Beyond Evil (2021)

Okay, it’s really good, but…

Wow. Um. So this show is really good. The central relationship and acting are just SO good that you can just gloss over everything else. But I feel like I want to highlight both the good and not-so-good.
Good:
-Fresh take on the typical thriller/serial killer plot. Firstly, rather than the typical antagonistic clash between the pair of detectives due to personality differences, one of them literally thinks the other is the murderer. And the other thinks he’s an idiot. It’s great! Secondly, the main serial killer plot wraps up a little over halfway, but the show keeps going. I was impressed by how the show still had unanswered questions and so even once the central mystery was solved there was still more to uncover. It was really engaging (mostly). Third, this show focuses a lot on this small town and all the close relationships, and you get the sense that these people would cover up for each other if they did something wrong, so that lends weight to your suspicions towards them.
-Characters. Many of them are very well fleshed out, primarily the main two but also quite a bit of the rest of the cast. Especially the main group in Munju. It feels like an ensemble piece, at least during the first half.
-Relationships. The main two’s relationship is of course the highlight, and they have so much chemistry it’s ridiculous. Whenever the two of them are onscreen it is *chef’s kiss*. But all the other friendships and relationships get their screen time and I love the group of police buddies. I love it when they all meet up at the butcher shop.
-Acting. I have to point out Shin Ha Kyun in particular, he was really amazing. He’s such an interesting character, and I don’t how to describe what “good acting” is but if you asked me I’d just show a scene from this show and say “Him.” Everyone else is great too.
The not-so-good stuff:
No sections here, because it’s just one thing: the plot. Oof. Okay, the first half or so of this show is well written. The plot twists are good as you learn more information about the series of events. You suspect almost everyone at some point, and then it still turns out to be someone else. It’s a good mystery and thriller. As mentioned above, once the serial killer gets caught, there are still things to unravel. Initially, something happens so you can’t uncover any more information from a certain character. Then they pull the same sh*t again with another character. Not that this wasn’t meaningful or impactful, but at that point it started to feel more like it was done to extend the plot. Then a certain plot twist happens and you’re like “oh wow!” Then another frickin plot twist happens and you’re like “… oh wow.” Basically I feel like we could have skipped maybe one or two plot twists. They felt more like “ahahaha plot twist ?” rather than “plot twist ?.” The ultimate “whodunnit” felt a little meh to me because who gives a crap about that person? So the last ~5 episodes are weaker than the ones preceding them. They start to focus on characters you don’t care about and the Munju crew get relegated to the background. It focuses less on the small town and the characters and more on, uh, “police corruption” I guess. Don’t get me wrong, it was still mostly good (though the few episodes where they pull those plot twists were kind of eye roll inducing). The plot twists also happen during flashbacks for some reason rather then when our characters actually discover the facts, which I feel like is a weird writing decision. They still did a good job on focusing on the main two characters, and the ultimate whodunnit is probably written that way to help focus on the main relationship, but it still felt oddly forced. The last few episodes also have some, uh, plot holes in them (I guess we didn’t need to gather evidence after all, cause we gotta wrap this plot up! Oh shoot, that character got in trouble, jk we need them for the plot so they’re free now), but the final scenes with our main two are so excellent it really left me with a very good impression of the show, despite being very tempted to give this a lower rating.
I definitely do recommend this show. Would I rewatch it? Maybe the first half-ish and the last episode. It’s an excellent show, truly, but I just think the plot has some major weak spots.
P.S. Park Jung Je :”(

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Evil that wont keep you on your toes, but feels more like a barefoot walk on asfalt.

First rule of K-thriller don't trust anyone and definitely not what you think you saw..,

This is an interesting story with a very logical development its consistent, its realistic, its interesting and the acting and characters are flawless.

I loved the different relationships in this dram they are complex, they develop and they are pron to change. Strong bonds stretched to their limits and you could truly feel the pain the characters felt when someone close to them turned out to have a dark secret or two. Can one mistake erase 30 years of friendship?

This drama addresses several important issues and does it beautifully. Main point being taking responsibility for ones actions and the snowball effect of trying to hide ones actions and the people who make evil possible. However it didn't really keep me on my toes and at times I felt the series it self gave out spoilers a bit to soon making many of the plot twists a bit to predictable at the same time as I had to have in mind not to trust what I saw.

So if you are looking for something thrilling that will constantly keep you on your toes you might want to look elsewhere, if you want some consistent pace high quality storytelling and acting with corruption, a serial killer and really bad parenting this is definitely the place to go.

This series is definitely worth the watch, but keep your expectations on an even level so you don't get disappointed

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Munju deception

The characters and setting are introduced through both the present as well as 20 years ago and some parallels are drawn from that,every person in this drama behaves shady which makes the suspense go through the roof and combined with the great OST makes the show very captivating to say the least.The two 2 mains leads are great especially Shin Ha Kyun which is my first time seeing him,he gives of that Joker,Hannibal vibe which is very hard to pull of without seaming fake,the supporting actors also do an awesome job with a few of them being shockingly good at hiding their true motives,easily the best drama in the first half of 2021 in my opinion.

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Beyond Evil There's Justice

I really enjoyed watching this drama. It was a rollecoaster of emotions and it kept me on the edge of my seat because of the plot twists. The acting is stellar, everyone did an amazing job with their roles.

I also kind of liked it that no romantic lovelines were forced but I was lowkey rooting for Ju Won and Jae Yi. I think they would look good together in a romcom. I find the actress who played her beautiful.

Even though this is a dark drama, I'd recommend this to others and it is worth a second watch for me. The ending is satisfying, with a hint of sadness, which I think is also the best way to end it.

Overall, I give Beyond Evil a 9/10. It was a good watch.

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a total mess

I totally recommend to watch the first half or so of this drama, it's got some interesting things to it. Good actors, pretty faces, gripping plot... But it soon becomes totally crazy - and not the good way. Everybody is lying - including the camera!! - , everybody has secrets, everybody has a sort of mental challenge: trauma, retard, anxiety, dellusion etc. The policemen - all of them - are suspects, the rich/ influential people are too, and they are all interconnected one way or another.
The action goes around in circles, again and again, the leads try hard to keep it going by using all facial expressions by the first 4 episodes: they cry, they laugh hysterically, they smirk etc, till there is nothing left. I think one of the biggest mistakes of drama makers is GREED, in the form of ambition: they wanna cover everything in one shot. Keep some balance, will you?
Dropped, too long and too nonsensical.

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Shin Ha Kyun is Excellent is all you need to know!

This is my 1st Korean crime drama, and it did not disappoint. Excellent cast, especially Shin Ha Kyun, playing Lee Dong Sik. really good plot It has me by the seat of my pants most episodes. It reminded me of all the British crime dramas I love. The tension I felt watching was palpable. Each episode my adrenaline was high, well up to the point when they catch the serial killer.

The reason I'm giving the series an 8 even though I thoroughly enjoyed it is because once the serial killer is caught; the series lost some of the energy it had reeling me in and impressing me with the plot machinations and all the potential suspects.

I mean it's a really good whodunit however, in the end it was more the good guys trying to bring to justice the actual murderer of one of the serial killer's 1st victims. Not that it was bad, and we wouldn't get the excellent acting from Shin Ha Kyun without this secondary plot, I just think it was a lot of deaths and cover up that seemed unimportant. Obviously, Dong Sik needed to find out who killed his sister, but I don't know if I cared enough about that part.

I can't wait to see more show with Shin Ha Kyun and watch another crime drama.

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Deeply Thrilling Subversion of Expecations: A Must Watch Drama

In the Midst of Corruption and Death, a small town suffers from the unsolved cold case of missing women. Two policemen, one the brother of an unsolved murder victim and the other a rookie cop with rooted morals. Throughout the drama, Lee Dong‑sik and Han Joo‑won, the main protagonist police officers, have a juxtaposed methods of handling crime: one stuck in a logically strict mindset (where everything must follow a code) and the other a more open-minded emotional standpoint. One of the beauties of the show is the way they handle these two differing policing mindsets, they are not framing either protagonist as wrong or right, instead we the audience get a deeper understanding of the different methodologies and come to our own understanding of solving the mysteries.

PLOT
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This is a show that needs to be watched at least twice. In the first watch, we are taken from a perspective that audiences are able to relate to, that of Han Joo-won, who just like the viewer has entered a new town and is unaware of its rooted history and the characters within it. In this perspective, we're left just as confused, if not more confused, than Joo-won. We are made to question everyone, including the protagonist Lee Dong-sik. One of my favourite experiences in watching this drama was going through the process of literally suspecting everyone, it made me question who I could trust and who I couldn't. Everyone could be guilty and everyone could be innocent, which amped up the suspense in trying to solve the case. Both the audience and Joo-won get parts of the puzzle unfolded to them at the same time, therefore the audience is like Joo-won themselves.

Not only is this a captivating storytelling method, of making the audience question every character including the protagonists, but it creates a plot that never disappoints and continually increases its suspense. I remember a point in the drama where I was sure that Joo-Won was right about Dong-sik, being the murderer, only to find out later on that, what the audience had thought was Dong-sik being suspicious, was actually an understandable emotional reaction to the situation (such as the scene when Joo-won interviews Kang Jin-Mook, and Dong-sik has to leave his house). The drama wanted the audience to feel confused so that they could understand that one can never be 100% certain about anything--without evidence. This drama really put into perspective how, when a murder occurs in Korea, it really does not matter if everyone is certain who the murderer is, if there is no body found. Just as Joo-Won was certain of his hypotheses, many times they were from hunches and logical deductions that lacked physical evidence. This realistic portal of crime, and the need for physical evidence, made the plot even more captivating to watch.

ACTING
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It would be an understatement to say that the acting in Beyond Evil was truly astonishing. This was by far one of the best, if not the best, acting I have seen in a drama. One of the main reasons why, we as the viewers, question Dong-sik initially is due to Shin Ha-Kyun's phenomenal acting. He gets everything perfect--the crazy sadness of an induvial who has been through more pain than many of us will ever see. He embodies his character so well that it really feels that Dong-sik is a real human being. Shin Ha-Kyun is able to captivate both Dong-Sik's desperation and his mental instability, especially in the way he smiles. Dong-Sik has a very crimal-esc smile that is both creepy and captivating. It is the smile where his eyes crinkle, but instead of happy emotion, he displays sadness and emptiness.

Alongside Shin Ha-kyun is Yeo Jin-goo, who is especially skilled in portraying an individual slowly breaking down their outer shell. Initially, Joo-Won is a closed-off individual who does not let his emotions seep through, however as he gets more invested in the cold case, he begins to also display mental instability and craziness (rubbing off from Dong-sik because let's be honest anyone would go crazy in that town), he also has a crazy smile that perfectly captivates Joo-Won's confusion and impatience in solving the cases. Shin Ha-Kyun and Yeo Jin-goo performances go hand-in-hand to create a powerful performance of grief, confusion, and desperation.

One last thing I wanted to point out in terms of the relationship, and acting, of the protagonists, is the ability to switch from serious to playful moments. What makes a good show different from a great show, is its ability to switch from serious to comedic smoothly. There were many interactions between Dong-sik and Joo-won that had me audibly laughing. The writers knew that the major personality differences between the characters would create room for situational irony, so they used that to their advantage and has many funny-awkward moments. Using their differing personalities added comedic relief to a show that could go from 0-100 in a few seconds.

FINAL THOUGHTS
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One of my favourite elements to see in dark thrillers is when the audience is made to believe that the plot is solely a local one, but ends up being linked to a more national-wide issue. This is something that Beyond Evil uses very well, one of my gripes with mystery shows, that I have, is that many times the audience does not find out who the killer is until the last episodes. Having a reveal in episode sixteen tends to drag out the plot. However, this is not the case with Beyond Evil, the audience finds out who the main killer is about halfway through the show. The second half of the show is when the case, which we thought was only local-wide, becomes nationwide. When dramas skillfully write this local-nation shift it creates newfound suspense and more areas to enhance and upgrade the plot--this is exactly what Beyond Evil does, it amps up the suspense and grows the case so that the plot reaches even greater heights.

This is a drama that I will continue to go back to for years to come. Beyond Evil is one of those shows where the more you watch the more you unravel.

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Even with 20 years of darkness, there can still be light in the end

Crime/mystery/thriller. Complex story rich in suspense, not much fight scenes though. The backstory for each characters were also beautifully written. That's why the show demands a lot of attention. If not, you'll get lost easily.

Actors did good with theirs characters too.. I often wonder who's the villain or who's the victim. The overall tone of a small community was also done realistically. How small town gossip works and even how they've got each other's back when needed..

I may not watch this again but I don't regret watching it either. It's entertaining. And even with its darkness, there's still light at the end.

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Série muito empolgante, impossível parar de ver

Meu deus que série!!!! Comecei a assistir e simplesmente não conseguia mais parar e quando parava ficava teorizando sobre ela. Não sei nem como descrever, fazia muito tempo que eu não me empolgava assim. Todo episódio você é levado a achar algo, pois o público só recebe parte da informação, mas nunca nada é como parece ser. Eu realmente achei no episódio 2 que o Dong Sik era o assassino e a série seguiria um estilo Hannibal, mas não foi bem isso que aconteceu. Quando revelam o assassino achei que ficaria chato, mas que nada, continua interessante e quando Joo Won e Dong Sik finalmente se unem a série atinge o ápice. E o que falar da química entre esses dois kkkk várias cenas eu fiquei torcendo pra eles se beijarem, eles tinham uma tensão incrível. Também quero dar destaque para as maravilhosas atuações, nenhuma fora de tom, todas perfeitas,
Yeo Jin Goo é tão novinho e mesmo assim entregou tudo e Shin Ha Kyun também foi incrível, e a série foi muito bem dirigida. Outro ponto de destaque é a ótima trilha sonora, confesso que estou bastante viciada e não paro de ouvir. Enfim, pra mim essa série é nota 10, gostei demais, amo esse estilo de série, mas raramente encontro uma tão boa quanto essa, então estou muito feliz de ter assistido e já vou começar de novo, vale a pena demais.

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