Wow I can’t believe it’s been a month since the drama began airing…

As you guys know since the first half is over a review is in order. of course in this review I will be only talking about my thoughts on the first half of the drama, my final thoughts could change depending on how the rest of the drama progresses, so take it with a grain of salt.

“The Devil Judge” is a very interesting drama the truly stands out among the currently airing dramas which are okay but not out of this world. What “The Devil Judge” has going for it is the fact that it is shocking but this is also where a lot of issues come from.

a lot of my thoughts on the drama that I’ve stated in the premiere review actually remain true but a little bit magnified given the context and the episodes I’ve seen this far.

“The Devil Judge” is definitely interesting to me and I’m having lots of fun but it’s also frustrating in many places so we’re here today to talk about why it’s absurd, and why some of the characters are very weirdly written.

Note: this will be a spoiler review of the said episodes in the title. This is a subjective review.

The script And the Law Proceedings

As some of you might already know, the screenwriter behind this drama used to be a judge, he is a former judge who stopped being a judge and took on the challenges of being a screenwriter because this is what he wants to do.

And if you know this information then a lot of the things that you see in “The Devil Judge” also begin to make sense to you in terms of how absurd and illogical some of the writing can get.

Added to that, there are lots of areas in the script where you wouldn’t see a screenwriter usually struggle with, but it is an issue here because it’s written someone who does not have the prior experience of being a screenwriter, this doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone who does not have the experience will make a terrible project but it is something that should be taken into consideration when discussing this drama.

Considering that he is a former judge, it is very absurd to me how the drama has been done this far when it comes to the court proceedings. it almost feels as if he wants something to shake things up and to have a character that has authority but doesn’t know what to do with it.

When it comes to the legalities, a lot of the proceedings of the drama thus far have been very absurd to put it lightly. One of the most recent cases includes how they got a teenager to negotiate with the US to transfer a prisoner from South Korea into their system which I highly doubt ever happens especially if we’re dealing with a South Korean who has committed crimes that do not extend to the jurisdiction of the US.

It feels very absurd to me that they would even instill the help of a teenager to communicate with people in the US and for them to have a prisoner be transferred.

The way Yohan deals with the court proceedings is also very odd and reminiscent of what a reporter would do on a show, you wouldn’t expect someone who is as highly regarded as him to move about so recklessly.

it almost feels like the person who is writing the script has zero experience or knowledge of how court proceedings work which is very shocking considering the fact that we are dealing with a screenwriter who is a former judge.

The screenwriter plants a lot of seeds but the problem is a lot of them have not even been made into what could be the beginning of a coherent story. Of course, we’re talking about the first half here but it is a source of concern to me.

It almost feels like the shock factor of the drama precedes the ability for it to make any sense. I’m not against grandeur happenings but it needs to be constructed in a way that makes sense in order for me to fully enjoy it. of course, it is a bit absurd but not enough for me to give up on the drama just yet, but what’s a bigger issue for me remains the fact that some of the ways the characters are written are very odd and very annoying, let’s get into it

The Characters

Ga On

A lot of people have been talking about it but it also needs to be talked about here as well because it is seriously an issue that could compromise what could become a great drama.

The way that Ga On’s character is written is very odd. I’ve said this in the premiere episodes review of the drama previously. Thankfully, we have an actor who can do such a good job that you almost forget the fact that you’re dealing with a very flawed and illogically written character.

The way that Ga On behaves does not make any sense, added to that, he makes a lot of decisions that you don’t expect from a rational young adult. Some people are saying that since he is young, his reckless behavior is explained but the way that he acts so wish-washy is deeply odd.

He has balls but the problem is that you know we’re dealing with the president of South Korea and higher-ups so the way that he behaves fails to make logical sense in the grand scheme of things. I don’t expect any person to actually deal with such huge and frightening issues head-on the way he does which is why he can be so annoying to watch.

What adds to the confusion in my opinion is how he’s inserted into the judge panel to become somebody who spies on Yohan but he is so sloppy and so reckless that it doesn’t make sense how he’s been able to stay in his position thus far.

You’d think that if someone wants to take down Yohan they would get someone who has a lot of experience and a lot of power behind him so even if he’s questioned, Yohan still wouldn’t be able to remove him easily but they opt for the guy who barely has power or wisdom.

I really like the actor behind the character but it is not an exaggeration to say that the character has nothing going for it, he is not overly smart, he does not have any connections, he is a very normal human being who could be easily trampled on so the way he behaves feels like somebody who has been spoiled all of his life would behave which doesn’t align with the way that is characteristics we’re laid out in the First episodes.

Here is what I think happened, the screenwriter did a very good job at establishing the premise of the drama world, however, he did not spend the adequate amount of time and energy to properly characterize the characters in the drama so they don’t feel as frustrating as they do now.

Ga On acts in a very odd Manner and the only reason he gets away with it is because Yohan takes kindness upon him.

At any given moment, if Yohan wanted to hurt him I don’t think anyone would have batted an eye which makes it more puzzling that for some reason he takes kindness upon him because he reminds him of someone he knows.

He’s like a bull has been directed at a red skirt and he doesn’t know why he’s being led in this or that direction.

On top of that, he is not characterized as a stupid person because if he was then it would make sense for him to behave a certain way but he’s not dumb and he’s not stupid and it’s not because he lacks knowledge so the way that he behaves feels like it’s been written out of convenience for the plot rather than the character making sense on its own Merit.

Soo Hyun- not equally frustrating

Others are also talking about Soo Hyun and a lot of people have issues with the way that she’s also written. I must say, I am a bit annoyed by her character but not nearly as much as I’m annoyed by Ga On.

She is a cop so it makes sense for her that if she sees a man in power behave suspiciously that she’d investigate.

Yohan behaves very erratically so it makes sense she’d want to investigate it.

Of course, we want her to be on Yohan’s side but it makes sense for a cop to be skeptical of the people around them and to question everything. The way Yohan conducts himself is still very concerning and has a lot of room for suspicion so it also strikes me as odd why no one from the higher-ups has picked up on that, they could use Soo Hyun to destroy him and dig into his past and to poke holes in his methods. it feels like he is walking on eggshells that crumble at any given moment but it’s not happening out of convenience for the plot.

With whatever character it is, I feel like they behave a certain way or contradict themselves simply because the screenwriter needs to take us from point A to B to C, not because this is how they characterize and this is how they carry themselves. This, in turn, makes them feel less like actual characters that were supposed to care about as opposed to plot devices that are used to carry the plot forward.

Jin Joo

Jin Joo is also becoming frustrating and you can tell it’s being done out of convenience for the plot as well not because she’s characterized like this.

In the early episodes, she was this person who knew she gained this position because of her looks, she is diligent and works very hard to be acknowledged so it doesn’t make any sense that she’d suddenly stand up to Yohan whom she used to be a fan of because somebody just told her this or that… for her to be easily also swayed despite being self-aware for being lacking in certain areas also rubs me the wrong way.

This is not to say all the characters are badly written but I’d say the majority are. Yohan and Sun A remain the best-written characters because they stay true to their Essence and you can tell that the writer knows what to do with them. The same cannot be said for everyone else, this is not meant to be just a dig at the drama in its entirety but it’s also to discuss why I’m frustrated with it.

This does not mean I do not enjoy watching the drama or that I am having a difficult time but it is frustrating because I like all the actors in this drama and I can see how hard everyone is working and I know it could be better.

I didn’t even discuss the episode count which is also 16, I don’t know how we’ll be able to get through 16 episodes with this plot because it seems like going to drag our lights are on later on, but this could be debated so I’ll discuss it when the drama ends.

So these are my thoughts on “The Devil Judge”, so what about you guys? did you like the episodes? let me know what you thought in the comment section below.