Park Jae Bum’s ( The Fiery Priest, Chief Kim)screenwriting as well as director Kim Hee Won ( The Crowned Clown, Love You) did leave a distinct mark of their combined style by mixing heavy-hitting tension with lighthearted moments throughout the storyline .

Yet whilst the comedy is evidently prominent in the plot to relieve more vigorous themes, it is probably fair to say that typical of Jae Bum’s screenwriting, the comedy often felt slightly juvenile in parts and an unnecessary weight at times. ( In certain episodes, you’d go from having an incredibly intriguing and fierce revelation exposing the mafia’s dark roots, only to have a tiresome gag in the next such as a word play upon Vincenzo’s name in early episodes.)

Admittedly, there are several moments in the drama ( even by the main cast ) which may raise an eyebrow by questionable line deliverances. However, as far as acting is concerned, the main cast were absolutely brilliant as our main leads.Song Joong Ki and Ok Tae’s Yeon headline the drama by their high-profile acting careers, however, even fellow costars Jeon Yeo Bin and Kwan Dong Yeon will quickly win the hearts and affections of the viewers also.

The characterisation in the drama was honestly a mixed bag. Song Joong Ki’s character Vincenzo was undeniably an intriguing protagonist. Whilst initially falling into the trap of the romanticised ‘ good gangster’, it was intriguing to see screenwriter Jae Bum breaking this mould in order to develop Vincenzo with sentience and realistically questionable morality rather than merely being a " hero who saves the day". However, there was a lot which felt vacuous with Vincenzo’s character, not least never going into his actual reasons for joining the mafia as a consigliere ( which was always half-baked) , his bond or relationship with his adopted Italian parents and ultimately exploring the actual reasons why his birth mother gave him up in the first place.

Next, is our main female lead Hong Cha Young ( Jeon Yeo Bin). Cha Young did initially seem to go down the route or being a little irksome in the beginning of the drama, but, her unreserved assertions and loyalty towards Vincenzo soon become defining qualities about the character. For instance, Cha Young has long-held enmity throughout the show towards Kim Yeo Jin’s character Prosecutor Choi Myung Hee. (Or ‘ Zumba Snake’) which certainly was maintained . On the other hand, similar to Vincenzo , Cha-Young is not a flawless character. Sometimes, she struggled to be lifted from being anything more than one- dimensional such as her textbook-style, (rather than emotional) responses initially to the events around her father Hong Yoo Chan ( Yoo Jae Myung) in earlier episodes. ( Which after their initial use in the main storyline, were disregarded completely without Cha-Young even contemplating this significant factor again.)

As far as the relationship between Cha Young and Vincenzo is concerned, it was a fairly predictable formula. There was nothing inherently wrong with it per say and did present some essential bonding moments between the characters, however, it often felt a little enforced for the sake of plot when it was necessary , rather than developing this with the respected characters’ thoughts and feelings in mind.

Antagonists are an intriguing conversation to talk about in the drama. From the cliche cronies, law firm enthusiasts Choi Myung Hee ( arguably one of the most annoying villains in the show) , CEO of the rival law firm Woosang Han Seung Hyuk ( Jo Han Chul) and the " dumb, but not so bad" masqueraded CEO of ‘ Babel Group’( Kwan Dong Yeon), the show has an odd array of trope advisories .

However, finishing up assessing ' Vincenzo’ wouldn’t be completed without talking about the drama’s main villain Jang Jun Woo. This is because, Jun Woo is designed to be the " ultimate twist villain" and " big bad" early on in the series, but, he was often underplayed as a dead weight and minor threat until later events. This wouldn’t have been such a bad screenwriting decision, if the show had used some time to go into Jun Woo’s backstory ( apart from a couple of brief flashbacks) or sketched him out more than just a " villain you’re supposed to hate". Jun Woo is far from romanticised or glossed over and whilst later episodes enjoy going into a " Sherlock Holmes And Moriarty" rivalry between Vincenzo and Jun Woo, there was little sense of actual build or intrigue behind similarities (and even differences) between them. Of course, Jun Woo served his main purpose; a disturbing evildoer, but he could have certainly been so much more than a one-dimensional moustache twirling villain.

The ending did hold the drama in good-stead with a bittersweet cliffhanger which reflected the overall themes and genres of the show. Admittedly, there were a couple of things which could have been tied more concisely in the ending ( despite its long duration), but, it did bring an appropriate finale. With an odd balance between genres and screenwriting decisions, Vincenzo is attractive for viewers’ attention by its main premise and cast. Certainly enjoyable in parts and not unwatchable, but, a little overrated for what its worth.