The Veil (2021)

"The principle of justice are choosen behind the veil of ignorance."

"When you try hard to find answers from your past, the past will come crawling to you and eat you up." The Veil that you wear to protect yourself from external forces, can either cause you immense pain or fee you from all the sufferings. Yet, your efforts to put things at their rightful places shouldn't go waste; make sure of that.

"The Veil" is indeed one of a kind action as well mystery thriller Korean drama, justifying it's own title and doing a good job in relaying it's performance in overall. It's definitely one of the most underrated dramas of the year 2021 bcs of known reasons.

The story revolves around Han Ji Hyuk (Namgoong Min), an ace among the National Intelligence Service (NIS) top agents and an 'one man army', known to be stubborn & unbeatable. While carrying out an operation to destroy an underworld drug cartel in China with his 2 partners, he comes across abrupt truth behind the entire thing and suddenly vanishes off from the earth surface, while his partners are found murdered. He resurfaces after a year in the Peninsula but this time with lost memories of one year, just to discover the rat or traitor among the NIS who helped their enemy on the back to have the upper hand. Due to his unstable state, he is partnered with Yoo Je Yi (Kim Ji Eun) to carry out minor tasks. Je Yi, who has joined the organization to find out about his father, an ex-agent gone missing a decade ago, joins hand with Ji Hyuk. Together, they work secretly and find out the bigger forces behind it, who turn out to be their own and strive to reveal everything.

The plot development is actually very amazing for a 12 episode drama which reflects a steady progression with several temporary brakes, whenever the antagonists face some downfall. Can't really call it a 'staircase' development but the duo keep solving one case after another with clues from previous case, so yeah, it's somewhat similar to it. 1st ep is the basic intro with lots of confusion which is an obvious happening. 2nd ep also lays the foundation further clarifying the previously created subtle indications. The progress after it, is what will amaze you continuously and keep you hooked. The antagonists continue to dig deeper and unveil more answers and the twists at the end of each episode leaves you awestruck. In fact, the revelations are quite astonishing and very unpredictable; it's like you know who is involved and who ain't but in what way and how much, that's the matter of curiosity. In this regard, the writer has painted an intertwined yet intriguing sketch that's quite difficult to figure out for the viewers.

What bothered me is the ending of 9th episode and the entire 10th episode plus it's ending too. The reason is, one of the most major question of the drama was answered at the end of 9th and first half of the 10th episode bore it's detailed explanation. So I really was worried as to what else is left to explain and answer now when we got 2 episodes yet to come? The latter half 10th episode showed further progress in open investigation within the organization with joined efforts of more people who joined the lead duo. The 11th ep was a lil slow but at least not rushed which is better. Anyways, the ep laid foundation for the final big operation to catch the main culprit behind everything and then the finale went very well according to that. I was again afraid something would go wrong for the drama but I am greatly satisfied.

Just like any other crime dramas, The Veil is mysterious & confusing in many ways, ngl. So, some of us might binge it bcs we're anxious to wait but some others also find it interesting to go slow as it's more interesting that way too. I am telling this because I binged the 10 eps in 2 goes and and had a difficult time for a day trying to put everything in place. Since there are only 12 episodes, binging it would feel like time flying by so fast. So take it slow, try to enjoy and relish each episode as it proceeds and make sure you are attentive to the details because lots of facts are interconnected and there are in fact so many small and merely significant characters, each contributing significantly to the story; so if you don't remember them, you might end up getting confused. They introduce new characters each episode as the lead dup keep digging deeper but they don't stick around or simply, as soon as their essence is over, they are thrown out of the script.

Namgoong Min is the central character as said earlier. Not only he's strong and skillful, he's smart enough to predict and draw an entire scenario, before he start executing his plans. He surfers from trauma related to his chikdhood and is also full of untold emotions. Kim Ji Eun (Yoo Je Yi) does her job well by helping the ring leader at many points. She was definitely more quick-witted and what makes her character strong is her instincts of righteousness by the virtue of which she chooses to believe in Ji Hyuk constantly and taking his side till the end, despite all the odds she had to face.

In supporting role, Ha Dong Gyun (Kim Do Hyun), is a mysterious one who turns out to be different from the usual assumption of character. Dir. Kang Pil Ho (Kim Jong Tae) is a concerned superior to his juniors who also has secrets that he commited in order to protect the organization. Dep. Comm. Do Jin Suk (Jang Young Nam) is a ambitious woman who can pull any strings to get her work done. Dep. Comm. Lee In Hwan (Lee Kyung Young) is a greedy and inimical man and source of all the bad deeds in the org. Seo Soo Yun (Park Ha Sun) is the bearer of many secrets behind the conspiracy but her character is the only one that was poorly written and got wasted unreasonably. There are plenty of other characters played by very very good actors but I suppose I should stop here not to give out any spoiler.

Action!? What are you asking about? How should I explain this? Superb, amazing, etc. fancy words would become understatements. Nam Goong Min carried the entire show with his acting plus action skills. I am not a fan of ripped bodies but well, this is NGM *blushes*. His physique is what we call an ideal fit for stunts. The character Han Ji Hyuk, had his ground rules set. Being so skillful & determined as a person, he was unbeatable. His fleetness and swift hand movements, oof, those are reverential moments to witness. What makes the action scenes and NGM's stunts perfect is, the way those elements serve the story as well as his characters. Those were jaw-dropping and heart-poundinh. Most of the scenes also involve several types of firearms, which were also used skillfully and in an enticing way. In overall, the action and stunt scenes are enthralling and greatly pleasurable to eyes. The action director obviously deserve extra bonus for drawing the detailed arcs and keeping the most appropriate pace. "The Veil" definitely is the 2nd best action kdrama of the year after Taxi Driver, this year; at least for me ;-;

Direction is top notch I would say. For any thriller, particularly action thrillers, the chief PD is the most responsible for the execution and here Kim Sung Yong PDnim has done a stupendous job in directing the drama as well as managing and editing the screenplay. Given that he's not that experienced in directing as thw main PD, it's difficult to say so from this drama. The pacing is accurate for the entire drama, there seemed no exaggeration for the story or any specific event.

Applauses for him. Also, I still can't bring myself to believe that it's the writer's first ever script??? I don't know who are they, but dear jakka-nim, you are very talented. This is so very good to prove how nice your skills are. Please keep this up because we anticipate to witness more of your works. The development of overall plot, the character development for Nam Ji Hyuk, the arcs of each seemingly insignifican characterst, the awe-inspiring revelations at perfect points of the story, the U-turn & downfall twists, etc are very well drawn with visibly wonderful efforts. Brownie points for the dialogue writing too. The screenplay writing along with pleasing dialogues is what makes the character to serve well and makes the audience connect and feel. The formatting is nice and subtext is clear plus no dragging of scenes with only important conversations.

The composition is something that you can look forward to too. For a dark and intense action thriller where every other scene has the smell of sobriety, the OSTs and background scores are very well written and composed which gives off appropriate mood and are very suitably used in the drama. "Reason" by YOARI is undoubtedly the show-bearer, which in fact explains the title and essence of the drama. It depicts the emotions and eagerness of a man who is lost in a dreadful tunnel among plenty of enemies surrounding him. "Stay With Me" by Elaine on contrary, is a melancholic track, that portrays a man's emotions of betrayal, self-realization and has losr track of everything. "Get Ya" by Lee Jung Min is an enthralling and catchy song on the other hand. The OSTs are all in English.

I am happy to be aware that they are giving us 2 extra episodes. I mean we deserve it because there are only 12 episodes even though they're around 80mins each. From the trailer, it seems the special episodes will have the back stories of of entire main plot so it's more like a prequel of the drama and the point where it all started. It feels promising too so I'm kinda looking forward to it.

Notes:
1. There is no romance at all, which is expected and I feel that's the best decision by the writer. There is a subtle portrayal of one sided liking but it wasn't anything near to romantic feelings I suppose.
2. It's kinda gore as well. Since it's NIS and not a simple crime investigation unit, killing people easily is nothing biggie so watch it with TW if you're sensitive to bloodshed and murders.

SOOOO, THE VEIL, in overall is such a stupendous Kdrama, in terms of story, direction, acting, performance, action & stunts, etc and definitely a must watch. It also has high rewatch value for those who are avid action fans. Spy investigation dramas involving NIS and action are not something very new to us but this surely stands out for a unique basic storyline, it's immense action scenes and fabulous execution. If you're hesitant to start because the genre ain't your cup of tea, give it a try for Nam Goong Min at least, you can't help but fall for him deep into the firey pit lmao.

P. S. Didn't know I would end up writing a long review for a 12 episode drama with lil context to narrate w/o spoilers but well, now that I'm done writing, I don't wanna remove any part of it TT.

Read More

Captivating spy thriller, intelligently questioning the philosophy and ethics of secret services

"The Veil" is a really exciting, all-round first-class KDrama in the secret service milieu. The world of spies, the unconditional obedience to orders and professional ethics as well as the swampy terrain surrounding ´right´ vs. ´wrong´ / ´good´ vs. ´evil´ is not only extremely exciting, but also multi-layered and downright critical. (With "Moebius: The Veil", the makers provide background information on some of the central characters of the series in an equally gripping 2-part prequel.)

At the center of the "The Veil" is an excellent agent of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), who suddenly reappears out of nowhere one year after his mission had gone wrong. He has no memory of the past year whatsoever, but is determined to find the cause of failure at that time.

The international title of the KDrama refers to the veil of the protagonist's memory that is lifted in the course of the story. At the same time, it also refers to the veils within the NIS behind which many secrets are kept hidden, and what happens when someone wants to lift them. In the original, however, the title is translated "Black Sun" and refers (no less symbolically) to the phenomenon of the solar eclipse.

MBC spared no expense or effort in the production of "The Veil". With this series, the station is celebrating its 60th birthday in 2021 in a successful way that is well worth seeing. Not only excitement and action are guaranteed, but also an intelligent story that is up to date. (See side note below.) The gripping script is multi-layered with numerous characters who repeatedly move back and forth between the poles of good and evil - eventually, in this intelligence service profession it is neither clear who is who, nor is it unambiguous why...

The overall first-class cast has proven itself altogether through their strong, convincing presence. Namkoong Min in particular gives everything here. He is hardly recognizable compared to e.g. "Stove League" from 2019. For "The Veil" he had trained intensively and gained 10 kilos of muscle mass. He impresses with his powerful physicality, which gives his role even more weight. In that sense, he also performed all the stunts himself.
(Apropos stunts.... this KDrama has its bloody, brutal side, too... for some it could be a bit challenging at times...)

Right down to the camera, light and music, everything is of the highest standard. Since both the characters and the story are so sophisticated and complex with many details, the KDrama is also suitable for re-watch - even if you know how it ends...

"The Veil" is a captivating spy thriller of international caliber that intelligently questions the philosophy, mission and ethics of the secret services from multiple angles. The story also deals with recent history and political past, with present and future ´NIS´ of South Korea.



------------------ SIDE NOTE: --- political/historical context of the NIS ---

The NIS has only had this title since 1999 - and not anymore since July 2020, to be precise. (The story is from 2018 though.) The history of South Korea's intelligence agency is paved with some abuse of power over its own people on South Korean soil.
The South Korean intelligence service originally goes back to the KCIA (Korean Central Intelligence Agency) from 1961, which General Park Chung-hee had initiated. The responsibilities included overseeing and coordinating both international and national intelligence operations and investigations by public and military agencies. The power to get involved in political events (unsolicited and without permission) was correspondingly great. With all this, the KCIA is also one of the elite of Asian secret services in terms of the demanding training.

Following the end of the military dictatorship by General Park Chung-hee, who was assassinated in 1979 by the then head of the KCIA, the KCIA was purged and operated as ANSP (National Security Planning Agency) from 1981. Their most important tasks included spying on North Korean activities and, for example, the suppression of political activists of the pro-democracy movement in their own country.

In 1999 ANSP became NIS. For its part, the NIS actively intervened in domestic politics in favor of Park Gyun-hye (daughter of the former dictator) during the presidential election in 2012, prompted by the head of the intelligence service, Won Sei-hoon. In fact, that NIS campaign against Moon Jae-in resulted in him narrowly losing the election. Meanwhile, Park Gyun-hye has been in prison since 2016 on serious corruption charges, and Moon Jae-in has officially been in office since 2017 (-2022) as the 12th President of South Korea.

In 2020, the government, the presidential office and the ruling Minjoo party agreed that the state secret service NIS should stay out of domestic politics in the future. In connection with corresponding reforms, the NIS was renamed "External Security and Intelligence Service". Illegal actions by secret service employees, abuse of power or interference in domestic politics will from now on be subject to severe penalties.

Read More

The Unveiling

The direct translation and original English title for this production is The Black Sun. This probably refers to the solar eclipse in which the sun appears black. As far as this drama is concerned, it perhaps represents the metaphor where the truth is concealed, hence the befitting title of The Veil. Viewers will find that there is more than just the one piece of veil that covers the hidden truth; there are layers upon layers to be unveiled over the course of the drama, before answers to all questions are finally revealed.

The Veil is MBC’s 60th anniversary special drama with an enormous production budget of 15 billion Won. It is the first drama project by screenwriter Park Seok Ho, who had previously written miniseries for which she had won two MBC creative screenplay awards. The award-winning and prolific composer Kim Jang Woo serves as music director while the production is helmed by MBC’s inhouse producing director, Kim Seong Yong. Being a pre-produced drama, it wrapped up filming in August 2021 right before the lead actress Kim Ji Eun was diagnosed as Covid-19 positive. The drama had reportedly altered its airing time after 4 episodes in an apparent attempt to boost viewership as it was competing against SBS’s One the Woman in the same time slot. A 2-episode spin-off focusing on the backstories of characters played by Jang Young Nam, Park Ha Sun and Jung Moon Sung is scheduled to air by the end of October 2021.

From a technical point of view, the execution is excellent, which is to be expected considering the huge production budget. The standout aspects are the action choreography, stunt sequences and the special effects. From the very first minute of the first episode, the drama exudes Bourne Identity vibes in terms of the action scenes which the quality camerawork captures beautifully. I also noticed that the picture quality of the drama is noticeably different compared to the usual fare. The application of muted colour combinations and high contrast grading contributes to a somewhat subdued and desaturated visuals, which I suppose complements the overall edgy and gritty tone of the drama.

The story is set on the premise of South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) waging a war against a homegrown drug cartel with mainland Chinese ties. In the not too distant past, the NIS was always depicted as being engaged in espionage cat-and-mouse games against their North Korean counterparts. However, perhaps due to the current political climate, it is much less politically sensitive to cast drug lords as the primary villains, which is the case here. That said, other political affiliations do get their fair share of mentions - China’s Public Security Bureau and NK’s own intelligence outfit. Aside from the action scenes, the ML’s character development is reminiscent of Jason Bourne’s own character arc with the presence of the amnesia plot and his quest to regain his lost memories.

I went into this drama fully expecting a highly exciting and action packed thriller filled with explosive gunfights, slick unarmed combats, high-speed car (as well as speedboat and helicopter) chases and plenty of non-stop adrenaline-fueled agency and urgency. As it turns out, the focus of the drama is not so much on the action, which is still present but not as abundant as I had hoped, but rather on the cloak-and-dagger aspects of investigations into uncovering secret agendas amidst the convoluted internal politics of the clandestine organisation and its major players. A crucial plus point - depending on your standpoint - there is no romance involved in the story as far as the leads are concerned, which is just as well due to the limited duration of the drama. However, there are brief instances of misplaced humour involving primarily a certain data analyst co-worker. Sometimes I wish I could tell K-drama screenwriters directly to cut that crap out and just focus on being consistent with the serious and dramatic tone of the drama.

There are essentially 2 parts to the narrative; the first part concerns the flashbacks, backstories and process of unraveling the web of deceit while the second part sees a unified team fighting against a common enemy. Most of the action happens in the second part which begins from episode 10 onwards. The initial arc unfolds during the first 9 episodes, which I feel takes too long and becomes rather over complicated as well as convoluted than is necessary. In truth, the plot really is quite straightforward and the catalyst that triggers the entire chain of events comes across as somewhat weak, which is shown to viewers in the final reveal. Long story short, the psychologically-induced disorientation along with the long-winded mind games takes up the bulk of this 12-episode drama which, in my humble opinion, finally comes alive in the final 3 episodes despite kicking-off with a bang in the first couple of episodes.

This drama will most likely be remembered for Nam Goong Min’s dedication and commitment in preparing for his role as NIS super agent Han Ji Hyuk. He reportedly began training, via a gluten-free protein-enriched diet and 4-hour daily gym workouts that added 10 kg to his body mass, in January 2021 to transform into the powerful physique and achieve absolute conviction in the portrayal of the character. Additionally, he performs his own stunts in the brutal and savage fight scenes which further enhances the believability of the characterization. From the very first minute of his appearance, I simply could not recognise him both from the facial features (even after his character eventually loses all the facial hair) and the body language which have completely changed. This is not the NGM that we all remember. Amazing! Aside from the physical aspect, NGM also manages to showcase a nuanced depiction of the emotional depth written in Han Ji Hyuk’s character arc.

The main female characters are portrayed by Park Ha Sun and Kim Ji Eun, as NIS agents Seo Soo Yeon and Yoo Je Yi respectively. I think Park Ha Sun is quite compelling but, unfortunately, her character of Seo Soo Yeon is a wasted potential, for obvious reasons. Perhaps the character would be more fleshed out in her spin-off origin story slated for release later this month. On the other hand, I’m not so convinced with Kim Ji Eun’s character. Yoo Je Yi is more suited as an analyst rather than a field agent and even towards the end, is lacking in development. However, this is more an issue with the writing rather than the actress’ performance which is quite decent given what she had to work with.

As far as the supporting cast is concerned, the veterans impressed me the most. Jang Young Nam and Lee Kyung Young as Deputy Directors Do Jin Suk and Lee In Hwan respectively. Both these two experienced actors are no strangers to playing such powerful and authoritative characters, as can be seen from their past performances. Yoo Oh Sung who plays Baek Mo Sa feels somewhat more subdued and has very minimal dialogue this time around, although he still manages to expertly infuse his character with subtle shifts in aura and demeanour that fit the narrative.

The soundtrack features 4 OSTs while the dramatic score composed by Kim Jang Woo generally fits with the overall vibe of the drama.

요아리 Yoari - Reason
일레인 Elaine - Stay With Me
요아리 Yoari - Searching for Reasons Why
이정민 Lee Jung Min - Get Ya

In addition, Eric Clapton's Wonderful Tonight gets some significant airplay in the drama as well.

All things considered and truth be told, I had rather high hopes for The Veil because it has been quite a while since we had a proper espionage-themed drama the likes of the Iris series and Athena: Goddess of War. As fantastic as NGM has been, this drama falls short of my expectations. Fortunately, it does finish as strongly as it started which is the saving grace in the end.

Read More

Beginning was great - the blood, action, a car chase & thrill but it actually got draggy in end

[ There are No Spoilers Below so, even if you haven't watched the Drama yet, Read freely. ]


OVERVIEW —

"You think what you saw is all there is. You're so wrong. You see what you want to see because you don't have the guts to face the truth. Just because you don't remember doesn't erase the past."
— I was fascinated by this dialogue.

I was actually not aware of this drama when it already started airing but bumped into it when @Saarthak mentioned starting it in the feeds. What attracted me here was not the hype or the poster or the plot. I was curious about the name (The Veil). I know it's strange to think about it as often names turn out to have no connection with the plot in the end xD… but here's it's not the case. The name actually represents here how many layers this story has. How every little incident and every not-so-crucial-looking character is also connected is the thing. The 'VEIL' which seems to have risen up finally is yet to rise in the next episode. I couldn't help but doubt every character here.



STORY & SCREENPLAY —

This is an intriguing story of a NIS agent (Han Ji hyuk) who loses his memory during a mission and returns back after a year. Now many twists and changes occurred during this year are ready to confront him. Except that he also has to face challenges from inside the organization. Ji Hyuk was always stated as the reckless and crazy agent of NIS as what he only cares is for the mission. He was blamed for not caring for his own colleagues but he's actually nice. Yoo Je Yi and Seo Soo Yeon are two more characters who will play a crucial role here. There are many conspiracies yet to be revealed that will impact Ji hyuk and other NIS agents… the highlight that revolves around Ji hyuk is that "Don't trust anyone."

I did like to appreciate the first few episodes that I enjoyed totally. The creators behind are the Director(Kim Sung Yong), the writer (Park seok ho) and the creative director (Kim Ji ha). It's 12 episodes with 1 hour 10 mins each. So, is it long? No, it's not compared to the usual 16 no. Of episodes in K-dramas and it's a thriller with cliffhangers at the end of every 2nd episode so I easily binge-watched 2 episodes in a day as I started it later than it's airing date… but the 2nd half went draggy and I watched 1 or half episode in a day…

Then, look at those action scenes. I was so thrilled. Every action move deserves a Rewatch. For the first time ever in a drama, I feel like keeping a compilation of all the action packed clips… the (Action) theme here is not for the name sake. It's actually a main part of the drama. This drama without action would have been like Ice cream without cream!

The 1st half of drama is more better and it's more about internal conflicts in NIS, blood, revenge, lots like really lots of blood spits, tortured makeup(they don't show any torturing methods lol, they will rather show you the result of the torture by the makeup xD)

2nd half is like stable which makes it less interesting as earlier it was full action-packed. So, when it turns smooth, it feels slow… In 2nd half, I was predicting things already (but I wasn't correct in all cases though xD). The drama also deals with psychological issues and how your mental health affects your work & decisions, the trust issues between people…

& its time to Move on to some defects —
•⚝• I don't like it that they didn't had any tough job to get most of the clues… all they did was Log in, in the NIS server and ta-da the Clue is there… seriously?!
•⚝• the middle plot seemed draggy… a good starting going off somewhere down…
•⚝• there were some non logical thing that is under spoiler in the 1st comment ↓↓… (only read, if you're done watching this)
•⚝• Some characters are totally same like just different face & name… their motive, works etc were all the same thing repeated…


CAST —

✦ Han Ji Hyuk (acted by. Namgoong Min) — His action skills are Fabulous. Oooh this man! The style & all scenes were so smooth as if it's actually done by some Agent. Not only the action but his Gaze. Oof he looked so damn violent and wild at those action scenes.

✦ Seo Soo Yeon (Park Ha Sun) — I love her hairstyle. She played the rigid outside but soft inside character of agent nicely. She is having a rather interesting character here but how? Watch the drama to know lol

✦ Yoo Je Yi (Kim Ji Eun) — she has a cute personality and the character is also the cheerful kind. So, she was really suitable for the role. Then, I should mention her acting. It's good. So she carried up this mixed role. Now keep guessing what my "mixed" means here haha.

Role of NIS agents and other major roles was carried by supporting actors like
✦ Director Do (acted by. Jang Young Nam) – again, I love the hairstyle. She is gorgeous and especially with that lady boss vibe around…
✦ Lin Wei (Ok Ja Yeon) — I didn't quite understand her profession through the drama. Like MDL says she was there as "China ministry of state security agent". I hope she was given some intro in the beginning… after all, many important clues and details came through her… so stating her position & how's she related was important…
✦ Chief Ha Dong (Kim Do Hyun)
✦ Kang Pil ho (Kim Jong Tae) – Sorry… but he's bad at acting. At least in this character, he didn't act good. I mean his expressions were confused. The situation is clear so act like that. Why are you making the same confused face in every scene.


MUSIC —

The OST list ➳
❥♪Stay with me♪ — Elaine
❥♪Get ya♪ — Lee Jeongmin
❥♪Reason♪ — Yoari ~ (Oof. This song is so perfect for thrillers especially cause it's in English… it's the opening theme… and now I want to praise this song more… but I will reach word limit if I continue now haha…)
……Using ♪Reason♪ behind that car chase scene was the best decision taken here. No idea, who suggestion it was but I really appreciate that whole scene and this song is just ♡♡


REWATCH VALUE —
Hmm… how could I give this a rewatch. The twists were so different that I could only forget them if I have amnesia like Han Ji hyuk lol. So, can't rewatch the whole drama any soon… but yeah I will be rewatching the particular action scenes later…



OVERALL —
A watchable action thriller. Watch it for the beginning I would say and staying further or not is up to you. I won't say that they ruined the 2nd half but it was not as good as 1st half especially from 5-10 Eps. Potentially amazing base concept but the elaboration of the story was weak. Could have been far more better and enjoyable.
(Sorry for making this so long, I had a lot to say on this lol) …… Ok. I am done stating the things from my point of view… now the decision is yours to watch/not watch…

Read More

It just keeps gets better and better

Aren't you already watching this if you claim to be a Namgoong Min fan? Do you even need more of a reason to watch it? Well, if you're indecisive on whether you should start this or not, then this is your sign to give it a try!

Before I go any further, I'd just like to mention, although I might be biased when saying this, but The Veil shouldn't be binged. I think it loses a lot of value this way. I binged 7 episodes in one sitting, and it seemed rather average in terms of its plot. In retrospect, waiting every week for episodes is probably what the makers intended. So yes, I'd recommend watching this at a leisurely pace for the best experience (unless you're dying to know what happens next ^^). AND for those of you wondering if there's any romance... No there isn't, but it's still amazing without any of that, plus there is some chemistry.

Namgoong Min is just astonishing, as always - he is, in my opinion, one of the best Korean actors, I mean the extreme length he went to get jacked up for the role is incredible on its own (hey Alexa play Megan Thee Stallion's BODY ODY ODY ODY). He has officially become an all time favourite actor of mine. Kim Ji Eun! I've only ever seen her play small roles like in Strangers From Hell, so it was refreshing to see her as a main. My biggest question for this drama casting is how what when why is Park Ha Sun considered a main when she featured for probably only 10 minutes in the whole show?!? She's more like a guest role than anything else :( Despite her lack of screen time, she is still amazing, both her and Namgoong Min embodied their characters very well.

Disregarding the fact that the writers keep adding 2 to 4 new characters each episode (that it's a bit hard to keep up with the actual plot), it's well paced, not being too fast to the point of confusion nor is it too slow to the point of getting bored and irritated. The script is well written in terms of how little portions of Han Ji Hyuk's memory are revealed and eventually all explained, leaving room for enough speculation by the viewer, to how the pieces of information build a bigger picture. And yayy plot twists. They leave you a bit annoyed but also keen for the next episode.

I gave it an 8 because it's a genre I love and overall I really enjoyed watching this! If I were to choose my favourite aspect, it'd be the action, I was on the edge of my seat for a lot of it and those scenes as a whole were entertaining to watch.

It's not everyone's cup of tea, but if you like a good mystery action packed drama about NIS, then this is worth checking out!

Read More

The spy is strong but spy show is weak

The spy genre has some of the biggest franchises in the global entertainment biz: Bond. Bourne. Jack Ryan.

“The Veil” takes being part of the spy family seriously, unwaveringly seriously. Namgoong Min as Han Ji Hyuk, ace spy, has all the physical attributes. He looks like he could step in any pro level MMA ring and hold his own. The business suit attire scarcely conceals Ji Hyuk's prodigious musculature. But playing a hero is more than muscle and while Han Ji Hyuk checks a lot of boxes (amnesia, rule-breaking persona, tactical genius, piercing glare), something is missing. He’s such a cold-calculating assassin type, the character ends up so robotic that he’s difficult to cheer for. The speech is monotone. The face is expressionless. The clothing is black and white. Even when he fights, he's so brutally efficient at it that there's not much entertainment value there either.

The other significant issue of “The Veil” is one of the necessary elements of any good vs. evil story - someone to root against. A worthy villain is indispensable. So here, a very bad guy (a drug dealer) pops up quickly early on. But the focus then changes as it turns out someone else is behind him. Then there’s a rogue NIS agent. No wait, it’s a whole secret gang. Or no, it's a secret faction in the NIS. And North Koreans are involved somehow? Wait, no there is some other bad guy pulling the strings. Not that one. Another one. But maybe let’s humanize the character.

[sigh]

Without someone to coalesce some healthy dislike towards, it’s difficult to care whether our not-so-symphathetic hero succeeds or whether the entire cast simply sets sail into deep space to never be seen or heard from again.

Plenty of spy show cliches too. The car chases. The computer hacking. The agency turf battle. Oy.

It’s not entirely bad. Jang Young Nam brings her typical intensity but this time to a more rounded character. Jung Moon Sung is strong as the rogue NIS adversary of Han Ji Hyuk but he hardly establishes a presence in a too brief appearance. Kim Ji Eun’s Je Yi is a fairly nondescript character, but she infuses Je Yi with a spark of humanity and warmth. Park Ha Sun doesn’t have Jang Young Nam’s gravitas to really sell a spy role, but her hairstyle is killer. Grasping for straws here? Seems to be the case.

“The Veil” has some good elements. There’s some fine actors. There’s good action set pieces. There’s some above average production in the sound and photography. But the pieces don’t connect thanks to a collection of one dimensional characters, an unnecessarily convoluted plot and dialogue that could be cut-and-pasted from any number of other entries in the spy genre.

Not recommended.

Read More

Namgoong Min Bulk-Up!

The Veil is worth watching just for that 1-minute montage in the first episode of Namgoong Min working out with his muscles bulging and his skin glistening with sweat...

But all jokes aside, this is a good action drama. I wouldn't say its plot is anything unique or new, but it definitely leaves you wanting more at the end of each episode. I also applaud MBC for not censoring any of the gore, which enhances the realistic, gritty feel of the drama.

I will say that the plot has so many threads, it's best not to binge watch the whole thing, or you'll miss something. Take it slow and savor each episode, pay attention to seemingly throwaway lines, and take note of small and seemingly insignificant scenes. There will be a lot of characters, and not all of them stick around, but they all have something significant to add to the plot. I rewatched the show before watching the finale, and it made me realize just how many seemingly minor details I had forgotten now had new significance after seeing the later episodes.

I especially enjoyed Ji Hyuk's personal development as he allowed himself to open up (if only a tiny bit) to trusting again, as Je Yi slowly pushed past all the walls he'd put up. I'm a sucker for those types of relationships (romantic or not).

Read More

A tricky to follow plot with a finale that justifies the actions of the culprit

My review will be short and it will start with the following warnings: Don't watch this drama if you don't have the time the energy and the intention to watch it carefully. Avoid also to watch this drama if you expect a romance, or you expect to see two dimensional characters that are either good or bad .

It's plot is tricky to follow with countless twists and characters who all serve their own agendas, have their own motives, and are in a constant fight the one with the other. It is quite hard to follow who is against who and what is the reason of their actions. And that is what distinguishes The Veil from all other similar action thriller dramas. Its excellent plot that makes the viewers think... a lot.

I will not get into more details because it is a drama that deserves your attention.

I have only to say that the end made me feel about the culprit while the whole theme of this drama reminded me an old movie, Jacob's Ladder from 1990 ( watch this if you haven't watch it yet).
Both the drama and the movie have the same final message. That when you get involved into dirty wars, of all kind, you end up either dead or insane. There is no middle ground on this.

9,5 out of 10 from me.

Read More

Not worth the time

Let me start by saying this, the initial episodes very so well made and has us intrigued about the whole plot. But from that initial intrigue, nothing adds up or makes sense. The drama was so poorly written and the characters have no life to it much to the dismay of the viewers. The characters had so much scope but there was not one character that was well explored and by the end you are left with no idea about what the characters are. The only thing that was good about the show was the amazing cast and the brilliant OST, other than that it was just an average drama. The ending, well i dont even know what happened. Im guessing even the writers lost the plot. Guess the writers somehow tied it all up together. To be honest here, i had no idea what the hell was happening to the show till the finale and after completing it i am left with more questions than answers.

To those who are planning to watch, its better to find something else. There are whole lot of better written shows out there like Stranger / Designated Survivor.
I stayed for Namgoon min and if not for him I would have dropped it at episode 6.

Read More

Started great then became convoluted and ended boring.

1/ WHAT I LIKED:
- The action, fights and killings in the first part. It was savage like in a good Jason Bourne movie.
- The set up of the story: From the events in the boat to South Korean and flash backs to China. It was intriguing, gripping and dark enough to keep me hooked until what happened to the FL.
- The secondary female lead and ML sidekick. She is the only one who keeps a sense of justice, duty, empathy and camaraderie all along the drama. She is the most endearing character for me.

2/ WHAT I DID NOT LIKE:
- The leading on the audience from the middle of the drama to the end with nonsense useless turnarounds.
- The ludicrous ideas to allow everything like cars driving alone, emp and even a ridiculous " Mission : Impossible " moment.
- The plot development which deviates from a good spy action drama to a political plot and ends up in a "lets all fight for the country" hymn drippling with nice "family" values.
- The gunfights towards the end were bad with horrendous muzzle flashes even when the gun is not shooting.
- The final showdown with the bad guy. Uselessly violent and made no sense considering who the guy is supposed to be. The dilemma looked so fake.

3/ CHARACTERS:
- ML: Namgoong Min was dedicated to his role and he did his best but the character was not very well written. His ruthlessness and the mystery about his quest in the beginning made him fun in a bournesque way. But he soon appears very stiff and expressionless. If his physical condition looks great in the first part, he soon looked squeezed in his black and white suit and his demarche looked weird. Most disappointing, he is often not in control of what is happening.
- FL: I don't even know why she is the FL. Because from chasing after men in her service and working with them to do things she is not proud of, she was just despicable always pressuring the ML.
- All the other characters from NIS are annoying because they don't behave like leaders but like kids arguing in the playround and they just work against each other's interests but call themselves an organization.
- Big Boss: Ridiculous story around him. It ends in a terrible hollywoodlike way. (Spoiler: WTF, the guy is sick actually. He is not responsible legally.)

4/ OST: Decent one.

5/ OVERALL: A disappointing drama which had plenty of materials and ideas to do well but the writer was too much leading on the audience trying to look smart. This made the drama annoying to follow and not entertaining at all. Even the end and the final speech is utmost disappointing. 7.5/10.

Read More

Convoluted plot carried by the strength of Namgoong Min's acting

Namgoong Min transformed in order to be Han Ji-hyuk, and I have really little complaints with regard to his acting (and Kim Ji-eun was pleasant here, as well). The production and the action scenes are, like other have mentioned, excellent, but the plot remained too unfocused for it to be enjoyable.

I'll try to piece together the series through my own recollection, so if there's anything to correct or address, please tell me. About one year back, Ji-hyuk Dong-wook and Kyung-sook were tasked to encourage a North Korean high-ranking official to defect to South Korea. Because this would be good for the Foreign Bureau, though, I think Commissioner Lee In-hwan tapped Baek Mo-sa (because he's the fence in NK-China transactions) to assassinate that official. There were three people in the conversation: Baek Mo-sa, Chang Chun-woo, and the NK official.

Ji-hyuk's informer (who trusted Ji-hyuk until his death) told him that someone from his agency was informing on the three, and it was between his colleagues. Kyung-seok was the informant for the Domestic Bureau/Sangmuhoe, but before he could even kill the NK official, he was already dead. Dong-wook was assigned by the Foreign Bureau Chief Do to catch the informant, because Ji-hyuk was unwilling to rat or kill his colleagues. Baek Mo-sa's plan was to attack the dignity of the NIS, which was why he trapped Ji-hyuk in the room with the NK official. Because of his quick thinking and ability, however, he was able to escape and go to their team's meeting place.

Dong-wook figures out it was Kyung-seok, and kills him, and before Chang Chun-woo could clean up the mess Dong-wook shoots at him to protect Ji-hyuk. (They were, again, compromised, and I think Chang Chun-woo was Kyung-seok's cleanup crew in case shit happened.) However, Dong-wook gets shot at by Ji-hyuk because he can't tell him that his wife had just given birth and the gun was aimed at Ji-hyuk. (I think this was the reason he was imprisoned: involuntary manslaughter gives you 3-5 years in prison.)

Ji-hyuk escapes the bloodbath and has a nervous breakdown. He taps Chief Ha, because in an operation five years ago, he caught him embezzling funds from the agency. Chief Ha brings him the memory-erasing drug ZIP, and he purges his memory but sets himself on a quest to dig out the mole within the agency.

When he returns, he can't trust anybody and struggles to unearth the leads. Although he was able to reach his previous informant, the informant was killed by Sangmuhoe (Commissioner Lee wanted to cut off ties to everyone connected with the incident of the previous year). Eventually, because Su Yeon wanted out of the Domestic Bureau's shenanigans, she was also killed. That's probably why when she was being choked by Ji-hyuk, she also didn't resist, because she was also complicit in their team's destruction.

Ji-hyuk eventually figures out that it wasn't Chang Chun-woo who wanted Su-yeon killed because he loved her, and it also wasn't Director Kang, because he was previously in a relationship with her. However (and I think this is why he was imprisoned), he joined hands with Commissioner Lee, so he aided and abetted Sangmuhoe. He broke free after her death and tried to help Ji-hyuk afterward, especially after being abducted by Commissioner Lee (with a staged suicide attempt broken apart by Ji-hyuk).

Chang Chun-woo investigated the source of Sangmuhoe, which was actually a branch of the NIS. However, before they could interrogate Chun Pyung-il (which they discovered through the QR code), he was killed by Baek Mo-sa. So why does Baek Mo-sa not kill Ji-hyuk?

This is later on explained in the final episode, where he wants Ji-hyuk to be outraged and destroy the NIS from within. However, because of Je-yi's trust (despite the fact that he had her phone tapped and all), he was able to just follow through an avoid such a disaster. I mean, Je-yi also saw how he reacted around people whom he cared for or helped him (including her when he was angrily rampaging around chasing Chang Chun-woo to save her), so she knew he wasn't a monster despite everything and trusted him.

We later discover that Commissioner Lee has a stranglehold on public information through his collaboration with Planet, one of the largest social media providers in South Korea. That was why he could have anyone killed easily.

When the two of them finally linked Commissioner Lee with Baek Mo-sa and Sangmuhoe through the PDAs, the Executive Director planned to throw Lee In-hwan under the bus by using Commissioner Lee's next-in-line to give info to Baek Mo-sa that he was imprisoned. He wasn't killed, however, because Ji-hyuk came in time after his next-in-line transferred to a different country.

We later on realize that Commissioner Do didn't have anything to do with the botched operation that left Baek Mo-sa stranded, but it was Lee In-hwan's power play. Still, because everyone thought he came for revenge, they set up the plot during the memorial of Do's son, which was just a ruse.

The real plan (foreshadowed in the previous episode) was the use of an EMP to destabilize South Korea's largest bank, and give the NIS the same choice that they had to make with Baek Mo-sa. Ultimately, Baek Mo-sa's goal was to put the entire NIS in question with his planned murder of 33 people. (Right, before I forget, this was likely the item in question that Ji-hyuk obtained from the old drug-maker, but they didn't build up on this.)

Despite being shot at by her father, however, Je-yi trusts that a part of his is still within his dissociated identity, and takes this risk even though Ji-hyuk was unwilling. So in an act of sacrifice, she places herself with the hostages and hoped that part of her father would come back, which does. Ji-hyuk chooses to trust Baek Mo-sa's words and presses the kill switch before he's shot.

Ji-hyuk confesses to having killed one of his colleagues and suggests an investigation to Sangmuhoe. The encryption code will release the data that Planet's CEO gave to the reporter Jung Ki-sun who was deepfaked into being a North Korean spy, which would allow the NIS to weed out suspect agents.

Director Kang pays for working with Commissioner Lee by being imprisoned. Chief Ha and Commissioner Do were actually on the side of the NIS, and Chief Ha ends up as director and Yoo Je-yi as the manager. When Ji-hyuk gets released after five years, Je-yi remains his ever loyal fangirl and they share a silent moment before he gets back to work.

I'm glad I wrote this, because the plot also made more sense for me once I thought of it. It's still the weakest part of the series, and I won't recommend the series for those with low attention spans, but, if this wasn't clear, the real rat within was Commissioner Lee, who unleashed Baek Mo-sa.

Read More