Welcome to Kdrama and Ramen

In a post-apocolyptic world where society has fallen into chaos, a powerful judge with a personal agenda wins the hearts of the people.  Touting the need for justice and reform, he introduces a new judicial system where the public is given the power to determine the outcome.  The court room becomes a reality show where voting is done through an online app, with him  choosing the cases and overseeing the process from inside their high tech court house.  But his plans are jeopardized when a fellow judge begins to question his methods and motives.  Will the two become mortal enemies or partners in crime?

Park Jin Young as Kim Ga On/Kang Isaac

Kim Ga On is a poor kid who lost his parents when he was young.  Supported by his best friend, Soo Hyun, and his mentor and former law professor, Justice Min, Ga On becomes a lawyer and is hired by Justice Min to keep an eye on Yo Han.  After secretly investigating Yo Han’s movements and actions, he quickly figures out that Yo Han is working behind the scenes to make sure that the live court cases get the result he wants.   But the more he gets to know Yo Han, the more he believes that Yo Han’s actions may be justifiable.  And defining the line between morality and friendship is much more complicated than he ever imagined.  

Despite his difficult and lonely childhood, Kim Ga On is warm and trusting.  The bond that he builds with Yo Han is sweet to watch, and it is obvious that he is just what Yo Han needed to help him build a relationship with his neice, Elijah.  His friendship with Soo Hyun was also heartwarming, although I hated that it ended as a tragic romance.  Park Jin Young has continued to grow as an actor, and I think this is easily his best role so far.  The emotions required for this character were not easy, and I felt like he did an amazing job of handling it.  I hope it opens up lots more doors for him to act in the future.

Park Gyu Young as Yoon Soo Hyun

Yoon Soo Hyun has been Ga On’s best friend since they were students.  She became a police officer because she wanted to protect those she loved;  specifically  Ga On.  Soo Hyun has always been in love with him, but Ga On has always rejected her confessions, in fear of ruining their friendship with a more complicated relationship.  When she sees Ga On getting involved with Yo Han, she is worried about him and does her own secret investigation of Yo Han and his past.

♥ “Family” Scenes

The bromance between Yo Han and Ga On was touching to watch, as you could almost feel Yo Han’s cold heart melting right in front of you.  And the only thing that could have made that cuter was the presence of a young and vulnerable woman looking for familial love and support.  Watching the three of them shyly enjoy a meal together or get competitive over a simple game really brought home the idea that something so simple can make a world of difference to someone who has never had the love and acceptance of a close family.  

♥ Good Suspense

The complex storylines of this drama made for some fascinating twists and turns.  There was a new bit of suspense around every corner, and even when I could guess what was going to happen, I was on the edge of my seat wondering just how they were going to achieve it.  I found the plot exciting and unpredicatable all the way through.  

Lack of Apocalyptic Scenes

The couple scenes that they showed out in the real world were well done and convincing, but most of the time, it was easy to forget the world outside was in chaos.  The scenes in front of convenience stores or standing in the street watching the big screen televisions overhead made things seem pretty normal.  And, the decadence of the wealthy was shown so often, it almost seemed like the norm.  More shots of the poor and struggling neighborhoods, as well as some details about what led to the current state of society, would have highlighted the stark difference in the lives of the rich and greedy.  It also would have reminded us that society’s anger and distrust of the government were well-earned.

Doppleganger Plot

The fact that Ga On looks just like Isaac was really only important for the first couple episodes.  It did introduce us to Yo Han’s memories and give a reason for why Yo Han felt drawn to Ga On, but both of those things could have been done in other ways.  If they were going to introduce such a specific story, I felt like it should have been used for other elements of the plot.  Couldn’t they have used it in their revenge plan to have Ga On pose as Isaac?  And did none of our villain team notice the similarities?  They didn’t know Isaac well, but they had met him.  He should have at least elicited some vague recognition.  

For such a tense drama, we get surprisingly happy endings to most of the storylines. We find out that the fire was actually Elijah’s fault and Yo Han has been protecting her from that truth this whole time. Yo Han gathers the goon squad in the court room and then broadcasts live to promise he will punish them by blowing the whole place up if he can get enough votes from the public.  As the votes roll in, the villains all beg for their lives against flashbacks of the church fire.  Sun Ah takes out a gun and aims it at Yo Han before turing it on herself and firing.  When voting reaches 10 million, the bomb is detenated and we see the room explode.  Later, Ga On goes to the house and finds the nanny there alone.  Yo Han is alive and well and he has taken Elijah to a clinic in Europe to begin rehabilitation.  Yo Han left nanny with a nice severance pay to open her own healthy shopping mall, which seems to have her slightly confused!  A month later, we find that Jin Joo is leaving Seoul to go back home and work with at-risk teens.  And Ga On is invited to a meeting about the aftermath of everything that has happened, although no one seems very serious about bringing any real reform.  As he wonders how to make a difference in such a corrupt system, Yo Han appears out of nowhere and tells him that he better do his job well, or Yo Han will be back.  The two share a simple smile and a tearful glance before Yo Han turns and leaves without a word.  And that is the end.  Plenty of room for a season 2, I notice, but still enough resolution to be an ending.