I have always enjoyed Lee Jun Ki in his dramas, but nothing can compare to the lengths he went through in this recently concluded yet criminally underrated drama of his—Two Weeks.
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| Image via My Drama List. |
In this Jun Ki plays Jang Tae San, a man on the run after being framed for a crime he didn't commit, racing against time and people in order to save an eight year-old daughter dying of Leukemia whose only hope of survival is the bone marrow he is supposed to donate.
So, what can I say?
While I never really 'enjoyed-enjoyed' contrived and heavy action thrillers that much, Two Weeks is an entirely different story that I came to love because of one thing: character growth. Actually, make that more.
❀ RAVES ❀ »•»
1) Tae San and His Road to Redemption. Jang Tae San was a character sketched rather grim at the start, a despicable, no-spine-no-courage doormat with little to no care about the future ahead of him. Yet as the series progressed, he began to redeem himself bit by bit by trying so desperately to live for the sake of his child. We see him push all sorts of boundaries for survival—jumping off cliffs and hiding under sand, running, fighting. We see him grow and learn to play his own game against those people after him. Bit by bit he learned to fight back. And eventually, he learned to get even.
But what's more important during that two week run is that he was able to realize and reflect about his life. That two week run gave him the wisdom to make amends with his past and face his inner demons until eventually, he began to grow into a better person. And that is what I absolutely love about the drama, regardless of the open-ended ending. Cause you know, D-day may have been the end of Tae San's many self battle, but he knew (and we knew) that despite this, he hasn't been able to fully step out of his shell of cocoon just yet. His transformation isn't complete yet, so instead of an ending, D-day was just the beginning of a longer journey to redeem himself. Because only when Tae San embarks that path towards self discovery can he be of complete forgiveness to himself, and earn that eight year worth of a family he'd then be deserving to have.
2) Lee Jun Ki. I am constantly in awe at how versatile Jun Ki can get with his acting. Jang Tae san was such a dangerous and difficult character to portray, and it's such a delight to be able to see Jun Ki bring his character to life with a delivery that's so spot on. (See, oppa, you do much much better with restraint.) The lengths he went through to portray Tae San's character realistically was no piece of cake; and while Arang and the Magistrate continues to be my favorite drama of him to date, Two Weeks, on the other hand, is my favorite drama of him as far as acting is concerned.
3) Daddy Daughter Tandem. Seeing Tae San and Soo Jin together was absolutely the highlight of the show for me. It redefined the meaning of unconditional love, in that for the past eight years Tae San was never present in Soo Jin's life. For the past eight years, Soo Jin had no knowledge of her father. Yet when they finally learned about each other's existence, all there was between them was love. For the past eight years they were never present in each other's lives, but they loved each other nonetheless. And that love was what helped Tae San to move forward during that two-week run, no matter how difficult it was.
But what's more important during that two week run is that he was able to realize and reflect about his life. That two week run gave him the wisdom to make amends with his past and face his inner demons until eventually, he began to grow into a better person. And that is what I absolutely love about the drama, regardless of the open-ended ending. Cause you know, D-day may have been the end of Tae San's many self battle, but he knew (and we knew) that despite this, he hasn't been able to fully step out of his shell of cocoon just yet. His transformation isn't complete yet, so instead of an ending, D-day was just the beginning of a longer journey to redeem himself. Because only when Tae San embarks that path towards self discovery can he be of complete forgiveness to himself, and earn that eight year worth of a family he'd then be deserving to have.
2) Lee Jun Ki. I am constantly in awe at how versatile Jun Ki can get with his acting. Jang Tae san was such a dangerous and difficult character to portray, and it's such a delight to be able to see Jun Ki bring his character to life with a delivery that's so spot on. (See, oppa, you do much much better with restraint.) The lengths he went through to portray Tae San's character realistically was no piece of cake; and while Arang and the Magistrate continues to be my favorite drama of him to date, Two Weeks, on the other hand, is my favorite drama of him as far as acting is concerned.
3) Daddy Daughter Tandem. Seeing Tae San and Soo Jin together was absolutely the highlight of the show for me. It redefined the meaning of unconditional love, in that for the past eight years Tae San was never present in Soo Jin's life. For the past eight years, Soo Jin had no knowledge of her father. Yet when they finally learned about each other's existence, all there was between them was love. For the past eight years they were never present in each other's lives, but they loved each other nonetheless. And that love was what helped Tae San to move forward during that two-week run, no matter how difficult it was.
4) Subtle Romance. Can I just say that while no romance was thoroughly explored in this drama, I loved loved loved that flashback about Tae San eating loads and loads of shrimps for In Hye even if he knew it was bad for him? I know it wasn't healthy, but still it was rather cute.
❀ RANTS ❀ »•»
1) Tae San Being Treated Like Crap. Has it not ever crossed the police's mind that Tae San might have been framed? No matter what he says, he remained a criminal in their eyes, kept being treated as crap. I get that this was a needed kick to get the show move onto the direction it should be headed to, but I don't think the police are really this inept and incompetent to accept everything at face value.
❀ RULING ❀ »•»
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