Sweet Home (2020)

Sweet Home More Like Sad Home!!!

Let me start off by saying that after watching episode 1 and seeing the CGI/animation and how well to say the least underwhelming it was I thought "Eh I may pass on this one." But I gave episode 2 a watch and you know the CGI/animation of the monsters is easily overlookable given that the story is THAT good. I will say though it took me the entirety of the first two episodes to get used to and not shrivel up at the amount of blood that spewed out during their nosebleeds and I'm not usually one to bat an eye at a bloody scene. I also must note that I did not read the webtoon before watching this so this review is solely based off the drama.

Make sure you have the tissues everyone, oh and try not to get too attached to well most of the characters because...spoiler earlier...a lot of good people die in it.

Let's start with the Cast, oh my god, each and every one of them were amazing. But we'll talk mostly about the main characters (and not just the ones listed as main's on here because I truly felt there were a lot of main characters in this story.)

Cha Hyun Soo, we literally got to see him grow from being the shy teenager we first seen. Granted he wasn't originally shy, bullying having to do a lot with his more reserved and standoffish self. He became my little baby in this, I hated whenever people looked at him as a monster whenever he was the least monster-like of them all. The only other thing I've seen Song Kang in is Love Alarm, so I couldn't quite tell exactly how he was going to be in a more action-y drama, but he pulled it off well!

Seo Yi Kyung, at first I really liked her. She seemed to have her life together and didn't mind risking her own life for others. Well, after she left to go find the tablet of her deceased (I mean he's either a monster or something like Hyun Soo, we still don't know yet) soon-to-be husband and gets caught by the military she comes back and she starts sketching me out. At first I thought for sure she'd be the one to ruin it for everyone, and don't get me wrong she has a baby to protect but that entire situation of "Do I turn Hyun Soo to be a test subject to save the majority or do I just not do anything and risk more people dying?" Is one that really doesn't have a right answer. I'm glad she was not the one to do it and ended up becoming the Leader of sorts near the end. Lee Shi Young did a wonderful of portraying her, as she always does well.

Pyeon Sang Wook, I truly think he grew the most as a character, or well maybe not the most as I think he was that person all along. He just needed someone to tell him it was okay to be that. I loved him. And I was at first pleasantly surprised by the ending of him with Hyunsoo but I quickly realized that it is probably Ui Myeong and not him. The scene with Yuri though, it broke my heart. Lee Jin Wook did amazing as usual, I will say I like him better in this than in Voice 2.

Lee Eun Hyuk, I honestly did not go into this show thinking I'd dislike a character played by Lee Do Hyun, I was wrong. He was so selfish in the beginning but by the end became a better person and I am so happy for that. Although, it broke my heart to see him stay behind to "stop" Hyun Soo. I hope we get to see him in a second season, but...

Yoon Ji Soo, I loved her as a duo with Jaeheon, they leveled each other out so well. She didn't get as much character development as the other listed mains. I feel though that she will grow more in a second season. I see her taking on the leadership role. Park Gyu Young as a hippie/take no shit character though, I loved it!

Lee Eun Yoo, oh did I hate her at first. She was so bitchy but I mean I level with her, her brother was kind of an asshole at the beginning so...Her bitchiness was her way of hiding that she cared. She grew a lot as a character and by the end I loved her character. Go Min Shi was amazing per usual.

We'll do a rapid fire of the next few because I felt they deserved the Main Character title as well. Jung Jaeheon, I mean he did the ultimate sacrifice. Who didn't love him? Ahn Gil Seop, I feel like his character was robbed, we didn't even really get to see his reaction to Yuri's death. And he bled from the nose once but nothing else occurred to him? I was under the impression he was turning but then he never showed any more signs so I thought maybe not and then he just died, which I think was going to happen anyways but it felt a tad bit rushed. Park Yu Ri, she was pretty self-less, such a good character and god it pissed me off when Ui Myeong did what he did. Han Du Sik, such a lovable old man and he too, like Jaeheon, did the ultimate sacrifice. Lastly Ui Myeong, boy was crazy, I went back and forth on whether I liked him or not and yeah...I don't obviously but I will say his monster power has to be the freaking coolest.

Story:
It's pretty straightforward and gory but amazing! Are the real monsters the humans? We see them constantly at each other's throats in the beginning, later using Hyun Soo as their own personal bitch, forcing him to run and get supplies in the upper floors while simultaneously getting his ass handed to him each time he goes. They look at him like a monster whenever they are the real monsters. The turning isn't an illness, a virus or something curable. It's due to desire? It makes since in a few of the monster's cases, Myung Sook becomes a baby, which is exactly what she desired. Du Sik's feet transformed and he could walk again, he desired to walk again. But um...what exactly did Ui Myeong desire to be able to use his blood the way he does. What does Hyun Soo really desire when he gains the wings/blades on his arm? What does the giant in the one episode desire? The reoccurring tongue-monster from the first half? I felt that should've been explained more but again they are banking on a second season so hopefully all will be explained then.

Music:
It was not overdone like in typically k-dramas but I did have to laugh whenever that Imagine Dragons song plays during some scenes. It was fitting yes but also funny.

Rewatch Value:
100% I'd watch it again. I'm hoping for another season soon!

Overall Rating:
10/10
If you can get past the video-game like animation you're in for a great drama!

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Advertises itself to be about monsters taking over an apartment complex, but is much more

This review is solely based on the drama adaptation, as I have not read the web-toon and therefore, will not comment on it.

Netflix's 10-episode Korean drama series in 2020 have truly been greatness after greatness, and Sweet Home does not fall flat on this.

Sweet Home is able to engage and emotionally withhold audiences by using the concept of 'monsters' as a metaphor for humans owns desires, and does it in a direct and sufficient way.

- STORY -

The story is fast-paced, due to having 10 episodes to basically in-take the entire storyline (with the hints of maybe a second season). Luckily, the writer is able to give a brief explanation on how these monsters came to be in the first two-three episodes, which is explained through the smart and well-written characters. As the writer does not explain everything, it leaves the audience engaged and interested in how to prevent these monsters from 'forming', and in need to see the characters they've developed emotional connections towards, succeed. The story does not have plot-holes, and is able to develop in a fast manner that is captivating and engaging for the audience.

While having 'horror' themes, the drama is not entirely scary, but rather wants you to focus on the main story and the metaphorical concept of ones desires, and how much they can take over oneself. There is no real romance themes, but is able to give hints of 'romance' through small gestures and spoken words between each character, that engages audiences who may only be interested in romance, into a story that isn't all about romance.

'Sweet Home' is able to make the audience question who deserves to live in these life-threatening situations, and how far people are willing to go in order to live their life, despite their brutal pasts.

- CHARACTERS -

The show sold me with not necessarily the story but, the characters. With only 10 episodes to break down the many characters introduced to us in a very short period of time, the writer is able to quickly but effectively reflect on the different personalities of the characters, as well as their history as each episode progresses. The characters (for the most part), think and act like their age, but do not do it in a typical 'horror' genre way. Most of the characters act smart, but with different ways of 'acting' on the monsters that perfectly reflect their ages, gender and values. All the characters are written to be faulted, not necessarily morally perfect, which aids audiences into the question of wether or not these individuals deserve to survive the monster infestation.

If you are someone, like myself, that becomes invested and emotionally connected to well-written characters, Sweet Home is a web-toon adaptation that is able to strongly invest time into its characters, and develop a hope for survival for each of them, despite their traumatic past.

- CONCLUSION -

Despite its flaws, such as the unusual choice of soundtrack in some action scenes, Sweet Home is able to connect each characters emotional past to both their desires, and the monsters that lurk around the apartment complex.

Sweet Home is a must-watch if you are someone who cares for well-written and realistic characters that, thankfully, do not play stupid in a monster infestation.

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Just don't desire too much...

'Sweet Home' truly exceeded all my expectations. I did not read the webtoon so I will not address any plot differences between both versions.

I already knew Song Kang was a great actor but he still surprised me a lot in this show. I really liked his character even though he was sometimes too dull and absent-minded for my liking, but obviously he was like that for a reason.

Lee Do Hyun was definitely my second favorite character, as he was very mysterious in the first half and even kind of dislikeable (I never did), but the turn he had in the second half and how so many things about his personality were clarified really added a ton on the type of character that he was.

I don't want to get into much detail because I don't want to tag this review as a spoiler, but I really loved every character. I think all of them had a clear role in the survival hope; even if some characters were clearly dumb and annoying, even those were properly built even if they didn't have such a strong background (some none at all). Every evil character was absolutely crazy, the "good" characters all knew their places and stick to them well.

I have a major complaint on the CGI for the monsters as I believe the production of the series was very carefully done and the cinematography was of the absolute most artistic style for this concept, but I feel like they invested too much on the settings and cinematics (and cast) that they forgot or ran short to invest on a better CGI. Still, even if it's ridiculously bad you get used to it after a few eps.

I loved the whole concept of the monsters and their transformation always blew my mind. It just kind of stresses me because I really don't see how they can overcome this in the next season(s) if there will be any, but I'm anticipating more of this show in the near future, hopefully.

The cast was amazing, I really loved Song Kang and Lee Do Hyun's dynamics on their characters, as well as how they complement all together with the rest of the cast. I'm just a little dissatisfied with Lee Jin Wook's character, since it was very promising but after his arc developed I think he lost that unbreakable and powerful aura they gave him.

Anyway, 'Sweet Home' is absolutely a must-watch and if anyone reading this is concerned on whether or not this would be too horror-y and scary for you, don't think so anymore! I'm a real coward when it comes to horror and stuff but this one was nothing like that so you're safe to watch it!

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MUST! WATCH!

Oh! my! god! This was a drama I took my sweet time watching because I didn't want it to end. Personally I have not read the WEBTOON as I was very impatient and I was honestly looking forward to this one so whether it was a good adaptation is up to the readers of the webtoon and I am simply writing this as someone who has watched a lot of shows and dramas.
Not once did I think about dropping it. Horror isn't my thing but not watching this was OUT OF THE QUESTION. As someone who gets bored and tired easily, this wasn't the case with this drama. It constantly kept me on my toes, interested to see what will happen next. So much that this became a problem as I like to watch dramas late at night, but it was too late for me to watch the next episode as much as I wanted to.
The cast was incredible, I loved their acting and I feel like they perfectly fit their roles. The characters had a certain dynamic between them that kept them together during the show, we got to see the bonds that were formed between them and I thought this was incredible. I was a huge fan of the music choices as well, especially the OST (shoutout to bewhy for that!)

the one thing I didn't exactly like was the monsters, especially on the second episode, they could be a lot better but this was more of a budget issue and it did not affect how much I enjoyed the drama. Other than that, this drama is a big YES for me.

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beautiful insanity

I'll start this by making clear that i have not read the original webtoon so I'm writing with just the drama in consideration.

First of all this is definitely not for everyone. a lot of death, violence, gore and mentions of triggering things that even i, as someone who doesn't really get affected by these knowing it's fiction, had to take small breaks or look away. i guess what you'd expect from a horror, action focused drama.

Even so, this drama was so interesting and attention-grabbing i couldn't stop watching. The story is incredible and somehow, especially now with the pandemic and everything, felt real. Every single major (if not almost every) character is well written with intriguing back stories that reflect on their motives and behaviour and very easy to sympathize and get attached to. The way they interact with eachother feels realistic and the relationships built between them are natural. There's also big diversity in characters for everyone, even the characters that are written to be disliked in a way can be understood. The actors did an amazing job delivering the emotions of the characters and bringing every scene to life, which is exactly why you most likely won't survive watching this without balling your eyes out.

Suprisingly, unlike most kdramas, the comedic breaks are minimum which keeps you on your toes throughout the whole show and even when there are such breaks it doesn't fell like filler but rather an easier way to get to know the characters and their dynamics better.
The special effects and cgi were decent and looked mostly realistic and the camera work and setting gave a chilling and classic korean horror vibe. The ending also lives a big opening for a season 2 which I'm really hoping for.

All in all, this is a beautiful and heart tugging story of seeing tragic but powerful characters trying to survive and go through hardship after hardship yet still continue to fight, stay hopeful and not give up. Definitely a good watch.

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Fun and heartwarming with a side of fear

Sweet Home was fantastic fun. It is what it says it is. It's not masquerading as a sappy romance. There's not forced relationship in the middle of people fighting for their lives. People come together to survive a monster apocalypse, if you will, and that's it. It shows the humane and nasty sides of humans. I say that because if you're a person that needs a side of romance in EVERYTHING, this is not your cupper. Yes, as humans the characters get closer, but it's not that type of party.

The story is about surviving a national emergency where monsters are the new norm and anyone can turn. The surviving tenants of the Sweet Home apartment complex try to make a good thing out of bad while fighting monsters (within and without) and trying to figure out how to survive. Of course there is the requisite food rationing, power grabs, and in fighting, but mostly the residents support each other in their survival as they don't know who has or may turn into a monster. There is so much more I'd love to say, but I think it'll just be one giant spoiler. I will say I disagree with the reviews that say it's more than a monster series/drama. The best monster movies (and series) have all shown the beautiful and ugly sides of humanity. That's what they're all about. How do you come together to survive and outlast adversity? That's how TWD has stayed on for so long.

I have got to say the effects are great! They're all CG, but done very well. They're on par with movie effects. The writing and directing are good. The cast is wonderful! I was shocked to see Kim Gab Soo in this genre. I can't recall ever seeing him out of a suit. The scene stealing rounds out with 2 of my other favorites: Woo Hyun and Kim Sang Ho. I'd like to say it was a great ensemble, but the leads were prevalent. There was a lead ensemble and a support ensemble that worked well together if that makes any sense. Kang Sang was wonderful as Hyun Soo. He brought so much heart to his role. Lee Jin Wook, who I barely recognized due to his weight, was perfection. His character grows by leaps and bounds. This was the first time I've ever liked Lee Shi Young in anything! She finally found her niche and a good use for those boxing skills.

The music was good. It worked well in every episode. I've already started re-watching it soooo...yeah it's worth it, especially if, like me, you watch series from other nations in English with subs (when available) and in original language with subs.

To me Sweet Home put all the best things in a monster movie into a drama. It brought the heart and sadness. It brought the violence and fear. Mostly, it brings the hope. My hope is for season 2. :D

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A wild gory ride

I binged this kdrama in a day and ohhhh boy was it worth it, a lot of people were excited the webtoon was being adapted into a drama, and I have to say, it’s the best action-horror I’ve seen this year.

The monsters were done surprisingly well. I would’ve preferred practical effects, but the CGI wasn’t terrible, they were convincing enough to give out those creepy / gory vibes, so that was a plus.

The acting performances were spot on, giving a shout out to Song Kang (he’s actually the reason I started watching lol) because his acting was fire in this show.

The plot is anything but cliché, the characters and actions of those characters made it interesting, AND we got some great background stories, you can find more about character backgrounds in the webtoon. What made this show great was the ending didn’t feel the slightest bit anti-climatic, like many other kdrama endings I’ve seen this year. The end gives you enough info or enough closure for you to be sufficiently satisfied, with a good chunk of the characters, best part? All of the webtoon wasn’t adapted in this one season we got, SO, that leaves room for our unanswered questions, to be answered in s2 (if any).

The pacing of this show I’ll commend as well, I find kdrama pacing can lack sometimes, as in: odd-cuts or no purpose filler episodes, but none of that happened in this drama. Not once. Every scene had a purpose in plot and character, and that’s another reason why this one is a winner.

Now for the things that bugged me ...

The atmosphere, really felt more like an action-zombie series instead of a horror-thriller,if that makes sense, even though it’s labeled horror-thriller lol that’s a lie, it had a “zombie apocalypse” feel more than anything, which isn’t ... bad, someone mentioned in the comments feed Studio Dragon should’ve hired the people who did The Guest, I strongly agree with this, I think atmospherically they would’ve done a better job in setting a darker-mature tone to this drama, which the webtoon most definitely had.

The soundtrack wasn’t spectacular, as a horror fan I find most horror shows don’t have solid soundtracks to begin with, but hearing Warriors by Imagine Dragons every time a character decided to grow a pair, got old real quick lol, also I didn’t think the song fit the vibe of the show, nor did the music overall, but that’s imo, so take it with a grain of salt :)

As for character deaths, I think some of them were unnecessary, like Han Du Sik’s, he was actually one of my favorite characters, and his death could’ve been better imo, as for Jae Heon even though he went out like a badass, I felt he deserved to live, the man was a fighter till the end.

The cliffhanger, *sigh* ... kdrama writers do this thing where they set the plot in motion, give us a cliffhanger, but we have no idea if there’s going to be a second season, so technically this show could end right at 10 episodes, and we’d be stuck with an unnecessary incomplete ending, I know the show is adapted from a webtoon, doesn’t mean it doesn’t bug the sh*t outta me ... especially when kdramas don’t normally have second seasons to begin with, normally there’s one season with 16, 20, or 32 ep’s and that’s all we get. This happened with Vagabond where the end was foreshadowed at the beginning of the show, but it was still left incomplete for us to assume what happened to all the characters. I’m prayinggggg this show gets renewed for another season by Netflix. PRAYING. The final episode was kick ass, and initially we found out Sang Wook (aka gangster dude) has been hidinggggg some important stuff lol, as in what tf does he want with Hyun Soo, the biggest WTF moment for sure, Yi Kyung is off on her own now and the rest of the group is faced with an unforeseen future, good characters died, and the stakes are higher than ever. What will happen to Hyun Soo? Will he be experimented on like the rest of his kind? Will he find a way to overcome his inner monster? What was in the suitcase? How many others are there like Hyun Soo? Will there’s of the group survive? Only the webtoon can tell us, as for this drama continuing, I truly hope it gets a s2, I look forward to it in hopefully 2021 or 2022 ??! That’s all I got :)

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Stayed loyal in webtoon

I have read this webtoon a long time ago and as I was watching it was actually adapted scene by scene from the comics. This series made me use my phone for over 9 hours because I couldn't stop after seeing the cliffhangers in every episodes. I would say thanks to netflix!
I love the acting! I'm a big fan of Song Kang and Lee dong Hyun and I can say that they improved their acting a lot.
CGI was nicely done although it's pretty obvious that the monsters are computerized it wouldn't take away the fun.
The music was thrilling which made watching more fun. It was lip and thumb biting.
I would definitely watch this again in coming years or before season 2 comes out! (If there will be ;))

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Haunting

This series was phenomenal! It was haunting, dark, terrifying, heartbreaking, and hopeful. The actors/actresses in this series did an amazing job. The special effects are off the charts, and some of the best I’ve ever seen! It felt like I was playing Resident Evil! I don’t want to give any spoilers, but it was epic. The story is hauntingly beautiful, and will crawl into your soul, and it won’t leave. I love gory horror, and this show did NOT disappoint! I was on the edge of my seat the majority of the time. I felt a deep connection to the characters, especially Cha Hyun Soo. He is such a tormented, lonely character, and he deserves all of the awards for his performance in this series. Seriously! If you haven’t watched it, watch now!!! It’s on Netflix, and you definitely won’t regret it!

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AMAZING!

Wow!! I loved this drama so much!!
Please note, I did not look at the webtoon, I didn't even know about it. I'm fresh eyes.

Acting: The acting was absolutely perfect! Every actor/actress did their role so well, I felt every emotion and could really step into their shoes.

Story: The story, overall, is really good! I was hooked. My eyes were basically glued to the screen, and at some moments, I actually had my eyes wide open, while grasping my mouth in shock.
The theme of monsters VS humans is really intriguing, because of the way this movie took it. It's not just "bad monsters" vs "good guys". It goes soooo much deeper than that. I absolutely love that dynamic.
Some characters are well-developed. Some art not. But the most important ones-- you can clearly see the changes.
I do have to say, though, that some parts are not explained fully clearly enough, and were so sudden/out there, that I often had to rewind a bit.

Music: LOL I don't know who picked the music, but honestly, some of the music was really random/out of place, and did not fit the scene at all. It felt like I was watching a normal quiet movie scene, but some kid was playing music near me.

Effects: I LOVE the special effects, makeup, ALL OF IT!!! Wow!!! Especially one creepy scene in episode 10, I replayed it, because it was so EPIC and so dang aesthetic. As an artist, I was screaming!

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More than just about surviving

This drama is more than just about surviving but also teaches that we must learn how to control human desire. My favorite thing about this drama is that it didn’t focus on how only a man can be strong but it showed that women, elderly, disabled, and even children can also be as strong and fearless as men. This is one of the biggest issues that our society faces to date and i’m glad this drama touched on it. There are undeserved deaths or sacrifices in the drama but in reality, these should serve as a warning or wake up call to the people to do good and feel good.

This is directed by the director of Goblin and DOTS so I had really high expectations (fortunately, it was met). I don’t have anything that I dislike in this drama except the undeserved deaths but they were necessary to the story so i’ll pass on it. I think the story was also good! I had questions at the beginning and were answered as I continued to watch. I had more questions at the end that only a season 2 could answer. ? I just can’t wait for season 2. Knowing Netflix, it’d probably take more than a year before they release a new season which sucks.

About acting... there were a lot of familiar faces, supporting characters and antagonists from other dramas but in Sweet Home, they acted as heroes (even if they have shitty personalities). They were all great tbh. I didn’t find any unconvincing acting, only shitty characters which means their acting was good enough to convince their viewers that they are awful people ?.

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