Matt Dockery

I'm going to come and say the quite part out loud. Spoilers ahead. I'd guess 45% of the negative reviews of this show are xenophobic garbage wrapped in thinly veiled racist logic that Netflix should be producing American shows and American shows only. I haven't read all of the them, but enough to get the gist. We get it, you're tired of not understanding why people like Korean art and culture, but you don't need to be a digital Karen about it. Another 45% of the negative reviews come from people that appear to be attaching their own values and dogma surrounding sin to the premise of the show. They then proceed to get bent out of shape over the fact that the sins of the victims in the show don't rise to "be murdered and dragged to hell" levels. The premise of 'sin' in the show is not written in stone... that's sort of the whole point. Sin is a tool used by religious leaders to guide -- or in most cases manipulate -- the masses. That is put to spectacular and hyperbolic use by the writers to craft what I think is actually a pretty smart commentary on the power and place of religious institutions in South Korea (and the world at large). The final 10% of the negative reviews are presented as perfectly valid "it just didn't tickle my pickle" opinions with some genuinely good critiques of the show's script, pacing, special effects, etc. etc. So why did I just defend the show for like 3 whole paragraphs only to rate it 3/5 stars? (hard spoilers below) TL;DR: The time and cast shift between episodes 3 and 4 is clunky and leaves a lot to be desired for the overall cadence of the show. To be honest, I would have been thrilled to be given about twice as many episodes to properly flush out the death spiral of Seoul under the New Truth into a 1984 meets Clockwork Orange kind of dystopia. I sincerely hope we get a second season to explore the coming culture war the show sets up in the final episode, and that the creators apply a little more traditional cadence to keep the audience from being jarred between the first and second halves of the season. The Long Version: + The show is a well acted drama with a supernatural twist and gives the viewer a lot of social touchpoints and commentary to chew on: *The arrival of a man who claims to understand the wills of god for his children, giving us a handy-dandy fatalist do and do no list of sins. Who chose this moral code, god, or this man? Fun stuff. *What role does and should religion play in our society if it's a) easily manipulated b) dangerously good at pushing people to extremism c) can literally all be predicated on a lie? *What are the differences, really, between a cult and a religion? +Great acting by much of the cast. Do not watch the dub, just don't. It's always bad and you lose a vast amount of the body language and facial expression timing. +A genuinely exciting twist at the end which sets up several new avenues for the story to take. +Not afraid to kill characters. This is good, as it keeps it feeling emotionally grounded when you know you could lose that person you really like. -The pacing is arduous. Not just in the time jump halfway through, but within many of the episodes as well. -Repetitive action. The murders are a little video-game finishing sequence feeling. It's a bit of "what's goriest way we can bludgeon this person to death" answered with "lets have them stab him this time."

Worth watching? If you've exhausted most other mythical-creatures-meet-modern-times foreign films and series, sure. What to watch instead? Fantasy in modern times: 'Troll Hunter' is a fantastic movie with a similar premise and far more intrigue to keep you going. With six sub 30 minute episodes, Elves is essentially the same time commitment, but without the vast majority of the payoff. 'Ragnarok' is a surprisingly entertaining watch if you're looking for a show with more meat and less thrill. Northern European foreign language: 'Dark' takes the cake for fantasy/sci-fi thrill and an overarchingly dark, moody series. Not convinced? Read on: While the show bills itself as a monster horror/thriller, there's little of either of those for the show to stand on. If anything, the uneasiness of how the local townspeople might treat our hero family is more interesting. Without strong horror or thriller features to lean on, I found myself falling back hard on that mythical creature backdrop to capture my attention beyond the first couple episodes. While the elves themselves present a somewhat interesting premise, I was pretty let down by the fact that there appears to be no greater lore behind them other than "they've been here a long time, and that makes them sacred." The show hints at past conflict with the elves spurred by encroachments into the forest, but it's entirely unclear whether these creatures went from benevolent forest critters to corrupt looking monsters. Needless to say, with only 30 minutes per episode, there's far more world and lore building needed to bring this show to life than the writers or production company allowed for. Karen's 5-8 minute monologue explaining the "terrible accident" that occurred some years prior does little to give the exposition you're desperately waiting for. Paired with subpar acting and an incredibly unlikable main in Josephine, you'll likely find yourself tuning out or at least skipping through starting in the second episode. Also, how did the baby elf get out of the fence, to be hit by Jose's family's car, in the first place?

I love that the Korean writers and production team are able to create a fresh take on the zombie drama. The story does a great job moving you from story arc to story arc, using the zombies allegorically to tell you the story of the fragility of 16th century feudalism (while also instilling a great amount of respect and reverence for the culture and individual strength of many of its members). This was my first foray into Korean television when season one was released, and I was stunned by the composition and beauty of the settings and the detail of the period costumes and sets. If you thoroughly enjoy period dramas (The Crown, Reign, or Turn) and zombie television shows (TWD, Black Summer) this show is a hard hitting, fast paced Netflix bender that won't disappoint you. Be ready for some comical elements (a hallmark of Korean drama) which may lead you wondering what the overall tone of the piece is. Try to embrace it, rather than knock it as cornball -- it's one of the motifs which helps differentiate their style!