Escola Jurídica (2021)

A peek into Korea’s legal structure

I love the fact that the drama starts with a bang – a murder in the mock courtroom and it moves ahead from there. If you aren’t familiar with the legal terms like me then I suggest go a little slow…maybe rewind a bit to understand it. This is only for the first two episodes. Subsequently, you will get used to it and start enjoying it.
I cannot attribute the success of this drama to any one particular character. They are all important and very good in their roles. The core cast of the legal students all have stories attached to them and they all point out to the main culprit somehow.
The professors are the strength of this school. I am glad to see that they have showcased more positives than negatives as far as teachers go. We need to restore our faith in our teachers. There are good ones everywhere too.
The drama showcases the typical innocent getting charged while the actual wrongdoers go scot-free.
The strength of this drama is its cast and its amazing performances. Kim Myung Min as Yang Jong Hoon is a teacher who is revered and feared at the same time. The experience he brings to the classroom is priceless(since he was a former prosecutor). The students respect him and he becomes the main suspect for the crime much to his student’s horror. They know he is innocent. We know he is innocent but does the legal system? Obviously not. And that’s where the story begins – with a flawed legal system and the corrupt power of the rich and mighty. But Yang Jong Hoon is not deterred. He is determined to clear his name and catch the real suspect. Imagine the strength of this character.
His peer Lee Jung Eun as Kim Eun Sook is as smart in the classroom as she is in the courtroom. Her support to him and the students carry this drama forward too.
The students portrayed by Kim Bum, Ryu Hye Young, Lee Soo Kyung, David Lee, Ko Yoon Jung, Hyun Woo , Lee Kang Ji and Kim Min Seok each probably represent students in real-time law school with their real problems. Here each of them have their own demons to deal with and they are beautifully incorporated into the flow of the plot. There is a subtle undertone of romance but its really not the focus of this drama.
The character of Lee Man Ho played by Jo Jae Ryong has to have a special mention as the plot rests on his side of the story. He is creepy to the core and that’s brilliant acting if he manages to evoke those emotions. His character apparently has been coined on the lines of a real time offender (Jo Doo Soon).
Jin Hyung Woo played by Park Hyuk Kwon is this sleezy know it all prosecutor whose aim is to bring Yang Jung down no matter what. He teams up with the corrupt Assemblyman Ko Hyeong So in all his evil doings. Both these characters are well played by their respective actors.

This was a refreshing change for me. Well tackled and kept the thread of interest alive throughout.

Leia Mais

My new favorite kdrama!!

The first day it came out, I had decided to watch it and I am so glad I made that choice. I was hooked from the start and waited for episodes to come out each week. I was really surprised i enjoyed it bc this genre was something new for me. Not only was the plot amazing but the drama was well made. Also, the plot wasn't dragged on at all and the plot twists always had me shocked. I never knew what was going to happen next. the music always came on at the right moments and the acting was very natural. I love the cast and solhwi's relationship made me so happy!! I rlly hope they give us a second season for some solhwi content and to see how the other characters are doing. It was wrapped up very nicely and im definitely going to miss watching this every Wednesday and Thursday. PLS GIVE THIS DRAMA A CHANCE AND WATCH IT!

Leia Mais

Law genre at its best!

When I finished the first episode, I immediately thought of the similarity between this drama and the variety show ‘Busted’. This drama is basically the drama version and the longer version of Busted in my opinion. So if anyone of you loves that variety show, you definitely need to check this out!

There are a few things that surprised me while watching this drama (Fyi, I didn’t open MDL or even other links about this drama. All I know is that this drama has great ratings and many people loved it. I knew nothing about the storyline and only knew some of the casts that was going to be in it. And thankfully, I didn’t encounter that much spoilers on social media about this drama. So in conclusion, I had a little to no information about this drama before watching it.):

1. The one that surprises me most: The casts
Please don’t open MDL before watching this, because it’ll ruin the surprise (and a plot twist in some later episodes). I’m telling you this here to warn you all about the brilliant plot twist that left me speechless when I watched the episode.

2. The storyline
I’ve never expected this drama to be fully about murder mystery. Don’t get me wrong, I’m basically in love with anything about murder mysteries, but this drama just brought it to a whole new level. This drama doesn’t show you the perfect protagonist that could solve all the hidden mysteries flawlessly, or that one protagonist who always works alone and doesn’t need any help from others, but instead it shows you how the the main protagonist (Professor Yang Jong Hoon) really needs the help from his fellow professor (Professor Kim Eun Suk), his silly lawyer (Park Geun Tae), the funny photocopy guy (Sung Dong Il) and most importantly all his students (Kang Sol A, Kang Sol B, Han Jun Hwi, Seo Ji Ho, Jeon Ye Seul, Min Bok Gi and Cho Ye Bum). What’s better is how the drama shows you a super dedicated teacher who’s willing to do anything just to help all his students know better about the law. He’s discipline and unpredictable—he doesn’t care about anything else besides stating his point of teaching law to his students.

3. The genre
I expected this drama to be dark and serious, since most law dramas tend to be long and philosophical, and full of theories that doesn’t really stick to my head that long, but this drama managed to bring some good comedies in between the scenes—it was short, but it was rewarding. The first few episodes was pretty hard to watch actually, the dialogue were full of theories and all the actors were basically rapping all those theories out. But as you go on, this drama explained all those difficult theories by applying them to real cases where the viewers could understand the meaning of those theories easier. That’s what I love about this drama, and this is what differs them with other law dramas.

I’m a sucker for friendship dramas. This drama doesn’t really focus on the friendship, but the way all the characters team up to defend one another is just crazy great! Sol B’s character development was just executed perfectly, and she officially becomes one of my favorite characters here in this drama. This drama teaches you to be fair and just, and they teaches you (especially those who work/will work for the law) to not be affected emotionally while dealing with the law. Don’t let your emotions affect your decisions. This drama shows you the law from another perspective, and it was very exciting to watch!

The reason why I couldn’t give this drama an excellent score is because some of the scenes couldn’t really get my attention. I always loved the scenes where Sol A, Jun Hwi, Sol B, Ji Ho, Ye Seul, Bok Gi, Ye Bum is together, and all the scenes involving them coming up with a great plan, but the scenes with Ko Hyeong Su and the flashbacks with Seo Byeong Ju is rather boring for me. Nonetheless, the court scenes and the friendship scenes were super duper great! Great casting, great story and the cinematography was also spot-on! Overall, a 9.5/10 for me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Leia Mais

I had originally showed the teaser of this drama to my parents to get them to watch it, but they were completely uninterested. It was only after a series of failed attempts at other dramas did they finally agree to give it a try. I would say that they liked aspects of it, but they were also fine missing large chunks of the drama which my sister and I sometimes just watched on our own. My personal agenda in watching this was because I really wanted to watch another Kim Bum drama, and I thought he did a great job in his role! The cast as a whole were really great, and it's also so fun to see their dynamics off-screen as well. The plot line isn't always the most exciting, as things can get a little technical with the law and all, but I did enjoy seeing them in action in the courtroom. There were at times that I thought the writing felt a little all over the place (trying to shove in sub-plots that diverged from the main plot), but everything thankfully ties together well in the end.

Leia Mais

The Perfect Law Drama!

Out of the many dramas i've watched, this definitely beats the rest and is one of my fav ones. Almost everything about the drama was perfect. The thrill, the suspense, this drama made me feel a whole lot of emotions and im here for it!

The actors have done a tremendous job in playing their roles. I could feel the chemistry between all of them. My favourite pair would have to be Kang Sol A and Yangcrates. With the past that they had, it's amazing how he's always guiding her but he makes it seem as though he isn't. I love Professor Yang's role so so much and his brain god i wonder what does one have to do to have a brain like his. Everyone in this drama played an important role even if they weren't the main character and thats also one of the reasons why I love this drama. Every little thing that happens, is for a reason, it's connected.

The student-professor dynamics! Loved it! I felt as if Professor Kim was more of a mother figure to her students rather than a professor. On the other hand, Yangcrates was as professor as a professor could be. He's strict, professional and doesn't hesitate to go harsh on his students because in the end he's doing it for their benefit. He's also very protective of his students and that's always a plus! It just shows how much he cares for them. Well, in his own very way.

As for the production, it was amazing but i have to admit all the flashbacks did kinda get me confused but then again it did help me understand the whole story better and added to the thrill and suspense so i guess its fine. The story plot is amazing! although i'm not a law student, i could still understand what was going on.

The OST! god don't even get me started with this one. This drama's ost will easily be on my mind and i'll for sure remember it for years to come. It's something about the lyrics and the time the ost was played. The lyrics was a direct reflection of what i was feeling. "Pulling me underrrrr, driving me crazyyyyy" Yes, Law School definitely drove me crazy. A good kinda crazy :)

This drama is a perfect thrill, suspense with a dash of comedy kinda drama. Kang Sol A is a role everyone would be able to relate to and to see her journey from a young delinquent to an established lawyer was just amazing. This drama covers family, friendship and most importantly portrays the right image of law and justice. Trust me, Law school won't disappoint! Definitely waiting for a season 2!

Leia Mais

How to get away with murder meets Chief of Staff

You could divide this drama into two main parts. One part that is a murder mystery in the style of How to get away with murder, and one part that is taking down a politician that is corrupted to the core, which is more of a typical K-drama. The murder mystery part kind of gets more irrelevant as the show goes on as the second part gets more relevant.
The drama also has other plots that are told, though some that are more important and fits more to the main story (Jeon Ye Seul, Seo Ji Ho) and some that feels more like fillers even though it has some relevance (Yoo Seung Jae, Kang Sol B)
So if you are interested in a murder, mystery drama then this is probably not one for you.

I did find some episodes a bit to slow and almost went down to the boring category but it picked itself up straight away and when the show goes for a satisfying moment, it succeeds really well. Not to mention the last scene of the show is so smooth. Great camerawork and everything.

The acting was fine, it does not have bad acting or anything like that in it, but I did have some trouble with Professor Yang in the first episodes, once again the acting is not bad, but there was something about the character I didn't like but that disappeared after a few episodes. I did like that a lot of the support cast (the students) got a lot of screen time and not just there for filling the spots up so to speak but actually got as much shine as the main cast. And THANK GOD for no romance. I'll admit the scenes between Kang Sol A and Han Joon Hwi was pretty cute and I did like their chemistry but I'm happy it didn't got blown into a full romance cause knowing from other K-dramas I've seen, that plot point would've taken over their (at least the female lead) screen time and not the main plot.

Now the music was simply great. I know I'm not the only one that went nuts every time the 'It's pulling me undeeeer, It's driving me craaaaazy' part came on. The whole soundtrack was great and had a lot of choir/church vibes but still fit really well.

So did I like it? Yes, it wasn't great as in one of the best things I've watched, but I've seen a lot worse. Like I said some plot point where better than others but it is an satisfying watch and worth checking out.

Leia Mais

DEFINITELY ONE OF THE BEST LEGAL KDRAMAS OUT THERE!!

STORY: This whole drama is the absolute definition of what they say in other english movies of "the one that'll leave you on edge". It really leaves you in the dark trying to think of who the guilty one really is. It really makes you think hard and all over the place. It leaves you thinking who really is telling the truth. With all the evidence going against Prof. Yang, and then him proving those wrong. AISHHH very addicting legal drama FOR SURE.

OST: OMG this has to be one of the best osts out there because, IT'S DRIVING ME CRAZY!!

You can't tell me you've watched legal dramas before without telling me you've watched Law school first. Definitely watch it. 100/10 masterpiece.

Leia Mais

Not Perfect but Better than Most

Professor Yang's ending narration of the law is an imperfect justice. Still, it must be perfect for those who teach and learn it alike, for there's nothing more violent than an unjust law is the ideal ending to an imperfect drama that was better than most. I am sad to see it come to an end. I enjoyed it. I was more than grateful to have Kim Myung Min grace my small screen; he is one of those actors I genuinely appreciate, from his voice to his facial expression and mannerisms. I will miss him and the unique way he approached the role of Professor Yang, who gave his all to his students while demanding the best, wanting his students to know they have it in them to be the best. As Maya Angelou said, if you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be. And how fitting that in the end, he had Han Joon Hwi and Kang Sol A by his side.

I liked all the actors, each for their very individual approach to their roles, from Lee Jung Eun as Professor Kim to Lee Soo Kyung as Kang Sol [B], and Lee David as Seo Ji Ho. Go Yoon Jung as Jeon Ye Seul, Hyun Woo as Yoo Seung Jae, and the rest of the wonderfully talented cast who clearly articulated that as much as the choices they each made changed them. It didn't define them except for Sol B, but she is a work in progress. I will, of course, be remiss in not giving a special mention to the fabulous Kim Bum in how he portrayed Han Joon Hwi, who never once let the circumstances around him sway him away from his principles. And much-gained respect to Ryu Hye Young in the role of Kang Sol [A], who, despite all odds, perceivers if not shines in an environment that wasn't set up to help someone with her background succeed.

In its unique way, the drama touched and addressed some aspects of the many dilemmas it brought up very nicely, especially the issues it presented in date rape, sexual assault, physical abuse, corruption, political manipulation, and crime and murder. But at the same time, it was vague in addressing the consequences of the more prevalent issues that plague everyday life, such as bribery, hacking and cheating, plagiarism, eroding principles, and the fragile lines between good and bad -- evil done in the name of good, or evil done in the name of evil, which is worse, isn't it the same in the end. I am not entirely sure the show lived up to its motto of truth and justice only by the law. As someone once said, law and justice are not always the same; justice is an ideal, and law is the tool. I enjoyed it highly recommend it.

Leia Mais

Brilliant Ensemble And Riveting Detail

I work in a field in which legal interpretation is a key element. This drama held my rapt attention both times that I watched it. I also enjoyed the clever word plays such as "Yangcrates" for a professor enamored with the Socratic method. Each member of the cast brought things to both the story AND its evocative skills. I really like Kim Boem as the intellectual star who needed help understanding his complicated feelings towards his uncle. Having said that, he is by no means--the only star in this ensemble. "Yangcrates," "Professor Kim," "Jiho," Kang Sol B/A were Very Memorable. I hope hope hope for a sequel!

Leia Mais

A gem of a Legal drama

Short: A very clever legal drama, if you enjoy the legal dramas where it's all about winding your way through the "devil in the detail" clauses and exceptions, the machinations and maneuverings of the various characters as they try and achieve their goals and all on the legal stage then you will absolutely love this. I think it comes off really pretentious, but is perhaps justified through its quality. "We Are" sound track still going around and around in my head too!

Detail:
I'll start by explaining the use of the word "pretentious" above. It was the first thing I was thinking as the drama starts, wow, this one is taking itself SUPER seriously... deep voices, stern comments, powerful people, important phrases and people reflecting sternly and importantly on the statue of Lady Justice. In the first episode especially, it's almost too much, I remember thinking "oh geez just get over yourself and get on with it". It does lighten up, but this tone persists throughout.

Now that i've finished it however, I think it earns the right. There's a lot of detail and effort gone into the story and some really clever twists and turns as the characters fight to gain the upper hand through the use of the law. It definitely feels like you're watching a chess game played by experts.

Characters are great, they have flaws and strengths. Sol-A was definitely my favourite - she's the complete underdog, the under achiever, she barely belongs in the university at all and is struggling to keep her grades high enough. But what she lacks there, she over compensates with her drive and passion and when the genie is unlocked proves that she at least as good as everyone else.

I thought that Sol-B's issues were also nicely done too, there's a common thread in many dramas about how the wealthy are often driven horribly by parents who place unreasonable demands on them, and I liked how this one was handled. It was a well played character and must have been quite challenging to both write and embody, she's cold and has flat expressions and constant tone but she's not uncaring or unfeeling and she's there for her fellow students and friends.

There was one scene that I thought just felt really off, and it was another "oh here we go taking ourselves too seriously again" moment, in the court, one of the characters is in the defense and the professor is her defense council. At a key moment he announces sternly and proudly, that he we will be resigning as council, shocks and gasps from the viewing gallery... and then he says he will allow his student (the defendant) to use her write to defend herself and proceeds to turn the whole thing into a lecture, even at one point rebuking the prosecution when they object to something by saying "in MY lectures, there are no objections", completely ignoring that this is actually a court room and a real proceeding... but it's ok because the judge also forgets that too, so we carry on with the "lecture" :) I mean it's not the end of the world, it worked for the character development very well, allowing him to empower the girl to find her strength and stand up for herself in a situation where she'd otherwise been on the receiving end of everyone elses manipulations.

Overall it's a superbly written story, if you like the legal maneuverings and careful interpretations of phrases, all that super detailed stuff that's the essence of the law, then you will find that in spades here. There's some great twists, great characters, fun moments too, and a nice sound track (the song "we are" is still going around in my head and will be for some time i'm sure!).

Definitely recommended.

Leia Mais

Well built, but with an uninteresting villain.

Somehow the legal plots have always attracted me, the construction of its world, its mysteries and entanglements are interesting to see.

The series portrays some little-seen topics in Korean series, at least within the mainstream, including sexual abuse and harassment, manipulation of the media, corruption of the authorities, murder, among others.

I would especially like to talk about how the issue of sexual abuse is approached, from the beginning we see that Jeon Ye Seul and Ko Young Chang maintain an abusive relationship, although as a spectator we realize this, it seems that for the environment in which that the characters exist, these abuse problems are not so clear, until the physical effects of the abuse (blows) are seen. The situation that Ye Seul lives is unfortunately the situation experienced by a large number of women, who under the idea of ​​being "loved" endure being in a relationship where they are damaged; when the problem escalates to sexual abuse and manipulation through an explicit video and everything goes to trial, one of the topics discussed is the public scrutiny that her character receives and how the defense thinks to justify the whole situation by a alleged infidelity in their courtship, which speaks very deeply about how society (in this case Korean, but actually appeals to practically all societies) is more willing to judge women and blame them for the problems of abuse that can lead to live in your relationships.

This theme is one of the best explored in the series and Go Yoon Jung's performance is brilliant, the evolution of his character is brilliantly well treated, although we see moments where his character suffers and doubts and makes bad decisions, in the end we see how he overcomes all obstacles, and how he has found his own path both personally and professionally and even how he found the strength to help people who live the same situation that she once lived in their own flesh.

Now speaking of the main theme of the series, it is also very well treated, from the beginning it generates intrigue, and the way in which Yang Jong Hoon, Kim Eun Sook, Han Joon Hwi and Kang Sol [A] are involved in the conflict at times does make you doubt their intentions, but as the series progresses and we get to know them better it is impossible not to become fond of them, I think my only complaint in itself is with respect to Ko Hyeong Soo, since this character is the typical bad guy, we don't know so much about him beyond his ambition for power and we never really see an evolution or internal struggle, so it seems to me that he is the least interesting character in the whole series, perhaps I would have enjoyed more than the conflict would have included a "villain" with more nuances and with whom the public could feel more connected.

Another of the conflicts I have with the series is Kang Dan, we really don't know much about her and when she returns we don't see her solve her conflicts with her family either, when she is supposed to run away from home and has not maintained contact with them in a long time; which initially seemed to be a conflict for her sister, but afterwards she is given absolutely no explanation and serves more as a “deux-machina” to solve the plot of the series, it is an easy resource to give her a solution in the last episodes.

Han Joon Hwi and Kang Sol [A] are the most interesting characters in the series, because the two of them are just innocent students when all the conflict begins and they are involved, many of the things they believed are broken, little by little they even come to doubt the course of the laws, however they never give in to all the bad things that are happening around them, they trust that the only tool they have to fight is the law and they cling to that ideal, their convictions become every stronger, until they truly become top lawyers, following the example of their mentor Yangcrates.

The last topic that I would like to explore is the manipulation of the media, it is well known how important image is when we talk about politics (especially in societies like Korea, where reputation and appearance are more important than achievements) and what some people are able to do to get good comments from them in the media (even if they are not true), I found it very interesting how we see that on the show, the basements with people who dedicate themselves day and night to producing content and comments false in order to harm or benefit one or the other, and how this seems to be so easy to control if you have the appropriate amount of money.

It is possible to combine in a very good way, the fact that most of the characters are university students, so despite being surrounded by a world of corruption, they still have to deal with the normal things of any university: grades, exams, friendships, loves, parents, etc; and within what is possible, it is possible to maintain a certain youthful spirit, especially with characters like Min Bok Gi and Jo Ye Bum, on many occasions, they lighten the emotional load of the series.

The main advantage of Law School are the performances, the entire cast does an incredible job, they are truly committed to their roles and they achieve a good mix between the seriousness of their occupations and the situations that you are living and the normality of being students trying to survive a little longer, especially Kim Bum and Kim Myung Min did a spectacular job, they felt so comfortable in their roles, and despite using a lot of legal terminology the show does a good job of explaining well the necessary points to understand what happens in court and in his studies.

The series, in its quality, does not disappoint in any aspect, the direction, the photography, the script, the montage are very well done and create a show with a more compelling atmosphere.

Leia Mais