Stranger (2017)

I was about to drop Korean shows, this pulled me back.

A little note beforehand: This show is perfect if you've never seen a Korean show before and aren't accustomed to their cinematography! It's very accessible.

I study Korean, I'd honestly say I'm quite bad at it so for the past two years I've been manically watching Korean shows and films in order to keep my skill up to date and to get drawn to the language and culture.
There's an abundance of poor, rushed and just plain terrible Korean shows out there, this is definitely not one of them.

I won't make this review too lengthy but I liked almost every minute of the two seasons. The long political-talk scenes were perfect for grabbing some snacks, the action scenes truly thrilling.

This show has your typical 'hurt main character', done RIGHT!

Lastly: can I marry Bae Doona?

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Best Crime/Political Thriller Drama!

Nail-biting. Captivating. Mesmerizing. Words can't begin to describe how much I enjoyed this drama. Plot that was woven like silk, creating a world full of characters with strong but relevant personalities, endless cliffhangers and unexpected twists that left most of us on the edge of our seats through the 16 episodes. The drama started strongly, diving head-on into a suspected murder case in episode 1. The insane pace was kept throughout the drama, with the writer tossing our bits and pieces of clues, each more alarming then the next, leading us to our 'suspect'. But wait, there's more! Absolutely loved how the hints were so balanced, never allowing us to pinpoint which was the real culprit till the finale.

In terms of the cast, most would have had their focus on HSM or HSJ, but for me, the winner has to be LCJ. God, seldom do you see a protagonist so charismatic, so smart, with ideals that you could understand. Yoo Jae Myung really hit the ball out of the park with his performance of the character here. Especially with his accent and speech mannerism. Of course Bae Doona and Cho Seung Woo had stellar performances as well. I also loved how each and every side character was developed and was part of the story as well.

Music was stellar as well, capturing and adding on to the mood of every hair raising scene.

Overall, I absolutely adored this drama, almost couldn't bear to finish it as I raced through the first 15 episodes in a flash. I highly recommend this to whoever enjoys crime drama with some sherlock-esque analysis and brainwork.

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Well worth watching! Actors giving it their all!

Wanting to see more mature actors in the limelight? This baby has it all! The first episode eases you into things by partially explaining the main character's, Hwang Shi/Si-mok's (Jo Seung Woo), condition and then the we meet a man framed and his acting is so convincing, that if I was there & it were real, I'd immediately say he's not the killer - a semi-reformed thief who made the wrong choice, but not the killer. I was moved to tears by his performance and the victim's mother too. Compelling and worth watching. I love how strong, grounded & caring Bae Doo Na's character Han Yeo Jin. She's the perfect compliment to Hwang, especially the easy & beautiful smiles she draws out of him. I appreciate how Seo Dong Won's character Kim Jeong Bon was honest enough about his feelings to share his concern & how he still cared about Yoon Se Won (played by Lee Kyu Hyung). The moment voiced this near the end of the first season, it matched my own thoughts. Yoon was easily lovable, and I feel he could've not ended up like that if someone didn't use him. I just wish he got to keep his glasses... he look really hot in them <3

I also sort of expected more painful headaches because of the level of emotional turmoil around Si-Mok as well as what he directly experienced. But he's very strong, seeing him get emotional just stops everything around him, it's just that compelling. He's very human & tangible, really really love this character <3

This 1st season ended well. So well that if there wasn't a season 2, I'd be okay with it. Again well worth the watch <3

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Amazing performance by lead actor!

This k-drama has a non-typical lead actor. He's not unrealistically attractive, he's sort of short, and he's awfully understated in his movements/speech. I absolutely fell in love with the weird little dude after watching this drama. There's a presence and force that he has when acting that is really fascinating to watch and this character really played to those strengths. His character in this drama is almost mousey; he's shy, reserved, bowing, almost like background noise. But hiding behind his unassuming presence is a masterful powerhouse of skilled orchestration. It was utterly compelling to watch this character navigate the events and complications throughout this drama.

The female lead is similar, she's not your typical k-drama female lead; she doesn't look like a fashion doll came to life to spit lines out on the screen. She is perfectly paired with the male lead, they have such an understated but powerful chemistry together. Her impetuous forcefulness plays so well against his composed reservation. Her character's idiosyncrasies and lone wolf tendencies really fit well with the male character's personality, they feel like they are different representations of the same person, like they just GET each other, like soul mates. Whoever cast this show is a genius.

Apart from the characters/acting, this show actually did a really great job intertwining the various mysteries, bleeding discoveries out slowly and tying everything together at the end in a way that made every single part of the story suddenly even more relevant than you'd previously realized. It was all super masterfully done.

I'd for sure watch this show again because I feel like in all of the various plot threads there were probably little things here and there that I missed or that would play out differently if I watched them with knowledge of the ending in mind.

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First off, I do find this drama a bit overhyped. The first two episodes were good hook when Hwang Shi Mok stumbled across a dead body in the house, and he went on to investigate that murder case. But I found the sequential episodes that follow from episode 2 a bit flat and boring, and the show only started to pick up its pace again at the end of episode 7 upwards. The show was written cleverly in a way that makes literally everyone around Hwang Shi Mok suspectable, and that's admirably its biggest strength. However, I would argue that despite the writer's best efforts to mask the identity of the real mastermind of the murder, from the start it was quite obvious who seemed to have been the most corrupted among them all, so I do find the conclusion of the story wasn't that thrilling and suspenseful. The anti-climax, however, is the mastermind's motive at the end explained in full which was a great twist. Therefore my favourable rating for its story is more of an appreciation for its complexity, rather than a lasting impression it could have left me.

There are two main characters listed on the show, but I do find that only Hwang Shi Mok has enough enigma to keep me genuinely invested in the show. Even when I say so, I do find that the main lead very capable, but not charismatic enough. Psychologically speaking, charisma is perhaps a trait that is a privilege for people who are able to masterfully control their emotion, and Hwang Shi Mok is hardly a person able to exercise that. Thus, as much as he is a very rational character who only thinks logically and pursues justice objectively and therefore would come across charming to other people, it becomes the very reason I find it difficult to connect to his character. There's a comparable emotionally muted character in kdramaland portrayed by Jang Hyuk in A Beautiful Mind, which was given enough emotional background and development for viewers to sympathize with him (even though the show was cut short by two episodes due to fierce rating competition during airing time). In that sense, I do respect whenever a writer decided to create a male lead character that has a medical condition of suppressed emotions. However, there should also be enough background materials to properly explain the male lead's behaviour and motives from past to present, which I found this drama has not done very successfully.

Han Yeo Jin as the female cop was quite uninteresting to me. Yes, she's a competent police officer who pursues justice relentlessly and there's a powerful scene where she confronted Hwang Shi Mok about corruption in the police force, but just like Hwang Shi Mok, she wasn't given enough depth beyond her role as a police officer (in fact, hardly any if at all). Young Eun Soo was definitely the most irritable character in the drama to me. Although I admit she comes across very tenacious about her mission, oftentimes she was so reckless and single-minded that it was unbearably difficult for me to like or understand her. I really wished her character to be a lot more sophisticated and cunning, but graceful. Seo Dong Jae is the character whom you literally want to punch on the face because he's so good at being shady/bad, which adds the interesting colours that the show is lacking from its main leads. The only character that was given the most depth and inner motive in this drama is definitely Lee Chang Joon, and the actor delivered it flawlessly.

There's not really a memorable BGM anywhere and I also find this drama not very re-watchable.

If you are looking for really clever screenwriting that tops this, I'd recommend Hello Monster, WATCHER, Confession (2019) and The Crowned Clown instead.

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I know that everyone says "best tv series ever" on almost every Korean show review, so here's what I'll say, because most KOREAN series are too freaking awesome and exceptionally executed, I'll say this is the best political psychological thriller I've seen thus far.

All the actors are great. No wasted meaningless scenes. The main character is quite intriguing. Cho Seung-Wood does a fine job at portraying prosecutor Hwang Shi-Mok.

The way Lee Joon-Hyuk plays Seo Dong Jae makes him my top two fav characters, right next to the protagonist. Didn't know he was so good. I had only seen him in "Are You Human".

This show is so unpredictable. Many scenarios throws you off when new speculations, questions and events are raised.

I especially love how the story depicts Hwang. He is unable to feel emotion, because of this, he is able to carry out his investigations without any bias which makes him a fair prosecutor, but we also get to see the flaws of his condition as the story progresses.

Many of these characters are multi-dimensional, and we don't really know everyone's true intentions, which keeps you on the edge of your seat every step of the way.

Screenwriter Lee Soo Yeon deserves props for this. The writing of Korean tv-series is remarkable.

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one of the best prosecution based dramas i've ever watched! so maturely and interestingly handled, the script writers did an amazing job!!! the plot is definitely the best part of it, but the actors deserve an enormous amount of credits, they carried such an intense plot without faltering a bit. the actor playing hwang shi mok was TOOOOO good, and bae doona is a legit CRUSH right now! i was also in love with the way eun soo's character was portrayed, she was shown as fragile and emotional but also extremely impulsive and courageous, i absolutely LOVED HER!
to the antagonists, y'all were too good! especially dong jae, absolute favourite lmfao.

i can see that there is going to be a season 2 as well, truly hope it happens soon, as i can't wait to watch what happens next! anyways, this was one the best dramas i've ever watched, you should definitely give it a try if you are a thriller / suspense / political drama's fan like me <3

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WOW, This drama is one of the best drama I've ever watched. I want to give an applause to the writer of this drama because well usually it'll be boring if the there's only one case to solve but this one is not boring at all.
Let's say it is a well developed story because the key point of this story is one case, everything was started from the park-moo sung dead, and then things getting more intense and interesting, the plot twist is here and there. I was also intrigued by how the actors/actresses portraying their each character, especially the main characters.
The actor that played prosecutor hwang is seriously good on portraying his emotionless character, there was one time, i mean the first time he smile to the Ms. Police and omg i'm falling for him. how he handle situations where it require him to show what he feels about something when he's character is emotionless is daebak. He delivered his emotions through his eyes and how he developed his character is excellent.
The main actress which it's Bae Doo Na, she's nailed it too. Her character is not like any main female characters in any kdrama, She looks like a real person who went through some things that makes her become strong yet not forgettable.
The plot-twist was shocking because i thought the villain is the lawyer but it turns out it's not him.
I'd like to write some more but it's gonna be too many spoiler lol, but seriously this a highly recommended drama.
I heard that they're gonna make it to season 2, can't wait for it!!

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I need season 2

I loved this drama so so so much! Like
this one got the place in my
favourites from episode 1! From the
beginning till the end the drama
doesn’t disappoint a little. It is so
intruiging and intresting. The one
thing I liked most about the drama is
how it unfolded every element and
character of the story little by little.

Like the pace of the drama was so
perfect! Another thing is that they made
me suspiocious of every little
character! Like literally any character
can be the killer! Everyone has a
motive and the power to kill our victim
and that factor played with my mind so
much. Like first a character is
introduced to us and then after 20 or

30 minutes it is told to us that "oh
he/she can be the killer!" But then
after a while “ no maybe not” is told to
us but then again they become the
suspect like god after watching this
drama I surely got some trust issues
lol. Every new episode changes the
possible suspect lol. Another thing I
liked about this drama is its characters.

Normally dramas are either plot-driven
or character driven, this one was both.
Maybe plot-driven more but the way
they showed every character’s flaws
and problems is something I really
liked. No character was innocent and I
love things like that hihi. I know I’m
weird but whatever.

The acting is again so so good. I
literally felt that all the characters
existed in real life like it was so real. I
have to applaud for all the cast.
Especially the actor who played hwang
shi mok cuz its not at all easy to play
a character who is emotionless and
yet show his emotions in way that the

audience knows what he is feeling but
without spoiling the fact that he is
emotionless and the way he did it was
incredibly good. Other actors were of
course amazing but I have to give him
a special mention cuz god I think he
deserves award for his acting.

The drama is not at all for the people
who like light dramas cuz I don’t think
there is anything light about this
drama. There 0.01% romance in it lol.
But if you are looking for a mystery/
thriller drama that plays with your
mind and makes it nearly impossible

to guess who is the killer then this
one is surely for you. Now let me tell
you a fun fact that made my respect
for this drama even bigger- me, a
person who MOSTLY guesses the
killer before perfectly right, failed to
guess him/her in this one.

Honestly till the end, my guess was
that “ anyone can be the killer” lol like
god it was hard to even fix on
someone and say “ yes he/she is a
killer!” that drama tricked ME! That
insanely good it is! Lol I am really sad
and fascinated by the fact that I
couldn’t guess lol.

Also even though the drama is a
mystery I loved the way they showed
us about korea’s corruption. The
message of the drama was to literally
inform and tell the people to stop
doing this even though we know no
one’s gonna stop but like its not gonna
hurt to try, right? I love dramas that
give a kind of social message.

Even though the drama is a mystery
and a very brilliantly done one it made
ME cry two times! And honestly that’s
a lot for me! Korean dramas often fail
to make me cry but this was an
exception. Overall this drama is one of
the best. If you like mystery/thrillers
then please do watch this one!

It is insanely good! Every episode and
every second is important like
honestly I didn’t even blink for a
second cuz I was afraid that would
miss something haha. Everything
from was perfect. The story was
brilliantly written and done/shown by
the director and the actors. I love this
drama so much!

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This was a very well written series with an amazing cast.
The story went how I predicted with the exception of one surprise. Stranger doesn't have a bunch of twists and turns but that doesn't stop it from being thrilling to watch.
The creators did such a good job at making it so every episode was interesting. I never lost interest while watching even though I had an idea of what would happen. There is also some awesome character development and you really get to see it in the last episode.
The last episode was definitely my favorite and made me excited for Stranger 2. The ending was so well done! They made it so you can decide if you want to watch the second season or not. There is enough closure if you decide not to watch Stranger 2. I'll definitely be watching the second season though!
Also, poor Si Mok never gets to eat. Something always happens as he's about to eat in the cafeteria.

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Set my standards very high for future dramas

I stumbled onto this show by accident and didn't expect much, being my second k-drama. I binge this through 3 days of constant watching and came out of this having super high standards for any future shows I watch :)) I hear s2 is airing right now. I guess I'm lucky!

Story 10/10
I liked the synopsis, and the idea of an emotionless main character (mostly bc there wouldn't be a romance subplot lol), and the story turned out perfectly! The episodes were the perfect length and were very gripping. Everything was very cleverly planned out, and there was a lot of foreshadowing. However, it was easy to miss some details, so if you're not a native English speaker, you might have difficulties with keeping up. The characters were also fantastic and had development throughout the plot. They all had flaws and strengths, and none of them were two dimensional at all.

Acting/Cast 10/10
I loved the casting for this so much!! Each character's actor suited them perfectly. Cho Seung Woo (?) is such a good fit for Hwang Shi Mok and portrayed him wonderfully. The acting was so good, and I felt that the actors immersed themselves in the characters. Idk what else to say here lol

Music 10/10
After episode 2, I HAD to download the soundtrack because I loved it so much. It kicked in at the right times and fit every scene well.

Rewatch Value 10/10
I haven't rewatched yet (I just finished like 3 hours ago), but I would rewatch this because of the foreshadowing. I think I'd rewatch this with some friends as it'd be fun to see who they suspect and what their thoughts are.

I loved this show and I appreciated that there was ZERO romance in it. That was very refreshing. I love Prosecutor Hwang and Seo, they're super complex characters :)) I'm excited to watch season 2!

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Delicious pie crust, no filling

I'm definitely in the minority with this one! When Stranger first aired in 2017, it was easy for me to look past, because I wasn't watching many crime thrillers or suspenseful mysteries at the time. But then, Stranger made it onto the New York Times' end-of-year round up of the best international television, and my fear of missing out set in. Had I overlooked something exceptional? After skimming the overwhelmingly positive reviews on this site, I can see that the hype for Stranger is as strong as ever, even six years later.

I tried to get into this three times, and it was only the last try that stuck, which probably says everything you need to know about my ultimate reaction to this drama. I forced myself through it, constantly holding out hope that I'd see why everyone enjoyed it so much, but spoiler alert: I didn't.

While I was watching, I didn't notice any huge area of weakness. The writing, while occasionally convoluted or over-baked, was solid. Directing, acting, and editing were great, and as you can tell from the promotional material alone, this drama looked amazing, in its dark and naturalistic way. I had complaints about the pace, but that's such a common issue in Asian dramas, it's barely worth mentioning.

No, my big block was how hollow this story felt. Stranger is certainly sparkling and competent on the outside, as it excels in every category we usually use to evaluate the quality of a drama, but it was persistently vacant on the inside. It left me empty, emotionally and intellectually, and thus failed to capture my interest in any genuine sense. Of course, I realize that this is a story that intentionally focuses on an emotionless protagonist, and I don't have any qualms about his characterization or Cho Seung Woo's subtle and sophisticated performance of Hwang Shi Mok. But I don't think his presence at the center of the narrative is a justifiable excuse for the void at the center of this drama.

And, please don't get me wrong, I don't think every show needs to present an intellectual debate or deliver a huge emotional punch. For instance, some romantic comedies are purposefully built to be fluffy and fun, and thrillers may be emotionally shallow to better blitz through a lightning fast ride of unforeseen twists. However, I don't think that these goals were the ones Stranger set up for itself. It's meant as a "serious" show to be taken "seriously" by its audience, as prestige television. I'm 100% on board with its plan, but the distinction raises my expectations, since that god-tier level suggests Stranger will be bringing something extra to the table, either emotionally or intellectually. Yet, it doesn't. There's no THERE there.

Sure, it's a great show, but no one orders pie at a restaurant expecting nothing but a delicious crust.

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