What a Way to End the Year - Best Korean Drama of 2022
It was intense, gripping, at times hard to watch but what a ride. I could not stop watching this riveting drama from episode 1 and binged watched from start to finish. Tightly done, there were no unnecessary, repetitive scenes that most often plague Korean dramas.The role of Moon Dong Eun was tailor made for Song Hye Kyo. SHK is a superstar but she's no Meryl Streep, Kim Sun Ah, Ko Hyun Jung or Kim Hye Soo. Her acting range is limited but this role of a cold, calculating and aloof ice queen fitted her to a T. Her calm and unassuming facade was a foil to an otherwise very traumatized, seething with anger, driven to panic attacks persona, a long way from getting over the painful trauma she experienced as a teen-ager.
I appreciate that it is a Netflix series and made for an international audience. The actors seem less inhibited unlike the other dramas where it is obvious that there are some hold backs especially when it comes to intimate scenes. Korea is still conservative so when it comes to those scenes, the audience get a vanilla version with cringeworthy consequences because they're not spontaneously done and very badly choreographed (for lack of a better word). This is the first time I saw Hye Kyo undress.
Great acting from the rest of the cast especially Lee Do Hyun. Although younger than SHK by more than a decade, he had great chemistry with her.
Only negative comment is that the second half is way too long in coming.
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Can't wait for season 2!
The story is so gripping at the start, it's hard to stop watching.Then it started to get a little draggy towards the end. So much story from each characters, so I'm expecting constant development of their story. It is still a very good drama, good story with great acting skills, especially the bad characters (including the younger version casts), particularly Yeon Jin, who made you loathe her so much.I wish I waited until the complete episodes are available before watching, now the agony of waiting for season 2!Was this review helpful to you?
The Glory is a wonderful drama
The Glory is a wonderful drama, despite being a controversial but real topic. My rating is top, I devoured every episode, I identified with someone who has never been bullied. This one was very heavy. But The Protagonists acted so masterfully, it was difficult to stop watching. Some noticed HOLES, I'm not critical, and I disagree lol...Lee hyun and Son Hye kyo were perfect, I loved them, they're beautiful and they moved me with their performances. For her, who planned to commit suicide after revenge, she found love from a man who identified with her and fell in love with her. A still and intelligent woman who deserved to be happy. I regret not having seen it when Netflix put it out. Anyway, I loved it so much that I watched it twice. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE AUTHORS AND ACTORS. SHOW!!Was this review helpful to you?
Vengeful and Beautiful
This was a great start for the year, even though I normally do not enjoy revenge dramas I was convinced to give it a shot even though I was in the middle of my finals while I binge watched it, haha. Why I enjoyed The Glory is because the story takes itself seriously (as it should) and most importantly, the main cast are adults! Not teenagers in highschool, The Glory does not try to romantize revenge but it does not force you to feel sad for bullies either. It is realistic, getting revenge is hard and our Main Lead does a good job showing how much she is ready to sacrifice everything. It is clearly meant for adult viewers.Altought I enjoyed it, (the pacing and the cinematoraphy was great) it still had some flaws. The characters after the time skip lack depth, I would like to see why they are the way they are in the second part coming in March. The OST did not leave an impact for me personally, but it was overall good.
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The story may seem slow at first, but when Moon Dong Eun starts her revenge plan, it gets exciting.
Moon Dong Eun is strong, smart, confident. She worked hard to reach her goal.
The shock face of Park Yeon Jin after seeing Moon Dong Eun after so many years with full of confidence. Hated that homeschool teacher who only supports rich kids.
I was so satisfied when Moon Dong Eun pulled off Lee Sa Ra's hair.
It’s funny as well as cute how Joo Yeo Jung shouted after seeing Moon Dong Eun message and kept on guessing weird stuff like marriage, divorce, & remarriage.
Loved Kang Hyun Nam; she is clever and knows how to use her cards. She is a victim of domestic violence but not a timid person. I loved how she cares for Moon Dong Eun & helps her in every step.
Loved how Joo Yeo Jung accepted Moon Dong Eun injuries & didn't pity or feel disgusted with them instead joined her in her plan.
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Highly intriguing
The storyline is truly compelling, drawing watchers in with its intricate plot twists and turns. What sets it apart is the attention to character development. Each character feels authentic and undergoes significant growth as the narrative progresses. Moreover, the way each layer of the story is revealed adds depth and complexity.Was this review helpful to you?
Good Enough
Korean Drama " The Glory Season One " is a revenge drama with an intense story.The series doesn't shy away from showing the viewer some pretty horrific bullying scenes, hence, making the revenge plot even more necessary and thrilling. The blending of the two time lines, the past and the present. was well presented, without causing confusion and slowly revealing the true horors of the lead's past.
The sweet relationship between the two leads, moreover, was a nice touch, giving the drama some breathing, as well as a chance to the main character to feel more human.
The performances, finally, were all great and what made this drama to stand out.
So, overall, seven and a half out of ten.
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What goes around, comes around
"Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner. Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, fracture for fracture. The one who inflicted the injury must suffer the same. I don't know. That sounds too fair to me."What a remarkable series. The direction, cinematography, story, acting and especially dialogues were outstanding. I even noted down some of them. The story is so complelling to watch and the way the events unfold is amazing. It shows you the true face of misery. What helplessness feels like and that your past will always come to haunt you. That everyone has their inner demons that they are either fighting or have accepted. How always pushing someone to the edge of their limits can drive them mad sooner or later. How much dire consequences can your actions have on someone else and certainly, on you.
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This review may contain spoilers
This came highly recommended to me a few months back but I shied away from it after hearing that the first two episodes were pretty violent. I'm glad I changed my mind because while it (the violence) was difficult to watch at first, it wasn't quite on the level of Squid Game, which I was able to enjoy. There is a rebirth aspect in this revenge drama that reminded me of Green Rose- an older classic, a re-interpretation of the Count of Monte Cristo and also one of my favorites. The melodrama here is turned up a few notches because it is a makjang but once I had my expectations set, I was able to enjoy everything and take all the melodrama with a grain of salt.
I think the cast was pretty strong here and that every actor/actress did a good job, even the ones with minor roles including the child actress.
I'm glad the main actress chose this role because she is mostly known for playing glamorous, leading lady types and this drama allowed her to try something different. I liked her controlled performance throughout because this restraint created an even more powerful effect during those scenes where she finally had to erupt and get emotional. I also like how she had help from several other, like-minded characters, namely the supporting female lead who was just as abused as she was and also the male lead who played her love interest. One of the tropes here is that they were all broken people who supported each other because they could see eye to eye and because the regular justice system couldn't help them like it should have. I'm also glad because it seemed (even for a melo), realistic for me that she couldn't do everything by herself even if she was clever about some things.
There is one part of the plot that I feel was handled poorly and this is how she got revenge on her former high school teacher. I felt that it was silly and that the guy could have just walked out of the room full of flowers if he was so allergic! Other than that, I liked the drama, even if it isn't something I'd rewatch.
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dongeun is a normal high-school student who dreams of becoming an architect but gets bound up with some bullies who bully the soul out of her. literally. its gruesome so trigger warning for that. she decides she is gonna end her life but in the end she realises those bullies are not worth her throwing away her whole life so she starts plotting revenge and lives for it. after 18 years the bullies have their respective happy lives and no guilt or remorse whatsoever for whatever they've done in their teen years and here we have dongeun who's starting her fight against her bullies
the bullying is gruesome and i have trust issues from watching thriller dramas previously so ofc i dont believe all the people like i wont be surprised if someone betrays dongeun at the last moment or smth
dongeun has started her revenge plotting and its just gonna o down from here on so im excited for that. also lee do hyun >>
now why the 8. stars? its overhyped. its not overrated but overhyped. like if ur not on social media or watching it on air thats the only way ull be truly able to enjoy the whole thing. for me ive seen so many edits ik what happened ik what the summary is i basically knew almost everythin in s1 which led to me not enjoying it as much as i thought i would. i dont think ik how this will end tho so lets look forward to it
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Revenge but it's a slow burn
The foundation could've been written better. I get it's a revenge based story but there isn't much to the foundation. Why are the bullies, bullies? How do they get away with it?I would've enjoyed the younger actors getting more details and story. Yes bullying is bad and it shouldn't be done. It just feels like they missed a chance to give us context. I have had friends that ended up being bullies and had to stop being their friend because they couldn't or wouldn't change. It's clear there's one main bully, why are the rest still that person's friend??? Context would've given this a 10.
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