Not every show needs to be a masterpiece. Every now and then there will be regular dramas like this popping up that don’t try to be unique but do its job to entertain you. Do you remember one of those cartoons that you enjoyed watching when you were younger? The ones where it has a new chapter every episode and it finishes the story of the day at the end of it? The experience while watching Flex X Cop is pretty much that- simple yet satisfying enough for you to want to come back and watch the next one. This was a great journey following this chaebol-turned-cop as he tries to find his true purpose in the world; absolutely got my full attention from episode 1.

I’ve got to start by talking about the dynamics between the two leads because that is what drives the show for me. The relationship between Jin Yi Soo (flex cop) and Lee Kang Hyun (lady cop) was so well-written and crafted. It just felt..natural? Nothing between them felt forced or scripted despite this being primarily a very cliched drama. It felt like I was watching two real people getting to know each other better and better after each episode. This drama did a great job in this regard and I am a fan of this slow and subtle growth blossoming between them. There is something addictive between these two that keeps me coming back for more; Tom and Jerry-esque. Thank you writers for not forcing any romance onto the pair, they look better as frenemies than lovers imo. Camaraderie over romance!

I know this is a detective-mystery-crime-themed show but I urge you to not go into it with that as the focus. It is a series of mini cases that grows in complexity before it gets to the overarching mysteries of both the lead’s parents. When it comes to the crime-solving and mystery around the cases..it is really basic but engaging enough to keep watching. I won't say the cases are boring..it just feels like..it is not the main course? The villains are not genius masterminds, the cases are not complex with layers and it is not too difficult to guess the plot around it. It actually feels to me like an extended version of the mafia game. Not designed to be complex, can get rather fun and the murderer is within your sight waiting to be caught so don’t think too hard and play along! The majority of the cases will eventually be set up to make JYS shine with his inherent knowledge/capabilities of being a rich, influential online celebrity chaebol as his unfair advantage but I find myself somewhat fine with it as it was actually pretty fun watching him do it. I found myself rooting for him more than anything.

I also like how the show does not dilly-dally with the details or try to make it overly emotional or complicated with the dialogues and story and lets the show naturally take us to the answers at the right time. The pacing and development of this show is one of the better ones I have seen to be fair and it is the simple basic things like this that I thought the show excelled in. This is a show that manages to keep its momentum in its own simple way and gets better and better as it goes.

However like I said at the beginning, this is most definitely not a masterpiece and there are still major flaws with it. Despite me not taking it seriously, there are still some things in there that are too ridiculous and scream lazy writing that I found it hard to ignore. I was supposed to accept that JYS was able to hypnotise a doctor SPECIALISED at it?..or that he could ram a helicopter into the back of a car without injuring anybody? An invisible drone..really?? Some of the events that helped them solve the cases do leave a little sour taste behind for how ridiculous it was. He is also the only person who can pull clues out of nowhere despite him being the only rookie play-cop. Also, scenes without the two leads together do suffer a massive drop in quality for me. I found most parts of the show without them involved together to be rather noneventful. Towards the tail end, the dynamics between the two leads that captured my attention at the beginning gradually became not so enough for me to be invested in the same way. The hype does fizzle out towards the end because after all there’s not much substance to the drama in the first place. I don’t find myself running to it immediately when it releases new episodes for the week anymore tho not bad enough for me to drop it completely.

Amidst the influx of shows with amazing casts in recent weeks, Flex x Cop was a really pleasant surprise. It was something light that I do not feel compelled to follow tightly weekly but good enough for me to pick it back up sometime in the week for a decent time. It does have a little bit of everything you want in a drama. Would I recommend it? Not really. Will you enjoy it if you still decide to watch it? I think very likely so.

**My favourite scene in the show that lives rent-free in my head till today: Jin Yi Soo whipping out a gold crafted handcuffs because he was not allowed to carry a gun…and Kyunjin playing along with him by getting arrested…also that slap might be one of the most satisfying slaps in I have seen in K-drama...I replayed that whiplash of a slap many many times...