Absolutely fantastic and I usually don't watch romance/fantasy shows

So I finished this show today after like a million weeks atp (jokes on me it was only 2 weeks or so). This is my second time writing a review on anything so please bear with me here. I'll try to keep it as short as possible and in chronological order of the ratings (first story, then acting/cast etc). I will give a few points of my own before the "overall" mark.

Story: The story is very engaging and mysterious(?) as in "i need to know what happens next and how it unfolds". The story is compelling and stays consistent to the end. I can't wait for the next season. The reveals of identities could be shocking but also make you say "ha, I KNEW it". The writers really outdid themselves on this one. I want to read the novel now..

Acting/Cast: Perfect. That is all I can say. I can't imagine anyone else play the characters other than their actor, excellent choice!. Especially Lee Jae Wook and Jung So Min delivered a splendid performance. No one, not even mild support characters or guest roles butchered their roles as far as I can see.

Music: I love the music here, the OST and everything was fantastic, zero complains. The song that plays at the end of the episodes is in my spotify playlist now. The music usually matched with the scene on screen I just don't remember too much other than the few sang songs because I was too into the story and visuals to pay too much attention to what wasn't sang but nothing threw me off so there is that.

Characters: A big and strong part of the show are the characters. There are so many different personalities, goals and "quirks" which make them unique and either likable or unlikable to the viewer. You will definitely find someone you like and someone you disklike in this show.

Romance: Let me say this first; I am not a huge romance fan or like at all so it's a miracle I even watched something with a romance tag on it BUT my mom put the show on and I liked it so much that I had to watch it, by the early stages I was rooting so hard for Mu-deok and Jang Uk, it was unreal. If even someone like me, who isn't into romance but more into the thriller/horror/action genre was rooting FOR the romance to finally happen, you did something right. Also, you most likely will find a pairing to your liking, be it our main couple Jang Uk/Mu-deok, the old love Park Jin and Kim (these two are hilarious) or even something outside the pairings like Yul/Mu-deok. It's all there.

Visuals/Production: BREATHTAKING HOLY SHIT. One of the best produced kdrama or show in generall. The visuals of the CGI is magnificent, absolutely stunning. The work put into this was definitely worth it!

Rewatch Value: You can rewatch it, though I'm not someone who genreally rewatches shows only rarely which is why I gave it an 8

Overall: Overall I give it a 9.5 because there were times where I was like WHY ARE YOU NOT SAYING ANYTHING and WHY ARE YOU SO LONG. Granted it did take me like two to weeks finish, when I usually only need a couple days to a week for such long shows but it dragged a bit for me and work came in between so yeah... two weeks... Shoudn't stop you from watching it though, this is not a marathon on "who watches the most shows in the least amount of time". Take as long as you need to watch a show, this is for entertainment only, after all it stops being enternainment if it becomes a chore and stressfull!

Edit: Typos, grammar, wording etc

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Holy shit, I'm pleasantly surprised.

This was much better than I expected, I went into this show with very light expectations. My decision to watch this was also a very spur of the moment kinda thing. I found this while browsing the free options on IQiYi (the poster caught my attention). Half way through I was like "Yeah it's alright not too bad and not too good" but then the last episodes happened and I changed my mind.

Story: The story isn't really complicated, Fang Mu, a genius in criminal psychology helps the police in solving cases and because of an incident he has trouble profiling criminals. The way the case of Fang Mu's trauma was revealed was interesting, I enjoyed those episodes a lot. They, together with the last 2-3 episodes are the best in my opinion. What I didn't like was that they basically used the same formula for how the cases are solved, it can get boring and a bit repetitive. Another user described the rough outline of that formula in their review. This was one of the reasons why I thought the drama was pretty mid around 6.5/7 out of 10, but the end pumped it up to an 8, they were GREAT. All my annoyances and questions made sense after seeing the ending.

I was also annoyed that all the murder cases happened at the same damn place. That University (and Fang Mu, poor soul) were cursed. Everyone there died or was a murderer, crazy. I was very happy when the location etc made much more sense after the last 2 epsiodes so I'm glad I powered through it.

You could predict the end if you payed very close attention or something. I knew a character was involved somehow around episode 16 but my suspicions were only confirmed at the end. So i'ts possible, especially if you're familiar with crime shows like this and know that there are certain formulars most show go after.

Acting/Cast/Characters: The two main characters were excellent, honestly I can't complain about any of the acotrs and their characters. The only one who got a bit on my nerves was the Cheerleader because of her desperately trying to get Fang Mu's attention etc even after he clearly showed no interest. Though even that is resolved and I can't complain about how they did it.

The police, for once, is NOT useless. Who would have thought. They actually did their job well and weren't only there to make the ML's look even smarter, big probs for that.

Music: The ending song alone deserves a 10, I love the song and I am so mad that it's not on YT anymore :( I loved the way it was used in episode 24. Even the instrumental for the opening wasn't bad.

Rewatch Value: I don't really rewatch shows, especially shows like this because the shock factor is gone.

I forgot to mention, I find it funny how chinese dramas use dark eye make-up etc on a character to indicate that they are the dark or evil version of said character. They did it in S.C.I too, I think. Very amusing.

Overall: A crime drama that managed to pleasantly surprise me after giving it a shot spontaneously. Especially the ending song is fantastic. I will check out the second season some day. I say to give it a shot, it's not long and I'm sure you atleast find this a decent show, even as a crime lover.

I know I know, I give it a lot of praise but still rate it 8/10, but I have good reasons (in my book at least). There were a few scenes that I thought could be acted and planned out better. Scenes where I had to look away because of the acting (mainly the ones where Fang Mu had to act very emotional etc, they could have been a bit better and they were necessary for his characer, especially later). It could also be a bit predictable in terms of crime drama formula and get repetitive in the way they solved crimes.

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I liked it but it could have been better, Do Jung Woon is a one man army basically

There might be a mild spoiler but I'm not sure. Let me say first that I did enjoy it to a certain extend and that this show had a lot of my favourite genres. I just think it could have more you know? or maybe I have to stop comparing it to many of the other crime/thriller/mystery shows I watched.

Story: The story, for the most part, was quite compelling. I loved the premise and the mystery of the villaige kept me waiting on my toes. It was also one of the main reasons why I kept wathcing it, I just wanted to know what happened in the village. I found myself skipping quite a few parts, especially in the middle (after episode 6) because they felt so draggy. The way they revealed parts was both iteresting and a bit cheap because at one point you just know Do Jung woon probably already knew about it but didn't say anything. I am a bit sad knowing that I was in no rush to watch the next episode, which I had with the show mouse or beyond evil. I just knew I was gonna skip quite a bit, especially when Do Jung Woon wasn't on the screen because he was easily the most interesting and exciting character here.

Acting/Cast/Characters: Namkoong Min you damn genius. I love this mans acting and he was, once again, brilliant in the role of Do Jung Woon even though I am not the biggest fan of the beard he had. He is indeed a very good actor, who understands how the character should be played. He stole my attention everytime he was on screen and I looked forward to see his scenes. Do Jung Woon was the main attraction of the show and one of the reasons why I kept watching it in the first place. The problem is he could have done all of the detective work etc himself, and he basically did. The side characters didn't matter much and didn't do a lot since he is a genius who knows it all. This man is basically a one man army, he knew everything and could do everything. the others looked near useless next and/or without him.

I did not like Gong Hye Won at ALL, especially after episode 7 or so. She was miscasted in my opinion and like the others except maybe Jamie, not really needed at all. She is only there fro basically her dad. I skipped the majority of her "solo" scenes and her scenes with Do Jung Woon because she didn't interest me at all. The story would've still been quite comprehensive without her in there and only changing the story a little bit to get to the dad. It doesn't help that I don't like her acting here that much either, tho she is not a bad actress I just don't think she fits here that much.

Jamie was very interesting for like the first 6-8 Episodes, after that she became a bit of a side character and a plot used to get to Do Jung Woon and it makes me mad. She was a good character that had my interest and I really liked Lee Chung Ah's acting. I hate how they handled her character in the secong half of the show. It was a bit of a waste of her talent as an actor I think.

I am now a fan of Yoon Sun Woo, great acting, he played his character very well and I didn't really expect the twist. I wish to see more of him in roles like this in the future.

Special mention: the old man and his dealer companion were my favourites.

The villains were, well, you're typical "rich and powerful" kdrama villains, nothing too outstanding. They did their role and that was it, tho I rlly did dislike the goddamn scientist and Hye Wons father. Trash people.

Music: I don't remember much but I did like the OST at the end and there was nothing in musical terms disrupting the flow and mood of the show.

Rewatch Value: The rewatch value isn't rlly high for this show in my eyes, I skipped to many uninteresting scenes for this too, to wanting to rewatch it. Additionally, I don't rewatch shows or movies much, especially crime/mystery shows like this because well I already know the outcome etc so I think it's a bit boring. There are very few shows or movies I would and did rewatch like The Merciless.

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