Not gonna lie, I have a soft spot for time travelling and alternative realities themes. That’s why when I read synopsis for Sisypus, I knew I needed to watch. I don’t usually watch dramas as they go, I rather wait for a whole season to appear, but this time I certainly don’t regret the decision. Altdough I have to admit there was some moments when I was highly irritated that I cannot just binge watch it till the end.

This show doesn’t make it easy for anyone. If you wanted a light romance drama, that’s not it. The romance is not a counterpoint of the story and that’s what’s good about it, since it’s really not the most important part of the plot. Or maybe it is. It’s not easy to watch Sisyphus. Amazing production and soundtrack is not to blame. Perfect casting, great characters and actors neither. It’s not it. Multiple timelines and characters make is somehow hard to follow. It’ not easy to swallow romance type of the story. This is full on fantasy drama with all its pros and cons.

There’re some filler episodes I’m not gonna lie. But they’e not boring in any way. Usually we just get some background story that explains what drives our main characters. After watching one of those episodes I didn’t feel bored, at the end it just hit me that action didn’t move forward much. It was more of a breather episode, when we get to know our characters a bit more before jumping to the action once more. The ending though was perfectly timed. I really hate filler episodes at the end of the dramas. You know the drill, action actually ends on ep. 15th and 16th is just saying goodbyes to everyone. Not this time, till the last minutes I was hoping on some more answers. But it’s not so easy this time. Because this drama doesn’t give you easy answers, rather more questions.

All characters are important. That’s a very valuable lesson this drama gave me. Because if you forgot someone you could be sure that he came back to stab someone in the back (sometimes figuratively, sometimes not). And that was amazing, because I’m sure that 90% of characters could easily have their own spin offs and I’d gladly watch it. It’s just that even supporting characters have greatly developed personalities. They not only exist to be a background to the main characters. They have their own adventures and their own motivations.

Let’s talk about villain. Because I liked him from the moment he appeared but in the end I’ve absolutely fell in love with this character. Because Kim Byung Chul done such a great work with a character that could basically be a cartoonish Bond villain type. He was really close to be this type of cliche lurking in the shadow, plotting how to destroy the world type and yet still he was just full blooded human. He has a clear motive and a great backstory (I cannot praise his child version played by Lee Joo Won because this kid was so amazing I cannot put it into words). Abused by his father as a child, abused by his classmates at school. Tae Sul, the only person that helped him, finally turned his back on him. He grew up unsuccessful painter, tried to seek help with the police only to be beaten again. The story itself explains absolutely everything about what he did. Doesn’t justify, obviously, but we can actually see where all of this anger came from. And that’s what is great in this character. And also, that’s gonna be a huge spoiler, so if you haven’t watched the finale, beware. The way he was stopped! It was such a great idea to actually stop him not by killing his younger version but to actually help him. When I figured out what it about to happen I screamed. This way of dealing with villain will be forever remembered by me.

We have a long list of interesting characters and the way their storylines were solved. But I’d only focus on the main pair. I loved the way Tae Sul was the brain of the operation. Man who covers his eyes while facing gunfight and yet in stressful situation can find enough courage to think logically. He’s not a fighter. He’s a problem solver, a person who can barely punch somebody in the face but can get away from stressful situation with clear thinking. And we have Soe Hae, absolute opposite. Muscles of the operation. Person who will grab Tae Sul and escort him away from the gun fight. This reverse of the roles was so refreshing that I loved to watch it, and they compliment each other so well.

Plus their romance part. I know that Park Shin Hye was criticised that she cannot act the romance scenes. But here I don’t see that problem. She and Jo Seung Woo I think were believable enough. Plus it wasn’t like an instant romance story, it took their characters a while to admit to the feeling and I think it helped a lot. Especially that Soe Hae was an opposite of a romantic character with her background and upbringing. She’s not really fun. She’s very serious and I think that worked with the actress. Regarding how much character has been though it made sense for her to be a bit bitter. And still she enjoys those little things in life.

The plot was complicated enough to leave viewer pretty confused at some points. But not for long, usually the explanation follows, but first we get the solution. Everything seems to work backwards in this drama and I have to admit, I loved it a lot.

And the soundtrack. I’ll be lying if I said I wasn’t listening to it while writing this review. It just fits the series so much, is completely unique and nicely compliments the climate of the story.

This is one of those dramas that I’d love to rewatch. Partially to get back to some motives that I cannot recall how they’ve ended. But mostly to see the events with the knowledge that we get in the last episodes. Since nothing is just a coincident every choice that characters made matters. Everything just fits together so nicely. I’m in awe with the script, honestly.