Flower of Evil (2020)

Surprisingly Disappointed

*SPOILERS BELOW*

On the surface, Baek Hee-seung appears to live a perfect life. He has a beautiful wife and daughter, who he absolutely adores; however, he is hiding a dark secret. Hyun-soo is the son of a serial killer, and after a tragic accident, he takes on the identity of Baek Hee-seung, who is in a coma. When Hee-seung's wife, a detective, begins to investigate a series of murders, she begins to wonder if her "perfect" husband is hiding something from her. Sounds interesting, right? Sadly, while the synopsis sounds promising, Flower of Evil did not deliver and left me disappointed.

I was excited to start watching this series after a handful of people insisted that I watch it. I will be honest, the first couple of episodes held my attention, unlike any other k-drama before. The beginning episodes had me on the edge of my seat, and the anticipation of waiting for the next episodes nearly killed me. I had come to understand why people asserted this drama as one of the best k-dramas. Yet, after the show's first half, I slowly became displeased. I now think that this drama does not deserve the title of the best k-drama ever. My reasons are listed below.

Likes:
- The cast has excellent acting performances, especially Lee Joon-gi and Moon Chae-won! Everyone delivered!
- The plot is different, but not in a bad way. The main story is unique and not something many shows have done before.
- Terrific cinematography. One of the best I have seen in a Korean drama.
- LOVED the flashbacks presented at the beginning of the episodes!
- Do Hyun-soo's and Cha Ji-won's chemistry is fantastic! They are perfectly in sync. Plus, the scenes of them with Eu-ha were so adorable!
- There were some pretty intense twists.
- Strong female lead! It was like the damsel in distress was reversed. Ji-won was the one who was always rescuing Hyun-soo (e.g., when Park Kyung-choon kidnaps Hyun-soo and when Yeom Sang-cheol tries to kill Hyun-soo).
- The OST has some outstanding songs, but I wish there could have been some more songs used throughout the show instead of the same three songs.

Dislikes:
- Powerful first half but unsatisfying second half. The first sixish episodes were very suspenseful and thrilling! During these episodes, we wonder if Do Hyun-soo is a good or bad guy, but the suspense is gone once it is pretty evident that he is a good guy. The anticipation does not start building back up until around episode twelve.
- The writers should have delved more into Hyun-soo's relationship with his father. I feel like their relationship is never adequately explored.
- Hyun-soo's father's death needs more explanation! Like yes, we know that the real Baek Hee-seung killed him, but how did he make Hyun-soo's father's death look like a suicide?
- The writers could have also delved more into Do Hyun-soo's mental disorder. We know he has an antisocial personality disorder, but I wish we could have seen Hyun-soo come to terms with his condition and get help. The ending episode should have included this instead of the flat-out boring finale episode.
- How did Jeong Mi-sook escape?
- I wish we could have seen the night Do Hae-soo killed the Village Head. The audience could have learned more about Dae-soo and understood where she was coming from.
- I might be in the minority, but I did not care for Kim Ji-hoon's (real Baek Hee-seung) acting. I am not hating on him because I like him in other dramas, BUT I felt like he was trying way too hard to be Baek Hee-seung. Every time I saw Hee-seung, he looked constipated, and his eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head. Basically, trying too hard to look psycho.
- The ending was... interesting, to say the least. The writers could have chosen another way to finish off the series, but they added in the amnesia trope?! The writers already delivered the "someone ends up in a coma" trope, so why add amnesia? I mean might as well add a car crash. Oh wait... that is right, they did :/.

Overall, Flower of Evil was an excellent production. I think the writers did a good job of establishing characters and setting the story, but the second half of the show did not keep my attention. There were too many inconsistencies and cliches. In addition, some episodes dragged compared to the earlier episodes where they ended on a cliffhanger. In my opinion, I think the reason why a lot of people liked this show is because of the romance between the male and female leads. So, if you like romance and want to get into thrillers, this may be a good show to start with. But, overall, Flower of Evil is one of the most overhyped shows I have ever watched, but I do not regret watching it. I will probably never rewatch it, though, unless I am forced to.

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absolutely breathtakingly incredible

im not usually one to watch crime dramas. not because they’re boring, it just doesn’t seem to click with me despite my interest for crime documentaries. however this drama just changed something inside me.

i honestly don’t know where to start. from the plot twists to the romance to the crime its just perfect in every single way possible. now when i watch these types of dramas, i usually pause after every episode and just think to myself what information i’ve gathered, who maybe the killer or whatnot, but after i watched an episode of this drama, my entire thought process changed.

every single episode has a cliffhanger and makes you just binge every episode.

the acting is just PHENOMENAL. i love lee joongis dramas so i knew his abilities but i was just shocked after watching his performance. the pure emotions he put in as he cried just had me shook. i had never watched moon chaewon so i didn’t really know what to expect from her but she was just jawdropping. i mean when i heard her not winning any awards for it i was shocked. also the little daughter was so cute she just has that face that makes me smile when i look at her.

i never really talk about the ost in my reviews but i needed to for this drama. it had the most perfect music for every scene and it made scenes so much more suspenseful.

i 1000000000% recommend this drama and if you are like me and you don’t usually watch crime dramas, trust me and watch it as it is definitely worth it!

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Best crime thriller romance ever

Really one of the most griping series I have ever watched
on the edge of the seat throughout its so exciting and heart breaking and heart warming at the same time
The best part of the drama was father daughter relationship it was most adorable I have ever seen!
The romance and trust between the lead couple was well portrayed they had great chemistry
The storyline is not drag and not a single second of boredom it’s totally binge worthy!
Must watch Korean drama for all kdramas lovers out there surely you won’t regret it
Lee jon gi did splendid acting really deserves to be one of the top Korean actor

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Grave erreur : épouser une policière quand on a un passé trouble...

En cours de visionnage :
Grave imprudence que d’épouser une policière de talent quand on vit sous une fausse identité avec un passé pour le moins sulfureux !! Mais sans ça, pas de drama, donc, ne nous arrêtons pas à cette bizarrerie, et entrons dans l’histoire, ce qui est facile, car elle est très prenante et palpitante, au moins jusqu’à l’épisode 7 où je suis arrivée !
je peux déjà dire que Lee Jun Ki retrouve là son grand talent, dans un personnage ambigu essayant à tout instant d’être « comme les autres » et surtout d’en donner l’image ! Les sociopathes ou personnes ayant un trouble de la personnalité sociale sont vraiment à la mode ces derniers temps dans les dramas ! On comprend assez vite que Do Hyun So est infirme du côté des émotions, qu’il ne les ressent pas mais doit constamment les deviner et les jouer… Mais cependant il comprend la nécessité de faire des efforts pour certaines personnes auxquelles il tient, et pour lui c’est ce qui se rapproche le plus de l’amour. Lee Jun Ki est particulièrement bluffant dans ce personnage que le scénariste a très bien écrit, sans exagérations, ni de mélodrame.

Une fois fini :
Le drama m’a tenu en haleine jusqu’au bout, répondant au fur et à mesure aux questions qu’on se pose, questions qui d’ailleurs apparaissent elles aussi au fur et à mesure. J’ai beaucoup aimé l’équipe des policiers autour de Cha Ji Won, à la fois rigoureux, mais ne manquant ni de cœur ni de cohésion. J’ai aussi aimé Cha Ji Won, qui, au fur et à mesure de ses découvertes hésite entre tout lâcher, puis ne pas abandonner son mari, et cette position incertaine est tout à fait plausible ! Encore une fois compliments chaleureux à LJK, en particulier dans ses scènes avec son enfant, où on le voit découvrir un univers mental qu’il ignorait complètement…
Par contre je mets un bémol sur la famille des « méchants », ils sont peu crédibles, je trouve, car pourquoi se comporter de cette façon avec son fils si on ne veut pas éveiller des soupçons ? Et le « méchant ultime » est vraiment too much, je n’y croyais pas trop, et l’acteur non plus ! Avec tous les psychopathes dont les Kdramas nous abreuvent en ce moment, c’est un des moins intéressant et c’est dommage qu’on n’en ai pas plus vu sur sa relation avec son mentor !! Là il y avait quelque chose d’intéressant à creuser, mais on sent bien que le scénariste ne s’intéressait qu’à LJK ce qui déséquilibre l’histoire ! On a droit à l’amnésie, ça faisait longtemps que je ne l’avais pas vue, elle ! Mais je dois dire que là elle était parfaitement argumentée et son évolution est très intelligemment faite !
Pour finir, la fin : elle est très bien, touchante et émouvante juste ce qu’il faut !

Le bande son est belle, comme toujours il y a la hurleuse de service qui intervient juste dans la scène où on aurait besoin de silence, avec en plus comme c’est Viki les paroles en dessous, des fois qu’on serait trop bête pour comprendre les sentiment sans qu’on nous les hurle dans les oreilles !

Bref, c’est quand même un très bon drama dans le genre socio-psycho-pathes…

D’ailleurs ça commence à bien faire : après les maladies incurables, puis les greffes du cœur, on eu la prosoagnosie, et maintenant le fils du psychopathe portant la croix de son destin maudit… Faudrait voir à trouver autre chose !

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Genial historia y excelentes actuaciones

Tengo que reconocer que no veo mucho este tipo de dramas, me afectan mucho. Solo lo comencé a ver por la actuación de Lee Joon Gi, y desde el primer capitulo quede atrapada, aunque tenia la sensación de contradicción, quiero y no quiero ver, jajaja.
Así que la vi lentamente, disfrutando cada capítulo poco a poco.
La historia es muy bien armada, te mantiene expectante, tratando de adivinar por donde va seguir todo. La actuación de Joon Gi, es espectacular, logro ser enigmático, frágil, rudo, cariñoso, indiferente, al mismo tiempo, de verdad es muy buen actor, este personaje, era demasiado complicado. No podía deja de ver cada detalle en sus expresiones faciales, solo por él, recomiendo ver este drama.
Es duro ver un drama de un asesino en serie, hay cosas fuertes que ver, igual se las arreglaron para que no se viera taaaaan dramático. Reconozco que había escena que sabia que la ponían mas lenta o no terminaban de decir que pasaba para crear tensión, cuando me daba cuenta no me gustaba, ya que debía ser menos evidente, igual lograban su cometido.
La música me impresionó, cuan metida estaba que no apreciaba cuanto mejoraban la escena. Se mimetizaba muy bien.
No creo que la vuelva ver, fue duro, no acostumbro a repetir este tipo de historias.
Realmente la recomiendo 100%, me gusto muchísimo.

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Flower of evil, cada episódio um mix de emoções

Nossa, vamo lá né? Primeiramente falar desse último episódio que foi bastante sofrimento e pouca felicidade, não gostei sem necessidade viu? Inclusive fiz um final perfeito na minha mente e queria muito que ele tivesse se lembrado de tudo 😭 mas tudo bem, queria a hae su e o moo Jin juntos também, a hae su com a Eun ha 🥺
Mas parabenizar esse drama que foi o motivo da minha loucura esses últimos dias, não conseguia fazer nada pensando em flower of evil. Parabenizar o Joon gi que já é um dos meus favs mas ele entregou TUDO que tinha pra entregar nesse papel, todas as expressões e emoções, ele se superou incrivelmente. Fiquei mais apaixonada ainda pelo trabalho dele. Impecável. E a relação dele com a Eun ha? A coisa mais linda do MUNDO, meu papai e filhinha favs do universo SIM. Por favor façam mais drama com casais já casados e com filhos eu PRECISO. O amor dele e da ji won minha nossa, eu sofri muito viu? Ela chorando vários episódios seguidos e eu do outro lado, ela chorou viu? Chorou muito. Mas arrasou demais também, todo o elenco teve uma construção muito boa e eu gostei bastante, o drama teve muito plot e muita coisa que não não deixava você com a mente quieta, talvez a única incógnita seria a do porque consideraram a morte do min seok como suicídio e a jung mi suk e o marido também 🤔 mas falando dos vilões, esse cara tá de parabéns viu? Conheci ele em money heist Korea e nossa o papel dele era todo tabacudo e aqui ele deu um show, tanto que não quero ver ele por um bom tempo de tanto ódio que eu senti, um dos melhores vilões já bem interpretados que já vi, ele realmente merece muitos prêmios foi incrível, sensacional demais a química dele com o joon gi em cena era surreal. Flower of evil entrou pros favs sim, incrível demais! Que dramão.

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This drama definitely deserves the hype and also this incredible high rating here on MDL! Although I rated it 9/10 stars, I still very much liked it. I preffered the beginning and the middle of the drama rather than the ending: especially the 15. episode and some parts of 16. episode were too melodramatic for my taste. Don't get me wrong, I like melodramas too but I feel like it didn't really suit this drama.

The acting was done brilliantly, especially the main male actor did such a great job in portraying the ML, all his sides, it was really chilling (in a good way!) to watch it. I came to love the FL's character as well and the police team was great too. <3

Overall a very satisfying watch! Worth the hype.

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Best of the best!

I am usually not one for thrillers but this drama...it touched my soul.

The acting by Lee Joongi and Moon Chae Won was beyond words. This drama is definitely one the best I have ever seen in all the years I've been watching dramas. The directing and production brought this already incredible script to another level of brilliance. I can't leave out the editing and the beautiful additions of the OST.

Each actor performed their role so brilliantly that you're glued to screen wanting to know what happens next.
Everything about this was just phenomenal. I am so happy that director Kim Cheol-Kyu won the award for Best Director at the 57th Baeksang Arts Awards. It is truly deserved.

P.S. I've known Lee Joongi's since 'Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo' and Moon Chaewon from 'The Innocent Man'. So I knew both of them were good. Moon Chaewon however completely blew me away with her performance. I am now officially her fan as well.

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Heart-pounding, heart-stopping

This was absolutely fantastic from the get-go — starting off by making us question the ML's identity, then watching the tension between him and the FL, and finally figuring out the mystery and having it play out...the story was extremely well-written and the performances and chemistry between the two leads was fantastic.

I also want to give massive props to the actor for Baek Hee-Sung, whose stare sent absolute chills down my spine.

I admit, however, that the ending definitely soured my love for this show a bit — I'm never a fan of the amnesia trope and while I don't think it was necessarily overblown in this show, it felt unnecessary and I would've loved for the leads instead to carry the burden and move forwards together (the way they'd been doing so far).

Still, there's a lot to love about this show from its story to its questions about humanity...and it's a thriller I'd highly recommend.

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