action drama

My Name – Review

/ jeana84 / Leave a comment

Title: My Name

Language: Korean

Genres: Action, Thriller, Mystery, Crime

Objectional Content: Violence, Sexual Assault

Synopsis (from MyDramaList): After her father’s murder, Yoon Ji Woo seeks revenge by infiltrating the police under the direction of Choi Moo Jin, the head of a powerful drug ring. As she goes undercover, she partners with rule-abiding detective Jeon Pil Do, while Cha Gi Ho, the head of the Drug Investigation Unit, targets Choi Moo Jin. Meanwhile, Choi Moo Jin’s loyal subordinate, Jung Tae Joo, and former gang member Do Gang Jae, who seeks revenge, add to the complex web of crime and betrayal.

My Review

My Name is a fairly typical revenge story. Yoon Ji-Woo witnesses her father’s murder, and after the police do nothing to investigate and find the killer, she turns to a crime boss to help her get revenge. She trains to become an amazing fighter and join the police force so she can find the person who murdered her father. It’s the type of show where nothing is really as it seems and there’s a twist around every corner. Unfortunately, those twists have become predictable and I was pretty sure from the beginning how it would all go.

That’s not to say that the show isn’t good, it is. Han So-Hee, who plays Yoon Ji-Woo, did all of the physical stuff herself to the point that she collapsed from exhaustion during filming and had to be hospitalized. I think he doing that really connected her with the character, who basically went through hell to get where she wanted to be. This woman endures constant harassment from the male members of the crime ring, to the point where she is almost raped. She constantly has to prove herself and stay on her toes because no matter how much she trains, she can’t gain the same physical strength as male opponents.

I thought I knew how it would all go and how it would end but then the last episode happened. I try to keep my reviews as spoiler free as possible but in this case, I just need to vent. So.

****Spoilers for final episode ahead****

By the final episode, Ji-Woo has made some choices that are going to land her in a lot of trouble, but she also connects with her police partner Pil-Do in a romantic way. He convinces her not to take out revenge by killing Choi Moo-Jin and instead allow the law to punish him. Then, Pil-Do is murdered right in front of her by Choi Moo-Jin. Just dead, shot in the head, no chance of recovery. This of course motivates her to go after Choi Moo-Jin directly and kill him herself. Yes, she achieved her goal, got her revenge and survived, but for what? She finally had a slight chance to find some semblance of happiness and then that happiness was torn from her. This honestly made me so mad and I wish she had just died from her injuries at the end. At least things would have had a sense of closure that way. Instead, she survives and the ending is left open for a possible sequel.

****Spoilers end here****

My rating for My Name is 4 out of 5 stars and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a good action show with twists and turns, even if those twists and turns are kind of predictable.

As always, thanks for reading!

GyeongSeong Creature Season 2 – Kdrama Review

/ jeana84 / Leave a comment

Title: GyeongSeong Creature Season 2

Language: Korean

Genres: Romance, Horror, Action

Objectional Content: Graphic Violence, Language, Death

Synopsis (from MyDramaList): “Gyeongseong Creature” returns, extending its narrative from the tumultuous spring of 1945 to the bustling streets of 2024 Seoul. This continuation, set against the backdrop of monstrous creations born from human greed, further entwines the fates of Jang Tae Sang and Yoon Chae Ok.

My Review

**Note: this review will contain spoilers for season 1.**

Geyeongseong Creature season 2 takes place nearly 80 years after the conclusion of season 1. We are introduced to Jang Ho-Jae, who looks suspiciously like Jang Tae-Sang. He lost all of his memories in an accident around a year ago. Since then he has lived and worked in the building that used to be the Pawnshop in 1945. While investigating a missing person, Ho-Jae runs into Chae-Ok, though he doesn’t recognize her.

Chae-Ok has survived all this time thanks to the najin that he mother gave her. She has worked finding missing people, the same as she did before the events of the first season. Once she crosses paths with Ho-Jae, everything starts to go awry.

The human experiments have continued underground and we see what became of the baby Akiko had after being infected by a najin. There are new, human looking creatures that are insanely fast as well as ones like the original. I’m not entirely sure if Chae-Ok’s mother is supposed to be one of those, or if she actually died at the end of season one.

Although I really enjoyed this show, I felt like the pacing was off. It felt rushed and didn’t really explain a lot of things. I have a lot of questions still. There was nearly 80 years in between seasons. What happened during those years? How did the two main characters not cross paths sooner? I feel like Chae-Ok would have kept an eye on Tae-Sang throughout his life, even if she never spoke to him.

I’m not sure how I feel about the ending. I wouldn’t call it a cliff hanger but it was open to interpretation. Then there’s the after credits scene. The implications of this scene are devastating and just get even more horrifying the more I think about it. This scene alone would suggest a third season was planned. However, as of the time of this writing, a third season has not been confirmed and with how Netflix can be about renewing their shows, it seems unlikely at this point that there will be a third season. The main actress, Han So-Hee, also seems to be in demand for very physical roles, which may contribute to the delay of the third season.

My rating for Gyeongseong Creature season 2 is 4 out of 5 stars and I would recommend it to those who watched season one. Definitely watch season one first.

Thanks for reading!