The excitement that NEVER STOPS!!
For someone who have never read the webtoon, I just gonna say: this drama is more than just amazing! It took me less than 3 days to finish the whole series simply because I just couldn't stop watching!!!!From casting, to plots, to action scenes, and production, this drama is a perfection! There isn't any dull moment throughout the series and it's like a thrilling ride! So if you haven't watch it, you should go ahead and enjoy the ride, it will end before you even noticed! As there are a lot of shows with a pretty good start and went down the trail in the second half, but for this one, nope! It gets higher and higher that gives you a lot of anticipation till the end!
You could say it is a comedy, a thriller, a mystery, a fantasy, or an action drama, because it has all the genres in it!
If you are skeptical and worried of horror scenes, I can assure you it's not that scary, I don't fancy horror dramas too but this is perfectly fine for me! But do expect some tense up whenever you see the evil ghosts in action, but trust me, that excitement is just the thing that keeps you going! XD
I really adore the counter squad SO MUCH! Although they weren't related to each other and share different personality, when they come together, they became a bunch of sweethearts that make you smile :) Plus, their acting are really ON POINT that gets you into it! Action scenes or crying scenes, you name it! Never underestimate those young actor and actress; Byung Gyu and Se Jeong totally slayed it!
I would say they had a pretty good production too, literally nothing to pick on! Besides the action scenes, I really love how the male lead was summoning out the Territory, those colour effects!!! Gosh so heroic and I love it!!!!
Well since I couldn't name anything that I don't like about the show, it gives an absolute 10/10! Or maybe one bad thing of this drama is that "It ends"!!! I heard they are having a Season 2 and I can't wait for it! Definitely one of the best dramas I have seen in the past year!!! Highly recommend :)
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There was a bit of a superhero-feeling to this all, which I always found really fun to watch. It was the right amount of cool and camp in my opinion and I like how the show never felt like it was trying to be super serious, while also never feeling tacky or just odd. And I always admire it when a show manages that, because I feel like that is the right type of tone for a story like this. It gripped me completely from the first minutes. The plot is nicely paces, there is nice suspense within in the story, although it drags a bit towards the end, but there are countless questions and cliffhanger moments that come up in each episode that always made me excited for the next one.
I did feel like the show did drag a bit or loose some steam when it focused to heavily on the crime and human corruption of the show, rather than the supernatural problems of the characters. For a drama about people capturing evil spirits I wanted them to capture more evil spirit and for that too have a more central role within the story than it did.
Although the drama did a good job with mixing the characters conflicts, their backstories of the characters, with the main story, I also felt like I had seen that type of story play out a bit too often and there could have been more balance between the crime plot and the quest for fighting evil spirits.
There was a lot more crime in there than I would have wished for, but I can not say that I was bored while watching it. The story has it’s momentum, I could never really guess where is was going. It has a good pace, and there was always a bit of humor and a lot of cool action to go along with it with some really loveable characters that you just can’t help but love. This drama has a lot of good things (action, humor and heart) and does those things really well.
Our main character are true underdogs, and you really do feel for them. They made me tear up several times. Especially So Mun and personal quest and his connection to his new superpowers. He really does grow with it. It may all be a bit typical for a story like this one, but it works really well.
All the main characters are deep, with their own flaws and strengths. They frustrate you, yet you love them and feel so much with them. And I found the evil spirit, their main rival apart from the evil politicians and corrupt police officers, really well crafted. I just really like that aspect of the show. That was why I tuned into it and why I continued on watching it.
The love and affection between all the characters is just wonderful. It’s overflowing with heart; whether it’s the love that So Mun has for his grandparents and vice versa, his friends from school and then the little family that the Counters have. This little found family really touched my whole heart, it’s one of my favorite tropes and I love it when it’s done right, and made me shed tears many times throughout the drama. There’s just a really good heart in this story.
The Uncanny Counter is just a lot of fun. I feel like it sort of threads this path of being familiar and yet unique enough that it feels fresh and exciting. There is suspense and humor and heart at the core of each and every episode, and the cast is super loveable and tug at your heartstrings a lot and which is the true strength of the drama. That found family aspect and the friendship and love between the main characters. It talks a lot about human greed and corruptions and how that feeds the evil spirits and vice versa, which does sometimes feel a bit heavy handed, but the plot is well paced and exciting, so I never got bored, and there is a really good underdog story there that makes it all worthwhile.
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The Uncanny Heroes
The Uncanny Counter tells the story of a crew of demon hunters who protect regular folks from malevolent spirits. These selfless and intrepid individuals, called Counters, have been bestowed with supernatural powers by the high council of the spiritual realm of Yung and are each partnered with a spiritual being who mentors and guides their every action in investigating and combating paranormal threats on Earth.Helmed by director-screenwriter Yoo Seon Dong, who is no stranger to the supernatural/ horror genre with previous works such as Vampire Prosecutor 2, Arahan, and Musudan. He currently directs the popular action-comedy Bad and Crazy. Adapted from the first season of the webtoon Amazing Rumour (경이로운 소문) by Jang Yi (장이) based on the screenplay by Yeo Ji Na (ep. 1-12), Kim Sae Bom (ep.14-16) and director Yoo Seon Dong himself for one episode (ep. 13). There was much speculation regarding the change in screenwriters during the drama’s run, the result of which may have impacted the fluctuations in the viewership ratings and audience feedback particularly towards episode 13. Nonetheless the director and original screenwriter Yeo Ji Na are slated to return for the sequel season, scheduled to be released in 2022. Kim Woo-geun served as music director and had composed the opening theme for the title sequence.
The Uncanny Counter has the distinction of being the highest rated OCN production in terms of viewership ratings, in the history of the TV channel (at the time of writing). In addition, actress Yeom Hye Ran won best supporting actress at the 57th Baeksang for her supporting role here. Originally planned for 12 episodes, 4 additional episodes were added due to the explosion in popularity of the drama, which also resulted in the drama being re-broadcasted by sister channel TVN as well as selected for distribution by Netflix upon the conclusion of its initial television broadcast. The sequel, The Uncanny Counter 2, will be based on the serialized second season of the webtoon which was recently published in June 2021. Principal photography took place mainly in Gyeonggi-do, with Neowiz Pangyo Tower and Haenggung Mansion cafe used as the filming locations for Taeshin Group HQ and Eonni’s Noodles restaurant respectively. The communications earpiece used by the Counters are Samsung Galaxy Buds series wireless earphones in mystic white.
What I Absolutely Loved
The premise of the drama, the overarching story, the interweaving plotlines, the respective character arcs and the fusion of diverse elements. Being an action packed supernatural mystery with themes of slice-of-life, melodrama, politics, chaebols, police investigation and corruption, this is one of the most enjoyable dramas that I’ve watched in recent memory. Although I have not read the webtoon, the basis of the setting is not overly complicated to comprehend. The concept of demons/ evil spirits, the heavenly/ spiritual realm and emergence of superpowered beings are presented in a coherent and straightforward manner within the context of multiple POV characters as well as complex plotlines that converge in due course.
The pace of the storytelling is brisk and engaging while the action and dialogue segments are balanced in proportion. I was never bored or confused throughout the entire series. Despite the original idea of fighting demons isn’t uniquely groundbreaking, how this drama distinguishes itself from others of the same genre is quite innovative. Think Ghostbusters and Taxi Driver with a tad of Bad Guys and Sell Your Haunted House, and perhaps even a wee bit of Karate Kid.
In terms of the production quality, I truly have to commend the action choreography and application of “wire-fu”. This may not be a wuxia but there’s a healthy amount of physics-defying stunts - breathtaking at times and a whole lot of fun most of the time. I noticed a combination of MMA moves and parkour stunts infused in the sequences as well, which adds to the variety for good measure. However, a forewarning for the squeamish - this drama contains a fair amount of blood and gore. The horror aspect isn’t nearly as terrifying or brutal as the depiction of violence, which can be disturbing for viewers who do not appreciate the sight of blood and brutality. The special effects are well rendered, particularly for the pyrotechnics involved, as well as the visual effects and CGI for certain “magical scenes” and the colourful “territorial shifts” that form part of the Counters’ unique abilities.
The well written main characters and the fantastic cast who brought them to life. When the source material is so intricately developed, it simply makes the worldbuilding that much easier to envision and execute. The characterisation is very nicely conceived which adds depth to the storytelling, dimensions to the plot and endear them to viewers in ways that enrich the whole production.
My second time seeing Cho Byeong Kyu immediately after Hot Stove League, I must first comment on his youthfulness. Portraying a highschool teenager here at the age of 25, he completely pulls it off, with or without the perm. Then there’s the acting. He showcases a lot more of his range in his role as the ML So Mun where he is undoubtedly the MVP of the show. Yeom Hye Ran is worthy of her Baeksang award because of her touching performance as the motherly Chu Mae Ok. Yoo Joon Sang and Kim Se Jeong round off the members of the Counters as Ga Mo Tak and Do Ha Na respectively. Each of them provides a compelling depiction of the gamut of emotions in their character development from the traumatic backstories to the present day where the entire team exudes so much camaraderie on display that they are simply a joy to behold.
Of the supporting cast, Ahn Suk Hwan is superb as the supportive and comedic Choi Jang Mool, the financier. Lee Hong Nae’s stoic portrayal of Ji Chung Shin is very intriguing and fits well with the persona of the antagonist of the narrative. Choi Kwang Il is just as riveting to watch here as he was in Hometown, this time playing the mayor Shin Myeong Hwi. His versatility is truly remarkable and he is convincing whether as a politician or as the head of a chaebol. Moon Sook plays the elderly Wi Gen, the ML’s spiritual partner who radiates the warm and loving goodness of a halmeoni. I feel that she and ML share the most interesting partnership among the Counters and their respective partners. Not forgetting as well Kim Eun Soo and Lee Ji Won as Kim Woong Min and Im Joo Yeon, the ML’s childhood BFFs, who provided some of the more touching moments in the show.
What I Didn’t Appreciate As Much
Highschool bullying is abundantly featured in this drama. It’s not a theme that I particularly enjoy watching and it does feel excessive especially during the first half of the story. This is not the garden variety bullying but falls into the highly brutal and savage category. That said, I do understand the necessity of enduring such hardships as part of the ML’s character building. However the graphic nature of the depiction eventually becomes a little too disturbing to stomach.
As far as the side characters are concerned, I would have loved to see more development for Choi Yoon Young’s Kim Jung Young. She’s clearly a decent actress but her role here is somewhat subdued and rather one-dimensional. Lee Chan Hyung’s Kwon Soo Ho is quite fascinating but lacks significant screen time that the character perhaps merits.
Regarding the change in screenwriters with the director taking over the writing for episode 13 that resulted in the backlash by the majority of viewers, I can see their point. Certain events that transpire in that episode do not seem to make a lot of sense, which unfortunately represent a blip in what has been exemplary writing for the most part. Aside from one frustrating major scene, a couple of plot points simply do not quite provide the required satisfaction to their conclusions. Fortunately the remaining 3 episodes reverts to normal service and delivers a stirring finale that this production deserves.
Final Thoughts
The Uncanny Counter comes highly recommended by many and I absolutely concur. It is deserving of the plaudits for being one of the highlights of 2021’s offering of K-dramas. There is much to enjoy and even love about this OCN production. And the good news? Season 2 is coming so hopefully we will get more of the same quality in technical execution and storytelling.
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An “ Uncanny” Tale of Family , Friendship and The Supernatural...
Looking back retrospectively , Uncanny Counter has an undeniable amount of character progression since episode 1 for our main high-schooler hero Mun( Jo Byung Koo) as well as his fellow counters Mo Tak ( Yoo Joon Sang), Ha Na ( Kim Se Jeong) and of course Chu Mae Ok ( Yeom Hye Ran), yet, it’s crucial not to sugarcoat the fact that at times , the storyline felt a little inconsistent and slow- paced ( especially by the second-half )as well.
Of course it’s wrong to say that the scriptwriting was dire, as the story and characters were fairly well-written. Thanks to the collaboration of screenwriters Jung Do Yoon ( Witch’s Court, The Time We Were Not In Love), Yeo Ji Na ( Il Mare) and Kim Sae Bom ( Hello Schoolgirl), the wonderful talents of the cast and director Yoo Seon Dong ( respectively who has also worked as a screenwriter on productions such as Shoot My Heart),the show was interwoven with enough action and fights in episodes without falling down the trap of becoming a mindless and dull action show.
Uncanny Counter had an evident story plot with the Counters chasing after the “ big bad” antagonist of the series from episode 1, as well as learning more about themselves through becoming a surrogate family for one another in the process. This was an undeniably sweet progression for our characters , however , there was a little bit of repetitiveness before the half-way mark with the typical episode progression of the counters chasing after a / the “ big bad” spirit , a conflict or event gone wrong and one of the main characters beginning to doubt their abilities or recollection of events ( particularly for Mun).
As a consequence the show sometimes felt a little lagging in the second-half, consequently meaning that there were some undeniably inconsistent moments for our heroes as well as deeper questions about the other-side. Just some of these include; Mun’s presumable absences at school ( during certain missions) not being raised or alerted , Mo Tak’s slightly lacklustre reactions towards certain events in the storyline, the fate of Ha Na’s family ( and considering the final ending, if she could’ve have been granted the same wish) , the relationship between Mae Ok and her husband as well as questions about the other side( not least what happens to the guides when their Counter fades, who controls the guardians and what happens to the spirits of the Counters). Whilst some of these point are mainly minor , they do point out some slightly loose ties within the overall story arch.
Overall although not a flawless production ,Uncanny Counter was a good drama and its success has certainly been sealed by the unusual decision ( especially for OCN) to bring out a second season
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This review may contain spoilers
If you're thinking about starting on this drama now that it's done, let me just share with you on what I thought about it. First of all, reading the plot summary got me real interested in the drama. I mean it involves demon hunting so if you like action, this one is for you. If you want romance, then give this one a skip. There's no romance at all. Instead, there's more of a growing family & friends relationship.
Story: It's a slow beginning but picks up pretty quickly afterwards, especially when the counter's backstories come into play. I think only two counters backstories played a main role to the plot. The other two is more for a viewer to understand how they became a counter, which is unfortunate as the spotlight for these two seemed limited. For the first half of the drama, the plot moved at a good pace, numerous demon hunting scenes which is great because this is what the drama is about, and mysteries and unanswered questions were revealed.
But after the halfway mark is where a drama either make it or break it. I say more of break it because right around ep 9 or 10, plot holes began to occur.
* What a surprised (sarcastically)............... this involves political corruption. Figures.... since everything happened because of this. This is nothing new when it comes to figuring out the villain.
* A lot of questions came to play that seemed like the writers didn't focus on, which would've made scenes more understandable. I'm not sure what happen with the writer here because I found a lot of episodes a drag or stalling after ep 8. A lot of those episodes (especially ep 10) should've been handled differently, as you really could've just skipped some episodes and you wouldn't even know you missed out on something. I knew they changed the writer at Ep 13, which at least showed plot progressing a little bit, but even then, there were too many random things thrown in and only one or two sentences (if any) to describe what happened for the final half. You could also blame the announcement of season 2 for this mess that occurred after ep 8.
* We went from the counters hunting for demonic spirits in order to protect humans to just focusing on 1 for the rest of the drama. If this 1 demonic spirit was the head leader and the other evil spirits they hunted were under him, then this would've been okay but since this wasn't the case, this seems like the writer or director lost direction in the second half, like he was the only demonic spirit left, no one else in their area was demon possessed.
* Useless spirit partners. I mean I guess they lend them their powers (and wands) but all they do is sit at the table and discuss things. They only worry about their world partner if something happens to them physically. I just didn't see an importance to them, besides getting the counters (except for So Mun) out of a coma.
* The most evilest villain in this drama never had a demonic spirit in him until the last few episodes, even though he has committed murder and has thoughts of murder. According to the spirit partner's statement, anybody who has committed murder or desire to murder attracts a demonic spirit. So why wasn't he possessed a long time ago? That doesn't make sense.
But even after all of that, I still enjoyed this drama. I love the action, the closeness of a family the counters had for each other, the dramatic scenes of the demonic spirits being cast out, and the comedy this drama showed (more in the first half of the drama, fewer in the second half). Though they may have thrown some random stuff in and missed out some important details for us viewers to understand, at least I can say that the ending is satisfying and that there's closure.
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well worth the watch!!
I fell in love with this drama from the very start! From the acting to the plot, it just captured my interest and hit all my sweet spots for a drama ie. action, comedy, drama, mystery, fantasy, suspense. I loved it all!I think the most beautiful thing about this drama was the friendships/relationships between characters. The Counters truly became a tight-knit family and their bond feels so real. Their pain became each other's pain and there was no unnecessary contrived conflict between them. They loved each other and had each other's back. All the conflict was external and I quite liked it that way.
Honourable mention: So Mun and his 2 best friends were the most wholesome adorable friendship I've ever seen in a drama. Their undying love and loyalty for So Mun was unparalleled and you could feel his love for them too.
As for the plot, I saw a few complaints that the story diverged from fantasy-action to more about political corruption, but I think everyone saying that is missing the biggest message of the entire drama. In a world of evil spirits and supernatural horror, the most evil monsters are the corrupt and greedy humans around us. I felt like the whole drama pulled in all these aspects really well and tied it together perfectly.
Also, Jo Byung-gyu's acting as So Mun was outstanding. I loved everyone in this drama but his acting was so phenomenal. I felt everything he felt, ached and hurt when he felt broken down. He truly did such a wonderful job in this role and I wish him so much success for the future in many more lead roles.
Anyway, I sincerely hope there is a Season 2. With the way the drama wrapped things up in the finale, I really believe they did so in preparation for a season 2.
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This review may contain spoilers
OVERRATED, needed 6eps only
don't get me wrong, I love the main cast and I loved them as characters but as a plot it offered nothing new. it was just a mix of every other dramas;the bullying happens in every school genre, the evil corrupt politician happens in every law/crime genre and the main evil spirit was like every other psychopath, like strong woman dobong soon.
the only things I enjoyed were the hugs, the unexpected familyness and the 1st big fight when the evil spirits collabed which created a good amount of angst.
afterwards it was just another repeated mess of cliches. they kept trying to kill of Mae Ok becasue she was the "weakest" link.
the bullying honestly felt like a fight club, there's no way anyone could not see what was going on. with that severity of bullying every kid would've been dead or crippled..
Wi Gen "betraying" them the 1st time made no sense. she didn't talk about it and she wasn't against them but it was just used for cheap struggle.
the bully just looked like a 30 year old hurting kids and well the actor is 30 so that was a big mismatch ;/ and the whole wrap up of that part is a horrible lesson to teach kids. "take bullying, don't fight back, love and forgive the bully until they redeem themselves" ;/
the pace was slow, the evil people got too much screen time and they didn't achieve their full potential, I don't know if the writer change happened in this season, but they need a better writer.
though nothing will make me watch s2 ;(
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Super power heros meets kdrama
I'm not sure what all the high reviews are about. This drama was 14 episodes too long, basically the whole story was 2 episodes (and this point was VERY clear from the first two episodes), and it dragged forever. Of course we know like always good defeats evil and prevails. Then we have all the cheesy actions from ML being the strongest like any other Hollywood teenage series. There were no character development, perhaps it was more for the bad guys than the leads. Then we have the corruption scandal which is becoming a core part of almost every single kdrama. The plot holes and illogical course of action the leads take just left me baffled on how the writers and producers came up with such lame scenarios.Overall, felt the writers just wanted to show some cool action scenes to satisfy teenagers, and then had to come up with a story to justify it and nothing beats corruption and some tearjerker family murder drama.
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This review may contain spoilers
Oh, the power of teamwork :’)
Man, this drama was by far one of the best things to happen in 2020-2021, started off great, had a plot that for the most part stayed consistent throughout all 16 episodes, it had protagonists you were rooting for the entire way, and even some antagonists ... Due to some background reveal, I cannot stress enough how much I loved this series because it had one core message:
“You can’t do it alone.”
Which is entirely true, you had a protagonist like So Moon, who you cared for throughout the entire series due to him trying to find his parents (which thank god, HE DOES, woot woot!), not to mention he was bullied along with the rest of his friends, and by the end of the story even though his leg was healed, he stayed humble, cared for his grandparents and had probably one of the best developments of the whole series, he went from a small to TALL lol, in the best possible way, but he couldn’t have done any of that without being a counter, and trusting and relying on the other counters, who each had their own backgrounds and I loved that ... Especially Mae Ok and her son, sweet lord, I cried internally many times ... Throughout the whole show they helped each other and that’s what made this a great watch, they were all like family from beginning to end. Not to mention the end is probably one of the best kdrama finales of 2020, it wasn’t anticlimactic like most I’d seen that year, it had just the amount of firepower to call the end satisfying, not to mention most characters got their closure, including the counters, Moons friends & Moon’s parents, and most importantly the villains got their justice. YES.
There were only a few things about the series that could’ve been better imo:
1. Hyuk Woo (aka Mayors son) joined Moon’s friend group, he had one of the best developments alongside Moon, by end of the series. The guy was an asshole from the start, but NOT to finish, as a matter of fact he was a victim through the whole series, but of course nobody finds that out until halfway through, which I also loved. His dad was abusive and didn’t care about him, but in the end he learns to live with the things his father has done, sends off some apologies to Moon’s friends and anyone else he’s hurt and goes his own way, what sucks about this, is now he’s going to be known as the son of a murderer, yes the mayor ... So his life probably won’t get any better, not to mention he doesn’t have any friends, I hope by s2 we see him join the group, because he grew on me as character and he wasn’t disrespectful to Moon’s grandparents when you know ... He got possessed and tried to kill the counters, and woke up at Moon’s place lol, I think he just wants a normal life with friends and people who care about him, and that’s why in s2 if possible I hope he gets that :’)
2. The fight scenes were great but could’ve been better tbh, there were a lot of punches and throws but I also felt for a good chunk of the series the counters were overpowered, which to some extent is fine, but not all the time ... I don’t want to see some ass whooping in characters other than the villains lol, especially ever other episode
3. Episodes had a “meh” dip at the last 6 episodes, bedsides the finale where, some things happened, but some of it was filler, or felt like it to me.
Those are the only things I wish could’ve been done better in this drama, but hell guys, if that’s all I’m picking out here, and tbh those are small things, this drama was written RIGHT, the plot, cinematography, OST, and acting chops were all glorious in this, and I’d recommend it to anyone who’s looking for a story with “family,” as the primary plot focus, it was incredibly well done, and I give a shout out to all the cast & crew who worked on this drama.
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I told myself I was going to do 2021 differently and stop giving 10 stars so easily but OH MY GOSH!! How can this not be rated 10 stars!?
Everything and I do mean everything about this show was amazing.... okay maybe not *everything* --but I'll come back to that later.
The Uncanny Counter is probably the first show I have watched that kept me stalking the next episode release date. Lol but not only that, every episode was so packed with action that there were no boring parts. There was never a time I wanted to stop watching and it kept me glued to the screen because I knew if I looked away I would miss something important. Lol That says a lot to though because I'm not really big on action but the uniqueness of this show kept me hooked.
All of the actors did so amazing! Even small scene actors took it to a whole new level and made you remember them. I've never been a fan of shows/movies that have a lot of characters, especially random ones that somehow were "important" -- they always left me like "okay but if you are so important why are you coming in now and I don't even remember your name" kinda thing. Lol BUT.... The Uncanny Counter just had some kind of magic in it that left me feeling completely different.
Like episode 15 for example when they brought in that new character. That really threw me off because I was like "um... why are you here? There is literally one episode left. WHY ARE YOU HERE?! WHO ARE YOU!?" lol but in the end, even though I still don't fully understand WHY, I can't even be mad. Lol It's so weird.
While the sudden show up in episode 15 was ..... something. Lol another problem I had with the show was Hana's back story? She is a full ass whole mystery herself. Which is cool and all but we know everyone else's history and all through the show we get glimpses of hers and the demons ALWAYS bring up her past-- so we know it HAS to be important to the story to help understand her character. But... did we ever even get the full backstory or answers? I feel like I blinked and missed something? Did they explain it but I'm too dumb to understand? Don't get me wrong, I like her character. I just am confused? If they didn't tell us, will they tell us in season 2?
Speaking of season 2, why? I mean I'm glad we will get to see them again but this season ended perfectly. and I mean PER-FECT-LY!! I can't stress that enough. I feel like if we get a season 2, there is no way it will be as good as the first and I feel like it's bound to make us lose a few of our favorite characters. WHICH I CAN'T GET DOWN WITH! lol
I am *concerned*. Haha
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This review may contain spoilers
Engaging and well-written beginning with a repetitive and draggy second half
Being the highest rated OCN drama in history, you'd have high standards when going to watch this drama.The first half of the series very much lived up to those standards. The second half however, not so much.
- STORY -
The story begun very consistent and engaged audiences through the concept of 'counters' that attack evil spirits and well, disguise themselves as noodle shop owners. The main antagonist was introduced very early into the story, and it paced itself well from there on as the viewers not only watched the counters try to defeat the Level 3 spirit, but also as our main protagonist (So Min) tried to settle as a counter and deal with his anger issues and ongoing grief for his parents.
One of the faults that comes with introducing a main antagonist early on is that the story itself, drags on for 16 episodes, and by episode 10/11 the story became repetitive in a 'rinse and repeat' format as the counters continue to fail at killing the main antagonist, and the antagonist of course, only got stronger.
This 'failure' also lead to many plot holes and introductions to over-powerful material such as harry potter-looking sticks that feel unnecessary and almost, humorous for a plot-line that isn't meant to be funny. Additionally, So Mun is never seen going to school nor does the 'noodle shop' have anything to do with the main storyline, leading it to be unnecessary in the log-line and synopsis.
- CHARACTERS -
The strongest part of this drama is the well-written main cast and each of their own backstories. The greatest part of our protagonist So Mun is that he truly is written to live up to his name, an 'uncanny' counter. Being a kid, he's immature, angry and reacts inappropriately in situations that truly reflect his age. Motak and Hana are also written to act, think and react in ways that appropriately reflect their age and their traumatic pasts that led them to be counters. Jo Byungyu, Kim Sejeong and Yoo Jun-sang really proved themselves with their incredible acting performance.
The antagonist was also so well-written to point where he's almost likeable. Himself and the Presidents son became antagonists that I genuinely enjoyed, and wishing for more scenes involving solely them. Props to Lee Hong-nae.
Despite this, there were also flaws in the writing of some characters. For example, the 'Yung' team being unlikeable, useless and completely unforgiving in the way they treat the protagonists. Despite them having their own backstories, such as the son, I struggled to feel any sort of empathy for them, as they relied entirely on the counters to let them live their lives. Furthermore, The dragging of the President's story and his 'followers' ruined the like-ability and interest for the characters, emphasising the poorly written second half.
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Overall, I still believe that each person should give this drama a good-go. Especially for the captivating first half that balances intense fighting scenes, humour and sadness perfectly.
I am interested to see where the second season of this story leads, hoping it does not continue the rinse and repeat storyline that many people complained of.
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This review may contain spoilers
A lot of qualities and many flaws too but it is enjoyable overall
WHAT I LIKED:- The many characters with different personalities and tempers. They are able to form a good team supporting each other. The relationship between them is well told.
- The background story of the counters. Each of them has a well made backstory which give them depth and makes them endearing.
- The pace: the drama is fast paced with a lot of good action. I enjoyed the fights.
- The mix between thriller and supernatural is pretty well made even if I wished the realtionship between the bad humans and the evil spirits was stronger and lasted longer
- The supporting characters are interesting: the sponsor, the female cop and her trainee, the two friends of Mun...
- Most of the actors are very good.
WHAT I DID NOT LIKE:
- Too much unnecessary violence
- Sometimes repetitive: Abducting someone and making a call to threaten to kill him. This is done several times
- Some flaws in the story: How come visiting your own memories can lead you to enter the memories of another person and fight in his memories and so find where he is hidden. It is a stretch.
- Some events and elements do not serve the story and are just here to create emotions: the ankle broken and repaired several times, the bullying and beating by the schoolboys thugs, the kid with disease, the orphans, the old folks... plenty of usual tropes.
- The main lead allways accuses himself of being responsible for everything bad happening and cries too much. It became annoying in the end.
- The story is thin: they catch bad persons and evil spirits. It was so thin, from the middle of the drama, it started to be draggy like they don't have a good story to tell and they focus on creating repetitive and useless scenes focusing on the characters' emotions. The bad guys are catched way too easily between two emotional scenes. The final fight was also disappointing.
OST: It was ok for the genre.
REWATCH VALUE: I won't rewatch it.
OVERALL: This drama is a huge success. Personally I found it was emotionally a roller coaster ( a bit too much sometimes) but storywise it was not so interesting. It is entertaining mostly because of the sympathy you have for the main characters, their story and their suffering and their success but I was clearly not amazed by the complexity of story. I still recommend it as a good and easy watch.
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