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This review may contain spoilers
Why does Mouse have a brilliant plot? Why is Mouse a masterpiece?
**Spoiler free part**
‘Mouse’ is a unique drama. It took some risks and avoided clichés. That’s why many people like it and many don't. It’s dark, raw with many murders, many killers and without any romantic aspect. If you’re more into romcoms or if you can’t bear something so dark, then maybe ‘Mouse’ isn't for you. Also, keep in mind that even though ‘Mouse’ is based on some scientific facts, it’s scientifically inaccurate (sci-fi). If that disturbs you, I'd advise you to not watch ‘Mouse’ as you’re not going to like it.
‘Mouse’ has a very complicated plot that’s a little difficult to keep up with. It’s a drama that you have to think about and not a light-watch drama. All the characters are related somehow with each other or with the main events and everything plays an important role for the plot. Thus, you have to pay attention to every detail otherwise you’ll end up being lost.
At first, you’ll have many questions and you won’t understand a thing, until the time comes and you’ll see that everything makes sense. And then, you’ll also realize that ‘Mouse’ doesn’t really have plot-twists. All the episodes were full of clues, from start to finish. Everything was predefined, but you couldn’t see it because you were blind.
Many people would think that the story is overdrawn with plot holes and maybe they drop the drama. In fact though, ‘Mouse’ doesn't have plot holes. It's a drama you have to definitely watch until the end to get all the answers and understand it, so don't drop it for this reason, keep going.
Now, to justify why ‘Mouse’ is brilliant, I’ll analyze the plot further . Those who have already watched ‘Mouse’ can keep reading. Those who haven’t can come back after they’ve finished.
*WARNING SLOILERS*
*READ THE ANALYSIS BELOW ON YOYR OWN RESPONISIBILITY*
~~~Mouse’s inspiration~~~
The writer of Mouse, Choi Ran, was inspired by the Incheon Elementary School Murder case in 2017. There, when the defendant was asked about her difficulties, she answered “The weather is nice but it’s the hardest for me to not see the blossoms”. She didn’t feel any remorse about her actions.
Writer Choi Ran wanted to write a story where a psychopath would gain emotions and feel remorse. In that way, the psychopath would be punished and atoned. Thus, ‘Mouse’ it’s not a usual crime thriller, “it’s a story about salvation”.
The defendant’s phrase was said by the Head Hunter in episode 20.
~~~The Hubris-Atis-Nemesis-Tisis form~~~
Our hero is not a typical main character. He’s not the perfect, flawless, kind guy who is fighting for justice. On the contrary, we can compare him to Homeric heroes of Iliad and Odyssey and review him according to the Hubris-Atis-Nemesis-Tisis form. With that in mind, we can separate ‘Mouse’ into 4 different parts.
1)Hubris- episodes 1-4
If someone behaves arrogantly and insultingly toward the physical, moral rules or the laws of the gods, he is considered to have committed “Hubris”. Our hero hated the Almighty. At first, he killed for revenge. But then, he killed again and again. This time though, he was considering his killings as a judgment and himself as the Almighty, above all humans and gods. He tried to transcend mortal nature, he committed Hubris.
2)Atis- episodes 4-5
Atis is the blurring and blindness of the mind. Our hero was out of control. He murdered on a live-broadcast and wrote “I am the Almighty” with the victim’s blood. That was the darkest and the most macabre part of the series. He showed to everyone how far his craziness can go.
3)Nemesis- episodes 6-7
Nemesis is a life-changer event that sets the ground for Τisis (the final punishment). Even though his plan was perfect he made one mistake. He thought he had got rid of the witness who saw him murdering but he was wrong. When he acknowledged it, it was too late. His encounter with the witness became his Nemesis.
4) a. preparing for Tisis- episodes 7-14
Tisis is the final punishment. After the brain transplant, he woke up with memory loss. During these episodes he believed that he wasn’t the serial killer but a national hero. He came face to face with killers/psychos like him. He started to hate people like them, people like him.
4)b. Tisis 15-20
And when he had hated himself enough, his memories came back. He remembered what he did, but he wasn’t proud anymore, he was full of regrets. In addition, when he committed the murders, an organization was above him, manipulating him. He was never the Almighty. His nemesis had told him “You think you’re a deity? You’re just a psychopath who was born with a mutated gene. We are lab-mice.”. Then was when he understanded those words. What an irony of fate.
Our hero had accepted the punishment and in the end he paid for his crimes and atoned.
~~~“What if we could identify psychos in advance?”~~~
If we could identify psychos in advance, then ‘Mouse’ would happen.
In ‘Mouse’ some people believed that if they could identify psychos in advance, they could create a world without psychopaths, without bad people. The OZ organization was created. They thought the end justifies the means so they killed many people. They thought they could change the world, but they killed more humans than the “psycho-gene human” did.
The “psycho-gene human” wasn’t the problem after all. It was the people’s lack of ethical compass. It was humans’ arrogance.
Did the passing of the law bring eternal peace? No. This isn’t shown directly in the drama, but it’s implied by some scenes (post-credit scene of episode 20 ~ continuation of human experiments~ violation of Bioethics laws, Mouse the Last~ assassination). That’s how ‘Mouse’ dispels the myth it created. It made us realize that being able to identify psychos in advance and eliminate them won’t make the crime disappear. Maybe a second season that deals directly with this issue would make this point even stronger.
At this point, we can make an analogy with the tale “The Wizard Of OZ”. At the end of the tale, it is revealed that the wizard of OZ, the powerful wizard who had founded and ruled the city, was an ordinary old man, a fraud. Respectively, the founder of OZ organization was a fraud, a predator and not a savior and the OZ organization is nothing more than a group of murderers and its beliefs a big scam.
~~~Why did people believe that anyone who has the psycho-gene is a killer?~~~
We know that psycho-genes exist in 'Mouse', but having them doesn’t necessarily make you a killer, only a psycho. We know that not all psychos are killers and not all killers are psychos. There's plenty of scientific research about how psychos' mindset is working in the real world and the writer tried to stay as accurate as she could to this. But despite this, history has also shown that people tend to believe in ridiculous ideas and do inhuman things. The people in the world of ‘Mouse’ aren’t any different.
From the story’s start, we see people believing that a murderer’s child is an evil monster, an upcoming murderer, that all psychopaths are crazy murderers. In other words, we see an easily manipulated crowd full of prejudiced people. Someone promised these people a utopian world without crime and they praised this idea.
~~~ “The Wizard Of OZ” and the main characters. ~~~
The OZ organization isn’t the only thing that reminds us of the tale “The Wizard Of OZ”. In fact, the main characters of ‘Mouse’ have a lot in common with the characters of the tale. Let’s take a close look and see why.
~~The Tin Man : Jung Ba Reum (JBR)
The Tin Man desired heart so he could feel emotions. JBR wanted to not be a monster. In the end, he got feelings and he wasn’t a monster anymore.
~~Dorothy Gale : Oh Bong Yi (OBY)
Dorothy was taken away from her family due to a cyclone. Thus, she began a journey to find her way back home. Likewise, OBY lost her only family. At first, she lost her grandmother and then JBR. In the end, she was alone. We can see her loneliness in the special ‘Mouse: the last’ in the lunch-time scene.
~~Scarecrow : Ko Moo Chi (KMC)
Scarecrow wanted a brain. KMC never had thought clearly after the Head Hunter accident. His mind was trapped on that day. After his interaction with JBR, his mind was free. Now he was a life-wise person and in peace.
~~The Cowardly Lion : Choi Hong So (CHS)
The Lion wanted to be brave. CHS was on the run all her life because she was afraid to face her parents. In the end she took the courage, reunited with her family and took responsibility for her actions.
~~Toto : The kitty
Toto is Dorothy’s dog and her only friend. Of course, Toto is here too, but as a little kitty. In episode 14, JBR’s nephew named the kitty JBR gave him Toto. What a funny coincidence…
~~~The dark reality of ‘Mouse’ and the meaning behind the title~~~
In ‘Mouse’ we see human cruelty in all its glory. We see vulnerable people. No one is perfect. We see good people die one after the other. We see people with good intentions killing their savior. We see mothers trying to kill their own kids. We see people dying in the name of science. We see people doing the same mistake and the story repeating itself.
‘Mouse’ is full of irony. It bothers us because, although it has the brain transplant, it feels very real. ‘Mouse’ is showing us that we are all victims of inhumanity, even a killer, even a psycho. Everyone is a “mouse”. Will we be able to escape from our inhumanity? Will we be able to avoid mistakes and not fall again like a rat in the trap? Are we sure about our actions? What if one day we wake up realizing everything we have done was wrong?
Conclusion
‘Mouse’ is one of the best K-Dramas for 2021. I won’t say that it's the best, because everyone has different preferences. What I’ll say though, is that ‘Mouse’ has the most unique story of 2021 K-Dramas. ‘Mouse’s story just hits differently and combined with the right direction, the marvelous interpretations and the on-point soundtrack created a powerful and intense Thriller.
Of course, ‘Mouse’ isn't flawless. At the end of the day, nothing is. But through ‘Mouse’ I saw hardworking people who loved their project and wanted to pass a message. I can’t ignore the details and the creativity that this show has. That’s why, for me, ‘Mouse’ is a masterpiece. Team-Mouse, thank you for not compromising the story for popularity and giving us this drama.
This was long so I want to thank everyone who took the time to read this review and I'm glad if some of you found it helpful.
If you want bonus/sources, see in the comments.
‘Mouse’ is a unique drama. It took some risks and avoided clichés. That’s why many people like it and many don't. It’s dark, raw with many murders, many killers and without any romantic aspect. If you’re more into romcoms or if you can’t bear something so dark, then maybe ‘Mouse’ isn't for you. Also, keep in mind that even though ‘Mouse’ is based on some scientific facts, it’s scientifically inaccurate (sci-fi). If that disturbs you, I'd advise you to not watch ‘Mouse’ as you’re not going to like it.
‘Mouse’ has a very complicated plot that’s a little difficult to keep up with. It’s a drama that you have to think about and not a light-watch drama. All the characters are related somehow with each other or with the main events and everything plays an important role for the plot. Thus, you have to pay attention to every detail otherwise you’ll end up being lost.
At first, you’ll have many questions and you won’t understand a thing, until the time comes and you’ll see that everything makes sense. And then, you’ll also realize that ‘Mouse’ doesn’t really have plot-twists. All the episodes were full of clues, from start to finish. Everything was predefined, but you couldn’t see it because you were blind.
Many people would think that the story is overdrawn with plot holes and maybe they drop the drama. In fact though, ‘Mouse’ doesn't have plot holes. It's a drama you have to definitely watch until the end to get all the answers and understand it, so don't drop it for this reason, keep going.
Now, to justify why ‘Mouse’ is brilliant, I’ll analyze the plot further . Those who have already watched ‘Mouse’ can keep reading. Those who haven’t can come back after they’ve finished.
*WARNING SLOILERS*
*READ THE ANALYSIS BELOW ON YOYR OWN RESPONISIBILITY*
~~~Mouse’s inspiration~~~
The writer of Mouse, Choi Ran, was inspired by the Incheon Elementary School Murder case in 2017. There, when the defendant was asked about her difficulties, she answered “The weather is nice but it’s the hardest for me to not see the blossoms”. She didn’t feel any remorse about her actions.
Writer Choi Ran wanted to write a story where a psychopath would gain emotions and feel remorse. In that way, the psychopath would be punished and atoned. Thus, ‘Mouse’ it’s not a usual crime thriller, “it’s a story about salvation”.
The defendant’s phrase was said by the Head Hunter in episode 20.
~~~The Hubris-Atis-Nemesis-Tisis form~~~
Our hero is not a typical main character. He’s not the perfect, flawless, kind guy who is fighting for justice. On the contrary, we can compare him to Homeric heroes of Iliad and Odyssey and review him according to the Hubris-Atis-Nemesis-Tisis form. With that in mind, we can separate ‘Mouse’ into 4 different parts.
1)Hubris- episodes 1-4
If someone behaves arrogantly and insultingly toward the physical, moral rules or the laws of the gods, he is considered to have committed “Hubris”. Our hero hated the Almighty. At first, he killed for revenge. But then, he killed again and again. This time though, he was considering his killings as a judgment and himself as the Almighty, above all humans and gods. He tried to transcend mortal nature, he committed Hubris.
2)Atis- episodes 4-5
Atis is the blurring and blindness of the mind. Our hero was out of control. He murdered on a live-broadcast and wrote “I am the Almighty” with the victim’s blood. That was the darkest and the most macabre part of the series. He showed to everyone how far his craziness can go.
3)Nemesis- episodes 6-7
Nemesis is a life-changer event that sets the ground for Τisis (the final punishment). Even though his plan was perfect he made one mistake. He thought he had got rid of the witness who saw him murdering but he was wrong. When he acknowledged it, it was too late. His encounter with the witness became his Nemesis.
4) a. preparing for Tisis- episodes 7-14
Tisis is the final punishment. After the brain transplant, he woke up with memory loss. During these episodes he believed that he wasn’t the serial killer but a national hero. He came face to face with killers/psychos like him. He started to hate people like them, people like him.
4)b. Tisis 15-20
And when he had hated himself enough, his memories came back. He remembered what he did, but he wasn’t proud anymore, he was full of regrets. In addition, when he committed the murders, an organization was above him, manipulating him. He was never the Almighty. His nemesis had told him “You think you’re a deity? You’re just a psychopath who was born with a mutated gene. We are lab-mice.”. Then was when he understanded those words. What an irony of fate.
Our hero had accepted the punishment and in the end he paid for his crimes and atoned.
~~~“What if we could identify psychos in advance?”~~~
If we could identify psychos in advance, then ‘Mouse’ would happen.
In ‘Mouse’ some people believed that if they could identify psychos in advance, they could create a world without psychopaths, without bad people. The OZ organization was created. They thought the end justifies the means so they killed many people. They thought they could change the world, but they killed more humans than the “psycho-gene human” did.
The “psycho-gene human” wasn’t the problem after all. It was the people’s lack of ethical compass. It was humans’ arrogance.
Did the passing of the law bring eternal peace? No. This isn’t shown directly in the drama, but it’s implied by some scenes (post-credit scene of episode 20 ~ continuation of human experiments~ violation of Bioethics laws, Mouse the Last~ assassination). That’s how ‘Mouse’ dispels the myth it created. It made us realize that being able to identify psychos in advance and eliminate them won’t make the crime disappear. Maybe a second season that deals directly with this issue would make this point even stronger.
At this point, we can make an analogy with the tale “The Wizard Of OZ”. At the end of the tale, it is revealed that the wizard of OZ, the powerful wizard who had founded and ruled the city, was an ordinary old man, a fraud. Respectively, the founder of OZ organization was a fraud, a predator and not a savior and the OZ organization is nothing more than a group of murderers and its beliefs a big scam.
~~~Why did people believe that anyone who has the psycho-gene is a killer?~~~
We know that psycho-genes exist in 'Mouse', but having them doesn’t necessarily make you a killer, only a psycho. We know that not all psychos are killers and not all killers are psychos. There's plenty of scientific research about how psychos' mindset is working in the real world and the writer tried to stay as accurate as she could to this. But despite this, history has also shown that people tend to believe in ridiculous ideas and do inhuman things. The people in the world of ‘Mouse’ aren’t any different.
From the story’s start, we see people believing that a murderer’s child is an evil monster, an upcoming murderer, that all psychopaths are crazy murderers. In other words, we see an easily manipulated crowd full of prejudiced people. Someone promised these people a utopian world without crime and they praised this idea.
~~~ “The Wizard Of OZ” and the main characters. ~~~
The OZ organization isn’t the only thing that reminds us of the tale “The Wizard Of OZ”. In fact, the main characters of ‘Mouse’ have a lot in common with the characters of the tale. Let’s take a close look and see why.
~~The Tin Man : Jung Ba Reum (JBR)
The Tin Man desired heart so he could feel emotions. JBR wanted to not be a monster. In the end, he got feelings and he wasn’t a monster anymore.
~~Dorothy Gale : Oh Bong Yi (OBY)
Dorothy was taken away from her family due to a cyclone. Thus, she began a journey to find her way back home. Likewise, OBY lost her only family. At first, she lost her grandmother and then JBR. In the end, she was alone. We can see her loneliness in the special ‘Mouse: the last’ in the lunch-time scene.
~~Scarecrow : Ko Moo Chi (KMC)
Scarecrow wanted a brain. KMC never had thought clearly after the Head Hunter accident. His mind was trapped on that day. After his interaction with JBR, his mind was free. Now he was a life-wise person and in peace.
~~The Cowardly Lion : Choi Hong So (CHS)
The Lion wanted to be brave. CHS was on the run all her life because she was afraid to face her parents. In the end she took the courage, reunited with her family and took responsibility for her actions.
~~Toto : The kitty
Toto is Dorothy’s dog and her only friend. Of course, Toto is here too, but as a little kitty. In episode 14, JBR’s nephew named the kitty JBR gave him Toto. What a funny coincidence…
~~~The dark reality of ‘Mouse’ and the meaning behind the title~~~
In ‘Mouse’ we see human cruelty in all its glory. We see vulnerable people. No one is perfect. We see good people die one after the other. We see people with good intentions killing their savior. We see mothers trying to kill their own kids. We see people dying in the name of science. We see people doing the same mistake and the story repeating itself.
‘Mouse’ is full of irony. It bothers us because, although it has the brain transplant, it feels very real. ‘Mouse’ is showing us that we are all victims of inhumanity, even a killer, even a psycho. Everyone is a “mouse”. Will we be able to escape from our inhumanity? Will we be able to avoid mistakes and not fall again like a rat in the trap? Are we sure about our actions? What if one day we wake up realizing everything we have done was wrong?
Conclusion
‘Mouse’ is one of the best K-Dramas for 2021. I won’t say that it's the best, because everyone has different preferences. What I’ll say though, is that ‘Mouse’ has the most unique story of 2021 K-Dramas. ‘Mouse’s story just hits differently and combined with the right direction, the marvelous interpretations and the on-point soundtrack created a powerful and intense Thriller.
Of course, ‘Mouse’ isn't flawless. At the end of the day, nothing is. But through ‘Mouse’ I saw hardworking people who loved their project and wanted to pass a message. I can’t ignore the details and the creativity that this show has. That’s why, for me, ‘Mouse’ is a masterpiece. Team-Mouse, thank you for not compromising the story for popularity and giving us this drama.
This was long so I want to thank everyone who took the time to read this review and I'm glad if some of you found it helpful.
If you want bonus/sources, see in the comments.
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