So close… Close to the ending, close to having a plot that made sense (or that we cared about), close to having a little bit of chemistry between the leading man and lady… And so far! Spoilers after the jump.

I see now that this drama could have been a much better one than it is. There are flashes of good acting, good chemistry, good character development (albeit tiny ones) that frustrate me when I think about the wasted resources.

There were times I felt like I was watching a version of the old Mad Magazine’s Spy vs. Spy comics, with the game playing going on here — “And I’ll do this to you!” “And I’ll counter with that!” The story jumps relentlessly ahead from one scene to the next.

When K meets up with Song Mi-eun and greets her as his sonbae fellow (former) ghost agent I thought my eyes would roll out of their sockets! Her performance prior to this point shows no indication of anyone who could be a 007 type of spy; she looks like she’d twist an ankle if she started to chase a bad guy. I suppose she was only used for her “brains and beauty and sex appeal.” (cough) And yet, when Eun-kwang tells K that he does know who he is (not caring about his background, etc.) because he can read his character in his eyes and knows him to be as lonely as he is, prompting a reddening of the eyes on K’s part, I was touched… and then I felt a little cheated because there should have been so much more emotion in this. I think the emotional connections are being carried by these two, and by K and Dong-hyun most of the time. And of course, I was just waiting for someone to get clobbered, and Dong-hyun was the perfect candidate with his glee at his big prosecutorial score and dogged resistance to bowing to pressure.

I continue to find myself annoyed most of the time by Do-ha, and Kim Min-jung’s performance. Yeah, I suppose we’re supposed to see her as sassy and bold and that’s probably why K is drawn to her, but by now someone who knows what K is and does should be doing more that whimpering “ottokae?” when he shows up wounded, wanting to take him to the hospital. She should be smarter than that, and braver than that. But I guess that he’s smart and brave enough for 3 girlfriends.

I’m very ready to wrap this one!

#chae-jung-ahn, #jung-man-shik, #kim-min-jung, #man-to-man, #man-x-man, #park-hae-jin, #park-sung-woong