Cette critique peut contenir des spoilers
NOT FOR EVERYONE -- BUT, MY TYPE OF MAFIA DRAMA WHERE THE "RIGHT" VILLAIN WINS
Why did I not watch Vincenzo earlier?! I usually do not write reviews, but I HAD to for one of the best Korean dramas I have EVER seen! I will say if you do not like mafia-related movies or shows, THEN THIS IS NOT FOR YOU! Because Vincenzo Cassano gets down to business... he is with ALL THE SMOKE!STORY: Vincenzo Cassano is an Italian consigliere who comes to South Korea only to retrieve bars of gold hidden beneath a temple. As he is trying to figure out a way to take the gold without anyone knowing, he finds himself in unfamiliar territory when he assists good-natured lawyers Yoo Chan and his daughter Cha Young in obtaining justice against a corrupt company.
ACTING: It needs to be known that Soong Jong ki is my favorite Korean actor. So, I expected nothing but the best from him and I got above and beyond that in his role as Vincenzo Cassano. It is probably his best and my favorite role by him! Yes... even over Reborn Rich. I love a good mafia man in a show/movie so I am not sure he can top this one, but we shall see! I have never seen Jeon Yeo Been in anything before, but I loved everything she brought to the table. What a hilarious queen! His partnership with Cha Young was so hilarious yet deadly and they have so much chemistry even though this is not really a romance. Also, I love the ragtag family team who always helps + supports him no matter what.
As for my 2PM bias TaecYeon, I had to keep reminding myself I absolutely love him because this charismatic yet psychotic role he played was played TOO brilliantly. He is really a great actor! I will definitely be watching all his dramas. I love when a K-Idol can act. Also, a shoutout to Kwak Dong Yeon's role as Han Seo. I need him to finally play a role where his character is finally happy though!
MUSIC: Is this one of the best OSTs out there? No, but the soundtrack highlighted all the romantic, dramatic and intense parts of this story!
REWATCH: I could honestly re-watch it now. It is that amazing!
OVERALL: I love how this show keeps me on my toes. It can be a thriller or comedy with some romantic aspects. While this does have that comedy tag and believe me it is hilarious, especially with the ragtag team BEWARE of the CRIME tag because when Vincenzo starts his mafia works, it is no joke. So, this show is not for the faint of heart because there are some very INTENSE + DARK moments in this drama. I thought I was watching an American version of blood & gore for a moment. I am not complaining though because of the way justice was served... It was Perfezione! I mean this is a story about how the "right" villain wins!
Is there such a thing as the "right" villain? Who knows? But, I am in my villain era so I ate every single bit of this drama up!
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a cliché like mafia show
(no spoilers)i have seen a lot of people saying that the show wasn't for them and that they couldn't enjoy it.
i am not gonna do a long review of the show, but i am just going to say that you shouldn't judge it by the reviews and it is definitely wort giving a watch.
to be honest the story wasn't special or anything since it's a typical story about a mafia consigliere and the murders he commits and why he is commiting them. so in general nothing extraordinary.
but the main characters plus the side characters were such a comfort for me, since vincenzo has one of the best casts i have seen recently.
the music was very impressive plus memorable and always fitting each scene.
i found myself being suprised many times even though it was predictable what was going to happen next.
so give it a watch and decide for yourself if it is worth your time!
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Cette critique peut contenir des spoilers
When Serious Meets Hilarious
I really enjoyed watching this drama.Vincenzo, a Korean lawyer who worked for Fabio, one of largest mafia in Italy. Fabio treated him as his own son and his most trusting right hand.
When Fabio passed away, his biological son took over and tried to get rid of Vincenzo.
Then Vincenzo flew back to his hometown Korea, for a mission of his own.
In Korea, he met with a descent lawyer/public defendant Yu-Chan, and found out that YuChan been taking care of Vincenzo's mom over the years. They "friendship" grew as YuChan treated him as family. They fight together againts Wusang Lawfirm and Babel Corp along the way.
YuChan was murdered because of he knew Babel Corp's secret, which made his daughter, ChaYoung who were working at Wusang, changed her side and join Vincenzo to take down Babel Corp n Wusang Lawfirm.
Some people might think this drama is cheesy or whatever, but actually it has deep moral story in it. It's a combination between comedy, action, romance, humanity and family value.
It is really ENTERTAINING.
Plus, salute to Soong Joong-ki and TaecYeon who play reaaallly well in this drama. Love them!!
Again, i enjoyed watching this drama.
The actors and actresses did a good job and deserve appreciation.
I recommend you to watch this for fun. It's really refreshing.
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My FAVORITE Kdrama!
I watched this drama a year ago out of pure boredom and because I had nothing else to watch. I was scared it would be another overhyped drama, so I didn't have high expectations. I almost dropped it after episode 2 because it was dragging a bit. I am glad I continued watching because, after Episode 4, every episode was AMAZING.I never rewatch dramas because I already know what happens, so it will never feel like the first time watching. However, I just finished rewatching this drama, and it feels just as exhilarating as the first.
Song Joong Ki did Vincenzo justice, and I fell for him after watching this. I love this plot and its twists, the acting, the cast, the romance, the humor, the OST, the action, and the suspense so much. I love anti-hero concepts the most of all, which is why I enjoyed both of SKJ's works (Vincenzo and Reborn Rich) so much.
I have a feeling I will be rewatching again next year because all of the genres I enjoy are poured into this drama. I am currently facing drama withdrawal symptoms, and I simply cannot move onto another series.
PLEASE give this drama a watch, I swear it is so so good!!!
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DIFERENTE E INOVADOR
O mistério da história vai crescendo aos poucos, e dessa forma o que era apenas um processo pequeno se torna o olho do furação de algo muito maior. Mortes começam a ocorrer de forma muito clara, para apagar rastros, tornando o caminho dos protagonistas e envolvidos cada vez mais perigoso.Os secundários da história acabam se tornando aliados fiéis, o que nos envolve. O plot da história eu realmente não esperava, quem diria que você pode amar alguém na história e depois sentir calafrios com a forma cruel com que ela aparece depois. Há momentos engraçados e descontraídos, e a química dos protagonistas como parceiros é muito boa.
Por que 3 estrelas então? A história não me emocionou, o casal principal (por mais que não era para ser um casal, mas no final foi por insistência nossa hahaha) deveria ter ficado mais tempo em cena, quando o Vincenzo finalmente soltou o lado mafioso dele que foi de encher os olhos a série acaba, senti uma leve curva no meio da história que causou certo cansaço ao assistir, e ao meu ver a história demorou um pouco para engrenar, se eu não insistisse teria parado e acho que nunca teria assistidos dorama, pois foi meu primeiro dorama.
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It's ok if you can't understand a masterpiece
The Outstanding production quality of Vincenzo💯This K-Drama contains episodes which usually last as long as an Indie movie, and I suppose that is the case with most of the K-Dramas that come out. But Vincenzo knows how to utilize the entirety of its long runtime for its advantage. Even when it lowers its pace, it compensates for it with its breathtaking cinematography and character moments which are worthy of the attention that is being given to them. It has a fantastic score and soundtrack which it doesn’t shy away from using. And while repeated usage of the same score tends to become a bit monotonous, it hardly takes away from the epic twist or reveal of the sequence. The characters and their performances bring together a cohesive amalgam of heartwarming and humorous scenes.
The members of the Geumga Plaza are each different in their own funny little ways and as we go on, we learn more about their hidden talents and their quirks keep enhancing. The chemistry between Vincenzo and Hong Cha-Young, which transcends from being partners to being each other’s love interests, is extremely cheesy at times and definitely what the show is trying to go for. It yearns for those awe-inspiring moments, but the action, thrill and violence of the show elevate the mature themes up a notch. When we see Vincenzo, he is not a protagonist. He is a feared Mafia outlaw who has killed his share of men, so that makes him an Anti-Hero. But his moral code is specific and he only punishes those who have done wrong to him or to others. Babel, whereas, is a different story all together. It is the classic evil conglomerate which can buy anything and anyone it sets its eyes to, and its true owner is hidden amidst a fog of deception and silent ruthlessness.
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Vincenzo was 20 hours of pure, unadulterated entertainment with characters we enjoyed watching and the titillation of bloody revenge and the hint of romance. VINCENZO himself was a Mafioso from beginning to end: someone who cared only about his family and who, once that was taken away, built a new one to protect. This was a Korean mafia tale, a Chaebol Godfather, where there is no good or evil. There's just your side and my side and no limits to protecting what's yours.
However, the show isn't perfect and had two major flaws that need mentions. The first is that it has one episode that is unbelievably homophobic to the point that I nearly dropped it over it. This has to be mentioned - episode 8 is a gross mess of offensive stereotypes and gay shock jokes. In fact, you could just skip it completely. Secondly, there's a whole conversation to have here as to whether the show degenerated into glorifying violence for the sake of violence - and in my opinion it did . But the writers never stood back from telling us who VINCENZO was. A Mafioso fighting a Mafia war that happened to be set in Korea.
And in terms of sweeping grandeur and consistent eye for detail down to the most minor of characters, it was a fantastic and enjoyable ride that I personally loved.
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Cette critique peut contenir des spoilers
I came out feeling somewhat satisfied.
After watching the trailer and teasers, I was very excited. I get a mafia/legal crime drama with not only Song Joongki (SJK) but there is also Ok Taeckyeon (OTY) [SIGN ME UP!!!] You kind of get what your expecting but then some curve balls are thrown in. The story overall was somewhat predictable but still holds your interest. Some of the plot twists just come out of left field and it is glorious. There is a lot more comedic relief than one (one meaning I) would have expected. A lot of the characters have complex backgrounds and developments which is really nice. Netflix has a record for only giving few characters depth and I am glad more of them were incorporated . Acting was good overall. I know times that its not always the acting is bad but its the way the characters are written and directed. If there were cases of bad acting then it was the production/writing time this time. I have seen the main leads acting before , so I can tell the difference. When the comedy parts come in , the secondary characters/actors steal the show.The music was good. I liked it more than I thought I would. Now that I am trying to remember any of the songs that were played , I can't really do it. Some songs were really good but sadly not really rememberable .
Overall, Vincenzo was a good watch and I don't have any regrets watching it. That being said, I have several problems with the show. Some could be just because tropes or flaws of the written characters. I for one like the violence (fight scenes, torture, etc.) especially if it was JK and TY. It is a "watch only once "type of drama. I may watch the last episode again if there is a another season just to refresh but not otherwise.
Things I didn't like (possible spoilers not sure):
(1)What I didn't like was the need to make the main leads into a couple (love interests). I would have like a platonic relationship between the two. They didn't have a couple chemistry but they did work well with each other. The writers wrote in several ...and I mean SEVERAL cases of bisexuality but used them for comedic humor. I would have made sense if Vincenzo was written as a bisexual character. And if not bisexual, maybe bi-curious at the least. The only verified lgbtq+ representation was in the "closest" and an serial assaulter. Yeah, that's a no for me.
(2) Some of the comedic relief scenes where just plain dumb and over kill.
(3) For me, the female lead was so annoying closer to the middle. The character had so much potential but they decided to make her a cliché. How do you start out so annoying yet badass to just plain annoying. I saw development in her but it was an overnight flip of the switch type of development. One to were it hits you how quick her selective moral change. They tried to make her intimating but that fell through because she was used for too much of the comedic relief before hand. She was going to be one of my fave characters but they ruined it.
(4) Why did the fact that Vincenzo being in the mafia become a public thing. there were scene where they would openly talk about him being in the mafia in public places (stores, bars, restaurants, the damn street). FOR WHY!!!!?
(5) There is one more thing but I can't explain why it irritates me without giving more spoilers. So I'll stop here.
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From the drama's kickoff, you become attracted to the original premise, the fast paced plot and the sleek execution. An Italian mafia family's consigliere of Korean origin heads back to Korea to retrieve a vault full of gold.
The first few episodes while a little slow paced served well to introduce the characters and pave the ground for the story, and during that phase the comedy was just to the right level and served its purpose, to show the sudden shift in the hero's life and the jarring difference between his background in Italy and what he finds himself thrown into in Korea. I was laughing with tears at vincenzo's demise upon arriving at Korea, and enjoyed the comedic relief in the simple interactions with the side characters and even simple moments like our mighty hero begging a pigeon to shut up so that he can go to sleep, only to have the pigeon raid his bedroom.
The start of the drama was craftly done to show the gap between our hero's true identity and past, and how his move to a different environment surrounded with simple common people affected his demeanour, state of mind and even somehow his priorities. The more he dived deeper into the lives and struggles of the simple plaza tenants, the more he drifted a little further from his dark mafia background, though eventually he relied on his mafia expertise but this time for nobler causes.
As I said, earlier on in the show the comedy served a purpose and was to a degree well-balanced, giving the right amount at the right time. For example, I was LOLing at the scenes where the undercover NIS agent with a Mafia-mania spying on Vincenzo always seemed to see things from an angle that made him mistake vicenzo for an angel in disguise, a mafia with a huge soul and a good conscience.
But the more the drama progressed, the more I guess the writers wanted to stay true to their forte or something, and slapstick comedy started to hit in huge doses. I have no problem with mixing comedy with other genres however serious and heavy they might be, but the right formula depends on the type, amount and timing of the said comedy. In Vincenzo's case, the comedy scenes were sometimes so sudden and ridiculous they kind of felt like a hit in the face especially if they came right after a tragic and intense scene, it left me sometimes with an urge to rub my eyes in disbelief. Comedic relief is one thing, but it should never be so sudden and so slapstick that it totally takes you out of the mood of the drama and pulls you away from the story. (Side mention, the excessive PPL as usual was extra distractive. ugh!!!!)
Putting the comedy aside, like any thriller the main plot relies on a series of confrontations, of attacks and counterattacks. The antagonists plot a scheme, and the protagonist hits back. This format is expected, but unfortunately in vincenzo's case it eventually caused a certain sense of repititiveness. The more the plot progressed, and the more complicated and elaborate the attacks became, the more it relied on unexpected twists and fake cliffhangers, where it essentially became a loope of "the bad guys plot against vincenzo > a cliffhanger shows vincenzo in a pinch > flashbacks in the first few minutes of the following episode show that vincenzo was informed or expected the bad guy's plot and was well prepared and that the whole thing was a ruse and he comes out without bearing even one scratch". While the first few times it felt cool and smart, the more such gotcha moments increased the more it started to feel annoying, repetitive and strangely and ironically predictive. Having our all-mighty anti-hero always conquering and ending up having the upper hand does feel good, but having it happen in that manner most of the time could end up dampening the suspence and killing the thrill, as if the writers start a huge fire only to dump water on it after mere seconds before it even reached a point of being thrilling. You're left watching not worried whether or not he will come out fine, but rather wondering what he has up his sleeves this time.
The acting overall takes a 7, a special shoutout goes to Taecyon for his marvelous performance, hands down the strongest out of all the cast. SJK as usual gave a very solid performance, though at times a little monotone, which I think was mostly due to the writing than anything. The FL's performance was my least favourite among the the main cast (more on that later), first drama for her and I am no fan.
In terms of characters;
First, Vincenzo was a very well written anti-hero and SJK was perfect in the role. He was charismatic, cunning, smart, mysterious and strong-willed, The perfect villain to fight off villains, though to be honest I would have preferred it if the writers had toned down his invincibility level a bit, he doesn't have to lose the fight, but at least show him with a more serious injury than a little scratch every once and a while you know. the background story of his birth and upbringing while very brief, still helped flesh out his character and give it more depth. In terms of character development, under layers and layers of endless charisma and coollness, SJK was able to portray the slighest hints of change of heart nothing major to call development though, and eventually the drama stuck to the point and chose no major redemption, which personally I found more convincing and believable.
The FL on the other hand I had mixed emotions concerning her. I started off hating her and not because of how intially she was ambivalent to justice and rude to her father, but simply because her whole personna felt obnoxious and her nonchalant attitude was sometimes over the top and annoying. The actress' comedy portrayal felt somewhat theatrical and ridiculous, she was supposed to be a smart, strong and competent lawyer, but she sometimes came out as naïve, noisy and spoilt brat. There were moments early in the drama where I genuinely doubted if the actress was doing an impersonation of Jun Ji Hyun in Legend of the Blue Sea, that'show much comical her acting was, she felt like a mermaid out of sea 😅. I did eventually manage to come around and accept her only to start questioning her principles in aiding vincenzo's agenda wholeheartedly the way she did, no matter how brutal and lawless it became.
But unfortunately one impression that never changed when it came to the main leads.... was the lack of chemistry between them. I never truely felt a spark between the two of them, but it might just be me, cause he acted so cool and composed all the time, and she was so over the top with her reactions and expressions, that I felt he surely must be annoyed by her as much as I am (LOL), also I never bought the fact he developed romantic feelings for her, it felt kind of forced. And although It is always a downer not to feel enough chemistry to be rooting for an OTP, but thank God this is not a rom-com and romance was never the center plot here. The first kiss scene was pretty good though I gotta admit :)
The side characters (Geumga Plaza tenants) were mostly endearing and I was especially grateful that the writer chose not to delve too much deep and give each of them an episode with a detailed story like other dramas choose to do. Above all they served as a catalyst to Vincenzo's purpose in staying in Korea, helped give him a certain sense of beloging and taught him the meaning of trust, and later became sorta his secret sidekicks, which might have been fun at first but later I found was a bit of a stretch and overdone on the writers side, like others pointed out here in the reviews, having all these people with hidden fighting abilities somehow gathered under one roof by chance was too farfetched!!
Last but not least, the villains (since the show had its fair share of those, 80% of the characters were evil for God's sake) some of them were portrayed too evil and too much lacking a conscience to a degree that was hard to swallow, but they still somehow came out believable, and thankfully they never felt as incompetent like in other shows, which was a great feat considering vincenzo was literraly undefeated all the time lol.
Though personally I would have preferred a bit of an origin story for lawyer Choi, other than being a weird ajumma who dances zumba in public, since imo she was the most worthy adversary to vincenzo. And considering the fact that the drama already had its share of bornt-psychopath main villain, not being provided with any background knowledge of what turned lawyer choi to the path of evil (to a murderous degree at that) made it feel like we had two murderous psychopaths that just happened to cross paths and join hands.
The OST (mostly instrumental) had a bunch of cool tracks, and some were very well utilized to enhance the comedy scenes.
Vincenzo was a drama loaded with originality in terms of premise, interesting characters, and an overall thrilling vibe. although it suffered from minor issues with the plot, the pace and the balance of the comedy, I still have to admit I appreciated its originality and high end production, and overall enjoyed watching it, flaws and all.
I apologise for the lengthy review.
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The best dumb fun I have ever had
The second I saw the trailer I knew, that I would love this series. And I do, I honestly and truly love Vincenzo. It's been a while since I have had this much fun with a drama. But I am not going to sit here and pretend like this isn't an incredibly dumb show.Vincenzo is an experience that is kind of hard to put into words. At first, I had problems connecting with this drama. I wasn't sure what to make of it. The first few scenes promised a high-stake thriller with a sinister feel. Then it suddenly turned into an off-beat comedy just like two scenes later. But Vincenzo is both of these things and neither. It's too gory to be a comedy and way too silly to be a genuine action thriller. The tone of this show is all over the place. But weirdly enough it sort of works.
As I fell in love with the quirky cast of this drama, I caught myself forgiving all of Vinceno's shortcomings. Those shortcomings include: A completely nonsensical plot with countless plotholes, cheesy dialogue, an overpowered lead, rushed plotlines, and confusing character arcs. This might all sound harsh but all my critique doesn't change the fact that I was incredibly entertained throughout the entire series. At times I laughed at the show, at times I laughed with it, but in the end, I always laughed, so who am I to complain.
Yes, this show has some fundamental problems. I have said before that it is riddled with plot holes but a big one is Vincenzo himself. The show is so scared of letting Vincezos fail at anything, that the incredibly high-stake premise starts to feel a bit pointless at some points because you always know that Vincenzo has the upper hand anyway. All attempts by our villains to bring him down get destroyed, oftentimes in the very same episode or even just ten minutes later. That makes Vincenzo feel less and less like an actual character and more like a Mafia version of Superman, a hyper-competent, invincible, supernatural being, everyone, and I mean absolutely everyone in the show, is in love with (the homo-eroticism in this drama is undeniable). I also wish we could have seen more bad-ass Hong Cha-young moments. She's supposed to be this super successful smart lawyer but 80% of the time, Vincenzo does all the work . I know that it's just one of the tropes that come with a Korean romance drama but watching her having to get saved by him time and time again did get a bit old.
While I love this huge and entertaining cast, it did feel like this show bit off a bit more than it could chew, which honestly is kind of amazing because it is so long and it still didn't really get the chance to develop each character. Some plot-lines here did feel a bit rushed as a result of that. This sadly also was the case with the romance between the two leads, which is a shame because I think they definitely had chemistry. I felt like their dynamic could have been explored more but unfortunately, the drama had more than enough on its plate already.
Still, while this show does get pretty dumb, there is a lot I sincerely like about it. I think the villain in this, while he is comically evil, is super fun and you can't say that the actor didn't give it his all. His over-acting is part of the charm here, to be honest. I thought Choi Myung-he was also a really fascinating, three-dimensional character and I enjoyed every scene with her. I also love a good redemption arc and a lovable himbo and this show offered both in one. The cast in general was really fun and different and there were many lovable characters to root for. The last few episodes were especially satisfying to watch and the finale didn't let me down either. While I have argued that Vincenzo's character was ridiculously overpowered, it would be a lie if I claimed I didn't love just watching him toy with the bad guys. And last but not least, I have never really gotten Korean humor, but in this show most of the time it worked for me. Others referring to Vincenzo as "corn salad" instead of consigliere will always crack me up.
While remarkable cinematography or editing isn't the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about this show, it still looks pretty cool and most shots get the point across while looking stylish, without feeling too showoff-y. The editing often adds to the humor and quirkiness of the show and the action scenes are also very well-cut.
The actors were great, of course. Vincenzo's actor really did try his best with his Italian lines so I gotta give credit where credit's due. I have already mentioned the villain's performance but his acting especially stood out to me and I just loved watching everything he did, no matter how insane it was.
I should probably say something about the OST as well but I honestly can't remember a single song from this show so I assume it was neither particularly great nor bad.
After I finished this drama I just sat down and asked myself: "Would I recommend this show?". And the answer is kind of. But you need to know what you're getting into. Don't come to Vincenzo and expect any realism. Don't expect anything believable or particularly meaningful from this show, otherwise, you will be disappointed. Just embrace it for its wackiness. Vincenzo promises an absolutely insane premise. And it delivers. The setup is insane. The characters are insane. The villain especially is insane. Everything about it is so over-the-top and off-beat, I don't think it's possible to not have at least a tiny bit of fun with this. But you gotta meet the show where it's at. Don't question anything. I am serious. Turn your brain off for those 20 episodes or your head will hurt.
I enjoyed Vincenzo the most when it leaned into its insanity. I couldn't really bring myself to care about all the times it tried to be depressing or deep. I had the most fun when it was just trying to entertain.
I feel like oftentimes films and TV shows are so dead-set on being edgy and clever, that they forget to be fun. Sometimes, after a long sad day, I don't want to see something witty and award-winning. I don't want to be out-smarted. I want to watch a Korean man try really hard to convince me that he knows Italian. I don't like that we measure art by how contrived it is. There's a time and space for dark, realistic, gritty stuff, obviously, but there should also be a time and place for a silly action show like this.
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Cette critique peut contenir des spoilers
Very good one time watch
Minor Spoilers Ahead.Could it have been better? Yes
Is it over the top? Very much
Did i like it? Yes
Know what you're going in for before you start watching. It's just your regular hero saves the day kind of drama. But it's entertaining and that's what i wanted.
Story could have been so much better. Had a lot of scope to make the title character a cold blooded killer. They did show some shades of it at the end. But if they'd dived into that part a bit more i would have liked it. Kind of like Dexter.
Overall it's a good drama and deserves a watch. 8.5/10
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