. i went into detail about a lot of these in the reaction thread i did for this show on Twitter, but one of the main logical fallacies was how Chanmi was incredibly gullible at times while being smart and reserved at other times. Sejin's whole story where he painted Sooheon as the culprit was full of holes yet Chanmi attempted to shoot Sooheon based solely on his witness account and some circumstantial evidence despite being emotionally involved with him. then only a few episodes later, the same thing happens again. Osung, who they know to be a cunning liar and manipulator, said Wonseok was the one who pushed Jaebum and Chanmi didn't even question it when her not questioning witness accounts almost led her to kill someone innocent who she cares about. her carelessness and naivete were inconsistent. she was distrusting at times yet she also believed things very easily at other times. this just seemed to be a thing where whenever it was convenient for the plot for her to believe what she heard, she did. overall, i think the logical fallacies were caused by the overcomplexity of the plot. if you're giving the story THAT many details, you're going to have some plot holes.

3) BULLYING CULTURE -- clearly, the deeply complex culture of bullying was one of the main themes of this show. they showed the extent of the bullying that exists in schools, its intensity, and how far the students actually observed the silent "rules" that came with this interwoven culture. one thing i found interesting was how the show portrayed the "bystanders." when Junggyeong, the rapist, was at school bullying the victim or any other student, he was never confronted by anyone or more specifically, he wasn't confronted all the time. yet, when he had to leave the school, all the students were cheering out the windows, acknowledging his bad actions and expressing their thoughts on how he deserved what happened to him. i thought that was interesting because bullies almost always require bystanders who do nothing seeing as they will bully people in public to showcase their power. if enough students were to stand up when they saw Junggyeong bully others, he or the other bullies wouldn’t be so confident in their assumed power the next time. another parallel to this scene was when Osung was live streaming a fight between two students and the whole school joined the live and watched two people very violently fight each other. this scene provided us with another look into the workings of the bullying culture that the kids at this school were clearly so accustomed to. they saw violence taking place yet all they did was watch and react as if it was not actually happening in real life and people were not actually getting hurt.

i think what happened in the finale shows that the two instances of irony regarding the bystander students were very much intentionally included the way they were in the show. in the end, just when we thought everything was over, Osung dies while Sooheon tries to defend himself from him and we see that none of the students tell on him to the police because they all thought Osung deserved to die. so, suddenly, they didn't look at the case as a murder, even though an 18-year-old kid died in front of their eyes. they looked at it as retribution/justice/revenge. this way, we see that the students, the bystanders, yield the power to change the course of police investigations. i can’t help but think that this is another reference to the bullying culture at school and it is once again showing that the bystanders have all the power.

4) APPROACH TO VIOLENCE -- i thought this show had an interesting approach to school violence. one that i personally would not expect to see. this show explored the dichotomy of justice/revenge, and other themes of intent, responsibility, and retribution. what was interesting is they explored these topics through the perspective of the bullies, as well as the victims. for instance, you had Chanmi who did not want to rely on the cops to bring justice to her brother (they were useless anyways). she wanted to straight up kill the person who murdered Wonseok. then, you had the trio of Soyeon, Ojung, and Sooheon who were taking matters into their own hands and creating their own justice by punishing the bullies, or more like the criminals, who had severely hurt people in irrevocable ways. this means they believed in violent retribution. they believed in speaking the bullies' language. they believed in dominating them through their own weapons of violence. just like Chanmi. but of course, the incompetency of the police and the politicized and unjust nature of "justice" in South Korea (they even criticized certain policies re: the punishment of minors, etc.) played into their approach to things.

but we also saw a different side of things with Jaebum at the end. a gray area. he had been violent and done things he can never take back while he was taken over by his other personality. he had suffered memory loss and didn't even remember doing these things. now, would it have been "just" if Chanmi shot him to avenge her brother? would it still count as retribution if he cannot even take responsibility for the things he doesn't remember doing?

the show posed a lot of important questions regarding violence: is it okay to use violence with violent people? are some crimes worse than others? is it okay to hurt people if they hurt others unintentionally? what role does intent actually play in how we respond to violence? can you still be held responsible for the things you did when you didn't intend to do them? is it okay to enact violence in the name of revenge? who gets to decide what others deserve? to what level? with these questions posed and these themes explored, the show portrayed high schoolers using violence because the justice system or the law enforcement didn't protect them from violence. in the end, we also saw the students continuing to get justice their own way and enact revenge the way they want as they chose to protect Sooheon and not report anything about what happened.

5) INCORPORATION OF ROMANCE -- from the start, we all knew that the genre of this show wasn't romance so there likely wasn't gonna be any romance in it. however, there was "romance" throughout and i actually loved how they incorporated it into the genre. in kdramas, there seems to be a thing where they try to not mix romance as a genre into non-romance shows. romance is a part of life and it happens naturally. it is okay to include romance in non-romance shows because it doesn't have to be the focus of the show. romance plotlines in non-romance dramas are often badly written & poorly integrated but in Revenge of Others, the romance came naturally and it was built slowly on top of feelings of worry. so much so that, when Chanmi and Sooheon finally held hands at the end and confirmed their feelings for each other, they didn't even have to say "the words." they just knew and it was that. Park Solomon and Shin Yeeun had great chemistry and i thought they complemented each other quite well since Yeeun has a colder vibe while Lomon brings in the warmth.

OVERALL -- i really enjoyed watching this show over the weeks. i thought the finale was okay even though it was not completely satisfactory for me. i thought it was an interesting twist that Jaebum was the murderer and he was actually responsible for all the bad “acts” (e.g., the murders) yet Osung was still the actual villain. nevertheless, although an interesting twist, i don’t think Jaebum’s personality disorder was a very well-constructed storyline and that is why the finale was a bit underwhelming. the thing is, they wanted to keep Jaebum on the sidelines throughout the show so the viewers didn’t immediately doubt him but his storyline requires much deeper exploration. dissociative personality disorder (DID) is often caused by trauma. how did he develop it? when exactly? of course, the clues as to him having two personalities were given often, but it wasn't very well-explored in its entirety. in the end, it just seemed like they didn't want a basic murderer reveal. they wanted it to be unique, like, yeah, it was Jaebum but actually.. it was his other personality.

now, it is important to remember that this show relied heavily on narrative manipulation to keep the mystery theme going. a lot of the plotlines actually seemed to only make sense based on whether it was convenient for the plot or not. nevertheless, this was undoubtedly one of the best shows of the year with a great look and directing, incredible performances, and interesting themes.

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One of the best show in 2022

I started to lose some interest in Korean shows since last year. I found it hard to continue and finish the episodes. However, Revenge of others brought me back into this world of Korean dramas. As we all know, Koreans are quite good at making thrillers and mystery styles with suspense and enigma, and that's totally what we could notice with this show.

The friendship between the characters was perfect, the scripts was fantastic, the actors were wonderful and the soundtrack... genius!

Of course some parts seemed to be missing a bit. For example, I thought the ending was pretty quick. I would have liked to known what happened with Jaebum. Is he in jail? If so, for how long? Is he seeing a psychologist? Do his friends still visit him? Also, what about Ji Soo Heon's cancer?

Still, even though the ending was rather quick and undeveloped, I wouldn't take away any points from this show. This drama gave me back the passion I lost towards Korean shows. I was taken back to 2015 when the shows made me dream and got me excited.

In short, I recommend everyone to watch this drama. One of the best I've seen in a long time...

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Incredible. Watch it ASAP !

I absolutely loved it. I was into it from the beggining to the end. The length was perfect.
One of the rare kdramas with not a predominant romantic relationship and I absolutely loved it.
I enjoyed it from the very beggining.

If I had to point out little things I disliked,it would be (btw I'm being tacky because you can really overlook that):

- It was interesting to have gay characters but I felt like the couple that was revealed was as waited as irrelevant. To be clearer I already felt
at a certain point that it was Sejin that was dating him (not gonna spoil the character's name) from the little flashbacks yet when it was revealed it was already too obvious to make me be like 'Oh. Such a plot twist!' Also in when the latests scenes of their couple was showed as a flashback, I felt like there was no chemistry between them, as if they were putting on some act 😭 (you know, as in some BLs...). Yet they were cute together (tbh I would have preferred if it was been revealed jae bum was actually really dating Wonseok because in their photos they really had some chemistry).

- We never got an explanation on how the four boys knew each others and how things got ruined since lately they were almost all having beefs with each others.
--> a bully to the two others, who turns out to be also a gaslighter and really manipulative afterwards to the third and last one..

- The way writers erased Jae Bum and ML's friendship as soon as they introduced it, was disappointing because I liked their genuine and cute interactions and after it just maked no sense how they went from super friendly to just acquaintances who talk only when chan mi and the investigation are getting involved smh...

- Then the end. I felt last ep was too rushed. Evil character (forgot his name) absolutely didn't receive what he deserved when he litteraly destroyed every single character's life. On the other side as soon as Jae Bum (defo my fav and even always loved this actor sm) stepped in that damn car, we never knew what happened to him like writers please💀- we wanted to know how judicial stuffs went for him eventho it was clear he was in some serious sh*t with evil character dead now. Btw Oh Sung (I now recall "Evil character"'s name lmao) is defo not straight. I feel like writers pulled out this plotwist with this "I love my biggest enemy who is also my relative" trope to avoid having another queer character in the series. Why ? Because of his reactions (mainly jealousy) when Jae Bum was with other ppl (yet the same Oh Sung would deliberately abandons him for his friends as soon as he could) especially ML, Soo Heon. A precise example would be when he said "it was Wonseok (who at that moment of the series was allegedly Jae Bum's bf if we rely on what Oh Sung was saying) and now it's Soo Heon" as he was looking at the two of them from a classroom above with something in his voice that hinted he could be attracted to Jae Bum. Also when a moment in the series came that ML and FL went to Oh Sung's house to check out what he was hiding and saw several pictures of him and other 3 boys (Wonseok , Sejin and Jae Bum), I REALLY felt like it was some hints that he really liked Jae Bum (in a not sane way tho but you see..)

I loved all the characters and appreciated how they all had a background. A quick shoutout to Sooheon boi who caught a cancer only for plot's sake cuz wth 💀. He successfully lived after all that eventho his head was getting banged throughout the whole show, he was fainting often and he was more likely to die but I assume it was for the show's sake-

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This was really good, expected more... something was missing

This was really good, expected more but the acting was great and the story was interesting if there is a second season I'm definetly watching it and I believe I will def like it more than this season (unless they literally ruin it lol riverdale flashbacks) so many people frustrated me tho like Chanmi and Sooheon meeting people they don't know in dark mysterious alleys like wtf getting beat up or hit across the HEAD WITH A FUCKING BRICK just wasn't enough, you need more?!

Something was missing maybe cause I thought this was going to be a school mystery but they even tried a guy that didn't go to their school?? Just put me a little off.

Also the cliche telenovela dual/split personality thing not great but didn't hate it as much as I usually do when it comes to cliches, kinda entertaining maybe cause I liked Jaebum!! I think it was also a little rushed I'm just not satisfied maybe cause it was really hyped and it didn't live up to my expectations... I called everything out like Sejin and Wonseok (Chankyu) dating, the sibling 'love' etc again cliches.

The ending tho besides not explaining what happened to everyone else like Jaebum (his sentence and stuff) or Osung (like u dead bro or nah?! if yes which I think is the case, no funeral scene??) it was super cute with the entire school lying for him and saying goodbye to him <3 (would've SOBBED if that wasn't spoiled for me lmao)

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Totally Gripping

First of all, I know a lot of people have said that the ending lets it down, and it's true that it could have been better and it was cliché, but at the same time, it's not TERRIBLE, and to me it didn't matter because the rest of the drama was AMAZING and more than made up for it.

The casting was great (all the guys were hot?! I'm shallow, sorry), and the way it was written kept you going from loving someone to doubting them and then loving them again.

It truly was a rollercoaster and I would definitely recommend it. Even if you're someone who despises clichés - like I normally do - I'd say give it a watch anyway because it might surprise you how much you enjoy it! :)

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It’s missing something

Plot
this drama had a a lot of potential, but it kind of missed the mark. The storyline was all over the place. you could not understand why the people killed the others and they barely touched on the main reason why brother got killed. And these high school kids where not acting like high school kids and overall the revenge fell short. And not to give out to much the revenge was mid.

characters
you could not sympathize with any of them and it’s was too far fetched and they acted so foolishly and especially the main female lead. And the bad guys just seemed to lack depth like if you are evil 😈 they should be a reason why you are like that except if you are a sociopath.

missing the mark on important issues
they take to lightly the fact that some issues where not fully explained like being GAY , sexual harassment, bullying and death 💀

overall
invite this drama a 5.5 if you are looking to watch a quick bad bad show this is for you because they are moments where you get excited but it falls down so quickly. would not recommend this for first time drama watchers

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One of the best mystery dramas of 2022

The whole story involving the cast is fantastic. The personal growth of each character makes the story get better and better throughout the episodes. It's a story that grips everyone from start to finish.We feel anger, affection, sadness, betrayal and all the feelings that the characters feel.
The whole development of the story behind the death of Park Wonseok makes it captivating, as clues and more clues appear that lead us to believe that the killer is a person, but, in the end, it was not what we were looking for.
It was without a doubt one of the best mystery dramas I've seen this year. Despite the ending being a little open and where they could have explored some more points that, in my opinion, would be important, I LOVED it.
If you want to see a GOOD mystery drama then Regenge of Others is a GREAT option.

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Thrilling beginning but disappointing end

I am a huge fan of a revenge plotline. The show really keeps you captivated and mesmerized for most of the series. The whodunit aspects in the beginning really do keep you guessing. However, the show falters in the last few episodes. When the audience finds out the motivations for all this havok it's almost laughable. So anticlimatic. The police as usual, are dumber than a box of rocks and don't really serve a purpose in the story other than to annoy us.

The cast is good and all of the actors were new to me. I liked Seo Ji Hoon as Jaebum and Lomon as Seohoon. Seo Ji Hoon was excellent as Gi Osung. He nailed his role as the person you love to hate. He took smug and arrogant to a new level.

Overall, an enjoyable series to watch once. I loved Gsoul's song Lost Game which played throughout the series and was the closing theme song.

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I don't care what anyone says about the ending or whatever, I really really enjoyed this show and all the characters (and the OST too, it was sooooooo good). I really liked our female main character: Ok Chanmi. She was quite naive at times, going to dark places with no back up, yet she was not one to give up or back down. She defended herself and those she cared about, so that was refreshing and nice to see. The male lead was great! I haven't seen "All Of Us Are Dead" yet, so that was my first Lomon-Drama but I liked him a lo. The fighting scenes were really cool and I quite liked the revelations - no matter how obvious they were. One last thing: Jaebum is innocent, Oh Gisung is the root of all evil and literally the spawn of Satan.

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