Playing Favorites: Liar Game

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I have many favorite Korean dramas, dramas I would (and have) happily rewatched. But as time goes on, Liar Game remains my consistent favorite, constantly re-emerging as the victor whenever someone asks me, 'So what are your favorite Kdramas?' I unroll a long list, with Liar Game as #1.

At only twelve episodes, it's quite short as most Kdramas go. Loosely based on the Japanese manga, Liar Game follows kind, naïve Nam Da Jung, struggling in debt her father left when he ran away. She is approached by Kang Do Young, the emcee of a new show about money, lies, and betrayal, aptly called 'Liar Game.' If she wins, she'll be able to pay off her father's debt. She enlists the help of genius psychologist and 'human lie detector,' Ha Woo Jin, to help her beat the other contestants. But as the game progresses, Ha Woo Jin begins to realize just how deep lies run, and Da Jung is drawn into a far more dangerous game masterfully concocted by Kang Do Young, who has intentions of his own.

I like to joke that if the writers behind Liar Game wanted to, they could take over the world. Liar Game is the sharpest, most intelligent, complex, and multilayered Kdrama I've seen - in almost nine years of watching them.  

The cast is relatively small and keeps the story centralized around Da Jung, Woo Jin, and Do Young as they navigate their way through a labyrinth of lies, truths, and plot twists. Psychology is the show's largest element - what moves people (Is it honesty? Is it trust? Is it money?), what causes people to change, is trust wise or foolish? Psychology has always fascinated me, and my fascination with it continues to grow (probably why this show is my favorite) - but never fear, this drama has several different elements. 

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For those who like to ship people (and really, who doesn't?), this show provides you with the opportunity to ship Da Jung with Woo Jin or Do Young (I do both, honestly) based purely on chemistry and interest. It also provides dry, subtle humor, while not being a comedic show.

My favorite element of the show, however, is Shin Sung-Rok's fantastic portrayal of Kang Do Young. It's hard to find an accurate, detailed portrayal of a psychopath, but Shin Sung-Rok brings perfectly creepy, perfectly sympathetic dimensions to the antagonist of the drama. Everything from his body language to his perfectly calculated facial expressions are designed to send a chill down your back - and he's the snappiest dresser in Dramaland, too.

If you want intrigue, psychological tests, plot twists, and mystery, this is probably the show for you. If you want to find yourself questioning every reality show you've ever seen, this is definitely the show for you. And if you finish season one, I guarantee you'll want a second season as much as I do.

 Are you ready to play the Liar Game?

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Playing Favorites: Five Of My Favorite Villains

Nearly every story needs a striking antagonist. Whether he's a truly evil villain or a circumstantial force working against the hero, his role is pivotal. It creates conflict and provides an interesting storyline - if done right. The best villains give you as many feelings as the heroes - hatred, sympathy, and sometimes the confusion of 'wait, is he bad or not?' I'm going to talk about five of my favorites, and why I appreciate them so much in spite of their villainy status.

GWI

(Lee Soo-Hyuk)

Scholar Who Walks the Night

A vampire who secretly runs the country from the shadows behind the throne, I love Gwi for many reasons (not the least of which is the fact Lee Soo-Hyuk is one of my favorite people). He's deliciously exaggerated but not to the point where he discredits himself. He's a luscious villain; beautiful, graceful, pouty, with that perfectly classic mixture of childish selfishness and ancient wrath. In some ways, his viewpoint is one of righteous indignation, which lends him a certain kind of sympathy.

SHISHIO

(Tatsuya Fujiwara)

The Rurouni Kenshin Live-Action Trilogy

Shishio is one of those villains who comes from an understandable - even heartbreaking - viewpoint. He was betrayed by the nation he fought for, brutally stabbed multiple times and left to burn alive. A miraculous survivor, his hatred and revenge for the nation who destroyed him make very painful sense, no matter how horrible his means are.

ADAM

(Burn Gorman)

Forever

Adam was my favorite character in the whole of 'Forever.' An immortal looking for a  way to die but afraid of death just the same, Adam was delightfully intriguing. Occasionally vicious and even brutal, he possessed an aloof self-confidence and a polite, classic demeanor that made him impossible to hate. He had a dry sense of humor, a clever, almost mischievous desire to find out what made Henry tick, and a somewhat twisted but strangely sensible moral code.

 

 PETER PAN

(Robbie Kay)

Once Upon a Time

 Pan is one of my all-time favorite villains - anyone who knows me at all is well aware of my love for this character. I'm a fan of twisted fairytales to begin with, and this is by far my favorite twisted childhood character. Patient, annoyingly clever, unbearably cocky, and frequently downright despicable, he was so purely enjoyable to watch that he was impossible to hate. Not to mention, he had killer eyebrows and a sassy sense of humor that was beautiful to behold.

Kang Do-Young

(Shin Sung-Rok)

 

Liar Game

 

 

Do-Young was an instant favorite and actually the reason I started 'Liar Game' in the first place. The psychopathic MC of a reality television show where contestants lie and betray in order to win money, Do-Young is incredibly intelligent and strategic. He is an elegant predator who is revealed, bit by bit, for what he really is. These revelations make it impossible to hate him. There are reasons for why he is the way he is, and as heartbreaking as Do-Young is, he's a joy to watch. Bonus: he interrupts his own speeches with evil laughter, and it isn't weird at all.

 

Who is your favorite villain, and why?

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