The story caught up on me from the very beginning, and the cliffhangers just kept me coming for more and more. The action is quite amazing and the fight choreography is also good, except I didn't like the excessive use of shaky cam, it threw me off so often. The music is great to listen to and the acting is, I would say good enough to watch without any problems. The lead of course screams so often, not sure if it is over the top or whether he is just venting off by screaming.
Oh and note that the story doesn't end at the end, in fact, it just opens up more corruption within the country. So I really hope there will be a second season.
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The writing is predictable and the twists aren't that shocking, if there's one thing that must be changed about this is the writing, because the production is amazing, it's on movies level, I'm so disappointed with the writing because this could've been made into something so much better, the story line isn't something that'll hook you especially if you're as picky as I am, and the chemistry between the leads wasn't good, at all, it was rather cheap, and so goes for the comedy and the love triangle thing with sung rok, and suzy literally existed to just be in love with the male lead for most of the series, she was given a strong role but it was just the title, she was a special agent but she wasn't that good, and as for sung gi, a stuntman can't pull all of that, he can't just fight with trained men and agents and knock them all to the ground, it was very unrealistic, I wish someone else other than suzy played this role, with different writing and someone who can actually act instead of suzy this could've been something, but the ending is something, I'll watch season 2 if there's one Was this review helpful to you?
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One of the best dramas I've seen. Beautiful shots and the colouring is awesome, I love how the ending and beginning are entangled, and it'd filled with action and plotting. The plot twists makes you wonder who is right and who is wrong. Of course Lee Seung Gi and Bae Suzy are fantastic, but I like the way the drama also gave more than enough screen time to other actors and behind the scene plans at different intervals of the drama. I do wish there was more romance, though you can still tell the affection between the leads. At the end, wonderful story and portrayal, magnificent show. Can't wait for season 2 XD
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shitty ending, unrealistic plot progression
the action is very well done but a few things about this series put a bad taste in my mouth. so much of the police/investigative work feels like it was written by people who never actually researched how these things operate, (unless the standard is different in SK). i can't count how many times i rolled my eyes at or laughed at or wanted to skip through scenes where the plot was thoroughly unconvincing because of this. whenever a series does that, it just pulls me out of the story and makes me focus on more technical aspects. secondly, too much of the plots' progress was due to happenstance. while it did have good writing in there, ultimately, the "conveniently finding an answer to this problem that doesn't really make much sense in the bigger picture" got in the way of my ability to enjoy the series. there's also a lot of weirdly placed english in there and being a native english speaker, it was a bit hard to take seriously. but the final straw was the ending. it felt so detached and the lead up was very choppily sewn together. the only thing that would make me see this as slightly less of a problem is if the series gets a second season, otherwise, it's a very poor ending to an interesting premise. the acting was pretty great, nonetheless. and the music was very moving at parts. but all in all, good, suspenseful action isn't enough for me to give this a higher rating. perhaps these things aren't things that bother you too much, so watch for yourself and judge.Was this review helpful to you?
Though I'm a bit disappointed to find out that this is a multi-season drama. Part of the reason I watch far more k-drama than American shows is that American shows are too long to keep up with and they never know when to end, until eventually to the point where they end up sucking. Most k-dramas, on the other hand, have a set ending at about 16 or 20 episodes. They are easy to get into and can be very satisfying when the writer knows where they want to end it and knows to do so within that singular season frame. Kind of stinks that the trend is going toward multi-season now. There is also so much uncertainty with multi-season, like the possibility of never finishing if the drama wasn't popular enough (which I know is not the case with this one). Or even if it was popular, we may not see another season for another five years. Looking at you Signal. *sigh*
Yes, this was more of a rant than a review, but felt compelled to. Anyways, great fun drama that is highly recommended if you don't mind waiting who knows how long until it will eventually conclude.
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I liked the flow of the story and how it kept me guessing, the unpredictable twists and turns, and the emotionally-loaded decisions the main characters had to make.
LSG once again proved his chops as an action star, the stunts were thrilling and tension filled. It was also nice to see Shin Shung Rok as a good guy this time.
I didn't like the actress who played Jessica that much but it was something I could live with.
All in all I found this to be a great drama. The lack of romance didn't bother me at all.
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It was a very good and consistently an engaging watch! ...until the end.
From the first episode, I enjoyed the story. The actions and sets are giving a Mission Impossible feel to it. The leads are doing such a great job, they're quickly established the characters and I got invested really fast. The acting is all just superb; Suzy did her best for her character, Go Hae Ri. Also, Moon Jung Hee was brilliant and intimidating, I love a good villainess. Of course, Lee Seung Gi was AMAZING as an Cha Dal Geun, he is an action hero! I was awed watching him running, jumping, chasing cars and did all those stunts. However, there was so much shaky-camera and it's so unfortunate because the camera was capturing really well-choreographed action sequence.The twist and turns got a little bit too convoluted for me who is not a die hard fan of investigation and crime genres, but I never get bored as the plot is moving and stays high-stake all the way through the end. and yes, as most watchers have mentioned too, I don't like how it ended. Had that scene excluded, the drama would not leave such a frustrating after taste. Especially watching it after years it has aired and knowing there might never be a continuation to the story. That said, I don't regret watching it, one of the best in action genre.
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THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERSSFor overall I have to give ten/ten and there are whys:
Cast and Acting and story too:Vagabond has Really strong cast. I had known it before Vagabond was on air. Lee Seung Gi and Suzy had worked together before Vagabond and at that time their love chemistry had given me emotions, my heart had wanted to explode, In Vagabond their mistery love is hidden. At the end we can see her crying thinking Geon is dead, They've loved.
Rewatch Value: I wish it had more episodes and action was closed, because why why that ending :(. I really want them to find each other. I am begging for another at least 2 episodes which really can close Vagabond story well.
Music: PERFECT artists= PERFECT soundtack= PERFECT ACTION AND EMOTION GIVEN
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While submitting the review it asked me to make it 500 words. I don't want write anymore. If anybody reads this can recommend good drama worth watching if you are in the mood. I like mainly action thriller but shouldn't be too slow. But i aslo like good rom coms too.
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Season II, YESSSSS!
I love Lee Seung Gi and Suzy Bae. They both are very talented in their acting skills. I love them playing a tag team of sorts. Vagabond writers, you did great with the storyline. Does this mean that Lee Seung Gi will get more training in Martial Arts, I hope so... his body is surely equipped to do so. Writers I hope you don't try to create that one person who is a jealous crazed person who becomes obsessed with one of the leads. "The Bereaved", I wished had better parts in the storyline otherwise those who were in supporting roles all did great. I was going to comment on the ending but when there is a cliffhanger... you know the story will continue in a Season II venture. I am so looking forward and excited to see what Season II has to offer. I hope that the main leads will come back or it will NOT be exciting.Was this review helpful to you?
Now, onto the story. I must say this is easily one of the BEST dramas ever produced in South Korea because the story is as amazingly driven by the plot as it is by the characters. It's already given in the summary that the reason Cha Dal Geon is involved in the plane crash investigation was his sole purpose to avenge on his nephew's death. We were given enough backstory and emotional flashbacks about the close relationship between Cha Dal Geon and his nephew, as well as his headspace (or really, the lack thereof) which made him jumped right into chasing down the terrorists without any fear. In that sense, Cha Dal Geon is a very straightforward character whose actions not difficult to predict and has stayed in his elements in most parts of the drama, basically kicking ass, killing the bad guys, surviving terror attacks and more.
Ki Tae Woong on the other hand, is the complete opposite to Cha Dal Geon, being the smart and calculative NIS investigative team leader who lays out plans properly before jumping into them. Together with Go Hae Ri who I think was given the most interesting character development in the show, they make a really fantastic trio. Go Hae Ri started off in the show as the NIS agent who was transferred to Morocco for an undercover mission and was admittedly at times frustrating to watch for the ways she was easily overtaken by Cha Dal Geon. Nevertheless, as she became more entangled with the terror attacks, slowly she became more trustworthy in the eyes of her superior to carry out more difficult tasks, and has managed to rise above them with the help of Cha Dal Geon.
Suzy, Lee Seung Gi and Shin Sung Rok have utterly delivered both the strong and subtle nuances of their characters with incredible finesse, that in this drama you no longer see the actor but the characters that these people breathe themselves into. Contrary to some criticisms, not a single moment in the show where I've seen Suzy given us bad acting (even her crying scenes are wonderfully done), rather a perfect fit for how the characters should have been acted according to the story's writing at that time.
Aside from the fantastic trio, there are another five sub-plot devices driven by its supporting characters that make this drama complex and thrilling yet so incredibly written. First is the dynamics between the powerful people at the Blue House, second is the constant confrontation and power play by the NIS chiefs, third is the conflict between Jessica Lee and Edward Park representing their respective companies, fourth is the involvement of the other bereaved family members of the plane crash victims and fifth is the funny interaction/bickering between Lily and The Unkillable guy (hired assassins).
Overall, Vagabond is the perfect action drama given the romance sequence doesn't water down the main plot, and was only splashed in between the scenes. They are not overbearing and the romance build-up was rather slow and steady, therefore you cannot help but root for them. Love is given a very special context clue in here, in that even without having to confess your actual feelings, suppressing them in the hope of protecting your loved one is already a devoted act of sacred love by itself.
The soundtracks are outstanding too, and really added a fantastic touch to the action sequence and emotional scenes. My favourites are titled Breaking Dawn and Open Fire.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this one mainly because the plots are engaging, action sequences fantastically choreographed and directed, and characters perfectly cast. I read Lee Seung Gi's interview for this role and the director imagined correctly that he is the perfect fit for the half-headed, reckless image of Cha Dal Geon, as well as Suzy who portrayed accurately the transition of a half-hearted NIS agent into a full-blown femme fatale. I also found my new girl crush in this, that is Park Ah In. My girl is unapologetically sassy and badass as the female assassin, it's so hard not to fall in love!
This is definitely one of the most intelligent screenwriting I've seen off late, and paired brilliantly by outstanding directing on the part of the director/action director. The hard work they put onto the show really shows and pays off brilliantly in this one, and you are definitely jumping in for a hella good ride.
Enjoy!
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