The Fiery Priest (2019)

The perfect balance of comedy-crime drama

Close to perfect. I wonder why I always hesitated to watch this before. Amazing plot, various character developments, good comedy, great acting, cool action scenes, and exciting suspension. Nothing is a bit unnecessary for me, but the shortcoming was maybe at the first episode it was a bit slow, but it keeps getting better on each next episode. I love how it focuses not only on the priest or the prosecutor but also on other supporting roles' character development like Jang Ryeong and Ssongsak. Having the main character as a priest makes it more interesting than most of the same drama in this genre. In the end, the main idea of people repenting their sins feels align with the purpose of the priest himself. It makes me emotionally attached to each character. When it's characterized and comedy-crime, it doesn't lack the thrill when the action came in. Props to Kim Namgil for his great acting. But what I truly love the most is their good chemistry and how their relationship evolved from some stranger, some enemy, some acquaintance, to become one as family. Everything is beautiful and well-written.

Ps: I love how some sad and heart-breaking scenes not really using sad ost that makes you cry but rather they use the upbeat scores that make you feel furious and want to get revenge on those villains while watching it. It doesn't feel like I have to cry every time.

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Such an enjoyable watch ??

I watched this one for the FL lead I am a new fan of this actress after her 2024 project Knight Flower.

This was an enjoyable watch and looking forward to season 2. This is coming from someone who isn't a fan of multiple season shows.

PROS:
◇The acting
◇The chemistry ??
◇Writing
◇The 2nd have was more enjoyable for me personally. Really enjoyed when the whole team was completed ??
◇The ending


CONS:
◇Certian topics I wish were developed more. In Ep 15 & 16 they were beautifully done just wanted more time. Hope that makes sense, really trying not to spoil anything.
◇ I was a little long they could have cut it down 5 episodes or make each ep 1 hr and it could have been 20 eps.
◇The Humor didn't alway land for me personally. I did get used to it so it didn't bother me as much in the 2nd half.

This was a fantastic watch and really happy I picked it up. ??

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Great martial arts action scenes, comedy throughout, well written with characters you will miss

10/10 is my rating. This is a 2019 South Korean Comedy, Crime Action drama with either 20, 1 hour or 40 1/2 hour episodes.

I will first provide a synopsis then review

Synopsis

Many combat soldiers suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and when coupled with guilt resulting from innocents in the combat zone It can be severe. Kim Hae-il / Michael Kim (Kim Nam-Gil) has severe PTSD from things that happened when he was with the National Intelligence Service (NIS). Hae-il found solace in the church when his father figure and mentor, Priest Lee Young-joon (Jung Dong-hwan) encouraged him to heal through faith. Following the murder of Priest Lee, which corrupt officials proclaim a suicide, Hae il is determined to call on his skills and resources as a former NIS agent to solve the crime and obtain justice. Comedy surrounds the simple fact that there is a priest who is willing to use force to punish transgressors. Hae il must not only combat a group of gangsters but corrupt officials such as female prosecutor Park Kyung-sun (Lee Hanee). Kyung sun and others are surprised when this priest says you are not welcome in God's house if you think you can shed your sin and go out and sin again. His first requirement is don't come to confession until you genuinely apologize to those you sinned against. With near super hero like skills, the Fiery Father will take them all on, save a few souls and get those beyond redemption locked up.

Review

I waited a long time before watching this. Have seen nearly 300 Asian dramas before watching this one. I don't know why but with everything I read up to that point I thought it would be slap stick and it definitely is not. It definitely has a central comedic element but it is situationally funny. The priest himself is not simply a character that could use anger management, his character is deep and very compelling. Even the bad guys and gals in this have well developed characters and in depth stories. I love a good martial arts action scene and this has plentiful action scenes. The priest has super hero like status. He starts out very misunderstood by all but his mentor but those around him learn, as the viewer does, who he really is and he improves them through his own brand of caring and healing those around him. "When you say that you really sound like a priest," you get renditions of that throughout and will understand that he is definitely a human first. He is definitely one of God"s warriors. For me the timing of watching this was perfect as I feel like I am living through times when justice keeps getting the short stick. So seeing characters that deeply care about what is good and right and morale and not only seek justice but tow justice along sometimes kicking and screaming (you will get the pun if you watch it) is refreshing. I just recommend this one in general. This is another where you will grow to like the characters so much you will miss them when it is over. If you like comedy, crime dramas and/or action then this is definitely one that should be on all those watch lists. If you are looking for romance there are plenty of bromances and it skirts around some flirty scenes, but there is no direct romance. I am one that will rarely watch anything without a romantic element. This one is worth it regardless.

Spoilers

I really did not expect some characters would have a redemption arc and certainly not one I could buy into but the skilled writers for this series proved me wrong. Prosecutor Park or self proclaimed "Phoenix" was a wholely unlikable character in the beginning. She was rude, selfish and corrupt. She was unkind so many times to the main character that I was convinced I would never find her likable. But then their banter became amusing. And then her interactions with him, and I think God inserting some life changing events, started to turn her. But they did not try to jam down your throat that she was suddenly good or that her turn around excused her earlier actions. Same with some of the mobsters. They did not seem capable of redemption but slowly, and believably, you saw some redemption for them and yet they were not let off the hook for their past misdeeds. The priest's dark back story was heart breaking but it clearly exhibited how simply hearing "it wasn't your fault" at the right time, from the right people, can generate emotional healing. His friends and allies also came to understand him so much they knew the level of blame he would put on himself and how he would react when someone around him was hurt to get at him.

#fierypriest
#kimnamgil
#Leehanae
#KimSungkyun
#LeeHanee
#GoJun
#KeumSaerok
#JungDonghwa.

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Full of comedy

Both this and Vincenzo have the same screenwriter, so I gave it a try after watching Vincenzo. To be honest, I like Fiery priest better. Not saying Vincenzo is bad, just that people have different opinion. I prefer this one probably because of the humor. From the story, its really similar so both are good in term of story. Its about the corruption of high ranking official. We know how most of those stories goes. But the main lead is a priest, which would be weird since I thought priest wouldn't have anything to do with politic and such. But this one is hilarious, how the priest try to bring justice to a corrupt town. I also love the supporting characters, they show us that some people can change if they have the chance. It is a recommended series if you're looking for heavy drama mixed with lot of humor but not too dark

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if you're hesitating to watch this, let me tell you: don't hesitate. watch it with full force because it's an amazing drama that's wrapped up with the most hilarious scenes and toned down with absolutely heartbreaking scenes.

it seems like this drama's goal is to truly keep one's attention because there was nOT a single boring moment. some of the investigation scenes are quite questionable if you're picky with crime dramas but then you're suddenly diverted to a scene of two goofs being goofs in a convenience store and some dude with a dog mask.

what i can say is that the way the characters are written here are close to being top notch. you'd think the villains are just pure evil but then we're given a glimpse that they themselves are having a hard time in choosing the right path. the character development is well done with jang ryong and i hope we get to see him with songsak in season 2. i'm super curious how cheol beom's character will be handled in the next season as it's seen that he felt guilt though he didn't show it.

i love that this drama is not entirely heavy as the comedy timing fits well and doesn't drag the scenes too long. what's great to see is the chemistry of the police gang, the church gang and pHeOniX seOn. all of the cast did an amazing job with their portrayal of their characters especially kim nam gil; the smug remarks, the emotional scenes and badass scenes moved me and now my priest kink shall live on for many years to come.

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sempet ada keinginan untuk berhenti di tengah-tengah karena sampai episode dua puluh plotnya terasa diseret-seret banget. belum lagi, untuk drama yang keluar tahun 2019 (dan gue nontonnya tahun 2021), rasanya humor dan beberapa aspek dalam drama ini terkesan jadul banget. untungnya di episode dua puluh ke atas, keseruannya mulai mengental, esp waktu jaksa park mulai bersekutu sama gengnya pastor kim. pas lagi seru-serunya, di tiga episode terakhir tiba-tiba dikasih roller coaster yang turun banget (vibes dramanya jadi kelam), terus berakhir dengan ending yang--ya, gitu aja; engga mengecewakan, tapi engga juga memuaskan.

anw hwang cheol bum sama jang ryong mencuri perhatianqu skali ?️??️

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NOT YOUR TYPICAL PRIEST

I love love this drama. He's pretty straight forward and not a typical Priest that we all know. First, Fr Michael Kim will scold, bark, pouch, yell, impatient, giving so much attitude to his parishioners. Second, he is handsome and has dark secret past. Third, he is loyal, kind, intelligent, and capable. Besides he isn't going to put up with s**t, fight back in what he believes in, temperamental and will stick his gun for the people who dear to him. A lot of dramas/movies portrayed religious people as weaklings or type of people who will take in the (bad) fates which kind of tiring but not Fr Kim, he wants justice serve without prejudices. I like that...different from normal portrayals...

Kim Hae-il / Michael Kim (Kim Nam-Gil) retired NIS agent became a priest after a heart-stopping accident on the job, on the pinnacle of his self destruction, he's rescued by Father Lee and became his father figure and mentor. He respect and love Fr. Lee but the cartels kill and name-smear him. He's in range, try to get help from the polices but got nothing. Until he wrote a letter to the Pope and beg for re-investigation, he got Goo Dae-young (Kim Sung-kyun) a reluctant police to help him with the investigation - the cop that so bad on the job and clumsy - the Police Chief set this to fail Fr. Kim's reinvestigation. The interaction between two men is hilarious, altercation, friendship, respect, butt head. Park Kyung-sun (Lee Ha-Nee) A corrupt prosecutor who covered up the crimes of Gudam's administrators including the police chief and head borough, she is one of the parishioner and love Fr. Lee but forbid to come to the mass because Fr. Kim believes she isn't good enough to enter the church with the way she practice the law and handling Fr. Lee's dead situation. They both bicker, argue, distrust each other.

No romance, no heart break, all straight to action & fun.

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must watch!

okay so I will admit that I wasn't into it for the first few episodes but once I got past that I absolutely loved it.

Starting with the OST.
It was great. I usually don't care for it but it had me hyped especially during the fight scenes.

The Characters
I loved the characters dynamic too. It was so much fun seeing how they went from enemies to friends and how they had each others backs. Also eventually seeing two of their team members shocking past and how they put their talents to use. Seeing their interactions even with some of the bad guys had me cracking up I had to cover my mouth in the middle of the night to not wake anyone up because I couldn't stop.

Other:
I absolutely enjoyed the fight scenes and although I've only watched one other drama with Kim Nam Gil I'll definitely find myself watching more where he comes out. I loved the bromance and then eventually seeing how some of the characters repent and seeing their character development was something I enjoyed.

So if you want something hilarious with bromance, character development, and great teamwork/friend group. I say go for it and watch this one. It's definitely one I'll end up rewatching.

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One of my favourites and the funniest drama I ever watched

I don't know why I didn't watch this drama until now because it was a perfect drama.

First of all, it isn't only a comedy drama: it's also a crime and mystery one. Even though at times I was really annoyed with the corruption and injustice, the plot is so good, you don't notice how fast time is passing. But this drama has the funniest moments; I don't remember another drama that funny, maybe Modern Farmer but there were some over-the-top scenes, this one hasn't any. It's the first time I ever laughed with tears in a drama (I'm talking about episode 17, or 33-34). The mood of the drama changed a bit in the 19th episode; Hae Il gave me John Wick vibes, awesome!

The acting was great: Kim Nam Gil as always stole the show but the other characters were great as well, except the villains of course. Great job to all the actors! The action scenes were so well executed!

Great OST!

I'm so glad the drama is uploaded on YouTube, I can rewatch it anytime! That being said, I can't wait for the second season!

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This is gem…I think that’s all I could describe this drama.

I took a break from watching Kdramas for like a year because I got tired of pretty boys with the same characteristics all over again in the screen. Like oh my god, where are all these gentlemen oppa for real?

Kdramas became overrated because I keep on seeing old faces. Fyi, I have been watching Kdramas when they are not yet main stream, I had probably watched 200 kdramas since I was 10 years old.

But, wow! Fiery Priest was splendid. I was doubtful at first but I am so glad I soldiered through.

On the first half of the drama everything is just so frustrating, it feels like the Priest is fighting alone I was confused by Lee Honey’s character as well as Detective Gu. I can’t tell if they are on the Priest’s side or the enemies’ side. But it was hyped when they joined hands.

The minor characters were interesting too. They are significant to the drama. And they literally have interesting past as well that you’ll feel woah!

I literally adore Jang Ryong, I couldn’t hate his guts at all! Hwang Cheol Bum too, he is not a hate able character, actually I was rooting for him to get all those money. He’s hot for a thug. (?)

There are many hate able characters too, Chief Nam who looks pathetic however evil. Chief Prosecutor Kang looks exactly who would be a corrupt person. And Jung Dong Ja, I don’t get her character. She doesn’t have much impact except looking out for Cheol Bum. And that ex co colleague of Hae Il, who annoys me deeply. I hate his freaking face!


Lee Honey, omg. She is the awesome! She is full of charisma vibes. She is a really an amazing actress and this role proves that too. She’s refreshing character after all those cold, poker face, crying faces of actress I’ve seen for the past years I have been watching Kdramas. I mean, she’s brave, strong, capable, and yet they didn’t made her character all mysterious cold face woman like we always see.

And Kim Nam Gil, omg. He’s omg all over. I have never seen any of his drama or movie but omg what I have been watching all these times? Everything he does exude beauty, like seriously. How could he be so handsome like that? Hahahaha! He can act whatever kind of character and he gives his all. He has good chemistry to his co actors too.

Heard there will be a Season 2, but I am glad they wrapped up Season 1 in a good note unlike Signal. Looking forward!

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