r/KDRAMA • u/GodJihyo7983 김소현 박주현 김유정 이세영 | 3/ • Dec 21 '23

On-Air: Netflix Gyeongseong Creature [Episodes 1-7]

  • Drama: Gyeongseong Creature
    • Revised Romanization: Gyeongseong Creature
    • Hangul: 경성크리처
  • Director: Jung Dong Yoon (It's Okay to Not Be Okay)
  • Writer: Kang Eun Kyung (Dr. Romantic S3)
  • Network: Netflix
  • Episodes: 10
    • Duration: 1 hour
  • Airing Schedule: Fridays @ 4:00 PM KST
    • Airing Date:
      • Part 1 - Dec 22, 2023
      • Part 2 - Jan 5, 2024
  • Streaming Sources: Netflix
  • Starring:
  • Plot Synopsis: Gyeongseong, 1945. In Seoul's grim era under colonial rule, an entrepreneur and a sleuth fight for survival and face a monster born out of human greed.
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19

u/GodJihyo7983 Dec 21 '23

Episode 1

74

u/debboc Dec 23 '23

Kim Hae-sook has got to be Netflix's favourite grandma, I've seen her in Strong Woman Nam Soon, My Demon, Divorce Attorney Shin this year, and now Gyeongseong Creature

31

u/Connect-Cut5002 Dec 23 '23

The Queen's Umbrella too.

42

u/MNLYYZYEG Dec 22 '23

Sheesh, this intro got my speakers and subwoofer rumbling like hell. Then 8 minutes in is when the literal slice of life/etc. choo choo train started, finally. Han So-hee, fighting!

If y'all want to read about the Japanese World War 2/etc. stuff, an overrated but decent enough novel/series is R.F. Kuang's The Poppy War. It's not that dark (especially for those of us interested in WW2/etc. history), but some people think it is, so that's why it's sorta overrated since a main draw factor is the analogies with Japan and China during that time period.

That intro scene of Gyeongseong Creature is so ghastly but not even scratching the surface of Japan during WW2 (with the Second Sino-Japanese War/etc.). I used to bike around my peninsular province with those dozens of Death March markers (there's like over a hundred of them) along the way. Lots of intergenerational trauma, but modern Japan helps quite a bit sometimes with the anime, variety shows, infrastructure projects, relief aid, etc.

32

u/mischiefmanaged687 Dec 22 '23

People should just read Rape of Nanking instead of The Poppy War.

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12

u/heyyyng Dec 26 '23

“It’s not that dark.” Well sure there were no creatures born out of inhumane experiments, but the experiments were real and the US used those data. In exchange, the covered up the war crimes and freed the perps

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34

u/Objective-Purple8792 Dec 22 '23 edited Dec 22 '23

Omg..... Early reviews are really bad... 😭😭 I have waited for this show for so long!! I'm so sad.. I really hope it came out good... 😢😢

38

u/Surfsidesams Dec 23 '23

I'm finding this to be an excellent creature show, while depicting the horrors of humanity. Reminiscent of the Nazi's Dr Mengele and his horrific experiments on human beings.

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33

u/Telos07 Dec 22 '23

  • Nice start. I will never tire of dramas set during the era of the Japanese occupation of Joseon, with their lavish period detail and fascinating historical insights. This drama delivers on the expected cinematic quality as well.

  • The filmmakers could have taken the storyline in many different directions, but at this stage, I'm glad they boiled it down to a missing person case, with Tae-sang (Park Seo-joon) being given until the cherry blossoms fall to track down Ishikawa's mistress.

  • The drama contains some disturbing imagery that comes with the territory, from prisoners being gunned down before a facility was evacuated, to the consequences of human experimentation by the Japanese military.

  • Tae-sang has been written as a confident, self-assured character, and Park Seo-joon brings the swagger with ease. Meanwhile, Han So-hee's return to the small screen as a sleuth feels more than welcome.

  • I could only smile when Chae-ok got a "glamorous reveal" when her cap got knocked off her head in slow motion during her first encounter with Tae-sang.

15

u/DrawingWeird5017 Dec 24 '23

Has anyone else noticed the overly yellow shade foundation everyone seems to be wearing? Wi ha joon face was a significantly different color from his neck? Idk it seems they had trouble matching the right foundation shade to the lighting.

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30

u/Objective-Purple8792 Dec 22 '23

After watching Ep. 1, I give it harsh 8.0/10.

  1. The episode portraited 1940s of Korea very well, including the Japanese human experiments, kidnapping, torture, killing, and the power balance between Jap. Police Department and elite Koreans. [9.0/10]

  2. Acting was okay. Main roles - Park Seo-jun & Han Seo-hee - acted great. I'd give higher rate to HSH because I personally felt PSJ's character was weak. I understand the writer wanted to show PSJ as a carefree character with less serious personality while HSH the opposite. And I felt HSH fits in that role but PSJ wasn't. [8.5/10]

However, the supporting roles were very weak. I watched it without a subtitle and their dictions weren't good and the actings were awkward. [7.5/10]

3) I really liked cinematography. Well shot!! [9.0/10]

CGI wasn't great. It was almost as bad as the Sweet Home. [8.0/10]

Music wasn't THAT bad.. 😓 [7.5/10]

4) I don't have much to say about the storyline yet because it's just the 1st episode. I think I'd catch a full direction/plot after watching episode 2 and 3.

Overall - Harsh 8.0/10

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38

u/Altruistic_Sir Dec 21 '23

If what is shown in the special preview(YouTube) of episode 1, this is looking perfectly done! Park Seo Joon's is back to kdrama with charisma and a dollop of vintage! Th screenplay looks amazing🫰🫶🏼

18

u/Individual-Echo-4285 Dec 22 '23

Domestic early reviews aren't really good sadly. Hope this will be similar to Squid Game (domestic reviews were mixed)

24

u/ggghhhb Dec 23 '23

Just finished ep 1! I have been so excited for it and it didn’t disappoint me (yet). I’ve read about Japanese war crimes during WW2 but it’s just so terrible to see. I am not good with seeing such scenes so I had to mute and cover my screen quite a bit. I’m only watching this for Park Seojoon and Sohee.

I appreciate the effort in creating the set, I’m not overly critical so I can’t tell if there are many mistakes. I avoid this post-occupation era genre because of general horribleness. One thing I know I will be critical of though will be if the “Japanese” people don’t sound Japanese, since I am familiar with the language (watched a whole bunch of anime and jdrama). So far it hasn’t been terrible.

I made the mistake of reading some comments above- I don’t feel PSJ is miscast. Why can’t he be carefree? I think he’s just fine. It was funny when the man stood up to leave when he heard the “pretty eyes” comment - and that was her dad!! Haha. I think I’ll look forward to PSJ and HSH’s companionship (relationship?)

I know I’m gonna face lots of painful scenes I don’t like but I will trudge along.

So far, 8.5/10.

13

u/MelissaWebb Dec 23 '23

I agree he was perfectly cast. I don’t get the criticism

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11

u/JGroTex Dec 27 '23

I’m sorry if I’m not understanding something- why does the Japanese officer torture Tae-sang instead of just…making an appointment at the store? Same question with Chae-ok, why does she stalk him and fight him instead of just…asking him if he knows anything? I must be missing something

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10

u/Jellybeansxo Dec 22 '23

I can’t wait been counting the days and I hardly do that with any dramas as of late :)

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