Squid Game

 Squid Game

9/10

Squid Game

Genre:                                     Episodes: 9                  Year: 2021

Mystery         

Thriller

Synopsis:

Song Gi Hoon is a divorced father who is in serious debt. One day he is invited to join a game with a chance to win 45.6 billion won- if he wins 6 children’s games against the other contestants, Gi Hoon will be bale to win the cash prize.

Cast:

Lee Jung Jae (Song Gi Hoon)

Park Hae Soo (Cho Sang Woo)

Jung Ho Yeon (Kang Sae Byeok)

Wi Ha Joon (Hwang Joon Ho)

Oh Young Soo (Oh Il Nam)

Heo Sung Tae (Jang Deok Soo)

Kim Joo Ryung (Han Mi Nyeo)

Tripathi Anupam (Ali Abdul)

Lee Yoo Mi (Ji Yeong)

Lee Byung Hoon (Front Man)

General Thoughts:

Oh ‘Squid Game’. What a wild and unexpected journey. Not just in the actual show itself, but watching the traction this drama has gained has been a journey in and of itself. I have never in my life had this many people talk to me about a K-Drama before. Usually I have my two or three friends that watch K-Dramas that I am able to gossip and speculate and relive dramas with. Now suddenly with this one little show, that expanded to almost everybody I interact with.

And now everyone knows of Gong Yoo

People who two months ago would have scoffed when I told them I was super into Korean TV, people who I can’t imagine sitting down and watching a subtitled show- literally everyone is talking ‘Squid Game’ right now (well at least they were when I started writing this review a year ago). It’s amazing and wonderful, but also slightly baffling. Why this show? Why now? And I have to admit a little part of me is screaming out ‘I TOLD YOU SO YOU B*STARDS, I’VE BEEN ONTO THIS FROM THE START!’

Yup, no censorship here

And with everyone I know watching ‘Squid Game’ and a good few of them knowing I am a K-Drama addict, the question that usually follows is ‘what other K-Drama can I watch that is like this?’ And this is where I think this drama has really got its traction, because honestly the answer at the moment is ‘nothing’. Well not entirely true. The answer is ‘Liar Game’, but that drama was a different time and a different Network and doesn’t have all the super high production values that ‘Squid Game’ scored. But I think the fact that Netflix is the platform that showed ‘Squid Game’ is what really allowed the drama to rocket to fame. There have been a few other K-Dramas on Netflix that I have reviewed (and not all of them I have enjoyed), but for those who have never seen a K-Drama before and don’t really understand how the Korean networks work (which is most of the Western audience that is consuming ‘Squid Game’), they don’t quite see what an impact having the show picked up by Netflix is. For one- no censoring. Mainstream Korean networks censor the banoonoos out of their shows- knives, blood, needles. You don’t get more than an idea of nudity or sex- you get the lights turned off or the covers pulled over the actors. Of course, if ‘Squid Game’ had those restrictions placed on it, we wouldn’t have a show- just Lee Jung Jae walking around a lot of blurred out scenery. Netflix gave ‘Squid Game’ the freedom to do what it wanted to do, and that freedom allowed the writer and the production team to make a show that is widely marketable and easily consumable. Everything came together really well in this show- production value was high, the writing was tight, and the acting was brilliant.

Oof, this game was so brutal

The cast did a brilliant job at bringing the story to life. Lee Jung Jae and Park Hae Soo were fabulous at showing two sides of the same coin. Their characters were so similar and the two actors did an amazing job at showing how the pressure and demands of the game brought out different sides to their characters. Gi Hoon struggled immensely during the marble game when he was trying to fool his friend Il Nam, and Lee Jung Jae really sold that performance- it was a heart-wrenching scene for many reasons, but the way Lee Jung Jae delivered his performance was wonderful.

"I'd never betray my friend" say all the viewers from their comfy couches

While this was playing out, we also had a very similar thing happening with Sang Woo and Ali. Two friends, with one working to betray the other. Park Hae Soo certainly became a character that many hated after this scene, but he did it perfectly. His micro-expressions showed both his discomfort at having to betray a friend to his death, but also his convictions in what he was doing. Lee Jung Jae’s expressions and body language conveyed distress and guilt and confusion and gave the impression that if he could do it again perhaps he would have made a different choice, whereas Park Hae Soo very much used everything he had to portray that while Sang Woo was not unaffected by his own actions, if given the chance to go back, he would make the same choice again. This very same episode also gave us one of my favourite characters of the show and a total scene stealer- Lee Yoo Mi as Ji Yeong. She was able to give us such an endearing and loveable character in such a short amount of time. I’ve seen her in a few things before, but this scene in ‘Squid Game’ was really when I started to notice what an incredible actress she was.

'Thanks for playing with me' - and then everyone cries

While the other actors had episodes and hours of time to craft their characters and unveil their hopes and desires to the audience, Lee Yoo Mi was asked to do the same but in one episode. And she did it. Her character and her character’s journey was heart-wrenching, and most importantly, extremely memorable. The other actress I want to talk about is obviously Jung Ho Yeon- this was her first foray into acting! Ever!

His 'Hyung!' cries will haunt your dreams

She was very impressive with how emotive she could be, and she certainly didn’t have an issue keeping up with other actors who have an extensive list of credentials. It really felt like Jung Ho Yeon gave everything she had to the character, and she certainly made Sae Byeok a fan favourite. Another fan favourite was Ali, played by Tripathi Anupam. Similarly to Jung Ho Yeon, he had a very endearing character to act out, though Tripathi Anupam also gave Ali a layer of innocence which made him instantly easy to like and easy to root for. I have seen a few non-Koreans acting in K-Dramas before and they have been…not good (I mean, take a look at the guys who played out the rich villains at the end of the series). I get it, the amount of non-Korean actors who can speak Korean relatively fluently is probably not high. But Tripathi Anupam was amazing! His acting did not feel awkward at all- it felt like he was used to being in front of the camera and being in scenes with other actors. He did more than just give a passable performance- he absolutely excelled. He filled his character with heart and he had great chemistry with the other actors- particularly Park Hae Soo, which really helped to make the marble scene as emotional as was.

What Was Great:

Shock Plot:

‘Squid Game’ came at a time where hyper-violent twists where the happening thing in hot shows. ‘Game of Thrones’ was one of the starters of this trend and a lot of shows since have been using this recipe for success.

Games with a twist are the in thing right now

Having characters that people love and characters that people love to hate, and then having shocking and unexpected twists and turns seems to be a massive draw that keeps people from being unable to turn a show off. It almost seems to promote this fear of missing out in the viewers- this feeling where you have to keep watching because you can’t be the only one who didn’t get shocked by that big twist or can’t speculate on the show’s next move. Amazon series ‘The Boys’ follows a similar vein- a range of characters and big, shocking moments- often quite gory. Japanese Netflix series ‘Alice in Borderland’ had a similar idea and was also a smash hit, though not as much as ‘Squid Game’.

Ah, the illusion of choice

Heck, even ‘The Hunger Games’ is a toned down version of this sort of story! The timing of ‘Squid Game’s release couldn’t have been better- a few years earlier and it possibly could have been criticised for its violence and gore, and a few years later and it could have been too late to the party. While I would certainly call this show a violent one, I also wouldn’t say it is outrageously so. While a lot of that would depend on personal preferences, I did find that ‘Squid Game’ had enough in it to shock the audience, but it wasn’t so gratuitously violent that I couldn’t watch. Personally, I don’t like horror, and I don’t like lots of visual gore. I found that this drama hit a balance where it had the shock of the moment, but it don’t linger on it. This served to keep the intensity up in every scene and every episode, but by choosing not to linger too long on the actual aftermath the show reduced the risk of turning away viewers who, like me, don’t want to see every gory detail. The writers new that the premise was shocking, the plot was shocking, the situations the characters were in were shocking, and that sometimes even the characters themselves were shocking. They knew they didn’t have to rely on long, drawn out shots of blood and bones and brains to get that reaction out of the audience- it was well balanced.

Character Moments:

Speaking of being well balanced, you can have a shocking show with big twists and big deaths, but without engaging characters to back them up it doesn’t become as much of an addictive watch.

The characters are everything

Think the later seasons of ‘Game of Thrones’. When the characters' development dropped, so did peoples’ enthusiasm for the show. ‘Squid Game’ did a great job at inserting quiet character moments into the show, so that when the big twists came there was maximum impact.

Strong female characters are always a big win

Would Ali’s death have hit as hard if we hadn’t seen the family he was trying to protect and get back to? Would Sang Woo’s betrayal have had the emotional reaction from the audience that it got if it hadn’t spent time showing Sang Woo and Ali having small, quiet moments of bonding and camaraderie? Moments in the show were able to hit hard and get an emotional response from the audience because it spent time setting up the relationships between the characters. As each episode went on we knew a little bit more about the characters and a little bit more about their stories. The premise of the deadly games is what got people tuning into the show, but it was the interactions between the characters and watching the hard choices they had to make that kept people watching. 

What Wasn’t:

Stale Pale Males:

Old, rich, white men were behind it. Wow. What a surpri- oh wait no. It wasn’t a surprise really. Aren’t old, rich, white men always the ones behind everything pulling all the strings? I was hoping for something a little more innovative from the writer I will admit. It’s not a BAD idea per se- it’s just not entirely new.

Why are all rich men just such *ssholes

The rest of ‘Squid Game’ was so new and exciting and felt like something that had never been seen before, so for the whole thing to be an illicit gambling den for the wealthy and powerful men of the world just felt…kind of like a safe play? Sure, this is the outcome that made the most sense- the games obviously need a huge amount of money behind them to be run, but it also felt like it was an answer the writer didn’t have to reach far for. I don’t know, I was just hoping for something a bit more…well, more. 

Recommend?

Yes- I can’t not recommend a K-Drama that has broken so many barriers and done so many things for Korean Dramas moving forward. The fact that it’s a really riveting show with an addictive plot is another great reason to watch. I will say though that if you do not like violence, this show is not for you.

See you all for Season 2

Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food

Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food

5.5/10

Pretty Noona Who Buys Me Food

Genre:                                                 Episodes: 16                                    Year: 2018

Romance

Melodrama

Synopsis:

Yoon Jin Ah is a woman in her 30s who is pressured by her mother to marry a wealthy man from a good family. Instead, Jin Ah starts spending time with Seo Joon Hee, her younger brother’s friend who has come back to Korea after working abroad.

Cast:

Son Ye Jin (Yoon Jin Ah)

Jung Hae In (Seo Joon Hee)

Jang So Yeon (Seo Kyung Sun)

Wi Ha Joon (Yoon Seung Ho)

Oh Man Suk (Yoon Sang Ki)

Kil Hae Yeon (Kim Mi Yeon)

Oh Ryong (Lee Gyu Min)

Jeong Eu Gene (Kang Se Young)

Seo Jung Yeon (Jung Young In)

Park Hyuk Kwon (Nam Ho Gyun)

General Thoughts:

Ohhhhh, this drama. What it could have been. What it wasn’t. What it was. What it should have been. I don’t even know where to begin with this show- it was so good for so long and then went downhill very far and very rapidly.

I can't even tell you how long it's taken to get this review done

Even though for most of its run the show was super sweet and fun, looking back I’m really struggling to remember what I enjoyed about it. Jung Hae In is an obvious point, and he was always on point. His acting is amazing, and this was no let down. Being a noona-slaying puppy suits him remarkably well, and his sweet smiles and come-hither eyes didn’t go to waste.

Spot on casting

More than being simply charming (which just comes naturally to that boy), Jung Hae In really nailed the troubles of a younger man. His playfulness worked wonders when he was charming his noona, but it was his heart-broken faces when Jin Ah was struggling and his subtly shaken confidence that really sold him as a young man trying to be man enough for an older woman. Son Ye Jin was brilliant too. All her emotions were very raw and real, and she completely sold the character. While I didn’t necessarily like Jin Ah all the time, or even understand her, Son Ye Jin convinced me that Jin Ah always believed what she was doing was right. I got annoyed at her, I got frustrated with her, but I never thought she was acting like an unrealistic person. Both Son Ye Jin and Jung Hae In were so in sync with their characters that it was very hard to separate the actors from the characters. They became Jin Ah and Joon Hee for those whole 16 episodes, and never once broke character. Every expression, action and reaction they made fit in perfectly with the idea of their character that I had developed in my head, as if these were two people I knew really well for quite a long time.

What I wouldn't give to actually have known that boy for a long time. Or a short time. Any time at all really.

The supporting cast were all excellent as well, with each of them giving authentic performances and making me believe that these characters were real, lived in people. Kil Hae Yoon and Jang So Yeon were particular standouts, with Kil Hae Yoon able to make me completely loathe her character, without ever coming across as a gimmicky villain or two-dimensional evil K-Drama mother.

I think we can all agree that Jin Ah wins the award for worst friend ever

Jang So Yeon completely stole my heart as Kyung Sun, Joon Hee’s lovely older sister, and for me was one of the most emotional aspects of the show. Jang So Yeon was perfect as the quirky best friend, reliable older sister, and finally the jilted sister-in-law. Jang So Yeon embodied Kyung Sun’s struggle with seeing her friend date her younger brother, and perfectly balanced her love for her friend and protectiveness of her sibling. The characters themselves were all written extremely well. While the actors definitely contributed a lot to bringing these characters to life, you can’t deny that they were written as very authentically flawed people. All the characters reacted in ways that an actual person might react, and that brought a great sense of realism to the show. The drama itself was pretty low on conflict, with most of the issues being based on the characters responses, actions, and interactions. This is both a good and a bad thing. It’s good in the way that it makes our characters seem like very real people and not simply figments of someone’s imagination, but it’s bad in that it usually means that one of our characters is the reason things are going pear shaped.

The two biggest causes of conflict right there

This worked well when the people of conflict existed outside of our main couple (eg. Mum, work colleges, crazy ex), but started becoming more problematic when the issue causing person was part of our main couple (eg. Jin Ah). This sort of conflict can work really well for a short period of time, such as in a short series or in a movie, but after an extended period of time it became a bit tiresome, and I was left wondering why our couple couldn’t just be relaxed and happy the way they were in the beginning.

If it ain't this cute, I don't wanna see it

The only other real conflict in the series was the sexual harassment plot going on in Jin Ah’s workplace. Which frankly confused the hell out of me. It seemed like the CEO was the one trying to get to the bottom of the issue and solve it once and for all, only to have him turn his back on the girls who spoke out about it halfway through. All the switching sides and lying and trying to get the better of each other could have made for an interesting and confronting topic, but as it was delegated to the back seat while Jin Ah and Joon Hee had their multiple falling outs, it didn’t really get the attention it was needing to be a properly fleshed out arc, so the conclusion was rushed and left me feeling completely baffled as to how it all got sorted out in the end. Seriously, I’m not kidding. I have literally no idea how that situation was resolved with Jin Ah getting a promotion. None. To put it simply, the writer was excellent at creating believable, emotional characters, but was poor at putting these characters into a story that was interesting, engaging, and didn’t make me want to punch them. 

What Was Great:

All That Love:

Something really magical was going on in the first half of this show. The leads had the kind of chemistry that left you with butterflies in your stomach and going to bed feeling high as a kite. The joy of a noona romance comes from the insecurity the age change makes in the male lead. Had he been interested in anyone else, Joon Hee would have just jumped right in, no questions asked.

I am insanely jealous

Something about seeing a smooth ladies man become riddled with uncertainty because the girl he likes is older is something that is always magic on screen. Then of course comes all the cute where the male lead acts adorable and very much like a donsaeng in order to get close and spend time with his noona.

I don't think anyone is oblivious to how good looking Jung Hae In is

Where I’ve found a couple of noona romances stumble, is that the noona tends to be completely oblivious to the fact that a handsome, albeit younger, guy is head over heels for her. What ‘Pretty Noona’ did really well is that Jin Ah was not oblivious to how attractive, charming, and downright wonderful Joon Hee was. She was put on guard by him being younger and a bit of a Casanova, but she didn’t ignore that he was an attractive man. Because let’s be real- no matter how old women get, we still know an good looking dude when we see one. And even Grandmas would look at Jung Hae In and know that was one fine piece of work. So the donsaeng-noona dynamic was there, but it was always undercut with a current of attraction. The attraction was just burdened by what their friends, family, and society would think. Things just got better and better when the romance actually kicked into gear, and I was loving every interaction between the leads. I cannot tell you how much I adored the scene where Jin Ah secretly grabbed Joon Hee’s hand under the table- I think that small confirmation was my favourite scene in the whole drama.

When they were cute they were very, very cute

When Joon Hee and Jin Ah were loved up, boy were they loved up. The chemistry between Jung Hae In and Son Ye Jin was absolutely explosive. It’s hard to believe that these two actors weren’t completely lost in adoration with each other the way their characters were (though who knows, maybe they were)- they just made the relationship so charming, so believable, and very, very steamy. When people tried to interfere (and by people I mean Mum), the two would retreat back into the sanctuary that was Joon Hee’s apartment and get totally lost in their own world, that we all wish we could get in to.

Pretty steamy for a K-Drama

The romance and the chemistry was the sort where you feel happy just watching- you don’t have to be a part of it, but there's something so delightful and pure about people just genuinely liking each other that much, that it becomes comforting just being in their presence. 

What Wasn’t:

The Whole Second Half:

So basically all that delicious, warm, wonderful stuff that the drama did in it’s first half that I mentioned above- yeah, there’s hardly any of that in the second half. Sure, the chemistry is still there, but that innocent, sweet feeling of genuine love gets totally trampled.

Quit taking him for granted, girl

In the first half, the conflicts in the drama were mainly external- Jin Ah’s issues at work, and her Mum’s complete rejection of Joon Hee and dismissal of Jin Ah. However, as we start to move into the second half, the conflicts in the drama become much more internal. Mainly, Jin Ah. As conflict starts cropping up in the main romance, Jin Ah’s response is to either ignore it, or lie about it. Yeah, doesn’t take a genius to figure out that won’t end well. But what really drove me nuts and made the second half excruciating to get through is that Jin Ah never learned. She lied to Joon Hee about meeting his father- which was a totally ridiculous, self-absorbed, insensitive thing to do. Then she blew up at Joon Hee for getting angry at her, and completely failed to see why he might not love the idea of her trying to bring his estranged father back into his life. She lies about moving out and a whole bunch of other, unnecessary stuff, all under the guise that she doesn’t want Joon Hee to worry.

Their fights stressed me out

I guess it kind of shows a new issue in a noona romance where the noona shoulders all the burden and worry because she’s older and doesn’t want anything troubling her younger man- because there’s always this idea of protection with age. Whoever is older must protect whoever is younger. But that doesn’t work in a relationship. All that Jin Ah’s lying does is prove that she doesn’t trust Joon Hee as an equal in their relationship.

I'd feel bad, but you totally did this to yourself

She doesn’t think he’s capable of handling in the same burdens that she can, and so she constantly pushes him away. Which isn’t healthy for any relationship. And every time Joon Hee takes her aside, explains why he’s upset and how Jin Ah treated him badly, and every time Jin Ah looks cute and he forgives her. Only for her to do the exact same thing again moments later. It was a painful cycle that was doomed to fail. And it did. Through Jin Ah’s selfishness she ripped Joon Hee’s confidence and self-respect apart, the couple broke up, Jin Ah lost her closest friend, and she grew distant from her family. Yeah, not a lot of good there. And while all this is going on, the sexual harassment case at Jin Ah’s workplace is turning against the females and it’s all looking pretty bleak. Then there’s a massive time skip where we essentially learn that Jin Ah has not learned from her relationship with Joon Hee, as she’s exactly where she was at the start of the series. Somehow the work issue has been resolved (who knows how), and Jin Ah is in a relationship with an older guy who treats her like dirt. She meets Joon Hee again, they have a big blowout and then they’re back together. Yeah, what.

I actually think this is a pretty accurate depiction of a toxic relationship...

The issues that came up in this relationship were not issues that time on its own could correct. The show gave me no confidence that Joon Hee and Jin Ah could learn to communicate effectively and trust each other as equals, and instead just threw them back together in an explosion of chemistry. And what we’ve spent half this show watching is the fact that chemistry is not enough to keep a relationship going.

She was always sorry that she hurt him, but always failed to see how

I have zero faith that Jin Ah has stopped being self-centred, and no faith that this couple will work out in the long run. Jin Ah’s complete inability to think of people other than herself, and her constant and unnecessary lying to Joon Hee is what tore them apart so violently previously, and the show made no moves to show how she has changed and grown as a person. Jin Ah was always very good at admitting her mistakes, but she never learned from them. She made the same bad decisions time after time, and hurt Joon Hee every single time. Joon Hee was always very good at forgiving Jin Ah, but the two were never able to fully see eye-to-eye about what their issues were. All Jin Ah saw was that something she did hurt Joon Hee, but she could never really piece together exactly what that was because she was far too self-absorbed to actually see the situation from Joon Hee’s perspective. So that really left Joon Hee no choice but to forgive her constantly, because the only other option is to break up. Which is an inevitable conclusion. The relationship between Joon Hee and Jin Ah can only last as long as Joon Hee can bear being beaten down by Jin Ah’s selfish and reckless actions that she can never see the consequences for.

Communication and understanding- still zero

So in my eyes, their reconciliation at the end of the series will be a short one, and one month or one year later when Joon Hee realises that nothing has changed and that they're still in the same cycle of hurt and self-destruction, this couple will fall apart again. 

Recommend?

Sure, if you like feeling stressed and depressed. Otherwise no.

Takes you to the highest highs just to crash you to the lowest lows