Very solid first season. The acting from all the leads and supporting characters was astounding and the chemistry between the Counters was so natural. Plot-wise, an interesting idea, pretty well executed, except for some moments of dumbness where unreasonable decisions were forced for the plot's sake. Was it predictable? Yes. Was it still fun to watch? Also yes. I felt the serious topics were well blended with the funny bits, and I liked the "territory" light effects, even if some of the more practical bits look quite rough and fake (particularly the wire work). For the casual action-adventure watcher, I feel like this would be an entertaining show.
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Super entertaining
The Uncanny Counter was really a drama that made me feel thrilled and kept me on the edge of my seat. I could not stop watching once I finish an episode, that is how entertaining it was. Nice choice of actors also. I think their diverse characteristics and traits complemented each other. I don't know about the webtoon so I can't compare the two and how they differ but this one is well-made. Despite being not a big fan of action filled dramas, this one hits different as it added a different flavor to it, which is the realms outside and beyond what humans have. It was interesting, intriguing, thrilling, and sometimes emotional too. Props to the actors for playing their roles well, specially Jo Byeong Gyu. Although has some flaws and slight nonsensical moments, I could easily overlook them because of how good the story and action went. Looking forward to a second season if there's one. Definitely something worth your time, so consider checking this out.Was this review helpful to you?
Crime, humour, emotionally intense, all together!
The Uncanny Counter is a drama focused on a group made up of those who were previously in coma, given a chance to fight evil spirits. When So Mun gets included in the group due to special circumstances, things really begin to happen. With more than just how he joined the group being what’s mysterious about him, we’ve a lot to find out. From a political corruption arc to evil spirits being utilised by them, we see our group get pulled into setting things right.What did I love about this show? The first half was quite well done, the pace was perfect to the story and we got to the intense parts while keeping up with the humour. I also loved the wholesome relationships the group shared. They weren’t one dimensional characters — I loved Ha Na the most. She appears closed off and could be generic cold because of how she is, but with her people we are expressing emotions and being soft. The women in the show aren’t deprived of their feminity to make them appear strong. I also loved Mun’s relationship with his friends — that was another wholesome trio! I’m looking forward to see the young actress who plays his best friend in more dramas. I enjoyed the evil spirits arc for majority of the show. Absolutely loved the dynamics between the crazy female spirit and contract killer spirit, they were the highlight for me I think! I would love to see these two actors in another drama — maybe retaining their characters a bit.
What did I dislike in the show? As the show moved into the second half, there was a certain out of pace-ness in few episodes. Some random ridiculous things happen which make you roll your eyes. I wish So Mun’s powers were more fleshed out. I didn’t get the point of Yung either — there isn’t much information on what they do or what the extent of their jurisdiction is. The way they admonish their counters felt a little stupid, like there aren’t really fixed rules. The development between counters and their yung counterparts could have been much better — especially So Mun and Wigen’s. I also didn’t like how certain characters were introduced or their conflicts were resolved only to be killed.
Overall, this is a fun show. It covers trauma to an extent, there’s bullying as well (what’s a high school oriented drama without bullying though, right?) but there’s humour which balances it. A fun show to watch if you’re in hero saves the day content.
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Why does this show only have an 8.8 rating?
I adore this show, so so much. I truly enjoyed it so much and had practically no grievances with it. The one or two I have are truly opinion-based and I don't truly consider them as flaws. Shall I begin?Story, 10/10:
Where to begin? I think the supernatural element of this show is really interesting and I enjoy true crime so I liked that aspect as well. The group of ghost hunters isn't a new concept but I think the way it's done in this show is really fun. My two grievances fall into this category so I'll say it now. 1. I wish they'd kept So Hun disabled and he had learned to fight well despite it. I am most definitely biased since I myself am disabled and walk with a limp. Mine isn't injury based so it's a little different but still. My second and last grievance is that I wish they'd focused a tad bit more on the supernatural parts. They did in the beginning and don't get me wrong, I enjoy the true crime element quite a lot but I would've enjoyed a bit more evil spirit hunting. Also, the evil spirit villain in this show is scary as hell and I hate that high-pitched giggle he does.
Acting, 10/10:
I found absolutely no issues with the acting. I thought everyone was superb and I can't think of anyone whose acting I disliked. My favorite acting probably would come from the guy who plays the evil spirit villain. He is so scary and I get anxious every time I see him on the screen.
Music, 8.5/10:
The soundtrack was good but I wasn't blown away. I've heard better but I've also heard worse. This is on the higher end of the averageness scale. If you want to hear some good drama music, try watching Doom at your service or Hotel Del Luna. Both are killer though I prefer DAYS over HDL.
Characters(I know it's not a category but I'm including it anyway):
My favorite character is So Hun, no competition. He has such a sweet personality and I truly relate to him. I am really emotional and I am disabled so I clicked with him instantly. My second favorite character is Ha-Na, she is so badass. She is also really pretty. My third favorite is a tie between the former policeman and the healer lady. I hate that I forgot their names but that doesn't mean I don't care for them. I hate the villains so much, I can't pick who is more loathable. Also, So Hun's friends are great and I like them a lot.
Rewatchability, 9/10:
I don't tend to rewatch things and I doubt I will rewatch this but that is just me. For anyone else, I think watching a second time would be pretty fun. Not as fun since the suspense would be gone but it would still be fun.
Overall, 10/10:
Please, please, please watch this show. It is really good and I wish more people were talking about it. It is one of the best drama's I've watched and I hope you'll like it as well. But a bit of a warning, it can be a bit gruesome and bloody but nothing too gratuitous.
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This review may contain spoilers
BRILLIANT SHOW!
Should you? Would you? Could you?You should watch this one (YES! )
You would recommend this to others. (YES!)
You could watch this again. (Not really as it’s a mystery)
Ending: Satisfactory
This is a South Korean tv series based on the webtoon Amazing Rumor by Jang Yi. There is only one word to describe it and that’s “BRILLIANT”.
While the plot is very interesting (The protagonists running a noodle shop in the day and demon hunting in the night), it’s always the characters who make it come alive.
Everyone has acted brilliantly: the 4 core members (the counters who are the demon hunters), the spirit council, the supporting cast, and the different sets of villains that we encounter. Each counter has a special skill which when coming together as a team, makes a formidable force to reckon with.
In fact, the actors chosen as the evil spirits are just brilliant and lead the show. Lee Hong Nae as Cheong sin is brilliant as the evil spirit. That laughter is so spine-chilling and those eyes...... whew! I liked the fact that they showed a humane side to him at the orphanage but his cruel upbringing is what makes him what he is ultimately. Ok Ja Yeon as the female evil spirit is brilliant too!!!!!!!
SPOILER:
I loved the way the plot changes the game in episode 12 to beat the evil with their own weakness - money and with the concept of divide and rule. This is some good writing here.
While I missed “ Cheong Sin” as the level 3 spirit in the last 3 episodes, Mayor Shin as the evil incarnate is just top-notch.
The character development of So Mun is gradual and portrayed very well - From a soft-hearted person with a disability to a soft-hearted but strong-willed person with a sense of purpose. Even his concern for the Mayor’s son who was a bully to him shows his strength of character. The final episode with So Mun’s reunion with his parents' spirit is very heart rendering.
There is a lot more to this drama. Each character has his or her own journey and I like the way it has been shown while being interwoven within the big plot.
I absolutely loved the background score. It adds so much to the scenes.
There is blood and gore. There are likable characters who get killed. But it's worth seeing this one if you haven’t as yet.
It’s a fast-paced one. Finished it in 3 days. No fast-forwarding in this one. Looking forward to Season 2.
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A fun and interesting action, supernatural drama that'll keep you hooked!
I wasn't going to watch this at first, however, after seeing the many positive reviews about this drama I decided to give it a try. And I definitely did not regret it!In the beginning of the drama, I was sorta confused with what is going on, however, it started to make sense as the story progressed. The friendship between all four characters was definitely real. They really care about each other and would do anything to save each other. However, it was disappointing that Mun and Hana never got together even though they hinted small bits of romance between them. However, this drama doesn't revolve around romance but more of the friendship between all four. There was a lot of funny scenes in here too which made it better!
I don't watch a lot of supernatural/ghost spirit kind of dramas. But this one was definitely an interesting one that kept me hooked the whole time. The drama was nothing too complicating, it was straightforward and easy to understand. Nothing was dragged on because every scene was relevant that connects to the story. Mun lost his parents at a car "accident" which left him disabled. However, once he gained superpowers, he found out his parents were actually murdered by an evil spirit and the political higher-ups were somehow involved in it too. AND his parent's souls were taken by the evil spirit, Cheong Shin, who has also killed and taken many other people's souls to make him stronger. Therefore, Mun and the rest of the members had the mission to stop and summon the evil spirit out of this dude in order to free all the dead souls (including Mun's parents) to ascend them peacefully to heaven. Interesting plot right?
The action scenes were one of the best highlights of this drama. The action looked SO REAL! And it's brutal too like damn! I give so much kudos to all the actors/actresses for taking part in such brutal scenes. Kim Se Jeong (Hana) surprised me the most with her martial arts skills. I never imagined she'd be in this type of drama nor see her do these types of strenuous action scenes that maybe not a lot of idol girls can do. She definitely stood out in this drama and give her high compliments.
The antagonists were just brutal and toxic as hell LOL. Like they really hit a nerve that makes you just so frustrated because of the never-ending killing of multiple innocent people. Cheong Shin had a broken childhood and unfortunately got an evil spirit in him. Even though he was dead-beat evil, he showed some soft normal side of himself when he went back to the orphanage to watch the kids play and even defended one of them when one of his mates was about to kill him. It's confusing but at least good i guess to see there's some human side left in him, but he was still dead ass evil and needed to be jailed. But he killed himself so LOL.
The last episode where Mun finally reunited with his parents got me really emotional and teary-eyed. What I love about that scene is that they really made it believable enough to get viewers to feel emotional because it is such a special heartbreaking scene of a kid and their parents reuniting after 7 years from a tragic accident. One thing I was disappointed with was that they didn't really go into much of Ha Na's story. Like yeah we know her family died and she didn't but like.. is that it? We got into the back story of the other three characters and had some resolution to it but nothing very much on Ha Na's part. Or maybe that scene when she was fighting that lady when she "saw" her family was a closure? Idk, but that was just me. I guess she had closure that she is fine but just didn't really show it much on here.
Other than that, the whole drama was great and entertaining in general. I would definitely watch this again and highly recommend it to anyone!
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Speaking of Shin Hyuk Woo, I loved that he got a believable redemption arc at the very end and I cross my fingers that we get to see him again in S2. His character, now that he turned a new page, could be so interesting!
I loved all the main actors, they were amazing, and their characters’ arcs were so marvelous. But who caught me totally by surprise was Lee Hong Nae who played Ji Chung Shin, the big bad of a demon. He was absolutely ah-mazing! He actually felt terribly scary to me. And I do hope that, after showcasing his acting skills here, he will receive many more interesting parts in the future. He sure deserves it!
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Refreshing Take On Classic Shounen Tropes, This Time In A K Drama
Whilst not necessarily the most original plot, Uncanny Counter manages to bring the tried and true Shounen format over to Korean television whilst still somehow keeping the story fresh and interesting.The best thing for me I think I would like to talk about is some of the character writing.
So Mun's base traits are kind of nothing too new — righteous young man with the spirit of a hero and the tragic back story to boot — but the way the world around him works makes him feel like a new character. Generally in these types of Shounen-esque stories main characters are rarely ever presented with the consequences of their actions, and as a result stakes can begin to feel pretty low. Fortunately, with So Mun you can see that the world around him doesn't hold as much of that main character leeway for him, whether it be in his actions or the actions of those around him. This is best exemplified by the rest of the counter team getting strikes put against them and becoming close to being stripped of counter status due to them trying to help So Mun. So Mun also, quite miraculously, doesn't feel too overpowered during the show until closer to the end of the series. This is due, in part, to the fact that his emotionality as a character is his biggest weakness for a fair part of the show. His emotional sensitivity also contributes fantastically into making him feel like a real kid as well. Very rarely do the teens in any media feel like actual teens, but So Mun and his adorable friends are like a breath of fresh air that I, too would beat an entire group of delinquents half to death for if they were kidnapped. Overall I really like the way So-Mun is written, and am looking forward to future character development in the next season.
The women in Uncanny Counter are also all treated with a level of respect that I found to be jarring in the absolute best way possible. After spending the better part of a decade binge watching shows from all over the place, I've gotten very used to women being presented as secondary, not in the way that they're supporting characters, but rather in the way that they are afforded a lot less personality and agency in their own lives. Screenwriter Yeo Ji-na does a fantastic job setting up all of our strong, capable female characters throughout the beginning of the show. Do Hana is both physically and mentally one of the strongest characters in the show, and even though the show tends to let So Mun treat her like your regular love interest a bit too much, Hana is shown to be incredibly independent and well rounded. Chu Mae-ok is a well rounded mother figure, who whilst shown to be the weakest of the counters physically, fills the irreplaceable role of group healer, and is shown to be able to get rough, and also still be incredibly physically strong, instead of being portrayed as just a feeble older woman. So Mun's best friend Joo-yeon is a great beacon of support for him, whilst also being shown to comfortably exist outside of So Mun, allowing her the agency she deserves. Ga Mo-tak's past significant other Jung-young is a smart and capable detective, who has been dealing with extreme workplace sexism, which has tried and failed to relegate her to only doing useless tasks. And Finally the possessed Baek Hyang-hee is one of the physically strongest characters in the show, though she's completely feral, her raw power is something to be respected and feared, which is something the show is quick to remind viewers whenever she comes on screen.
I just absolutely adore all the characters in this show and I feel the character writing misses much less that it gets right with this show.
The casting decisions are also fantastic, for all of the significant (a lot of the delinquents look like their actors' ages... Which is around the 25 mark) characters that are in high school, the casting director chose actors that actually look and feel like real teenagers for once. The chemistry between all the actors is also no joke, the Counters both on earth and in Yung all feel like a cohesive family, and So Mun, Ung-min, and Joo-yeon feel so authentically like childhood friends that you forget all three actors are from entirely different generations. The antagonists in the show are so well cast too, Lee Hong-nae (Ji Cheong-shin) and Ok Ja-Yeon (Baek Hyang-hee) never fail to send chills down your spine whenever they're on screen, and Choi Kwang-il (Shin Myeong-hwi) is so successful at playing the corrupt politician/abusive father that I think he may have ruined any other film or show I see him in from now on forever.
The music in the show is probably the least memorable part of the entire drama, which is really no insult when you take into account how well the music is chosen for certain scenes in the show (A personal favorite music choice of mine is at the very end of episode 4 iykyk).
In conclusion, Uncanny Counter is an incredibly fun, action-packed, emotional Shounen, all packaged into the look and feel of a supernatural mystery K Drama. Over the next few years I'm actually certain I'll be re-watching this show whenever I'm feeling a little bored, so all I can say now is, if you haven't watched it yet, what are you waiting for???
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Don't hesitate...Must watch! (Wait till ep2 to get hooked on)
Wow!!It's been a while since I last watched a korean drama which Hooked me on like crazy to the extent I even saw those characters in my dream.
Really a must watch drama which will take you on a thriller, suspense and a comic ride!
The characters are just superb and the acting couldn't have been better. Their chemistry and team work is just something that will make you crave for such companionship in your life as well.
The story is just awesome and not dragged at all.
There's not a single episode where you will find it boring except as my caption reads "Hold out till episode 2". First episode is kinda ok and will feel out of place but trust me from 2nd episode you won't be able to stop yourself from watching the next episode in line!
Kuddos to all actors but specifically the youngest counter So Mun And the evilest character of Jin.
So mun will make you cry everytime he cries and the evil one will make you hate and love him at the same time.
Definitely watch this and wait for its season 2 to get wrapped up so that you can watch that too ;)
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Recommended!
So, we're done watching The Uncanny Counter, and this is a "rare event" since I am not an avid fan of K-drama. I prefer C-drama.Anyway, the series is about a group of people called "counters" who hunt down evil spirits dwelling inside people (i.e. these evil spirits actually "possess" people and make them do bad things). I can't say anything more since that could spoil the series for you.
I recommend this series. There are some funny moments, irritating moments, and definitely, a lot of sad moments. It's classified as "fantasy, mystery, thriller" by Google. I'd classify it as "supernatural" --- that word says it all.
You will also see a lot of bullying in this series - as in, bullying in high school - and as I've posted in my statuses before, I noticed that most K-dramas in school settings have themes about bullying. Some of my FB friends who are familiar with the Korean culture said that bullying is indeed rampant in Korea.
The series only has 16 episodes. So you can finish it in two weeks if you watch one episode every day. (Hahaha --- as if! I know most of you binge-watch!)
This is definitely WORTH WATCHING compared to Sweet Tooth ?
It's on Netflix, btw.
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Must Watch!!
I loved this drama so much. The production, characters, storyline, and every else was just amazing! It was suspenseful, entertaining, emotional-- and stayed that way through the entire series. I don't usually enjoy action films, but this one was phenomenal. Watching these wholesome, loveable characters battling and balancing the evil in the world was so fun. The supernatural theme was incorporated naturally and the CGI quality was really well done... which is rare for kdramas.also So Mun is adorable and I'm VERY much in love with Hana ---- all of the actors were incredible and played their parts beautifully
PLEASE MAKE A SEASON 2 IM BEGGING
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Perfect blend of fantasy, friendships, humor and thrilling adventures!
This drama is so fun and refreshing!STORY: I saw this drama was based on a manhua, so I can't write all of the good things off to the writers of the series, but it was still amazing! The plot of this drama is quite unique for Korea, I really like the new things they're trying out. Since it's so completely new for Korea, I really feel like this is a series that could be good for first time watchers of Asian dramas (it's actually the first one I've recommended to my older sibling). The first time I read the description for The Uncanny Counter I actually didn't understand it at all, but I started watching it because it looked so out of left field. I'm sO glad I didn't let the confusing synopsis hold me back! The story is very well paced, it doesn't really have empty moments like most dramas do. I think that's mostly because the focus isn't on romance at all, and I've always preferred a heavier plotline with good relationships that are more in the background but still important to the plot. In this drama, I adored the 'found family' trope used for the group of Counters! The story behind Counters, Evil Spirits and Yung is worked out quite well, with a lot of eye for detail and little plotholes. It's very interesting!
My little sister is watching this drama as well, and she said something I totally agree with: this series will make you cry with laughter one second, and then just make you cry the next.
ACTING: was. great. The cast and characters being the Counters are all very very loveable! The cast does an amazing job at portraying the friendships and family bonds that connect their characters. The main character, So Mun, has become my favorite drama character really fast. He's so cute and genuine and Jo Byung Gyu did such a good job at portraying him. I'm very impressed by the whole's cast's acting, mainly in fight scenes. I obviously know they used stunt doubles too, but even then the cast have quite a bit of fight scenes where their faces are showing, so it's extremely impressive to me. The actors that portray evil spirits were also impressive. Lee Hong Nae, who portrays Ji Cheong Si, is at times genuinely terrifying. He uses his eyes and body movement really well to portray the evil of the spirits. Overall, I want to really tell the whole cast how amazing of a job they did.
MUSIC: Aside from the intro song (the instrumentals), I'm not that big of a fan of the music. I'm never really focused on the OST for dramas, anyway, so this doesn't really bother me. The sound mixing during the episodes themselves is really good, the songs never intrude on the scenes or feel out of place and when they play the intro during fight scenes it's really exciting and fun. The ballads that are part of the OST fit in during certain scenes, but when they use them to play the outro, it's often quite jarring, since most episodes end on a fight cliffhanger. But since that's not really part of the plot, I really don't care. As long as the sound during the episodes is good, it's all good for me.
REWATCH VALUE: Since there's more to this series than just a romance, but rather a web of crime, intrigue, a fantasy plot, good friendships, a found family and good character developments, this drama is extremely rewatchable. I'm really not a rewatcher as well, so this is a big compliment on my part!
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