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[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Hello Monster" Episode 11

After a brief bit of flirtation establishes that no, Hyeon hasn't suffered a major personality shift just because of romantic chemistry, "Hello Monster" gets into some pretty serious stuff. The subtitle this episode is "birth of a monster", and the ensuing backstory is stone cold primarily because of the philosophical issues it raises. Everyone knows that abuse can turn a child into a monster, but sheer indifference?

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Actually yes, this makes a lot of sense. Think about it. The family in the backstory makes the proper moral and ethical decision regarding the unexpected crisis. But it's obvious that they didn't want to, and indeed, they're a lot more worried about how their actions will be seen than whether these actions are a good idea. That this choice ends in predictably terrible emotional consequences for every person involved doesn't even remotely qualify as a surprise. What kind of "gift" is a life filled without love?

It's much more unsettling stuff than the pontification we usually get from the serial killer genre. In a twisted way, Seon-ho's logic actually makes a lot of sense, especially given his eerie line of dialogue near the end. Murder is only a crime if you consider life itself to be a good thing. It seems extremely likely that from the very beginning this was Joon-young's true motivation. He killed, not for the joy of it, but because he took offense at the world which states that the act of living, however miserably, is automatically noble.

What makes the subject particularly interesting is that Hyeon reflects a lot of the same beliefs. Time and again he is disgusted less at the ineptitude of the system and more at himself for being stupid enough to trust it. This adds a whole new dimension to the generally disgusted attitude Hyeon takes with the police force. Especially since little by little, Hyeon has acquired a grudging respect for Ji-an and her team, admitting that even if they're not always competent, they are always trying.

It's a heck of a backdrop to lead into the next case- another one in which importants facts come to light very quickly, and which directly ties in to the backstory we've seen so far. The procedural murders at the center of "Hello Monster" have had this big extra punch lately, because the parralels between these cases and the main story are so obvious that it's just...well, what can I say? Writer Kwon Ki-yeong is nailing just about everything here.

Review by William Schwartz

"Hello Monster" is directed by Kim Jin-won-I and No Sang-hoon, written by Kwon Ki-yeong and features Seo In-guk, Jang Nara, Choi Won-young, Lee Chun-hee, Park Bo-gum, Min Sung-wook and more.

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