Wonderfools

Synopsis:

A young sick woman, Eun Chae Ni, in her 30's and her friends in a small town outside of Haeseong in 1999 find themselves in situations way beyond they'd ever thought they'd be. A cult has spread fear around the small town that the apocalypse nigh on near and will happen in the coming new year, which just so happens to be the dawn of the new millennium. Little does most the town know that the cult is a front to a much more frightening truth. The cult has been leaking a chemical into a dumpsight and the waters of the town littl by little. Chae Ni and her firends will be exposed to the chemical which will chang their bodies and their outlook on life. After attaining powers the trio seek the help of another who they find can control his powers.

Outsider Lee Un Jeong, has returned to a place he never wanted to be again. His desire for answers outweigh any other. When he finds himself surrounded by these lovable fools seeking his guidance he finally begins to live again, smile, and the find the true meaning of friendship.

Review:

If you are new to my reviews, dear reader, I rate my dramas on mainly two categories: storytelling, and direction. Under Storytelling, I take into account not just the acting, but the writing, and music as well. It is usually presented as a percentage. Under the category direction, I consider both editing and direction, editing counts for 2 points while direction counts for 3. It'll be out 5. I call them my sticky notes because that tends to be what I write my thoughts on when I'm watching. For Wonderfools, I have the story telling at a 90%. Under direction I gave this a 4/5.

Hello dear reader! I think I need to make a disclaimer before I get into my review. I enjoyed this drama. I absolutely loved the comedic superhero throwback. So, please keep that in mind while I get into the acting. . . You can probably see where this is going.

I want to begin with my girl Park Eun Bin, I love this girl's acting! I've seen many of her projects and I've enjoyed each and everyone, Wonderfools included. This character was a good distance from any of her other characters and just like the others she delivered. This character is edgy, grumpy, but still loveable. She's a little

spikey, especially in the beginning. However, as the story unfolds it's understanable why she's a little rough around the edges. As she becomes stronger her character makes a distinct arch and it's only detectable due to Eun Bin's performance. Her facial expressions both micro and big are a delectable treat to see on screen. When she doesn't have any lines her face and her eyes do the talking for her. That is is something I've seen few actors/ actresses in Hallyu attain. For that reason she's quickly risen to my favorits list of actors/ actresses.

Now, to the not so freinedly part. Understand, dear reader, I am picky. If you thought this particular actor's performance was good. . . that's great. However, the master of

one face still needs some work, a lot of work. The camera is a friend to Cha Eun Woo, but a friend does not an actor make. I would be the first to agree that the man is absolutely beautiful, and I am sure he is also a great singer. He just needs some help in the acting department. I will agree that he has made some progress. He now mastered the art of three facial expressions! However, he filters through these three expressions for the entirety of the drama. Even still he keeps his placid, expressionless, and passive face throughout most of the series. If you don't believe me, look through the whole stinking trailer. He has the same ding gang face in all the shots! In most of the closeups, the camera briefly shoots over his face then quickly cuts to closeups of whatever, or whom, he is looking at. For example, when Chae Ni and Eun Bin are fighting over her suitcase in the rain the close up shots linger longer on Eun Bin's face than Eun Woo's face. This is because Eun Bin is much more expressive. It's not even just his lack of facial expressions, but theres little to no inflection in his voice. If you insist on acting like a ding dang Greek statue at least give me decent line delivery! Like I said, he has learned to move his face every once in a while, but the overall performance is far below that of Eun Bin and her compatriots.

I have to applaud him for the choosing the role of Lee Un Jeong. I heard prior to his mandatory enlistment into the military that he was looking to shed that princely, clean image of his. Well, he definitely acquired that in Wonderfools, especially in one

particular scene. The scene opens with him in a white tank. Sweat lingers on his brow as he pours over some old newspaper articals that the audience could assume he curated himself. He takes a long drag from his cigarette, and the scene captures him taking several drags from it. This is fairly revolutionary for a drama since whenever a character is seen smoking it is typically a villain or a thug. . . Although in hindsight I guess one of those roles does fit, and it could have been foreshadowing by the director. But in the words of my favorite archeologist, spoilers. On a side note, those muscle shots. . . I see you! HOLY BICEPS! I enjoyed that.

As for the script and the direction. I applaud both for much of the series and it's enjoyment. The script created complex, intriguing, and different characters. I loved this aspect of the drama. I enjoyed subtle, possible links to real life instances that

happened in Korean history during the 90's. I loved the play on words in the title, the characters were definitely wonderful wonderfools. The editing was unique and spot on, especially in the shot of Eun Bin's pupil dilating, that was AWESOME. I enjoyed the trajectory of how our heroes are learning how to use, and what triggers their powers. I found myslef trying to guess what the trigger was, which made me explore each character's personality since thier power was linked to each of their own uniqueness. I loved the fight in the cult's layer, it was hilarious in the best way. The music selection and the shot was nothing shy of a Deadpool fight scene.

Onto the questionable parts. I do not see how the "romance" fit in. Honestly, I thought that the "romantic" aspect was mostly a comedic tool, not necessarily an actual aspect. However, I've read some American articles about the drama that list it as a romantic comedy. So, either I misinterpreted the drama or it wasn't executed properly. I did see small whispers of a romance toward the end of the series. I also thought that some of those scenes were a bit out of place. The first time the possibility was introduced was on the beach scene, which I took as mostly for comedic purposes not necessarily a full on romantic moment, especially because of the scene that follows it. The second time is in the cult's layer (there's more to the scene, but that would be giving spoilers).

I think this also boils down to Cha Eun Woo and his performance. The audience can definitely see on Chae Ni's, Eun Bin's, part that she has a bit of a crush. This is done not through any lines, but through the way she looks at him especially when he's not

there or noticing, the way she constantly seeks him, takes care of him, and speaks about him. We get little of that from Un Jeong. He makes small hidden smiles, but those are mostly given to the group of lovable fools as a whole. There is nothing in the way he treats her, looks at her, or says to her that tell me he is thinks of her as anything more than platonically or as a minor annoyance. Then the final scenes of the last episode he's suddenly more aware of her, holds her, and protects her by using his powers, even cries over her (or at least an image of her). I wrote in my sticky notes, "give us a little glimpse throughout that you see her as more than a minor annoyance/ friend. A look when she's not paying attention, touches, take care of her. This feels out of place. Vibes were NOT romantic."

That is all I have for Wonderfools. The drama is available on Netflix. If you watched it tell me what you thought about it. I love to hear from you, dear reader! Thank you for joining me on this review. Goodbye, and until next time dear reader!