The Worst of Evil has ended, and that last episode gives so much emotions you wouldn't have thought getting from an action drama.
In the end, Park Junmo lost everything. He might have been promoted, but he was dead inside. Along with Gicheol's demise, he had nothing left. Trust, love, friendship, all gone.
If we look at all the main characters in the series, we see how each of them just did what they were expected to do. Infiltrate a gang, trade businesses, be a middleman between Korea and Japan's drug trade, support husband, and so on. But in all of these, you see where each character is coming from and why they are doing what they are doing. You see how they try to prove to others what they can accomplish, knowing how dangerous everything is, knowing what the payback is.
But you see, in the end, everything just boils down to one feeling - LOVE.
Haeryeon who I assumed haven't felt love all her life believes Junmo cares for her that she's willing to disobey her father and even commit murder for him. Junmo loves Euijong so much he needs to prove to her family he's worthy. Euijong loves Junmo so much she is willing to put herself in danger just to save him from Gicheul; who in turn loves her so much he thought of doing good for a change.
But amidst all this is Gicheol's attempt at leaving his life behind to start anew because of his love for Euijeong. And this is the most heartbreaking part, he was willing to change, not knowing he was being betrayed. But to be fair, both Junmo and Euijeong tried to help him. They really did.
After the initial feeling of betrayal, where Junmo let him go, he was at the crossroads of his life - will he stay in this life he had known for so long or will he leave and start anew?
He could've left. But what did he do the moment he had a chance to escape? He went to Euijeong. The woman he though loved him because she said so. The love of his life who said she would help him. And it was a good choice, actually. Because she is good for him. She makes him want to be a better man. And in his mind, this is the start of his redemption. The start of his change.
Imagine the pain and the heartbreak he must have felt when he realized that it was not real. Instead of finding the love and the help he was promised, he found betrayal instead. The two most important people in his life at that moment, the two people he was willing to give up everything for, used him.
He did try. His love for Euijeong gave him the motivation to be better. But the only thing he felt at that point was pure betrayal. Nothing else. He had nothing else. Gangnam Union is gone, his future city is gone. And now the woman he loves and the friend he trusts, are gone, too. And at this point, he felt he has nowhere else to go but give up. He feels that there is no hope for him anymore.
His first attempt at being good, and he failed. It was not easy. The decision itself was not easy. But he did try. And this gut-wrenching pain of discovering the truth made him give up. It could've been so different. Because second chances take so much effort and support. Where will he get that knowing what he knows now.
In another life it could have been different. But not in this lifetime for Gicheol.
This series is so wonderfully executed, from the action scenes to the melancholy. The story telling is superb, no loose ends, everything gets connected in the end. I just felt that Lim Se Mi's character could have been given more depth - not just that person that connects Junmo and Gicheul. But someone with a different story line as well.
It's violent, full of gore and deals with drugs. But at the backdrop of it all, comes the gentle reminder that love, friendship and trust will always be present in any relationship. And it can make, and it can break. And we've seen how it broke people in this drama. And they were never mended again.
Inspiration - @StandardMuse
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