Justice (2019) 저스티스
Directed by Jo Woong, starring Choi Jin-hyuk as Lee Tae-kyung, Son Hyun-joo as Song Woo-yong, Nana as Seo Yeon-ah, and Park Sung-hoon as Tak Soo-ho.
Watched 26 October - 9 November 2025 — 32 episodes (KOCOWA)
(Beware of spoilers!)
*Finally finished this drama, shown in 32 episodes of approx. half an hour. It never felt overly long and was nicely paced. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
*The story premise is not unique. It involves corrupt higher-ups and a sex scandal, where money and power are covering up crimes. The execution is well done, though, and it stays captivating till the very last episode. There are strong performances and compelling characters. Heart of the series is the complex relationship between Choi Jin-hyuk as Lee Tae-kyung and Son Hyun-joo as Song Woo-yong.
*Lee Tae-kyung is a high-profile lawyer and a morally grey character. At first he's nothing short of a scumbag who's only in it for the money. He says he cannot stop his greed. He benefits financially from his acquaintance with Song Woo-yong. There is no instant redemption here. I like how Tae-kyung slowly turns to the good side, how by investigating more and discovering more he just can't let it slide. I like Choi Jin-hyuk and he looks good in a three-piece suit.
*Son Hyun-joo as Song Woo-yong, the Chairman of a big construction company, is a powerful man. I didn't fully understand why he was in charge of the candidates for the next public prosecutor general, why he had so much power and control over the political landscape. But then it dawned on me. In light of current world politics, billionaires of big companies, non-politicians like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg, have so much money that they don't just buy yachts but power. Our antagonist Woo-yong has a lot of money and it seems he holds a lot of cards. The incident shown in a flashback where Woo-yong humiliates himself in front of his bullied son by asking the perpetrators for forgiveness is probably the decisive incident for Woo-yong. He never wanted to be powerless and poor again. Through his conversations with his son, you realise that he really thinks that money and power are the answer to everything. He condones criminal deeds if that's the way to gain power and wealth. I mostly disliked his character and only felt a sliver of sympathy for Woo-yong because he seemed to value his friendship with Tae-kyung. In the last episode he fantasises about getting away with Tae-kyung to an island where they would spend their time drinking whiskey. Their friendship is complicated but they seem to enjoy each other's company. (The amount of times they barge into each other's place, unannounced, is insane.) Tae-kyung enriched himself through the friendship, but he must have had feelings for Woo-yong. Even though he knows, in the end, that Woo-yong is responsible for the murder of his brother and ordered the killing, we see Tae-kyung upset when he finds Woo-yong dead. And vice versa. Even though Woo-yong knows that Tae-kyung might expose him, Woo-yong doesn't want anything to happen to Tae-kyung. The show's last camera shot is reserved for the two men, and it made me a bit sad that they never had a normal friendship.
*I like Nana as Seo Yeon-ah, the prosecutor and Tae-kyung's former girlfriend. (She reminded me a bit of Kim Ji-won from My Liberation Notes.) I was glad that Tae-kyung revealed to her what happened at the mountain cabin and that she didn't have to find out herself. I'm also happy he asked her to handle his case since she's the only prosecutor he can trust. Unfortunately there was no romance. It was a missed opportunity because they had really good chemistry and made a nice pair. There are some references to their past relationship and how he never got over her, but that's as far as it gets. I was really disappointed they didn't get an extra scene.
*I liked the side characters: Lee Hak-joo as Ma Dong-hyuk (Homicide Detective), Kim Ji-hyun as Cha Nam-sik (Chief Prosecutor), Jo Dal-hwan as Nam Won-gi (Tae-kyung's assistant) and Kim Hee-chan as Song Dae-jin (Song Woo-yong's son). I just knew Cha Nam-sik stood on the right side, despite her stern demeanour. I love the funny interactions between Ma Dong-hyuk and Nam Won-gi, they had gayish undertones. I was so happy Nam Won-gi didn't succumb to the temptation of Woo-yong's money bribe. And I felt sorry for Song Dae-jin. When he deleted and destroyed the evidence, the audiotape recording where his father is named, I was in shock. Fortunately his testimony didn't leave any doubt about his father's guilt.
*I HATED Park Sung-hoon as Tak Soo-ho (Jungjin Group's Vice Chairman). The character was so awful, completely unhinged. Park Sung-hoon gives a great performance.
*This show also has great photography (with nice angles) and amazing sets. The living spaces of Lee Tae-kyung, Song Woo-yong and Tak Soo-ho look great and luxurious. Tae-kyung has a state-of-the-art house, but it's not very cozy and doesn't have any soul. The sets emphasised the wealth of the three men.