The Worst of Evil (2023)

A good gangsters vs cops dramas in an old Hong Kong movie style.

This is typically the type of story you used to find in old Hong Kong crime movies with men and brothers fighting each other in a story of cops, crime syndicate, mafias, and undercover operations. It was usually very romanticized, violent, and dark and in the ends, the outcome left no one unhurt. This drama totally follows this path.

1/ STORY
The story is rather simple. A cop accepts to do an undercover operation for a very personal reason. This leads him into a world of gangsters where bad guys also have their values and laws which make them not so bad and good guys are not always so good but have deviant behaviors and make questionable choices. He navigates in this and meets a local boss, and they develop an understanding and a friendly bond throughout time. The problem is that two women enters the scene, and they will make the two men question themselves, who they are and who and what they want and love. The result in the end is a terrible outcome for everyone.

2/ WHAT I LIKED
- The bonding between the two male leads and the bromance despite an uneasy personal situation in connection with the FL.
- The individual character development of the ML and of the SML. As I said, they are very romanticized but there is a clear beginning, a transition and an ending that is well told.
- The action and violence. I would have liked a little more of them.
- The ML and SFL. Their interplay was endearing. Cop guy and gangster girl trying to handle each other.


3 /WHAT I DID NOT LIKE
- The schemes were not so well made. I questioned some events that looked a little bit too simple or unrealistic.
- A little too much of "Who has the bigger balls". But I guess that's inevitable in a gangster's vs cops story.
- The last 3 eps were a bit underwhelming with some plot holes and far-fetched events that make them look rushed and inconsistent.

4/ CHARACTER - ACTORS
- Joo Mo: a simple and dutiful guy who becomes a gangster to bust a drug ring but he makes encounters that change him, his values and vision of thing and make him question his job. I liked the character and JCW was good portraying him.
- Ki Chul: simple guy with big dreams but a romantic who will question himself and try to change things for the best or the worst? Endearing despite his bad actions. WHJ was convincing too.
- Eui Jung: Some say she is useless in the drama. On the contrary. What she does or do not do triggers most of the tragic events. She is the main cause of everything. Im Se Mi. Second time I see here after True Beauty. Totally different. Good acting.
- Lee Hae Ryeon: the crazy and fun character who reveals herself not as hardened as expected. Superb job from the actress.
- Hwang Min Gu: The brute cop. Too much screen time for him and his antics. But his demise was fun.
Not a lot of noticeable characters beside these.

5/ OST: I enjoyed it bit nothing memorable.

6/ REWATCH VALUE: Probably rewatchable but a little too dark.

7/OVERALL
It is darker and sadder and more violent that expected. The schemes and counter schemes kind of drag the plot at times but overall, it is a good story. I would say the mafia and crime thing is not the most impressing or the most important. It is the personal situation and development of each of the main characters. From their point of view, it is a tragedy. A well told one. I totally recommend this drama. 9/10 . I do not give 10 because of the few telling flaws of the last eps but It is a good drama.

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Outstanding

The Worst of Evil is an outstanding Kdrama, and not just in the noir genre. It is a fascinating story with captivating characters, stellar acting, great action sequences, THAT KISS, a touch of classic tragedy and a real departure from simplistic black-and-white storytelling. Very few of the characters in this drama are actually good, some are very very bad, and most of them fall somewhere in between.

The intriguing plot revolves around our policeman hero who goes undercover, partially to impress his wife’s family who think she married the wrong guy, and ends up working for his wife’s ex-boyfriend who is now a gangster and decidedly not a good person - though we forget that pretty quickly thanks to his charisma. The wife, anxious to help, gets involved with her ex, while our hero catches the fancy of a drug lord’s daughter, and is torn between real affection for the girl and loyalty to his wife. This is where the element of a classic tragedy comes into play. The wife only gets involved to help her husband, who only got involved in the first place to get her family off her back, and in a bitter case of irony, that is what destroys their marriage in the end.

The characters are so well written that I found myself rooting for the bad guys on numerous occasions. When their bag of drugs is stolen, my first thought was Oh No! before catching myself. These people make a living off the misery of others, but we don’t really care, do we, since many of the “bad” characters are really charming or have redeeming qualities. The drug lord’s daughter easily could have been a cliched figure, but she is ultimately just a girl unloved by her father, who’s a constant threat in the background, with her bodyguard / replacement father figure the only person she trusts until she meets our hero. And while not all if the gangsters are really bad, many of the “good guys" are not good at all. There is so much corruption and blind ambition displayed by some of the policemen that it is clear that the line between good and evil blurred a long time ago.

I can highly recommend this show to anyone who enjoys the crime & mystery genre, great storytelling, or just something very far removed from the bubbly secretary and chaebol heir type of stories (though I quite enjoy these stories too). My one and only point of criticism was actually the wife’s character. Not that she hooked up with her ex, because she had a good reason. No, I thought she is way too passive during the big fight, especially as a trained policewoman. Generally speaking, nothing riles me up more than the female character just standing by while her boyfriend gets beaten up, or falling over in a dead swoon as he comes to her rescue. This is a recurring theme in Kdramas, Hollywood movies, fairytales and just about everywhere else, and it’s bloody annoying. Other than that, this drama was a perfect 10.

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JCW back with an action packed neo-noir series

The story, acting, cast, bgms, cinematography, action choreography were awesome. They delivered more than what I had expected. Would like to see JCW in action and romcom series more often.
The story thread goes something like this: Set in Seoul in the 1990s, a former DJ starts selling a new powerful drug nicknamed "Gangnam Crystal" in city nightclubs after mastering a gangster organization. Since the police know little about the origin of such drugs, in order to crack down on this rampant drug trafficking organization, rural police officer Park Jun Mu is assigned to sneak into the organization, only to discover that his wife, Yoo Eui Jung , also a detective, has volunteered to participate in this dangerous mission and seems to have an unspeakable past with the heinous underground drug king. Park Jun Mu in this drug-related mission, not only does he wholeheartedly fight the drug cartel, but also works hard to protect his wife's safety at all times.

Well, overall this was a gem of a find

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Overall good, but annoyed by the ending

To be honest I was disappointed with the ending, specifically Junmo's coldness towards Eui Jung. I think kdramas really tend to think that it's heroic for the main lead to leave a relationship when things get too difficult, aka sacrificing his love to keep overall peace. But it's just annoying, literally, some couples' therapy and PTSD work would've benefited both Junmo and Eui Jung, rather than them splitting. My ideal would've been that the investigation, and arrests, are wrapped up in episode 7, then the remaining episodes are Junmo and Eui Jung reeling with the aftermath of the events, arguing and communicating. Instead, we get a rushed ending because the drama drags out the arrests until the end. It felt too predictable, and because of that I'm only giving this drama an average rating, it could've been a very amazing drama had it gone into the nuances of the emotional state of their marriage.

On the flip side, this drama did have some great parts to it. The acting was downright amazing, so many scenes are captivating too and express how Junmo's character goes from innocent to traumatized. My favourite scene is when Junmo is over a body, fighting with the other gang, and he looks up towards Eui Jung all covered in blood. It's such a perfect angle to show how much this operation has changed him. I loved the cast so much as each actor did an amazing job portraying the characters.

Surprisingly my favourite aspect of the drama was how they portrayed the forced cheating aspect of the investigation. It's the first time I've seen a drama effectively pull off cheating in a way that makes sense. What was amazing was despite the cheating both Junmo and Eui Jung's love remains strong. The kiss scene between Junmo & Haeyrun is so uncomfortable in a way that shows just how much Junmo loves Eui Jung. Both of them didn't waver and it made for an entertaining side plot because we're left to interpret the true intentions of the characters. I strongly believe that both cops didn't waver, which is why I get frustrated at their separation at the end, it just feels like, after everything they went through.. what was the point if they weren't going to end up together again? Why did they, Jumno and Eui Jung, struggle so much? I blame Junmo for this because again the trauma makes him cold and distant...but again some serious therapy would've helped him heal, instead, he just suppresses the pain. I don't think he fell for Haeyrun, to me his feelings are more like a concerned friend. He realizes that Haeyrun is being used by her family and that she isn't entirely evil, so he wants to help her. I don't think he actually caught feelings for her.

Overall I enjoyed the drama but had hoped for a more throughout ending that would've dealt with the emotional side/psyche of Jumno & Eui Jung.

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“I gave up everything trying to protect you two.”

i went into this thinking it would be just another subpar drama. and not for a second did i think it would be one of the more prodigious ones i'll ever see. a lot of this i attribute to the the masterful way in which everything is shown rather than told, and the creator's ability to construct their own unique world. much like jean-pierre melville's delon trilogy or gilda, while maintaining a sense of realism, it operates within its own code, removed from the banalities of mundane, everyday life. a criminal underbelly isn't an appropriate term, either. it's more of an uncanny parallel world coexisting alongside our own, deftly concealed from its non-inhabitants.

i love its unmistakable soul and stylistic edginess: chain-smoking, gaudy wardrobes, characters that leave an indelible impression without needing to utter any words, characters that remain sleepwalking straight into their doomed fate; the impersonal noir overtones that omit any sentimentality (which would've ultimately weakened the story's ability to incur true devastation in you).

as for the story, i've probably not been affected by the ending of a series this immensely since cowboy bebop, and that was like, 7 years ago. i dreaded the moment it would come to a close, and it was worse than what i envisioned. and aside from the director's deliberate decision to underdevelop eui-jeong for the sake of noir, as he stated in an interivew (and thereby, her relationships with each respective character), i found few issues with it.

i've seen people justifying what happened to gicheul, but i don't think many understand just how not-evil of a person he was. selling drugs, eye-for-an-eye killings, overthrowing your boss, favoring some over others — most of these things are depraved, and they make you a bad person, but they don't make you evil. not when you treat the innocent with respect, refrain from abusing others, show clemency and magnanimity to those you love in the face of treachery, and are willing to die for and give the world to someone who shows you a smidgen of care or loyalty. i think things like piracy and things that constitute genuine malevolence exist in two different realms entirely.

and maybe it's because i've seen the worst of evil, but what i can most definitely say is, it was not gichuel. not only that, but those on the side of the law surpassed his depravity. not just in the vile extent of their betrayal, but in terms of their principles, too. but they'll never know true peace, and for now, that is enough.

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Where the line between good and evil disappears

What made this series different for me was not its story, but rather what was happening beneath the surface of the narrative and within the characters. Joon Mo, as a good man and also as a good police officer, had seemingly correct beliefs that formed the foundation of his existence and life, and these beliefs drove Joon Mo towards striving to preserve and strengthen goodness and defeat and destroy evil. Now Joon Mo has been called to fight the "worst of evil." It is a fight that aligns with his ideals and validates and reinforces them. So he enters the Ki Chul gang. At first, everything he sees is nothing but ugliness and corruption, something that serves as confirmation of his hatred for Ki Chul and his people and the necessity of their destruction. At this moment, Ki Chul is exactly the devil to Joon Mo؛ Thus, his beliefs are reaffirmed and become stronger. Until his love get a foothold in this story, and this event is a prelude to a new chapter full of turmoil and confusion within Joon Mo's inner world. Initially, Ki Chul's connection with Joon Mo's wife frightens and angers Joon Mo, increasing his hatred towards Ki Chul. But on the other hand,Ki Chul's sincere and pure love for Joon Mo's wife reveals something about Ki Chul to Joon Mo. "Ki Chul also has heart." Gradually, this aspect of Ki Chul becomes more vivid and apparent to Joon Mo. He loves all his gang members like his own brothers, he is loyal to them and he does everything in his power for their happiness. He has photos of his gang members in his office, photos that resemble more family or friendly pictures depicting relationships filled with love and affection rather than a group photo of gang members. Ki Chul is trustworthy, and that's why he easily trusts others. He loves Joon Mo like a brother from the bottom of his heart, and Ki Chul doesn't just keep Joon Mo by his side for his own protection; Joon Mo's life is valuable to Ki Chul, and Ki Chul tries to keep Joon Mo away from danger even if keeping Joon Mo away from danger is dangerous for Ki Chul himself. Like Joon Mo, he too had a difficult childhood, but unlike Joon Mo, he didn't have a helping hand to pull him out of that quagmire. Ki Chul was like someone who had fallen into a dark, terrifying, and seemingly unsolvable maze for years and had been waiting for the smallest ray of light to show him the path to freedom.Joon Mo and his wife were that ray of light for Ki Chul, which gave Ki Chul the good news of liberation and gave new life to his hope. The hope that he, too, could be good, be loved, and experience a normal life filled with love, security, and peace of mind. Perhaps Ki Chul knew that this light wasn't real, but with all his being, he wanted to believe in this beautiful lie, so he denied anything that questioned its truth and correctness.
During his mission, the closer Joon Mo got to Ki Chul, the clearer he saw the beauty within him. Hae Ryeon was also like Ki Chul, hiding a pure soul beneath a tainted exterior. The truth within Ki Chul and Hae Ryeon was what shook the rooted beliefs and ideals of Joon Mo. Should he act according to his own beliefs and destroy this group of demons, or should he accept the truth he has encountered and join forces with Ki Chul and Hae Ryeon? The truth that told him, the demons that you wished to destroy, have a more beautiful inside than the demonic angels around you. Joon Mo's inner self is filled with turmoil and conflict. He finds himself at a crossroad where every direction he looks, there is nothing but pain waiting for him. If he remains faithful to his beliefs, he must bury the truth he has discovered within himself and accept a lie that would result in the destruction of the angels who have been dressed as demons by the cruelties of life. But if he chooses to embrace the truth, nothing of Joon Mo will remain. This ideal within his being requires him to rebuild his existence from scratch and accept that everything he has believed and acted upon so far has been meaningless, purposeless, and wrong. Furthermore, he unknowingly initiated a game where victory and defeat come at the cost of life, and now that he has fallen to its depths, he cannot abandon it halfway or return to before its inception. Therefore, the only thing he can do is try to play the game in the most beautiful way possible. And that's exactly what he did.
He presented the most beautiful game of his life. He fulfilled his mission correctly, but at the same time, he removed Ki Chul and Hae Ryeon from the game and gave them an opportunity for a normal and better life (the very thing Ki Chul had wished for). However, Ki Chul made his last wrong decision.
Perhaps, as Joon Mo said, all the decisions Ki Chul had made until that moment were also wrong.
Kie Chul's comeback scene is Joon Mo's greatest moment of desperation. He understands that nothing can be set right anymore, and there is no correct decision. He must only seek the best decision. Ki Chul has turned back, and now the only things that await him are either death or a life where death is a wish. It is an eternal life in prison, where dying is the sentence of freedom. Ki Chul and Eui Jung are both devout Christians, and suicide, have a force of curse for them. Ki Chul wants to burn Eui Jung in the fire of his eternal curse by ending his life. A curse that not only consumes Eui Jung's world but also burns Ki Chul's afterlife. Joon Mo decides to shoulder the burden of guilt for Ki Chul and Eui Jung alone and free them from this eternal torment. In that moment, he chooses to protect them at the cost of losing his spouse and comrade. Now Eui Jung can blame Joon Mo instead of blaming herself for Ki Chul's death and she can hate Joon Mo instead of hating herself. What ultimately remains are deep and precious friendships. The friendship between Ki Chul and Eui Jung, symbolized by the bouquet of flowers accompanying the cross necklace on his grave, and the friendship between Ki Chul and Joon Mo, symbolized by a cigarette that was divided between Joon Mo and Ki Chul. Joon Mo's ring ultimately came off his finger, but his watch never came off his wrist.

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Must-Watch or Miss? 'The Worst of Evil'

Hey there, drama fans! So, I just finished binge-watching "The Worst of Evil," and let me tell you, it's quite the rollercoaster ride! If you're into crime dramas set in the '90s that come with a side of family drama and personal dilemmas, this one's for you.

First off, the soundtrack is fire! It totally immerses you in the dark world of Seoul's underground drug scene. The pacing is on point too—no unnecessary drag or filler episodes, just pure, edge-of-your-seat tension.

But hey, no show is perfect, right? Let's talk about Yoo Eui Jung. Girl, what were you thinking volunteering for a mission that your hubby is already on? It kinda makes you question how much she really values her marriage, doesn't it?

And don't get me started on Jung Ki Chul. The guy's supposed to be super meticulous, only working with people from his own school, and yet he somehow misses Park Jun Mo sneaking in under a fake name. C'mon, man!

Oh, and a quick shoutout to our low-ranking officer Hwang Min Gu. Seriously, how does someone like him get to throw a wrench into such a big investigation? It's weirdly entertaining but also kinda unbelievable.

And oh, before I forget—what's the deal with Lee Hae Ryeon? She's head over heels for Park Jun Mo, and for what? It's like she fell from the 'Love at First Sight' tree and hit every branch on the way down. It's one of those 'because the script said so' moments, isn't it?

But look, minor gripes aside, this show is definitely worth your time. It's not going to win any awards for groundbreaking storytelling, but it's a solid pick if you're in the mood for something fast-paced and engaging.

So, are you gonna check it out? Trust me, it's a ride you won't want to miss!

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Fascinating story and great script, music and top class acting. Very Well done

The story telling is so fascinating through out all 9 episodes so far. The script writer and director have done an amazing job. Every lines are sharp, interesting and informative, just right, and every scenes have been done in a finely detailed manner. It’s such a pleasure to watch! The casts are most amazing, including all main characters and supporting characters. Everyone is playing their role so well. Congratulations on your wonderful product. Music is fantastic. Absolutely love it. I will have OST added to my favourite play list asap! For JCW fans, he is at his best. Yes he has done it again, playing best in any roles be it romantic or action! This roles is a new aspect of his super talented acting skill. However it is only fair to give all other main leads the same score: all 10/10 ! What a joy to watch each episode! Thank You ??

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The best Crime Korean Drama of the year!! (Drug related/ Gang's / Action Packed/ Bromance 100%)

I'll keep it short as always.
When I started this drama I thought it would be the good old generic stuff that already exists... To my surprise it was actually quite different and new in terms of what I've seen in modern drama. I loved how easy it was to follow the plot and how creatively the characters were set. Story was very enjoyable. This drama is a definite MUST WATCH from me. Also the tension between the male lead and the second female lead was too good!!! I was actually more interested in their "business" in some of the later episodes.

Lastly I don't think everyone would agree with my opinion on this but I think the ending was actually perfect for once... It didn't make me feel empty and needing more when it ended. I mean of course I wanted to see the ML and the second FL meet again but it was more of a fantasy on my end?. Also the main FL was just a there as a prop. Literally didn't serve a purpose than to annoy the both the ML's with the lackluster "romance".

This drama was definitely one of the best this year when it comes to Crime Drama's related to drugs and gangs and the action and fights and gore was done perfectly. Definitely a ✅ form me!

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excellent men, women a disaster

SPOILER WARNING UNTIL THE LAST SCENE

SPOILERS

SPOILERS



The series is really good and deserves a second viewing (I always only watch them once anyway). However, be prepared for a lot of violence, sometimes even exaggerated. The actors are all very good. The male characters were masterfully drawn, all of them, unlike the female ones who are a disaster. There are very few flaws in the plot (including the disappearance of his father into thin air). Very little waste of time and unnecessary turns to lengthen the broth. Emotionally it is engaging, even if for those who have already seen the films from which it draws inspiration, they are emotions already experienced at a different qualitative level [“Donnie Brasco” by Mike Newell from 1997, with Johnny Depp and Al Pacino; “Infernal Affairs” by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak from 2002, with Tony Leung and Eric Tsang; “The Departed” by Martin Scorsese from 2006, with Leonardo DiCaprio and Jack Nicholson]. In any case, let's say that the theme of betrayed trust and the bad guy who trusts the good guy, who is instead deceiving him, is conveyed very well, or rather doubled by the fact that Eui Jeong also comes into play. So a round of applause to the directors, the screenwriter and the actors.

I really compliment the utent DramaAjumma on the parallel between Gi Cheul and Jay Gatsby, which I totally approve of. She were also very astute in observing that the same woman (Eui Jeong/Daisy Fay) is the driving force behind both men's ambition to achieve high social position. As well as the user @oppa_, who noted that Hae Ryun had very well noticed that there was tension between Jun Mo and Eui Jeong, but this crumb of the story was dropped without giving it any follow-up. Actually, Gi Cheul had noticed it for a moment too.

However, there are wrong elements in the series, even if we leave aside the imaginative way in which an undercover investigation was made, with the absurd involvement of the wife etc. I think Seok Do Hyung's murder scene was rendered in a botched and unbelievable way. A seasoned cop who can be disarmed and fooled so easily? And Jun Mo, why the hell did not he just arrest Seo, given the situation? Seo gave him the gun and he, instead of taking it and shooting him, left it in his hand. Another inconceivable scene is when Jun Mo arrests Gi Cheul, insults him heavily (for no apparent reason) and then incredibly allows him to escape. After working for months, risking his life and taking other's life, precisely for the purpose of arresting Gi Cheul, he lets him go, also putting his wife in danger.

I was extremely impressed by Choi Jeong Bae (the actor Lim Seong Jae is phenomenal). He was right about everything and he was the one who was pushed into the corner the most until he was removed, even though he was probably the most faithful. He is the only one who understood from the beginning that Jun Mo and Eui Jeong both had something wrong; if Gi Cheul had listened to his intuition about them from the beginning, he wouldn't have lost everything. Although Jeong Bae stole from Gi Cheul, his loyalty was far greater than everyone else's, so he is another character who has great ambivalence. Honestly, it is not clear to me why Seo massacres him. He is also the one who finally realizes that Gi Cheul is trying to screw the whole team and abandon the drug dealing. I did not quite understand whether the drugs sold by Jeong bae were stolen from Gi Cheul or the Japanese, in which case he would be the cause of all Gi Cheul's troubles with the Japanese. I was a little perplexed in the scene where he punctures the tire... it is not clear whether he is involved or not in what happens that evening, maybe it is a plot hole.

The forgettable part of the series are the two female characters: the girl is ridiculous and an unlikely drug trafficker, the wife is a vapid deadcat. The actress Im Se Mi must have worked hard to act so expressionlessly, to comply with a script completely devoid of romantic emotions. The female roles and relationships in the three couples had to be left to a female hand. The choice not to show the slightest intimacy between any of them makes any emotion impermissible; where was the smile and joy of being together, typical of lovers? Nothing justifies Jun Mo risking the entire operation to warn Hae Ryun that the Chinese police were about to raid his hideout and leaving her free to continue her crime somewhere else. There is not a single scene from which we understand that Hae Ryun is so in love with him that she betrays her father and gives up her business that allows her to lead the life of a billionaire. The two characters never exchange a look of real complicity or affection. The same goes for Eui Jeong's alleged falling in love, instead she has shown herself to be constantly worried about the safety of her husband: we have never seen Eui Jeong happy in Gi Cheul's arms. Should dating her husband and putting the necklace in plain sight suggest that she is in love with Gi Cheul? Even at the last moment, when she kneels next to the dying Gi Cheul, she does nothing different than anyone with any knowledge of the wounded man would have done.

So it is all assumed, without the effort of any scene in the script showing how the feelings of these four people are growing; everything is taken for granted, including the fact that Jun Mo "understood" that his wife actually no longer loved him, as the ending suggests.

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The Worst of Evil is Betrayal

At some points throughout the beginning and middle of the drama I wanted to drop it but something always captured my attention. The last two episodes were tense, I was on the edge of my seat - anticipating the entire time.

At first I didn't want to accept the ending but the more I thought about it, this is as real as it can get.

Ji ChangWook and Wi HaJoon did extremely well with portraying their characters.

I would also like to commend Lee ShinKi (Chief Seo). I look forward to seeing him in more roles. As well as BiBi, she did so well for what I believe is her first time acting (?i'm not sure). I'm so proud of her.

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