the wonderfools: assorted thoughts
finished with the wonderfools. it was literally the perfect drama for me - underdog/misfit/oddball team with a side of reluctant allies, child experimentation, victims who become villains (kind of), superpowers (!). it was one of the shows that actually manages to be comedic without overwhelmingly so - the comedy balances with the action, but still allows emotional beats, without the angst being overwhelming.
a few assorted thoughts/rambles about plot and characters:
the only caveat i have with the plot is that they left out some background for unjeong. for instance, we clearly see that he was given the information on wunderkinder and contacting someone, who is revealed to have been ha wundo (wondo? i forget), highly implying that he sent unjeong to haeseong. however, i feel like they kind of drop this plotline off with only a few hints - it would have made sense if it was included in the final confrontation. just because it implies that wundo approached unjeong after he got out of prison like he did the other three, but the other three weren't aware of that. which makes me wonder what unjeong's original motivations were; it did feel like a slightly incomplete plot twist even with his betrayal and all that followed the reveal. since unjeong has no good feelings towards dr ha either.
the side effects plot! this one lacked just a little bit, but was overall strong - palho who can control gravity slowly turning to stone (? or hardening), horan losing her vision in one eye when she can create visual illusions. i wasn't clear on juran's (like was her hearing supposed to be part of the experimentation - but i think she was born like that), but in the final eps they show the graying of her hair really well. however, in the end they don't find a cure for the side effects, which doesn't bode well for unjeong, and also raises the question if the other three would start to experience side effects. seems like the side effects were related to only using their powers, which is maybe an easy fix, but i think it could be more complicated (potentially).
i'm so sad for juran, horan, and palho though. like that's a tragic ending, even with the hope for the future (horan and juran potentially living). BUT i gotta say that i love that tragedy (very reminscent of awaken (which i have to add i didn't finish but my interest has been revived), but also children of a lesser god, and other stories of kids raised and abused in group homes and orphanages that kdramas love in that vein).
small note but i was happy that they fulfilled junmo's character potential. i think around ep 3/4 i guessed that he was one of the kids, but then i thought they weren't going to go anywhere with that (which i thought would be a waste), only for them to come through with confirming that in ep 6. i think that's a great example of good storytelling, letting the audience guess without giving any overt clues, and then fulfilling it in a satisfying way. he'd be a fun addition to the team.
for our team of oddballs, they were fun! i liked all the different dynamics, and i liked that they were all actually weird and possibly unlikable in a lot of different ways, but in the end they came through for one another. it felt very realistic, and i love that they actually became a team.
unjeong and chaeni were cute! this was very much not a romance drama, but they were very much a romantic pairing all the same. i liked how she grew on him, and how they all kind of just wormed their ways into unjeong's life. nothing i love more than loner with a traumatic past being reluctantly adopted into a group of chaotic friends. i also love the setting of unjeong's apartment, and actually all their different living spaces, but especially the apartment. the original details are great - how he tapes down his fridge and drawers so they don't get ruined when he has a nightmare (also love the telekinesis resulting from nightmares), how chaeni makes it a home, how he moves out but keeps her stuff and she goes back there, how at the end chaeni isn't wanting to go home but to go to master's apartment.
i probably have a lot more to say, but all in all i really loved this drama. like i said, it was just a drama that seemed perfectly made for me. highly recommend to all those considering.
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