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[Drama 2021] The Devil Judge ⚖️ 악마판사


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https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/art/2021/07/688_311636.html
Ji Sung plays dark hero in new tvN series 'The Devil Judge'


By Lee Gyu-lee | 2021-07-05


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Actors Kim Min-jung, left, and Ji Sung pose for pictures during a media conference for the tvN series "The Devil Judge," Friday. Courtesy of tvN


TvN's new dark protagonist series "The Devil Judge," starring Ji Sung and Kim Min-jung, has kicked off to a good start with its first two episodes scoring above a 5 percent viewership rating. 


The series premiere, aired Saturday, saw a 5.6 percent rating nationwide, followed by a 5.1 percent rating for its second episode, Sunday.


Scripted by former judge, Moon Yoo-seok, who is the creator and scriptwriter behind the JTBC series "Ms. Hammurabi," the new drama is set in a fictional dystopian Korea. 


Two years after the country has been swept by a mysterious plague, it implements a new justice system in which court trials are broadcast live to the public. Viewers can access an application to vote whether they think the defendant deserves sentencing or not, for judges to take into consideration in their rulings. 


Kang Yo-han (Ji) is the star chief judge of the new system, who is merciless in punishing the "bad." Though many see him as a just, ruthless judge, his true face as a cold-hearted, evil-minded man surfaces when social foundation director Jung Sun-ah (Kim) and rookie judge Kim Ga-on (Jin Young) come into his life. 


Actor Ji said he was drawn to the role when he read the script. "Kang Yo-han is a judge who punishes evil with evil. I was fascinated by such concept, and wanted to play the character," he said during a media conference for the series, Friday. 


"Writer Moon had been telling me that since he covered stories about good judges in Ms. Hammurabi, he wants to portray an evil judge, acting like a Batman or Joker, set in a fictional world. And he finally made it into a series." 


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A poster for "The Devil Judge" / Courtesy of tvN


Director Choi Jung-gyu, whose work includes the MBC mystery series "Children of Nobody," noted that the series questions the growing popularity of shows about a dark hero, such as recently wrapped "Taxi Driver" and "Vincenzo."


"Most dark hero series have action and are about fighting bad with bad. But with this series, the writer is making us think, 'Why are people crazy about dark heroes," he said. "The central theme which will be laid out through Ji's character is the biggest difference between our drama and previous series."


Ji said that he had a hard time studying the role at first. "I had trouble understanding the character… (at first) I thought of the character as a good person who embraces evil. But he is just evil," he said. "Depending on the perspective, the evil character wasn't just fascinating but was depressing and agonizing." 


Ji and Kim have reunited with this work about 13 years after they co-starred in the romance series "New Heart." The two expressed their chemistry has gotten better than the last time they worked together. 


"I've always thought I wanted to work together again," Kim said. "We have grown a lot since the last time. Even with the complex scenes, we would just exchange few words and be good to go, which gives me huge satisfaction." 


Ji added: "I was so happy (to work) with her again. It was nice how we could rely on each other throughout the production." 


"The Devil Judge" airs on Saturdays and Sundays at 9 p.m.

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It's interesting to see this concept, especially once I found out that the screenwriter is a real judge for the past 20 years, because I'm a bit confused about the voting process. In Episode 1 Chief changed the charge from murder to negligence in order to accumulate the sentences, even though the public had voted guilty on murder. So where does this leave us, I thought the public would be the ultimate arbiter?

 

On iQIYI this drama apparently has the LBTQ rating! It might have something to do regarding the energy between Chief Kang and Gaon, as the drama as for now pits them against each other, but it might turn  out like Beyond Evil, where they may end up working together in the end. 

 

As for now? Chief Kang is miles ahead of Gaon. Gaon has no idea how to deal with someone like Chief Kang - he chooses to insult his boss when he is invited to a dinner. It was painful (and I got second hand embarassment) the way he bit off more than he could chew, as his words were far from elegant - they were clumsy, much like a kid throwing a stone from a slingshot. He chose to immediately disrespect his boss, not even in a subtle way, which I would have applauded, then he teared up when the emotions choke him as he is reminded of his father's death, this after insulting not only Chief Kang himself but also his boss' father, someone he thinks he hasn't even met - for a guy who is so self righteous and claims to be unprejudiced, he is super ignorant - then again, this happens when someone sees things only in black and white / good and evil. It may be that Chief's father was the trigger for Gaon's father's suicide, however, but Gaon doesn't know that. He doesn't know anything about Chief, yet, except what he observed since he started this job. Also I'm pretty sure this is his first job :D 

 

  

11 hours ago, LeftCoastOppa said:

How does an officer of the law, follow not one, but 2 speeding vehicles on a highspeed chase, and 1) not call for backup  2) stop a quarter mile away when they stop  3) watch as one of the "criminals" destroys the others car with a sledge hammer AND attempt to falsely entrap the man - and he's a JUDGE -  4) make no attempt to arrest either one? :rolleyes:

Ah, because he wants to catch Chief Kang in something bigger than destruction :D and I don't think he saw that Chief removed drugs from the other man's car, as they were farther away. I don't think the two of them heard what went down, just saw Chief trashing the car like some mad man hahaha. 

7 hours ago, ChunSungIm said:

anyone have gif or video jinyoung heart sign to middle finger ?

i found out that so hillarious ):lol:

Can you tell me approximately where this scene was? I missed out and I can make the gif, if you tell me ^^

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Kang Yo-han, the devil or the saviour, that will surely depend on our perspective. He has an ulterior motive and the rookie judge, Kim Ga-on is way out of line. You might not agree with Kang Yo-han methods, means but I am sure the end will justify it. Ji Sung is so charismatic. He does thes gray characters really well. His mad as a Hatter chase on his batmobile was superbly done. I am not going to think logically and wonder how he arrived at the scene exactly when  Cha Kyung-hee's son was creating a ruckus. That's too much of a coincidence to take into consideration but being a Ji Sung fan, I promise to leave my brain outside while watching the drama.

 

I was excited to see  Kang Yo-han was not a sitting duck for  Kim Ga-on. I dislike Kim Ga-on because of his moral high-handedness. This holier than thou attitude of Kim Ga-on is annoying. He should start using his brain and wonder why the Chief Justice is setting him up against Kim Ga-on.

 

I also have a strong feeling that Jung Sun-ah is the same girl who sat next to him in school.  They seem to have some unfinished business between them. That reminds me, Jung Sun-ah's Chairman, the old geezer was actually hitting on the young judge, molesting her in broad daylight and in everyone's view. I cannot seem to shake this feeling that perhaps Jung Sun-ah has actually sold her soul and is / was quite aware of the old geezer's wandering hands and gaze. Kang Yo-han might be the 'Devil/ Monster', he was thorough gentleman and saved the lady from a great predicament.  Jung Sun-ah temerity knows no bounds and I wonder what gives her that power to be so cocky, so impertinent, fear no retribution.

 

Kang Yo-han has his own unique way of settling his scores. Whether that gives us enough reason to call him a devil or a monster is again subjective in nature. But, TBH, I was rather disappointed with the 'great' revelation because I thought it was something bigger, darker. His way of fighting back the bullies is definitely not recommended, but I admire his shrewdness at such a tender age. He knew the adage, 'Divide and Conquer' and he quite 'amicably' settled his score. 

 

I guess they are trying to paint him as a Devil / Monster, but after watching Mouse, Beyond Evil, Flower of Evil, it will take much more than few childhood incidents for me to believe he's a sociopath.

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Wow, finished Episode 1 and Kang Yo Han totally played the chairman!! 235 years imprisonment :fear: But seriously, Yo Han played the whole trial, meeting with the Doctor Manager to falsely testify in order to get the defendant to go for negligence. I know he totally met with the defendant's attorney too so the attorney can convince the chairman to do that. I  really can't figure Kang Yo Han out...I know he definitely is a anti-hero / dark hero similar to Vincenzo.

 

@agenth The public's vote does play a factor in the ruling but it's ultimately Kang Yo Han who makes the final decision. I think the public votes exist so it can have some influence on the judge's ruling.. Also I can totally see Beyond Evil vibes too between Kim Ga On and Kang Yo Han :D I really enjoyed the bromance in BE so I'm excited to see what will happen between Ga On and Yo Han...the two ending up working together.

 

After I saw Yo Han said that Ga On resembles "them", I immediately knew that the two have some 인연 or past relationship with each other. I think Episode 2 gives details about this more but I was thinking that Yo Han knew Ga On's parents or something, but after reading some of the posts here, it seems like Yo Han knew Ga On's father and played a part in the father's death?

 

Anyways, really good Episode 1 and start with the drama. Jisung is really good and particular with picking his projects (Kill Me Heal Me, Defendant, Entertainer <- underrated drama but it has really good morals and themes, Doctor John, etc...) so I know that this one won't disappoint. Well I'm off to watch Episode 2!

 

EDIT: Also @agenth the bus explosion scene was real :o Maybe they added more CG for the flare but in the making, you can see that the bus exploded behind Jinyoung

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Second episode was more interesting. I am loving the cinematography here. The whole car race/chase scene felt like watching the cut scene of latest NFS game. The song played with it just made it much better. Well, we all know that Yo Han has got his own plans, and for now his target seems to be the Minister Justice. He took care of the business who she favored the most and who was going to financially support her campaign in the next presidential elections, and now he is after her son. The son is not the target, but a bait for him. Interesting. 

 

The whole car race scene, his maniac laugh and what he did to the other guy's car gave me serious Shin Se Gi vibes. 

 

@confusedheart326 Chingu, I do agree with you on not liking Ga On's character so far. For now, I feel like he lives in the perfect world of his own. At the same time, I don't understand his reason going after Yo Han. Yes, he is suspicious of him partially thanks to his Professor who also looks to be slightly shady to me, especially after how he cheated to score in the basketball game. But being suspicious is one thing, and going after the one person on every chance you get is another. When he went after Yo Han during their dinner, he should have known that it can backfire, and when it did, he couldn't tolerate it. I don't have problem with not tolerating it since Yo Han insulted him and stabbed him where it hurts the most, but as I said Ga On was the one who tried the same by starting it all, and when you do such things, you got to be ready for the retaliations. 

 

The female judge is also someone Yo Han knows from his past. He didn't choose her randomly, just like he didn't do it in Ga On's case. She could be daughter of one of the guys Yo Han is after, or just like he has got a past with Ga On, there is a high chance that he has the same with this female judge. 

 

About Yo Han and Sun Ah, I do agree with you @confusedheart326 Chingu. She could be the one who sat beside him in the school, or at least they have shared a past too together. For now, they seem to be having a strange love-hate kind of relationship. Sun Ah too is working with this old dude having an agenda of her own. 

 

In two episodes, Yo Han was first referred to be a monster, and in the next one he was called a devil. I am sure that he is doing it all for a revenge, and the guys he need to take revenge against are the monsters themselves. So the saying "To suppress monsters, you must be willing to abandon your humanity" is relevant here, since Yo Han has realized that he needs to become the monster himself to fight the monsters. I think that's how he got back to the school kids who bullied him. I won't say he did the right thing, but what can one expect from a person being bullied by whole class and having no friends, and by the looks of it, his childhood at home wasn't an easy one either. So the priest calling him devil but not calling himself and others the same for creating one is not something that uncommon but still unfair on Yo Han's part. 

 

But what if, it wasn't really Yo Han who pulled it off and someone else from the class. Yes, Yo Han would be the main suspect, but it comes from a person who already saw him as a devil when he killed the bird. So while I do incline on the fact that Yo Han must be the one who did it all, I am gonna still think there could be someone who caused it all. Yo Han enjoying it does not mean he did it, but could mean he liked the fact that his bullies were fighting each other. He is the main suspect for this, but I have this feeling that there is more to this story. 

 

About the bomb the blew off. I want to know why did it blow off during the nighttime and it seemed to be late night. Being the rich guy, I don't see Yo Han sleeping there just like the female judge has been doing. So the safest plan with the highest success rate would be doing it during the work hours when he would be in his room. Which does make me suspicious of Yo Han himself. He is more than capable and willing to do it if it will help him in his plans. But, it could be someone else too, since they knew that Yo Han would attend the party. So inviting him to the party could be all part of a plan. 

 

52 minutes ago, ferily said:

Anyways, really good Episode 1 and start with the drama. Jisung is really good and particular with picking his projects (Kill Me Heal Me, Defendant, Entertainer <- underrated drama but it has really good morals and themes, Doctor John, etc...) so I know that this one won't disappoint. Well I'm off to watch Episode 2!

 

 

I totally agree with you on Ji Sung's projects. I always look forward to his dramas, have watched most of them, and loved most of them. I agree the same on Entertainer being underrated yet very good drama. 

 

So just like you all Chingus here, I also want Ga On and Yo Han to work together. Just like many of you mentioned, in BE too the leads didn't have the best of the starts and it was kinda similar to this one with the younger dude suspecting the other guy. 

 

Ga On is smart but naïve, it would be interesting to see him work with Yo Han. What is see is, Yo Han wants Ga On to join him himself without anyone telling him to, but him deciding it on his own.  

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Hello guys i am michelle,

 

I got this theory

 

Spoiler

I have two theory one is I have  First I think they are bothers  It was saying that I look a lot like.  He is looking Someone with a watch but who we don't know yet also think   The second that  I think he was a priest in a church. that his father save.

 

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@tulip06 There are only 8 english subbers on the team right now for The Devil Judge and usually half the subbers come on to help sub, so basically 4 subbers are working on two 2 and a half hour long episodes right now. Please keep in mind that subbing takes awhile and it's not an easy task, especially if you don't have a script for the episode. All we can do is be patient and watch for the subbers to complete the episode. Episode 1 is complete at least. I'm waiting for episode 2 to be subbed :)

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I love the 2nd episode, i can feel this drama will be very interesting, like someone mentioned - a Batman dark story. The Devil judge, Ji Sung, plays a mysterious and controversial role, easily manipulate the whole situation while enjoying his happiness alone, to fight against the rich and the powerful one. He is certainly the right one who is able to carry out well for the whole scene. I like his hair style and his formal attire (except the judge attire like a priest):D

 

Am I the only one love to see the 2nd or 3rd lead actress Oh Jin-Joo (the junior judge who admires her own boss, Kang Yo-Han) - I hope to see some romance between the Kang Yo-Han and Oh Jin-Joo. They look so good together especially walked on the red carpet. Oh Jin-Joo is beautiful, a new look to me, she looks like one of the Japanese actress (forgot her name). I do understand the story will be more bromance relationship and involving revenge storyline later on, i won't mind if they have some romance storyline between Kang Yo-Han and Oh Jin-Joo. :wub:

 

My prediction is the bad guy rich son, Lee Young-Min and the sly fox Chairman Seo Jung-Hak will "play" with the junior Oh Jin-Joo. And the judge team Kang Yo-Han and Kim Ga-On may team up to save her, probably. :D

 

The bomb explosion in the office may be an early sign to make both male leads to come closer? It hooks me on this drama.

 

 

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About Yo Han and Sun Ah, I do agree with you as well@confusedheart326  She could be the one who sat beside him in the school, or at least they have shared a past too together. For now, they seem to be having a strange love-hate kind of relationship. Sun Ah too is working with this old dude having an agenda of her own. 

 

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It’s actually quite sad to see people disliking Gaon’s character because of the “moral high standing”. (I can understand tho for others who feel Gaon’s character is contradicting himself at times and doing things in a naive clumpy black/white way. So I am just referring to people disliking Gaon only because of the righteous part)

 

I feel like both Yohan and Gaon are Moon writer himself debating against in his own head. (Writer is a former judge in Seoul and a Harvard law school graduate). I am sure when he was a judge he has always wished someone like Yohan can disregard all rules and punish the bads, but Gaon is also the writer himself, because legally obtained evidences and constitution should be all law practitioners’ grounding rules. What kind of judge should be making up evidences illegally and do whatever as they please? Wanting to honor one of the most important rules in the world of laws shouldn’t be discarded as “annoying” :( While he might be naive, an anti hero in the real world is also a form of idealistic because no one with that kind of power can be unbiased. While we all love a good anti hero story, I hope people can also appreciate there are still people in the world that are righteous. 

 

Gaon’s conversation about the bus driver - it was more focused on the fact that, the rich businessman was not captured, yet the bus driver is needed to capture right away. It is naive but in all fairness, both should be captured. Not only the poor but not the rich. He is a 1997 born young judge, and as judge he is not cops as well. So I don’t expect him to be doing the greatest job in spying lol His role in this drama actually isn’t like Beyond Evil. He is not the rival (or equally smart as) to Yohan. Instead he should be more like a Robin, he has more emotional entanglement with Yohan while Sunah is Yohan’s same leveled rival. I would consider him as Yohan’s puppy more so than the enemy if anything lol
 

We are finding out who Yohan is through Gaon’s eyes, and the writer wants Yohan to remain mysterious so it makes sense that there isn’t too much of Yohan’s POV showing. I do hope writer can use less of Gaon to do that cos it’s guaranteed to make viewers dislike him, and also with the time that he’s on screen it still tells so little about his motive and background. I can’t even tell is he smart in the judge part or not (he for sure isn’t a good spy lol). What makes him wants to chase after Yohan besides his uncle asking him to? Why being righteous is so important to him?

 

But I think we are already seeing Gaon questioning if process is more important or results is. I think DJ’s writer might somehow lacking skills to build compelling characters compared to Beyond Evil’s writer. (Maybe the sensitivity of female writers and PDs helped a lot.) But we are only 2 episodes in, I hope when they start discussing the characters arcs we will be able to understand them more. All in all, I liked ep2 more than ep1. But if we don’t talk about characters development as the main theme, just as a anti hero show, it’s very entertaining. The chemistry between all leads are extremely strong. Looking forward to next week!
 

(I think Gaon looks like Yohan’s half brother whom he feels forever guilty for.)

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2 hours ago, peachietime said:

It’s actually quite sad to see people disliking Gaon’s character because of the “moral high standing”. (I can understand tho for others who feel Gaon’s character is contradicting himself at times and doing things in a naive clumpy black/white way. So I am just referring to people disliking Gaon only because of the righteous part)

 

Great post to read, but I had to cut it short to quote ;)

 

I wanted to offer my opinion to reflect upon your words and Gaon's character, even though it may seem rushed as we have only seen two episodes so far. 

 

The character of Gaon is defined as "an associate judge who believes in justice". It seems that this is Gaon's first job as a judge and he just graduated law school, he hasn't yet learned how to respect his superiors - the only one he truly gives respect to is Chief Justice to whom he owes a lot - but that colors him blind to Chief Justice's flaws. The two of them believe themselves to be on a superior moral ground, however, is that really true? Chief Justice instigates Gaon to become a spy, before even Gaon had met his boss. That prejudice leads Gaon down a path where he himself does illegal things in order to gain the upper hand. Is he really morally superior? 

 

That same prejudice puts him against his own boss. Gaon is the one who attacks Judge Kang regarding him coming from an affluent background - he says "you're a pampered prince/born with silver spoon", dismissing Judge Kang's work so far - whatever you want to say about Judge Kang, whether his work is good, bad, or in between, it's laughable that someone who just started their career throws this at the face of someone who is at the high point of their career. Moreover, he even throws shade at Judge Kang's father: yes loan sharks have bad reputation, but being a loan shark really is an occupation, does it define a person as good/evil? Are the only people who are "good" the ones who sacrifice their time and donate all their money to the poor? Who is Gaon to make that judgment? 

 

Take the Social Responsibility Foundation:  their motto is to support the poor, however, they have ties to the powerful people. Their leader is sketchy, praying on women, exerting their influence over them. This foundation, like most entities, have a goal, and although their statute says they have a responsibility toward the poor, how come they are the biggest players in this political landscape? There's something iffy there - there is a reason they are powerful, despite the rich in dystopian wanting to stay rich and powerful, and that usually happens by oppressing the lesser fortunate. 

 

Back to Gaon: The problem this drama faces is age-old. The connection between justice and law. A judge is supposed to adhere to the spirit of the law - he is to be neutral, neither for nor against the defendant. Gaon, however, coloured by his world views and as he grew up in this dystopian word, not in rich situations, clearly is the underdog's fighter. Whereas the show first introduced Yohan as someone who would defend the rich so they can keep their wealthy positions. 

 

About the bus scene: Gaon has problem with Yohan for attempting to shoot the bus driver - potentially killing the driver to save him and the girl - the fact that Yohan harshly says "2 is more than 1". Gaon forgets that he would have died, had there not been a shot, because he focuses not on law, but on the morality issue. Gaon will not be saved by his unwavering morals, he just likes to offend and attack people who are not bleeding hearts. Defending yourself against an attack isn't unlawful, it's self defence. Therefore, what Yohan did in this circumstance is not something that should be criticised. 

 

Additionally Gaon is offended that the bus driver would stand trial, despite his personal circumstances. He says that bus driver having such personal problems should grant him not being prosecuted - however that is not his judgment to make. The personal circumstances play a role when making a verdict, but not pre-emptively at the stage of indictment - these little things make Gaon not seem like a judge, rather a NGO-activist. 

 

These thoughts just trickle down to law vs justice OR law and justice, coexistence. Many philosophers have tackled this problem and there are diverting views. There is no conclusion to this, as this is a complex problem. I just wanted to throw 2cents of my own here. 

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