Hellbound (2021)

Disappointment !!!

With the excitement i went into the series, have to say Hellbound was a disappointment. An average watch in many ways.

The series started strong and one would be entrapped with the storyline and the actors have done a good job in their roles. There was mystery, there was a plot and the visuals were really well done. But all this was there till the 3 rd episode following which it took a nosedive and spiralled out totally and lost the plot.

The last 3 episodes was confusing let alone poorly executed. To put it simply, it was unidimensional and flat. It dint make sense or add up and have to say it was bad. If it was done in hope of a second season, then the director dint do his job in the second half to warrant a renewal. In the end, i am left wondering what just happened.

Of all the netflix originals that came out recently, Hellbound would be the weakest of them.

Overall, i would say it would have been better off as a movie. The story started off well only to be ended poorly. The only watching point for this drama would be the acting and that too in the first half.

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WATCHED ONLY FOR YOO-AH-IN BUT THE STORY IS WHOLE MESSED.

Drama concept is unique and good but the story is many way lacking so much, actually it's not developing except the ending scenes which gives thrill to audiences for next season
If there is no Yoo Ah In the drama , it shouldn't be that hipe Or worth watching. I really had a great expectation of the drama but it's somehow disappointed ,
How can be that type of brainwash be believed by every single people it's not acceptable.
How can there every people exept the things, that it is God's will after seeing their own family members death. How can there be that much of politics other than trying to find the details about those creatures. Except 1st ep and ending scenes none of the scenes are exciting or new. Or be valuable at all, THE WHOLE STORY IS MESSED.
I hope season 2 may not be build like season 1 , hoping for good.
Let's see when ,and how it will go forward.
Thank U.

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Scarily real and dystopic

I love this type of dystopia — seeing how humanity responds to unexplained disaster and following our few main leads trying not only to survive but also to change the world.

With that being said, I think this drama hits the first part almost perfectly and the second part not as much so.

The premise of this drama alone is so interesting and enough to get a 7 from me. I know there's been a lot of complaints about plotholes and the rules of the universe changing but I've been pretty lenient on those, since the drama addresses them directly by discussing how this was intentional. I feel as though this is going to be one of those shows where the world-building requires some sort of suspension of disbelief first, and once you get over that it'll probably make the viewing experience a lot more enjoyable.

The second, part, the characters, was unfortunately the part I had more trouble with. The characters that we followed were not necessarily likable and I kept questioning their decision-making. It didn't help that it seemed as though the subplot of each character ended right when it felt like it should've started there. We skipped over the most interesting arcs of our characters and revisited them after they were over. I appreciate the lack of plot armor and generosity of the body count, but it piles up like a huge mountain of lost potential.

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Not the Best, But Not the Worst

I went into this with zero expectations, having not read the webtoon and having only skimmed the summary. By the time I got to this, I was aware of the disappointment and negative critiques voiced by many on MDL, but as I watched it, I couldn't quite figure out why people were so let down. It is by no means the best drama I've ever seen, despite it's perhaps lofty storytelling aspirations, but it's far from the worst. I'd say it's solidly average, but I don't feel as though I've wasted six hours of my life watching it.

The CGI was fine to me. While I thought the demons looked a bit silly, I didn't really take serious umbrage with how they were presented. I've certainly seen worse and cringier effects in other dramas. Most of my critique comes from the presentment of plot and characters. We're given pretty much the same storyline every two episodes: someone receives a decree of damnation; the Arrowhead and New Truth get involved, causing mayhem and hysteria; the receiver of the decree tries to figure out why they were targeted and how to avoid damnation; and the decree is carried out. In the midst of all of this though, we don’t learn very much about this mysterious, all-knowing cult. We don’t really learn why these decrees started happening, how long they’ve been occurring, or why they are happening. And we don’t make any progress on what, if any, solution there is and how to bring that about. As a result, the storyline lacked a very clear, strong direction. Rather than having a distinct beginning, middle, and end, this felt like six episodes of these people’s day-to-day lives. I’ve read some comments saying that maybe the story will be further expanded, and questions answered, in Season 2 (if there is one), but I am a strong believer in the argument that individual seasons should feel as whole and complete as possible. Ending on a cliffhanger that leaves room to explore more in a future season is one thing, but creating a six(ish)-hour long intro that ends up setting up the actual story that will come later is a bit ridiculous. I also just felt like until the last half of the final episode, the story was kind of slow and draggy in some parts, which I’m never a fan of.

I also thought the lack of a clearly identifiable (at least initially) single main protagonist who serves to guide viewers through this maze was an interesting choice. We spend the first three episodes trying to get to know a set of characters, only to have (most of) them completely abandon us in episode four, where we’re given a new group to follow. It was slightly jarring and made viewing even more disjointed. Because we aren’t given proper time and backstory to get to know these characters very well, I found it hard to connect with and care about them. That said, I enjoyed the characters and storyline more in the latter half, as I found that damnation decree to be more interesting. The cult leaders and members, on the other hand, felt stock-like and two-dimensional. There was no depth or complexity in their actions or motivations, and the one who did have that interesting backstory wasn’t present for very long, and his past was a bit rushed through.

In terms of positives, I found the premise interesting, though execution lacking, and was especially curious to see how the final decree would play out. The acting was fantastic, and the music set the tone nicely.

Overall, I would recommend watching at least the first episode if you’re even mildly interested, because I think it’s one where you’ll have to see for yourself if you like it or not. I wish more plot was given to showing the origins and development of the cult and damnation decrees, as well as advancing it towards some kind of end-goal (good or bad), rather than showing us the same set-up over and over again, but I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt and assume they’re treating this as the first half of a whole season, the rest of which will be released later (though if true, I hate that strategy). I’d probably give Season 2 a shot if there is one.

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Surprisingly good

This show is not for the faint hearted. But for those who are into suspense, mystery with supernatural and even religious elements, you might want to watch it.

지옥 (literally "Hell", but translates here to "Hellbound") is a series that is divided into two different stories, but is interconnected by this supernatural phenomenon where there would be a sudden presence of an angel that would "decree" a person for eternal damnation in hell on a specific date. Thinking that it is a "divine intervention", shaking the core of the society is a massive understatement.

The first part which spanned on episodes 1-3 focused on the effects of that sudden phenomenon. Afterall, everyone was now afraid that they were the next to receive said decree and experience what people before them did. The pacing on the plot, as well as the suspense and thrill were very well combined as it created a sense of terror to the people, even losing their minds. And this is where the charismatic Jeong Jin-soo entered. His stoic and calm exterior with the knowledge and wisdom he seemingly have were enough to make the people follow in his organization "The New Truth" and live more righteous lives. Yet, we all know this is not true. He has more than that, and his hidden brutal borderline sinister characteristics were revealed later on (which was the climax of the first part.) The highlight for this subplot would be at the end of episode 2 and beginning of episode 3.

Most viewers were turned-off by a sudden shift of story especially after episode 3 with its transition to the second part. I was waiting on the part where the show's plot quality would go down. At first, I was confused and lowkey disappointed but as much as there was a confusion, surprisingly, I liked that it now shifted with a new purpose - to question whether what is being preached by the New Truth true or not. Obviously, it was not true as presented with the new character Kyeong-hoon's baby receiving the said decree despite being a newborn. I found it interesting that at this point, the show is now trying to question whether this "divine intervention" really divine or not. I was not stucked with the narrative that the decrees were absolute, although the demonstrations were. Also, the hypocrisy and cult-like characteristics of this organization is now being slowly exposed.

Despite surprisingly liking the story shift, I had more questions than answers after watching the season finale since it ended with a cliffhanger, although I am now relieved that there would be a season 2. Furthermore, the finale proved that there is a reason underlying these occurences and I am now curious as to how it will unfold.

It is interesting to note the lesson that I learned with the 6 episodes I spent watching here which is that interpretations of the "messages" that God is trying to send to humans can vary, as what we have witnessed at the finale. Though some people/groups of people by whether established religions or cults would like to enact said interpretations to the whole society, saying these messages (or decrees, as in this case) is the truth, we really can't deduce that it is the absolute truth. After all, we don't know what God is thinking.

This was on my watchlist for so long. I did not watched it right away to prevent bias due to hype and afterwards, I had a kdrama hiatus. But now, I already finished it and it was surprisingly good.

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Main theme is good but expected more

Well…I dont exactly know how to feel about this one. For me the main theme was interesting, I liked how they talked about religious fanaticism, how people use religion to manipulate others and how they misrepresent religion to justify their actions. The whole thing about right or wrong judgment was also interesting. The acting was also good and I was only bothered by that crazy streamer, because despite thinking that the character is bad on purpose, I still found him quite irritating in the first episodes. I may have a unpopular opinion about this but the visual effects didn’t bothered me here and actually I found it fine because I’ve seen worse.

But then what stopped me from loving Hellbound? Well, the main theme it is interesting but the last episode was a little too forced for me and they ended season one with NO EXPLANATION of anything. I know it’s probably because they wanted to do a S2 but seemed like everything happened and nothing happened at the same time because we ended understanding nothing about how these things are happening, especially about the things that happened in last episode. They just set the whole season on religious fanaticism and that's it.

The other thing that upset me a lot is that Yoo Ah In dies in episode 3, which left me with an uncertain feeling because for me his character was pretty interesting (actually the only one for me besides the female lead). Maybe he'll come back later in the story if they decide to do a 2nd season, but I think that the character's death so early in the story ended up leaving those who waited so long to see him the drama with a feeling of disappointment.

So yeah. I don’t think that drama was bad, I actually found entertaining but I definitely expected more. For now I think we’ll have to wait for season 2.

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What Started Promising Ended Promising

Do Not Read If You Don't Want Spoilers.......
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Before I fully begin I just want to say that all the actors in this show done a phenomenal job and they should be proud of themselves. Yoo Ahin done a really good job portraying the character Jung Jinsoo along with the other cast members in their specific roles. I remembered Park Jungmin from his role in "You're All Surrounded" so I was happy to see him again. All the staff done a great job from the cinematography to the CGI itself, it was really good.

I was originally going to rate this drama a 3 or 5 because of the way I thought Episode 6 was going to end, the first 3 episodes were very interesting and kept me watching at the edge of my seat wanting more. Then we got to episode 4 and 5. Those episodes felt the exact same, it felt like the plot wasn't going anywhere not progressing at all and very rushed due to the 6 episode limit ( they could've done with at least 3 more episodes)

Youngjae and his wife Sohyun were not very interesting nor did I have any emotional investment into them because of the brief period we were with them. The Policeman Kyunghoon's story is wasted potential unless they hopefully expand on it in a Second Season as it would be interesting to know what he has been up to in the 4 year time skip.

Then we get to Episode 6 which revived my hope for the show. When Youngjae and Sohyun died for their baby I thought to myself "Is this going to end like Possessed" and felt very disappointed. For the record I really hate the "Everyone Dies" endings, I thought I completely wasted my time on this drama getting invested only to be thoroughly disappointed in the end, I had rated the drama a 5 at this point believing that that would be the end of things and that it was going to end so predictable. That's when a scene came on that changed my opinion of the show completely and has jumped it up to a 7. This scene has created so much potential for this show that I want to watch more immediately but unfortunately I cannot. This is why you should have more faith in the screenwriter especially when they have Train To Busan on their record. If you would like to know what this scene was then please watch the show. Thank you.
What started promising, ended promising.

One additional thing I must say is that I love that recently a lot more K-Dramas are exclusively Netflix series with the Netflix money as directors and screenwriters in South Korea are free from the restrictions that cable Tv puts on them and can do more than they could when airing on a network. Nothing is really censored. It is very enjoyable when the creator has freedom of expression. If this drama were to have aired on a TvN or OCN it probably would have been really bad due to a lack of funding and censorship laws that they must abide by.

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The definition of lacking.

Even if I overlook the bad special effects I just can't find anything peculiar.

The theme of arbitrary and despotic justice has already been dealt with in both Taxi Driver and The Devil's Judge. Among other things, both titles have very eccentric tones, and Hellbound also tries to replicate that vibe by adding neon influencers.

I didn’t like the casting pairing and the storytelling that focuses separately in characters certainly didn't help in the chemistry. Add in the weak supernatural genre, inserted for the sole purpose of generating the story, and the drop is done.

Overall "Hellbound" was presented as a very dark "supernatural" title, but in reality it is the usual story about human behavior in the face of the collapse of civil society, only instead of zombies there are black Michelin men.

To hide the weak storyline they threw in eccentric elements and splatter scenes (beatings and blood.)

The overall idea was good but it lacks on all aspects.

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Lots of highs and lows for only 6 eps

I went through different levels of interest while watching this. There are parts of the show thay move really fast amd others that drag. The drastic change after ep 3 really throws you for a loop and it takes a bit to get back into it.
Over all I think its still worth it plotwise. It really picks up at the end and I suggest powering through the rough spot.
The ending plottwists are super interesting and I hope they make a 2nd season.
That being said. I think it was to the show's detriment to kill off Yoo Ah In's character so early. 1. He was the top billed/advertisied cast member so it feels a bit like a bait and switch ... which sucks as a fan of his. 2. His character was super interesting. 3. It felt like we deserved to see more of his story.
(But i suppose, after that last scene there is a chance he could come back anyway lol)
The cgi is ok. Seen better, seen worse. The way the creaters absolutely thrash people borders on torture porn and im actually thankful that they didn't make it more realistic. Like, at first I was like "if that happened he would already be dead/pulp before they zap him" but then as the show went on, I was glad they didnt go that far since it happened so often.
The cult stuff was a great reflection on how humans work in times of crisis and herd mentality.
Overall. A solid "enjoyable".

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Look closely, and this is a deep story about society.

Honestly, I went into this thinking, "Oh, cool, a monster show!" Then after watching it I realized it's so much more!! This is an excellent story that looks into society, religion, manipulation of people and how mass hysteria can affect human nature.

This was brilliantly done and a very good show. The acting was excellent and the subject was very engaging. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves analyzing complex human behavior.

I saw a few reviews that felt that the first three episides were too disjointed from the second three, but I completely disagree. The second three episodes take place 4 years after the first three and center around different people, but it makes perfect sense and anyone who actually understood the first three episodes would see why the second three are so important to the overall story.

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Great performances from ensemble cast, but beware the violence...

Although the acting and writing is good, I can't rate it any higher than a 7 because the series is not yet finished, requiring a second season to explain its cannon. I almost dropped it because the violence was so over-the-top in the first episode. Human beings are fragile and the way people get knocked around in this show, and still manage not to lose consciousness, is a bit hard to swallow.

This dystopian series depicts life in South Korea after a cult exploits a supernatural force terrorizing the citizenry to exert it's own power, setting up an authoritarian society where people are judged and their grisly ends televised to keep them in control. The stellar performance by Yoo Ah In as the New Truth leader pulls you right in with his charm and unassuming manner, ready to be of service but hiding a duplicitous persona with a dark agenda. There are also screen worthy performances by the ensemble cast and the camera shots were very good in pulling the viewer into the action.

For a limited series, you get a lot of action packed into these one-hour episodes, but they are extremely violent so if that isn't your cup of tea, please be warned. So far, there is no explanation surrounding this supernatural force and none of the leads have yet asked the 20,000 dollar question: who are they and what do they want? Perhaps these questions will be answered in the next season. I like the storyline, so I will be watching season 2 to see where this all goes. The twist at the end can either make or break this series, so I will have to keep watching to see where it takes me.

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