This review may contain spoilers
I'm not Korean, but I was bullied throughout my entire school career. I wish I could say that everything in Episode 1 is exaggerated and ridiculous... but not really. Students who insult, hit, and humiliate other students, with no one coming to the victims' aid, and sometimes even with the teacher's support (yes, really), well, that's the reality. Episode 1 isn't that far-fetched.
Violence doesn't solve anything in this case. But the series suggests that it does, that it would be the ultimate solution to everything. No, the bullies will take revenge on their victim. All it does imply that if violence comes from the stronger people (adults), then it's valid. And consequently, adults have complete authority over minors... because ? Because, period. Thus, violence in school would simply be an educational problem caused by the parents alone. I'm not sure I support that. (I believe above all in the collective responsibility and individual courage proposed by philosophers like Arendt or Sartre. At some point, we must act even if we stand to lose something, even if we aren't personally responsible : we are.)
That said… it's hard not to find it thrilling when a teacher goes to the home of a privileged bully (the son of a high-ranked politician) just to piss him off. And he couldn't care less about threats from a potential future president of the Republic. I admit it.
There are also some very serious issues that aren't handled all that badly. It goes beyond just school. We seek revenge for the powerless. And these "teachers" are only there for a specific mission.
Well, here I go complaining again… I love revenge in movies or TV shows, but in real life, it accomplishes nothing. I wouldn't be any less devastated if I learned of the death of my bullies or attackers. It doesn't make things right. And it's individualistic, too. An individual solution for every systemic problem ? No. (Or else we must expect that many of our relatives and family members will disappear in prison or be executed...) And it happens after the problem. It's already too late. Neither violence nor the death penalty dissuades people from committing crimes !
The series takes on a cartoonish tone starting in episode 2. The students are total thugs straight out of the worst mafia movies. How many times have they repeated a grade ? Paradoxically, it becomes much more watchable. From that point on, it takes on a satirical approach, the ideology takes a back seat, and you can watch it as a usual action comedy. If the whole series were like that, it would be just fine. But, it's not.
Episode 3 and its false accusation of a teacher sexually harassing a student. I just can't handle that. What about the real accusations ? Do we just ignore them ? It leaves me completely dumbfounded, I can't stand it. And Jin Ki-joo finally shows up ! Finally ! (My main reason for watching this series) But I couldn't appreciate her absurdly authoritarian approach as much as I'd have liked. I dropped the series right there. That's my limit. It's probably a shame, but I refuse to waste my time on stories about false accusations.
(Ignore the note. It's just for my own reference, so I know not to try again.)
Violence doesn't solve anything in this case. But the series suggests that it does, that it would be the ultimate solution to everything. No, the bullies will take revenge on their victim. All it does imply that if violence comes from the stronger people (adults), then it's valid. And consequently, adults have complete authority over minors... because ? Because, period. Thus, violence in school would simply be an educational problem caused by the parents alone. I'm not sure I support that. (I believe above all in the collective responsibility and individual courage proposed by philosophers like Arendt or Sartre. At some point, we must act even if we stand to lose something, even if we aren't personally responsible : we are.)
That said… it's hard not to find it thrilling when a teacher goes to the home of a privileged bully (the son of a high-ranked politician) just to piss him off. And he couldn't care less about threats from a potential future president of the Republic. I admit it.
There are also some very serious issues that aren't handled all that badly. It goes beyond just school. We seek revenge for the powerless. And these "teachers" are only there for a specific mission.
Well, here I go complaining again… I love revenge in movies or TV shows, but in real life, it accomplishes nothing. I wouldn't be any less devastated if I learned of the death of my bullies or attackers. It doesn't make things right. And it's individualistic, too. An individual solution for every systemic problem ? No. (Or else we must expect that many of our relatives and family members will disappear in prison or be executed...) And it happens after the problem. It's already too late. Neither violence nor the death penalty dissuades people from committing crimes !
The series takes on a cartoonish tone starting in episode 2. The students are total thugs straight out of the worst mafia movies. How many times have they repeated a grade ? Paradoxically, it becomes much more watchable. From that point on, it takes on a satirical approach, the ideology takes a back seat, and you can watch it as a usual action comedy. If the whole series were like that, it would be just fine. But, it's not.
Episode 3 and its false accusation of a teacher sexually harassing a student. I just can't handle that. What about the real accusations ? Do we just ignore them ? It leaves me completely dumbfounded, I can't stand it. And Jin Ki-joo finally shows up ! Finally ! (My main reason for watching this series) But I couldn't appreciate her absurdly authoritarian approach as much as I'd have liked. I dropped the series right there. That's my limit. It's probably a shame, but I refuse to waste my time on stories about false accusations.
(Ignore the note. It's just for my own reference, so I know not to try again.)
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