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[HanCinema's Drama First Look] "Prison Playbook"

Get ready for the most exciting life in a cell and I am not being facetious here. "Prison Playbook" is slice-of-prison-life in and out, with its dangers, sorrows, joys, bonding and even a good bit of humor. I was not sure what I was signing myself up for with this, having had no experience with the creators aside from hearing of their OTP baiting in the "Answer Me" dramas. So let us take a look at how they tackle something like this.

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One thing which stands out very refreshingly during the first four episodes is that the series does not have some major villain pulling the strings against our hero, Kim Je-hyeok (Park Hae-soo). This is a pure slice-of-life drama, and a very good one at that. The large number of characters is handled through the use of guest appearances and the natural shuffling of manpower and inmates that comes with transfers, releases and reassignments.

Je-hyeok before a gameJoon-ho reuniting with Je-hyeok

Yet the short time we have with many characters is more than enough to find out their own stories. This is where great writing with a heavy story and character focus comes into play. With episodes lasting an hour and a half, one would expect a lot of dragging and padding. This is a usual practice for dramas, too. "Prison Playbook" uses its time wisely and fills it with life. It has diverse, colorful, human characters who make the hero's little losses and victories even more impactful.

To my surprise, the series very maturely tackles not only prison-specific situations and moral predicaments, but issues of life at large. Being in a small space with strangers brings about all manner of conflicts and self-reflection. The drama subverts many a stereotype about how we think of criminals and crime, but other people and their characters in general. Most importantly, it does so with a lot of heart, some brilliant laugh-out-loud humor and honesty.

The penitentiary groupJi-ho and Je-hee

The cast is an exceptionally chosen one and I love every single one of them. There are no worries over performances to be had here; the actors carry their roles and audience sentiment and run a mile with them. Park Hae-soo is an excellent choice for someone who is laconic and very much a blank canvas of reactions, facing his world depending on how it treats him and those he cares about.

His friendship and worldview clashing with Jung Kyung-ho's character, Lee Joon-ho, bring an added layer of support to the character development. Of course the series is not entirely without its mysteries. Joon-ho's character in particular is a big question mark. He is a good friend, but I often wonder if he has stalking tendencies or even a crush on the hero. Curiosity aside, I enjoy everything and everyone in this beautiful work so far.

"Prison Playbook" is directed by Sin Won-ho, written by Jeong Bo-hoon-I and Lee Woo-jeong-I and features Park Hae-soo, Jung Kyung-ho, Jung Soo-jung and Lim Hwa-young.

Written by: Orion from 'Orion's Ramblings'

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