Review: Terius Behind Me (2018)

Kim Bon aka Terius used to be a top notch black ops agent for the NIS but has now been living in hiding after a failed overseas secret operation had gotten his girlfriend, North Korean nuclear physicist named Candy, killed. This made him look as the mission's mole and thus got him blacklisted from the service. A few years later, he gets entangled with Go Ae Rin who happens to be his next door neighbor. As they team up to uncover the conspiracy behind Ae Rin's husband's death, Bon also comes face to face about the truth behind his botched mission that happened a few years back.

Image via MBC.

Terius Behind Me (aternate title My Secret Terrius, Code Name: Terrius) is a 32-episode South Korean television series aired by MBC on September 2018 to November 2018. I'm quite late for the party and I'm not even sure if I could put into appropriate words what Terius Behind Me actually was for me, but contrary to what other people think, I didn't find this show terrible at all. It may have been a lot of things all at the same time, but one thing I'm sure of is that it's entertaining. Pretty darn entertaining.

❀ RAVES ❀ »•»

1) So Ji-sub. I never really liked So Ji-sub that much. Even if I found him quite amusing in The Master's Sun, that still didn't raise my interest for him on a whole new level. However, Terius Behind Me seem to be proving So Ji-sub differently because if anything, him playing Bon was not only amusing but was also very much appealing, and at the same time adorably fun to watch. So Ji-sub was able to portray both an agent hung-up on the past yet still slick and badass, a stoic baby sitter, as well as a socially awkward neighbor effectively well that at the final stretch of the show, I just couldn't help but root for him.

One of the cutest and most amusing I've seen So Ji-sub in in this show was when the KIS Ahjummas, Ae Rin included, visualized Bon as an all-knowing shaman who is able to foretell the future. What's funnier was how Bon actually went out of his way and pretended to be a real shaman, complete with ridiculously awkward chants and talismans which he had purchased from a professional shaman in the suburbs. Ha.

2) Acting. A lot of the actors for Terius Behind Me, even the supporting ones, do shine a lot in this drama. Special shoutout goes to Seo Yi Sook who was really outstanding as the stern NIS Deputy Director Kwon Young Shil. And Sung Joo! I must mention how adorable and handsome Sung Joo was as Ra Do Woo. His presence alone lights up the screen like magic, so much so that even if he doesn't get a lot of screen time, he still comes off as a character to watch out for.

3) The cute, the funny and the heart. As mentioned, So Ji-sub was both adorable and amusing as a stoic secret agent slash clueless nanny, in that a lot of the cute, funny and heartwarming parts of the show stems from when he's basically around Ae Rin and the twins. Bon has literally been living off of bread alone in his apartment for years, which was why it was so satisfying to see him gain a family through Ae Rin and her kids. Even though Joon Soo and Joon Hee were annoyingly stubborn and naughty at times, how Bon slowly warmed up to them and genuinely cared for them speaks a lot about the show's heart.

4) Jin Yong Tae's Character. Jin Yong Tae was such a fun and refreshing villain, and Son Ho Jun remarkably portrayed him to a T. I loved Son Ho Jun a lot in Go Back Couple, and though I'm still a little bit distracted by his nose, how he portrayed Jin Yong Tae as a morally grey, incompetent and a scaredy pants villain who was always sort of reluctant at being bad was totally hilarious, but at the same time, very much endearing.

Even though Jin Yong Tae has done a couple of bad things, as the show progressed we find out the he isn't really someone who's innately bad. Because of this and how adorable he is as a villain-not-villain, he did grow on me in a way, so much so that when he got shot in Episode 31, I was so mad at the show for killing off one of its most adorable characters. Good thing he really didn't end up dead as at the end of the show we see him begin a new life as the owner of a coffee shop near Ae Rin's hometown. It was just so touching how Yong Tae can now start all over again after Bon had lived up to his promise of giving his "brother" a new identity and a new life. Awww.

I also loved this:

It was so amusing how Bon looked like a husband for taking care of Yong Tae who had been in the brink of death after getting stabbed at a phone booth during Episode 19. It didn't help that Yong Tae was wearing a female patient's gown and was in an Ob-gyn clinic! 😂 The look of horror in Bon's face after Ae Rin walked in on him cleaning Yong Tae's back was priceless, and it was hilarious how this situation made more Bon x Yong Tae bromance moments all the more possible. 😂

❀ RANTS ❀ »•»

1) Logic. Although it doesn't really affect the awesomeness that Terius Behind Me has, there's still some parts of the show that came across as a little bit nonsensical, such as when the KIS Ahjummas were able to catch K The Magician easily like that in Episode 29 when Bon, a top notch black ops agent, spent a whole lot of time planning and preparing on how to do just that. It wasn't a big deal nor was it that glaring of a flaw. It's just that sometimes I can't help but think about how some things don't make sense, and how logical thinking should sometimes be thrown out the window in order to fully enjoy the show's tropes.

2) PPL. Product placement was quite heavy in this show. I think more than necessary spotlight has been put in ads for coffees, sandwiches, beverages and so on, that it sometimes feel like I am taken out from the story to watch a commercial, ruining the mood in the process.

❀ RULING ❀ »•»

Although marketed as a spy thriller, Terius Behind Me's best foot isn't in the spy thriller genre. Instead of smart plotlines, well-built conspiracies or action-packed shenanigans, I think Terius Behind Me did humor and quirkiness a whole lot better. This is probably the reason why I enjoyed the show even better—I didn't look at it as a full blown espionage story. And though it might have lost some of its spark as the show neared its end, all in all it was still a pleasant watch.

TAGS: Code Name: Terius, Im Se Mi, Jung In Sun, K-Drama, K-Drama Reviews, Kim Sung Joo, My Secret Terrius, So Ji Sub, Son Ho Jun, Terius Behind Me   Edit