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Review
Posted by eric_r_wirsing Thursday, October 26, 2017

[Drama Review] 'While You Were Sleeping' � Episodes 17 & 18

AKP STAFF
Suzy, Lee Jong Suk
WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING -- EPISODES 17-18

The race to save Jae Chan's life is on!

Hong Joo runs to Jae Chan's. It's 3 AM and she desperately wants to change the future. Later, news of Hak Young's release sets social media ablaze, and everybody blames the prosecutor. Protesters mill around the courthouse. Ji Kwang offers to switch places with Jae Chan and gets mauled by the protesters in our hero's place. Hak Young wants nothing more than to clear his name; he bitches to Woo Tak as the two try to remove graffiti together.

Jae Chan's colleagues want him to indict Hak Young. Hong Joo gets the startling revelation that a roomba (robot vacuum cleaner) may be responsible for the blood patterns, thanks to a comment on the TV station's site. They find the offending machine in a garbage pile, and the station reports on this, as well as filming an interview with Hak Young, who is now free. They avert Jae Chan's death at the hands of Hak Young. Jae Chan also realizes that the girl who saved him from drowning as a little boy was Hong Joo and decides to buy her a ring. The young archer's father wants revenge for his fallen daughter and shoots Jae Chan before he can get to Hong Joo, leaving him in a pool of blood.



These episodes feature something I've talked about before, where someone is tried and judged on social media. Now some of that can be good, such as raising awareness of some issue that should be addressed. Though Jae Chan gets doxxed online, apparently, and everything about him is available to any prying eyes. That's where the line should be drawn. And the fact that people have decided that Hak Young is guilty, though the prosecutor ruled the death as accidental. How far do you have to go to sway public opinion?

And likewise, I dislike justice by expedience. I know this is TV, but I still was outraged by the way Jae Chan's colleagues wanted him to indict. Just because it was easier. And the mere fact that it was easier makes you wonder: how many were put behind bars merely because it was the easy road. I don't know if it was supposed to, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.


K-drama magic: making husky guys carrying vacuums look heroic.

They flashback a lot in here, though I'm not sure why. They gave us a lot of backstories and let us peek beyond the veil of time so we could see them as kids, but I'm not sure how it added anything. Yes, it tied up some plot threads, but those threads weren't concerning me any. Though the connection with Hong Joo was a nice one�like she'd always been looking out for him.

These last two episodes maintain about the same pace as recent installments. A little slower than last time. I realize they want to shovel a lot of story in here, but a little faster-moving plot might help some. The humor offsets this somewhat, particularly some of the deadpan lines. I also like the cinematography -- it's this artistic flair that really sets it apart.



This is still one of the better dramas, though the pacing might be uneven. They still manage to pique my interest, and like usual I can't wait to see how they wrap things up. I'm pretty sure Jae Chan lives, but I'm interested in how.

Score

Plot..........................8
Performance............9
Pacing.....................9

OVERALL..............8.6

SEE ALSO: Controversial Japanese adult actress festival 'The 2024 KXF The Fashion' is now canceled

  1. Suzy
  2. Lee Jong Suk
  3. WHILE YOU WERE SLEEPING
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