Early Access: Bad and Crazy E1

E1. This first episode really vibes like some kind of fever dream, so I feel as if I'm maybe half drunk, as I write this. 😅

I'm going to have to concur with Kun, in that I think the most helpful lens - as far as I can tell, just 1 episode in - is a comic book one. Of course, a more serious lens might work too, like if you take Soo Yeol's interactions with Wi Ha Joon's character, who's listed as "K," and think of it as a mental illness sort of thing. But.. personally, I don't have any inclination to take the serious route with this one. It just feels more fun, to take this at a comic book, face value sort of way.

Of course, I might change my mind later, when we find out more about Soo Yeol and K, but.. let's cross that bridge when we get to it.

So far, everything feels very hyperbolic on my screen, in the sense that everything and everyone seems to land on pretty extreme ends of the spectrum.

Basically, everything is OTT in this drama world. The corrupt are very corrupt, and the upright and earnest is very upright and earnest. There's no one so far, who actually appears to land in between. But that's ok, because that's completely in line with how a comic book universe looks - at least in my head.

This is a pretty different role for Lee Dong Wook, in that I don't recall ever having seen him play a corrupt, self-serving, sleazy sort of character, but that pretty much sums up my impressions of Soo Yeol, this episode.

He's a schmuck, but he's not a detestable schmuck, in my estimation. I think it's because we see that he's not actually evil or malicious; he's just very self-focused and ambitious, and is amoral as a result. He doesn't mind doing illegal stuff, if it will further his career. On paper that does sound pretty terrible, considering that he's a police officer, but because Show makes sure to let us know that he's not quite a smooth or successful as he'd like to be, it definitely takes a lot of the edge off.

He's more of a.. thwarted, derailed, frustrated schmuck. It's like.. he's a wannabe, rather than a legitimate powerful villain, and that makes him.. a little amusing, even?

I appreciate how Lee Dong Wook's throwing himself into the role; there's no vanity here, and there are times when Soo Yeol really does come off as a hapless, frustrated, defeated loser. I think this thing, where all his efforts to further his career, are actually quite fruitless, makes him more palatable as a character - or at least, more entertaining.

And of course, he's most entertaining when he's completely flummoxed by his encounters with K, whether it's in slo-mo dream sequences where he's getting beaten up, or whether it's in encounters that feel more real and in the present.

On a tangent, I find that song - Killer Shangri-Lah - that plays in the slo-mo dream sequences rather hypnotic, in a darkly dysfunctional, yet delicately ethereal way, "I had to kill you.. I'm really sorry.. I had to do it.."

It's quite perfect, I think. It's got this entrancing sort of effect, which is such a great layer to add on the disoriented vibe that's coming off Soo Yeol, in each of these scenes.

Lest I give the wrong impression about Soo Yeol, I suppose it's also important to mention that he's actually really good at his job, in the way that he wants to be. I like a competent protagonist, and even though he's definitely in the "sleazy cop" space at the moment, I have to admit that seeing him actually be good at interrogating a suspect, and be so on top of the various bits of information available, and the various laws in place that he can draw on, made me admire him, even if grudgingly.

I'd love to see that competence being used for good, eventually, and I guess that's where K comes in.

Putting this together, I feel like when Soo Yeol's in a good groove, he's all polished competence and even a little charismatic. When he's alone, though, and perplexed all the things that are going wrong in his life, he's like some kind of frustrated ahjusshi has-been. This contrast is also rather amusing to me.

We're not told explicitly who K is, but Show's promo materials have already established that K is basically part of Soo Yeol, and not an entirely different person altogether. I guess until Show is more clear about what K is and isn't, it's pretty safe to consider him Soo Yeol's much more righteous, and pretty crazy, alter ego.

K basically won't leave Soo Yeol alone, particularly when it comes to Soo Yeol's underhanded, unrighteous sort of dealings, and he's completely merciless, when it comes to beating up Soo Yeol.

Ha. I'm sure that any footage that we get of Soo Yeol, while he's interacting with K, is going to be pretty out there and ridiculous, probably sort of like that CCTV footage of Soo Yeol bashing up his own car.

On a completely shallow note, though, I have to say that Wi Ha Joon makes K very cool and very badass. The strut; the swag; the sharp ninja-like fight moves; I couldn't help but spazz at it, can't lie. He makes K come across as unhinged, but still in full control of what he's doing, and what he wants to do. I find that a really interesting juxtaposition.

Han Ji Eun's also in a very different space compared to the last few shows I've seen her in, like The Witch's Diner, My Roommate is a Gumiho, Lovestruck in the City and Be Melodramatic.

Here, she's neither shy and reserved, nor hypersexy; she's a badass cop with a passionate personality, and with sharp fight moves that she doesn't hesitate to break out, when she feels they're needed. We only see her for a few short minutes this episode, but I already think she's going to be interesting, to have in our drama world.

Last but definitely not least, there's Officer Oh Kyung Tae, whom I seriously worried we'd lost, in just this first episode.

In the spirit of extremes, Kyung Tae's one of the good cops, and he's just soo good-hearted and soo earnest, that I feel like he's some kind of angel who finds himself surrounded by devils. 😝 The way he applies himself to finding Jeong Yu Na, just because her daughter had asked him to, is nothing short of saint-like.

I mean, he gets beaten up so badly for investigating the case, and yet, that doesn't deter him from investigating further. It's like he's too naive and too good for this world - which is why I wondered if Show would kill him off really quickly, so that Soo Yeol would have to investigate his death.

On that note, man, does Lee Sang Hong play Do In Beom effectively. Him I find completely unhinged, and repulsive, in his anger and violence. That said, I have to grudgingly admit that Do In Beom does command the screen, when he's on it.

We don't lose Oh Kyung Tae, thankfully, but it still looks iffy, since he and Soo Yeol have basically fallen off a building, onto the top of a car - which is totally how some people die. 🙈

What a fast-paced, bizarre, surreal sort of introduction we've gotten to this drama world, in this first episode. Some serious lens adjustments are necessary, I think, but it does feel like if you're able to tune in to Show's off-beat, quirky, OTT frequency, this could turn into one very wild ride.

Next episode notes will be out on: Friday, 7 Jan 2022!

*This show will be covered on the VVIP Early Access (US$20) Tier*