It would not be an exaggeration on my part to say that “Vincenzo” is probably one of the most anticipated kdrama releases of 2021, everyone had their eyes on what could be Song Joong Ki’s New Drama and whether it would live up to expectations or not.

“Vincenzo” premiered this weekend and I am here to discuss my thoughts on the drama and why I think I am falling all over again for Song Joong Ki.

Song Joong Ki’s choice

I have been begging for Song Joong Ki to try something out like what I’ve seen in “Vincenzo” this week, this irritable unlikeable but extremely charismatic man. I can’t believe my prayers have been answered.

Song Joong Ki is an interesting Hallyu star, he’s been thrust into the top so fast by the success of “Descendants Of The Sun,” since then, his projects became far and in-between, but now he’s getting back into it and I am loving it.

I love his acting in this drama, its all I’ve ever wished for. He is so charismatic as Vincenzo. Having said this, I don’t like the character, he’s a cold-hearted murderer who’s killed probably many many people during his time in Italy. No charisma will ever erase that for me, but what I like about “Vincenzo” is that it forces you to pick between the bad and the worse, you end up gravitating towards the less bad, and in this case its yours truly, Vincenzo.

I can see glimpses of what appears to be guilt in Vincenzo. I would love for the screenwriter to expand on that and explore how the harsh mafia mentality took a toll on his mental health and how much he feels remorse for killing and harming those people.

The best outcome scenario for me would be for him to be properly punished for the crimes he’s committed. I am interested to see whether the screenwriters will attempt to offer a resolution on that part or simply ignore it and act like it didn’t happen.

That life is an integral part of his personality; it’s engraved in him as we’ve seen. I am so intrigued by this character and can’t wait to see what he did to people in Italy bite him back in South Korea.

The Plot- Between Evil And Less Evil

I really like the core idea behind “Vincenzo,” it’s very interesting and an intriguing take on the overly-used plot device of conglomerates screwing over average citizens. It’s gotten stale at this point, we get it, big companies are awful and eventually, the small guy in whatever situation will find a way out in your average drama.

What’s interesting in this case is in the incorporation of the Italian part to it and how a lawyer who’s done terrible deeds for his adoptive father must adapt to a new life in South Korea, out of his element only armed by his wits and whatever he’s learned during his time there.

My fellow kdrama friend said this doesn’t look like your average Italian mafia drama and that is unrealistic in that aspect, she watches Italian movies and dramas often so she has a better grasp of that part. Personally speaking, I found it done rather cleanly, a lot better than what I would’ve expected, but again, I have no reference for how mafia should be or are generally speaking in Italian movies and dramas. If you have info regarding this, I’d be interested to hear your thoughts.

I like how the screenwriter makes it clear that Vincenzo isn’t a good person, but a bad one. His charisma will make you forget about that but they try to keep it at the back of your brain, you can see it from the way the character carries itself.

I’ve been around kdramas for a while now and I must say I am enjoying the shift in the way scripts are written generally speaking. Back in the day, okaying such a script would’ve probably been difficult, but these days, many kdramas are filled with unlikeable morally questionable characters but the dramas do well.

Here is the trick, you must walk that fine line between intriguing your fans enough with the lead characters criminal/immoral acts while not turning them off by it either. The reason it was mostly black or white with heroines in the past is because people love to root for the good guy, but why would people root for a mafia guy who is after gold and cares only about himself? Someone who has killed many people and tormented even more people?

I like how the story is woven so far, it’s a clash of interest rather than a fight between good and bad, but it’ll soon become just that, but I am curious to see just how it goes down. “Vincenzo” will either become a legendary drama or just an attempt at one that falls short of expectations. It won’t be easy, but I wish the screenwriter the best of luck.

The Weird Insertion Of Comedy

There seems to be an ongoing debate about this online, with some people loving how comedy was inserted into “Vincenzo,” while others hating it or finding it rather odd.

I won’t lie, I found the insertion of comedy in “Vincenzo” to be weird to say the least. It was hinted at in the teasers but I didn’t expect it to be this present in the premiere episodes.

Having said this, I don’t hate it. I honestly liked it, the contrast works for the most part. It starts off pretty odd but if you pause to think it through, it is after all an Italian man going back to unknown territory to retrieve gold, he hasn’t been into Korea a lot and of course, he’ll be involved in many hilarious predicaments due to the cultural shock.

Some of the best parts of “Vincenzo” were the comedic parts. I expect that to fizzle out as the drama progresses and the stakes grow higher, often the case with such topics in dramas.

Would I have loved it without the comedy part? Yes, but still, it was surprisingly funny. Do I think the drama needed it? No, it would’ve still been interesting regardless.

If the comedy part was excluded, I think the drama would’ve made a more shocking impact, the comedic relief could be due to the harsh topics it discusses but again, at this point, many people watching know it’s only a drama. It wasn’t needed, but it’s cute.

In future episodes, I hope they do a good job balancing those two parts without compromising the plot. Some fans already think it is compromising the seriousness of the issue at hand, I understand their concerns.

Jeon Yeo Bin’s acting and character

I’ve heard a lot about Jeon Yeo Bin’s acting, many of my friends praised her but believe it or not, this is my first time watching a drama of her.

I thought the pairing was odd, I expected someone a bit more well-known worldwide, but I am not against it. it means she’s talented enough that they paired her with Joong Ki.

However, I wanted to highlight her acting because I find it odd…. I don’t know if its just me or if its intentional. Please correct me if what I am about to say is wrong.

Her pronunciation is very off…. the way she pronounces things are weird, she comes off comical in the most odd way you could imagine. It almost sounded as if she was chewing on something or rapping her lines, its very odd. Is this the way she speaks or is it intentional? because if it is, I am impressed, a lot.

She reminded me of Jun Ji Hyun slightly with her facial expressions and enunciation.

Now onto her character.

As you’ve might have already guessed, I don’t like her character either.

I am on the fence about the main characters of this drama. I find her character despicable for defending such leeches but I am sure the screenwriter has a reason for it. I just hope it’s interesting and unique enough that she doesn’t come off bad.

One moment, she is super serious, another moment she is fake crying, and another moment she’s rapping her lines and overreacting. I don’t quite understand what’s going on with her but I expect her to join the fight alongside her dad soon, otherwise, “Vincenzo” will either become way more interesting or way more annoying.  

I don’t tolerate her as much as Vincenzo because the circumstances they grew under differ. Here is what I mean; he was raised by someone who is a mafia boss, that’s all he’s ever known. He grew up under circumstances most kids won’t face. That shapes you.

In her case, her father is super nice and is always taking on hopeless cases to defend the weak, I don’t think they grew up with a lot of money which means she’s seen firsthand just how she could be screwed over. It shaped her badly, but at least she was raised to see just how terrible what she’s doing is, but chose to toss that in the garbage and switch sides to crush her dad at trial and defend those monsters who killed people through trials.

Her character could easily become overbearing, it almost crossed that in the premiere episodes. I hope to see her take either side immediately, because if the character stalls it, she will become annoying in my book, and if she does, it won’t be easy for me to watch this drama.

The screenwriter is taking many chances with “Vincenzo,” this could go both ways because of the way the premiere played out. But I am optimistic and I loved the premiere episodes. Shout out to the camera work and the direction, its impeccable. You can see they’ve put their hearts and souls into this.  

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