sometimesaflower
It doesn't reinvent the noir wheel, but it's a reverent addition to the genre right down to the bleak shadows, the seedy nightclubs, and the cold atmosphere. The directing is deliciously moody, and the soundtrack is perfectly placed.
Storywise, there is very little time spent on character exposition; we are instead plunged right into the thick of the action, which is a welcome change to the usual k-drama clunky setup episodes. And, thanks to Jung Kyung-ho's mysterious "Doctor" character, we are not given a traditional cop vs. kingpin setup; picture a twisted but possibly redeemable third party and you're somewhat there.
These characters are still largely ciphers, but we are given enough flashes of Ji Hyung-min's (Lee Jae-yoon) idealism and Lee Kyung-mi's (Go Na-eun) doggedness to make the cops sympathetic and easy to root for. The kingpin Scale is a rather one-note villain as are his henchmen, but this is easily abated by Jung Kyung-ho's burgeoning anti-hero, who, while still being rather inscrutable, is hugely interesting and acted well if not superbly (he'll have plenty of time for improvement as the drama pulls back his meaty character layers).
Overall, I'm so exicted about this one. Could it be that the 2013 drama drought is finally over?
Storywise, there is very little time spent on character exposition; we are instead plunged right into the thick of the action, which is a welcome change to the usual k-drama clunky setup episodes. And, thanks to Jung Kyung-ho's mysterious "Doctor" character, we are not given a traditional cop vs. kingpin setup; picture a twisted but possibly redeemable third party and you're somewhat there.
These characters are still largely ciphers, but we are given enough flashes of Ji Hyung-min's (Lee Jae-yoon) idealism and Lee Kyung-mi's (Go Na-eun) doggedness to make the cops sympathetic and easy to root for. The kingpin Scale is a rather one-note villain as are his henchmen, but this is easily abated by Jung Kyung-ho's burgeoning anti-hero, who, while still being rather inscrutable, is hugely interesting and acted well if not superbly (he'll have plenty of time for improvement as the drama pulls back his meaty character layers).
Overall, I'm so exicted about this one. Could it be that the 2013 drama drought is finally over?
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