D.P. Season 2 (2023)

Captivating Story-telling

DP Season 2 has certainly outdone season 1. The way they have shed a light on the horrors within the military service in South Korea, I don't believe any country has even attempted such stories or would ever be inclined to attempt to admonish the evils within their military. For that, I have to applaud South Korea. Without checks and balances, the system perpetuates injustice.

This series is a dark one but the directors have managed to bring some humour and light moments in between into the story-telling. These are stories of different individuals in difficult circumstances. They didn't choose to serve. They were forced to and what's worse is having to deal with humiliation and abuse on a regular, if not daily basis. Their only choice is escape. The DP team are not actually heroes. They have just one job. To force the deserters to return without actually rectifying the situation that causes many of the deserters to flee in the first place. However, this season seeks to change that. After seeing the errors in the way the military functions and the worsening situations of the victims and the results of the violence and humiliation they endured, the DP team starts to see a real problem with the way things are run and the corruption within the system that is creating more and more victims by sweeping incidents under the rug. However, in the process of creating a change, there are still many who could not be saved.

Every story is heart-breaking. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Even if it is a flicker.

Hope everyone looks beyond this as a story and considers what stories are not being told in our own countries and how many victims are created because of lack of a voice and change. This series certainly made me think beyond what was depicted.

It is not an easy watch, but DP Season 2 certainly is a must-watch.

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A very tough watch

November 2023
The series kicks off with Ahn Joon-ho (Jung Hae-in), back in his unit following the close of S1.

From the start, the scenes of mistreatment, bullying and outright sadism, are anger inducing and often hard to watch.
The deserters being pursued in this, series 2, are not the central theme, which instead eventually fixes on a specific event and the efforts of AJH to expose the truth. He does this partly out of a sense of shame and guilt for things that happened in his past.
I found the injustices harder to stomach this time around and the fact several characters never get punished, left me feeling disgusted.

I really hope men about to embark on their national service don't watch either series... it would frighten them to death and rightly so.
Whilst many might go through their service and not experience or witness any such awful treatment, the fact is some will, and the thought it might be them? Well, I'm amazed more don't attempt to vanish before ever joining up.

The fact the series is based on actual experiences and reports (albeit with some poetic license for a drama), makes it all the more disgraceful.

For a country all about manners, respecting age and tradition etc, etc, it's so hypocritical that in real life stuff like this is covered up; physical and mental bullying is commonplace and ignored; people vehemently prejudge others and are cruel; the privacy and basic human rights of pop artists and actors are totally ignored and violated; mental and physical health issues are ignored and even made fun of. It's just horrible.

There is wrong everywhere, I know that, but rarely does it seem to get as ignored and even enabled by its own government, officials, police, laws and citizens, as here.
This series, more than any other, really exposes a very unsavoury side of life that is a tough watch, especially for not being pure fiction.

Excellent acting, yet again, (I was in bits over Jang Seong-min/Nina, brilliantly played by Bae Na Ra) and a fitting OST. Whilst it might upset many, it really is worth watching and there are some humorous scenes to dilute, a tiny bit, the much harder parts.

There may be imperfections, but it's nevertheless superb and, I feel, quite brave.

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bittersweet .. just how it should be

Immediately after finishing, D.P. became one of my all time favourite dramas. Naturally, I highly anticipated the second season. Not one bit was I disappointed.

The second season shifted from the comedic aspect, resulting in a more intense experience. Knowing the true events D.P. is based on, I didn’t mind much. Unlike the first season, the focus here wasn’t so much on catching deserters, but more so on fighting the corrupt military. When facing such heavy topics and injustice, one is filled with utter despair and anger. Still, the fact that they tried- and there are indeed people doing their best- gave me a sense of solace and hope.
This was reflected in the acting, too. Jung Hae In once again proved just how amazing of an actor he is. He exquisitely expressed the all-pervasive melancholy of being part of the military. I applaud the entire cast, it is more than obvious that thanks to them, this drama is receiving so much appreciation.

I don’t usually care too much for OSTs, but D.P. is an exception. ‘Crazy’ from Kevin Oh is perhaps my all time favorite OST. I cannot imagine a song that would better express all the emotions D.P. evoke in me. Same could be said about the production.

All in all I really enjoyed watching D.P. It left me feeling somewhat sad, but that’s exactly what I expected from it. While it certainly was entertaining, it didn’t alter reality and stayed true to itself. I highly suggest watching it.

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OH. MY. GOD.

As much as I want Joon Ho to get rest and find peace, he has one more year to go, and something tells me there is going to be the next season. In my opinion, season 1 alone was insufficient, but now the story is summarized very well.

Personally, I like the second one better because it finally gives the feeling of each individual story and their meanings on the big scale. The martial arts scenes are great, the cinematography is wonderful, the actors are stunning. The 3rd episode "Curtain Call" - MY. GOD. I haven't seen one so tragic and brutal in ages. Mostly because of Nina, this series makes it to my top-4. Thank you so much.

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confuso e incrível

Personagens:

A história não muda drasticamente de uma temporada a outra, mas também contém bastantea personagens novos. Eles conseguiram retratar cada detalhe de como a história se molda em 6 episódios, então eu não fiquei entediada em ver personagens secundários em uma boa parte de tela, na verdade, se não ver a história fica bem confusa

História:

É um tipo de dorama que você pode se perder facilmente, tantos personagem, e muitas histórias, e algumas se interligam entre si, oque dá continuidade para a segunda temporada, e eles não explicam, tive que voltar algumas cenas para saber oque acontece, porque simplesmente de um caso que já é confuso eles entram em outro caso sobre o governo e o pendrive que o jeon hu estava, mas não fiquei entendiada em ver, mas que plot foi esse que o cara cometeu suicídio tava vivo? eu até entendo porque não mostraram nenhum tipo de condolencias ao cara e que ele estava o hospital militar, mas precisa entender para saber o porquê ele estava vivo, me senti enganada.
enfim não é uma grande história, e eles dão continuade a alguns caso e participam de outros, então eles não fogem do principal, mas ainda sim eles contam os casos que ainda não foram solucionados e terminam a história principal.

Nota: Eu não sei se haverá alguma terceira temporada porque ainda falta 364 dias para a dispensa do jeon hu, mas se tiver vai flopar demais, o final não é aberto, oque era para ter consequências teve, o amigo do jeon hu foi dispensado, o jeon hu foi transferido, então vai ser uma temporada desnecessária se tiver outra.

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Great Job!

I enjoyed Season 2 as much as I did Season 1. Jung Hae In performed exceptional as he always does. The other cast did an awesome job as well. It is a difficult film to watch in some parts because of the soldiers' horrific abuse. I normally do not watch such shows and I don't like to see Jung Hae In being beat up even though I know it is just a show. I love Jung Hae In's work and I was not disappointed in his performance. Will there be a Season 3 since the show did not end the 2 year military period? I would definitely watch it. Great job to all the actors and the behind the scene staff.

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