Juvenile Justice

The series is fast moving although it is only 10 episodes in total. All the casts are excellent in their portrayal of the characters - including the perpetrators and victims. I am impressed with Judge Sim for standing her grounds on her believes in the way the juveniles should be treated to correct their behaviours for the future.

Kim Hye Su delivers her lines with so much conviction and mental prowess her persona alone influences those around her that are morally feeble and need proper cultivation but also rectifies on behalf of those quiet unheard defeated voices at large.

I heard Korean dramas are very popular all over south east Asia and especially in China. I'm starting to see why, as all k-dramas I have watched were great (move to heaven, squid game, my name).

The characters are shown very well and I could relate quickly. The cases made me think about law and justice. The pace is just right, the story thrilling and touching.

Sometimes I'm not sure whether something is Korean culture or individual character e.g. Bosses seem to yell a lot, and there is a strong hierarchy of respect between people, whereas in western culture everyone is more equal, irrespective of age and position (at least compared to as it's shown in juvenile justice). One case is about the education system where I also think some background info would be helpful to research upfront.

This left me a tiny bit confused at times.

9/10

PS: im not criticizing the show for showing Korean culture, just stating it may make some situations seem weird for westerners.

I stumbled upon this series while scrolling through Netflix, looked into the first episode and it hit me like a truck. Juvenile Justice really came out of left field for me, and in retrospect I'm really thankful for the experience.

The story revolves around Shim Eun Seok (Kim Hye-su), a juvenile court judge who appears stone cold and lays down the law with an iron fist on young offenders, while also battling her own demons of the past deep inside. The juvenile justice system is highly divisive, conflicting and heavily overloaded, laying not only the sentencing and punishment of juvenile offenders on the court but even the aftercare and oversight on the judges themselves. While the law treats them as children who are scarcely accountable for their own actions, often it doesn't defend victims or take their circumstances into account, what lead them down this path. Domestic violence, neglect, mistreatment, bullying, often very hard to properly prosecute. On the other hand, many young criminals straight up expect to get off with nothing but probation and a slap on the wrist while committing very real crimes, theft, robbery, blackmail, prostitution, grievous violence and even murder, fully aware of their actions. Judge Shim sails the muddy waters of this tattered legal embroglio to try and truly punish young criminals and bring absolution to the victims of the system.

Honestly, I was truly surprised by this series! I half expected a confusing and boring TV schlock, filled with incessant jargon and theatrical melodrama. But what I got was a very intense, high quality, easily digestible (for a legal series), very binge-worthy story and some of the best acting I've seen in a while! Kim Hye-su completely dominates the role of Judge Shim. Coming off as a stone cold, no-nonsense inquisitor who absolutely throws the book at young criminals trying to slip through the cracks, while she slowly learns that the juvenile court is not only there to punish but also to teach, reform and protect those fallen by the wayside and wronged by the system.

The production quality is excellent! The camera work, direction and even the few special effects are way higher quality than one would expect from a TV series of this kind. This far excuses some of the plotholes and the sometimes wooden acting by some of the support cast. I usually don't like kids in series and movies, but I have to say, the young cast brings their A-game and believable acting throughout the series, which was really refreshing. The story goes at breakneck speeds, filled with lots of detail, action, intrigue, investigations and hard choices which makes the series feel a lot longer than 10 episodes. There's never a dull moment watching Judge Shim and co going above and beyond their line of duty to get to the truth and render a truly just verdict in the end.

All in all, I highly recommend Juvenile Justice to anyone looking for an intense court drama with a flair for complexity and some action on the side!

This is a serious drama that seeks to look carefully at the good and bad of juvenile justice in Korea. As usual for Korean drama that is achieved via a highly engaging story line that entertains as well as informs.

Just occasionally the travails of Judge Sim, the key protagonist, lurch beyond credibility. But the propulsive plot and powerful acting keep you glued and almost succeed in cloaking these moments.

Overall a highly rewarding watch that I recommend to everyone who has yet to discover the great strengths of Korean dramas.