This review may contain spoilers
This dude is legit a kissing god.
This drama was my first foray into non-fantasy/supernatural/sci-fi k-dramas. I watched it because the male lead was in Healer. I didn't expect to like it because it's basically an action romance and that's really not my thing at all. However...I ended up really enjoying this drama. The story is really well done, the actors play off each other with a lot of chemistry, and the action is really well scripted. I'm not usually into succession type storylines, but this one had enough mystery and intrigue without being banal and overplayed. It ended up being one of my favorite dramas.Part of that, while I'm ashamed to admit it, were the exceptional romance scenes. There's this one scene under a blanket where the male and female lead share their first kiss and wtf level of god-like thirst goes into this dude's facial expressions when he's kissing. It's not in every role he's done, but it's for sure in many several of them. Dude like...idk...half closes his eyes and they get a little red and he looks almost drunk with passion and it's like melt-your-bones level sexy. Some kdrama leads are plenty hot but their kiss scenes are just like...eh.... but this dude TURNS UP THE HEAT. Dude alternates between being disgustingly cute watching the chick cook ramen, being super stoic and quietly forceful interacting in powerplays, and being super engrossed in his romance. His range is really great in this drama.
The main female antagonist is also really well done. She gives a very memorable performance that resonates with every expectation you'd have for a power hungry but still vulnerable matriarch. The other side-characters are ok, but she is really impressive to watch.
Overall I'd watch this again...not for the story but for the lead actor's unearthly hot romance faces. XD
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Watch it for the villain and all the feels.
A lot of plot twists that keeps you at the edge of your seat. With a cast that consists of one of the best villains I have ever seen in a k-drama, a male protagonist that hits you in all the right spots, a female protagonist that is naïve and clueless just the right amount and a supporting cast that just brings it all around.Kudos for the production and visual effects team that made this full of fun car chases, explosions and all around bad-assery in high quality. The OST gave it the romance feel that sometimes you just felt you needed, which brings me to another really good point, which is the very good balance between all of the punches and politics and estrategies with the much needed romance. The protagonist's chemistry was to die for, but this one has some excellent writing and you will find yourself getting teary by the fact that the villain didn't get her way. Haha.
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They focused on the wrong thing.
I am not gonna lie, I started watching this just because the bodyguard x protégé trope is a cliché I have always been obsessed with. The eight stars rate I am giving here is definitely more than what the drama as a whole deserves, but the acting of the male lead and the female antagonist, plus the well executed action/fight scenes that I found really entertaining to watch deserved a shout out. There were so many lose ends, plot holes and unnecessary scenes (speaking of with, I would like to remark the romantic ones) that it makes so obvious that the screenwriter and the director just focused on the wrong thing. No one actually cared about the female lead, I think. We all were cunning for the "Evil Queen". Should have they exploited the amazing chemistry between Jeha and Yoojin , it would have worked for the better. I love when thrillers have a little romance, but, man, it needs to be well written to avoid forcing things up: everything about Anna and Jeha felt, I don't know, a little ridiculous. Yoonah's poor interpretation didn't help at all, she was kind of a weak counterpart for Ji Changwook who single-handedly stole the scene. This is when you notice the difference between an actor and an idol. IN CASE ANYONE IS PLANNING TO RETELL THIS FAIRYTALE (AGAIN): WRITE ROMANCE THE RIGHT WAY OR LEAVE IT ASIDE.Was this review helpful to you?
1. Ji Chang Wook as Kim Je Ha
2. Song Yoon Ah as Choi Yoo Jin
Nothing more, nothing less.
For anyone knowing Ji Chang Wook from his other works I don't think I have to say a lot about him. He simply elevates any kind of project he works on. He's THAT magnificent as an actor. And while this drama offered him a relatively simple, cliche filled character, he still manages to make gold out of every time he's on screen. I started watching this drama because of him and because of him I was not disappointed.
But what a wonderful surprise Song Yoon Ah was! I had never seen before and she completely and irrevocably stole the show. I was looking forward to her scenes with bated breath, be them political intrigue, emotional moments or evil doing. She is a pleasure to watch. Such a versatile actress that made me root for her character instead of the main female lead. And believe me this RARELY happens with me. I usually love to hate my antagonists but she was such a powerful anti-hero that before I knew what was happening I was wishing she could turn her life around. I had times when I questioned my own morality LOL That's how much of an impact she had on me. Her character had exquisite depth, showed SO many layers that I couldn't help but love her to bits and desperately pray for a good ending for her. Alas that was not the case....
And the chemistry between Kim Je Ha & Choi Yoo Jin!! It was intense, electrifying from the first scene they shared. Without realizing it I came to crave more and more scenes with them. SO much wasted potential and missed opportunities from the writing team in exploring their story further. Their chemistry was off the charts. Based on what was established regarding Je Ha's character I know he would never have chosen her, at least romantically speaking. And in a way I didn't even need that. But what I DID want was a deeper exploration of their relationship. I feel like it could have been so much more had the writers tapped into their potential. There were many ways they could have turned the story around so that they at least end up earnest allies who recognized each other. But we don't always get what we want. It just frustrates me to no end when this happens!
This is not to say that the rest of the cast was bad. Everyone embodied their characters well and no fault is to be brought on the actors. But some of the characters they were given to play were lacking depth in order to make me really connect with them.
All of the above coupled with a nonsensical plot progression, some terrible decisions on camera angles, filming and editing, a seemingly unstoppable desire from the writer to shove K2 into the superhuman fighter mold rather than spend time exploring more of his emotional side and developing his character, a gross disregard for the main female lead who was left to be a crying, running, kidnapped, damsel in distress type throughout the show, I was left with a pretty sour taste in my mouth. If someone were to edit out all of Chang Wook and Yoon Ah's scenes and make a compilation of them, that's the only way I'd rewatch this willingly. Really sad right now :( It makes me want to go out there and write the whole damned thing again myself!
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Total Mishmash - Superb in some aspect but dreadful in others
Good :i) One of the best background scores ever, not just in Kdrama but could stand out in UK US dramas too. Background music will certainly stand out
ii) Best chasing scene in Kdrama and can fit into most top level action movies in Hollywood...
Bad :
i) Storyline which gets nowhere after episode 4 or 5.
ii) Stereotyping Muslims , border line offsensive
Ugly :
i) FL character (not the actress), drags the whole series down. No redeeming arc. She cries in episode 1, she cries once in all episodes. She cries in end too. One of the dead characters ever written. For lack of story movement said above, her part drags this down to mud.
Summary :
i) Overall great technical expertise in making the series but awful story, character development means this is 5/10
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what happens next?
I am here to write a positive review since I think this kdrama deserves more attention and love. Firstly,I want to mention about their amazing actor skills, all actors/actresses did an amazing job. The story is more about action,thriller and includes romance as well but not as much as you expect,but it’s not point since the kdrama generally is really good.If you think that there will be romance in each episode i’m sorry to disappoint you but they don’t have it each episode. Each episode you are more thrilled to know what happens next. I do recommend it to everyone even if there is not much of romance. Believe me you are not going to regret it! Enjoy:)Was this review helpful to you?
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Not regretted but little disappointed
Overall the drama is not bad, actually I wanted to give 10 for this drama but because of lack in romance I gave 8 for it, because also I was expecting for the romance drama to spend my weekend. I repeat I am not telling this is a bad drama. If you are looking for only story neglecting the romance you can have a try. But one thing is sure I became the fan of Song Yoon Ah (Choi Yoo Jin) oh my god what an acting and I felt very sad for her ending, throughout her life she got betrayed and disappointed by men’s( including her father, husband and subordinates), only in the ending scene she got her love or may be I am not sure whether it is love or her husband’s reflection for hit his sins. You can feel her how much she was humbled to be loved by someone, in fact she falls in love with the ML even though he is in her children’s age( not criticizing) because of the warmth he showed for her, it’s too much heart touching. Even though the ML is not paired to Choi Yoo Jin according to me she is the actual FL, if you ask me I will ship her to ML.Was this review helpful to you?
To be honest, I'm confused what story does it show. So, the plot is confusing. Who are protagonist, who are antagonists. What goals do they have? It's so much about politics and people who are not interested in politics would not understand what the drama tells. Besides, it's still can be enjoyed since it's like "Mission Impossible" movie. Some people might watched this drama because Yoona's charm, but.... yeah, I'm agree. Yoona apparently so cute. Haha.
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The first few episodes was really great, they show the characters in a way that will make you ask , think, and anticipate the next episodes to know them more. But as the episodes go, the joy to watch this lessens. But the great thing is, even though you don't like the flow of the story anymore, all the character gets more interesting and lovable that's why you'll still continue to watch it for them.
I don't think this drama is boring that's why some don't like it, but the plot of the story gets predictable. The relationship between Kim Je-Ha and Anna is too fast and doesn't have a nice development story. I believe, overall, the character of Anna doesn't have a good build-up story at all. Also, why did they make Je-Ha like a superhero? He's a human, it's impossible to knocked down 10 men while you are bleeding to death x_x.
But I won't lie, I still had fun, I like the action scenes, the acting, and the side characters. Especially Choi Yoon Jin. I don't know how to address her character, if it's a villain or not, but every time she's in the screen I can feel her emotions. And I also liked the ending scene.
Is it recommendable? If you like action dramas, then I would say yes, I believe it is recommendable.
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Personally enjoyable but very bad elements
If someone were to ask me if I enjoyed The K2 - I would emphatically say YES .Unreservedly. Here's why :1.Great fight scenes
2.Great political angst and villainy
3.Great supporting cast
4.Great intrigue and conspiracy
5. Great melodrama
Wars in the Middle East , espionage , fighting , commentary on AI and surveillance plus political puppets really made The K2 so interesting in a tenacious way. It really tried its darnedest to adhere to the 5 values I stated above . Moreover , the villain Choi Yoo Jin was incredibly exceptionally portrayed and her story arc was super enduring.Including her husband.
So why the 7.5 and not an emphatic 9 ? Here's why :
1. Weak male and female leads ( Ji Chang Wook and Im Yoon Ah)
2.Gormless romance
3. Not taking advantage of opportunities for an enduring story line
4. The character of Annan and her presentation was so UNNECESSARY
5. Loose story weaving
Not gonna sugar coat it but Ji Chang Wook and his insufferable inability to be comedically on point was terribly off putting . He did not do any justice to his character and everything of his just had off timing especially the comedic elements inserted into his character.
Im Yoon Ah was actually more insufferable to be fair , however , I will not persecute her too much because her character was ill conceived and written terribly . The K2 could have really saved itself if it focused on the bodyguard element decisively which is to say that there was no need for a romantic interest in the form of Anna and perhaps she should have been a child that he protects and have more of a ''hyung/brother'' element instead of a romance because THAT was disgustingly flat.
This now brings me to my point of ''loose story weaving.'' Why have romantic tensions between the male lead and the female villain only for it to culminate to nothing? Viewers did not deserve such possibly exciting ambiguity only for it to be thrown out. There are many other instances of loose story weaving but I will be spoiling.
The music was unremarkable and so is the rewatch value and quite possibly , this should score a 6.5 at best but I really enjoyed it and consider it to be a gem despite its flaws and all..
This drama is testament to a mantra I personally subscribe to and that is '' a drama does not have to be good in order for it to be good."
I highly recommend !
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This drama was my literal everything after I had completed it. I had such high expectations for action dramas afterwards that none of them satisfied my craving for something that was like The K2. Now, a lot of people say that they were really disappointed in the drama, and lost interest but I don’t understand how. I binge watched the crap out of this, and finished the drama within the span of 3 days because that’s how invested I was. Every episode left me wanting more, and this is the true definition of an action drama. There was constant back to back action which is something you don’t typically see in Korean dramas, and the scenes were so well executed that it was hard to believe that you weren’t watching a normal action based American film (like Captain America, Kingsman, etc. you get my gist).
1. Story
Politics plays a pretty major role in this drama, and is the main focal point of it. I guess the right genre for this would be a political action. Although, it can be a pretty boring subject to cover, if you add in the whole backstabbing and scheming, it’s not all that bad. Now, most political based dramas share one thing in common and it’s the whole backstabbing and running for presidency kind of thing. The dad’s are usually class A a-holes, and the kids are really messed up. This drama followed that exact stereotype, but because there was a lot of action involved it made the whole concept more interesting to watch and follow.
I will say though, there were scenes that were really overplayed and at one point I was really sick and tired of Yoona’s character Anna. Something about the whole denial, and continuous screaming got to me and I was frustrated to the point of wanting to punch a wall. Of course it got better as we progressed, but it would’ve been nicer to see her character catch on and develop at the same pace as the others, although it could be the negative side affects of PTSD I suppose.
Overall the story wasn’t all that bad as people make it out to be, but it also has to do with perspective. Personally speaking I really enjoyed the way the story was played out, and found it to be quite interesting. There was a lot of action, and the way in which the characters developed left me very happy. I got to see the majority of them grow, and I got to watch some comedy unfold in this intense drama as well which was a plus. If you’re looking for something that’ll fill that craving for a good action film then watch this, if not then I would still give it a try just to see but I know a lot of people ended up not liking this drama.
2. Acting/Cast
The casting for this drama was perfect! There are 4 main characters that we focus on, and each of them executed their role perfectly. Everyone did an amazing job at bringing the characters to life, and I would like to give a round of applause to Ji Chang Wook. The fact that he practically did all of his stunts by himself is absolutely amazing! I can’t even describe the amount of awe I’m in because of it. Also, watch out for Song Yoon Ah because she completely blew me away with her acting in this drama. I cried so many times because of her, and I felt so many emotions because of her which made this drama an emotional rollercoaster. The feelings that you get for her character through this drama is amazing, I can’t even put it to words. Her character had so many layers that it was insane, and she was by far my most favorite “villain”.
3. Music
The soundtrack was great in my opinion. The songs fit each scene perfectly, and I’ve even added them into my drama soundtrack playlist because I really enjoyed them. Most dramas have songs that aren’t really rememberable, but I feel like the soundtrack for this was different. I thoroughly enjoyed each song, and the song that they used for the action scenes has got to be my favorite. It was the perfect fit, and I recommend checking out the soundtrack if you haven’t already.
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The ACTING was incredible amazing. But the one who did the best was the villain (Song Yoon-Ah) best known in the series as Choi Yoo-Jin, a cold and heartless woman but beautiful in the inside. She was the best character in the whole series. Lee Jung-Jin, better know as Chairman Choi was incredible amazing too. Ji Chang Wook did a beautiful job despite of Yoona's character, my less favorite. Don't get me wrong, I did love some things about her, and I can relate to her in some cases but I wish she was able to do more instead of crying and letting others lie to her.
The music is OKAY and it goes with the story. When it comes to rewatch value, it all depends on the person, I love this series but I won't probably watch it again because I'm not the type of person who repeats series, but maybe in ten years it would be the perfect time. It depends on the person.
Overall: 10 stars. It deserves it for being sucy a great drama and amazing acting. Give it a try.
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