Vigilante (2023)

Afraid of Blood? Don't Watch!

I swear, if you are afraid of blood, don't watch the Korean drama "Vigilante". Many sadistic scenes are presented, such as criminals being strangled with chains, a herd of pigs tearing apart the bodies of living humans who are tied up, the necks of people (still alive) being sliced with grinding knives, and many more.

What is the director's reason for presenting it? Because death, blood and violence always attract attention. Remember the story of the massacre at the Colosseum which made Ancient Romans flock to watch?

In the modern age, boxing matches that leave boxers bleeding and bruised are very popular. Meanwhile at the grassroots, people like cockfighting and fighting until one of the fighters is injured or dies.

Not surprisingly, a study found that around 90% of high-grossing films feature scenes of main characters involved in violence.

I watched the Korean drama "Vigilante" because this drama was played by Nam Joo-Hyuk. A tall, handsome actor, whose last appearance I saw was in the Korean drama "Twenty Five Twenty One". It feels like it's been a long time.

And like the previous drama, Nam Joo-Hyuk's acting never disappoints. Moreover, his partner is Lee Joon-Hyuk, an actor who often plays antagonists.

In the Korean drama "Vigilante", Lee Joon-Hyuk as Jo Gang-Ok is a refreshing drama with a dark nuance and "smells" of rancid blood.

In contrast to Kim Ji-Yong (Nam Joo-Hyuk), who is cold and quiet, the character of the rich man, Jo Gang-Ok, appears sloppy and often carries his own karep.

Choi Mi-Ryeo, the journalist, is a balancing character between the two. So that viewers can enjoy the Korean drama "Vigilante" which tells the story of a student facing a big criminal, more comfortably.

The next review can be read here: https://www.maria-g-soemitro.com/2024/03/vigilante-takut-darah-jangan-nonton.html

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Ottimo ritratto dell'antieroe stratega

Desideravo vedere questa serie da parecchio tempo...Non disegno i classici eroi, ma gli antieroi mi piacciono di più. Il fascino di un personaggio che ha principi, morale e regole tutte sue, e che non sempre collimano col "buono" che va a braccetto con la giustizia e la correttezza che - talvolta con piena ipocrisia - il resto del mondo sembra inseguire. L'armatura scintillante - senza macchia! e senza paura - del principe azzurro si opacizza all'istante, al confronto!
Fin dalle prime scene ho potuto apprezzare la qualità della serie, le riprese, i dialoghi, il ritmo. Partiamo dall'unica pecca: la totale assenza di romance. Per me è un elemento un po' indispensabile, ma devo dire che ci sono state alcune - poche a dire il vero - serie talmente belle che ho un po' perdonato la mancanza. Con questo non voglio dire che pretendevo una love story che facesse da pilastro portante (come in "Healer", che ha davvero molto in comune con questa serie, dall'azione, al ritmo, al classico Badass Male Lead, solo i toni differiscono, qui nettamente più cupi e violenti), mi sarei accontentata anche di un semplice accenno di romance (come in "Vincenzo", altra serie simile con un fantastico personaggio che per sconfiggere i cattivi deve diventare piu cattivo dei cattivi). Vigilante mi ricorda molto queste due serie, tra le mie preferite. Non solo, la trama per certi versi è anche più complessa e imprevedibile: si da allo spettatore l'illusione di aver colto degli indizi, di aver capito tutto, per poi farlo cadere in pieno nel tranello. Davvero, ho cambiato idea e fatto ipotesi così tante volte durante gli episodi, con personaggi che passavano dal lato buono a quello cattivo, poi forse ancora al lato buono, per poi farmi venire nuovamente il dubbio... Ciò che serve per mantenere alta l'attenzione e la curiosità. Dicevo, la trama è complessa e il nostro Vigilante è un buon stratega (e qui non posso esimermi dal paragone con "Doctor Prisoner", dove il protagonista interpretato da Namgoong Min è un Machiavelli per eccellenza). L'attore protagonista non ha lasciato a dire il vero il segno, l'ho apprezzato ma ho avuto la sensazione sia rimasto un po' nell'indefinito, non so se è un limite dell'attore o l'esigenza di mantenere un protagonista con un basso profilo. C'è poi quello che ho soprannominato "il pazzoide", alias il suo fan numero uno, fuori come un balcone e che fino a oltre metà della serie ancora non ero riuscita a inquadrare correttamente; buona la prova della giornalista, non un concentrato di simpatia a pelle e nemmeno di empatia, ma complessivamente credibile come personaggio; infine c'è lui, Cho Heon, interpretato da un Yoo Ji Tae che non rivedevo dai tempi di Healer e che nel frattempo, oltre ai segni evidenti del decennio trascorso, si presenta decisamente irrobustito e pronto a sfoggiare una forza da Incredibile Hulk. Con i suoi due neo-acquisiti scagnozzi - due impiastri di furfanti mezzi incapaci che mi ricordano Pena e Panico, tirapiedi di Ade nel classico della Disney - direi che avremmo una squadra al completo per affrontare una seconda stagione e - chissà - infilarci dentro finalmente il tanto atteso romance. Le premesse per un sequel, scene finali comprese - ci sarebbero tutte, ma temo non sia la volontà di chi ha realizzato questa trasposizione (è un adattamento di un webtoon). Comunque sia, sequel o meno, resta davvero un gran bel drama. Consigliatissimo!

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THAT WAS SATISFYING!!

Vigilante was such a thrilling ride!! I enjoyed every bit of it. It's always good to watch dramas that fight against the corrupted system & this provided such a satisfaction. The plot was so good and the action scenes were so satisfying to watch!!

Loved how it started off with Jiyong alone but slowly we built up a gang with our fan, the reporter and finally even the cop joined us and they all protected him because they knew that someone had to fight against the system atleast that way

Nam Joo Hyuk nailed his role as Jiyong & all the actors did a great job!! The ending showed that one man can't changed the system that easily & the corruption won't stop but Jiyong and the gang will also not stop fighting against it so we NEED another season with all 4 of them working together and fighting corruption

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impressive, worth the watch!

The acting was really top notch, like Yoo Ji Tae actually builded up for this role, i'm really impressed , like wow , what a transformation!!
All the protagonists did a really good job, i really appreciated Nam joo hyuk 's acting here, he did improved throughout the years.
Since he is enlisting soon or maybe he has already enlisted, we may not had a second season that soon.
I enjoyed the watch, it wasn't boring.
I was rooting for the "vigilante" lol. I get where he came from, and yes at the end of the day it actually seems like the bad guys win.
9/10 because it was an easy watch, and yes i want to boost the ratings on this one lol!

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You won't be dissapointed

The plot is thick here, the main characters are generally fleshed out well, each with their backstory and own motivations, The acting is generally very top notch and even though I feel there was a missed opportunity by not having the vigilantes and the police officer interact with each other more at the same time, it generally delivered.

BUT I feel like it gets a bit rushed, feels like some important parts missed the cut and I think it was remiss of them to not include more episodes, however the director and the producer's still did very well with the episode range given, just feel like 2 more episodes would have allowed them to come as close to perfection as they could.

Also, I have to mention seeing bad guys not getting off lightly realled endeared to me.

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The differences between Disney/Hulu K-Dramas is interesting

Barring my disappointment that Seonwook was hardly in the show and died anyway (?) this show was okay for a thriller/action drama. It’s still a bit jarring seeing k dramas with this much knife play, blood, and violence in general. The dramas produced for Hulu & Netflix always feel different.

The writing, particularly the scenes about philosophy and morality, were quite heavy handed. There’s a scene where Jiyong and Seonwook play basketball and Jiyong is wearing a black shirt and Seonwook is wearing a white one. We get it; Seonwook believed in reform and second chances and Jiyong thought using crime to fight crime was the answer. I really wish they’d done more to push Seonwook as a character because it just made his death feel unearned (?) because he wasn’t that much of a presence. He was just cute and believed the system could work. Why did he have to die?

Reporter Choi’s character was confusing to me. At the start of the drama, it felt way too over the top. The “okay” thing was odd. I appreciate that she was a tenacious reporter and despite people dying because of some strange choices she made, a lot of things wouldn’t have happened without her.

Honestly, the story beats already reminded me of Daredevil or your average vigilante hero story. The way characters were just tossing grown men through the air, it felt like there was some super soldier serum going around.

Anyway, it’s not my favorite vigilante story, but I thought the lead actor was good and it kept my attention.

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RESEÑA <3

No tengo palabras para explicar lo bueno que es este drama. Desde el primer segundo del capítulo uno, hasta el último segundo del capítulo final, te mantiene con intriga. No quería ni pestañear por si me perdía algo importante.

Digamos que es un drama algo diferente.

Los actores son demasiado buenos y el personaje principal es Nam Joo-Hyuk, el actor de veinticinco veintiuno.

Hay escenas de acción y en ningún momento te esperas lo que puede ocurrir a continuación.

De verdad, no me cansaré de decir que este drama es fantástico.

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GOODDDD

I started the series with a lot of excitement since there were two elements that I LOVE: Nam Joohyuk ofc lol and the fact that it's an action/crime series.
To be honest the first part was so good but I don't know about the second part... I got a little lost, maybe it was my fault but I think I would have preferred a different dynamic between the characters.
It was DEFINITELY too short but apparently there will be a sequel AND THIS IS GOOD, I CAN'T WAIT.
Nam Joohyuk's acting gave me goosebumps and it's not the first time, I hope to see him again soon (we miss you <3)
Overall I really recommend it!

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Good Enough

Korean Drama '' Vigilante '' is a webtoon-based action drama.

The theme of the drama is quite interesting, and there are a lot of crime cases that are dark and intense. The antihero twist was also nicely handled, and the performances of the main leads were strong enough to support the plot.

However, the drama suffered from its short length. Halfway through, things started getting rushed and the story didn't develop as smoothly as it should. At least the action scenes were enjoyable.

So, overall, six out of ten for the Korean Drama '' Vigilante ''.

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Could have been far better!

The story of a dark hero leading a dual life fighting for justice has always been a popular one. Most of us have grown up watching the likes of Batman. Now we are presented with a Korean webtoon adaptation of the dark hero character called Vigilante who fights crime in the shadows and doesn't mind to kill.
But the story doesn't seem much appeasing as the events could be predicted pretty easily from the early parts of the story. The life of the connected characters' and how they ended up where they were at that point in time should've been better flushed out. Instead all we get is just simple brooding MC and his vigilantism activities. But the funny thing is that the MC doesn't even bother covering his face in a well CCTV connected country like South Korea and he gets away with it every time.
Hope the next season, if it happens, have a decent storyline and better flushed out characters.
Here hoping and even with all its faults I have to admit this really was a good one time watch.

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