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Mask Girl korean drama review
Completed
Mask Girl
23 people found this review helpful
by ColourMePurple
Aug 19, 2023
7 of 7 episodes seen
Completed
Overall 6.5
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 4.0
This review may contain spoilers

Trauma Girls

First and foremost, this is an extremely graphic, violent show which includes depicting rape and implied self-harm as well as nudity, stalking, domestic violence against women, etc. So please choose wisely if any of these make you uncomfortable.

When I started this show, I had barely any information about it. I did not anticipate how dark it was and I may have even passed on Mask Girl. It is not an easy watch by any means. Every episode makes you feel uncomfortable especially as a woman and if that was the point, then the director and actors certainly achieved their goals. As though the society doesn't already make us feel uncomfortable about ourselves in more ways than one. lol.

Mask Girl starts out to be about a woman who works in an office but has a persistent dream to be loved and applauded for her performance. But because her mother persistently made her feel ugly, her insecurities led her to hiding behind a mask and performing online to a bunch of incels who were praising her consistently. Due to a drunken mistake, she gets suspended. However, things start to get serious when her "fans" want to meet offline. From then on, it is just one bad thing happening after another.

This show doesn't just depict one woman's suffering but several women suffering repeatedly unable to escape the violence and abuse in their lives. Not only are the women forced to deal with the abusive men but also the abusive and unjust society. Other women also continuously attack and harm those women. Never letting them breathe. We also see women pitted against each other to settle scores.

The plot is engrossing, albeit slightly slow but you never feel satisfied. The depections smack the reality of victims who chose to fight back instead of laying down to die in your face. Meanwhile their abusers are barely questioned. It's unconscionable to ever blame the men who created the tragic circumstances in the first place. /sarcasm

The actresses in the series are all brilliant and the only positive in all this is how women centric this series is. Unfortunately, I can't really enjoy such kinds of graphic shows. The problem is that the presentation of the series never really lets you feel much empathy for the characters. Many would watch this and blame the women for whatever happened to them. If you caught yourself saying, "what did she expect when she was...", remember that it is so ingrained in us to blame women even when there is no excuse for rape. Sadly, there is always a "but" in people's minds. In that case, what is the point of such a show other than to create content for shock value? Every episode is shocking and it works for that reason but that is why it doesn't appeal to me.

Don't bother looking for a happy ending with this one. It just more trauma. All the points I'm giving is for the superb acting. All the points I'm deducting is for the handling of the story.
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