River Cops Red Smoke & Golden Ferrys °7.4° °VG°
HRP it's a cop drama that not only stays afloat, but it actually sails at times. It opens like a typical police action thriller. The bad guys, their big guns out, bust up a cruise and take hostages. Where's the police when you need them? Trust me, the police are all over this one.
There's nothing atypical in HRP, but coming up with entirely new things with any regularity is getting to be largely undoable. So we must look at the execution, and the execution is competent. Nothing more, nothing less. If you enjoy cop dramas, you should like this one. HRP is a 2023 release that is rated 83 on AWiki. It is 1 season consisting of a mere 6 55-minute episodes. It's miniscule compared to most Asian dramas that typically go on for 20+ hours.
Here's our misfit heroes:
Kwon Sang Woo (Why Her?-8, Queen of Mystery) is officer Han Du Jin. He's a specimen and a dedicated officer. He's tasty enough to inspire a crush or two.
Bae Da Bin (It's Beautiful Now, Do You Like Brahms?) plays “weirdo” Do Na Hee. She's tough. She did military service. She can fight. She's a man's man, but she's a woman. She's also head over trotters for Han Du-Jin. He acts like he doesn't like it, but… She's awesome - the very best thing about the show.
Kim Hee Won (Misaeng: Incomplete Life-9.1, Moving) plays Lee Chun Suk, a River officer who can't swim ~ the only one of his kind. He isn't one to seek out danger or extra work, either. When the time comes, we see that he will get the job done. Shin Hyun Seung (So Not Worth it, Be My Boyfriend) is Kim Ji Soo, the fresh faced kid on the force.
The prolific Sung Dong Il is Chief Do Won Il. He has a special relationship with Na Hee. I like the guy. So Far I've seen him in 200 Pounds Beauty-6.5, Along With the Gods 2: The Last 49 Days-6.7, Reply 1988 (still working on it) The K2-8, The Legend of the Blue Sea-7.2, The Cursed-8.3, Hospital Playlist-9, & Sisyphus: The Myth-8. The only show in which he felt slightly out of place is The Cursed. In everything else he shines.
On team villain we have:
Lee Sang Yi (Once Again, Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, When the Camellia Blooms-8) is the overly privileged bad guy, Go Ki Seok. He's a tad cartoonish, not that people like that don't really exist. The actor is with a prostitute in one scene and acts out having an orgasm - something I've not yet seen in a Kdrama. Like everything else the character does, he is all-in. It's a very convincing and intense climax. The scene is not gratuitous as it underscores his pathetic loneliness. He's also a baseball fan. I like that about him…
Jung Young-Joo (Move to Heaven-8.4, Lovely Runner) is the scary Madam Choi, another excellent character for which this actress is perfect. Total Dragon Lady. Choi Moo-Sung (Stranger S2, Prison Playbook, The Good Bad Mother, Reply 1988) is top villain, Hwang Man-Dae. I've only seen him in Reply, and he'll always be a big cuddly bear to me. Even as a bad guy, he's teddy-felon. Screenwriter & director Kim Sang Cheol (The Forgotten Bag) is primarily responsible for this show.
This is a simple but competent crime thriller and it is solid for the subset. The characters are fleshed out well enough and the tensions are mostly credible. There's great action and moments of brutal violence. One very cool underwater scuba fight is reminiscent of Sea Hunt and other 70's adventure shows. There's also a fantastic fight in a cramped car. HRP probably won't convert anyone to this genre, however. It serves to feed an established appetite.
〰? IMHO
?7.4 ?7 ?8 ?5.5 ?5 ?7 ?/?6 ?8 ▪ ?4.5 ⚡7.6 ?3 ?3 ?4 ?2 ?5.5 ?3 ?0
Directing 7.4
Writing 7
Acting 8
Romance 5.5
Flutters 5
Art 7
Sound & music 6
Ending 8
LEVELS
Warmth 4.5
Action 7.6
Laughs 3
Tears 3
Fright 4
Tension / Anxiety 2
Gore 5.5
Thought provocation 3
Snores 0
Age 16+
Sex depicted - even without nudity it is graphic.
Language: $h!+ dhead, F? @$$h0le, but it is sparse.
Rated
TV-15/TV-MA
Re-?? Probably not, but it is worth seeing once. I wouldn't miss a S2.
In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:
Modern Day -
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Action/Crime/Sci-fi -
Descendants Of The Sun-8.3,
Inspector Koo-8.4,
Vagabond-8,
When the Camellia Blooms-8,
Law School -8,
K2 8,
Private Lives 8.1,
Sisyphus 8,
Tunnel 8.5,
Signal 8.6,
Blood Free-8.5
D.P. -8.4,
The Cursed 8.3,
The Wailing-8.8,
Flower of Evil 8.9,
The Man from Nowhere 8.9,
Black 9,
Squid Game 8.4,
Kingdom 8.3,
Sweet Home 8.4
There's nothing atypical in HRP, but coming up with entirely new things with any regularity is getting to be largely undoable. So we must look at the execution, and the execution is competent. Nothing more, nothing less. If you enjoy cop dramas, you should like this one. HRP is a 2023 release that is rated 83 on AWiki. It is 1 season consisting of a mere 6 55-minute episodes. It's miniscule compared to most Asian dramas that typically go on for 20+ hours.
Here's our misfit heroes:
Kwon Sang Woo (Why Her?-8, Queen of Mystery) is officer Han Du Jin. He's a specimen and a dedicated officer. He's tasty enough to inspire a crush or two.
Bae Da Bin (It's Beautiful Now, Do You Like Brahms?) plays “weirdo” Do Na Hee. She's tough. She did military service. She can fight. She's a man's man, but she's a woman. She's also head over trotters for Han Du-Jin. He acts like he doesn't like it, but… She's awesome - the very best thing about the show.
Kim Hee Won (Misaeng: Incomplete Life-9.1, Moving) plays Lee Chun Suk, a River officer who can't swim ~ the only one of his kind. He isn't one to seek out danger or extra work, either. When the time comes, we see that he will get the job done. Shin Hyun Seung (So Not Worth it, Be My Boyfriend) is Kim Ji Soo, the fresh faced kid on the force.
The prolific Sung Dong Il is Chief Do Won Il. He has a special relationship with Na Hee. I like the guy. So Far I've seen him in 200 Pounds Beauty-6.5, Along With the Gods 2: The Last 49 Days-6.7, Reply 1988 (still working on it) The K2-8, The Legend of the Blue Sea-7.2, The Cursed-8.3, Hospital Playlist-9, & Sisyphus: The Myth-8. The only show in which he felt slightly out of place is The Cursed. In everything else he shines.
On team villain we have:
Lee Sang Yi (Once Again, Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha, When the Camellia Blooms-8) is the overly privileged bad guy, Go Ki Seok. He's a tad cartoonish, not that people like that don't really exist. The actor is with a prostitute in one scene and acts out having an orgasm - something I've not yet seen in a Kdrama. Like everything else the character does, he is all-in. It's a very convincing and intense climax. The scene is not gratuitous as it underscores his pathetic loneliness. He's also a baseball fan. I like that about him…
Jung Young-Joo (Move to Heaven-8.4, Lovely Runner) is the scary Madam Choi, another excellent character for which this actress is perfect. Total Dragon Lady. Choi Moo-Sung (Stranger S2, Prison Playbook, The Good Bad Mother, Reply 1988) is top villain, Hwang Man-Dae. I've only seen him in Reply, and he'll always be a big cuddly bear to me. Even as a bad guy, he's teddy-felon. Screenwriter & director Kim Sang Cheol (The Forgotten Bag) is primarily responsible for this show.
This is a simple but competent crime thriller and it is solid for the subset. The characters are fleshed out well enough and the tensions are mostly credible. There's great action and moments of brutal violence. One very cool underwater scuba fight is reminiscent of Sea Hunt and other 70's adventure shows. There's also a fantastic fight in a cramped car. HRP probably won't convert anyone to this genre, however. It serves to feed an established appetite.
〰? IMHO
?7.4 ?7 ?8 ?5.5 ?5 ?7 ?/?6 ?8 ▪ ?4.5 ⚡7.6 ?3 ?3 ?4 ?2 ?5.5 ?3 ?0
Directing 7.4
Writing 7
Acting 8
Romance 5.5
Flutters 5
Art 7
Sound & music 6
Ending 8
LEVELS
Warmth 4.5
Action 7.6
Laughs 3
Tears 3
Fright 4
Tension / Anxiety 2
Gore 5.5
Thought provocation 3
Snores 0
Age 16+
Sex depicted - even without nudity it is graphic.
Language: $h!+ dhead, F? @$$h0le, but it is sparse.
Rated
TV-15/TV-MA
Re-?? Probably not, but it is worth seeing once. I wouldn't miss a S2.
In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:
Modern Day -
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Action/Crime/Sci-fi -
Descendants Of The Sun-8.3,
Inspector Koo-8.4,
Vagabond-8,
When the Camellia Blooms-8,
Law School -8,
K2 8,
Private Lives 8.1,
Sisyphus 8,
Tunnel 8.5,
Signal 8.6,
Blood Free-8.5
D.P. -8.4,
The Cursed 8.3,
The Wailing-8.8,
Flower of Evil 8.9,
The Man from Nowhere 8.9,
Black 9,
Squid Game 8.4,
Kingdom 8.3,
Sweet Home 8.4
Was this review helpful to you?