1
SKITC
Probably within reach of a coffee
Is team-mance a word?
Well, if it's not, it should be. Or at least after season 1 of "Flex X Cop" it should be.
It's easy to find grievances here. They tend to be very upfront. First, the name is dumb. The marketing poster is a mess. The theme song is so cheap and grating. The whole opening credit sequence actually is awful. And the first impression that Ahn Bo Hyun makes as Jin Yi Soo is [grimacing emoji]. It's such a caricature of a shallow, arrogant, entitled rich brat that is falls flat. And speaking of flat, Jang Hyun Sung as the conglomerate chairman just quite can't deliver the gravitas of that role and never seems like the deeply emotionally torn person that the character he's portraying is meant to be.
Oh? And the name. THE NAME. Why is it Flex? Why is there an X? Did the producers just pull random words and letters out of a bag to determine the name? It's just so dumb.
But the heart of the show is pure 24 karat gold. Kim Shin Bi and Kang Sang Jun don't get loads of lines but their characters, the young somewhat naive and excitable one and not quite as young hard-nosed and stern one, are the perfect complements to each other and to the lead characters. Park Ji Hyun is flat out strong as Kang Hyun. Her character is the violent crime team leader and she's almost all business all the time. In the moments when she's not in work mode, she's still tough and direct and no nonsense. Even in the solitary scene where she is comforting Yi Soo, it's not explicitly tender or sweet.
And the whole production works because Ahn Bo Hyun is playing Yi Soo. Despite the first impression, once this actor and character have settled in to this complex role, the combination flat out slays. Beneath the couture wardrobe and expensive cars and luxury watches, is a man that is deeply broken and intensely driven and fairly insightful with just enough self-awareness. Although it's probably not a serious enough role to warrant award consideration, it's a role tailor made for Ahn Bo Hyun's sheer physical size and his rare ability to alternate between blazing cockiness and tender vulnerability.
There's some nicely written mysteries for the violent crime team to solve early on as Yi Soo works his way in to a role within the team. Some are more credible but the one that is the least believable somewhat validates itself at the end with a dramatic scene between Yi Soo and Kang Hyun. Eventually, the overall arc meanders back to Yi Soo's personal backstory and conglomerate family and the violent crime team fades somewhat to the background. While it's still an entertaining arc, when the focus spotlights Yi Soo alone, the magic of the chemistry between the four team members is lost.
Fortunately, while much of the last few episodes is entangled with Yi Soo's family shenanigans, the final episode balances things back with a sensational, touching montage, a not-so-unexpected twist and setting up what will hopefully be a season two that continues this team-mance (someone please contact Merriam Webster and have this added immediately) at the same level of excellence.
So while the opening credits should be skipped highly recommend just about everything else.
It's easy to find grievances here. They tend to be very upfront. First, the name is dumb. The marketing poster is a mess. The theme song is so cheap and grating. The whole opening credit sequence actually is awful. And the first impression that Ahn Bo Hyun makes as Jin Yi Soo is [grimacing emoji]. It's such a caricature of a shallow, arrogant, entitled rich brat that is falls flat. And speaking of flat, Jang Hyun Sung as the conglomerate chairman just quite can't deliver the gravitas of that role and never seems like the deeply emotionally torn person that the character he's portraying is meant to be.
Oh? And the name. THE NAME. Why is it Flex? Why is there an X? Did the producers just pull random words and letters out of a bag to determine the name? It's just so dumb.
But the heart of the show is pure 24 karat gold. Kim Shin Bi and Kang Sang Jun don't get loads of lines but their characters, the young somewhat naive and excitable one and not quite as young hard-nosed and stern one, are the perfect complements to each other and to the lead characters. Park Ji Hyun is flat out strong as Kang Hyun. Her character is the violent crime team leader and she's almost all business all the time. In the moments when she's not in work mode, she's still tough and direct and no nonsense. Even in the solitary scene where she is comforting Yi Soo, it's not explicitly tender or sweet.
And the whole production works because Ahn Bo Hyun is playing Yi Soo. Despite the first impression, once this actor and character have settled in to this complex role, the combination flat out slays. Beneath the couture wardrobe and expensive cars and luxury watches, is a man that is deeply broken and intensely driven and fairly insightful with just enough self-awareness. Although it's probably not a serious enough role to warrant award consideration, it's a role tailor made for Ahn Bo Hyun's sheer physical size and his rare ability to alternate between blazing cockiness and tender vulnerability.
There's some nicely written mysteries for the violent crime team to solve early on as Yi Soo works his way in to a role within the team. Some are more credible but the one that is the least believable somewhat validates itself at the end with a dramatic scene between Yi Soo and Kang Hyun. Eventually, the overall arc meanders back to Yi Soo's personal backstory and conglomerate family and the violent crime team fades somewhat to the background. While it's still an entertaining arc, when the focus spotlights Yi Soo alone, the magic of the chemistry between the four team members is lost.
Fortunately, while much of the last few episodes is entangled with Yi Soo's family shenanigans, the final episode balances things back with a sensational, touching montage, a not-so-unexpected twist and setting up what will hopefully be a season two that continues this team-mance (someone please contact Merriam Webster and have this added immediately) at the same level of excellence.
So while the opening credits should be skipped highly recommend just about everything else.
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