Vincenzo (2021)

A good watch but not for everyone

There is a particular genre in Asian webnovels that I don't really see elsewhere - the "revenge fantasy", and key to this genre is that even if the stakes keep climbing and the risks turn life-threatening, the protagonist will always win. I think that's what you've got to keep in mind before you dive in, because it ticks every archetype in the genre box - an overpowered protagonist, a number of irrationally brutal villains, a supporting cast of smitten fans, exaggerated stakes and hyperbolic resolutions. If that's not the genre you were hoping for, or you're looking for the classic gangster/thriller genre, then this isn't for you.

It's also a peculiar mix of (more classic) genres - personally I found the comedy hilarious, the business manipulations interesting, and the violence fun, but audiences who enjoy cutesy domestic comedy and dark violent thrillers don't overlap by much. That said, I personally found the comedy gave much needed relief to what is at its heart a grim tragedy about the corruption and collusion of the justice systems, which forces the main characters to take increasingly illegal means to protect or get back what's important to them. There's a lot of good themes wrapped up in the Geumga Plaza residents' journeys - from simply accepting that they're disenfranchised and helpless, to making full use of their own abilities to protect their own rights. For the main character himself, though, as satisfying as it was to see him give the villains their comeuppance, it was a bittersweet journey that gave him a short reprieve before forcing him return to his old trade.

Maybe because my expectations going into this drama was low - I honestly just expected pointless fanservice, which there was a lot of - but I was surprised that I could actually see a consistent theme and message in the story. Can justice exist when every branch of the justice system is corrupt? And this show is the perfect fantasy for everyone who has ever wished, in those situations, someone could just sweep in and take out the trash.

PS: Also has one of the best OSTs I've heard. Not many songs, but a great variety of instrumental pieces.

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Potential Imbalance

An anti hero with a mafia background goes back to his homeland to retrieve the secret stash of gold buried there after the owner dies. There he encounters a series of unforeseen problems, gets dragged into a war against a conglomerate and learns that there are more secrets than he had been made aware of. It's a fantastic foundation to base a story on. We can see that it has deadly potential to give us one of the best dramas of the year. But sadly, that is what it remains- a foundation- which is why it feels more disappointing than the average series that failed to deliver.

The plot is pretty straight forward for a touted thriller- but the back and forth screenplay keeps the viewers guessing. If you've watched enough movies/dramas, you wouldn't find the plot unpredictable. There are the usual betrayals, the chases, the comebacks, the one-upmanship, the cat and mouse game and the intermediate comic relief. But there are also a lot of unnecessary scenes and half baked elements that were mixed in as well. It could be because they all were originally a part of the script or because they had to fill the entire stretch of 20 episodes with something. In other words, this is not a racy or nail biting thriller. Truthfully, this is more an action drama.

The writer-director duo tries to overcome the hurdle of "too many episodes with too little story" with humour and fall flat face first onto the ground. That they respectively worked on Chief Kim and The Crowned Clown is another example of wasted potential- they could have turned the tables and made this better at any point of time during the show! The slapstick comedy feels forced, dispensable and boring. They could have totally done away with them and placed some actual courtroom scenes, seeing that the series' main characters are lawyers. The glaring lack of court scenes is rather conspicuous. The action sequences are nothing new either. I wouldn't call any of the plot twists shocking - I saw them coming from a mile away. Barring the first three episodes, the first half is long and uninteresting and the finale ends up being meaningless in its attempt to be a "desperate-last resort" action. Also, why all the last minute gore and torture?

The beauty of Vincenzo is that it is engaging in spite of everything. It ​is visually pleasing even if a majority of the incidents happen in an old building that actually requires the redevelopment that it vehemently opposes. For all the right reasons, yes, but it needs to be mentioned. The story picks up in the second half and the show delivers then what it had been storing all along. It feels like a fresh breath of air to see the plot take the reins and run the show, to drive its characters into their respective positions and make them do what they were brought in to do. The characters feel more grounded, as if they are a part of the story rather than in the beginning when they felt out of place with visibly forced acting. This overall improvement is backed by some solid performances from all the actors, with Ok Taec Yeon and Kwak Dong Yeon standing out. I think if Vincenzo did one thing good, it is that it brought out the versatility of these two.

It took me a while to accept the chocolate boy looks of Song Joong Ki as a feared and ruthless Consigliere and I was never fully convinced he could do it. But he does it, and although he didn't look threatening at any point, it's more on the plot. He provides a lot of gravitas to the character of Vincenzo that even the script fails to provide, ironically. He was a treat to watch. Did I say his Italian is sexy?

Jeon Yeo Been emotes well. She portrays the antics of her character without being over the top, right from the scene where she is introduced to us. In my opinion, we needed more of her extras and less of the unpalatable comedy that was thrust in our face. I was never sold on the chemistry between the leads and the romance is light, breezy, and blink-and-miss.

Kim Yeo Jin is brilliant as Choi Myung Hee in what is one of the few best written characters of the show. Kim Yoon Hye as Seo Mi Ri is another. Music and cinematography are the other plus points.

The major pitfall of the show is its imbalance in the construction and execution of the plot and the inconsistency in the characterisation. I got tired of how easily and quickly the residents of the plaza changed their stances. Hong Cha Young's fire and extras in the first three episodes vanish abruptly and she becomes yet another woman who needs rescuing towards the end. The character of Jang Han Seok was only saved from being a weakness that could drag the story down by Ok Taec Yeon's incredible work because he loses his spark midway as well. It's as if after his reveal as the Chairman of Babel he had no more cards left to play. All Han Seok did in the second half is just a response to Vincenzo's advances. Han Seung Hyuk was the most unstable of the lot and it was difficult to predict what he'd do next- in a way that's more irritating than it is exciting. This uncertain characterisation and a plot that doesn't tie up its lose ends (starting scene? Vincenzo's dreams? How did he get into Han Seok's house? Why did one of Myung Hee's lackeys return to her?) adding in comedy for fillers create a sense of imbalance. Several scenes and episodes feel disjointed. At times, the scene transition is not smooth and the music cuts off suddenly. It feels like a poorly patched up broken vase when the vase was never broken in the first place; just a little messy.

So would I watch it again? Probably not. Would I recommend it? Yes, the actors are amazing, go fall in love with them. Should you watch it? Yes, if a slightly wonky mafia story is your bowl of corn salad.

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The Series brought out all of my emotions

This Series made me laugh, cry, have aggression, be sacred, flip out... just everything. The series from my pov had everything I needed in a drama the comedy, the unexpected plots, the romance(not too much yet cute) and the storyline in general, was well written. The cinematography and the visuals were well-made and the acting was good.

Firstly let me clear things out. I like law, thriller & revenge dramas so if you like these genres too just stop reading and go for it. I'm always ready to binge-watch a good revenge series.

20ep is a lot and each episode is like 1h 20min long and I didn't notice it. The series didn't feel that long, each episode wasn't boring to the point that I'm pushing myself through. The pacing for each episode was normal but from ep 18-20, there are a lot of things happening, for me the pacing was a bit fast.

The Storyline of the Series is not bad tbh. There were also a lot of plots but it didn't give me the impression that it was too much. Each character had its own story but we didn't get too much background from the side characters more from the MC. You also experience friendship more like a family between the MC and side characters, Geumga Plaza Gang ;). The comedy in the series was actually funny and wasn't cringe. The series had me laughing out loud. I also liked the balance between comedy and revenge.
I would be lying If I said that the series didn't leave me empty at the end. We got what we wanted revenge, yet there was still an open ending that wasn't that well made. To be honest the ending felt kind of rushed but it was still good.
Overall the series came, ate and slayed.
If you are still hesitant, let me tell you to go for it you won't regret it and actually might fall in love with it like I did.

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Interesting

Very fun and interesting drama. Great performances from the cast, especially Ok Taec Yeon. Strong female characters... Though since there is so much violence, the male lead still has to save the female lead again and again. The villain could have been written better; they implied that Jang Han Seok was intelligent, and combined with his craziness and psycopathic tendencies, he should have been able to take down Vincenzo from time to time. Disappointed with the ending: although Jang Han Seok was the type of crap to kidnap a woman as a hostage (like every action movie ever made), I really had higher hopes for this drama.

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I am enchanted!
A series that brought moments of horror and at the same time lots of laughs. But I was prepared for a real gangster series, unfortunately I got an ordinary law series with a little bit of thrill. But I hope to see Vincenzo as the head of the Italian mafia and the real gangsters.
I am very pleased with Ok Taecyeon's acting. His character is the best in this series. I love him in such strong roles. They suit him very well in my opinion.
Song Joong-ki as the main character, Italian mafia member Vincenzo Cassano is also eye-catching. Especially at the very end of the series, when we get stronger cinema than those legal adventures from the beginning. The only thing I miss in this character is "strength". Vincenzo Cassano is a handsome man, constantly wearing suits, as befits a mafioso, but I miss the authenticity and maybe even the feeling of being in this role. Somehow I don't buy what he shows us on screen.
And the last character that stuck in my memory was Jang Hanseo played by Kwak Dongyeon. I really liked his acting and the whole character, it's a pity that there's not much of him on the screen.
The series holds your attention, has a great cast and a really good atmosphere. It's worth taking your time and getting to know its storyline. I hope this is not the end of the adventures and we will meet the Cassano family again!

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My first foray into Asian Dramas

My youngest sister started watching Asian shows so many years ago. Whenever we saw her watching them, she would be so engrossed and I for one couldn’t understand what she was enjoying from it, it left me baffled. I vehemently refused to join her in watching any of them.
2021 was the fateful year I entered into the Asian Drama world and I can never forget it.
I kept seeing Vincenzo (my absolute favorite genre is revenge) and it looked like it was up my alley and I decided to test out the Asian drama waters with this series, honestly after 2eps I almost dropped it (if I had that probably would have been the beginning and end of my foray into watching Asian dramas) but for some reason I decided to continue and boy oh boy was I glad I did.
To say I have falling completely in love with Asian dramas since 2021 and have watched so many since then and rewatched so many is an understatement, and it’s all thanks to Vincenzo. So obviously Vincenzo has a very very very special place in my heart.
Now to the review itself. OMG did I say I liked revenge dramas, I was in revenge heaven with this drama. The highs I got from this drama is better than any drugs out there (I haven’t done any drugs).
The way Cha Young and Vincenzo were on the same page after they teamed up together was a thing of beauty. They trusted each other completely and worked in sync. The thing I loved the most was that none of them was boggled down by foolish self righteous morality, they both knew the evil people needed to be punished severely after several warnings were issued and ignored, and boy oh boy did they plan and execute their revenge with incredible aplomb. They are the revenge dynamic duo, they are my revenge dynamic duo. The love I have for Vincenzo and the cast is beyond belief. I don’t know if the reason I love it so much was because it was my first or because it was revenge but whatever the reason is, I really don’t care but I am completely and irrevocably in love with the series and cast.
The blend of comedy, drama and revenge was so well done, like I said I was in tv heaven with this series.
Thank you so much Vincenzo for opening my eyes and heart to the world of Asian dramas. You have a reserved and special place in my heart for all times.
Rewatch value is 10/10, that should be very obvious (I have rewatched so many times and will keep rewatching)
Overall is obviously 10/10.

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Speaking Italian

Most memorable for me: Song Joong Ki’s wonderfully deep voice speaking Italian (yum!); Ok Teac Yeon’s interspersing perfectly spoken American slang into his Korean dialogue ( wonder how much was his adlib); Jeon Yeo Been’s imitation of her boss’s dance moves (LOL); and Jeon’s high heeled skip and strut (gotta try that!). This series was very violent and needed the ridiculous humor to offset the darkness. There are plenty of off the scale premises and characters that I had to accept but no more than most of ‘Wuxian’ dramas I’ve seen. I enjoyed this series very much in that it was different. I can’t watch CEO/Cinderella or High School romances 100% of the time.

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Clever Dark and Funny Show that is Occasionally Uneven

This show is difficult to cleanly categorize into a fixed genre which makes it very unique. It is a blend of a serious, revenge story and a comedy that isn't shy to draw on different strategies, including meta references to other Korean dramas. I feel the series' main strength is how clever the writing is: there are some very, very funny little moments and there are some very, very, tightly written storylines that have clear setups and payoffs -- I never felt that anything didn't make sense within the constraints of the Vincenzo world nor did I feel like a particular plot ending was overly contrived and random, as is unfortunately the case with some other Kdrama shows.

The symbolism and meta commentary of this show is next level. It's impossible to get into specifics without talking about spoilers, so I won't, but the way that certain things play out show a mastery of fiction writing that I think belongs in a novel.

However, because the drama doesn't consider itself 100% serious nor 100% funny, it does create some unintentional ridiculousness and pacing issues. For example, episode 1 establishes Vincenzo as a serious Italian mafioso to be reckoned with, but does so in kind of a semi-ridiculous Godfather kind of way that makes you wonder whether it is supposed to be funny or serious -- having finished the series, I still don't quite know, so my conclusion is "kind of both" which weakens the seriousness of the Vincenzo character, which is important because his expertise as a criminal is leaned on heavily as a plot device throughout the show. Furthermore, the most jarring sin related to this pacing issue is when you are watching a very serious plot line and show decides to throw in a scene that is only humorous -- in that moment, it's sort of like "I don't really care" because I REALLY need to know what happens with X or character Y.

Speaking of pacing, I think the first three episodes are the weakest point. You don't really know what the show is about until the first major event happens which takes place at the end of episode 3/beginning of episode 4. This is a short time but I think it's an important for a show to show you "what it's all about" right off the bat. However, this series opts for more world building and backstory instead. I also felt the conclusion of the story to be slightly hollow after it resolved everything -- it gave me the feeling of "everything as expected" without anything particularly pithy or unique if that makes sense.

Regarding actors, we have to give Song Joong Ki a lot of accolades. He clearly spent a LOT of effort to prepare for his role -- his Italian has been commented by native speakers to have flaws and word choice occasionally unnatural, but understandable without subtitles. This is an amazing feat considering how little time he has had to learn Italian. The other actors are very good too and I especially wonder why Jeon Yeo Bin has been such a well kept secret in the drama world (maybe because she has been working with movies all this time?). Her scenes playing "ridiculous mode" Hong Cha Young were easily the highlight of this show for me.

Overall, I think this series was a positive and enjoyable watch. You may think that review is overly critical for such a positive score, but I think there is a LOT of hype surrounding this show and I don't believe it is without flaws, so it is intentional to show a contrast to all the praise showing that I'm sure is everywhere. At the end of the day, give it a watch and decide for yourself.

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Overrated BUT a good drama!

pros:
- the acting: wow. the whole cast did an AMAZING job. I can't fault their acting at all. They all had brilliant chemistry with one another and I felt every emotion they wanted to portray. Bravo to the whole cast!
- the comedy next to the gore: on the contrary to what most have said about the comedy being out of place with the violence, I actually really enjoyed the stark contrast. Big fan of dark comedy lol kept things light enough to make the series not to feel too draining and gave everyone some depth in their personalities.
- fun villains! and I fell in love with some of the side characters because they were so charming.
- wowee, the ROMANCE!!!: Vincenzo did best was the romance. SJK and JYB have sizzling insane chemistry. Their romance reminded me of my fave anime, City Hunter, where they fall in love while working together and then becoming the cutest dream team ever. It was a mature romance where they mutually supported each other in healthy ways. If it weren't for the romance, I would have dropped this episode 4.
- a snazzy FL!

cons:
- plot was weak: with the rating and raging reviews, I was expecting an explosive plot but instead, the backseat romance storyline saved the drama imo. The plot was typical, predictable and overall meh.
- draggy: should have been a 16 episode drama. skipped loadsssssss from episode 10-19. I finished it so quickly bc i skipped so much lol i i get that it was meant to be slow-paced, slow burn or whatever but with a drama about mafia, it would have been better if it was punchy and to the point.
- ik this was not meant to be a romance drama, but it should have been. i would have rated this a 10 if they let the romance develop a bit more. they had two strong characters and actors with such chemistry and plenty leeway to make something more happen than what did. I don't think it would have taken away from the plot which i already lost interest in episode 4, but would have gave it more stability and would have made the ML seem more... human lol instead, a lot of screentime was wasted on god knows what on random characters (loved the side characters but didn't need to see them THAT much). idm the ML being super OP and perfect, but felt it was too extreme bc they didnt flesh out the more 'human' side of him, like loving others. which would have been interesting since ppl in the mafia are meant to be heartless.
- the ending was disappointing. they could have wrapped up the story so much better, like seeing the FL actually on his island. it just felt wishy washy that they threw in a kiss to a romance they hadn't even bothered to develop.

overall, 7.5/10. it was a good drama, no doubt. but not as good as it was hyped up to be. haven't watched kdramas in a while so this was nice first one in a while. do i recommend? a tentative yes. just go in with lower expectations. looking forward to the casts' future projects!

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