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[HanCinema's Drama Review] "Falsify" Episodes 15-16

There are oodles of justice and great conflict delivered in episodes fifteen and sixteen of "Falsify", as Seok-min and Moo-yeong's master plan falls into place for a killer showdown. Seong-sik makes his decision, Daehan takes its first major hit and So-ra finally gains Moo-yeong's trust as a fellow warrior in this battle, along with another chance to clear a young man's name.

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I have been trying to pinpoint what keeps me invested in "Falsify" for a while now. The drama is not special or novel in premise or twists and power games are the main force driving the story forward, so how does it manage to remain exciting? I believe the reason is the unique three-lead structure. Korean dramas are a one-trick pony industry and they usually bet everything on said pony. "Falsify" plays it smart and diversifies.

Moo-yeong being hugged by a thankful Seon-wooSeok-min enjoying his small defeat of Tae-won

Its leads are equals in development, focus, agency and in having a set of unique virtues and flaws different from one another. For all the annoyance Moo-yeong (Namkoong Min) has given me lately, he is no superhero and the series reminds us that with little things, such as his nightmare over being hunted and the reaction after it. Seok-min (Yu Jun-sang) is highly intelligent, but he can get too cocky. So-ra (Uhm Ji-won) is the hero in the prosecutor cape we all need, even if she had to work on being more flexible.

Aside from being well-acted by three talented and skilled artists, these characters have well-designated duties in the story. "Falsify" could have easily turned Seok-min and So-ra into Moo-yeong's satellite characters, but it has not. Their cooperation gets better as time goes by, they all meet with different antagonists in different circumstances and the messages the show delivers about the world is portrays utilize all of these characters as well as supporting ones, the presence of which had been an earlier worry of mine.

So-ra ready to correct some wrongsSeon-woo looking hopeful again

To get back to the story, "ask and you shall receive" rarely applies for me in Dramaland, but I am glad to see that the appearance of our mysterious Elders is teased through So-ra's taunting trip to Noah. We also have the return of Prosecutor Cha (Park Ji-young) and her research into someone mentioned in Cheol-ho's (Oh Jung-se) articles. The man is probably the center to our new subplot.

The conclusion to Seon-woo's (Lee Joo-seung) case may feel too ideal, but I can see why the police would not go after Aeguk right now. So-ra's visit ties the hands of the higher-ups as well. There are a lot of things I appreciate about "Falsify". It has sensible storytelling and it treats its subject matter with respect. It sometimes feels like too much to ask of such works, but there you have it.

"Falsify" is directed by Lee Jeong-heum, written by Kim Hyeon-jeong-IV and features Namkoong Min, Yu Jun-sang, Uhm Ji-won and Moon Sung-keun.

Written by: Orion from 'Orion's Ramblings'

Watch Episode 15 on KOCOWAtv

Watch Episode 16 on KOCOWAtv

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