O Jogo da Morte Parte 2 (2024)

Darker, deeper more bloodey ok 2nd part.

The second part of this drama took the otherwise "light" plot and turned it darker, much darker and wondered in to the depths of the psychopaths mind in a beautiful display of blood and art. Giving it a completely different feel to it and making it smart, kind of disgusting and pretty interesting... Consequences of actions unfold as the screen is covered with blood, lots and lots of blood.

But then came the cringe of the last episode a long with some cliches so I found myself lowering the score a bit.

It is still a relatively good watch that does not take the issue of suicide lightly while exploring it from a whole bunch of angles... one of the better attempts but it just misses its mark...

There is a clear difference between the 2 parts, not enough to motivate splitting it in two but the two parts are indeed very different. the guest actors keep on impressing and there is still just a little bit to much yelling and crying out loud for my personal taste...

What can i say, get ready to explore some gore... And watch out for that last episode.

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A stellar cast comes together to deliver a flawed message

Before I get into what I loved about Part 2, I wanna touch on my overall main issue with this otherwise good drama. So getting right into it, I never expected this drama to move the needle as far as addressing the societal problems SK has that leads many to commit suicide. However, I also didn't expect the overall message to lean towards blaming the victim for doing such a "selfish" misdeed either.

Continuing from Part 1, the theme has been pretty consistent in wrapping things up in Part 2: the ML is so preoccupied with his own troubles that he didn't stop to take a look at the suffering of those around him. It is this misstep that has led him to do the very selfish act of taking his own life in the first place. After all, it's his fault for not continuing to endure his suffering for the sake of his loved ones like the rest of us. Hahaha loser. Of course I stated that in jest, but that isn't far off from what was depicted.

Let's make this clear: the ML is pretty selfish (but not for THAT reason) and has taken life for granted. However, these character flaws shouldn't have been the crutch of why he took his own life. Furthermore, he shouldn't have received punishment because of this. He couldn't see the struggles of those around him because he too was suffering. This doesn't invalidate his suffering, though. This isn't some Christmas Carol Scrooge-like situation where a nasty mean old man gets confronted with his misdeeds and is forced to change his ways or meet a grim fate. We feel empathy for the ML because he is a good person who has a hard life. Those of us who have been in the trenches of depression and suicidal thoughts know what it's like to struggle to hold on. It's not his fault for giving up.

The ML has worked hard for years only to not see the fruits of his labor because society continued to beat him while he was down. Not only that, but once he took his life, he met death who damn near guilt tripped him to hell (literally). Why? Because he's selfish. He treated "meeting death before death comes to meet him "as no big deal. He should've lived and continue to take what life throws at him. It's a good concept on paper, but in action it fails to see suicide from a broader perspective. This is not quite the message someone who has worked hard but still struggled for many years would want to hear and sadly there isn't enough positive thinking in the world that can solve deep rooted issues that society has caused. Don't get me wrong, I see the intent behind depicting the ML go through so much when he was alive, but to enter into the body of someone who got "thrown away" by his family and society (The 11th life where the salaryman loses his job he gave his youth to and his family), only to have the message remain "don't be selfish you loser! Think of your loved ones!" is hard to understand.

So, the few surface level criticisms on the pressures society place on its citizens were nice, but it never attempted to scratch beneath that layer of comfortability to get to the real uncomfortable conversations about why folks consider suicide in the first place. Of course no one's gonna call out or point the finger at the culprits and again, wasn't expecting them to. But to outright pull the victim blaming card was...a choice. There were better options to convey the point but I get the writer wanted to play it safe by doing what is considered a less controversial/ narrower depiction of suicide.

All of that out the way, I still love this drama. I'm not so jaded by life's many struggles not to enjoy every piece of content that misses the mark on depicting sensitive subject matters. The acting and cinematography were top notch. And the music, while not highlighted in every episode, was pretty good as well. Overall, there's enough to love about this drama that'll keep you tuned in. Twists and turns leading up to the finale should keep most satisfied.

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Thought-Provoking Drama with Mixed Suicide Messages

I must admit, I found this show to be quite captivating, yet I couldn't ignore the excessive focus on penalizing Yi Jae for his life-altering decision. It's worth noting that the show is backed by the Korean government, specifically in the realm of sports and culture, and given Korea's high suicide rates tied to work culture (a universal issue), this messaging felt off-putting. While the intention to convey the importance of finding purpose and the beauty in life is evident, the active punishment of someone who has chosen to end their life seems counterproductive. As someone who strongly relates to Yi Jae, this aspect of the narrative left me feeling uneasy.

Nevertheless, the stellar acting in this drama deserves applause, evoking powerful emotions within me, especially during the portrayal of the last body Yi Jae inhabits – a truly moving moment. The versatility of Seo In Guk, making it seem like he effortlessly stepped into various characters, is commendable.

The storyline also held my interest, with the concept of living in another person's body being a personal fascination of mine. Observing how the director navigated this plot added an enjoyable and intriguing dimension. Additionally, the inclusion of another plotline that Yi Jae is unraveling, beyond his own demise, brought an extra layer of complexity.

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A good conclusion to the story with some predictability but impactful with its great cast

This is the second part (and conclusion) to the drama Death's Game in 4 episodes. I quite enjoyed the story, it took some very interesting turns with once again the incarnations being the main stars of the series. There was some predictability with the ending and I wish as a viewer to have been treated to a longer epilogue but there is a certain beauty in ending the series like that.

The cast remains fabulous with some of the new incarnations shining through in various ways depending on their backstories. I particularly enjoyed the 8th and 9th reincarnations which were the most developed with the expected 12th reincarnation as well. Kim Ji Hoon really once again impressed me, so far I have seen him playing extreme characters and I'm curious to see him in other type of roles because he was crazily impactful here.

The production value is as stated in my review of Part 1 quite outstanding and I still enjoyed a lot the ending song for each episode (which was kinda the unique music of the series). I loved the titles of each episodes, super insightful and I found the gore and violence really well done with some truly horrific and frightening sequences.

I would recommend this to people that have seen Part 1 of course. It is a proper conclusion to the story, it does not aim for subtlety but is impactful. The performance of the cast (from both Part 1 and Part 2) makes it a very good watch even if there are some little things I wish would have been a bit more developed regarding the lore itself. As Part 1, be aware that this series is super violent and graphic, so you might want to check the tags if you have any trigger.

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Perfection

To be honest, I've never written a drama review, but after watching this I decided to write my first review. A very beautiful drama teaches different perspectives on death and life, even I was not aware of the meaning of death when he blamed the main character for selfishness at every opportunity he was given to start a new life. The storyline is very fresh, even my guesses always fail every time I guess what will happen in each episode, it closes with a very beautiful ending. Perfection, watch this drama at least once in your life, this drama will change your perspective on life.

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A masterpiece for everyone

Couldn't wait for Part 2.

Let me start light: it has all my favorite kdrama actors and they made me feel every bit of their charachers emotions. Well, Kim Jae Wook with long hair tottaly throw me of the meaning of the first episode (ladies will understand) and seeing Kim Ji Hoon as a bad guy after "Love To Hate You", just proved that he can be more than a second-male lead (Do stick to romances though, chebal!) . Park So Dam as Death is... well, if you have watched it (OR WHEN YOU WATCH IT), just great.

Now, to the heavy stuff: we can go around the Butterfly effect and everything being connected, but let me share a personal story.

I have a friend, who's brother commited suicide around my frieds birthday. He is over 40 and still refuses to celebrate it, because he never saw it coming: his brother being in such a dark place. I had not met his brother while he was still alive, but still, everytime around my friends birthday, we all feel it: how one's choice could affect strangers even after death.

We all have had hard times and difficulties to face, but I refuse to believe that there is not a single soul in the whole world, we could reach for help: it's the matter of asking for it. Maybe pride gets in the way or we have become too independent and do not want to burden others with our troubles and pain, but if you feel even a little bit like this, PLEASE, WATCH THIS: there are more people in this world that love you, care about you, love spending time with you and do want to see you again than you can imagine!

Starting crying in episode 2, so I am still a bit emotional about this, but that is my take from these series.

And his last incarnation, once he gets the memories back... (Well, I know whom I will hug super hard tomorrow).

There will be Part 3, right?

Get the tissues ready and enjoy to have another look at the people around you.

Maybe one of our New Years resolutions (that we actually keep) should be: Be more caring and loving to the people around and remember, that you are loved too.

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WOW --- Now who am I?

In this review, I will include some thoughts on Part 1 as well. I honestly wasn't invested from the start. I had a really hard time following the first two episodes, because they couldn't catch me. That's why I put the drama aside and watched others first. I am so glad, that I continued watching. The show was getting better and better. Especially when we got to see Lee Jae Wook's and Lee Do Hyun's stories. By the end of episode 4 I was devestated. And shocked to see my theory, that the two bodies we were seeing were Yi Jae and an innocent person he killed with his suicide, was wrong. I still think that this theory would have made sense for Death's reasoning to punish Yi Jae. But the Drama went a different direction. After Part 1 I was excited for Part 2... and part 2 did not disappoint.

Some thoughts:
- These "reincarnations" I found especially intriguing: Cho tae Sang (Lee Jae Wook), Jang Geon Woo (Lee Do Hyun), Jung Gyu Chul (Kim Jae Wook) and Ahn Ji Hyung (Oh Jung Se)
- I personally preferred Part 2 to Part 1, which is really refreshing to see since it's often enough the other way around
- It felt like Part 2 took more time to really explore each of the characters (even though some characters fell short in Part 1 and 2, the Baby & the homeless Man for example)
- I really enjoyed the narrative of the drama... it made you wonder why and how each "reincarnation" was going to die
- The drama hooked you to see if Yi Jae finally learned... he appears to not be the brightest star in the sky (a german saying... don't know if it's actually translatable). But the way he acted as Ahn Ji Hyung (the police officer) was really satisfying to watch
- Him being as Ahn Ji Hyung was captivating and the drama led you to think this was going to end painless and guess what ... it didn't
- The drama made me think and reflect and what's actually important and what not. It moved something inside me. And a drama that can grab my attention, hold it and eventually leads to interesting topics and contemplation, is a 10/10 candidate... and here we are :)
- Do I personally loathe people that decide to take their own life like Death does in this series? Absoluteley not!!! But this drama felt more like a personal process and message to Yi Jae as a character who was unable to see and feel the love and devotion of his mother and girlfriend. It leads attention to those people who are left behind after losing a dear person. That's the way I interpret this drama.
- I mean it could be that we have to take into consideration that in this drama God exists... but I don't want to start a religious discussion and instead interpret the drama like I said in the point before, since that's the way I watched it
- The way everything and the characters were connected is amazing. It made the Story feel more cohesive and well-rounded
- At the end the story felt circular
- I loved the OST
- Made me think "Who am I?" and "At the end, what's actually important?"

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2023-2024 MASTERPIECE NO ONE COMPARE TO THIS SHOW

THIS SHOW HAS EVERTHING THAT YOU WOULD WANTED IN A SHOW.(I mean in genre wise like thriller, action, mystery.....etc).
👇
They just nelled it this show is super Oh Jung Se(12th reincarnation as police officer)
and
Kim Jae Wook (as the pshyco murderor ) there perfomace is super ousome super
Ha Byung Hoon ( director and screenwriter ) did a super job and made a masterpeice for 2023-2024 cool man.
and i heard it was a manga adopted the manga writer (LEE WONSIK ) made a very good story super cool story
when i watching the show it feel like LEE WONSIK himself lives 12 lives or how he come up with this story it super awsome how he write it and how director make it in a show that is awsome.

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A WHOLE NEW EXPERIENCE!

At first I thought of this drama as any other highly hyped drama but even then I had high hopes for the show after watching the thrilling synopsis and trailer which is quite hard to find at atleast something which is to my liking.. bu oh lord ! this drama actually disregarded every little doubts that I had, leaving me astonished at such a masterpiece..I would prefer calling it an experience more than a drama given that I enjoyed every moment of it.
Well ngl I was quite contemplated towards the casting of the main characters, not doubting their acting skills but more like them fitting their respective roles perfectly or not and to my pleasant surprise they totally served it!! that I can't even imagine anyone else playing their roles... And ofc I don't need to mention the side characters and the guest roles, as we all know what they are capable of after being such renowned actors and actresses and we totally acknowledge it..
overall everything about the show was fav.. but what needs special mentioning is the exceptional story and the enlightening message ( though I found ridiculing the choices made by Yi jae were rather passive aggressive and demeaning which can demoralize the person suffering from the same )(to which we all know the increasing suicide rates in not only Korea but in the world as a whole).
This drama removes the dark tinted glasses of hopelessness from people who view the world and the god as someone biased towards some privileged people and ultimately gives up on living through the inevitable hardships of life..but this drama makes them see the world through a different perspective where there are both 'sunny and rainy days', where no one is endlessly happy or sad where giving up on life out of extreme stress and hopelessness is not an answer . This show shows us that life is beautiful as it is with its flaws and scars, we just need to learn to accept it.

This show for me was like an affirmation to my beliefs towards life and god and I absolutely loved it!!
Hope you guess will find something positive within, too till then bye-bye
XOXO

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I love this but...

The first part of the drama was an absolute masterpiece! It went from mystery -> thriller -> romance in such a short span yet they managed to give an emotional fulfillment with each episode. The second part was all about intense action & bloody revenge against the villain and then bam! a whole episode of life lesson and guilt tripping suicidal people. Don't misunderstand me! I love this drama, that's why I give it a high rating. But, something about that last episode doesn't sit right with me. I get that they are trying to give moral message by saying that we should be grateful for living. But, well.. not everyone has the same 'blessing' as Choi Yee Jae by having a caring mom & girlfriend as his support system.

The acting was no doubt, perfect! All these actors was living up to my expectation.

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Cherish the ONE life you got

Damn, this drama was so good. It held me on the edge of my seat constantly, and it delivered. The ending was just a chef's kiss. Everyone should give it a watch and understand how much their absence will affect others. The acting was great, and so many actors made it a masterpiece. As Ah in Jeong said, every good story has a lot of twists, and so does Death Game. 8 episodes, and every episode is a masterpiece in itself. I am probably praising it a lot because of recency bias but I recommend this to every human. Just stay quiet and watch this masterpiece without any second thought.

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Overall entertaining

Good points: I enjoyed each cast performance, it was action packed without any dull/ boring moment, drama managed to deliver multiple genres action, thriller, melodrama, romance while bringing up heavy society issues in just 8 eps.
Bad points: Drama was too gory for my taste in some scenes and i`m fed up with cliche psycho chaebol villain. I saw some comments of some people having issues with ending message, but i`m just taking whole drama at face value. It`s fictional story about one character and his journey. Viewers shouldn`t expect drama to be realistic or solve society issues

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