Gungeomsa Dobeleuman

This series has its strengths and its weaknesses. Its biggest strength is its two leading actors, both of whom are more than up to the task of powering the action and giving us characters to root for.

They are aided by a complex plot with many twists and turns and some well-realised action.

On the downside, the focus on delivering entertainment too often eclipses any attempt at depicting reality, which somewhat punctures the excitement that might have been. Also, many of the characters are rather one dimensional. Goodies and baddies are painted in bold strokes with no room for rounded characters, except the one or two who change their spots as the plot develops.

But still, it's an entertaining watch with two likeable stars, and I was happy to enjoy it for what it is.

Like Deluxe Taxi driver and Devil Judge, Military Prosecutor Doberman sets out to right Society's wrongs by Dobee's peculiar approach to Justice. I liked the twists at the beginning, with the female factor, better-wrought than many token actresses. You've gotta feel it just a bit for Doberman's rich victims, though it's a fair bet that many super-rich S. Koreans climbed the greasy ladder - right? After episode 3 & still interested. Just one martial arts criticism - in real life both men and women are put into different weight divisions to stop the inevitable slaughter of 120 Kg. Taekwondo heavyweight tearing a 60Kg-er limb from limb. Yes, I know it's Charlie Chan tribute stuff, but just a little more realism please.

First of all, each episode was like a separate movie, kept my interest for all 16 episodes which rarely happens! Even though there was some violence etc, there was always some comedic relief by some of the side characters. All actors were great, but especially Ahn Bo-hyun was perfect for this part!!

I hadn't seen Kim Woo-seok before but he was great in portraying the process of his character change and all the emotions it involved.

Korean Ensemble shows like this one are great when they're good. Even though the theme is different, it reminded me of other successful ensemble series like Diary Of A Prosecutor, Hyena, Good Manager, and many more I won't list right now, which are classics and all time favorites. And I'm glad I decided to give this one a try!

Just a note, even though I loved it I watched it at 1.25 speed, but I do that with most dramas. So if you find it a bit slow that's no reason to give up on it, just speed it up a bit!

I really enjoyed this show. Except for the end, I thought the pacing was great. They did a great job of rolling out the backstory and twists in a manner that keeps you engaged with the series' story. That said, I felt the ending did feel a bit rushed. They'd spent several episodes looking for some key evidence but after getting it, it wasn't really a big factor in wrapping up the prosecutions.

The action scenes were very well done...especially when they added some underlying humor into the scene. I thought both Jo Bo-ah and Ahn Bo-hyun did great with the stunts they performed. The only aspect I didn't like was that afterwards, it seemed they just left the thugs go. Being military prosecutors, one would think they'd ensure that the thugs all were turned over to local police. Especially in the situations where kidnapping occurred before the big fight scene.

I really enjoyed how they handled No Tae-nam's (Kim Woo-seok) character. His growth from despicable to empathetic very well done and believable. Kim Woo-seok did an excellent job with it.

This was my first time seeing Ahn Bo-hyun and thought he did a great job with the role. And I'm a fan of Jo Bo-ah. It was great seeing her in a more action-oriented role - she did not disappoint!

The romance thread was perfect. This isn't a romcom so keeping the romance very slow and subtle was entirely appropriate. But the slow burn was there thru each episode with subtle glances, expressions and actions. What they did with the kiss scene was a bit strange though. From interviews, it sounds like it was actual shot but to edit it into a suggestion seems like a strange choice. It would have been fine to show it at that point in the show. And using the 'disappear overseas for a year' trope with Woo-in was weird and unexplained. I love Kdramas but they do seem to have difficulty with the series endings. Even the great ones seem to do some inexplicable things in those last 30 minutes.

I really enjoyed this series and definitely recommend it if you are at all interested in a series set in a military setting or with a legal theme.

Even though this series came out in '22, it has an old-time charm to it. Good guys vs bad guys, some of them very bad. Underdog vs powerful, honest vs. Dishonest, etc. It's a military ensemble work and it's done well. Secondary-role actors are universally good. The writing is good, albeit, some of the characters' parts, such as the law office minions, are just over the top. One of its best elements is the male lead, played ably by Mr. Ahn Bo-hyun, an excellent but corrupt attorney who matures into and honest, brave and selfless advocate for those unable to defend themselves. This is the kind of positive message one regularly finds in Korean dramas of this ilk. The main antagonist is expertly played by Mr. Kim Young-min, who seems to have made a successful career out of being a despicable villian. It never gets old with Mr. Kim. Park Jin woo is hilarious in the role of supervising officer in the prosecutor's office. The female lead, played by the beautiful Ms. Bo Jo-ah, is perhaps the only weak element in the production. Her beauty makes her the object of desire for many male characters and her determined pursuit of justice is an inspiration for everyone. Her acting is adequate, However she exudes smug satisfaction as though she realizes her attractiveness to others is, well, justly deserved. The way her character demeans or quietly ridicules others can get bothersome at times. However, the viewer still hopes that the mostly suppressed attraction between her and "Doberman" eventually surfaces. This series doesn't deserve to ranked among "must-see" Korean productions, but it's a fun, mostly wholesome romp and will provide multiple evenings of enjoyable Korean tv.