City Hunter {2011}

So recently I have been on a slight Korean drama kick. And by slight I mean complete kick, I have not watched a television show in my native language of English in about three weeks. This is great except none of my friends watch Korean shows so I am all pent up with the feels. That is why, dear reader, I will from hence forth be reviewing these shows in order to find like minded souls who enjoy the epicness that is these stories.

City Hunter is the second Korean drama I have watched (Pinocchio being the first but I have not finished it yet so keep aware for my review of that) and I can honestly say it is one of my all time favourite shows.

The story follows Lee Yoon Sung (Lee Min Ho) who has worked his entire life in order to exact revenge on the government that betrayed his father. With his fathers best friend he strives to take down the corrupt system from the inside but not everything is as easy as it seems once Yoon Sung realises not everything is as black and white as he originally thought.

Alright I am going to admit first and foremost that the first episode of this show is pretty weak in my opinion and I was originally going to skip out after watching it but come episode 2 and 3 this show will have you hooked. From then on the perfect story telling will drag you to the brink of obsession. It only has 20 episodes and one season but it executes it in such a way that though you crave more you do not need it because everything is concluded; even if it is not how you originally thought it would end.

The acting is truly brilliant in my opinion. At the start of the show it is clear that some of the actors are in uncharted territory and therefore are quite caricature in their actions, but over the series each character is masterfully embodied by the fantastic cast. They successfully go from comedic to heart wrenching with a perfect fluidity that you get completely wrapped up in their tale.

The filming features so truly exquisite shots. One that comes to my mind is as Yoon Sung walks around a room and is captured in each mirror. It is not a spoiler but keep an eye out for it. There is also the choreography of the amazing fight sequences (so good I kept snap chatting one friend them) featuring Yoon Sung as the City Hunter.

In the show it does feature a heavy love story that is originally a screwball as the characters hate each other but it becomes a great romance. The chemistry between actors is electric on screen (and apparently off screen) to the point that it gives the tight knot in your chest whenever they interact. If you enjoy being in a fandom with an epic ship this show is for you.

The show also has a pretty awesome original soundtrack. It does play randomly at any moment of importance though which is a little funny but at the same time you get it stuck in your head all day. I personally ended up shout-singing some terrible Korean pronunciation at my friends and even my parents at one point.

All I can say is that by the last episode is that you will most likely end up like:

To sum it up, if you want to start watching Korean/ international television this show is perfect for it. It is fast paced revenge vigilante story with fantastic acting from the cast and a brilliantly put together story arc. I described it to my friends as 'Korea's answer to the CW's Arrow' but this came out first and in my opinion is executed in a far superior manner. That is just my opinion but if you like that kind of show check out the first 5 episodes in HD on DramaFever for absolutely free.