The K2

If you like martial arts action with a dose of political intrigue and a side of love story this will hit the spot. I am not a big fan as I can never understand why there is so much hand to hand fighting when they have guns, but I did enjoy the storyline so stuck with it and overall found the series enjoyable. My favourite character was Choi Yoo-Jin played by Song Yoon-ah who though incredibly evil you could sense there was a heart in there somewhere. The love story was ok and but for a person who earns his living fighting hordes of people the male lead was incredibly lucky to keep his stunning good looks to the end.

The reason you should give this a watch is for an outstanding female antagonist unlike anyone you have ever seen before. Song Yoon Ah who played Choi Yoo Jin is truly remarkable and her character has so much depth that she deservedly outshines everyone in this drama and beyond. I couldn't help but empathize with her throughout the story due to her emotive acting and was constantly rooting for her even though she was the main antagonist.

Things I liked:

• Best female antagonist (unbelievably, she wasn't even nominated for Best Actress at Baeksang Art Awards)
• Fast paced screenplay
• Good action choreography (over the top but enjoyable)

Things I didn't like:

• Quite a few implausible events in the plot

I was kind pessimistic that Ji Chang Wook could play well in this movie since his face is too handsome, too friendly, and too soft to cast a highly trained spec ops soldier. I thought So Ji Sub would be better for this role since he is bigger and has tougher face than him. But after I see him acting in this movie my doubt disappear. He must be trained and prepared very well in this movie because I can see hungry predatory stare on his eyes and also showing excellent athletic and fighting skill. Two thumbs up for Ji Chang Wook. Also I give special credit to Song Yun-ah who played the role as smart ambitious beautiful and tricky chaebol heirs which you can hardly tell whether she is truly generous or just a gimmick to get sympathy from people. Ji Chang Wook character was half forced to cooperate with this evil woman but he can not refuse her offer because he need her unlimited resources to revenge the death of her lover. The conflict in this movie is kind of complicated since the "good" side is not that good and the "bad" side is not also that bad. Many grey area shown by character in this movie to show how rotten the politics is.

I've watched this drama a long time ago, and even after all this time there's something about The K2 that just simply remains in the air. What makes this drama taste different is the complex relationship between the hero, lead actor Ji Chang Wook, and the antihero Song Yun-ah. Unexpected. And their acting skills. Superb. Scenography, storyline and cast are ok most of the time, and impressive on a few occasions, the action scenes seriously well done (lead actor is impressive in combat skills and stunts) and the plot really captivating. The antagonists in this drama are interesting and well portrayed, but the real magic happens when the hero K2 and Madame Choi take the scene. As actors, they excelled. On their own and together. The evolution of their relationship in the drama is unexpected, hard to understand at first, atypical. The character of Madame Choi is something you won't forget easily... If you really understand what's going on. One of the most brilliant antihero out there. Worth watching.

Of course I love Ji Chang-Wook (who doesn't?), however in this series I loved Yun-ah Song who plays Choi Yoo-jin. Both the script and the play for her character were at the highest level, and this kept me watching and watching and watching until towards the end of episode 16. Kim Je-ha is non plausible in plenty of situations, Anna is not bad, but unnaturally full of wisdom after an entire life of complete wisdom-less, the others either laugh like cows when they shouldn't or behave like clowns when the situation requires a completely different attitude. Yun-ah is amazing, Dong-mi and Sung-ha are kind of ok, the others are pathetic. The script is not bad, but the other guys make it ridiculous.