What a ride.
Well, a journey this series.
As the synopsis suggests, the starting story is basic to dozens of action movies and series, a loved one of the main protagonist - the nephew - dies at the hands of an organization that wields powers over several institutions in the country.
The main character, here Cha Dal Gun, is obviously a capable character, he's a stunman who knows how to fight and isn't afraid to run into a wall - literally.
After his nephew's death appears to be an accident, he quickly discovers that it is not what it seems. He meets Go Hae Ri, a young woman who works for the Korean secret services and who will help him in his investigation.
I must say that my opinion is divided on the series.
I'm not going to lie, the series is very addictive, we quickly want to know the adventures of our characters, and the plot is well done.
The action scenes are to my surprise very well done although there is a bit of fiction when the character heals quickly, but that's the problem with action series and movies. I can't say that we are bored and the rhythm is very fast until the end, no break and therefore the audience is captivated.
The plot as a whole, although very fictional and basic, where corruption reigns and our characters cannot trust anyone because everyone is lying, remains in a fairly realistic and mature tone. Sometimes, we can also see the criticism of this series towards politicians, the media, and we say to ourselves at the same time as our characters "You are destroying the country you claim to want to save".
So overall, a good story that goes from twists to twists.
What bothers me are the characters.
I must say that Lee Seung Gi who plays Cha Dal Gun did a very good job, although we don't explore so many layers to his character who remains stubborn and sometimes impulsive until the end, he shows the desperate side correctly, a side that is often missing in the characters of the series who interpret the same kind of roles.
But it's still mainly an action series, so I didn't expect a lot of character development. However, I would have liked him to be less hot-headed and to be a more strategic and thoughtful character.
But I liked discovering him in this role.
However, this is where the problem arises, the bad LF syndrome. That's what I'm going to call this habit that actresses have of being FL and annoying.
Here, we supposedly have a young spy and secret service agent, okay it's quite realistic that she can't fight because in reality, all over the world, secret agents are sent for their intellectual abilities and not physical.
But her character remains annoying, when in the middle of a shooting, every time she finds that it's time to discuss and impose her opinion, namely - to stay still until she dies - and to prevent the main character to change the situation, it's annoying. Also her insane craving for recognition, looks like a kid who needs to be complimented all the time, while most of the time she makes the problem worse, she is naive and trusting, which is ridiculous for a supposed spy.
I know it's hard to find the middle ground between the clichés of the badass and the cute, weak FL one, but her performance just makes her annoying.
She's more the type to be the cause of someone's death than the one who saves the day.
The secondary characters are passable, no characters that shine in particular, the cast gives a performance that is believable but not breathtaking.
So, to sum it up, it's a series where you shouldn't expect incredible acting from the cast - except the action scenes and Lee Seung Gi. It's a series in realistic tones and is primarily made to make you feel the action, I mean, the action scenes are not overplayed but on the contrary well done.
The ML so, Lee Seung Gi is perfect in this role, the little romance with the FL is really realistic on this point, they take their time even if the acting of the FL overall is not the best.
It is therefore a series that I would say to see absolutely for entertainment, the comic moments are rather rare because the series has a serious tone but the action remains the center focus.
I hope a season 2 will see the light of day, I know that the two years that we had of Covid-19 did not help the projects in the industry and a lot of them were canceled, but knowing that the main actor said he himself wants a second season because season 1 ended on a cliffanger. And also that since the series is available on Netflix it has gained a fair amount of popularity, I hope they give us a thrilling sequel.
As the synopsis suggests, the starting story is basic to dozens of action movies and series, a loved one of the main protagonist - the nephew - dies at the hands of an organization that wields powers over several institutions in the country.
The main character, here Cha Dal Gun, is obviously a capable character, he's a stunman who knows how to fight and isn't afraid to run into a wall - literally.
After his nephew's death appears to be an accident, he quickly discovers that it is not what it seems. He meets Go Hae Ri, a young woman who works for the Korean secret services and who will help him in his investigation.
I must say that my opinion is divided on the series.
I'm not going to lie, the series is very addictive, we quickly want to know the adventures of our characters, and the plot is well done.
The action scenes are to my surprise very well done although there is a bit of fiction when the character heals quickly, but that's the problem with action series and movies. I can't say that we are bored and the rhythm is very fast until the end, no break and therefore the audience is captivated.
The plot as a whole, although very fictional and basic, where corruption reigns and our characters cannot trust anyone because everyone is lying, remains in a fairly realistic and mature tone. Sometimes, we can also see the criticism of this series towards politicians, the media, and we say to ourselves at the same time as our characters "You are destroying the country you claim to want to save".
So overall, a good story that goes from twists to twists.
What bothers me are the characters.
I must say that Lee Seung Gi who plays Cha Dal Gun did a very good job, although we don't explore so many layers to his character who remains stubborn and sometimes impulsive until the end, he shows the desperate side correctly, a side that is often missing in the characters of the series who interpret the same kind of roles.
But it's still mainly an action series, so I didn't expect a lot of character development. However, I would have liked him to be less hot-headed and to be a more strategic and thoughtful character.
But I liked discovering him in this role.
However, this is where the problem arises, the bad LF syndrome. That's what I'm going to call this habit that actresses have of being FL and annoying.
Here, we supposedly have a young spy and secret service agent, okay it's quite realistic that she can't fight because in reality, all over the world, secret agents are sent for their intellectual abilities and not physical.
But her character remains annoying, when in the middle of a shooting, every time she finds that it's time to discuss and impose her opinion, namely - to stay still until she dies - and to prevent the main character to change the situation, it's annoying. Also her insane craving for recognition, looks like a kid who needs to be complimented all the time, while most of the time she makes the problem worse, she is naive and trusting, which is ridiculous for a supposed spy.
I know it's hard to find the middle ground between the clichés of the badass and the cute, weak FL one, but her performance just makes her annoying.
She's more the type to be the cause of someone's death than the one who saves the day.
The secondary characters are passable, no characters that shine in particular, the cast gives a performance that is believable but not breathtaking.
So, to sum it up, it's a series where you shouldn't expect incredible acting from the cast - except the action scenes and Lee Seung Gi. It's a series in realistic tones and is primarily made to make you feel the action, I mean, the action scenes are not overplayed but on the contrary well done.
The ML so, Lee Seung Gi is perfect in this role, the little romance with the FL is really realistic on this point, they take their time even if the acting of the FL overall is not the best.
It is therefore a series that I would say to see absolutely for entertainment, the comic moments are rather rare because the series has a serious tone but the action remains the center focus.
I hope a season 2 will see the light of day, I know that the two years that we had of Covid-19 did not help the projects in the industry and a lot of them were canceled, but knowing that the main actor said he himself wants a second season because season 1 ended on a cliffanger. And also that since the series is available on Netflix it has gained a fair amount of popularity, I hope they give us a thrilling sequel.
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