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“We are all prisoners... prisoners of our own nature”
A kind of psychological noir more than a typical “solution-driven” thriller, “Reverse” builds its strength through an intricate structure that functions not as a mere narrative device, but rather as a system of distorted perceptions capable, from its very first scenes, of immersing the viewer in a skillful game of reversals, ingeniously portraying the way memory, trauma and desire can deform the very perception of truth.Structured with meticulous ingenuity through flashbacks, ellipses, temporal gaps, sensory memories, omissions — real or presumed — and continuous shifts in perspective, the drama uses its narrative fragmentation not simply to create suspense, but above all to drag the viewer into a labyrinthine journey inside a fractured consciousness, where past and present progressively lose any clear boundary.
Despite its relatively short length — only 8 episodes — the drama constantly manages to call into question what the previous episode seemed to have established, overturning every viewpoint perhaps too hastily taken for granted. Through deception and manipulation, unexpected fractures, memories that take on the tone of confession and revelations that verge on staged performance, the viewer is progressively deprived, much like the protagonists themselves, of any stable point of reference, eventually coming to constantly doubt the very meaning of the images being shown.
Rather than using amnesia as a simple thriller device, "Reverse" gradually transforms memory into a true identity performance, where the recovery of recollections coincides not so much with healing, but rather with the slow re-emergence of a repressed, traumatized and potentially manipulative personality.
It is here that "Reverse" performs its most disturbing movement: instead of clearly separating victims from perpetrators, the drama constantly works on their overlap, forcing the viewer to continuously reconsider the moral role of its characters.
Beneath its thriller structure also emerges a surprisingly fierce reflection on class privilege and on the ability of elites to transform guilt into aesthetics. Art itself, through the character of Hee Su (an excellent Kim Jae Kyung), seems to become a sublimation of trauma and privilege, to the point of converting the suffering of others into creative language, sensitivity and even moral legitimization.
It is therefore no surprise that the image of fire returns throughout the entire series, transforming itself into primal trauma, sensory memory and the symbolic repetition of an impossible-to-erase violence. Every fire, whether real or evoked, seems to lead the characters back toward the same nucleus of guilt, desire and self-destruction. Within such an unstable perceptual and moral landscape, the work of the actors becomes fundamental, as they are called not to embody immediately readable figures, but rather characters perpetually suspended between trauma, simulation and moral ambiguity.
In this regard, Seo Ji-hye probably delivers the strongest performance of the series, crafting a version of Myo Jin that is layered, elusive and continuously indecipherable. Through an extremely restrained control of glances, hesitations and minimal expressive variations, the actress simultaneously conveys fragility, pain, lucidity and calculation, transforming the very face of the character into an ambiguous territory that the drama constantly invites the viewer to reinterpret.
While Seo Ji-hye chooses the path of opacity and continuous indecipherability, Go Soo instead constructs a Jun-Ho that explicitly recalls certain classic figures from Hollywood psychological noir. His elegant charm, seemingly reassuring control, emotional manipulation and the gradual emergence of opportunistic cruelty inevitably evoke archetypes close to Charles Boyer in “Gaslight”, with Jun-Ho transforming the house he shares with Myo Jin into a sophisticated perceptual prison built upon sedation, isolation and emotional control, where protection and coercion ultimately become indistinguishable.
More melancholic and crepuscular, instead, is the figure of Adjushi Ki Cheol portrayed by Yoon Je Moon, a character who seems to come directly from a Jean-Pierre Melville polar: a man consumed by time, guilt and the awareness of his imminent death, yet still capable of preserving, until the very end, a form of silent moral lucidity.
Balancing the tragic tension are also the deliberately more buffoonish characterizations of the secondary criminals, often constructed on the border between real menace and grotesque mockery, in a way that recalls certain noir deviations found in the work of Joel and Ethan Coen, where violence, absurdity and dark comedy coexist within the same degraded moral universe.
"Reverse"ultimately makes its relationship with the viewer fully explicit above all in its finale, where one of the most effective intuitions of the concluding episode is represented by the figure of the psychiatrist, who gradually assumes the role of a true alter ego for the audience itself. Like the viewer, the doctor is forced to retroactively reconsider every gesture, every answer and every hesitation shown by Myo Jin, realizing far too late that she too has been manipulated by a truth constructed through omissions, simulations and deliberately altered perceptual fragments.
In the courage of its conclusion, "Reverse" probably finds its most complete dimension. Far removed from the increasingly common tendency to redirect ambiguity toward conciliatory or morally reassuring structures, the drama refuses any form of definitive reconciliation, choosing instead to preserve until the very end the painful, contradictory and profoundly unstable nature of its characters.
Truth, in "Reverse", does not truly liberate anyone, restore balance or transform revenge into a cathartic or morally ordered journey. On the contrary, every revelation seems to further contaminate what the viewer believed they had finally understood, leading the drama toward a conclusion that is both tragic and ambiguously unsettling.
The “gift” evoked in the final part of the series therefore acquires a devastating meaning: not merely an extreme gesture or terminal provocation, but the possible specular recognition of a shared darkness that Myo Jin, perhaps too late, ultimately begins to glimpse within herself as well.
Perhaps the most radical choice made by "Reverse" lies precisely in understanding that certain truths do not serve to heal, absolve or restore order, but merely to reveal how deeply trauma, desire and revenge can deform a human being. Even when there is no longer any possibility of turning back.
8/10
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Good but not much of a thriller
I did like the movie though I wasn't aware of it being adapted from a game. But as a horror or psychological thriller, it wasn't at par with other movies. There are moments when it was creepy and weird but that's about it. So if you scare easily it won't be hard watching this.I liked the acting of the cast and it certainly made me curious to try and figure out what was happening. I'm not sure if I would recommend it to thriller lovers though.
The simplicity of the set was great and also how many things were done differently in each loop. They followed the game's design to a T!
Spoilers below.
I'm not sure if many viewers got the same understanding from the movie as I did because it seemed to be lost on a few YT reviewers that I saw. The ML is told by his ex that she is pregnant. She is at the hospital waiting for him to making a decision. And then everything that happened before or after is related to the baby. Him seeing a mother on the subway getting harassed because her baby is crying. Blood dripping from the walls and ceiling of the looped subway station as if to suggest death/murder/abortion. Baby in the locker. Him wondering if he'll be a good father and then seeing a small boy and trying to rescue him. The loop was designed so that he tells his ex to keep the baby and raise it with her. Japan has a big problem with their low birth rates and an aging population. From my perspective, this was pretty obviously baby propoganda And that is what I didn't like about it. Though I did like this one line criticising the work culture and monotonous lives the Japanese live but people are helpless unless the government actively makes changes. I thought the concept was good but it's an average film for its genre.
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Spectacular Show
Vibes are immaculate. Knocking a point off for certain two people getting forgiven in the end. Otherwise - WOW!!Episode 6 ending going into episode 7?? Edge of my seat, biting my nails, flabbergasted.
BL characters with fleshed out stories, personality and preferences outside of their love interest?? Personal issues that they actually acknowledge and work through??COMMUNICATION???
Well there’s a bit of questionable behaviour on the communication front but it was so well set up that it didn’t even bother me. No one’s pulling nonsense out of their ass to misunderstand. Mc’s are able to read between the lines instead of taking everything at face value.
The casual intimacy was done so well. The lingering looks, the light touches, forehead kisses etc.. I mean they convinced me that they actually loved each other. Huge props to the actors for bringing it to life. Chefs kiss. Sign me the f up for more stories like this one.
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Eh..
The idea of the main plot is pretty interesting but it’s executed in an insanely corny manner. Hits all of the BL tropes you can possibly think of. Half the time they’re doing absolutely nothing and I’d still be embarrassed if someone caught me watching this show. They know that side of their audience and are tapping into it well if you catch my drift.Should have given these roles to actors that aren’t afraid to actually kiss if that’s what you’re going for. Although I suppose this may have been one of the first Kor BL’s to be released so gotta let them off on that one.
Don’t regret watching but it’s nothing extraordinary.
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Underrated Timeless Masterpiece
I love everything about this. Seriously. No notes.The way it was filmed and cut makes you feel like an invisible spectator hanging out with them.
The acting is so insanely natural and real! Some scenes made me feel icky and I was screaming in my head that it was all wrong but it was all executed so well from start to finish. Like they’re just people. None of that cringe weirdness you get in Thai BL. The whole show is such a breath of fresh air. The outro songs... Just everything.. Crush it up and snort it. Roll it up and smoke it. Consume it. Inject it.
Mieko was my spirit animal through and through until ‘the mistake ™’. Still don’t fully blame her tho…
I feel for Eiji. He will hate himself for the rest of his life. It’s misery entirely of his own creation of course but sometimes that’s just how life goes.
My 2 babygirls didn’t think anything through at all and Makki was a silent passenger until it was way too late. That ep.7 conversation should have happened before all the craziness.
My heart hurts for all of them. This story’s not for the weak.
Thank god for Asato tho.
“Don’t Make It Weird After We Do This”. Famous last words.
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wasted potential
I like it when shows are able to rip my heart out and stomp on it. I felt Mhok’s frustration and pain deep in my chest in the early-mid episodes.Unfortunately what was a beautifully portrayed story slowly but gradually devolved into played out boring tropes.
Get that man Day some acting classes idk.. I feel like he focused so hard on the blind part (which he absolutely nailed btw) that he forgot he was also meant to be in love. Could be the scripts fault. Unlikely.
Extra point for disabled rep.
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Good Actors and Fast Action, All Splattered with Blood
Warning, Gentle Viewers: graphic violence and gore ahead, but the title didn't promise a frothy love story.The Good:
• I really like Lee Dong Wook, even when he's playing an emotionless killer. He's not a cruel killer. I'm making excuses for him!
• Park Ji Bin gave me chills with that baby face of psychotic sweetness. Fun fact: that cherubic face is 31 years old! Another fun fact: He played Geum Jan Di's little brother in Boys over Flowers 17 years ago.
• Geum Hae Na's action scenes were amazing. I asked AI if she did her own scenes: "Geum Hae-na performed most of her own action scenes in the Disney+ series A Shop for Killers. She underwent intense, lonely high-intensity training to master grappling and other combat techniques, which resulted in her gaining 3kg of muscle mass. Her physically demanding performance, which included scenes where she reportedly vomited from exhaustion, earned her a Best Supporting Actress Award at the 3rd Blue Dragon Series Awards."
• I appreciated seeing some actors who looked like average people: short, old, plain, etc.
• I wasn't sure if this went in The Good or The Bad list, but the action was nonstop and the tension was unrelenting. I had to take breaks in order to handle it. I'll put in The Good, as I wasn't bored.
The Bad:
• Disney+ offers the drama only in dubbed form. It's weird and offputting. The dialogue sounded like it was written by AI without a full charge of electricity.
• The drama didn't end; it just stopped. That's regrettable as my introductory offer on Disney+ runs out before the second season arrives. I prefer binging seasons, because I tend to forget quickly, but I don't mind waiting if there is a viable conclusion at the end of each season. This left so many things hanging. What will happen with Babylon? What happened to Jin Man? With his intelligence and survival skills, I never bought things went down the way we were told. Please, let it be a diversion tactic and not stupid writing. At this point, we don't even know who is left alive. This was not a complete drama—it was a prelude.
• I would have expected Jung Jin Man to have prepared his niece better or that she would have adapted better. I'm thinking season 2 will see her character develop. Buckle up, Buttercup.
Now I'm off to watch something sweet and soothing. I had a mistaken perception that Disney+ would be princesses and unicorns, but it's violence, darkness, and blood, at least where the K-dramas are concerned. Now that I know they don't offer all K-Dramas with subtitles, I don't need to renew my subscription when it runs out.
I reserve the right to add an extra half star if the second season answers my questions.
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Overhyped unfortunately.
Predictable at every turn. Was calling literally every single thing that was about to happen which ruined the watch somewhat.Romance didn’t feel naturally progressed. I get that their bickering was pseudo flirting but they jumped from that to almost straight up confessing in 2 episodes.
Then 10 more episodes & essentially 2.5 years in show time for them to kiss. The latter sort of made sense at least.
Classic BL baiting and innuendos. Lost it at the soap ad inside of a soap ad. Like actually cackled.
Putting all of the grievances aside however, it’s a very cute story, loved the relationship Tian formed with all of the kids.
Extra half a point for Tian serving face while on the verge of death every single time.
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Highly Recommended
After watching this, I realized how important life is, and how beautiful it is to be alive. Every tomorrow is a blessing, and life feels more meaningful when you’re true to yourself, when you live as who you really are, not as someone you’re pretending to be.It’s just sad that many people don’t appreciate what they already have. They keep chasing more, sometimes leading themselves to paths they were never meant to take. Some people let their sadness win, and while it’s easy to judge, I don’t blame them. We all struggle in our own ways, and we all fight differently just to survive.
But then I came to a realization... life is short, and we only live once. That’s why we shouldn’t be afraid to try new things, and we shouldn’t let fear consume us. Life is meant to be enjoyed, but also lived with balance. In the story, the protagonist was so focused on achieving success and getting a job, yet he failed because he lived in fear. That fear cost him his chances, and in the end, he suffered. He failed to appreciate what he had, and made a careless decision that led him to experience everything the hard way. It reminds us to think carefully before making choices we might regret later.
This drama was truly well-written and well-executed. It made me cry a lot, but it also made me realize so many things at the same time. Now, I want to live my life more fully, to appreciate what I have and to be genuinely thankful for every blessing I receive.
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a brilliant gem from 2017
Long before Kinn/Porche, or Not Me, we have this 90 minute, lower budget series that doesn't look cheap, amazing piece of work. Don't be put off by it being older. It is the real deal. It is violent and subtle all at the same time. Twists and turns and just great fun. The performances by everyone involved so well done. I can't believe I have missed this! Check it out!!!!Was this review helpful to you?
Enjoyable, but...
Maybe I've only watched a few medical dramas, but dr. romantic feels like your typical 'drama-heavy' show, focusing more on bureaucracy and geodae director trying to mess with doldam hospital, rather than the medical aspect itself. As for the side characters, their backstories feel like brief additions just to give the audience some context.While I understand his background, kang dong-joo's character development was quite slow, it took 12 out of 20 episodes for him to finally see the bigger picture. He needed to be hit by a reality similar to his past to finally wake up, rather than actually learning from his time at doldam or from master kim. It's still enjoyable, but I personally wished the medical side was highlighted more.
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The entire story is so beautiful like them
The actors and couples in this show are so beautiful, the story is also so beautiful, everything is so beautiful in my eyes and in the eyes of many people, I will never get tired of watching it, I love it I was so impressed with this director, what they were able to show in their story, I was impressed, everything was so beautiful, even the songs and make-up were used, I was really impressed, it was so beautiful.This story has Jayna as my favorite character and she's so beautiful that I want her to be an actress again in this role😍🤍🩷Was this review helpful to you?
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ESTOU CURADA !!!
esse bl me curou namoralquando eu dei play eu não estava esperando algo tão comédia assim
mas quando percebi q era isso eu só aceitei pq senão eu ia odiar mt o duang
e ainda bem q fiz isso pq seria uma pena odiar ele
ele é doidinho mas é uma pessoa mt carinhosa
ele é um querido de vdd mesmo se passando horrores
eu o adoro mt
fora que a dinâmica dele com o qin é perfeitissima !!!!
ele é suuuper um top sub e o qin é super um bottom dom
o duang tem os 4 pneu arriado pro qin
obedece super ele igualzinho um cachorrinho mesmo (pq ele real real gosta MUITO do qin)
e old q o qin adora isso e adora mandar nele
e eu amei q eles sao real perfeitos e parecem um casal mesmo
vivem dando beijinho e cheirinho um no outro, vivem agarrados, dormem juntos, saem juntos, conheceram a família um do outro, viajaram juntos, fazem bastante sexo (as cenas sao bbd), adotaram um cachorro, conversam sempre etc etc
é surreal a química deles de vdd
e aqui funciona perfeitamente o casal não correr risco real de se separar pq eles são do tipo q estão dispostos a conversarem e resolverem qualquer mal entendido ou falta de comunicação pq eles real se gostam mt e não tem nada interferindo esse sentimento
o qin tem a história mais complicada aqui né e eu adorei ele se abrindo pro duang gradativamente conforme os eps iam passando
o duang realmente veio pra somar na vida dele é mt bonito
enfm vou dizer só isso pq se deixar eu poderia falar bastante sobre eles pq a dinâmica e a química desse casal em agradou muiitooooooooo
vou falar outras coisas
▪︎acho que a história seria melhor se desenvolvesse mais os outros personagens também (não os pais, o tempo de tela deles pra mim foi ok)
▪︎ justamente pelo ponto acima eu não curti mt o casal secundário (pulei quase todas as cenas pq além da história deles não ter me prendido eu achei eles meio sem química)
▪︎ também por causa disso o grupo de amigos do duang é mais interessante q o do qin (eles são super engraçados sério)
▪︎a parte do ex é meio pá também meio confusa mas ainda bem q isso não durou mt e nao atrapalhou o casal principal🙏
▪︎isso é mais uma coisa q eu gostaria de ver mas vou falar mesmo assim, acho q seria melhor ainda se o duang fosse autista canon e isso fosse explícito na série (mas talvez seja melhor assim mesmo pq pode ser q não soubessem trabalhar com isso e cagassem tudo né)
é isso não tenho mt oq criticar
é um bl leve pra vc ver e torcer mt pelo casal e ficar vidrado neles e se deliciar com as cenas dos dois juntos
eu gostei muitoooo to mt feliz
serio tinha momentos vendo q eu chegava a sentir oq eles tavam sentindo e derretia de amores junto !
adorei as músicas e gostei do final também com o show da banda ficou bem legal pq normalmente essas cenas de shows ficam meio ruins mas aqui foi tao lehal q fui até ouvir a banda no spotify
recomendo muitíssimo esse !!!
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Adorable but too fast-paced
I love this manga so when I found out they made an adaptation I was stoked! Overall, the drama is pretty good! The actors do a fantastic job and fit the characters so well! But I feel like unfortunately the pacing of the show does not do the story justice. Trying to fit six volumes into eight twenty-minute episodes just didn't work very well and to me things ended up feeling a little rushed and just too fast-paced. That being said I still think it was a great show and I did genuinely enjoy it, especially the way they decided to censor the explicit scenes, it was very clever and charming! <3Was this review helpful to you?
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