I recently completed the original Vampire Prosecutor, and my initial reaction after finishing the show was simply: wow. I wrote a first impression of the show a few weeks ago, and now that I’ve finally finished it, I can say that it did not disappoint.
Synopsis:
The drama follows Prosecutor Min Tae Yeon and his special investigation team as they solve various crimes in the city. The catch is that Prosecutor Min is a vampire, and he uses his vampire abilities to help him solve seemingly unsolvable cases. As the drama progresses, some of the cases seem to be linked to the existence of other vampires in the area, and Prosecutor Min works to not only find these other vampires but also to find the truth behind his own mysterious vampire past.
What first grabbed me about this drama was the unique way in
which it was shot. The cinematography in the show is highly stylized, and it
remains that way throughout the series. With a fancy smorgasbord of
reverse action shots, image superimposition, and flashbacks, viewers will
witness something that’s rarely seen in kdramas—innovation.
Some neat shots:
Now, I know what you’re thinking when you see the title
Vampire Prosecutor: “UGHHH not
another Twilight.”
I have to admit that I was a little skeptical, too. I’ve gone through my fair share of vampire books and movies, and I was not too keen on picking up
more of the same thing, but Vampire Prosecutor is completely different. In
fact, the vampire elements in the show play more of a background role. The drama puts more emphasis on the various individual crimes than on the overarching vampire "whodunit" story.
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| Prosecutor Min in vamp mode |
Of course, this changes near the end of the drama when some of the elements from the vampire story begin to come together, but
the drama mainly sticks to the crime scenes.
In addition, these vampires are not your relatively benign,
Twilight vampires.
These vampires kill…a lot.
If you have a weak stomach, then this show is probably not
for you. There is a generous helping of fairly
graphic scenes in the drama, and while the protagonist himself does not drink blood from
living humans, the other vampires in the show do. There’s also a lot of
blood in general associated with the crimes they investigate. For me, though, those elements just added to the realism of the show and made it all the more intriguing.
Another great thing about the drama was the characters. Not
just the main group of investigators, but also the side characters and enemies all played an important role in the drama. Even though many characters were only around for one episode, the storyline fleshed out their stories so beautifully
that I felt I knew them almost as well as the protagonists.
The only negative thing I have to say about Vampire Prosecutor is that the ending did feel a bit rushed, but everything else was spot on.
Overall, I would highly recommend checking out the series, especially for horror/mystery fans. You will not be disappointed.
Happy watching!
