428. Stranger (Secret Forest) 2 비밀의 숲 2 (2020) Korean

Cho Seung Woo, Bae Doo Na, Choi Moo Sung, Jeon Hye Jin, Kim Young Jae, Lee Joon Hyuk, Park Sung Geun

Drama Rating: 9/10     Neck Score: A

Stranger, or Secret Forest, is one of the best dramas I have ever watched. So there was no way I wasn't going to watch the second season, albeit with some trepidation that it wouldn't live up to the first season. And while I didn't like it as much as the first season, it was still really good and of a similar quality. The biggest difference between the two shows was the focus, which actually flavored this season a lot. The overarching situation in this season was the battle between the police and prosecution for investigation rights. So it was even more political than normal, and it also made it so my two best friends didn't get to spend as much time being the power partners, since they were representing two different sides of a fight. This tainted the flavor of the show for me, because my favorite part of the show has always been the incredible and respectful partnership of Si Mok and Yeo Jin. I just wanted more of them teaming up and less of them being awkward around each other because they couldn't be on the same side. However, there was still enough of that to make me happy, and confident that they still had that partnership/friendship chemistry.

The Nicknames of The Heartless Cruel City

A while back I finally got around to watching Cruel City.  It was amazing.  My queue is filled with melodramas, dramas, and heavy thrillers that I want to watch but usually put off as I waste my time with the fluffy romcoms.  I get around to them eventually, but not as quickly as they deserve.  But I'm glad I finally got around to this one, because it was really good.

I actually really love crime noir things, which is why I try to save them for a special time, when I can really savor them, but it usually turns out that I never have time for them and end up not watching them for forever.  I'm learning to just start them and make time for them.  Because they will be that good.  One thing that is always good about crime noir is the rich assortment of characters who all deserve a great set of nicknames.  Half of them only have nicknames in the show anyway, because that is apparently how the crime world works.

177. Cruel City 무정도시 (2013) Korean

Jung Kyung Ho, Nam Gyu Ri, Lee Jae Yoon, Son Chang Min, Kim Yoo Mi, Choi Moo Sung, Yoon Hyun Min 

Drama Rating: 9/10     Neck Score: A+

While this was an amazing drama, the ending was still super hard for me to watch.  Mostly because WHY DIDN'T HE TAKE THE FREAKING GUN AWAY FROM HIM!  SOMEBODY COULD DIE THAT WAY!  Freaking Two-Faced Ahjussi.  Omo.  This drama is so good.  So dark.  I heard someone say they were watching this for them romance.  Um... what romance?  Do you mean bromance?  That is clearly the most important thing in this show.  I could start a drinking game: take a shot every time Soo is used as bait for a trap and almost dies.  Haha, I still love you, Fish bangs, and definitely love you in those suits. Rawr.  I was already in love with Paksa, so this was just a big indulgence to watch him being bad-a.  I think the best part of this show is the characters.  Not necessarily the police, although they are ok, but the drug peeps though.  Imo Noona was awesome.  I loved her, like a serious cool kids crush on her, because she was so cool... even though she was a little silly at times and had a weird crush on Paksa (but really, can you blame her?).  I loved how consistently loyal she was to all her friends.  Even Sapari Samchon was super relatable and well-rounded.  It was a good mixture of predictable and a bit less predictable, but that is me being too good at predicting.  But it had me on my toes, which was nice.  I do have to say that another thing I kept counting was how many times people were obviously drinking and driving.  Not shocking since everyone was constantly drinking, but then they would always have a brooding driving shot right afterward.  Um, no, Paksa, you shouldn't be driving after drinking multiple glasses of that strong liquor.  Haha.  Anyway, brilliantly good.