I watched an action-filled, noir gangster K-drama with my mum & it went better than I thought

I’ve been an avid TV-watcher since I was young.

I loved watching TV so much that I would sit in front of my television and wait for advertisements to be over, even before on-demand TV existed.

My “healthy” addiction can be credited to my mum, who single-handedly exposed me to a variety of TV genres from rom coms to thrillers (and even horror), all while I was still a primary school student.

Good ol’ memories

But beyond my wide consumption of media, what I recall most from watching all that TV was how my mum would give me a quick holler from the living room whenever these shows came on.

I’d quickly wrap up whatever I was working on in my room and nestle myself on the couch.

This was typically followed by an hour of unhurried time with my mum in front of the TV.

As I grew older and got busier, such moments became less frequent, eventually becoming sporadic.

That’s why I pounced on the opportunity to write this article when my colleague told me there was a brief where we would be tasked to watch a show with our family members.

I’d do anything to bring back those old memories.

Fumbling our way into “The Worst of Evil”

Not that I needed an excuse to ask my mum to watch a show with me, but work was a pretty good entry point.

My mum’s agreement came in the form of asking me what the show was about.

I told her that we would be watching a new Disney+ Korean Original, “The Worst of Evil” starring Ji Changwook and Wi Hajun.

With my limited knowledge of what the show was about, I fumbled these words to my mum: action, noir and gritty, gangster vibes.

After trying to digest what I just said, I assured my mum that the experience would be exciting.

As nightfall came, we settled ourselves in front of our TV and prepared to be amazed.

For the uninitiated, here’s a brief summary of what the Disney+ series we watched is about:

In 1990s Seoul, a former DJ seizes control of a gang and begins pushing a popular new drug nicknamed “Gangnam Crystal” in the city’s nightclubs. With little known about its source, a rural officer is recruited into an undercover police unit and is tasked with infiltrating the gang to bring it down from the inside. Forced to keep his new assignment a secret from everyone, officer Park Junmo is stunned to discover his wife and fellow officer Yu Euijeong has volunteered for the same assignment and that she has a mysterious past with the city’s new drug lord. Torn between his dedication to his job and his need to keep his wife safe, Junmo’s actions will keep viewers on the edge of their seat throughout.

Our amateur attempt at reviewing

“The Worst of Evil” has the look of a Korean noir film.

Whether it’s the grittiness of the scenes or how episode one starts off with a gang fight of sorts - if you told me I was watching a Korean film directed by an award-winning director, I would believe you.

While the episode felt relatively slow in the beginning, the pace picked up soon enough.

As with all K-dramas, the first episode was important in setting the context for whatever would take place in the rest of the show.

Without revealing too much, you will understand why Junmo, played by Ji Changwook, became an undercover cop halfway into episode one.

Here’s my mum’s description of episode one in five words, in typical Mothership fashion:

Violent gang fights, police, drugs.

Nicely done, mum. Also, episode one was indeed violent.

Apart from how the fights had a good amount of realistic dramatisation, I especially liked how the production team didn’t mince on special effects or stunt training.

Can’t stop, won’t stop

But enough of me babbling about production value.

As 11:30pm neared, I asked my mum if she was up for another episode.

While my mum didn’t respond with “you betcha!”, she waved her hands at me to stop wasting time and just play the next episode.

In the second episode, more insight was given into the backstory of Gicheul played by Wi Hajun, who was well on his way to being the head of the Gangnam Union.

In just two episodes, Gicheul rose through the ranks to earn his place in typical mobster behaviour.

Obviously his rise came with a cost, but you’ll have to watch the series on your own to find out more because we don’t do spoilers here.

What’s a K-drama without some love?

Very little screen time was given to romantic elements in the show, but based on the synopsis, I was certain it was coming.

True enough, it came near the end of episode two, when a tinge of past ties between Junmo’s wife and Gicheul came to light.

Taking the whole show into consideration, it didn’t seem like this romance was going to be the mainstay.

But given my illustrious knowledge of K-dramas, I’m betting that the romance will be a game changer in what would otherwise be a straightforward undercover story.

And hey, I’m all for anything that thickens the plot.

After episode two ended and the credits started rolling, I stood up for a good stretch.

My mum asked where I was going and if I wanted to continue watching the next few episodes.

I had forgotten to tell her that Disney+ only gave me preview access for the first two episodes, but I guess her reaction was testament to how good the show is.

So. Much. More.

“The Worst of Evil” premiered on Sep. 27 and is available to watch exclusively on Disney+.

If you’re not particularly into anything too cringey or lovey-dovey, this K-drama will be right up your alley.

To display the series’ grandiosity, the finale spans across three episodes.

With the final three episodes set to release on Oct. 25, you’ll be able to binge watch the past seven episodes to prepare yourself for the final act.

Jjeonda.

Besides this, Disney+ has a wide range of award-winning K-dramas from sweet romance to thrilling action and even musical documentaries.

Here’s a non-exhaustive list you can check out to kickstart your year-end TV watching:

• Dr Romantic S3
• Moving
• Revenant
• Big Bet
• The Zone: Survival Mission
• Unexpected Business in California (Streaming Oct. 26)
• NCT 127: The Lost Boys

If you’re still not on Disney+ yet, it’s about time you get a subscription.

This sponsored article by Disney+ made this writer set aside more time with her mum just so they can binge watch K-dramas together.

Cover images courtesy of Disney+ and Michelle Chew.