Superb thriller drama of 2021!

After all the cheesy romance kdramas, this one feels like a breeze of fresh air.
The story can be divided into 2 parts: part 1 is who-done-it type of show and part 2 is about how to catch the culprit(s). I find part 1 is wonderfully made with slow pacing at first and then when it hits climax it's perfection, like a symphony. Part 2 is when the "teamwork" (which is build up in part 1) is finally paid off and it's beautiful to see these stubborn characters work together. However, I find part 2 leans a bit much on stereotypical tropes of evil chaebols/people in power and therefore predictable as well. Moreover, the drama also sometimes heavy-handed its message that bad people must be punished by the system (even if it's the same system that enables them, in this case they only point out the "few bad apples" in the Korea justice system w/o seeing the pattern of abused power). Overall, there was storytelling magicality to the screenplay, the choice of music for each scene makes it more whimsical. Suspense builds up at the end of each episode. There is subtleness to the dialogues spoken by characters which is crucial to the plot & overall aesthetics. It was aesthetically pleasing drama with black, gray & brown color schemes mostly.
The acting of all characters are amazing throughout, of course especially Dong Shik (now I understand why he won best actor). Yeo Jin Goo surprises me because he's so young but very talented as well and doesn't get outshined by Shin Ha Kyun. The characterisations of the 2 main leads are wonderfully executed with satisfying conclusion arc, when they finally find peace within themselves (I'm so glad none of them die). However, I wish we got to see more of Joo Won backstories which hopefully explains his strong moral code (because it's the main drive of his character but he definitely doesn't get it from his parents). I also find it a bit unrealistic that the show implies that both of them seems to do fine (mentally) after the culprits have been caught which is kinda unrealistic with how erratic they behave throughout the show for a long period of time (they should both get therapy tbh).
The music is memorable which is rare for me with a thriller kdrama. I'd def rewatch my favorite scenes sometimes.

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