Ma Ri
Brazil
Doing a review about this drama without any spoilers is very hard, but I'll try my best now because I'm still very excited about it. "Mouse" tells the story of a society haunted by the terrible acts of "Headhunter", a psychopath serial killer who terrified the nation with his murders. After twenty-one years, the fear spreads again when a copycat starts to murder in the same way as Headhunter. Detective Go Mu Chi (Lee Hee Joon), with the help of Officer Jung Ba Reum (Lee Seung Gi), starts to pursue this criminal to end with this legacy of horror. "Mouse" isn't a drama for people who don't like plot twists or want anything 100% truthful. I'm a psychologist and I had to detach from many things that we know that isn't real, like the idea of the psychopath gene that they develop on the show. I bought this like sci-fi with a poetic license, so if you can't do this, maybe you won't enjoy the process. But when we give up on the idea of facts purely scientific and real, we received an amazing experience of mystery and thriller that I think is trending these days. "Beyond Evil", "Dark Hole", "Taxi Driver"... 2021 have been a good year for this kind of drama, and I love it! So let's talk a little (very little because is without spoilers) about the main characters.
| ABOUT THE CHARACTERS |
JUNG BA REUM, THE INCREDIBLY GOOD
Jung Ba Reum is the kind of character that you start hating or loving. There isn't a middle way. The figure of the good and naive officer is captivating and you just will get involving in his charms and sensibility. I'm not the kind of person that loves the good guy character so, in the first episodes, Ba Reum was pretty annoying for me. But with the process, I started to fall in love (Lee Seung Gi power, right?) and he totally got me. The development of the character is amazing and this is the man who will blow your mind and make you question what is justice and right like his name already invokes since the beginning. I'm suspicious to say, but Lee Seung Gi gives everything in this character. I went from the laugh to the passion, to the hate, to the sadness... Everything at the same time. This guy deserves his fame, without question.
GO MU CHI, THE BROKE DETECTIVE
Go Mu Chi was the edgy character that makes me tense in most part of the episodes. He is a traumatized detective who passes through many things in his life since his childhood, which was marked by the murdering of his parents by the Headhunter. Mu Chi is crazy, but also very smart, but in many moments I was frustrated by his stupid and recklessness. I joked with a friend that the problem of Mu Chi was his love with alcohol (maldita cachaça). This character made me cry a lot and, for me, he carried the heavy part of this show. His story is impressive and the consequences of the things that happened to him were also breathtaking. I met Lee Hee Joon when I watched "The legend of the blue sea" and at the time I already loved his performance. He is a great actor and this time wasn't different.
BONG YI, THE ANNOYING WARRIOR
Bong Yi is a traumatized character that you have to accept and understand. This isn't my favorite type of character, but I tolerate her because of the process (yeah, everything is about the process). She passed through a very difficult situation when she was a child and also lost her parents, being raised by her grandma. In the beginning, you can think that she is just an annoying teenager, but in the following episodes, you can realize that she is actually a strong girl. I was cheering for her, expecting that she could have a normal life someday. The first work of Park Joo Hyun that I watched was "A Piece Of Your Mind" (there is a review here), and she looks so mature at the time, so when I saw her on "Extracurricular" and now here, I was very surprised. She is young and I think she can do many interesting things in the future, considering her effort in doing "Mouse".
CHOI HONG JOO, THE MYSTERIOUS ONE
This is a character that I can't talk about almost anything without giving some spoiler. Choi Hong Joo is a mysterious reporter that has a big interest in the case of Headhunter and is close to Detective Mu Chi. It seems that she wasn't so important, but believe me, she is. She has an unknowing past (and present) that makes us suspicious of everything related to her since the beginning. It was my first time seeing a work of Kyung Soo Jin, and I really thought she was great on this. I couldn't predict almost anything about her, and she surprises everyone until the last episode.
HAN SEO JUN, THE HEADHUNTER
Han Seo Jun is more seeing in the first episode and in some flashes, but his character is the key to everything. Here is another character that I can say much about, but it was incredible to hate this guy. This character is pure evil and cynicism, and the performance of Ahn Jae Wook was just amazing. It was his first complete villain character and we have to praise him because he kills it (literally).
| HIGHLIGHTS |
The production and the script are really exciting. If you like thrillers you probably will enjoy this show. The performance of the main actors is also amazing and makes you immerse in every moment and feeling. I love plot twists, and this is something that you will have a lot here. The fight scenes are very exciting and real, and we can see the effort made by everyone on the team.
| LOW POINTS |
If you like thrillers like me, you can consider "Mouse" as an exaggerated drama. The plot twist is cool, but this happens in many moments of the plot and sometimes we feel a little confused and lost. I started to fix my attention after episode seven, when the bigger twist happen, but before that is a little difficult to catch up with the story. I started to deduce the truth in the beginning and see each episode trying so hard to make us think another way, even sometimes creating unnecessary tension, it was a bit annoying. But I'm saying this because I have to say something bad, because in the process I loved even when I was pissed of, lol. The science part is something that you can't take seriously. They explore the poetic license very hard and create almost a fantasy, and if you want real science and logic, this isn't for you.
| FINAL CONSIDERATION |
As I said, I have some points that made me a little distrustful in the beginning, but I loved every moment that I passed watching and theorizing about this drama. I will give the CHOSEN ONE (★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★) title for this because even with the low points I could enjoy everything and feel the tension and passion that was promised. I'm watching the special episodes these days and I have to say that this opens your mind to many things. "Mouse" is for sure a drama that you can rewatch over and over to understand and see things that you don't in the first time.
And you? What did you think about this one?
See you soon!
XOXO, Mari.
| ABOUT THE CHARACTERS |
JUNG BA REUM, THE INCREDIBLY GOOD
Jung Ba Reum is the kind of character that you start hating or loving. There isn't a middle way. The figure of the good and naive officer is captivating and you just will get involving in his charms and sensibility. I'm not the kind of person that loves the good guy character so, in the first episodes, Ba Reum was pretty annoying for me. But with the process, I started to fall in love (Lee Seung Gi power, right?) and he totally got me. The development of the character is amazing and this is the man who will blow your mind and make you question what is justice and right like his name already invokes since the beginning. I'm suspicious to say, but Lee Seung Gi gives everything in this character. I went from the laugh to the passion, to the hate, to the sadness... Everything at the same time. This guy deserves his fame, without question.
GO MU CHI, THE BROKE DETECTIVE
Go Mu Chi was the edgy character that makes me tense in most part of the episodes. He is a traumatized detective who passes through many things in his life since his childhood, which was marked by the murdering of his parents by the Headhunter. Mu Chi is crazy, but also very smart, but in many moments I was frustrated by his stupid and recklessness. I joked with a friend that the problem of Mu Chi was his love with alcohol (maldita cachaça). This character made me cry a lot and, for me, he carried the heavy part of this show. His story is impressive and the consequences of the things that happened to him were also breathtaking. I met Lee Hee Joon when I watched "The legend of the blue sea" and at the time I already loved his performance. He is a great actor and this time wasn't different.
BONG YI, THE ANNOYING WARRIOR
Bong Yi is a traumatized character that you have to accept and understand. This isn't my favorite type of character, but I tolerate her because of the process (yeah, everything is about the process). She passed through a very difficult situation when she was a child and also lost her parents, being raised by her grandma. In the beginning, you can think that she is just an annoying teenager, but in the following episodes, you can realize that she is actually a strong girl. I was cheering for her, expecting that she could have a normal life someday. The first work of Park Joo Hyun that I watched was "A Piece Of Your Mind" (there is a review here), and she looks so mature at the time, so when I saw her on "Extracurricular" and now here, I was very surprised. She is young and I think she can do many interesting things in the future, considering her effort in doing "Mouse".
CHOI HONG JOO, THE MYSTERIOUS ONE
This is a character that I can't talk about almost anything without giving some spoiler. Choi Hong Joo is a mysterious reporter that has a big interest in the case of Headhunter and is close to Detective Mu Chi. It seems that she wasn't so important, but believe me, she is. She has an unknowing past (and present) that makes us suspicious of everything related to her since the beginning. It was my first time seeing a work of Kyung Soo Jin, and I really thought she was great on this. I couldn't predict almost anything about her, and she surprises everyone until the last episode.
HAN SEO JUN, THE HEADHUNTER
Han Seo Jun is more seeing in the first episode and in some flashes, but his character is the key to everything. Here is another character that I can say much about, but it was incredible to hate this guy. This character is pure evil and cynicism, and the performance of Ahn Jae Wook was just amazing. It was his first complete villain character and we have to praise him because he kills it (literally).
| HIGHLIGHTS |
The production and the script are really exciting. If you like thrillers you probably will enjoy this show. The performance of the main actors is also amazing and makes you immerse in every moment and feeling. I love plot twists, and this is something that you will have a lot here. The fight scenes are very exciting and real, and we can see the effort made by everyone on the team.
| LOW POINTS |
If you like thrillers like me, you can consider "Mouse" as an exaggerated drama. The plot twist is cool, but this happens in many moments of the plot and sometimes we feel a little confused and lost. I started to fix my attention after episode seven, when the bigger twist happen, but before that is a little difficult to catch up with the story. I started to deduce the truth in the beginning and see each episode trying so hard to make us think another way, even sometimes creating unnecessary tension, it was a bit annoying. But I'm saying this because I have to say something bad, because in the process I loved even when I was pissed of, lol. The science part is something that you can't take seriously. They explore the poetic license very hard and create almost a fantasy, and if you want real science and logic, this isn't for you.
| FINAL CONSIDERATION |
As I said, I have some points that made me a little distrustful in the beginning, but I loved every moment that I passed watching and theorizing about this drama. I will give the CHOSEN ONE (★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★) title for this because even with the low points I could enjoy everything and feel the tension and passion that was promised. I'm watching the special episodes these days and I have to say that this opens your mind to many things. "Mouse" is for sure a drama that you can rewatch over and over to understand and see things that you don't in the first time.
And you? What did you think about this one?
See you soon!
XOXO, Mari.
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