Completed
Suji
38 people found this review helpful
22 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 3
Overall 7.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers

There's no light in the Light Shop!

Man..this was way too depressing i have no words. My headache has gotten worse after watching this haha :D

1. All the episodes are shot in the dark.. you will find the light only in the Light shop! Now i know how crazy I'm sounding lmao!!!! you will not realize it until you watch it :D

2. I really liked the cast selection and how they've planned the screen play - one word - PERFECT!

3. Watch in 1.5x for a better suspense + thrills + horror experience.

4. Story is unique and is portrayed very well, its just that.... it doesn't make you feel good in anyway!

5. Maybe their message is that nothing is good on the other side so be happy and healthy while you're alive.. but you will overlook that message because of how good they've portrayed the depressing part!

**This is also why I wouldn't recommend anyone who is already feeling low to watch this... This will only make it worse as its too dense and too dark!**

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Completed
banana.milk
49 people found this review helpful
Dec 19, 2024
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers

GREAT CAST, GREAT ACTING, GREAT PLOTLINE, TERRIBLE NARRATION

i feel like this had so much potential, great cast, great acting and great plotline but the narration was soooo over the place, i was so confused the whole time. They made the earlier episodes so confusing and vague and I know it was for the plot twist (that they were dead) but it just felt so forced. the story telling was so bad jumping from multiple characters every episode that they failed to really show the unique stories of each character until the later episodes. i think they werent given that much attention which was such a shame because their back stories were actually good and touching. maybe they couldve just focused on one character per ep. idk man. this was a little disappointing, coud have been directed and written better this could have been so good

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Completed
Vixen96
31 people found this review helpful
28 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 8.0

Light shop

It seems that I will end 2024 with this drama (probably) but what a good year, ending with this one is really good, the same way it began - Death's game - and as far as this two are different I see some similar aspects, maybe just both were amazing, with great cast, story and acting.
If there is Park Bo Young I will for sure watch it sooner or later.
Light shop supposed to be a horror drama, there are some scary moments or rather the way of portraing them make them scary, for sure it is darker type of drama but still there are more sad moments than scary. Story of mother - daughter & father - daughter was for me the saddest and made me cry.
I feel like this drama is really one of the must have to watch - especially if you loved Moving (maybe finally I will watch it too).

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Completed
Islandgal
28 people found this review helpful
22 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 7.5

Disappointed Viewer

I just finished this drama, it`s not what i expected. I was really hyped when i saw the trailer and couldnt wait to watch it and now that i have, i was kinda diappointed. The beginning was slow, i was confused at what was happening, i tried to focus and understand what was going on but it was around ep 4 i slowly kinda started to put the pieces together. I was gonna drop it but since it`s only 8 episodes might as well finish it, i tried to understand the story plot but it slowly strated to lose interest for me.So thats why i only gave it 7.0-.5 stars but maybe you other viewers will have a different opinion from me.

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Completed
audrey
39 people found this review helpful
29 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 7.5

well... that was depressing lmao

the first half is full of intrigue with the narrative told in a slow, suspenseful manner. with the amount of characters this got, it can get confusing at the beginning but they successfully made it engaging for me and mysterious, you want to know what's gonna happen next. and what happens next is an emotional exploration of life and death. it is sad and depressing honestly but it's also thought-provoking. i think there are enough media out there that imagine what's "afterlife" gonna be and this didn't do anything that mindblowing but it did enough to make me emotionally move. the supernatural intrigue definitely helped. literally everyone gave such incredible and compelling performances. but i might give an extra star to mother lee jungeun for making me cry. she's so good.

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Completed
michelleoc
36 people found this review helpful
30 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers

Be patient...

Wow! This isn't my usual genre (I don't like to be scared), but the list of excellent actors reeled me in. The writer took the subject matter and turned it on its ear. This show was like reading a novel from the back of the book to the front. The first few episodes make no sense. We get no back story or explanation, just a gripping storyline that keeps you coming back for more. It was amazing to me that I could care so much about these people and not have a clue why I was feeling like I did, especially considering that this was only eight episodes. Every second of every episode was well-crafted.

Light Shop is a mystery in the truest sense of the word. Props to the cinematographer - the use of black and white, muted colors, pops of bright light were very visually effective.

For me, this drama was also thought-provoking. Seeing the decisions made, would I have chosen the same way?

Because I'm a big chicken, it took a few days for me to finish this. I could only watch the episodes when it was light out. Turns out that heightened my enjoyment as well. It wasn't just a passive watch, each episode kept rolling around in my mind. I can highly recommend this drama and also suggest that you don't binge watch it.

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Completed
karimanahin
24 people found this review helpful
22 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.0

mother daughter bond is beyond anything. cried like a baby

Light Shop is a thought-provoking and emotionally resonant drama that offers a unique perspective on life, death, and the afterlife. Its compelling characters, intricate narrative, and stunning visuals create a captivating viewing experience that will stay with viewers long after the final credits roll. While its pacing and ambiguity might not appeal to all viewers, those who appreciate introspective and emotionally driven stories will find "Light Shop" to be a truly illuminating experience.
The mother daughter relationship is a significant part of the drama, adding a layer of warmth and emotional depth to the supernatural elements.

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Completed
Fing-mad
36 people found this review helpful
Dec 12, 2024
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
This review may contain spoilers

Myst Alley (?)

A life in the middle of death plot, uncommon yet ordinary.

Story :
Talking about the story there are a lot comparison like deathgame or alice in borderland.
There are a lot of "why ?" question in my mind, the 2 old lady is the weirdest. both died, both saved their loved ones life, yet one of them stays in the "neighborhood" to brougth relieve their loved ones pain, the other stays brings suffering to everyone (?). i mean its not like she's dead with a grudge.
Before they showed how everyone is a TA victim there a no certain line to the world of the living, how come their soul haunts the nurse and wandering between the afterlfie at the same time?, and there is this detective the only one who experienced "daytime" afterlife. i understand a mystery usually want to go with a big twist, but still consistency and continuity is important.
Weird things aside i love how every character is important piece of the story, which is the things that korean series usually overlook like in deathgame. overall its still decentgood though.

Acting :
imho there is not much to it, like there is nothing you can remember about how they act even after watching it a few minutes ago. however the deaf lady though she is special, you can feel the desperation even without dialogue. i really loved the picture of her sewing the broken man potraying his heartbeat.

Music :
Again there are nothing that you can remember, its a good thing though a silent mystery is always better than overly loud music just to make the scene itense.


Overall :
its a decent show watch in the midnight, that i doubt will ever rewatch. the production is good loved a lot of pictures in the scene, they looks cool some examples you can easily notice are the overhead picture of the boy singing outside the lady house when both screaming for help, the shop, the crashing bus and the drowning, and my favorite deaf lady sewing the man heart.
i doubt the series will end clean and clear in the last episode, so instead making a sequel to this one i hope kang full would do Moving instead.

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Completed
clairethecapricorn
15 people found this review helpful
17 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 6.5
This is a show to go into blind. I almost never do but I watched this show while it was airing and it had me shook. I started off thinking this was just a kind of spooky show and while I liked the vibe, it wasn’t until after the first few episodes when things started to come together that I was really hooked.

Light Shop had me absolutely weeping for the second half of the show. The characters and their backstories were so well done. The acting performances were all amazing. This would be a great show to go rewatch knowing the entire story to see all the details missed on a first watch.

I found the ending to be a little underwhelming, which is what knocked it down a bit for me. Some things were still left unexplained and I wasn’t clear what the plan for the story moving forward would be. With this large ensemble cast, there were also characters that I cared about a lot more than others and some I really wished had more screentime!

Light Shop was something I had almost no expectations for and the story really blew me away. There were a few episodes in the middle that absolutely destroyed me and were just epic storytelling. It is definitely worth the watch!

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Ongoing 6/8
Elmtree49
36 people found this review helpful
Dec 11, 2024
6 of 8 episodes seen
Ongoing 1
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 5.5
Rewatch Value 8.0

Will this ever make sense?

I’m confused but I get the “near death” experience. But the half-way stuff is pretty creepy. Love Ju Ji Hoon and I’m watching to see him only. But it’s really different too. Very spooky. I’ll watch to the end but only during the day! I hope when it’s over that I understand it. Maybe it’s more eastern philosophy than I embrace?
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Dropped 6/8
caramel
22 people found this review helpful
19 days ago
6 of 8 episodes seen
Dropped 0
Overall 6.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 4.0
This review may contain spoilers

slow, sooo slow, extremely slow...

So many A-list actors but what a disappointing show. I honestly don't know what they were going for...horror? or emotional stories? Honestly, if written with a much better pacing it would have been so much better. I feel this really depends on your preference because the plot doesnt really have any issues it reasonable and commonly used in kdramas. However, the way it was portrayed was not giving the plot of the characters any justice. I had to watch it in x2 speed because it was so slow. Slow because every scene was dragged out for so long to display the "scary" / "mystery" vibes but only certain scenes were actually scary.

Everyone said its very confusing and its true. The first 4 episodes were very hard to understand and I feel because of that people just continued to watch to find out what it means. Not gonna lie that was me as well. I wanted to know so I continued but I really couldnt watch the drama with this pacing anymore so I decided to drop it cause after ep 4 nothing felt new anymore..

The thriller element was mostly gone once you know what actually happened and then it became more of emotional stories of each person. The CGI they used to show the area looked so fake that I could immediately tell this was some "made up" world. The entire drama is mostly filmed in a very dark lighting where only the hospital is the bright place. So yea a very clear indication on what that means.

The girl with the suitcase honestly was the most interesting character other than that it was quite boring....

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Completed
Noctis
38 people found this review helpful
29 days ago
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.0
This review may contain spoilers

Kang Full’s Got No Chill.. Back to Back Masterpieces..

Light Shop flawlessly intertwines the supernatural with human emotions and explores the afterlife and the quest for redemption.. It offered a moving experience to say the truth.. Light Shop excels in showing us the thin veil between life and death.. Reality and the ethereal..
What made me keep watching was the slow paced mood driven narrative.. The slow pace may not appeal to everyone like it did with me.. But you have to understand that it allows the story to unfold with emotional precision.. Which makes each revelation more impactful.. The visual depth in the drama is just outstanding..

Immersive Screenplay.. Visual feast of cinematography.. Good music and extradordinary performance from the cast drives Light Shop to be a work of art..

Ju Ji Hoon and Kim Seol Hyun's performance stood out for me.. KSH's character Lee Ji Yeong's death was an emotional one and the sheer pain of her final moments both physical and emotional tore through the narrative like a wound that refuses to heal.. I think its her story with Uhm Tae Goo that felt the most tragic and that wound never truly healed.. Even by the end..
I think in her last moments as a ghost she believed Hyun Min didn’t love her.. She seemed to expect him to choose to stay with her in the afterlife like Seon Hae did for Hye Won believing that is where they would be happiest.. But in the end Jiyoung chooses to haunt him forever and I guess you could say she becomes a vengeful spirit unable to let go.. Perhaps if she had known about the ring her story could have had a different ending… Maybe..

In Light Shop's finale while every character seems to find some closure.. Its clear that its not truly the end.. Their lives are now intertwined with the afterlife.. I guess they will have to face whatever comes next in their journey through life..

I would have loved to see JJH and Park Bo Young interact in the show.. Guess we just have to be content knowing they have met before ..

The cameo at the end by Jang Hui Su was a pleasant surprise .. But I would have loved to see Kim Bong Seok make an appearance as well.. And we get a look at Young tak from Timing.. So I guess they will create a larger universe in the coming years.. Hope they do it..

Overall this drama is a masterpiece or as close as it can get.. It tells a story that is as "MOVING" as it is entertaining.. It hooks you holds you and leaves you in awe.. Whether you are watching it for the story or the visuals or the acting.. Light Shop delivers on all fronts..

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Light Shop (2024) poster

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  • Score: 8.6 (scored by 7,836 users)
  • Ranked: #392
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