Pandora: Al di là del Paradiso

I only saw the first 2 episodes released this weekend. It s just so good from the cast to the storyline. So far I really like the idea of the series and the way they started it, especially since I'm a fan of this kind of drama, which keeps me in suspense every second. I can't say I'm a fan of kdramas because few have lived up to my expectations so far. It's exactly the kind of drama we've been waiting for a long time (and looking for), with action, mystery and revenge from the wronged protagonist. Sincee, I can't wait to see how Tae-ra will manage the situation in the future. So I'm looking forward to next weekend. I recommend everyone to watch it.

Where would you even begin with this crazy hot mess? The first 3-4 episodes were acceptable despite moving too fast and creating many gaps. However, as the drama unfolded, it became clear that it was biting off more than it could chew. Right off from episode 5, the drama became an irrecoverable mess. The pacing was erratic, jumping between weak fabricated plot twists, jarring narrative and bloated segments with no sense of cohesion. The drama was throwing everything at the viewers to see what sticks. Action, thriller, fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, melodrama, the drama couldn't decide what it wanted to be nor it managed to mix any of them well. The characters felt like caricatures rather than fully developed individuals, and their motivations often seemed arbitrary, inconsistent and generally weak. If the drama wanted to go for stupid ridiculousness then why not raise the stakes to match? Not even the ending could measure up to its intent despite its "supposed" twist.

This is a show with a twist every few scenes. Sometimes less is more. Unfortunately here they just went overboard with the twists and exaggerated overacting. The story could have been simpler and it would have been better. Also the story seems to lack a sense of humour. Usually makjang shows have a black comedy throughout but this one lacks wit. This show makes Penthouse seem like a masterpiece.

The looks is glossy and the sets are nice. The cast is quite suited to their roles. Lee Ji Ah does her action thing quite convincingly. Who knew. Lee Sang Yoon looks sufficiently evil. But just so many are evil.

What a rollercoaster ride.

The 1-sentence review: Don't let the snazzy opening fool you. Keep the lid shut on this show or suffer.

Pandora, in legend, was created by the gods as payback for people obtaining fire from Prometheus. As the 1st woman, she carried a jar (or box) that contained all evil. When opened, evil & misery entered the world. Therefore, the title only serves as a metaphor for the show. Open this "jar," & misery will follow.

Need convincing? We'll keep going.

Introducing Clover, a neural implant smart patch. It's a revolutionary medical device brought to us by Hatch. It allows direct input of data into the brain. No more studying! The chimp they've been testing on, "Red", has an IQ of 120. After the demonstration that opens the show, Hatch is primed to make gazillions.

What could go wrong here?

The viewer is tipped off that things will go horribly wrong in many ways. The filming is dark & near psychedelic at times, while the soundtrack is heavily portentous. 'This isn't going to be a lite feel-good watch,' I was thinking. That woulda been OK. The problem is that 🅿 is patched together worse than Hanul Psychiatric Hospital's worst attempt at reconstructing Frankenstein.

🅿 is overrated at 89 on AWiki, which is just shocking to me. The IMDB crowd is at 6.2. It gets off to a hot start. The opening eps are fantastic. I love how Tae, the main protag, wears a very heavy gold chain that's wrapped around her neck twice. It's emblematic of being shackled. At times the action is great, especially early on. They promised the audience more, but their promises were unfulfilled. The filmcraft is outstanding - truly stunning, at times. (It's a shame that it was wasted on this effort). "So far, I don't understand the low ratings," thought I. Turns out, the crowd is overly generous & must have weighed in before completing the show, b/c 🅿 is a disaster. It just doesn't become obvious until the 2nd half.

Gradually, it comes into focus that there is no focus, no cohesive plot. They bring up tantalizing possibilities w/o follow-through. 🅿 is not an assassin or girl-kicks-butt thriller; it's not a political nor a science thriller. It dips his toes into varied waters but never dives in. Characters haphazardly shift their allegiances. There's also gross over-acting. Bottoming out at downright insulting, it's so thoroughly incompetent that it really is breathtaking.

These people, who seem so happy, sure do turn on eachother.

The women:

Lee Ji Ah is FL Hong "Tae" Ra. On paper her life is perfect but she has no memory of her past. She's starting to get creepy flashbacks. The actress plays someone who inspires disgust in My Mister-9.5, a show that all should watch. Here she's relatable, which speaks to her skill. She's a victim. Her family life ended when her parents were killed in a car "accident " that may not have been an accident. As an orphan, her victimization intensified.

Jang Hee Jin (Flower of Evil-8.9) plays Ko Haesoo "HSoo," a reporter who is also a victim. Her husband & Tae's spouse head up Hatch. Her father is a former president who was assassinated & the crime has never been solved. Heartbreak drove her mother to suicide. HSoo's also an irritating lunatic. It's hard to root for a person who is that toxic & self-absorbed, even if she's been through legitimate trauma. She acts like she's the only one who has suffered loss, but none of these protags still has both parents. Something true of mentally ill people is replete self-absorption. HSoo is unhinged & blind to everyone else's pain. What's more tragically ironic is that too much self-focus only leads to despair, & HSoo crossed that threshold long ago. Later on, they try to turn her into some kind of mastermind, but it isn't convincing, nor is it emotionally satisfying as she's still so tediously odious.

Han Soo-Yeon is Tae's sister& business partner Hong Yura. She has a new bf, but she's cryptic abt him. She seems perfect ~ at 1st glance. Soon we see that she's horrible. Yura ends up a victim as well. Kyeon Mi Ri is HSoo's mother i/l. She is often the rich mom in shows like Revolutionary Love-5.7 & Backstreet Rookie-6.4. She's a cutie, but she's distasteful in most of 🅿. Shim So-Young (Alchemy of Souls-8.3) plays the loathsome mental hospital director, Kim Sun-Deok. Her laugh is really too much; even for a heavy show, her part is over the top.

Let's hear it for Red, she really wowed the crowd before she becomes a victim.

The men:

Lee Sang Yoon (Lovestruck in the City-7.3) plays Tae's husband, Pyo "Jae" Hyun. They are deeply in love, & he seems unfazed by her shrouded past. He's preparing to take a sabbatical as Hatch CEO so that he can run for president. He's a victim. His mother was killed in the same accident that took Tae's parents.

Park Ki Woong/KiW (The King's Affection-8.3) is Jang "Do" Jin, the other half of the Hatch helm & HSoo's husband. Early on we see that KiW is not the devoted partner that Jae is. When we meet his toxic parents, we understand: He's a victim caught in his family's web. Bong Tae Kyu plays the nerdy creative force behind Hatch"s success, "Koo" Sung Chan. He's weak, which turns him into more of a victimizer. Hong Woo Jin (Squid Game-8.4) is Jang Kyojin/"Kyo". He's a victim. He's been comatose since a motorbike accident that was prob NOT accidental.

Jung Jae-Sung is politician Han Kyung-Rok. Actors from Korea do the arrogant "knowing laugh" better than anyone in the 🌏, & he's among the best. (A funny guy I know does a mock "knowing laugh," so while it used to make me want to strangle the person inflicting it on my eardrums, now I giggle instead). He's often casted as an @$$h0le w/ power. I've seen him in Hospital Playlist-9, Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency-7.4, My Mister-9.5, Clean w/ Passion For Now-7, The King's Affection-8.3, & Big Mouth-7.4. He's been in many other wildly successful shows that I intend to get to asap. On MDL, his only sub-7 show is The Interest of Love at 6.8. He must have eaten magic beans that make him entirely distasteful but wildly successful to be in that many stellar features.

This is Screenwriter Hyun Ji Min's 1st credited work. The director is Choi Young Hoon of One the Woman, & the original creator is Kim HSoon Ok of The Penthouse series.

The theme is Victims. Sadly, most of us have been victimized in small or big ways. Being victimized leaves a person w/ a choice: Heal & move on, or let the pain rule (and ruin) your life. Healing must, at some point, involve forgiveness. (That has nothing to do w/ justice; for the benefit of society, crimes must be punished). HSoo personifies the concept that becoming a victim does not a saint create. Being victimized will tempt a person to wallow in anger, hatred, unforgiveness & bitterness. It's understandable, but in the end, those dark indulgences will only rot us out from within. Almost every character in 🅿 has been victimized, & almost every character chooses the path of bitterness & revenge. A mess it does make.

In ep2 we go back 15 yrs. The president is being inaugurated... & assassinated. Flashes of this past jolt Tae. A furtive missive, delivered by an untraceable tattooed motorcyclist, entices her to come to the Hanul Psychiatric Hospital, a visit that breaks the lock on her past. Soon we are looking at shades of the show Hanna-7, which is about teen girls being turned into assassins. This isn't the first time such a plot has come out of hiding: The 1990 film, La Femme Nikita, also involves young Iron Maidens. Bridget Fonda starred in 1993's Point Of No Return, which was Hollywood's version of the same film. (The French one is better). Let's not forget the absolute bang-jammy of the dudette insurgent bunch - Kickass. Ooo, the Swedish version of The Girl w/ A Dragon Tattoo (+2 sequels) is also as good as it gets. Once again, skip Hollywood's variant of these flicks. When thugs come at Tae, muscle memory kicks... then punches, slashes & tosses. It's SO (swordless) KILL BILL - for a scant moment, but that excitement goes away & never reappears. Whaaaa?

There's too many logical gaps, eg: It makes no sense that enemies seem to have unfettered access to a helpless person who has suffered a stroke. There's a USB that supposedly contains research files but it's inexplicably necessary to run Hatch's programs. Jae's campaign should have been dead after a voice file was released, but the problem evaporates. It's alittle too easy for enemies to sneak up on Tae, who's flawless until the show renders her impotent to push the plot. It's inconsistent & sloppy: Is she a female terminator, or a pathetic woman in distress? When we are introduced to Tae, we should have seen her vigorous workout routine. It would bolster credibility when she starts kicking butt out of the blue. In ep13, CEO Kummo is sent a packet of shocking evidence. He's elated. The problem is that all of it had already been on the national news - as reported by his own daughter i/l.

In the last half, I no longer cared what happened & rolled my eyes at every development. Eps14-16 status: 'Officially offended'. This is when they attempt to manufacture emotion w/ some deaths, but it all falls flat. They attempt to wrap it up w/ pretty bows, but it's too little too late. While ep16 is not as painful to watch as the previous 4, it's painful, still the same, w/ a sacrifice that is unnecessary & plain silly. Not that I cared who lived or died by then. Kill 'em all. Ease my pain.

Another thing that will ease my pain is by helping anyone who stumbles onto this review avoid that pain altogether. Try It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9, Law School -8, My Mister 9.5, or Blood Free-8.5 instead.

〰 IMHO

📣4 📝3 🎭5 💓3 🦋2 🎨8 🎵/🔊5.5 🔚2 ▪ 🌞3 ⚡5.5 😅0 😭4 😱4 😯4 🤢2.5 🤔1 💤4

Age 15+ for graphic, heavy violence Language: R-rated $h!+, b!÷ch F💣s

Rated TV-MA: Mature Audience Only. Not that any mature person would enjoy this.

I've always loved watching lee sang-yoon's drama. He should get an award for his acting because it's different from all his other dramas. I love how he's trying different roles and he never fail to amaze me. His drama v.i.p and this drama was amazing. When I heard ailee's song "gone" of this drama, I looked everywhere just to watch this because it was not in our region.

I hope season 2 comes out but Im afraid lee sand yoon wont be in there anymore because of the ending. People might think its not worth watching it but remember we all have different taste in our drama so you must watch it to know.