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This review may contain spoilers
A refleshingly appetizing surprise!
If I'm being completely honest, halfway through the series, I was sure my thoughts towards it would be complete indifference. Like so many other dramas that start out amazing and then just end up dropping in quality and general interest with each episode. I don't think I've ever been so glad to have been proven wrong.
The Legend of Kitchen Soldier is completely absurd, and it shines in taking that absurdity and pairing it with relatable emotions and feelings. And food. Because a good meal can mean different things for everybody, but it can resonate with anybody. And when it mashed the absurdity with emotions, that's when it worked.
We start out watching Kang Sung Jae, a newly enlisted private, get assigned to the kitchen unit in his outpost at Kanglim. He's just lost his father, people are immediately wary of him (thanks to a smiley face pin nonetheless), and he's got no real cooking skills. Doesn't help that he's staring off into the distance, all distracted because he's the newly chosen individual to complete "The Chef's Path" - a simulation game to improve his cooking skills, and the morale of all his troopmates at Kanglim through his cooking.
Each episode, he has to complete quests, through which he earns experience, and gains skills and special prizes. It's a literal simulation game. And it's beautiful in the weirdest and best of ways. Sung Jae is the protagonist of the game and you not only want to root for him, you just very much do. He's got all the incredible qualities you'd want in a protagonist and he develops as a character (because of the XP lol sure, but also more on that later). Whenever we see him get a win, we cheer. His setbacks frustrate all of us, it's just protaganist things.
This was good, it definitely was, but bit by bit, it felt like the drama was losing its charm. Sung Jae was still protagonist, so why? Why did it feel like the story had strayed away from its original plot? I've figured it out now that I've watched it all, but as I watched, I genuinely did not get it. Now I know - it was because Sung Jae was off the chef's path. For three or four episodes, the characters and the ingredients that made the show what it is, were sidelined to showcase parts of the plot that were integral in hindsight, but just not properly executed to flow well with the rest of the episodes.
Dare I say, once the focus was on the quests and Kanglim again, the show got even better? Seriously, it has been so long since I watched a show that has picked up in the second half rather than fall! So long!
Because it was in the second half that we got the best of this series - more appearances from the supporting characters, actual character growth that turned two (and maybe more) unlikeable characters into people you root for along with Sung Jae, a proper plot, and just some incredible comedy with a ton of heart. It's everything I wanted out of the story, and I got it!!
I could genuinely go on and on about how much I like each of the characters in this series. Every one of them was given the screentime and chance to become an integral part of Sung Jae's life and journey and I love it when a script can do that, give your protagonist all the allies he can imagine.
What more can I even say? It was funny and weird and so heartfelt. Yes, it had a down but the way it came back up was commendable. All the characters are amazing, the story is so good, the actors did a brilliant job. So why not give it a try?! It is definitely worth a watch :)
The Legend of Kitchen Soldier is completely absurd, and it shines in taking that absurdity and pairing it with relatable emotions and feelings. And food. Because a good meal can mean different things for everybody, but it can resonate with anybody. And when it mashed the absurdity with emotions, that's when it worked.
We start out watching Kang Sung Jae, a newly enlisted private, get assigned to the kitchen unit in his outpost at Kanglim. He's just lost his father, people are immediately wary of him (thanks to a smiley face pin nonetheless), and he's got no real cooking skills. Doesn't help that he's staring off into the distance, all distracted because he's the newly chosen individual to complete "The Chef's Path" - a simulation game to improve his cooking skills, and the morale of all his troopmates at Kanglim through his cooking.
Each episode, he has to complete quests, through which he earns experience, and gains skills and special prizes. It's a literal simulation game. And it's beautiful in the weirdest and best of ways. Sung Jae is the protagonist of the game and you not only want to root for him, you just very much do. He's got all the incredible qualities you'd want in a protagonist and he develops as a character (because of the XP lol sure, but also more on that later). Whenever we see him get a win, we cheer. His setbacks frustrate all of us, it's just protaganist things.
This was good, it definitely was, but bit by bit, it felt like the drama was losing its charm. Sung Jae was still protagonist, so why? Why did it feel like the story had strayed away from its original plot? I've figured it out now that I've watched it all, but as I watched, I genuinely did not get it. Now I know - it was because Sung Jae was off the chef's path. For three or four episodes, the characters and the ingredients that made the show what it is, were sidelined to showcase parts of the plot that were integral in hindsight, but just not properly executed to flow well with the rest of the episodes.
Dare I say, once the focus was on the quests and Kanglim again, the show got even better? Seriously, it has been so long since I watched a show that has picked up in the second half rather than fall! So long!
Because it was in the second half that we got the best of this series - more appearances from the supporting characters, actual character growth that turned two (and maybe more) unlikeable characters into people you root for along with Sung Jae, a proper plot, and just some incredible comedy with a ton of heart. It's everything I wanted out of the story, and I got it!!
I could genuinely go on and on about how much I like each of the characters in this series. Every one of them was given the screentime and chance to become an integral part of Sung Jae's life and journey and I love it when a script can do that, give your protagonist all the allies he can imagine.
What more can I even say? It was funny and weird and so heartfelt. Yes, it had a down but the way it came back up was commendable. All the characters are amazing, the story is so good, the actors did a brilliant job. So why not give it a try?! It is definitely worth a watch :)
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