106
203
82
Kate
hell
This review may contain spoilers
Finally, after having this drama on-hold for 2 years, I finished it. I do not regret waiting so long, before picking it up again. I might have rated it lower if I was watching it as it was airing, being swayed by other people's opinions. Now, with a clear heart and head, I can be as true to myself as possible.
STORY
Cults are not exactly the most commonly used theme for dramas, since it's hard to present them in a realistic way, staying true to the complexity of how these organizations work and the mentality of people being involved. This drama did a fairly good job at it. Till the end I wasn't 100% sure if the cult leader is a true believer, or if it’s just an act. There were hints fitting both of the cases throughout the show. That being said, it was unnecessary to introduce the "corrupt politician" into the mix. Next to such a fresh idea of the victims of a cult, giving us an overused story of a power hungry older guy doing anything he can to win, was a mistake. Especially since the drama would be just as interesting without it.
CHARACTERS
The drama tries to sell us a story of 3 young heroes: Sang Mi, Dong Cheol and Sang Hwan. Sadly, they failed. They told us Sang Mi is the heart, Dong Cheol - the muscles and Sang Hwan the brain of the group, but it was Dong Cheol that came up with the majority of the plans, he was smart enough to know not to involve the cops and not to believe in Sang Hwan's dad.
Sang Mi was smart enough to fool everyone involved in the cult and survived there for years. There was no brain in Sang Hwan up until ep 14/15th. A bit too late if you ask me. There was truly nothing going on for him as a character and I was never invested in him and his journey. He was there to show up at times and solve plot problems that might be hard to explain otherwise.
As I was finishing the drama, I finally knew why I disliked Sang Hwan so much: the writer and director tried to TELL us he is the hero of the story next to Sang Mi, but they did not SHOW it at all.
He kept making the same mistakes, never learning from any of them. All the consequences never hit him directly, but hurt the people around him. Don't know if it was the director's/writer’s idea or Taecyeon's misdelivery, but I never felt that he is truly sorry for all the things that he did. The production team tried to put him in the same "I am a victim here" group as Dong Cheol and Sang Mi, which was ridiculous. His mistake put his best friend in jail and an innocent girl in a cult for years, and everyone forgave him like it was not a big deal. I don't believe that there can be a nonredeemable character and they could have made Sang Hwan work, but they did not even try. All the mistakes were just forgotten.
One of the more interesting characters to watch was Apostle Kang. There were moments when we could slowly see her breaking out of that "salvation" mindset and seeing how things truly are in Goosuwon. It made me question and wonder how her character will develop and which side she will be standing on at the end. I appreciate that she stayed true to her beliefs, no matter how twisted they were. It just shows the true power of manipulation and brainwashing that had happened in the cult.
ACTING
Except for Taecyeon, all the cast did an amazing job. I must say, I might be biased though. I never liked Taecyeon acting, not once have I thought he did a good job with the role given. I just don't feel any deep emotions and those nuances in his facial expressions that distinguish amazing actors from just an actor. Being placed between such a strong cast, I could see that he still lacks in some areas of the delivery.
On the bright side though, Jung Hae Kyun and Yoon Yoo Sun did a fantastic job, easily overshadowing the rest of the cast with their acting. Everyone truly hated Joo Ho and felt pity towards Bo Eun. Many people think acting "crazy" is an easy thing to do since you just have to do random stuff, but it's hard... really hard to make it believable. The random stuff are not really random, there is a reasons they do them, do stuff that no one else seems to understand. You need to understand the reasoning behind the unreasonable actions to be able to portray them in your character.
Overall, really good drama. The frustration that keeps rising during the watch makes the ending even better. Even the comical death of Jung Ki was a good choice, and if all the actions leading to it were not as serious and heavy, I might say they overkill him. OCN knows how to deliver, and we should be thankful.
STORY
Cults are not exactly the most commonly used theme for dramas, since it's hard to present them in a realistic way, staying true to the complexity of how these organizations work and the mentality of people being involved. This drama did a fairly good job at it. Till the end I wasn't 100% sure if the cult leader is a true believer, or if it’s just an act. There were hints fitting both of the cases throughout the show. That being said, it was unnecessary to introduce the "corrupt politician" into the mix. Next to such a fresh idea of the victims of a cult, giving us an overused story of a power hungry older guy doing anything he can to win, was a mistake. Especially since the drama would be just as interesting without it.
CHARACTERS
The drama tries to sell us a story of 3 young heroes: Sang Mi, Dong Cheol and Sang Hwan. Sadly, they failed. They told us Sang Mi is the heart, Dong Cheol - the muscles and Sang Hwan the brain of the group, but it was Dong Cheol that came up with the majority of the plans, he was smart enough to know not to involve the cops and not to believe in Sang Hwan's dad.
Sang Mi was smart enough to fool everyone involved in the cult and survived there for years. There was no brain in Sang Hwan up until ep 14/15th. A bit too late if you ask me. There was truly nothing going on for him as a character and I was never invested in him and his journey. He was there to show up at times and solve plot problems that might be hard to explain otherwise.
As I was finishing the drama, I finally knew why I disliked Sang Hwan so much: the writer and director tried to TELL us he is the hero of the story next to Sang Mi, but they did not SHOW it at all.
He kept making the same mistakes, never learning from any of them. All the consequences never hit him directly, but hurt the people around him. Don't know if it was the director's/writer’s idea or Taecyeon's misdelivery, but I never felt that he is truly sorry for all the things that he did. The production team tried to put him in the same "I am a victim here" group as Dong Cheol and Sang Mi, which was ridiculous. His mistake put his best friend in jail and an innocent girl in a cult for years, and everyone forgave him like it was not a big deal. I don't believe that there can be a nonredeemable character and they could have made Sang Hwan work, but they did not even try. All the mistakes were just forgotten.
One of the more interesting characters to watch was Apostle Kang. There were moments when we could slowly see her breaking out of that "salvation" mindset and seeing how things truly are in Goosuwon. It made me question and wonder how her character will develop and which side she will be standing on at the end. I appreciate that she stayed true to her beliefs, no matter how twisted they were. It just shows the true power of manipulation and brainwashing that had happened in the cult.
ACTING
Except for Taecyeon, all the cast did an amazing job. I must say, I might be biased though. I never liked Taecyeon acting, not once have I thought he did a good job with the role given. I just don't feel any deep emotions and those nuances in his facial expressions that distinguish amazing actors from just an actor. Being placed between such a strong cast, I could see that he still lacks in some areas of the delivery.
On the bright side though, Jung Hae Kyun and Yoon Yoo Sun did a fantastic job, easily overshadowing the rest of the cast with their acting. Everyone truly hated Joo Ho and felt pity towards Bo Eun. Many people think acting "crazy" is an easy thing to do since you just have to do random stuff, but it's hard... really hard to make it believable. The random stuff are not really random, there is a reasons they do them, do stuff that no one else seems to understand. You need to understand the reasoning behind the unreasonable actions to be able to portray them in your character.
Overall, really good drama. The frustration that keeps rising during the watch makes the ending even better. Even the comical death of Jung Ki was a good choice, and if all the actions leading to it were not as serious and heavy, I might say they overkill him. OCN knows how to deliver, and we should be thankful.
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