Show Cover

I'm good at everything except the things that I can't do.

# Review

At the insistence of my girlfriend, I finally watched this Netflix dystopian phenomenon. The story follows a secret competition with 456 players, all of whom are in financial trouble. The players compete in life and death competitions based on Korean children’s games for money. The story is told mainly from the perspective of Lee Myung-gi (Im Si-wan), one of the participants of the games.

While for a modern Western audience, the life and death games genre may seem refreshing, but it’s actually an established trope in Asian cinema, especially Japanese films and shows such as Battle Royale. Without being swayed by the macabre novelty factor, this show is decent but didn’t blow me away. The production value is very high and being a show about a competition between hundreds of people, there is a massive cast. The characters which received development, such as Im's Lee Myung-gi, Park Hae-soo’s Cho Sang-woo, and Jung Ho-yeon’s Kang Sae-byeok, are well-written and well-portrayed. The supporting cast, which includes Anupam Tripathi’s Ali, Kim Joo-ryoung’s Han Mi-nyeo, and O Yeong-su’s Oh Il-nam are also very memorable, albeit in a more one-dimensional sense. Noticeably, the VIPs are universally terrible. The side plot, with police detective Hwang Jun-ho (Wi Ha-joon), while thrilling, did feel out of place and didn't really contribute much to the main story. The violent scenes are shocking but are often counterbalanced with almost a comedic tone inbetween the violence. My favourite aspect of the show is the subtle commentary on Korean society and I also enjoyed the pastel-themed aesthetics of both the sets and the character costumes, which was probably inspired by the real-life Brothers Home.

# Conclusion

A subtle commentary about Korean society mixed with gore and violence.

# Overall rating: 7.7

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