Crime? Authoritarianism? Greed? Power? Mystery? Lies? Fights? Misery? Conspiracy? Yes, everything that a thriller Korean drama could bear, Adamas offers all that but what makes it stand out? 1) The narrative 2) The presentation 3) Ji Sung himself and 4) the elementary object, Adamas. The dramas, as a whole, is not a masterpiece or entirely a decent show if you consider whatever we have been offered till date, but it surely is up to par and can be passed as a well-made mystery thriller. It did disappoint in the finale but to judge the whole thing, this is not actually bad or a trash as some people will tell you in impulse with their final experiences about it.

Developed by ‘Studio Dragon’ and produced by ‘Mays Entertainment’, “ADAMAS (아다마스)” is a political and legal thriller. Written by Choi Tae Kang and directed by Park Seung Woo, the drama was broadcasted on tvN and internationally distributed by Disney+ in selected regions.

Adamas, keeps at center, twin brothers, writer Ha Woo Shin and Prosecutor Song Soo Hyun (played by Ji Sung), fighting against Kwon Jae Woo (Lee Kyung Young), chairman of Haesong Group, in order to unveil the evil deeds of him and the people he’s surrounded by. All these started with a murder that took place 22 years back killing their stepfather and convicting their biological father. To save their father, they go to unmeasurable and unthought lengths which lead them to discover dreadful truths surrounding the graceful yet mysterious object, namely ‘Adamas’.

Eun Hye Soo (Seo Ji Hye) is the daughter-in-law of Heo family, whereas Kim Seo Hee (Lee Soo Kyung) is a ferocious reporter. Choi Tae Sung (Heo Sung Tae) is the Chief of security at Haesongwon while Kwon Soon Yi (Hwang Jung Min) is the Butler. Lee Jun Kyung (Oh Dae Hwan) is the leader of Team A and Kang Hyuk Pil (Choi Deok Moon) is the leader of Special Investigation Headquarters (SIH). Other familiar faces in the drama are: Jo Sung Ha, Kim Jung Goo, Seo Hyun Woo, Park Hae Eun, Shin Hyun Seung, Lee Shin Won, Woo Hyun Joo, Go Yoon, Choi Chan Ho, Lee Ho Chul, etc.

The pilot episode to me was a lil underwhelming, as in I was not really impressed with how the writer was trying to lay the background. A little bit of everything, did make it seem boring and uninteresting. The follow-up felt as poor for a while. However, further twists and the development in storytelling started doing wonders at some point that I didn’t realize, and I found, myself engaged and constantly entertained by the sequence of events. The overall interest on the development, personally, was a little diminished around the interval but I was glad it picked back the momentum very quickly with the 11th episode. All I had been wishing for till the end was to see a good, even so not remarkable, ending, which didn’t really happen.
The finale week rather came off lousy. The 15th episode was all talk and less action, and it was quite visible that they were rushing it by skipping from one short scene to another. The first sequences of the 16th episode which was expected to be interesting, did end the saga very swiftly as if they have no context left to keep on the fight. The follow-up till the ending was then underwhelming and with 10 minutes left, I was sure they are gonna finish it abruptly.

I don’t quite believe that the writer is a debutant? How? I mean this is not really extraordinary and bear a fair share of flaws in writing but this is actually way better than just a decent thriller show which had us at awe at several whiles. The story is well-planned, the characters are well-drawn, the elements are well-created and the sequences are well-thought. The process of establishing the background in the pilot episode seemed a little rushed, as if they have a lot to say about the present but the way everything about the past was unveiled and represented, I was very satisfied.

The flaws of the was in regards of the keeping up with the pace of excitement as mentioned earlier, plus how the context, around the same time felt a little dragged. I was almost annoyed with the fact that they were getting diverted from what they’d intended to offer initially. The ending is the biggest letdown about the drama for it was rushed, abrupt, vaguely explained and left few things open. The audience would have liked to be answered plainly anyways, so why exactly the makers made such decisions.

Seemingly rookie director Park Seung Woo PD-nim hit it big with his previous work, KAIROS, and being a unique fantasy thriller, it really must have taken a lot, and again, that experience did help him here. The PD, I am sure, must have developed a good understanding with the debuting writer which has brought forward this amazing work. The quality of execution is way above the standard of a thriller drama. The scenario of Hanseongwon as well as the detailed elements associated were well-created, from objects to personnel and the system inside it.

The cinematography is of a moderate essence though it was not really visible a lot provided the eerie and dark vibes of the show, however, the same inside the premise of the mansion was ecstatic to some point. The sound production as well as the screen-editing were up to par. The pacing did bother me at some instants in between as mentioned earlier, as if it were going off the grid, making an overall inconsistent flow of plot. Nevertheless, the recovery was very amazing, which, in fact, took place very soon.

Composed by Jang Young Kyu, there are 6 OSTs in total though they aren't really used in the drama. Also, I couldn't really understand the essence of most of them in the story albeit my liking of them as songs.

# “Beat of My Heart” by Elodie Wave
# “NEED YOU” by Charlie Bean Works
# “Darling You” by Bernard Park
# “By Your Side” by Ha Hyun Sang
# “All About You” by KATIE
# “Rain on Me” by Kim Jo Han

The screentime was obviously and fairly dominated by Ji Sung because he was playing twins, present at different places, separated by boundaries and burdened by different responsibilities (read tasks and goals). It was like the same face in a parallel universe with distinct personalities and traits. Needless to say, that the man aced it well; it was perfectly a Jisung-type drama. I am personally a bit upset with the arcs of Soo Hyun, about he, at places, didn’t respond like a prosecutor, rather a bull-headed geezer, but its manageable. In his stead, it was Woo Shin who was always calm and better calculative.

The 2 female leads gave a decent delivery as expected from them but the character of Seo Ji Hye was kinda subpar whereas Lee Soo Kyung’s character lacked dynamics for a major duration of the show. Eun Hye Soo was surely mysterious and a lot of things about her bugged me as well, indicating a grand ending she’ll get, but the way it was plotted and presented, came as a weak motive to me; not really displeased, but it could have been better, imo. Kim Seo Hee was broached as an annoying character rarely showed her skills as a journalist, nor did she contributed a lot to the process, but I must admit, the 11th episode keeping her at the centre, was fantastic,

The antagonist side was very strong, with all the familiar faces, known to be villains in the industry, from Lee Kyung Young to Oh Dae Hwan, and as always, they scored heavens. Lee Kyung Young’s role was a bit different from others, where despite of being thecmastermind and controlling everything, he sometimes is powerless and have to be cautious and worry for things; anyways, he was charismatic with hos manipulation skills. Oh Dae Hwan probably played the cunt-est character of his life and I was pretty intrigued by him. Seo Hyun Woo with his given part, did very good as well.

Special mention to Hwang Jung Min who played the butler at the mansion and did an extraordinary job in carrying out the intended persona. Her first appearance itself was an indicatory that she will be a key rider in the show and her acting is what submitted the fascination mostly. And how her importance escalated with each episode along with a well-crafted backstory was astonishing. Her actions and reactions gave me goosebumps, particularly how she flew to to the peak in the 11th episode.

11th episode is my most favourite of all and I guess that is where the show was at its highest peak. The way two major turning events were happening throughout simultaneously did excite me to core as well as gave me goosebumps. The execution of them that was presented in bits alternately was amazing; from performance to editing, the entire episode was just perfect.

I feel the most important factor about Adamas is the fact that neither the protagonist was some sort of superheroes though one side was more radical and had more powerful cards on their side. This, subsequently proved how one person, even at the center/top of the show is not entirely responsible for the set of fortunes/tragedies that happen, rather everything is an outcome of a systematic contribution made by a group of people, no matter which side it is.

About the possibilities of a second season, I don’t think that’s gonna happen. The message is clear: you can’t wipe off the weeds completely in one go and frequent monitoring action is what you require. They might have wrapped it up with an obvious cliffhanger but now its upon us to assume and pot the ending by ourselves.

Final Remarks… I guess many people gonna try this for Ji Sung but I can say that it is as good. Only if the finale sequences were not lame and awry, this could have been a decently splendid experience. Even though it messed the ending up, the process and the vibes are good enough to be tried once, so do see for yourself. It will be a fair watch excluding the ending for those who like slow-paced thrillers with sedate buildups.