My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

I'll preface this by saying I am not a K-pop fan. I didn't even know a K-pop star was starring in this drama until I got near the end of the drama. And now that I know the lead female is a rookie actress and considering this drama is her first time playing a main role, I am impressed. Also, I will say that my all-time favorite K-drama is White Christmas, which is also a hostage plot, so this type of story is right up my alley.

Acting/Cast: I'd say one of the best things about this drama is the casting of the spies. Perfect casting, especially the male lead spy. I couldn't imagine anyone else playing that character. He has this innocent look about him, but he can also have an intimidating presence, which is essential for the role. His ability to convey emotions through his eyes and facial expressions was vital to the role, as well. I think everyone inside the dorm (for the most part) had good acting. I didn't even have a problem with the rookie female lead's acting. Those outside of the dorm are another story. I think the worst thing about this drama is Park Sung Woong (박성웅). I hated every time he was on screen. His acting was over-the-top obnoxious. My brain's reaction to his presence would be to automatically start tuning him out. I actively had to fight against it. Him, as well as others on the outside of the dorm, really brought an unwanted cheesiness to the drama, which actually has a very serious plot that I think should have been taken more seriously. 7/10

Writing: For the most part, the story is pretty well written. The foundation that was built in the beginning was very solid except for the two important ANSP agent characters. I didn't care about them at all in the beginning. I didn't know exactly what to expect with this story, so once the hostage situation began, I was shocked and hooked. I think the writing begins to get shaky toward the end. I kept thinking "I wish the female lead had more of a role." She was great in the first half. She felt like a realistic, but strong female lead. She was trying to fight back, figure things out, even manipulate others to save her friends. The only thing potentially unrealistic about her behavior would be that if I were in her situation, I would be deathly terrified of the male lead. I wouldn't even have been able to look him in the eyes. I'd be way too traumatized and ashamed about the whole thing. However, toward the end, it's as though the female lead becomes more of a background character who looks sad all the time and is silently hating herself. I wouldn't have been surprised if she had tried to take herself out at some point...I think that would have been realistic. I mean, it's a deeply depressing and traumatizing situation for her specifically. Another reason I thought the writing got shaky toward the end was because of the excessive twists. I don't think it was necessary to put in twists toward the end; the main plot itself is engaging and complex enough and should have been fully embraced as it was. Also, toward the end, the intense feelings of hopelessness that I felt from the whole situation had increased too much to where I was almost unable to see any light at all at the end of the story. I think that's a bit more of a personal taste - I need a certain amount of hope to keep me on the edge of my seat and not lose interest. On a positive note, the political aspect of the drama became more interesting to me as the story went on (usually stuff like that bores me) and the two ANSP agents became much more likeable. I found the politics in this drama to be very thought-provoking. What kinds of events in real life have governments and media worked together on to cover up or spin to win elections? 9/10

Direction/SFX/Music: This drama definitely had a higher quality of production, which I really look for. I will drop a drama 20 minutes in if the production quality isn't doing it for me. There are a lot of guns, bombs, blood, I love the set and the time period. The OST is okay. It didn't stick out too much for me. The only complaint I have here is that sometimes the music didn't fit the situation, especially in the beginning. There's a gun fight and blood and chaos but romantic sounding music is playing. How is this romantic? 9.5/10

Entertainment Value: I was hooked for a majority of the drama. I stopped watching other dramas to binge watch this one. It was only toward the end (maybe episode 14) that I wasn't exactly excited about watching it...more scared to watch it I guess. 9.5/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 9/10. It's rare that I ever rate a drama this high. I think this one won't soon be forgotten. I wish there had been more of a sole focus on the dynamics inside of the dorm, such as relationships between the girls, and how their personal bonds helped them to survive. This person being an ANSP agent or that person being a northern spy or this person doing something bad in the past or that person having some past connection that I don't care about -- to me it was just a bunch of unnecessary Korean drama clichés that didn't really add much to the plot.