The Netflix original kdrama “The Glory” tells a typical revenge story. The female lead, Moon Dong Eun, was severely assaulted and bullied in high school. Her scars will burn and itch her whole life, she will never forget what happened to her. For 18 years she worked hard and planned to come back in the life of her bullies to get her revenge.
And what a glorious revenge it was!
First of all, I like the fact that her 18-year plan was simply to prepare herself for this revenge. She studies and works hard, she saves all the money because revenge is expensive as she says to her headsman.
Second, it’s truly beautiful that those entitled bastards basically destroyed themselves. Dong Eun played them well, making them turn against each other by revealing their dirty secrets. And she doesn’t need to be a genius, her enemies are not as clever as they think they are. They just lived in their own bubble where everything goes exactly how they want and the second it doesn’t, pfff, the bubble is bursting revealing hysterical little brats.
Third, the devil is in the details, the dialogue and dynamic between characters were written very well. It’s small scenes like Joo Yeo Jeong’s mother teasing him about his haircut and possible European stepdad. It’s Kang Hyeon Nam, an abused woman, who really gets into this spying and plotting stuff, becoming her cheerful self. If all those things get cut, the story could be told in 10 episodes. It would be a more dynamic story but I don’t think it would fit here. The slow pace is needed to show the finale of the story of 18 years. Dong Eun lived with her scars and her pain for 18 years. Those brats deserved their slow inevitable downfall. The way Park Yeon Jin’s perfect world shuttered peace by peace was so satisfying to watch.
Even if Yeon Jin would succeed in getting rid of Dong Eun, the damage was done in the very beginning. She couldn’t run from her past, all it needed is a little kick for the domino effect.
And just like that, Yeon Jin will wilt over time, bullied in prison, lonely and scared. While Dong Eun will bloom, even with all her scars because her beauty is in her strength.
In the perfect world, I would be your girl
I remember my timeline on Twitter has a meltdown over explosive chemistry between Ha Do Yeong, husband of Park Yeon Jin, and Dong Eun. and I totally understand, he looked like a perfect match for her. And I think it was intentional that Dong Eun dreamed to be an architect and he has a building construction business. In the perfect world where she wouldn’t be bullied, they might meet and something could happen. After all, she still has enough of a dark captivating aura around her even without it. Her mother would ensure she would have it.
But the world isn’t perfect. Dong Eun wouldn’t be suited for him anyway because all Yeon Jin wanted is a trophy wife. He married late, and they had an adorable kid but he knows nothing about his wife aside from her being pretty on screen. So even if Dong Eun could be a good partner for him he wouldn’t see it.
The grim reapers
As clouds get darker, the reapers come on the road of elegant and well-planned revenge. I think cheerful Joo Yeo Jeong, the headsman, and gloomy Moon Dong Eun made beautiful partners. And I do believe in their feelings and the slow burn fitted there the best. They are both broken beyond repair. Their way of healing is to embrace their pain and direct their rage to those who deserve it.
I honestly love that moment when Yeo Jeong’s mother begs Dong Eun to save her son. With that, she saves them both. Because everyone needs someone to help them to go through the hardest path. Yeo Jeong decided to be that person for Dong Eun and in the end, Dong Eun became Yeo Jeong’s headsman.
Conclusion
All the praise and awards wins are more than justified. Everyone, from the creators (PD\writers\music department, etc) to the amazing cast and great crew did well. I can only applaud, it was really great, I watched everything in just 2 days! It was hard to take a break because the second episode ended, I wanted to know more!
However, there are some things that I think could be improved. Like the story of a dead girl and why Yeo Jeong’s dad made that decision. I understand he was a good man and wanted to help a heartbroken mother as he could but it created a tie between FL and his son and I think I wanted a bit more story there. And the pregnancy part was kinda there but didn’t give any impact. Did Yeon Jin get jealous of the pregnant girl because she doesn’t like to share? Why it was so important that girl was pregnant when it didn’t play any role in the end?
But this is a small complaint. Overall, every story’s strings are tied together well by the end of the story.