Unexpectedly enjoyable crime scene investigation drama (with romance and comedy!)
I don't understand why Catch the Ghost isn't a more talked about drama! It was something that I came across and caught my eye in passing on complete accident. Overall, the plot and atmosphere are very similar to Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, but done like 1000% better! I wasn't a fan personally of SWDBS (I know, heathen, aren't I? :D) because the silly, slap-stick comedy and the Criminal Minds-like creepy, thriller, mystery moods clashed, giving me whiplash (and the creeps!). Catch the Ghost, while similar in plot, did a much better job in balancing the less silly, but still very entertaining, comedy with the creepier villainess scenes, which I was so grateful for.STORY:
I really loved the story, which took me by COMPLETE surprise. I expected to just be "meh" about Catch the Ghost, but left and right, I felt surprised by how fresh the plot was. For example, Go Ji Suk's mother has dementia and he has been working his ass off to make sure she has everything she needs, with top notch care. He is such a good son and his decisions, while they might appear despicable if you don't know what's going on, are so endearing if you realize what fuels them. Yoo Ryung's story is also so incredibly unique - her twin sister, who has a cognitive disability, has been missing for 2+ years, with NO IDEA what has happened to her (fearing the worst case scenario); how often do you see this? Usually it's a parent or child. And because of these unique backgrounds, these 2 MCs mesh so well together! They understand each other and there's no pity, which literally makes all the difference for them both.
I also found the constant twists and turns in the plot to be well thought out on the writer's end. Right when you think you've figured out the "obvious" plot, you find out more details that change everything! I loved that! I was on the edge of my seat for every episode (especially since there was a sprinkle of creepy, with the ominous music, in every episode to remind us of the danger!). The real Subway Ghost and their story really isn't predictable (at least not for me!) and it's awful and tragic and unexpected!
I adored the supporting Subway Police detectives - their father-son relationship (literally, but not for real! XD) was HILARIOUS! They provided a great deal of comic relief outside of the MCs.
What I didn't like so much: Ha Ma Ri got on my nerves near the end of Catch the Ghost. She was so jealous. OF EVERYONE! And due to her inferiority complex, she was NASTY to everyone. She's the type of person who if she is reprimanded, she has to find fault in someone else and reprimand them to negate (?) her own guilt/responsibility. Every time her ugly behavior reared its head, I just felt like screaming, "And THIS is why Go Ji Suk left you!" (not the real reason, but still XD). She was "redeemed" in the end, but her behaviors up until that point just don't sit well with me. *shrugs*
I also do need to acknowledge that there were a couple of plot conveniences in the final 2 episodes that I can't look past because they're just too *convenient*. Like, I'm really glad we got a happily ever after, but at the same time, I found myself thinking, "that would NOT have just happened!" LOL.
ACTORS:
I've seen a lot of these actors before and enjoyed many of them in the past, so I'm not surprised that they were great here too!
A couple notable mentions:
I've seen Kim Seon Ho in a number of dramas (way more than I thought! lol), but this performance is what has me an official fan! His acting was great! I loved the way he was able to convey his feelings so well through his tone of voice and facial expressions.
I haven't seen Moon Geun Young in anything before, but she was good here! I'd definitely be willing to give her a chance in the future again!
The actor who portrays the murder (who will remain unnamed to remain anti-spoiler XD) also did a fantastic job in their role too! Really had me wavering!
OST:
I enjoyed the OST - it layered very well with all the scenes, especially the instrumental OST (the creepy ones were DEFINITELY creepy! Haha!).
My favorite vocal OSTs are: Highlight by Roh Tae Hyun, Wanted by ABRY (so catchy!), Feel My Heart by Kim Woo Sung
My favorite instrumental OST is: Lost by Young Ik Park (Perfect Run is the PERFECT investigative instrumental by the way, similar to the Mission Impossible theme song!)
REWATCH VALUE:
So the big question is: Will I rewatch this drama? Hmmm likely not just because I know who the serial killer is *now* (I didn't even look up spoilers in advance because I wanted to be surprised). But I will MOST DEFINITELY be rewatching scenes and/or watching MVs. The MCs are absolutely adorable together - who wouldn't want to rewatch that? ;D
I would 100% recommend this to people, especially if they liked SWDBS since this is way better! Don't miss out!
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La trama tiene el toque justo de humor sin sentido para una historia que es tan seria, los personajes aun no terminando de cuajar como pareja tienen muy buena química como compañeros y es algo muy interesante de ver
Hay un personaje al que de verdad le hubiese dado un par de bofetadas por el carácter innecesariamente malhumorado que le han dado, pero porque no me cuadraba con el personaje que jugaba, pero se resarce en los últimos capítulos
En fin, donde en un principio no pensaba ni verla yo, se la recomiendo a todo el mundo. Es algo lenta en algunos momentos pero merece la pena verla
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A fun story, but it lacks depth in the girls past
"Catch The Ghost" follows Yoo Ryung, a young cop that starts working in the Subway Police with the purpose of finding her twin sister that disappeared and it is most likely a victim of the subway killer, a serial killer that targets people on the subway and leaves their bodies inside the train.The chemistry between Yoo Ryung and Ji Seok is really good, but the drama doesn't give the couple a chance to be together, literally that happens only at the ending and for me, that wasn't enough. They do have some sweet moments.
Yoo Ryung's journey to find her sister is the main focus of the drama, along with her solving the cases with a lot of enthusiasm, she's a lively character and always gives great scenes, with her crazy ways to stop the criminals, dragging poor Ji Seok along. I think the drama should have put more effort into showing the relationship of Yoo Ryung and Yoo Jin, we only see little flashes of their lifes together and to understand Yoo Ryung's pain and how could she do that mistake, of leaving her autistic sister behind, it should have more background on the story about them.
The funny moments it's what makes this drama worthwhile, also the friendship between the Subway Police. The romance stays in second place, but still a really good drama.
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Dragged everything out too much, but still worth watching
I went into this drama with mostly high expectations, especially given the amount of praise the comments and fans were giving for Kim Seon Ho, and the fact that the FL also appeared to have an impressive acting career. The biggest letdown of this show wasn't the acting at all. I think both leads did a great job of delivering.--> The biggest fault of this show is the story.
The pacing started off well, but for me at least, up to ep 8 or 9 I began skipping. It was definitely around the halfway mark of this series. Everything gets dragged out, and episode 15 has to be one of the most painful eps to watch. I skipped every 5 seconds or so, and only stopped for crucial scenes, because they just dragged this out so much.
If they dragged everything out all the way up until ep 15, what became of ep 16, you may ask?
Episode 16 was anticlimactic. The romance between the leads, who had perfectly good chemistry leading up to this, just felt like that moment had been missed. The scene in episode 2 with the water (as much as I'll say) really gave many fans hope for the romance to come...! But all of that was dragged out, and so many little, unnecessary...contrived things got in the way.
For me, once I start skipping through more than 5 episodes of a drama, i've mostly lost that passion I had for it at the start.
And this seems to be a common thing with kdramas. They always start out good, but they always have to drag out things, and for episodes that are 60 minutes at a time, it gets exhausting. Drama watching shouldnt be a chore for me :(
I always start out with the negatives tho, cause I usually write these right after i'm done watching and im disappointed :^( but! The positives to this show are:
PROS
--->The acting is great. Besides the second male lead, who imo i think was kinda........unnecessary..? OOP that sounds mean. But the entire ensemble is pretty solid. Especially the main leads, the actresses for the mothers, the subway ghost, and even a few of the actresses they got to play the victims for side stories. I actually cried during one of the stories :"( that's how moving it was, so I totally salute both the writers, and especially the actors on their deliveries for such heartwrenching scenes.
--> the comedy is pretty good when it actually tries.like in the beginning episodes, i never laughed as much as a I did at some of the scenes xD
--> The male lead
Was Ko Ji Suk a saint in his past life or something? He's been wronged by the FL so much, but he is still so selfless and, really sweet :O Also, he's cool, but he doesn't know it, and when he IS cool, he gets nervous right after cause he mustered all his courage to do it. like damn where do u find such a healthy ML character in dramaland? Also, respects women? This sounds kinda sad now XD I was half-joking there, but Chief Ko is an all-rounder male lead. 5/5 stars.
--->The chemistry
It's not so palpable that ur feeling it through your screen, but you can tell the characters had mutual respect and...admiration for the other :D it was honstly so warm. It's a shame that their romance had to be so rushed in ep 16 since the screenwriters wasted so much time trying to make twists and turns with their choppy plotline ;-;
--> the message
overall i appreciate the message this show has. It has multiple, but the ones I got were along the lines of everyone carries their own pain, sometimes people become losers (xD) and that, im not sure, there's really no black or white to things. The one thing this show DOES go a job of subverting, is the whole black or white hero mentality. Each character, even the villain, had their own motivations. You can't agree with them, but you can see why they did it. And, that depth should really be a given in film, but still i appreicate the fact that this show also highlighted different themes like family, justice, and, really, you can leave a few episodes feeling good about yourself--even though you did nothing--because there's a lot of moral fulfilment you get from watching certain scenes. :"D
----------------------CLOSING THOUGHTS------------------------
SO, THATS WHY, OVERALL, DESPITE THE CRAPPY ENDING (>:D) this show still gets a high enough rating in my book.
Even though the ending was rushed, I'm used to unsatisfying drama endings by now. They can never seem to really wrap up things that well.
Even so, this Catch the Ghost is still a show I'd recommend to friends, and to you, whoever you are reading this :D I'm a stickler for romance, but if that's not your focus, and you just want a heartwarming story, (with a tiny bit weird ending, but a charming cast nonetheless) give Catch the Ghost a try :D Make ur own judgement. I'm just being bitter abt the romance smh xD
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I'm not sure why, but I'm usually not into Korean dramas, but I find this drama to be a strangely good mix of comedy, thriller, mystery.In her quest to solve the mystery behind her sister's disappearance, Yoo Ryung becomes a police officer and manages to get herself transferred to the subway police department because she believes that her sister has been the victim of the subway ghost, a serial killer who has killed people and dumped bodies in the subway.
Fueled by empathy for the victims and their families, she goes after criminals with a passion, turning the otherwise mundane world of the subway police department upside down. The comic situations are rather funny at the start. However, the series does not go light on the crimes: some of them can be rather violent, and the series does not hesitate to show some violent scenes.
I wasn't expecting it, but the blend of light-hearted comic elements with more serious thriller elements and some heartwarming scenes is splendidly done. They do not feel out of place. There are even a few nice twists that do not feel labored. By the end of Episode 13, I was wondering how the series could have another 3 episodes, but it did and it was done well too. The last episode feels like it has some filler moments so that it can become a full episode, but it's still not a significant problem.
The series also manages to highlight social issues like the struggles of the poor and caregiver stress. There is also a recurring theme of parental love and the lengths (sometimes touching, sometimes frightening) to which parents would go for the sake of their children.
The series is not perfect, of course. There are some slight plot holes and the depiction of dementia in the series seems a little unrealistic. But these flaws do not compromise the quality of the series.
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I fallin for the supporting actors!
This is the first time for Kim Seon Ho play as a male lead, but the character is not as strong as Geun Young , i think. Maybe this isn’t popular but ji_seok — yoo ryung romance is not so well developed. Yoo ryung is too selfish for Ji Seok, and Ji Seok is too selfless! man that is toxic! 😜The best part of this drama for me is the relationship between Ji Seok and his Mom! Kim Seon Ho is really an emotive actor, and everytime he did something for his mom, my heart fluttered, imagining myself having a great son as him. The climax scenes between them is so emotional so its torn my heart. What dissapointing is, the female lead, Yoo Ryung, seems didn’t care at all about Ji Seok mom. Reversely, Ha Ma Ri, the sad girl, was care so much, and really tryin to understood Ji Seok condition.
the other supporting role that i admire is the villain ___ the victim of people ignorance. He played his role perfectly, i almost thought that he was innocent! wow, because he is only a man with full of love to his daughter, oh i cry again for this man while write this review.
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Overly annoying FL
BIG WARNING TO ALL KSH FANS WHO WANTED TO ENJOY THIS DRAMAThe female lead got me all worked up
I'm normally a good guy that strongly condemn violence against female
BUT THAT FL made me feel like I wanna slap her every time she did things her own way without caring about the consequences on other people
The story might wanna write her as that "Strong female with unshakable sense of justice" but it just didn't work
She ended up being that "Self-centered person that only care about what she wants"
I stopped watching at ep 9 or 10 after she decided to not follow a case that the team was set up to, and drag her boss (KSH) into trouble cz she just feel like doing other case
That was the point where I was like "That's enough, she really deserve some big backhand smash"
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A victim's family ignored by an ambitious career woman
I dropped the series because of how ridiculous it was getting. Also I couldn't bear the mental abuse the FL had to go through because of the law enforcement officers. FLs request to include her sister got denied by investigator but when proven right, the investigator decides to rub it on FLs face that the FL is to blame.-
The plot isn't overly complicated.
A serial killer and a serial train thief is on the prowl and our passionate FL is determined to go above and beyond her orders in order to apprehend the criminal.
While labeled as fiction the neglect, limitations and lack of empathy from the police officers and their drive for results based on what they think is right in order to meet their qouta and obtain for themselves and their superiors the glory of "solving or closing" the case is definitely spot on. It cannot be denied that this happens in real life as well.
With this fact in mind you will be less frustrated watching the police officers and their bureaucratic red tape in this series.
I enjoyed this because of the different types of cases they got to handle. It's disgusting how the showrunners tried really hard to push the romance envelope between the leads and it was so cringe, uncomfortable and unnecessary - they should have just focused only on the investigation side and removed the romance element.
ML and FL did not look good together. I have to say MGY has not aged well and the way she smirked the whole time made it worse. Her acting is still top of the line of course but I think she should just stick to non romantic roles.
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Interesting concept
Concept: Catch the Ghost had an interesting concept as it was my first time watching a series on the Subway Police. The cases shown in the drama was entertaining too. I also liked how the drama weaved in real life problems, which made the drama relatable.Characters: Yoo Ryeong (FL) was not a character that one will like right from the start compared to Go Ji Seok (ML). However, things turned out better at the story progresses and at some point, I start to relate to her and the reason behind the things she do. Character aside, both the FL and ML looked quite cute as an on-screen couple with their small bickering and chemistry as partners at work.
The other police in the Subway Police force also added their weight to the drama, be it at serious scenes or comical parts to liven up the drama.
Recommendation: For people who like to watch crime genre dramas with some romance involved, this is a pretty good series to watch.
Where I watched it: VIU TV
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I found the plot kind of interesting for 2/3 of the drama, even though there were some inconsistencies, especially in the fact that the unit initially in charge of the case was doing a TERRIBLE job.
But once the solution got clearer, it really made no sense. The ending took 5 episodes that were really badly written in my opinion.
If you have nothing else to do, the drama is relaxing and fun but dont expect a good ending.
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a pretty decent watch
i decided to watch this one because of my new found love for kim seon ho and i dont regret watching it...the drama is set in the subway station and showed the kind of cases the subway police has to deal with... their job was pretty much calm and quiet with some petty cases here and there until the FL joins them... she is extremely reckless and will do the exact opposite of the rules and regulations a police officer must follow...
i liked the overall story and the villian and the mystery... there are only two things i dont like... the way the FL's character was written and the length... the drama could have been tightly packed without any romance and focusing mainly only on the cases... by the end, it felt like the police was unnecessarily playing cat and mouse with the villain just to reach ep 16...
the FL and her reckless behaviour came out as irritating rather than badass... dont know whether its the writer's fault or the director's, i just couldn't connect with her or sympathize with her... its not like moon geun young is a bad actress who cannot portray her role properly as she was amazing as the 2nd character... the fault lies with the makers... there is a fine line b/w being badass and annoying... the FL crossed that line when she put the ML in difficult positions repeatedly and unapologetically for her own personal reasons... also they made the entire police department dumb and ignorant just so she can shine... thats quite unreal... it would have been fine if she was shown as this super-smart go-getter kind of character before she joined the police force but they show her to be just a very ordinary girl who was leading an average life... suddenly after just 2 years she is smart enough to put an entire group of experienced police officers behind... its not even like she was in the force for 2 years... the FL remembering the entire subway blueprint is the only thing that seemed real as she was overly obsessed over it for 2 yrs... the makers overdid her character to the level i didn't sympathize with her when she was desperately looking for her mentally challenged sister... on the other hand i actually felt bad for the SFL even though she was rude and arrogant because what the ML did to her was unfair... he broke up with her for his own good and then moved on to another girl right in front of her without giving her a proper closure... her rudeness, jelousy and lack of empathy wasnt overdone to the level i felt irritated with her...
i liked how they showed what people who look after mentally challenged people go through... the way the ML looked after his mother is heartwarming... also they shed light on how women are violated in the metro stations and how men get away with it by hiding behind the crowd...
this drama is heavily underrated even though it has few flaws... i guess if kim seon ho did this after startup, it would have been more popular...
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A plot with flawed characters that I considered controversial - as it is based on a bad, perhaps immoral action that leaves anyone puzzled. Its romance neither felt rushed nor ever overlapped the main crime intrigues. The performances were amazing - kudos to Moon Geun Young for playing not one, but two characters! and to Kim Seon Ho for bracing so many emotions wonderfully from start to finish. Another great thing was the timing: tvn really knew when to cut the episodes and when to switch on and off themes. I grew fond of everyone.
However, it was weak on many aspects: most osts were quite bland, there are some odd camera angles here and there; when they ended an episode on a climax, it easily dialled down in less than 5 minutes of the following one - it isn't a big problem when you're able to binge, sure! The second female lead could've had much more spotlight- most second leads in kdramas get reduced to a sample role (obsessed ex girlfriend, best friend, etc) but Ma Ri was intriguing because of her almost holy commitment to justice and rule-like personality. And there was also one particular plot decision they choose that irked me, because it felt far too fantasy-ish for a crime drama (spoiler: the mom getting her memory back just when it was needed to, then forgetting it).
If anything, the only big disappointment was the fact that there are not any real ghosts in it. :p
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