This review may contain spoilers
Creative way in warning someone about ending their lives voluntarily
Not perfect, but definitely an intriguing take on the subject of suicide.It’s an easy show to binge, with an episodic format that still manages to weave a solid story with some decent character development. While I’m not a big fan of how they portray hell or death, and a few parts of the story bugged me, it held my interest. Some moments were a bit predictable, but there were enough twists to keep me on my toes. I’ll admit, the constant screaming and emotional outbursts were a bit much for me—it’s not that they weren’t justified, just not really my style.
What earned this show a high score is how binge-worthy it is, thanks to the impressive performances from a star-studded cast and the way the story is so well put together. It kept me hitting "next" without a second thought. FYI: Sung Hoon was hilarious here. I knew I had to watch this.
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Reincarnate Until You Value Life
The story is about someone who's dead because of suicide. After he dies, he meets a woman that gives a chance for him to reincarnate again as someone else to experience death. He must death 12 times like a clock time to get into God's trial or else He can go to hell. Not long after that, He decided to take the trial and live as someone else back in the world to experience death in multiple ways that are not proper.*Lot of blood and gore scene so make sure you are not afraid against blood.
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A Show That Goes from Profound to "Oh, Found"
After finishing the first part of "Death`s Game," I find myself with mixed feelings about the series. On one hand, it attempts to tackle profound themes of life, death, and redemption, but on the other, it falls short in several critical areas, making it hard to fully embrace its narrative.Choi Yi-Jae`s journey is compelling in parts. His gradual realization of his past mistakes and attempts to rectify them provide some emotional depth. Each reincarnation offers a new perspective, adding layers to his character, which kept me somewhat engaged.
The show does not shy away from asking difficult questions about life and mortality. It makes you think about the value of life and the impact of one's choices, which is commendable. The philosophical undertones, though not always executed perfectly, add a layer of complexity to the narrative.
The visual elements are notable. The dark, moody aesthetic fits the show's themes well. The transitions between life and death scenes have a surreal quality that enhances the storytelling.
One of the most problematic aspects of "Death's Game" is its approach to the subject of suicide. The show seems to promote the harmful idea that one should feel guilty for contemplating suicide because it would hurt others. This rhetoric is not only oversimplified but also potentially damaging. It suggests that one's worth is tied to the pain their death would cause, rather than addressing the individual's mental health and intrinsic value.
While the show has its strong moments, it is often bogged down by plot twists that seem more for shock value than narrative coherence. The reincarnations, such as the baby and the prisoner, felt more like sensationalist elements rather than meaningful contributions to the story. These twists sometimes detract from the emotional impact rather than enhancing it.
Despite Choi Yi-Jae's character development, I found it difficult to connect emotionally with him or any other characters. The relationships, particularly between Yi-Jae and his girlfriend, felt generic and lacked depth. This emotional disconnect made it hard to invest in their journeys.
The special effects often looked cheap, and the dialogue occasionally bordered on the comic book-y. This detracted from the show's serious tone and made it difficult to take certain scenes seriously. While adaptations from webtoons can be challenging, the transition to live-action here felt clunky and unpolished.
The show's tone feels ungrounded and all over the place. At times it aims for deep, philosophical reflections, while at others, it resorts to sensational twists and melodrama. This inconsistency makes it hard to discern what the show truly wants to be.
The acting was another weak point. Despite the cast being visually appealing, their performances often fell flat. The emotional scenes, in particular, lacked the punch needed to make the audience feel connected to the characters' plights.
By the end of the first season, "Death's Game" left me with a sense of unfulfilled potential. It had the ingredients for a thought-provoking and emotionally resonant series but failed to blend them effectively. The show tries to tackle deep themes but stumbles in its execution, resulting in a series that is neither as deep nor as engaging as it aims to be.
If you're looking for a show that challenges you to think deeply about life and death, "Death's Game" may offer some moments of reflection. However, its problematic approach to suicide, inconsistent tone, and lackluster execution make it a difficult recommendation. I give "Death's Game" a 5.5 out of 10, acknowledging its ambition but also its significant flaws.
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Great adaptation of the Webtoon
I have read the Death's game webtoon and looking forward to watch this series.There's some different with the webtoon, but overall the storylines is still according to the webtoon.
Love the acting of all the casts, especially the main lead and all the actors and actress from Alchemy of the Soul.. LOL..
Looking forward for the next season and hopefully they keep the original story and maintain the pace of the story.
Overall those who has read the webtoon or have not read, this series is worth the watch
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This review may contain spoilers
Death's game
I do not really know if it is a spoiler or not but this drama for sure is not for people who do not like brutal scenes, there are quite a lot maybe not so much visually but still. Also it is a pretty bloody. So not for everyone even if you love the cast.And if talk about th cast it was perfect, Seo In Guk was amazing, Park So Dam was so good, everyone played their roles perfectly.
I do not really think that we can treat as a two seasons drama, it is more like there was just a short break but it is not that important.
This drama is good, with excellent cast and very good OST.
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This review may contain spoilers
Death’s Game has an interesting and thought-provoking premise. There is also fun to be had from spotting famous Korean actors in cameos or supporting roles. The amount of blood is not too surprising since death is the main topic but it gets very very gory several episodes in -- the type that curls your toes and feels gratuitous after awhile. On the plus side Seo In Guk does a great acting job, as do most of the other actors. But I wish that Park So Dam as Death had showed a little more nuance or range towards the end. Her acting seemed monotonous after awhile. There are also some logic gaps in the story that one has to ignore.Mild spoiler: This is a drama where nothing changes but at the same time everything changes. And it is pretty powerful as an anti-suicide argument. I give it points for that.
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Is this worth a watch? HELL FKN YES!!!
I think every time I think about watching a show I search for the comment that in short tell me whether i should watch this show or not. so for all of you like me I will simply give you the answer.YES, THIS SHOW IS WORTH ALL THE HYPE!!!
To add more to it... Should I even talk about the casting? the cast is an absolute gold mine. I cannot stop talking about it. such excellent actors all in one drama. what else does a k dram fan girl need?
The story arc for each one of them is so well written. 10 on 10 if you ask me. The acting, chemistry between all the actors, pace of drama, everything is amazing!
TBH I walked into this one thinking its a normal fantasy based drama but the thrill this gave me.... I enjoy myself some dark stories but there were times where I literally shut my eyes or paused to breath first...... I loved every second of it!
With a powerful message, beautiful cinematography, editing, and a star studded cast this is MUST WATCH!
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This review may contain spoilers
Part 1
Long time quite intrigued to watch this. Since now I'm a little bored with typical drama, so I decided to jump into this drama. Haha... Happy to watch this. Good drama with unusual story that's in the end help us self respect.People often said the biggest SIN is when u took ur own life. Yeah in here we can see how angry Death when face with the man, Choi Yi Jae (YJ), that took his own life. Death decided to give YJ punishment by having him go through 12 life that supposed to end up dead. With one condition, he can keep the man life if he can avoid their death. So he went from rich man, student, baby, guilty man and the end of this part famous model.
In this part we see how at first YJ angry to Death until he tried to hang on in the life of Jang Geon Woo. And also in the end of this part he finally saw the thread of connetion between all the man he lived as...
Really exciting to see the 2nd part. Thank God they aired directly after part 1....
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Uniqness and perfection
We all know that the reincarnation stories is one of the most common ones on k-drama but even though, this one managed to make yet a unique plot over this Type and they made it well perfect on my opinion, me personally I've finished it on the same day become the story flowing was too smooth and perfect especially the first 4 episodes and with a real good message the result was a great series.And the cast did their job just right especially seo in guk.
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the reality check in life
Honestly, I was skeptical of this drama at first but oh wow,this drama gave me such a reality check in my life that it is embarrassing now. first of all the cameo's in this drama made it so interesting and literal eye candy to watch and the love, family relations, and all the frustration the main lead goes through portrays a big slice of life, honestly, I agree with the fact this kind of dramas answers to the questions we don't like to acknowledge in life, the drama is well written with binge-worthy thriller, romance, action, drama. they round up the best cast for this show . It's such a short but meaningful drama that everyone should watch
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Glamorous cast, crazy stunts, $$$ production
It feels like a collection of famous actors visiting because there are 12 reincarnations. "Let's see how many famous people we can have for this drama." Just for the actors' appeal it's a must watch. Every single actor can act! Then there are the visuals/crazy stunts/production quality all top notch. Impressive for sure!I can't say the story has much depth as it revolves around the concept of "suicide is condemned therefore you have sinned."
That's how Korean Dramas are these days, pretty on the outside touching only the surface of society issues.
Just watch it for the actors and the stunts. It's entertaining overall.
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Death's Game: Action-Packed Thrills with a Satisfying Finish
"Death's Game" captivated me from the start with its compelling mix of weak hero class and John Wick-style storytelling in the initial episodes. The highlight for me was the thrilling fight scenes that added a dynamic edge to the drama.What I really liked was how all the characters' stories connected, adding a cool layer to the drama.
While the second half didn't quite match the brilliance of the first four episodes, it maintained a good overall quality.
Overall, it's a binge-worthy show, and even though a Season 2 might not happen, I'm satisfied with how everything wrapped up. If there was more, I'd be curious to see where the story could go.
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