Biggest plot twist I think I have ever seen, I honestly which English television shows could think of something so great! Acting is phenomenal and each and every character you will gain a strong opinion on. I was familiar with a few actors/actresses before watching Stranger and some I haven't been so familiar on, but they all work so great together I have to admit this is perhaps the greatest cast ensemble too!
I may be living under a rock but I believe the second series has been confirmed? If not then make another season!! I could name so many events that could happen in the next one it legitimately makes me so excited. Stranger is a must watch show!
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
A so very relevant drama, no matter what country you live in.
Every story can become a 10/10 drama when it's produced, directed and casted right. But not frequently do we stumble upon a 10/10 story. In this drama, all of the above were 10/10.1. Story. If you're a sucker for police thriller like me, you probably think you have seen it all already. "If they suspect this person now, he's not the culprit". "Clearly the culprit is someone who seems innocent". I know because this is what I thought while watching it. But I've never been so wrong. The story keeps on surprising while making perfect sense, no plot holes are found, every question is answered. No open ending and no cliche like "5 years later". The characters (and us) are never distracted by pointless romantic relationships that tend to ruin every non-romance based series out there.
2. Characters. All characters are fascinating. Shi-mok is an (seemingly) emotionless prosecutor who follows his moral code strictly. He is ready to fight for justice and doesn't care about being liked by other people. He is a badass at court but is cutely awkward when it comes to social interactions. Yeo-jin is an energetic police officer who enjoys her job: chasing (and catching!) bad guys. She's confident and comfortable with the other characters, even the socially awkward Shi-mok. She also has a strong sense of justice but also very high EQ, making her a very lovable character. Dong-jae is another prosecutor and a very complex character. You can never tell what exactly he thinks or feels and are his motives. He keeps on switching sides which makes him seem like an unloyal jerk who only cares about himself, but he also has his own moral code. He's introduced to us as a not very smart person, but actually he's quite wise and skillful. Eun-soo seems at first like the uptight newbie who is nervous and makes mistakes, but actually she's a strong-willed smart prosecutor. She has a goal and she put her life on the line more than once to get what she wants. Lee Chand-joon is the best character in my opinion. You keep on suspecting him while thinking there's no way he'd do it. He's strong, smart, scary, lovable, evil and kind at the same time. He always knows what's the right thing to say or do, so even when it seems like he failed, he probably wanted to fail.
3. Cast. The cast is mind-blowing. The acting was on point for every single character. They portrayed a whole rainbow of emotions in the most convincing way, making me forget I already saw some of them acting in different dramas before. I also liked the fact that Jo Seung-woo, playing Shi-mok, is not your typical k-drama male lead. He is handsome but not in the typical korean standarts. He's even pretty short, would you believe it? Jo Seung-woo is a super talented actor and the fact that he got the main role in this drama despite the fact that he's not as much of an "eye-candy" as some people say, makes me love the drama 10 times more.
4. Rewatch value. I put 8 because honestly, when you already know who the culprit is, I'm not sure how amazing it can be. But just for the amazing cast and characters, I would definitely consider coming back.
5. Summary. This is the first review I ever wrote. I felt like I have to write down my feelings about this masterpiece. It's one of the best k-dramas I have ever watched and I did watch a lot. I wish I could give it a 11/10, too bad... Thank you for reading!
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
A mild thriller - Not an on-the-edge-of-your-seat/nail-biting drama
Why I Started this drama?→ Interested in Crime/Mystery/Thriller
→ This drama is highly rated across sites, and on lists of must-watch series
My humble Opinion: Expectations Unmet
→ Usually crime dramas, have a sense of urgency - mystery of who-did-it?
→ It is more preachy rather than something like stories of Sherlock/or gripping like Signal (2016)
What Works: The Acting
→ Jo Seung Woo - as an apathetic prosecutor is the first role I am seeing him in, and after this series and a little wiki info on him, I know I will see all his work soon.
→ Lee Joon Hyuk - probably the best, showing signs of a corrupt official, trying to come on the right track - but till the end we don't know whether he is actually good/bad? He is in my opinion, a survivor trying to be on the winning side to live.
→ Yoon Se Ah - she played a small support character, but delivered her twisted personality well (and her arc of mystery probably kept audiences guessing - whether she murdered someone or no?)
What Does Not Work: The Story (and pace)
→ The story was average, nothing unseen/unexpected and like a web was slowly revealed to us but we know from the get-go who is the final culprit.
→ This drama is slow paced, building out the characters and storyline but without any cliffhangers, unexpected reveals that would make you stay up all night to watch just one more episode to know what is the end.
Summary:
Forest of Secrets in an apt title - as this drama slowly showcases how deeply rooted the corruption becomes - instigated by people in power and when justice system turn a blind out to it, making the common folks suffer. Like a seed of injustice once laid, becomes a forest overtime, and ultimately harsh measures are needed to cut it down - but then again, can it be fully uprooted?
It is more suited for regular seasons, where the team tries to solve different cases than the usual single-season-wonder. (Maybe that's why there is a season 2 which I will watch).
Also in case you're wondering how I rate dramas since this is an unpopular opinion - please see my profile: https://mydramalist.com/profile/omo-omo-omo (am always up for a healthy discussion on dramas as well!)
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
A definitely must watch series if you like thriller, crime drama and political drama. All of those aspects are perfectly blended in this show. Nothing is cliche and nothing is black and white. A really well made series with wonderful casts.
The story is so well paced that there’s not a time the viewer would feel bored. All the episodes would keep you at the edge of your seat, bitting your nail from the suspense. There are so many twists and turns that is unexpected along the way, it feels like a roller coaster ride. A lot of scheming and back stabbing. It’s so hard to guest what will happen and who are actually the bad guys and who is the good guys.
The cinematography is well done, I like the color palate of the show. There are some scene that annoys me because they seem to use a handheld camera because the whole scene seem to sway a lot that it makes me quite dizzy just by looking at it. I don’t mind if they do it on purpose to show conflicting emotion, or feeling unstable, but some of this scene don’t seem to have any meaning, it’s just them talking. But it’s only a minor flaw compare to all the greatness of this show.
You will be very invested in each character. None of them are perfect, they all have their good side and bad side. Everyone could be the bad guys.
What I like the most is that Hwang Si Mok as the main protagonist is not perfect and know how to play the game. You would not survive in the real world if you just want everything to go your way, there are something that you would need to let go or turn a blind eye on if you want to achieve something bigger.
Han Yeo Jin as the female lead gives a really strong performance as a no nonsense police officer. She does her investigation throughly but without she still care and warm to the victims.
The other prosecutors and police officers are really great and unique character, each with their own story which are developed well through out the show. It keeps you guessing until the last moment on who is the real bad guy behind all of this. Just remember, nobody is perfect.
The music is nothing special, but it matched the show really well. There’s no ost that I remember from this show.
I think this show deserves so rewatch, because I’m sure you would be able to pick up a lot of different things during the rewatching that you may miss the first time around. There are a lot of subtle hints and nuances given through out the show that would probably make you think ‘ah... so that’s what happen’. I’m definitely going to be rewatching this show to see all the things that I may have miss the first time around.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Contemporary Crime Drama
StrangerK-Drama
Ep 32
Two Seasons
PG-13
I like Contemporary stories and Crime / Murder mystery so when I heard this was a mix of both I was excited!
Sadly it was just okay for me.
This show had great actors and 97% of them played morally grey characters. The only exception were the leads!
Let's do some pros & cons
Pros:
◇The acting
◇How it wasn't as dark and gory as it could be ? (Definitely PG-13)
◇The Leads
Cons:
◇It felt like it dragged at times
◇The plot twists were okay
◇The writing at times
◇Wanted more friendship & chemistry
Over all I am happy I watched this show. Would I recommend? If you like slow crime dramas then yes, if you like fast past thriller type then maybe not.
REWATCH? No
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Esta resenha pode conter spoilers
m a s t e r p i e c e
Actually there is a short story behind my watching the stranger series. During the summer break, I forced my mother to watch a TV series and she chose the Stranger. I used to only watch romantic and comedy dramas at the time, so I definitely thought I wouldn't like Stranger, but because it was a Korean drama, I decided to watch it with my mom. We watched the first episode together and I just LOVE it. I continued 7-8 episodes with my mother, then I started to continue myself because she had a lot of work. And it became one of my favorite series.Let me talk about the drama now. First of all I have to congratulate Jo Seungwoo for playing the hwang simok character which seems so difficult. You can see how much effort is put by watching behind the scenes. I also congratulate bae donna because it must be difficult to play with someone who shows no emotion. I really liked the chemistry of the two main leads, it was really good. Also, shin hye sun is another reason I love this drama because I think she is both a beautiful and a very talented actress. Before I forget, the chemistry of all the characters was very good, I can say that they have the best chemistry among the series I have watched. I think I need to talk about the story now, then let me start. The first episodes of Stranger were a bit boring unlike the other series (of course it was very exciting), but the following episodes were excellent. When I watched the connection between the two murders, I was really surprised because I definitely did not expect it. The good behaviour of the police and prosecutors also made me happy. If you are reading this review, you will understand how bad I wrote because I am not very good at telling the story. But I'm still writing my best.
The only thing I didn't like about Stranger is that some of the characters in the main role died, they really added a different atmosphere to the series. All in all, Stranger is really one of the best series, the actors fit, the story is very good. Certainly, I think everyone should watch it, you should not forget such a magnificent series.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
But man, as i progressed with the first episode, just after a few minutes i was hooked. The background music worked well for me. Jo seung woo did an excellent job portraying the role of a cold prosecutor. Even though he did not have any emotions, he was full of feel. Bae Doona was awesome as the lady detective. All the cast did an excellent job. Hope to see a second season with Bae Doona and Jo seung woo as the leads
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Esta resenha pode conter spoilers
Corruption, Mystery, Intrigue..."Stranger" Has it All!
There is nothing so beautiful as an intricate plot so deftly woven that it is literally a work of art. And there is nothing that compliments a masterful plot like deep and intelligent characters."Stranger" is one of the best series I've ever seen. And I've been watching shows for over 45 years. When I began Season 1, I was instantly hooked, and I found myself binge-watching the series.
The story has so many plot twists and turns that I doubt that even the most savy viewer will be able to figure it all out. It centers around what seems to be, a fairly standard murder. Hwang Shi Mok is, what would be our equivalent of an assistand district attorney, knows the victim, and takes it upon himself to investigate.
Shi Mok is like watching a master detective at work. He's like a Korean Sherlock Holmes. He is not only able to piece together events, but he does so in a way that makes you think of a master jigsaw puzzler who is able to put the 3000 pieces together within a short span of time. Shi Mok is smart, intelligent, and also calm and cool under fire. Why? Because he has a unique characteristic: he lacks empathy. Due to violent outbursts as a child, he had a surgical procedure done that literally prevents him from having such outbursts anymore. Therefore, to most of his colleagues and even strangers, he appears cold and aloof.
Shi Mok's sole partner in his investigation is Lieutenant Han Yeo Jin (Bae Doona). Bae Doona quickly became one of my favorite Korean actresses. She also successfully brings us a very intelligent and driven detective who is as determined to get to the truth as Shi Mok is. Of course, she has trouble figuring out why Shi Mok comes across as such a quirky fellow, but she soon develops tremendous respect for him and his ability to speak his mind (which he always does!).
It isn't often that I bring up the theme music for a show, but this one reminds me of Hans Zimmer's Batman score a bit! It's catchy, and it seems to sum up all of the excitement and intrigue that this series provides!
The plot is expertly crafted and multi-layered. Much like an onion, once one layer is exposed, there is another. This forces Shi mok and Yeo Jin to wonder just how far and how deep the conspiracy goes.
The British series "Line of Duty" is a show about police corruption. This show not only takes it much farther, but this story is far more taut and exciting! I cannot emphasize enough just how much credit the writers should be given. It's not easy to put something like this together. "Stranger" is nothing short of a being an absolute masterpiece! Master mystery writers like Agatha Christie would be proud! Literally from start to finish, "Stranger" keeps up the intrigue and never pauses even for a moment!
**I was so excited when Season 2 came out, and even more excited to find out that there is a Season 3 on its way!**
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Multiple plot twists, most of them completely unexpected. kept me on the edge of my seat. Probably one of the dramas I've watched quickest, just because every episode made me want to watch more. Wasn't my usual cup of tea, as I'm very much a romantic comedy, happy-go-lucky, cliché drama kinda person. However, wasn't cliché at all, and was very well written, and acted.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
1For me Stranger holds special meaning since it's the first ever kdrama for me(not taking movies into account) and it was such a high quality one from every aspect(story, cast, overall production) that immediately set the highest standard for me. After that it was difficult to find equally good productions, though I have found some.
The story has good twists and keeps you guessing and even when it's not, it still has a good execution that it's still as interesting. The cast is amazing. Solid performances from everyone. It starts off a bit slow but after the 6th episode it's addictive. And as far as I remember, there weren't any of the classic mechanics in writing that make it seem contrived. The characters and their actions have consistency.
I really don't want to say more and rather have you watch it. Even if it's not your favorite I think you'll still find it a very good one.
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
Esta resenha foi útil para você?
