The Case Solver 拆案 (2020) Head-scratching Cliffhangers

 

Frankly, I'm not sure what to make of the ending of a number of C dramas especially the shorter ones which are notorious for their cliffhanger endings even when no subsequent seasons are scheduled or forthcoming. It's a marketing ploy undoubtedly but if everyone does the same thing and if there's no set date for a sequel then all this ends up tainting the viewing experience rather than leave audiences wanting more. Some of us are still waiting for the resolution of Detective L's cliffhanger ending which is nowhere in sight. That was far more annoying because we remain clueless about the good guys' prospects of surviving the Big Bad's last ditch attempt to get away. But I'm going to pretend that The Case Solver ends in Episode 24 at around 21:33 with the main character's promotion. The rest of the finale is white noise and irrelevant filler.

It did take me two episodes to warm up to this one and to the male lead. However, somewhere around the halfway mark, I came to like the male lead who is more or less cut according to the Sherlock Holmes mould and started digging around for other productions that actor Jason Gu Jiacheng has been attached to. For an idol actor, I would say he's actually not bad. Gu Yuan, a newly appointed chief detective at the French concession, has a first-class intellect and handily has knowledge of feng shui (geomancy) applicable mostly to the first episode. Gu Yuan's promotion comes to the disappointment of chief aspirant, Kang Yicheng (Su Xiaoding), also the only child of Chamber of Commerce head, Kang Shaoqing. The quick-witted Gu Yuan, is well aware that Yicheng's biggest asset isn't his brains or his brawn but his connections especially when important inquiries have to be made pertaining to active cases. Gu Yuan humours Yicheng by indulging him in a faux rivalry now and again but it doesn't take long for these two essentially good-natured men to become friends. 

A series of events purporting to be paranormal mishaps capture the imagination of Shanghai's populace. Gu Yuan is tasked on each occasion to get to the bottom of things. Of course he doesn't believe in ghosts, demons or the living dead. It's a no-brainer from the start that flesh and blood are the real perpetrators behind these seemingly inexplicable phenomenon as he gets embroiled with gangsters, corpse thieves, illusionists, pimps and prostitutes. It is the seedy side of Shanghai under the veneer of respectability. The show often feels like a cross between Psych-Hunter and My Roommate is a Detective although I find the female leads in this much more likeable.

Gu Yuan is also ably supported by the local medical examiner, Che Suwei who eschews the stereotypical typical female lead by being unscreechy, cool-headed, competent and reliable. The show hints that the two might have feelings for each other although the primary romance is between Kang Yicheng and his verbal sparring partner Cao Qingmeng, a reporter also with important family connections. She does her best to whip up public fervour by sensationalizing the criminal misadventures and occasionally she manages to bring vital clues to the table.

Each episode is roughly about half an hour long and each case is solved within 4 episodes. The low budget web drama an easy watch and not a bad way to while away 12 hours if you're a fan of whodunits. I don't think it's too much of a stretch to make comparisons with Scooby-Doo. It falls loosely along similar lines. And it makes the same sorts of gags as well. 

And remember to stop the video at 21:33 towards the end of the last episode.

Awaken (2020) and The Uncanny Counter (2020) Superhero Stories: A Study in Difference

 I've been on the verge of dropping Awaken at least once but because of the subject matter and the presence of Nam Goongmin in it, I've hung on by the slenderest of thread. He's always fun to watch (no matter the production's quality) and the character he plays here has consistently been the most fleshed out (thanks in large part to him I expect). I have no doubt he took on this role because Do Jung-woo is potentially a great character -- a Loganesque superhero of a type. NGM with his history playing antiheroes, is undoubtedly the right actor to slip into those shoes. 

While that's the case, the script thus far (we have reached the halfway mark at the time of writing) is to my mind, weak. Floating in the ether that is Awaken are some really good ideas. If you've read my previous post on this, you know that I've always maintained this. The origins of the White Night Foundation and the subject of experimentation on humans if handled well, makes for a great story. It won't be anything startling original but putting a Korean flavour to it would be something worth exploring. I wouldn't go so far as to say I have a love-hate relationship with but I am disappointed that most of the characters especially the ones supposedly on the side of "right" aren't very well written. There's been a bit of controversy about the women and how they feature as romantic interests or not. But to me that has always been more symptomatic of the wobbly script. I don't think the show knows what to focus on or to keep the main thing the main thing. To be frank, I don't know if Gong Hye-won is even a necessary character at this point except as a possible romantic interest or to create a conflict of interest for Jung-woo. All of that might make for compelling viewing if the writing could convince me that it's needed in this drama.

I'm unabashedly fond of crazy sci-fi. I've been watching crazy sci-fi long before I started watching Korean dramas. So it wasn't especially hard for me to see where the show was going with the White Night Village practically from Episode 1. I wasn't a hundred percent certain at the time but I felt that I was in the ballpark. True enough the parts of the show that I'm most attentive too concerns the ominous cabal known as The Foundation which was formed to finance experiments on children. To what end? Just to create a miracle drug? To find the key to longevity? Or something far more sinister... along the lines of Dark Angel or The Pretender perhaps. 

The Foundation appears to be mysterious assortment of the wealthy and powerful. All male... as far as we've seen. But the chief scientist from when Jung-woo was living in White Night was a woman. Her absence in the present is conspicuous. The present cohort that make up the Foundation seem to me (at least) to have their own individual agendas. I don't think that they're one united group. The chap who is the president's chief secretary... who has recently been in the spotlight lately... seems to have his own angle that probably involves a member of his family.

I suspect most of us are in general agreement with Jung-woo that the Foundation and what it represents is an abomination. The moral and ethical implications alone are just mind boggling. I think by now we have a decent grasp of who Jung-woo, Jamie and Jae-woong are. The 3 Js as it so happens. Things were done to them perhaps even while they were in test-tubes. They were unique in that they survived. Two of them even managed to get away. Our curiosity is piqued: why did the rest die and why did they not only survive but become Korean versions of the X-men? I am supposing (presumptuously perhaps) that this is the part of the show that we're all really responding to because it is the most consistently coherent part of the drama. 

In the morass of multiple moving parts including a serial killer case, politics and corruption, there is a superhero story that's gradually emerging. On the surface the show purports to be a police procedural although that doesn't fit comfortably. On some level that gives Jung-woo a context to do what he does and an excuse for some kind of romance between Jung-woo and Hye-won. Which I'm not a fan of mainly because the actors don't have that kind of chemistry for me. 

In comparison we have The Uncanny Counter. It's clear even with the most cursory analysis,  that the drama doesn't do anything startlingly original. To be fair, it doesn't pretend to. I can certainly see the comparisons with Mystic Pop-up Bar and perhaps even Missing: The Other Side. Two examples from this year's offerings. However, despite all of that, the show does what it does remarkably well. It is a reminder that though originality can be an asset, it is only an asset in the right hands. It's also a reminder that it's far more important to take care of the fundamentals... like storytelling, casting, character development and relationship building etc... and get them right before reaching for gimmickry and suspense for suspense sake.

Right off the bat we know exactly what the drama is. The intro says it all. It's unabashedly a superhero team-up story with fantasy elements. It starts off fairly predictable, formulaic even... following a superhero origins story almost to a T. Yet it is now breaking rating records for OCN. So predictability isn't necessarily a screen-writing sin. Neither does it represent a minus for engagement or widespread appeal.

What the show does well and often that's where others fall down is that it gets the balance right. It's the secret sauce. The show doesn't fall into the trap of meandering and giving more than it needs to because it knows exactly what it wants to be. The best part is that the show gives me exactly what I want even when I didn't know I needed it. It also strikes the right note with its comedic and emotional moments. 

First and foremost, the women are done right here. And I don't mean that they are trained in martial arts and can go toe-to-toe with the baddies and strut their stuff. While that's great and wonderful on some level, what's even better is that they are well-fleshed out, have strength of character and their nurturing instincts remain intact. Perhaps it's just me and the kind of shows I've been watching lately but I have less and less patience for wacky, over-the-top female leads who use disproportionate violence, as a way of playing one upmanship with the male leads. Some of that may be played for laughs... don't know... but I'm finding it tiresome. In contrast, I love how Ha-na is written and portrayed as an older sister figure. She's an angry girl but there are other dimensions to her. I also especially love what Yeom Hye-ran is doing with Mae-ok. She's a take-charge, motherly character who can bare her teeth when that's called for. They both feel real. Not like caricatures. I have similar sentiments about Detective Kim Jeong-yeong. She's weathered many storms in the police department and she hasn't backed down from her principles. These are strong, smart women because they've endured much and been true to themselves without trying to be like men. Or trying to prove something for that matter.

Next, the cast chemistry is super good when you consider how diverse they are and the age differences. They've got a great group of actors that interact so well together especially as each of them mentors So Mun in their own way. Jo Byung-gu is himself a rising star but he knows how to be part of an ensemble without the need for overacting on his part. Even though there's apparently supposed to be no romance between Mun and Ha-na, the chemistry between them is good enough if the showrunners are keen to take their relationship to a different level at a different time. The show itself knows romance isn't needed the usual jokes are made about it. But there's no denying the chemistry between the pair.

And of course Mun himself is a great character. As I've said before Mun was standing up to school bullies and baddies well-before he had superpowers or had two working legs. He already had a hero's heart like Steve Rogers aka Captain America. What he needs to learn is to control his emotions, become stronger and choose his battles carefully but he has always been a good-hearted, gutsy kid who accords respect to his elders. Everything that the show does with him contributes in some way to his development and the overall storyline. 

Finally the integration of all the moving parts appears seamless. Everything fits together really well. Sure, the gallery of rogues here aren't anything we haven't seen before, neither is the corruption angle ground-breaking stuff. There's even a serial murderer on the loose here. But it's so far well incorporated into the demon-hunting side of things and the characters' own individual trajectory. No one is wasted or is extraneous in the storytelling. 

This is not to denigrate the achievement of Uncanny Counter because it should be given credit for its disciplined, tight plotting while managing to connect the audience with the characters and key character moments. It does just about everything right with the material because it never tries to pretend it is anything more or less than what it is.

Personally I think Awaken could have taken a simpler approach. The mystery within a mystery technique used to indifferent effect was supposed to create suspense and signal a darker tone but all that ended up feeling fillery because it was never the actual goal. The whole thing about using children as experimental subjects is already a dark subject with its own story potential with all kinds of political reverberations. Maybe it should have been a 12-episode drama. But then a good drama about the Foundation and its shady dealings could easily provide material for a 16-episode drama.

Psych-Hunter (2020) *Non-spoiler Review*

Without giving anything of substance away, this is one of those dramas that I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish for what it appeared to be but the resolution completely transformed my perspective and understanding of what it was. Initially from the brief synopsis that I'd read, I was given the impression that this was an X-Files style drama dealing with paranormal activities but it turned out actually to be an old-fashioned detective drama in which Agatha Christie meets Sherlock Holmes meets Salvador Dali. It's a great production and boasts an assortment of colourful characters from the leads down to the supporting acts. The Republican era backdrop works exceedingly well particularly as the costumes, props and sets reflect the early Agatha Christie period perfectly. Christie's first Poirot novel, The Mysterious Affair At Styles was published after the first world war. 

In many ways this drama works somewhat like a Sherlock Holmes story or a series of Sherlock Holmes stories. The role of Holmes and Watson alternates between two characters, Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng. At the start of the show, we are introduced to Jiang Shou (Neo Hou) who is found by his mentor Bu Yan. Jiang Shou has lost his memories but he has a really handy skill that allows him to make a living, he can read minds. Or I should say, he can transport himself into a person's subconscious and find out things about them. It's an asset in any investigation of a crime especially when the suspect or witness is unusually recalcitrant. Jiang Shuo and his shifu Bu Yan live in a compound with a troupe of entertainers. Their living quarters is one of the show's key set pieces and their companions often become embroiled in Jiang Shuo's investigations. The other half of this partnership is the cool-headed psychiatrist Qin Yiheng, who is played by Liu Dongqin who is no stranger to playing sleuths or doctors. I like him better here than in the second iteration of the Dr Qin Medical Examiner franchise. As a psychiatrist specializing in reading micro-expressions, Yiheng is quickly drawn to Jiang Shuo as they both travel/teleport into the psyche of individuals. Of the two of them he is normally the more calm and astute investigator. Yiheng has more of an interest solving crimes than getting involved with the family business despite the emotional arm-pulling by his brother. He is also the second son of a local business magnate which is an important part of his identity throughout the show because it involves the mysterious disappearance of his father.

Inadvertently entangled with them is the local warlord's daughter Yuan Muqing (Bambi Zhu) who "moonlights" as a local constable while officially being enrolled in a private girls' school. It's not long before she and Jiang Shuo develop romantic feelings for each other. It's not a romance that I needed but it wasn't one that I was averse to. Compared to other crime shows, she's actually one of the better unnecessary female love interests. They don't bicker much thankfully and yes... she does get clingy (even that makes sense) but as a whole she does have her uses. 

Another regular feature of the show is the official head cop, Bai Kai who is a taciturn but respected leader. Jiang Shuo nicknames him "bai kai shui" which means plain water. Yes, on the surface he seems to be a bit of a colourless character at first and the butt of some of the show's humour but as the show develops he becomes the greatest supporter of the unofficial detectives. He is effectively Inspector Lestrade without the ego.

The format of the show sees our detectives chasing clues provided by an enigmatic figure known as Liu Zhi. Liu Zhi is, in essence, the story's Moriarty figure. He is the consummate shadowy puppetmaster, lurking in the background pulling strings and using individuals who hold grievances to commit crimes all around the city. The master criminal wants a piece of Jiang Shuo for reasons not known initially and he uses these cases or "games", as he calls them to draw the latter into a web of conspiracy and corruption. 

By far, my favourite part of the show (apart from the individual case arcs all wonderfully integrated in the bigger storyline) would be the developing friendship between the two men. From the time when they first meet to the last, their loyalty to each other and camaraderie is pleasing. Their personalities complement each other well as they learn to work together in life-threatening situations. 

The male leads especially are rather good in their respective roles but as a whole the entire cast are very well put together to give an immersive experience.

Early on I mentioned Salvador Dali and this is why. When the two men teleport into a person's psyche, the art design of those sets are a delightful mix of surrealism, a little expressionism and art deco. I love the thought and the effort given to that aspect of the drama. Each set was intriguing always keeping the viewer on their toes wondering what's round the corner. There was one case that featured clocks ... and I'm obsessed with timepieces anyway... and the visuals for that one was especially stunning in my mind. 

There's no doubt that it's a clever show and the conclusion made me think just that little bit more about the whole thing than I otherwise would have. It's a drama that I wouldn't mind revisiting down the track just to see what new things I missed the first time around.

Alice (2020) Episodes 5 and 6 : Of Pandora's box and Paradoxes

The biggest surprise to me about this drama is that it really does want us to take the "science" in science fiction rather more seriously than one might expect it to. One some level the name dropping (eg. Schrodinger's Cat, Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle etc) might just be window dressing... "Attention! Attention! You are watching a time travel-multiverse story" but the fact that the writer is making the effort, is almost commendable. There's almost enough gobbledegook to rival that of an episode of Star Trek: TNG. It's really rare in my experience to see a K drama go to go to all the trouble of analysing and discussing the moral intricacies of playing peek-o-boo with the past. 

By now we're meant to understand that the Alice project is not all that it's cracked up to be. Good intentions are not always matched by reality and outcomes. While Alice might not be an abject failure (yet), it can't entirely live up to its lofty aims of wanting to better the lives of people or alleviate suffering. It also appears, rather worryingly that the people behind the Alice project aren't entirely cognizant of all things time travel, much less about the competing interests within that space. There's talk about parallel universes and other selves in existence but there's no notion of paradoxes of future selves becoming part of the past and integrating their footprint in a single timeline. If there had been (at least) two separate timelines before, they seem to have now collapsed into one apparently because of Tae-yi's decision to remain in 1992. Seok O-won seems to have some awareness of this having the benefit of hindsight taken from the so-called Book of Prophecy. 

Prophetic utterances and oracles within this universe seem to the ramblings and chronicles of time travellers who have witnessed the future firsthand, recorded key events and left them behind for posterity. How the book found its way into Dr Jang Do-shik originally and Seok O-won's hands eventually at various times are still mysteries that need to be revealed in due time. Playing pass the parcel with the book itself seems to imply that there is one timeline at play rather than multiple ones. Unless of course there are multiple ones circulating in parallel worlds.

The contestability of time travel may prove to be the most fascinating aspect of the drama. It's also a new twist to Kdramaland's increasing macabre fixation with serial murders. A good excuse to raise the body count. It isn't just the tourism murders that call into the question the entire enterprise but there are other murders involving rough looking men with long hair and leather jackets who have a thing about dead cats. Who are they taking their orders from? It seemed initially that Seok O-won might be behind this and yet it is possible that there's a third party calling the shots. The contestability of time travel will undoubtedly turn it into the pandora's box that Seok O-won hints darkly at. It's a double-edged sword depending on who's wielding it.

The time card brings Min-hyuk face to face with the woman he loves and is stopped in his tracks. Is she his Tae-yi? According to Schrodinger's thought experiment... the answer is no... and yes. He knows her but not her as she is now but as she will be. But to add insult to injury he thinks she's another Tae-yi from a parallel universe, out of his reach. Are we all sufficiently discombobulated yet?

Min-hyuk is wrestling with the same issues Jin-gyeom does. Who is this woman? Should he care? As long as she doesn't have memories of him, she can't be his Tae-yi. Just as Jin-gyeom has concluded that the professor can't be his mother. Appearances, habits and personality aren't everything if they have no shared memories. According to the premise laid down here, her identity is not necessarily determined by who she thinks she is or what she does alone BUT by how she is perceived by the people who know her best. Tae-yi from 2050 apart from being a scientist was also someone's lover and then someone's mother.

The time card is the key... not just for accessing the temporal mechanism but the key to all those involved in this relationship web to find out the truth about the past. 1992 and 2010.  Min-hyuk's entry at this point in 2020 Tae-yi's existence suggests that the show might be avoiding an icky Oedipal scenario. Although the constant sparring between father and son might indicate otherwise. Certainly on Jin-gyeom's side, his interest in present-day Tae-yi is purely for the fact she resembles his mother in striking ways. He must also feel some responsibility for drawing her into this dragnet of inexplicable danger that grows even more inexplicable as the web of intrigue expands to include a whole assortment of unsavoury characters that have come from nowhere.

Oh Shi-young is a curious and suspicious figure. One wonders about her role and possible presence on the night of Tae-yi's death in 2010... as signalled by the drone. But the really curious thing is why she's been feeding Min-hyuk porkies about Tae-yi moving on and living the good life and the death of their baby. To help him forget and move on so that he would turn his attention to her? That's a likely explanation. And he is undoubtedly walking eye-candy in a suit.

More than that, she must know that Tae-yi left behind a son. His and her son. Whatever she might be trying to convince herself of regarding parallel universes it doesn't change the fact that Park Jin-gyeom is Min-hyuk's son from that particular timeline.

The reality is that Min-hyuk hasn't moved on despite running around busily with a stoic resolve. Neither has Jin-gyeom despite his innate expression of stoicism. The passage of time apparently doesn't heal all wounds. Perhaps this explains Min-hyuk's quiet sympathy for his murderous clients. He himself is only too aware of his own grief that he keeps well-hidden from public gaze. 

However, the use of the past as a psychotherapeutic playground continues to throw up all kinds of troubling ethical questions. For an oligarchy with all their emotional baggage, not matter how well-intentioned, to adjudicate this life and death process, continues to be disturbing.

There's no denying the well-used tropes making their appearances here. It is still a recognizably K drama after all. However, credit should be given to the showrunners for using them in playful, innovative ways as it pertains to the time travel multiverse madness. It may be true that underneath all the other worldly elements beats the heart of a good old fashion K melodrama.

Stranger Season 2 (2020) Episodes 7-8

With the kidnapping of Dong-jae, the show has made a definitive shift at least in emphasis and pacing so there's a bit more clarity regarding where things are headed. As I've said I don't have problems with emphasizing the political side of things but I’m sure (judging from how well S1 was received) that there are better ways to get there. It is possible to have substance without sacrificing storytelling. I'm still not sure why there was such a marked shift in style this season... different people steering the ship perhaps... but if it ain't broke why fix it?

All that to say... Episodes 7-8 saw a marked improvement. A much needed injection of energy and intrigue which had been sorely lacking.

It’s heartening to see Si-mok and Yeo-jin working together again even if ultimately their goals don’t completely align due to their respective sides. In their own way, Si-mok most especially, they are finding their voices, articulating them within the context of a cacophony of perspectives. Undoubtedly, their kind of views are easily drowned out in a sea of pragmatism. It is important for them to assert themselves into the conversation even when it isn't convenient or when the leadership tries to shut them down. And there's plenty of reason... as we'll see ... for the leadership on both sides to prevent them from ruffling feathers.

This is not to say that people of good-will with common goals can't have different ideas about the solutions are. Or even that people motivated by self-interest don't have good notions. It's certainly the case with Dong-jae. Although he was a rabid self-promoter and an inveterate networker, was diligent about the law. He had genuine concerns about his work-life balance which motivated all that bootlicking. 

The conversation between Chief Kang and Si-mok about nepotism, cronyism in general and Assemblyman Nam more specifically is noteworthy in so far as it continues along this theme of the role of public servants/officials as representatives and upholders of our cherished institutions. That conversation and the one later between Woo Tae-ha and Choi Bit (who obviously know each other better than they let on initially) highlights to me how important it is that the general public be reassured that established institutions are working for the good of all and not just a select few. People need to know that the system is generally fair especially because life is hard. People need to know that having the right qualifications and working hard does get them somewhere. This kind of aspirational impulse is absolutely essential not just for individuals but it reaps innumerable benefits especially in innovation and agility in problem solving. It’s good for organisations and communities to have talented, capable people at the helm and at all levels. That’s why progressive societies discourage nepotism and cronyism because it is generally acknowledge that we want the best people for specific jobs regardless of who they know. Furthermore, one of the issues that arise from giving jobs to friends or relatives is the echo chamber effect. They are more agreeable and less likely to tell you things you need to hear rather than than what you want to hear. Chief Kang and the other more senior staff who have become cynical and jaded over time might believe that the system is broken and can’t be fixed. But that doesn’t inspire public confidence or boost the morale of those at the lower rungs of the public service ladder to believe that right behaviour is rewarded. Hence the vicious cycle continues. So what Chief Kang considers to be petty and trivial isn’t actually so in the long run. Turning a blind eye to unethical practices becomes a habit. Over time the habit becomes accepted behaviour. That is what Si-mok’s point is. It is the little things that tell you what’s really wrong systemically. Corruption doesn’t happen overnight. It is the accumulated effect of a whole range of things over time. 

After Episode 8, the other half and I were both in agreement that the kidnapper is someone possibly related to the suicide cases that Dong-jae was looking into but the culprit is an unknown variable at this point. I speculate that this individual has some kind of long-term grievance against the criminal justice system … and Dong-jae possibly happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

One thing's got my curious is the focus on Dong-jae's junior, Jung Min-ah. I wonder why. They brought her in to interrogate Team Leader Baek. She seems sharp and very much on top of things. The fact that she picked up on the Crime and Punishment reference is suggestive and it did take Si-mok by surprise. Maybe he was even a little impressed. I'm not sure if the subs I watched were accurate or if I understood what was being conveyed correctly but the pawnshop owner in Crime and Punishment was a woman.

 

What I suspect the show is going for … after 6 episodes of information overload on steroids… after 6 weeks of wading through political mumbo jumbo and stats… is really one extensive and exhausting diatribe about the rot that is festering in the criminal justice system. Which seems like an obvious things to say considering this is a K drama. While the rot is most certainly a problem, the bigger problem is that no one wants to do anything about it. Except to band-aid the cracks as much as possible and reflexively practise damage control. All the bluster about reformation is more about power grabbing and gatekeeping. No one wants to actually do the heavy lifting of overhauling the system. Despite the whining and moaning, people prefer to maintain the status quo in some fashion because once everyone's mired in the rut it’s just easier to stay in it. It’s also hard for people to acknowledge that they’re part of the problem because they had to learn the rules of the games being played and have become enthusiastic participants in some cases. To me that’s Chief Kang’s problem. One of them at least. He’s not a bad person (no one really is) but he’s so entrenched in the system that he's locked into a kind of survival mode. That seems to be the case for most of the big people calling the shots. I'm sure he wants to pick his fights because it would be exhausting to be constantly putting out fires.

There is an expectation… and a trust… that the system should work if the right processes are in place and followed. But the truth is “the system” is made up of flawed individuals who operate almost entirely on self-interest. Abuse is bound to happen. That’s why we have accountability structures in place so that no one person can hold too much power. One of the problems that arises out of cronyism is that power does become concentrated in the hands of oligarchs or autocrats. Yes, a person like Si-mok could be very annoying because he questions everything. Like the 4 year old that keeps saying “why?”. But every organisation needs people like that to keep them on their toes. To keep everybody honest. To keep remind the people in the organization why they have a job and what that job is.

This is an expanded post of one I wrote for JangHaven Forums.

The Good Detective (2020) Episode 16 *Spoilers*

I have mixed feelings about the ending. As far as endings go, it wasn't a bad one. It tied up almost every loose end (I maintain some scepticism about Oh Ji-hyuk's childhood bogeyman) and even managed to throw in a minor twist just so nobody (the audience included) wallows in any complacency about the complexities and unpredictability of life. I liked that Kang Do-chang's ever expanding family remains intact whether it's those share a roof with him or those that back him up while they're in pursuit of suspects great and small. I imagine too that Oh Ji-hyuk and Jin Seo-gyeong's understated romance will take flight in due course.

While I was relieved to see Oh Jang-tae finally get his comeuppance, there's a part of me that recoils at the thought that it had to be done with a bit of... what I consider to be... legal diddling. It is a somewhat unsatisfying result and not a little frustrating because it seems that the justice system is inadequate to the task of dealing with certain kinds of culprits -- those with powerful connections unless said power is muted in some way or changes hands. However, I acknowledge that without a bit of sleight of hand, Oh Jang-tae would continue to evade the full extent of the law's reach and get what he rightly deserves. Moreover, it is also true that Yoo Jeong-seok and Oh Jang-tae were complicit in the death of Lee Dae-chul and should be held responsible for that. But there's a part of me... maybe an unexpected streak of idealism about the rule of law... a belief that perpetrators should be convicted and sentenced for the crimes that they've actually committed. Nonetheless, the flawed system being what it is, it seems that one has to settle for consolation prizes. Since Oh Jang-tae cheated his way out of  being convicted for Yoon Ji-sun's death using his wealth and connections, it does seem fitting on some level that he gets convicted for something ... like the death of Yoo Jeong-seok... that he didn't do due to more blind eye turning. I'm sure some would consider it poetic justice even. It's tragic and terrifying to my mind that the criminal justice system can be so manipulated and that it has to take one sort conspiracy to undo another conspiracy. But the realist in me reluctantly concedes to the thesis and premise of the drama: The only way for the spirit of the law to be reclaimed in this instance is to circumvent the letter of the law.

I don't think the revelation that Nam Guk-hyun dealt Detective Jang Jin-su the actual death blow really changes very much in the scheme of things. He was certainly my original suspect for the late detective's murder. If anything it confirms our suspicion that he was a hopelessly greedy and shady character that was a cancer in the police organization. And of course it spreads the guilt around a little. It doesn't make Yoo Jeong-seok less guilty nor does it mitigate the fact that he did try to subvert the system to his advantage at the cost of other people's lives. At least he recognized his own culpability and did what he could to rectify a situation that he had been party to. It was his statement to everyone that he would pay for his sins by taking Oh Jang-tae down with him. Taking a swan dive from the bridge was his metaphor to help bring closure to the drama he helped stage while acknowledging that Oh Jang-tae's repeated elusion from justice was partly of his doing. In that act, Yoo Jeong-seok believed that he could atone for his sins.

In the final analysis, people act in their own interests. For better or worse. To my mind it's an immutable part of the human condition. Does it make them demons and monsters? It all depends. It depends on whether they've ever learnt to negotiate within the context of family first, then community and then society. When I look at someone like Oh Jang-tae, for instance, it's clear that he never learnt to take responsibility for his own actions. His father cleaned up after him with the family coffer as we heard in the brief conversation with Nam Guk-hyun. All throughout the show we saw this. Oh Jang-tae looked to others to clean up his messes until the bitter end. Everyone had their reason to want to clear Lee Dae-chul's name. I wouldn't say that altruism would be first on the list. Some were motivated by guilt, some by curiosity, some by a need to prove something and others because of camaraderie. 

Still Kang Do-chang and Oh Jin-hyuk get their happily-ever-after. True, the system hasn't changed. People haven't changed. Just as Yang Soon-mi and Jin Seo-gyeong predicted. But it's a victory not to be sniffed at. The little people won an almighty battle. One that was born out of blood, sweat, tears and... good o'l fashion teamwork. Clearly the good detective could never have done it alone. Without his cluey maverick partner...Oh Ji-hyuk, without Team 2, without Superintendent Moon, without Jin Seo-gyeo, without Yoon Sang-mi and even Yoon Jeong-seok he wouldn't have made it. There were no superheroes. Just ordinary men and women who did their bit and their jobs. They rose to the call... not always easily nor happily but the important thing is that when push came to shove, they did what was needed.

My sense is that the show realistically accepts the necessity of our institutions: The family, judiciary, police, and the mass media. At times they may seem like necessary evils. Although it is true that our institutions are only as good as the people who inhabit those spaces, they are still pillars of a civilized society. Without them, there is only anarchy in the offing. The ones that always lose out in that deal are the vulnerable. Whatever their flaws, when done right they do serve the purpose for which they are intended.

The Good Detective (2020) Episode 15 *Spoilers*

I suppose this episode was meant to be Yoo Jeong-seok's last bid for atonement for his many sins especially those in relation to Lee Dae-chul. To be honest, I'm not sure how I feel about that. I've always understood him to be a gray character, not an outright villain but I'm wondering if the show hasn't cut him too much slack considering what he's been responsible for. I don't know if I like the idea that he gets to choose the terms of his own exit but perhaps this is the show's way of proving that he wasn't beyond redemption. He acknowledged his role in Lee Dae-chul's death and paid his respects to the dead man. Even if his attack of Jo Seung-gi due to a burst of rage at the man's unrepentant spirit was understandable I wrestle with the fact that he killed two others to cover-up his misdeeds. It rankles that he used his knowledge from his time working the police beat to get away with murder for a time. Even if he wasn't a "bad" man as Jin Seo-gyeong asserts, he did some terrible things. So then what constitutes a bad man? Then there's the fact that he went to confront Jo Seung-gi, the man who raped his sister and drove her to her death, on his own. It was hubris on his part thinking that he could deal with the situation rationally considering his personal stake in the matter. That's what the police is for, whatever their faults may be. 

However, I don't doubt that this is what the show wants us to grapple with. It is hard to do the right thing. It is much harder to do the right thing than we think. Telling lies, prevaricating, cover up... sadly... seems to be the default position. It is so easy to rationalize one's position once the conscience is suppressed. Monsters aren't made in a day. Little things snowball and before one realises everything is out of control. While I can't in all honesty feel a great deal of sympathy for Yoo Jeong-seok because he deprived two children of their fathers, I am well aware that I'm asked to understand the circumstances that motivated the original crime. I also believe that his final strategy was also about protecting the newspaper and the integrity of the staff, especially Jin Seo-gyeong who had been digging into the story and was somewhat resentful at being used as political football.

There is little doubt that the truth is much more complex than first meets the eye. It's tempting to have a kindergarten view of people although clearly evil does exist. However, when one is morally compromised it gives oxygen to those who abuse their power. It isn't hard to see how that leads to the flouting of laws that are meant to be in the service of the greater good. The problem with corrupt practices even if it seems harmless at a time is that it never stops there. A few bucks here and the turning of a blind eye there always leads to a dare to go further. What's more, if found out it leaves one vulnerable to unscrupulous leveraging and manipulation.

Adherence to ideals of justice is also very complex. As Yoo Jeong-seok demonstrates, justice for most is deeply personal rather than universal. The truth of the matter is that not all lives matter... to us. Yoo Jeong-seok, a celebrated journalist certainly didn't because he did his part in concealing the truth behind Lee Dae-chul's case. Without truth, without facts... there can be no justice for all. That's why bringing in the Fourth Estate for this drama is fitting. We expect journalists to adjudicate our relationship with government on some level but it's clear from history and even now that journalists can easily become useful idiots or propagandists if all they do is repeat talking points without challenging prevailing political narratives.

As we can see from Jin Seo-gyeong's dilemma, the truth is not necessarily her priority despite her journalistic claims. Her conscience perhaps and her regard for Yoo Jeong-seok as mentor and role model can override any regard for the truth. Emotions... whether it be fear or pride...  can easily overwhelm our commitment to truth and justice. That's part of the human condition. That was also exemplified by Yoo Jeong-seok's outrage against Jo Seung-gi which led to irreversible violence and then to even more acts of violence. Note too that a colleague at the newspaper blames Jin Seo-gyeong for causing trouble. She blames herself for uncovering the truth. Despite the fact that Yoo Jeong-seok was responsible in some fashion for the deaths of 3 men, most people especially those around him would rather have not known the truth. The truth is too ugly... too unbelievable and earth shattering. It's too hard to handle. But the truth that underlies all others in this show is that anyone is capable of murder... given the right circumstances and opportunities.

I remember a tutorial that I attended as an undergraduate student. We were discussing Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde at the time. My lecturer at the time pointed out that there was no real description of Hyde's features. All we had were reactions from people who met him. Our lecturer threw out the question: Why was that? In an unusual flash of insight, the eighteen-year-old me said that it was because evil has no face. I think that applies here too. Evil lurks about and it is a horrifying thought that someone we know or think we know well can be capable of such horrors. We don't have to look very far to see the truth of this. The evening news attests to that.

The Good Detective (2020) Family

One of the drama's main strengths is the way it portrays different group dynamics. Those among the male leads, the camaraderie of Team 2, Eun-hye's newfound family, the senior officers of West Incheon Police, the women and even the Yoo brothers. This was clearest in the most recent episode which could easily have been entitled "Family".  Even while it purports to be a crime show, the show explores families of varying stripes... both biological as well as those formed through necessity in the fiery crucible of hardship and suffering. 

For passionate truth-seekers it's a lonely world out there. For them it is a moral wilderness particularly if one is swimming against the tide. But for common causes, lonely truth seekers eventually find their way to each other especially if they stand out as a rare breed of individuals. Reluctant partnerships are formed which may lead to friendships which in turn may lead to the development of a substitute families built on trust from surviving one trial after another together. It seems to be the contention of the drama that these  types of families are built in large part by circumstance and shared ideals. Biology is a non-entity.

I've enjoyed the exchanges between Yoon Sang-min and Jin Seo-kyung signalling their collaboration in the last two episodes. I'm not generally a cheerleader for girl power but in desperate times when men and women wrestle with their consciences while coming up against roadblocks over and over again, it is heartening that two people with common goals can find allies where they may. Yoon Sang-min inhabits a solitary existence. In her case collegiality, much less friendship, is a rare find. She finds in Jin Seo-kyung a moral kindred spirit underneath the self-deprecating banter. The two women shake hands, share their goals and discuss luxury handbags. Both claim to buy luxury handbags but can't bear to use them. Once in a while they take theirs out of storage to admire. It's a metaphor for the current case... one of those rare cases that reminds them of why is it that they do what they do. They are realistic enough to know that bringing resolution to the case won't change the world but it is something that will be personally satisfying and may go some way in appeasing troublesome consciences.

Oh Ji-hyuk and his cousin Oh Jang-tae are polar opposites personality wise and are on opposite sides of the law. The latter's a sleazy possibly psychopathic millionaire playboy who's certainly committed murder and capable of much violence. His wealth allows him to indulge without consequences. Although they are biologically related, share the same surname, they have nothing else in common. Then there's still the unsolved mystery of Ji-hyuk's father's death. Is Jang-tae or God forbid, the late uncle involved in that sordid event? There seems to be some implication that it's in-house. A shared environment certainly did not see them both walking the same trajectory or keeping common cause.

Yoo Jeong-seok (editor-in-chief of Jeonghan Daily) and Yoo Jeong-ryeol (Minister of Justice) are two high achieving brothers who enjoy worldly success. with a dark family secret that's only recently come to light. Their relationship with Oh Jang-tae is purely transactional. "You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours." He knows some of their dirty secrets going back to the previous generation and they promise to keep him out of jail. There's no trust and certainly no loyalty in that dynamic. It's purely expedient. However as the police does more digging into the Lee Dae-chul case, whatever complacency that either side were labouring under before is now shaken with new revelations. As far as the brothers are concerned, their loyalty to each other appears steadfast despite the ominous day of reckoning in the horizon that threatens to destroy everything they've worked hard for. What impresses me about them is how far they have been willing to go for each other. 

Eun-hee, sister of Do-chang is turning over into a new leaf. She's finally (thank God) made the decision to quit drinking because of her son, Jae-woong. It's finally sunk in that she can't keep going the way she has if she wants to have a relationship with Jae-woong who is also missing his mother. After his uncle's pep talk, Jae-woong decides to take up judo following his mother's footsteps. She's ecstatic and finds a certain comfort that her son hasn't forgotten her. Eun-hye who now lives with the Kangs, becomes the intermediary between Eun-hee and her son because she has lost custodial rights. The empathy that builds up between them is heartwarming. Later the two women who have become closer gang up on Do-chang as only families know how and he is profoundly moved by this new development. With Eun-hee's acceptance of her, the once orphaned Eun-hye now has a family to call her own.

Team 2 continues to go from strength to strength. In an earlier episode after Ji-hyuk's stabbing and subsequent hospitalization, Do-chang tells them that Ji-hyuk has no family to care for him at that time. But young Dong-wook pipes up and says, "Who says he has no family? We are his family." As proof of this, when Seo-kyung comes to visit Jin-hyuk, Dong-wook having to leave on an errand, is sufficiently attentive to give her instructions on helping him with his ablutions much to the embarrassment of both. When the men goes body hunting in the forest, all that turns up after some digging are fully grown ginseng. Consequently they give up on the body search and start digging for ginseng instead. The scene that has them all sitting in the station ogling over the newspaper headlines is a heartwarming one. They're revelling in a rare moment of success and celebrating a minor victory. Team Leader Woo looks on like a grumpy but wise dad, quickly attempts to clamp down on what could potentially become a case of premature hubris.

The banter between Do-chang and Ji-hyuk could possibly be my most favourite thing in the drama. I am especially partial to the backhanded compliments, sympathy and the wry humour. There's so much affection and respect between the men belying the barbed personal comments and the jibes. As Do-chang gradually hears Ji-hyuk's story and begins to understand where that drive to uncover the truth comes from, their easy, good-natured bickering is imbued with a understated admiration. It's more than a partnership, they've become brothers-in-arms.

The Good Detective (2020) Justice

*** Beware of spoilers for Episodes 1-14 ***

What is justice? According to the Merriam-Webster, an online dictionary that I frequently use, justice is "the maintenance or administration of what is just especially by the impartial adjustment of conflicting claims or the assignment of merited rewards or punishments". Cambridge Dictionary says it's "fairness in the way people are dealt with". Macmillan Dictionary states that it is "the treatment of people that is fair and morally right."

So why do I obsess over the defintion? Aside from the fact that I enjoy the process of thinking through these things, it's important to begin a discussion of an abstraction with a common starting point. Clearly the vast majority of us operate under the assumption that "justice", in every sense of the word, is attainable or should be achievable to some degree. What those definitions that I cited share is an assumption that a standard called "fairness" or impartiality exists and if it doesn't, it should be by legal imposition. Furthermore, justice as an ideal is a virtuous and desirable outcome.

I say this because there has been a lot of talk about justice in recent times that has many of us scratching our heads because obviously there are some sharp disagreements over what that looks like. As the word "justice" gets bandied around in contemporary society, it is increasingly becoming a justification for all kinds of behaviour that defy the primacy of the rule of law. The ideal and the goal (justice) has become an end that justifies the means.

While I don't want to get too political or philosophical about it, what we think about justice actually matters. It's certainly vital in understanding how this drama sees itself. This isn't the first drama in which an innocent person conveniently takes the fall for something they didn't do... becomes the scapegoat... or the proverbial sacrificial lamb for an interconnected web of agendas. However, what's fascinating in this drama is that we have a series of competing claims for justice being made. Clashes are bound to occur and it seems that the one that has the most power wins. So justice, it seems to me isn't about the rule of law but the use of power to advance a particular cause. In the words of the vernacular... "might is right". For example it seems to many if not most that Lee Dae-chul being executed is a terrible miscarriage of justice. Aside from the fact that the man himself protests his innocence and emerging evidence seems to be in his favour, there are others who disbelieved his claim. But there are others like Yoo Jeong-seok, editor-in-chief of Jeonghan Daily, who claim their right to justice while apparently denying the right of others (Lee Dae-chul in this instance) to justice.

In recent episodes we find out that many years earlier Yoo Jeong-seok lost his older sister when she committed suicide after being raped and tortured by a crooked cop, Jo Sung-gi. Apparently the offender got off with a slap on the wrist. Five years before when Oh Jang-tae killed the art student, Yoon Ji-sun, Yoo Jeong-seok had tracked down the ex-cop who was impersonating a pastor of a church, served the offender his brand of "justice", using his experience as a crime scene journalist to cover up his misdeed. It is unclear at this point of if he killed Detective Jang Jin-su although that certainly would explain his eagerness to see Lee Dae-chul executed for the crimes of killing both the art student and Jang Jin-su. 

Superintendent Moon believed that Lee Dae-chul was guilty so he tampered with evidence for the art student's death to get the result he thought was warranted. He too made a claim that he was acting on behalf of justice. He fabricated evidence because he thought it was the right thing to do to ensure the guilty party got what he deserved. It was a subjective judgment and he manipulated evidence to fit the narrative that he had settled in his own mind regarding Lee Dae-chul's guilt. He failed to maintain objectivity because a beloved colleague had been killed in the line of duty. He may have had the right intentions of wanting justice for Jang Jin-su but his inability to be dispassionate caused another man to die unjustly. In doing so, he also led others astray and compromised the integrity of the police as a result. When one does the wrong thing, cover-up then becomes the default position because instead of owning up to the misdeed, the tendency is try to get away with what is unlawful as much as possible.

In both instances having power and competing claims of wanting justice turns out to be gravely tragic. Having power can corrupt well-intentioned people quickly. Power may expedite justice on some level but the law of unintended consequences means that things seldom end well when the process is side-stepped. My belief is that if Yoo Jeong-seok was so convinced of his position, why didn't he face the music and give himself up? That's my question to him. Did he not have the courage of his convictions? Or perhaps he believed that just as Oh Seung-gi could get off lightly, he had the power to play the system to his advantage. He must have thought he was justified in doing what he did that he did not consider himself guilty. From my perspective, Yoo Jeong-seok becomes the monster he believed he had slain.

It is true that the judicial system is an imperfect one. This is a broken and fallen world after all. Things fall through the cracks and obviously guilty people get away with murder for a whole range of reasons. Politics being a major factor. But when individuals place themselves above the law to gain justice, however well-intentioned, there are serious ramifications. Worse still innocent bystanders get swept into the net. Yoo Jeong-seok and Superintendent Moon might have thought their causes were righteous but taking matters into their own hands and then denying culpability left a girl orphaned, having to live off the streets on her own. What's worse, as far as the community is concerned, our institutions become compromised. The community is all the poorer for individuals putting themselves above the law. No one should be above the law because this is how the rot starts. Yoo Jeong-seok and Superintendent Moon compromised their respective organizations and the long-term consequences play themselves out.

When Woo Bong-sik said about Moon Sang Beom as he left his the station's premises, "We kicked him out of his house. I don't know what's right or wrong anymore." It is a telling statement. Superintendent. Moon was reaping what he had sown even if he had repented. There would be no reason to kick him out of his position if he had done the right thing all the way through." Perhaps bribery is seen to be a lesser evil. But lesser evil can lead to greater ones. Moon Sang Beom acknowledges it himself. There is no rest for the wicked.

What the show demonstrates though is that even when judicial justice falls down or falls short, natural justice is still act work in the background.

The Good Detective (2020) Episode 7

It is indeed a tangled web of deception in a seedy network of vested interests. I don't think that was ever much doubt from Day 1 who were involved in the cover-up of the murder of art college student, Yoo Jin-su. The guilty parties were named early and they mobilized in unseemly haste with tried and true obstructionist tactics to ensure that the truth behind the 5 year old murder would stay buried. In fact, the biggest mystery seems to be identity of the one who sent the surveillance video that gives Lee Dae-chul his alibi and is the catalyst to the reinvestigation. The timing is certainly interesting and it does beg the question... to what end? Considering what this show is about and where it's going, I have trouble believing that the sender is motivated by altruistic concerns.

Of course I don't think any of us believed for one moment that the "bad guys" would be resting on their laurels doing nothing while others were busy trying to uncover their secrets. It's a dirty business and as long as there are those willing to make a fast buck, dirt can be thrown around to discourage those who are seeking the truth.

I am sure Kang Do-chang knows exactly what consequences await him at the end of this journey. He doesn't need Yoon Sang-mi to point out the ramifications. He's thrown down the gauntlet and by stirring up this hornet's nest, he is setting himself up to be ostracized by the rest of the force because he is putting the entire organization under the spotlight for professional misconduct. In an ideal world he would be hailed a hero for standing up for his principles, for the little guy and for justice. But this is not an ideal world and key individuals within the law and justice system aren't motivated by the rule of law. There's also some ambiguity regarding Oh Ji-hyuk's pummeling of Eun-hye's pimp, Park Hong-du to get him to cough up information. Does the end justifies the means? At least in the mind of Ji-hyuk when the stakes are high and the bad guys are playing dirty he seems willing to cross the line. But then he too has nothing much to lose and he's in a race against time.

To a large extent Do-chang's biggest battle is not a legal or investigative one. As I've said previously, this is a show about people and what drives them to act in specific ways. Individuals have a rational and irrational side that come into play when backed into a corner. This is in part why even the best laid plans can come unstuck. Of course it's easy enough to manipulate someone into doing your bidding. Or talk them into it. But it's just as easy for someone else or a different set of circumstances to come along and unravel all of that. That's the unpredictable side of a conspiracy. At times it's a case of pushing all the right buttons to get the right reactions.

That was the case with the late Detective Jang Jin-su's widow who was in all likelihood dragged into the fray by Team Leader Nam. There's no pretence on her part that she's a grieving widow. All she probably cares about is dead detective's good reputation and whatever compensation came out of his demise from the line of duty. So in her case, she would do anything to protect that income stream even if it means throwing Nam Guk-hyun under the bus.

In this episode more facts about Yoo Jin-su came to light during the defence counsel's presentation of
the newly acquired evidence. The link between the deceased and Lee Dae-chul was (to my memory) established via the testimony of her college friend who wasn't included in the original investigation. It seems that Lee Dae-chul's daughter Eun-hye is actually a talented artist herself and her father was trying to get advice about how he could support her daughter's talent. It was a tragic piece of revelation considering what might have been for Eun-hye if her father had not been implicated in a crime he didn't commit. But perhaps there's still hope for her if Lee Dae-chul is found innocent and they get some kind of compensation for what they've had to suffer.

The tenuous relationship between Oh Jang-tae and the now Justice Minister Yoo Jung-Ryul via his brother Yoo Jung-seok was given more space in this episode during his confirmation hearings. It's a fascinating cat and mouse game with each side maneuvering to prove that they have the upper hand in this dynamic. Oh Jang-tae is certainly no fool and he's nobody's pawn. We are led to believe that it's an expedient relationship that goes back many years from when Dad, Oh Jong-suh was still among the living. I have no doubt that there's plenty of skeletons in that closet there's waiting to be uncovered by the willing. In fact I have my sights set on Dad and/or Oh Jang-tae for  Ji-hyuk's father's murder. Jang-tae certainly made it no secret that he hates his cousin so I'm sure there's a hint of something sinister in the background.

My own view at this point in time is that Jang-tae killed Jin-su unintentionally so finding the killer is not really the aim of this game. The primary aim is to find enough evidence to get Lee Dae-chul off the hook and for the rest of us to understand the complex relationship between all the key players in this conspiracy.