O Abismo Mágico (2019)

A pesky magical orb brings on a quest full of bright, dark, and clumsy moments.

Story:

-- It is no secret that the early episodes of "Abyss" are tough to watch -- there are many unknowns, some of the more violent aspects of the story are automatically brought up without much explanation, and the main characters are pushed into a situation that is odd on all levels, and the characters react accordingly. After the first four episodes, the premise of "Abyss" becomes clear: uncovering what happened to Prosecutor Go Se Yeon. This mystery spans out for several episodes and while the main characters engage in investigative work, they also try to settle in and return to their normal lives as best as they can. There are some moments here that viewers should suspend their disbelief and remember that this is a mostly light hearted k-drama with fantasy elements, and not a mystery thriller like exploration of life & death.

At crucial moments the lead characters make very unwise choices and sometimes forget they have a pesky magical orb but this never deters the main plot from advancing. In fact, one of the good aspects of Abyss' storyline is that it goes on from plot twist to plot twist in a well paced manner -- it never lags or is affected by the standard rom-com tropes in Korean dramas. On the negative side what stands out is the underdevelopment of certain characters, loose plot-lines, and no real side stories.

The final episode wraps up everything neatly, and ends on a high note for the heroes of the story while the "bad guys" got what they deserved. It is a satisfying, bright ending.

Acting/Cast:

-- After being absent for two years, Park Bo Young makes a solid return to screen and carries "Abyss" on her shoulders, establishing herself as one of the main reasons why you should watch this drama in the first place. Her counterpart Ahn Hyo Seop is also eye catching, and the chemistry between them is undeniable even if at times somewhat awkward and cute due to the height difference. Needless to say they are young actors who know how to get the job done, and it's very likely "Abyss" did not explore their full potential due to how their characters were written. Nonetheless, they do a good job from start to finish, and should be commended for it.

Park and Ahn are joined by an experienced support cast who fulfil well their assigned roles with Lee Shi Eon, Han So Hee, and Song Sang Eun standing out as they become crucial elements of the main characters' circle and participate in the quest to uncover the main mystery.

Music:

-- The OST of "Abyss" is very pleasant to listen to, featuring performances by Suran (수란), Coogie (쿠기), Kim Feel (김필) and Kim Bo Hyung (김보형).

Rewatch Value:

-- Standing at sixteen episodes - sixty minutes each - the quick paced storywriting of "Abyss" makes it an easy watch, and time will definitely fly while you are watching it. This makes "Abyss" easier to rewatch in the near future, if not for seeing once again Park Bo Young and Ahn Hyo Seop interacting with each other in the strange world of "Abyss."

Leia Mais

Abyss was first and foremost an amazing drama.
Not only were the characters very likeable, but they were casted perfectly.
The story itself was completely enthralling, intriguing and unexpected. There were so many twists and turns, so many smiles and frowns.
The beginning, I loved it. The middle mark, I loved it. The ending, I loved it.
Bittersweet is not a word I have to use here luckily.
This drama is completely brilliant and in my opinion anyone who watches it should fall in love with it.
To those who want a sensational drama, this is the one for you.

Leia Mais

I might have been too harsh, but the writing did not give this drama justice

This is one of those Comedy-Romance-Mystery Thrillers with a Supernatural element, and if you are an avid South Korean drama watcher you might liken this to Strong Woman Do Bong Soon. In terms of its writing quality though ... it is just written poorly and acted poorly.

Concept and Execution---
While the concept of the story is very, very interesting the execution was poor. The supernatural element and the thriller element were so gripping that I enjoyed the ride. Unfortunately, the ending had little explanation or intrigue; it was vague and indeterminate as if the writer and director were having a quarrel. There were so many unanswered questions that made me angry. Overall, there was a lot of potential that was wasted in the slow repetitive pacing of the drama.

Pacing---
As a drama watcher, a drama has to keep me hooked and invested for the 16 hours I am investing to watch it. Unfortunately, this drama did not meet that bar. The poor pacing left the story stagnant in the end. There were so many questions that were left unanswered that could have easily been answered with the amount of time wasted

Romance and Comedy---
This was at best average. The romance was a little lacking in my opinion. I could tell that there was shyness in the romance which did not match the characters. But the friendship between the actors was what kept this drama going. The friendship that turned into love was fun to watch as well, but the concept of the show was the most interesting bit. The friendship to romance bit is the only reason I feel inclined to watch this drama again.

Thriller---
Yes! Yes! YES! I loved the thriller in this drama even though it was just a side show.

Acting---
The lack of chemistry between the main leads makes me less inclined to say that this drama had good acting. Their height difference was cute though.

Ending---
I hated the ending (period). This contributed to my lower rating. See Concept and Execution for more info

Leia Mais

Bad. Just bad.

Keeping it mostly spoiler free, this drama is a sht show.
I don't understand how this drama has such a high score. I know people usually are rating kdramas based on actors' beauty, but that shouldn't work here.
So: the plot is dumb and full of holes, the acting is meh at best, the directing and the cinematography are boring, the soundtrack is annoying, the production value seems cheap.
Since the first episode I was annoyed by how the events proceeded. And I mean that in the sense of "FFS!! How much longer until it ends??" But I did went for the second episode, trying to give it a chance. It never got better. The ML is supposed to be the cutest thing ever and he isn't. But thats subjective so I'll let it pass. Unfortunately, the chemistry between our leads is missing.
Then the so called plot. This revolves around an "alien marble" that can resurrect people and transform their appearance based on their soul's "beauty". That gets out the window when a "evil person" is not revived like a thing from a horror movie. In the same episode (2nd), the marble revives some flowers, by itself. Seeing that, shouldn't the marble keep reviving things? Chicken in stores/ in restaurants for example? I have nothing against introducing a lousy plot device (this said marble), but the writer should've made sure to address all these problems.
The characters seem retarded, then they are not, then go retarded again, and so on. To push the story in the needed direction, he author kept making coincidences happen. Or the characters go the "lets keep this info for myself, wouldn't want to end this story too soon" route. In short, the story must go from A to B and the author keeps changing how a character is supposed to act, based solely on "moving forward the plot". Even the "comedy" part is meh.
So: do you like a specific actor/actress? Check out some of their other works. Their potential was better used there (it can't be worse than here)....

PS: I got a headache thinking about what stuff happened in this drama for this review :)))

Leia Mais

I blame the script

==Breakdown==
Background plot - 40%
Romance - 30%
Misc comedy - 30%

Background plot - Bad
Romantic chemistry - Good
Misc comedy - Fine
Production value - Fine

The acting was great. The direction was fine. The script was a hot mess. I didn't like the premise (first of all) and then the dialogue was stilted and--honestly--dumb. Such a shame because I love both these main actors and had high hopes. If you love the actors (like me) go to Youtube and look for a highlights video of their scenes; though the dialogue is terrible, they do have a few cute scenes where there's less talking. Those are worth watching, but don't waste time on episodes of this drama (these are hours you can't get back, people!!)
For the ML, check out Business Proposal, A Time Called You, and Dr. Romantic.
For Park Bo Young, check out Strong Girl Bong Soon, Doom At Your Service, and her newest Daily Dose of Sunshine.

Leia Mais

The concept was great, but the execution wasn't!

"A person getting resurrected from a super-power beyond human understanding and getting recognized as its master thereby having the ability to bring dead people back to life" is such an amazing concept. Still, they couldn't do any justice to either this plot or the amazing cast.

Son of a conglomerate who studied at a top university - DUMB
How does a lawyer who became a murder suspect not know he is being tracked down through his credit card payments? WTF

The only good thing about this drama is the chemistry between ML and FL.
Even though they came together in the first episode itself, the romance is low and very late.

Remove Park Bo Gum and Ahn Hyo Seop from the cast, this drama's rating is not more than 3/10!

Leia Mais

Se non ci fosse stato l'Abyss sarebbe stato meglio.

Sono nata e cresciuta guardando crime e posso giurarvi che alla lunga questo drama mi ha stancato.
La storia, post rinascita, segue la caccia al serial killer che ha preso particolarmente di mira uno dei due protagonisti, poiché ne aveva causato la morte. Il problema più grande nel catturarlo sta nel fatto che anche lui è stato riportato in vita dall'Abyss e ha "cambiato" aspetto.
Nel minestrone di rinascite cascheranno diversi personaggi che ruotano attorno ai protagonisti e che francamente non ho capito.
Secondo le regole dell'Abyss, questo oggetto è capace di riportare in vita una persona ma con l'aspetto della sua anima.
Ma allora perché Cha Min ha le fattezze di uno che non si è mai visto mentre Go Se-yeon di una ragazza che conosce? Perché qualcuno invecchia mentre qualcun altro è sempre uguale?
Boh.
Questa cosa non viene minimamente spiegata, ma tutto ciò gioca a favore del drama, perché ciò lo fa dilungare a dismisura giustificando una durata di 16 episodi con avvenimenti e introduzione di personaggi che potevano stare dov'erano visto l'uso che ne è stato fatto.
Sarebbe stata più breve senza l'Abyss.
Ma sicuramente più bella.
È stato il mio "amore" per il crime che mi ha spinto a portarlo a termine, perché dopo 12 episodi volevo mollarlo.
All'inizio mi aveva anche intrigato parecchio, poi mi sono cascate le braccia.
Troppo,
TROPPO lungo.
...
Ah e gli alieni?
Beh, si fanno vedere nel primo episodio poi stop.
Puff.

Leia Mais

run and don't look back

I went into this drama with very high hopes as I am a huge fan of fantasy, crime, and mystery. So one would think that this drama would be a gold mine, right? Wrong. Very, very lackluster. Messy plot, messy lore. Loved the cast, but even they seem to fall short with what they were given. In the end, it's all really a letdown, I'm used to dramas being a bit slow in the first few episodes and picking up somewhere in the middle. That didn't happen with this one. The characters were about as smart as a sack of potatoes, just dumb down to a ridiculous point and it has you wondering how they got their jobs in the first place. It was like the writers had no clear vision of what they wanted to do. Overall, for my short review, I do not recommend this drama for even a first watch--- unless there's absolutely nothing left to watch.

Leia Mais

Story Suckss !!

The performances were great. Both the leads performed out nicely.

The story was great initially but later turned out to be quite messy and complicated. There were many things which could have been explained better.

Also the last part is something which makes it responsible for the low rating from my side.. when the FL finds out she is pregnant with the ML's child she is worried he would be ugly like how the ML looked earlier. This was such a big turnoff for me honestly... because the FL claimed to have loved him even earlier before his face was changed due to the abyss yet she was concerned about looks. This just made me feel presentation of a shallow love story which didn't go beyond looks.


so it is a five and a half out of ten. And the ratings are for the hardwork, acting and bomb chemistry of the actors.

Leia Mais

Complicated plot but very fun

This show has such a great concept! It's very fun and the plot is very interesting.

It's a big commitment to make - for me, the plot dragged on sometimes - but it's definitely worth it. It has the perfect blend of plot development and character development which a lot of other shows lack. The mystery and crime aspects were so well written! I was always at the edge of my seat. As well as this, the romance is perfect. You will not be disappointed with this show.

Pros:
Fun characters
Great romance
INCREDIBLE concept and plot
Lots of mystery
Ending makes you SOB
1st part of episode 1 is hilarious!
Satisfying ending

Cons:
Episodes can drag on sometimes
Has a time jump and the end (sorry but I hate those)

Leia Mais

This Abyss is really scary. the girlfriend Han So-hee as Jang Hee-jin. Cha Min's fiancée who mysteriously disappears before the wedding. She is being held captive by the serial murderer Lee Sung-jae as Oh Yeong-cheol A skilled surgeon who is referred to as a legend in the medical community. He says: “When humans are no longer useful they are just like bugs” after he runs her over. His own daughter.

This is freaky he’s (Ahn Hyo-seop as Cha Min) died twice now and the temporary owner of the Abyss is(Park Bo-young as Go Se-yeon) and she’s terrified. She doesn’t know what to do………….. cliffhanger wait for the next episode. Oh no the next revived was not her but the murderer. Is he going to really die now???

This is a tense, stressful and scary movie. I think that it is a bit of a horror story, even though two of the main characters are so handsome. One of them is a murderer same as his dad. So far I have discover, there are three killers. The worst serial killers has killed so many people. He has a son and a daughter(Han So-hee as Jang Hee-jin), he had his daughter imprisoned in an underground prison, she has escaped she is not a killer. She was the fiancee of the main character (Ahn Hyo-seop as Cha Min). He (Lee Sung-jae as Oh Yeong-cheol) has a son (Kwon Soo-hyun as Seo Ji-wook) a handsome one who is a prosecution lawyer but, who is a killer. He(Oh Yeong-cheol) has a wife who he told his son to kidnap. So this is the genealogy of a killers family.

This drama updates every week. I started this over a month ago. I have been watching it off and on but I’m not keeping up to date. It frightens me so much. Those two killer guys are so clever and now they have got a girl helping them. The killer has got the Abyss.

I’m going to finish watching this all the episodes are up and I’ve calmed myself down for the next episodes.

Funniest proposal ever: Lee Si-eon as Park Dong-cheol and his girlfriend. He says he doesn’t want to inconvenience Mi-do and promises to just be on guard and stay out of the way, then proceeds to pester her until she literally throttles him. She’s screaming about how annoying he is, but he blurts out, “Let’s try it! Marriage. Let’s give it a try.” While Mi-do is stunned silent, he puts a diamond ring in her hand. Mi-do bursts into tears, and Dong-chul (clearly at his most romantic) smacks her and threatens to take the ring back if she doesn’t stop.

Second time he had to revive a serial killer Kwon Soo-hyun as Seo Ji-wook to tell him where Park Bo-young as Go Se-yeon or she’ll die. This part is so stressful his sister has run him over and killed him because he has killed their mother.

What doesn’t sit well with me is even though Kwon Soo-hyun as Seo Ji-wook was a serial killer he should not have been convicted of the murder of Park Bo-young as Go Se-yeon because she was still alive.

Yass! I managed to watch the whole thing but the ending got complicated and I’m not sure that I got it. I’ll have to watch it again someday. Anyway viewers watch this if your into science fiction, fantasy, magical themes and make up you own mind whether you liked it or not. I liked it with some reservations about the clarity of the story line and the confusing ending.

Leia Mais