This review may contain spoilers
This drama.. Ohhh boy.. It is very good. It talks about things and topics that needs more attention. In this drama there were enough of serious and comedic scenes non of them overpowered each other, what made the watching more enjoyable. Story:
I liked how the story doesn’t have focus on romance but to the problems that any person can live through in their lives.
Characters:
I loved the fact that L finally got a main role in this drama and he proved his talent in acting. He had to play a serious and close- hearted character whom he did great! He was so cute that sometimes my UWU screamed so loud that I was even surprised.
Go Ah Ra’s character was the reason I fell in love with this drama. And how later on in drama her past was told and what she did go through as a teen.
Chemistry between characters was good too. How everyone tried to understand and help each other.
What I appreciated was the fact that Im Ba Reun confessing his feelings to Par Cho Oh Reum didn’t make things awkward between the characters, but let them understand the situation that is happening and bordering the characters.
Second lead character relationship was adorable too. How they interacted to each other.
I felt attached to every character in this drama.
Music:
OST was REALLY good. It didn't bother to stay focused on the scenes, but it felt more like the music completed them. It gave the right feeling to the scenes.
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The acting of the other two leads was alright. The older actor--I always enjoy him! I like the characters that he plays in dramas.
The young lead's acting is alright. Not bad, not good. Decent.
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The visual side is extremely sophisticated. On the wall in judges` room there is a painting of Goya and some variation on the theme of "Dance" by Henri Matisse. The script is outstanding and dialogues are intelligent. Anyone who is looking for a wise story and a wise commentary on life will find it here.
Thanks to the fact that drama is based on the novel of Moon Yoo Seok, it has a depth of character and thoughtful problems. It asks the question of what a justice is, what is the power of public opinion and money? And a very important one: is always a poor the victim?
Judges:
Judge Park, played by Go Ara – she could have played uncompromising heroine better.
Judge Im, played by Kim Myung Soo – his acting is really good. He plays the character who is straightforward, confident, and in control of the feelings, but at the same time seeking the truth about himself, about his true motivations.
Young judges have a great chemistry, I can even say that drama is full of electrifying romance, although they barely talking to each other and keep the distance between themselves almost all the time.
Sung Dong Il is my favorite actor. His judge Han is so warm and family man, but on the other hand very emotional, who instantly fights for justice.
Go Ara is holding back from hysterical sobbing, (perhaps the director prohibited it and he even jokes about her constant crying, when he recommends her to take eye drops). I may only hope that Kim Myung Soo will not learn bad acting from her.
The mood of “Miss Hammurabi”:
The characters are very natural and this is a big advantage of the drama. The ajummas in the market are portrayed very well, thanks to a few scenes we can feel their loneliness, moving warmth and straight humor. Filming is natural, full of bright and bland sepia and I like the soundtrack.
I give 8 for acting because of the only one expression of Go Ara`s face (who always looks like she is about to cry in a moment), but 10 for the whole, because it's a very good drama!
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Written by a real judge
I was not surprised to find out the drama was written by a real judge (but how do they have the time?). The work culture felt very realistic although it's not like I know a judge's workplace, especially in Korea.I was on an L appreciation binge when I decided to try tackle this drama again for the 3rd time. I'm glad I finally got to the end. It has an exciting start with the juxtaposition of L & Go Ara's characters but there's a few episodes in the middle where it's not exciting enough with either the characters or the cases/drama but then it picks up again and finishes strongly. Apart from the first episode, the last few were the best episodes. Also I got to the end of the slow-burn romance and to me it seems people have been throwing that term around lately for slice-of-life dramas but this one really was a slow-burn romance, I kind of forgot about it until it appeared again it was that slow. The drama gives slice-of-life vibes but it's completely unrelatable, how many people are judges?
This drama aimed to tackle many issues in society today and luckily was able to tackle issues in the workplace, civil law and criminal law in one go. They don't explain this until the end of the drama but the name Hammurabi derives from the Code (Law) of Hammurabi which was one of the first law codes to place greater emphasis on the physical punishment of the perpetrator and have a presumption of innocence, according to Wiki. The Miss in the name refers to Go Ara's character which I found interesting since Im Ba-reun (L) is really the main character. But she was a very exciting character, one that doesn't stop to think or consider, sometimes taking things too far in one direction and forgetting about the balance of the other direction. Which Im Ba-reun had to then drag her back from and try find that middle ground. This drama is the perfect example of compromise, change, and trying to see the both sides to every story.
It was interesting though how in their highlighting of how terrible the sexualisation of women is in the workplace they disregarded it happening to men (just one man really). However while I found the female character who intentionally flirted and gave mixed signals then got offended an odd character (if she was real I'd be annoyed no matter how hot she is, really, what does she think would happen?) she did help strengthen them highlighting the issue of sexual harassment of women (at the detriment to the man?). Also I found the rich vs poor mentality in this a bit too much, it certainly highlighted it as an issue but the mentality was so strong, or really it was Go Ara's character that had such a strong mentality.
I really loved the 3 main characters, the juxtaposition between them were what made this drama. It was as serious as Sung Dong-il and Go Ara could get but they were still hilarious, especially together. L as Im Ba-reun's indifferent distaste for other people narration was so appealing. His uncaring indifference of just dealing with society. Although I think if he was real he'd be depressed.Honestly though what really got me through the drama was L in a suit, he got me through all those middling boring moments. L's improved so much in his acting skills.
I looooove the OSTs, most are in my playlist. Most importantly I love how at the end of every episode, matter how sad I was feeling, it would play "It's alright, It's alright...it'll all be fine, someday." and that comforted me so much.
There's so many good quotes from this drama but I'm going to end with:
"When wearing this judge's gown you should erase your face but not your mind. I couldn't see it, if I'd tried to see with my heart I could've seen it. " - L
Followed by:
"After 30 years here I still don't know what's right or wrong. Please become a judge who listens. Before you make a judgement listen carefully to others." - Chief Judge Han's mentor
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First of all I shall tell my biggest complaint for this drama. That is that Sung Dong Il didn't get more screen time. His character was the most entertaining and obviously he's under the section main cast but compared to the other two he has little screentime.
Also another thing I don't understand how people say L's acting isn't memorable. After watching many, many, MANY dramas of his I've got to say his acting skills have improved 500X times. His character made more sense to me. The story is set in such a way that we don't completely fall for him cuz he sometimes is more tight assed. For me his character was refreshing. Another thins is I swear the female lead sometimes got on my nerves so much. Why can't she think before acting and after doing that and gets all sad.
Another fact was that I knew I saw him in some drama but wan't sure. Who am I talking about? L's best friend at work I mean. later I figured he was the king in the drama Faith with Lee Min Ho
Would I give this another rewatch value? Definitely yes
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Right intentions, bad execution
This drama takes a bit to grow on you. I am a fan of the legal genre and was pleasantly surprised/excited to watch one from the judges' point of view. Note, you may not be able to binge-watch because the FL can be annoying at times. It's a decent drama with a novel perspective (a judge's work) so it's better to take it slow to give it a chance.I loved the FL's character initially. She's feisty and quite the moral crusader. However, it tends to get frustrating because she is full of contradictions. She's all about fairness but is always biased even if it's in the side of the weak/oppressed. She's a judge for godsake. She's supposed to be impartial. I hate it when she makes up her mind about the guilt of the defendant when it comes to workplace harrassment but conveniently supports defendants who are drug addicts and alcoholics. She's also a bit full of herself. In my opinion, she doesn't deserve to be a judge; she's better suited to be a public defender or a lawyer or a philanthropist. Also, what's with all the crying?! I get it, many of the petitioners have sad stories. Some of the crying made sense. But this girl cries all the freaking time! Can you imagine being a defendant in front of a judge who so blatantly shows that they're on the side of prosecution/petitioner?! She also cries like a petulant child stubbornly insisting on her moral high ground even when her superiors/seniors try to calmly explain what the law can and cannot be, and what judges, as the upholders of law can and cannot do. I get wanting to change the system. That doesn't mean smashing it into smithereens at the risk of hurting others. You cannot jeopardize the many to save one. And lady, you're a judge! You should know that the most!!
This drama focuses on harrassment quite a bit. Talking about workplace harrassment, I agree with the power dynamics and the unfairness. Work environments are toxic for many. However, not all sexual harrasment allegations are true! My point is, the probability of an allegation being untrue may be negligible, but it is not zero. That should matter, especially to a judge! Your verdict is going to impact someone's life! You can't seriously go in assuming their guilt! A layperson can have the luxury of judging the accused devoid of proof but a judge cannot forget that all are equal before law and are innocent until proven guilty!!!!
I find it funny that she's always right! And only whatever she does is right. I mean, come on! How can you have a show where a judge with preconceived notions is never wrong?!
As much as the FL is frustrating, the ML is cute. Hats off to the presiding judge's patience for tolerating the FL.
Apart from the above rant, the drama is pretty engaging (annoyance aside). The romance is nothing noteworthy or worth mentioning. (It is a legal drama after all).
Frankly, I'm a bit disappointed as the premise was promising but the execution was flawed. It started with a bang and then kind of became floppy. They could have made the drama so much more wholesome if only the FL wasn't on her high horse all the freaking time.
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One of the best law dramas
I have seen some law dramas before too. Prosecutor, lawyer dramas, but the main point was the love in them, and now this judicial one.Everyone has their own opinion and taste about dramas. It is a stupid thing from me that I just like rom-com dramas where they focus on the love stories, but this is me.
This is mine:
Honestly, I didn't want to start this drama. Law dramas aren't for me, just when love has a big part of the stories. I really love rom-com dramas. So, it was hard to me to start this drama, but I said to myself "for Kim Myung So, and for his good acting, maybe, it is worth to watch".
When I finished the first episode, I just sat in front of my PC and thinking about this three eccentric people. I almost dropped the show, but yet I gave it a second chance.
I can say, if you like law or business dramas, watch this drama. It delves into the law, and the romance becomes secondary. There are many-many funny scenes. The scenes of the court hearings are very special. Heart wrenching, funny, and you can feel anger, antipathy for some people.
We can see the judges fight with their own feelings and hard time in the court hearings. But they can't and mustn't do anything.
Then, a quite special woman, Park Cha Oh Reum arrived for the 44th Civil Affairs Department, and she disrupts the office life with her own point of view. But, she isn't alone. Chief Judge Han is a "miracle beetle" too. He is my favourite character. Strict, indulgent, helpful, and above all he is so funny. This not at all common, I think. Yes, I haven't ever meet with a judge, but this is so special to me.
Something about OSTs: Where I had to cried, I almost cry because of the sad scenes and music.
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STORY: The story/plot starts off seeming fairly stereotypical/in line with many typical K-drama tropes. However, by the 2nd and 3rd episodes it proves to be much different from, and much more realistic than, most K-dramas. As has already been stated, the story was written by a real judge who works at the Seoul Central District Court, which alone sets it apart from other legal dramas/K-dramas in general, and makes the personalities and perspectives of the main characters more realistic, believable, and empathetic. I, personally, don't have much interest in legal/crime stories. However, this drama focuses more on ordinary, everyday, human issues in society (i.e., sexism, sexual harassment, workplace bullying, classism, exploitation, etc.) that everyday people face and can empathize with/understand. The dialogue in this drama is very smart, witty, moving, and memorable. I loved the back-and-forth philosophical debates between the 3 main judges wherein they try to find out the truth and serve justice to the best of their abilities. And, while other people had some issues with it, I appreciated the subtle love story between Oh Reum and Ba Reun--I found it to be very realistic and refreshing, and I liked that it strayed away from most (but not all) of the classic K-drama rom-com tropes.
ACTING/CAST: I have to admit, I was a little wary of watching this drama due to the cast and I waited quite a while before finally watching it due to my reservations about it. I am NOT a fan of Go Ara, I thought she did okay in Reply 1994, but she is by no means one of my favorite actresses. Likewise, I was a bit prejudiced about L (Kim Myung Soo), since he is an idol-actor and I had never seen him act in any other dramas before, so I wasn't sure if his acting would be convincing or good. However, this drama put all my fears to rest. While a lot of people are bashing Go Ara's acting, she did OKAY, in my opinion. Her acting isn't great, and she definitely had some weak acting moments here and there (especially during the flashbacks to their school days), but her acting isn't terrible and it did not keep me from enjoying this drama at all. Kim Myung Soo, on the other hand, completely exceeded my expectations--he does a PHENOMENAL job in this drama. I absolutely LOVED his character, Im Ba Reun, and Myung Soo completely embodies this character from beginning to end. Needless to say, I became an L-fan after watching this drama, that's how good he is. Sung Dong Il and Ryu Deok Hwan are also EXCELLENT actors--their characters are super funny and likeable, and their acting was completely natural and convincing. The only reason I give the acting in this drama 8.5/10 is primarily because of some of the weak acting moments by Go Ara and some of the supporting cast. But Myung Soo, Dong Il, and Deok Hwan absolutely KILL IT in this drama.
MUSIC: The music in this drama is FANTASTIC and super on-point. I immediately downloaded all of the songs right after I finished this drama. It's super good.
REWATCH VALUE: I've already rewatched this series once from beginning to end (even though I don't usually rewatch dramas), and I've rewatched certain parts of it numerous times. You will definitely want to rewatch the touching scenes between the main characters (especially between Oh Reum and Ba Reun) again and again. There are so many moving scenes in this drama that will tug at your heartstrings and warm your heart.
OVERALL: This is drama is AMAZING. It is hands-down one of the best dramas I've ever seen and I'm shocked that it's not getting more attention/better reviews. It has some minor acting/writing flaws here and there (but most K-dramas do), but overall it is a beautiful, refreshing, unique, and heartwarming drama. Please watch it!
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Never have I watched a Kdrama to have tackled issues in its plot head on. I mean, those are sensitive issues and it is no joke if you include those in the story.
If you are looking for a cheesy romantic drama, skip this because the story means real business in showing issues of the society.
I love how the writer could inject humor to maintain the "happy mood" of the story, while sticking in its story about problems and issues.
I really love the dialogues and realizations, that is why I made a special review just for this drama.
Hope that a lot more people could appreaciate this kind of story.
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Criticism of Sexual Harassment at Work - But Only for Women???
There are a lot of issues with the writing/story of this show. The biggest problem is that sexual harassment against women in the workplace is attacked as a major issue in Korean society, but at the same time sexual harassment against men in the workplace is treated as completely fine, normal, and is even praised by this drama.Specifically, the second female lead attempts to seduce the second male lead at work by making a big show of taking off her glasses, letting down her hair, HIKING UP HER SKIRT AND UNBUTTONING HER SHIRT - all while biting her lips and making suggestive poses, faces and gestures all to seemingly "prove" that the second male lead is "just like all men", and "all men are dogs". When she walks out of the room she is depicted as cool and justified. Do not allow yourself to brush this off as something done "all in good fun". THIS IS WRONG. This character continues her charade the entire series and is never once reprimanded or shown in a negative light - in fact, she is constantly praised for her so-called coolness and lewd behavior. IF WE NORMALIZE LEWD BEHAVIOR, SEXUAL HARASSMENT WILL SUBSEQUENTLY BE NORMALIZED.
Clearly this drama was meant to be a criticism of Korean social issues, but ironically it supports an agenda normalizing a social issue it was supposedly fighting. If this drama is an illustration of what South Korea truly deems a social issue, then they need to get some sense knocked into them.
SEXUAL HARASSMENT IS WRONG, PERIOD. THE GENDER OF THE VICTIM DOES NOT DETERMINE THE SEVERITY OF THE CRIME. THE SAME CRIME IS NOT WORSE WHEN IT IS COMMITTED AGAINST A WOMAN. A CRIME IS A CRIME.
This needs to be talked about. This needs to be shared.
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