Hounds (2023)

Very promising at first

As I'm reading other reviews, I'm realizing we all kind of had the same off moments.

I don't want to repeat what has already been said but this drama truly had some great potential at first.
The bromance is very nice, the highlight of the show. WDH showed everyone some heart in all he did which was very inspiring, yet unrealistic at some point. The fighting scenes were very impressive even though I can't tell how normal it can be: 2-3 men taking on 30 men. Also episode 4, the car chase was literally so good. That truly got me shivering. Let's not forget the effects creating the wounded bodies, the blood and everything else. Such a good job!

Indeed there were many plot holes. So they were fighting this really bad guy but they also did not add to their security or safety after having attacked the bad guy. Instead they just went back to their normal day and routines and that was really off.
The first 6 episodes built the whole history while the last two were just a bad speeded wrap up. Some things felt forced just to end the show. Tbh I thought there was gonna be a 2nd season, considering how good they were trying to built the story at first.
They had the chance to bring Kim Hyeon Joo back for the final attack, but instead they added Oh Da Min to the fighting team. The moment she heard about her grandpa being kidnapped, there wasn't a single emotion expressed through her face.

To sum this up, this drama made me experience some very strong emotions; it had the power to captivate me and make me binge watch 6 episodes in just a day. It's a solid 8 I would say. You can totally give it a go. You'll get some good visuals of Kim Geon Woo :p

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1% brain, 99% brawls. Watch it for the action, not the story.

I will say that if you are someone who absolutely need things to make sense for you before you can move on, you are not going to be able to enjoy this show properly. This is a true mindless action-packed drama that requires you to shut down and enjoy the show as it is. This show shoves plot holes in your face without even trying to hide it and you're not afforded too much time to ponder about it before they hit you with the next sequence of events (some people may hate this). Give this show the Jackie Chan treatment, brawl > brains.

Episode 1-6 was intense....and brutal (more about this later)
The action scenes were aplenty and very well crafted. It felt like there were real techniques involved with the boxing and also knife handling later on in the show. My interest in boxing skyrocketed while watching this show- a testament to how well done the action sequences were. Credits to the camerawork too. Bish bish bish!

The bromance between Geon Woo (Woo Do Hwan) and Woo Jin (Lee Sang Yi) was beautiful. It was the perfect marriage of suave and goof. It felt very natural and I wasn't missing the absence of the usual ML/FL romance in this one because of them. They made me want to root for them till the very end which is maybe why this is the first drama in 2023 that I binge-watched.

Kim Myung Gil (Park Sung Woong) as the main villain, as usual, doesn't disappoint. I hated him in the shortest time. Dude is just a legend at delivering the evil role. His 1v1 fight with sushi ahjussi was epic...I was screaming a little internally at the Zoro moment. Both the knifer ahjussi were amazing at their role; pity we only got to see them for so little.

The characters were all well-connected and had proper backstories and personalities. None of them felt redundant to the plot and I love the fact that they did not reduce the female characters to weak damsel in distress characters. The ladies were kicking ass along with the guys. Good blending and timing of comedic light-hearted moments throughout the series as well.

Now here is where it starts to fall off...
Episode 6 was brutal...this level of cruelty was not expected and rarely seen in dramas but movies. It was so hard for me to watch some of the scenes and I had to take time off after that to recalibrate before I could continue the show the next day. But that was not the reason why it was bad, I actually appreciate the art and intention behind it. However, it did feel like some characters didn’t have to die..The director makes you fall in love with the cast only to kill them off next in a very abrupt manner. It was to me kinda cheap tactic to stir the emotions of the viewers. **I swear if they killed off Woo Jin; it sure looked possible at one point, I would have not continued watching anymore. Thank you plot armor. I didn't get time to properly soak in the fact that some of the characters I grew to love were ALL DEAD in ONE EPISODE and episode 7 just begins after a time skip as if nothing happened. Whut.

The annihilation of the good guys and the immediate time skip did cause the pacing of the show to feel all of a sudden, jarring. The defeat of the main antagonist felt anti-climatic and pointless considering how brutal he was, how much resentment the protagonist had for him, and how much they lost in the process. The revenge certainly didn't feel sweet. The late introduction of Da Min (Jung Da Eun) was uninspiring at best tho I don't think she could have done any better personally. It just sums up the last 2 episodes of the series..uninspiring and anti-climatic. Would love to see the boys achieving some of their personal dreams mentioned at the start and what they did with the gold they received...so much potential so many questions..

I am speculating if the Hyeon Joo (Kim Sae Ron) DIU case which happened around the time of filming episode 6 caused her to leave the show being the reason behind the lackluster ending. Could this possibly have been a 10-12 episodes series? Was the ending so drastically different because of the loss of a key character at a late stage? Was the massacre done because they had to close the story? If so then I think they did a reasonable job at recovering the story.

Regardless, I did enjoy most of the series and was glad that I discovered Woo Do Hwan through this show. Dude is a star in the making. Marine Pride!

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Action packed hit

Watched this primarily for Woo Do Hwan since its announcement but the delay of release now made sense because of Kim Saeron's scandal in 2022. Before getting into the short review, honestly have to say I hope she can make a comeback because her role in this showed immense growth since seeing her in High School Love On. Controversial opinion, but there you have it.

The drama is far more violent, explicit, bloody and gruesome than anticipated going in, that I felt it should've been rated R. Viewer discretion is advised. Regardless I enjoyed it immensely. Great action sequences, insanely epic fight scenes that got me on edge and fearful at the same time. I loved the minute details regarding the fight from Ep1 in comparison to the one in Ep8, where the dynamics have changed between villain and protagonist.

Woo do Hwan delivered in his excellent performance yet again as Gun Woo and immediately earns sympathy from the viewer. His chemistry with Lee Sang Yi leaps off the screen. I haven't seen a bromance in a while and honestly, it gets better with every episode. Park Sung Woong who played Myunggil was really, really superb and have your blood boil from his actions.

From the scandal, the director had to make the call to rewrite scenes whilst they were in midst of filming, and it's very evident what's been done to accommodate KSR's reduction of screen time. It makes me wonder what the drama was supposed to have been if this scandal never happened because her character was significant very early on in the episodes, and her relation to the main characters was one of the highlights of this drama before it literally fell apart.

I have a strong sense that the archer was never supposed to be there, and it was always meant to be the three of them - Gun Woo, Woojin, and Hyunjoo - since their bond was sealed in the first half of the drama. Despite the great teamwork with the archer, it felt forced that this new character essentially replaced Hyunjoo. After the tragedy in Ep6, it was used a leverage to cut down KSR's scenes by making her "leave" to Rome. There was absolutely no logic to this and she should've been hell bent for revenge (far more, in fact) than Gun Woo and Woojin (whose emotions were reasonable and consistent) and stayed with them for Ep7-8 for the epic and cathartic finale.

Honestly because of the unspoken changes, the effect of last few episodes somewhat dampened the drama as a result and felt very abrupt. They did their best, but Bloodhounds definitely could have been much better especially from episode 6-8. It's not terrible exactly, but you have a sense of what might have been planned beforehand. I don't see the possibility f a S2, nor there is a need of it. Worth watching if you like action dramas, but it had great potential.

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An exciting and moving experience to watch

I really liked this show! It was so very emotional and sometimes difficult to watch becuase of all that happens... but it was really well done and full of heart.

The two main characters are pure, hard-working, strong-willed, and human in every way. The casting was just perfect. The bad guys are really scary and intimidating while the good guys are heroic, have surpassed loss and challenges, and can stand up for people who aren't able to do it themselves.

Although this is not the kind of genre I normally watch, I was enthralled by the casting and wanted to check it out...it was definitely worth it and I fininshed it very quickly. Shows that are deep, human, emotional, and end in triumph are some of my favorites.

I really appreciate the production quality, the cool soundtrack, and the chemistry each cast member had with each other. The reason that I may not re-watch it, at least any time soon, is because it was just really emotionally taxing, so be prepared to cry. Don't worry, it has a good ending.

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STOP OVER ANALYZING AND JUST WATCH!

I am not a fun of action-related anything but I have watched a few that really changed my mindset. This one falls under that category, I saw alot of negative comments but before I even came in for the comments I went and watched it myself.

what I liked:
- The bond/ bromance between the two MLs, I have seen alot of bromance kdramas and this one did a good job at giving a normal feel of a natural friendship.
- The connections between all the characters, k-dramas or just all dramas have always had a way of connecting characters to make the story make sense. This did a good job, they connected each character well and gave a brief background of who they where.
- The fight scenes! Omg, the fight scenes were beautiful. It takes time and alot of effort to get that done, each movement was precise and I just saw perfection in the fights.
- The fact they didn't bring back characters from the dead...this happens alot in action movies..where you think a character has died and they are surprisingly not dead. I am glad they completely killed off characters and just used them as the MLs motivation to get rid of the villian.
-The concept of COVID was also nice, it made the situation of people taking out loans from loan sharks more logical.

what I didn't like:
- Honestly, some things didn't make sense. And instead of me completely bashing them for those errors..I will just say.. 'when tailing a car'...this was the most frustrating thing to watch
-Then after episode 6, it's like they were trying to rush everything so that it could end. They did there best to make sense of how the story should end but the ending was a bit rushed and even though the final battle I was looking forward to was quite bland.. I will just I am okay with the ending...somehow.

So to conclude on this, I will just say the show is worth giving a try but you need to not try and over analyze everything. if you stick with the show for the bromance and fights, then you will enjoy it. So just watch it! And don't over analyze.

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Personal opinion

If you love bloody fight scenes, bad language and a plethora of bad guys, you'll probably enjoy this.

What I liked:
-The dynamic between the two male leads. I liked watching their friendship/camaraderie build. The scene in the barbeque restaurant when they were just getting acquainted as good, and I laughed at Do Hwan's character switching to honorifics when he realized he was the younger of the two.
-The workout exercising scenes. Superficial, I know.
-Woo Do Hwan. I felt that he did a good job with this part. He was being forced into something to stay alive, to a certain degree. I liked how he never lost that side of gentleness that he had. The last episode when he sees his mom, very touching. And don't get me started on his deep voice!
-Si Won. I enjoy him as an actor, and in this role he wasn't his quirky/odd self.

What I didn't care for:
-I felt that a lot of the fights were very over the top and unrealistic. I mean, you practically get beat to a bloody pulp, but then a couple of scenes later you're fine. And the main bad guy, when he was fighting the ML at the end? The guy was in his 50's to begin with. He's fighting against a trained fighter, but almost gets the better of the ML?
-The disappearing girlfriend. What happened?
-Bloody, bloody, bloody. I know, they're fighting, but wow!
-The cursing. Personal pet peeve of mine.

My bottom line would be that if you are totally into action shows, give this a try.

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Fight scenes lacks precision on martial arts techniques

A fairly simple storyline that doesn't have too much complexity going on, pacing is quite slow at the beginning and it has largely inconsistent tones, jumping back and forth between dead serious and then light drama out of sudden, which is a weird choice of direction.

Now when it comes to action sequences and fight scenes, it was acceptable but nothing extraordinary, it lacks precision on martial arts techniques, and even the use of surrounding props is very minimal. For very big amount of fight scenes they're just throwing punches repeatedly and it's really tiresome to watch.

For instance, I was just comparing it to some of the best Korean martial arts film, like Jang Hyuk's "The Swordsman" and "The Killer", Ma Dongseok's "The Roundup" franchise, and even Netflix own originals "My Name" had much better fight scenes than this. To be honest, they could've reduced some of the fight scenes and mainly focus on a few big ones to improve quality not quantity.

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it's really worth watching

it's a bit hard to find action movies that are worth it....it's really worth watching it, it's worth wasting your time to watch it as an action, it's superb at the beginning it was a bit boring but it's getting more and more interesting
I really liked that there is also talk about true friendship with the two sacrificing their lives for each other, gorgeous, a little sad, but I really love it

Honestly, I've watched a lot of action series movies, but this is really something to tell us how much action is in this kdrama, I honestly would really like to forget that I watched it and watch it again because it's something great

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A simple plot wih some good action sequences, ending lost the hold

Netflix delivers a knockout punch with its barnstorming early summer K-drama series Bloodhounds, the tale of two fresh-faced pugilists who go up against the vilest loan shark that Korean screen entertainment has offered us in years.

The drama takes place at the height of the pandemic. Characters wear masks in most locales, and check in to buildings with QR codes; sporting events take place before empty stadiums.

The storyline doesn’t delve into much social critique profoundly. The initial backdrop is set up as the launching pad (the pandemic scenes adding relatability) for the action that follows. Therefore, the series is more serious about how the action fleshes out till the end, and it’s not bad either because the show is equally aware of what it’s doing.

The last two episodes take a jarring turn. There’s no denying the fact that the cast adorably wins you over within the first few episodes, but the final ones go a little south. I would’ve definitely given it a higher rating depending on how much I initially enjoyed the series. However, the last two episodes turned out to be a let down in some spaces, especially with a main character suddenly out of the last 2 episodes and letting the antagonist live, even with an aggressive fight that we witnessed at the end.

My Rating : 8/10

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Hooked from the first episode

I'm not one for particularly violent stories. (Honestly, I had to watch some of the recaps ahead of time so I wouldn't be too scared). But this one had me hooked. Woo DoHwan and Lee Sang-Yi are fantastic together. They have the best bromance and they look the part of professional boxers. Serious eye candy, serious laughter, mixed in with a lot of serious parts. There was a little bit of everything except for the usual romance I look for. But that's OK. The action more than makes up for it; everything was choreographed amazingly. You really got sucked in from the first episode to the last.

And yes, I have to admit; I watched the beginning of the finale episode many times.

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Brut et intense avec une franche camaraderie

Deux boxeurs qui deviennent amis et vont lutter contre un usurier sans pitié. À la fois émouvant et entraînant sur fond de pandémie.

L'intrigue est en pleine pandémie. Rues désertes, port du masque obligatoire (ce qui ne gêne en rien la performance des acteurs) et bien sûr la détresse humaine et la chute financière d'une grande majorité des commerces - dont cafés et restaurants.

Le drama débute en plein combat de boxe au public absent. C'est de cette façon que Gun Woo (Woo Do Hwan) et Woo Jin (Lee Sang Yi) se rencontrent. Rapidement, ils se découvrent des points communs autre que la boxe et deviennent amis ponctué de pas mal d'humour. Et c'est un point fort, l'humour. Derrière la cruauté de l'usurier détestable mais parfait en la peau de Park Sung Woong, le duo offre de belles scènes gentilles et amusantes. D'ailleurs, les physiques de Woo Do Hwan et Lee Sang Yi sont spectaculaires (ce n'est qu'un détail, mais je voulais le préciser ahah).

J'ai lu plusieurs critiques qui disaient que Bloodhounds aurait pu être un drama exceptionnel. J'ignore ce qu'elles voulaient dire parce qu'il est excellent sur ce qu'il promet : deux amis qui décident de se venger d'un usurier qui vise exclusivement les plus pauvres et dans le besoin. Il apporte aussi de sacrés scènes de combats qui sont un pur plaisir visuel, car en plus d'être lisibles, elles sont joliment chorégraphiées.

À savoir qu'on fait disparaître en cours de route l'actrice Kim Sae Ron. En pleine controverse (ivresse au volant), Kim Joo Hwan a décidé de la retirer le plus respectueusement possible pour les personnes ayant travaillé sur le projet. Ce qui explique l'entrée de Oh Da Min en tant que petite fille de Oh In Muk.
Malgré ce détail, le drama en souffre que très légèrement (à moins de faire une fixation dessus).

En bref, Bloodhounds donne ce qu'il promettait avec un duo brillant aux scènes de combat parfaites et dynamiques ainsi qu'une image propre et une musique discrète, mais efficace.

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its very good

The show is not as simple as you've seen it from the trailer. It has a little bit more complicated stories and characters, but not too far off. It has brotherhood, bloody fight, mukbang, and above all, it's a fast pace show. The choreography of the fights in this show is also well done. It's just as good as another korean show from Netflix, My name. The martial arts or fight actions scenes in modern korean movies and tv shows are arguably better than any other action movies whether it's from hollywood, or outside of hollywood. They has more realistic fights. It's fast and furious literally. They don't have those showy exaggerated moves that look like choreographed dance. Unfortunately, this show also has those typical cliche moments like My Name especially those tear-jerky ones. That's my biggest pet peeve in korean tv shows and movies. Although there's a sudden change of pace (It was quite a ride until episode 6), and the ending is a bit rushed and shortened, overall, the show is quiet entertaining. The fight scenes are worth visit more than once. I give solid 7.5/10.

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