DUDE. THIS KDRAMA WAS PERFECT.
I've been WAITING to say this for awhile cos the last few dramas that I watched was...ugheeeh subpar and forgettable (HomeCha, Nevertheless, My Mister, Vincenzo-- sorry if they're your favs >< )

I didn't have many expectations for this drama as I wasn't particularly a fan of any of the actors here, I also find kdramas that try to cover 'taboo' topics to be really half-assed and over-simplistic. The only thing that piqued my interest was that it's about ...cults haha.

First episode in and I wasn't immediately a fan of it. I found it to be "too much" and I could not really take it seriously.
But when the story of Sang Im's family kickstarted, there was like no turning back. Every single sub-plot just had a domino effect to the next plot and to the next, you just have to keep going...and it was just SO SO SO interestingg..
*side note: the opening plot of Sang Jin being bullied was honestly so...well-done. I've watched a few kdramas with bullying backstories but it always feels so cringy and stupid. Or...extremely over-exagerated. This was one somehow managed to communicate itself in an honest and real way.

I frankly did NOT expect it to cover such a ... controversial topic in such depth. To be honest, I found it to be more interesting and nuanced than a typical cults documentary.
I myself have bad experiences with similar cultish practices, and I was genuinely surprised to see such nuanced fleshing out on TV. They don't really really go too deep to explain everything, so for someone who's completely new to these practices, they might find it confusing. But for me, it was genuinely so interesting to learn that cultish practices do not look too strange at first.
I also like how they never used the "cultishness" as a mere plot device to make the whole drama feel abit darker-- it is in fact a very integral part of the drama that the audience is forced to confront themselves with.

In general, Save Me is one of the rare kdramas out there that stays consistent to what it sets out to cover, without compromising themselves for fan service or product placements or anything that netflix-produced dramas does not seem to get these days ==
It is genuine, heartfelt, but also very very daring and bold in covering such a sensitive subject. but the best of it all-- it is careful to not be self-indulgent in making itself a 'makjang' drama...which I think many kdramas seem to do nowadays...

I must mention that there are still some flaws in the drama that makes it very skippable. Some scenes DO feel like it's just trying to make it more nerving without any real substance to the plot. Some characters literally do not make sense. and some scenes just feels abit naive... like if they were THAT scary (from ep1-7) how can they be so dumb in certain scenes??

Nevertheless, a perfect drama for me and I am sad that it will be awhile before I say this again. Had loads of fun binging this within 3 days. Thanks for the mmrs :')

**extra-side note on acting: I didn't like Taecyeon in Vincenzo (not just cause he was the bad guy, like i genuinely found him annoying in earlier eps) but he came off as rather charming to me here. Woo Do Hwan always knew how to charm me <3 but this might be my fav role of his. Didn't know Seo Yea Ji before but I really enjoyed her acting here! Was also pleasantly surprised to see Jeon Yeo Been here! (She is SUCH a shapeshifter, she looked SO different here I almost couldn't recognise her. Really liked her in Vincenzo and esp Be Melodramatic.) Park Ji Young (Apostle Kang) also gave a commendable performance, I honestly think she was the best out of everyone. Sang Mi's father was also not bad, I was so scared of him. I was more scared of the father than the cult leader tbh.
the -1.5 in acting was because I did not like the rest of the cast's acting...they felt really tacky.