Refund My Time

I have always been curious about this show since it's always trending in Netflix and highly rated. I watched it a few months ago with my boyfriend and despite the numbers, I did not have expectations, save for the acting part because I know Moon Chae-won delivers.

The production value is high and the cast is great, so where did it go downhill for us? Flopped on story, characters, and music.

I don't feel that the story was treated to its full potential and it could have been better if it was less cheesy and the characters were taking the situations seriously, as well as their solutions to situations. It's just ridiculous to see adults with high responsibilities on the public's safety conducting mediocre police work and letting their personal relationships get in the way of the investigations. On characters, there aren't many likeable ones save for the main lead's child. I also quite liked Kim Moo-joo's character because he's the most human I've seen in the series with his choices and his desire to do better and failing over and over again.

NOW, MUSIC. This is the first element that got to me and made me consider dropping at the very first episode. The scoring for this drama is SO OUT OF PLACE. For someone who studied film and media, it's just surreal to encounter such a well-loved piece being scored this way. The score feels like it's from a medieval fantasy film/series and they use it on scenes that are meant to add suspense. It detached me from the scene so much because of how misplaced it sounded.

We still finished the series, fast forwarding for the last 1/3 since we barely cared anyway, and it was a "refund my time" worthy experience.

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Bite-size story & likable characters

Most dramas lose themselves in trying to fit the mold with their run times and number of episodes. This is a great example of how dramas should be treated: length and run time that serves the story being told, not the other way around where the story, pacing and characters suffer drastically.

Move to Heaven also stands out by what our protagonists do as trauma cleaners. It could be episodic if it chose to, but the drama is grounded with that recurring characters' relationships with each other and a glimpse on death and dealing with deaths. There have been a good number of moving moments, particularly on the last few episodes.

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