Love
Sweden
A power-struggle between morals.
I started watching 'Extracurricular' on a whim, I didn't think much of it and just wanted to see something that was on Netflix. The simple action of watching one episode turned into a 10 h binge, and I have to tell you it was one hell of a ride. This drama didn't hook me on the first episode, I felt a bit hesitant: Will this be another unrealistic shitty teen thug type of story? But nonetheless I continued.After the second episode I knew, this is something else. The premise seems simple enough, a normal setup for a Korean thriller/action movie but this took it deeper. During the 10 episodes the viewer get to know its main character Oh Jisoo and his contrasting behaviors as well as his partner Bae Gyu Ri. The character work on these two was phenomenal, I loved seeing their facades crack little by little to show what these young humans held within themselves all along. Although they commit actions that goes by the law of morals you cannot help but route for this unfortunate pair. I personally related to the characters, especially to Bae Gyu Ri and her struggles to keep her image in front of her parents, the school and Jisoo. Although the circumstances that these characters goes through is unrealistic you can draw similarities to their struggles of fitting in, money, grades and love.
The acting was simply amazing! Nothing more is needed to say, all cast members seemed to act well in their parts and the production was done so smoothly that I almost forgot that it was all an act.
Well all I can say is that this blew me away, I was chocked at the amount of enjoyment I felt watching this short but thrilling drama. Everyone that enjoys to feel nervous and wants to see something a bit fucked up and dark: 'Extracurricular' is something for you!
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Story; The dark and eerie atmosphere that this drama gives off, made me follow this drama almost as blindly as the followers of the Goosunwon cult. It has the right amount of cliffhangers and suspense to make you tune in and watch what happens in "Muji; the town where everyone seems to have a dark side" every week. The storyline feels new, with lots of twists and turns you never know what will happen to the main characters
Acting/Cast; I was pleasantly surprised by the level of acting in this drama. Seo Ye Ji, who plays this composed and badass heroine was the perfect actress for the part. Her fierce delivery of lines and good chemistry with Woo Do Hwan was one of the main reasons I love the show. I also loved Jo Jae Yun as the scary apostle Jo Wan Tae and Lee Davids Jung Hoon who gave the show some comic relief.
Music; The soundtrack was perfect for the show, i especially loved Inkii's Out Of The World and Mv The Vane's Hallucination who fitted the shows theme and general feel.
Rewatch Value; I don't think that I will be rewatching "Save Me" because I already know what is going to happen. Because I won't feel the feeling of my heartbeat raising which made me continue watching every week, I feel that I would just take away the magic of it.
So "Save Me"; It's a good one time watch for people who wish to see a good thriller. It has good acting, a great soundtrack that will heighten the eerie atmosphere and some cute actors that you can watch dreamingly.
But I will say this, if you are looking for a k-drama with a lot of romance, this is not the one for you. Yes, there is some romance going on between the main characters but you won't get those sweet moments that you´re looking for.
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Choi Daniels sex appeal
Great casting, overall exiting theme and the best work of Choi Daniel's career! I thought it was a solid thriller/ghost-drama that delivered some great episodes, BUT it fell through during the last few episodes. I guess that they painted themselves into a corner by all the rules of what ghosts could do or not do that they had to make up nonsense plot for it all to tie together in the end :/Although the last episodes felt even more unrealistic than a normal supernatural series episode should be, it gets an solid 7 from me! I was so taken by surprised by Choi Daniel, first time that I've seen that he actually has talent and some sex appeal so really enjoyed his role as Lee Da Il. Not only did I enjoy Lee Da Il, the supporting cast was per usual amazing. I didn't expect anything less from the comedic genius Kim Won Hae who can make any bleak drama funny with his wits and natural comedic gestures. Lee Jae Kyoon also showed that he is a force to reckon with as a romantic but hardworking policeman and Lee Ji Ah did an incredible performance as always!
I liked the casting but I feel like I could have loved it if the female antagonist Lee Ji Ah and protagonist Park Eun Bin had another scriptwriters that actually could make their characters a little deeper than water in a puddle. They made an amazing job with what they had but their lines were terrible from time to time, cliche after cliche.
The OST was great, especially the song "Dream Me" sung by Red Velvet's Joy ft. NCT's Mark. It really fitted the drama during a lot of the scenes and is a catchy song that I actually added to my regular spotifylists. Also liked Yoon Mirae's song, but what else can you expect from the OST queen?
Wouldn't rewatch it but that doesn't make it any less of a drama! A good watch, but when you get to know some of it's plotpoints I wouldn't see a reason to feel exited watching it again. As said in the beginning; A great cast and soundtrack with a bit of nonsense plot but a good watch which made me a bit scared at times! The Ghost Detective get's a 6.5 from me.
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Story; It's good, but in my opinion, I wish that they skipped some of the cliche moments between the main characters in the first episodes. Rather than being invested in the love-line of 'San Ma Roo and Yoon So So' I was watching for the supporting cast and their stories. I wanted to know why the old woman was so sad and what relationship the"young girl / old man" couple had. I felt that I could relate to the characters and that's the main reason why this drama is so good.
Acting/Cast; To be honest, the acting was not that great. But it wasn't bad either, I think that they could have chosen better actors for the main couple, but even Jung Yong Hwa and Lee Yun Hee had their moments.
Music; It was good, had some sad ballads that were great for the gloomy moments that are sprinkled through the story. As well as some happy tunes that also fitted in with the vacation setting.
Rewatch Value; I think that this is a drama that I would enjoy watching again because now I know that there is gold is hiding underneath the surface of this "simple" drama.
I liked it, not because of good acting, great special effects or chemistry between the main characters. I liked it because every character (even the main ones who I've been trash talking this whole time) had something that I could relate to. They all had their struggles and they were definitely not perfect, just like real people with real-life problems. In K-dramas, I often feel that they try to make their characters to loveable and perfect which ends up in me not relating to them.
BTW; I guess that people who doesn't care about the typical k-drama cliches will like this show even more than I did, because there's stuffed with romantic moments between the main characters.
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This review may contain spoilers
Prison Playbook wasn't what I thought it was in the beginning and what I watched surprised and went over my expectations. This wasn't the most realistic depiction of life in prison. I'm a big fan of realistic stories and unrealistic plot points usually puts me of watching a story but though this depiction showed unrealistic elements it had more heart then I've seen in a drama in a long time. The story isn't mainly about how life is in prison, it's about how to overcome hardship in any shape of form and how to make the best out of a bad situation. The loss of realism was necessary to show what a great prison should look like, the relationships that the prisoners had with each other and the guards showed what a healthy life in prison could look like. I really enjoyed the scenes with Lieutendant Paeng and enjoyed seeing him develope from a closed off prison guard to a person thatmade the lives of the people around him better.
The humor was wonderful as always with Lee Woo Jung and Jung Bo Hoon. It didn't take it too far, you could still feel the always present sadness that the prisoners felt even in their happiest moments. The cast was just the right mix of 'dramatic-' & 'comedic' actors to give a great acting performance and giving the viewer a chance to laugh.
The OST is wonderful, it's unusual for me to enjoy every song but I've actually added the whole album to my playlist. I love the theme "OK" produced by Gray and performed by BewhY, "Nostalgia" by Woo ft. Woogie & "Those days (without you)" by Zion.T
The only reason why I've given the story an 8 instead of a higher rating is because it left out some details about some characters. I would be okay with this if the director wanted to give the end of the show an open ending but since it was only about 5 of the characters that were left out I felt a bit empty and kept trying to figure out what happened to them. It felt like they were only used to move the story forward rather than given their own story within the main lead's one.
It may have been a surprise but I welcomed it and I hope to see another drama with just as much heart by Shin Won Ho again.
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Story; The 'Slice of Life' style of drama was a good choice for the characters that they made. It was an lighthearted and funny show that made me fall in love within a few minutes. It wasn't about true love or people who were destined for each other, it was about friendship and a cute and innocent kind of love and that is what distinguished it from other dramas.
Acting/Cast; Brilliant, simply brilliant. The actors and actresses were made for these roles and I don't think that I wish that they would have done anything differently. Even though the characters could be like stereotypical K-drama characters in some aspects, I felt that they were different and very loveable. The quirks of Bok Joo and her friends made my cheeks hurt from smiling, I usually don't think that K-Dramas are all that funny but this one really fitted my sense of humor.
The relationship between the main character felt so real and I loved that they didn't rush the characters into falling in love with each other right away.
Music; I don't really remember the OST of the series but I don't feel that it was something that I missed either, so it probably was fine.
Rewatch Value; I think that most people who watched it will rewatch it at some point, I have and probably will again. I miss the characters all too much for not seeing them again.
Overall; Loved it a lot as you can tell.
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