The Devil Judge: What Does the Devil Look Like?

The Devil Judge is a K-drama series with a theme that is easy to determine. It poses the question: What does the Devil look like? The setting is a dystopian version of present-day South Korea. Judge Kang Yo-han is convinced he knows what the devil looks like, and he plans to use his position as chief judge to eradicate the devil’s influence in the country.

• The Devil Judge is 16 episodes. It aired on tvN in 2021 and was then made available on various streaming platforms in selected territories. The USA viewing audience got lucky as the series is available to watch free on Viki.

♦ Meet Chief Judge Kang Yo-han

When Kang Yo-han was a young child, he killed a bird. It was not his intention to be cruel. But from that day forward, the students at the school called him a “monster”. One of the school officials went even further and described him as a “devil”. I guess to those people, he looked like the devil. But he had many instances in his life to see what the devil really looked like. For him, the devil looked like:

• his cruel father who never loved him and physically abused him; and
• selfish people in high positions whose corruption and greed had no limits.

When Yo-han grew up he became a court official: Judge Kang Yo-han, dubbed the “Justice Bao of the 21^st Century”. He was not dubbed “The Devil Judge”. But there were times when his methods of administering judgment made people wonder if he was a devil dressed in a judicial robe. The Live Court Show he hosted were televised trials so that the public could view “justice in action”. The judicial proceedings went one step further. An app was created that allowed the citizens to VOTE on the innocence or guilt of the accused; and also on the method of punishment. Judge Kang called it democracy.

What Does Democracy Look Like?

Democracy? There is an app for that? That’s debatable. If this is the way the court decides cases in real life, one might argue that it opens the door to grave miscarriages of justice. Viewing a court trial is one thing. Voting on the verdict and punishment is something else. Everybody knows that a mob can be fickle and sometimes easily manipulated. When the court of public opinion becomes the means by which justice is served, the outcome could lead to devastating consequences IN THE REAL WORLD.  Not to mention, suppose a baby picks up the phone and pushes the button and it’s counted as a vote.  Hey!  It’s a “What If scenario”, but it could happen!

However, The Devil Judge isn’t a real court. It’s fiction. South Korea is a dystopian society, and in this dystopian world, there is a fictional Live Court Show. Citizens are presented with evidence, testimonies of witnesses, etc., and allowed to become both judge and jury by VOTING.

♦ Meet Judge Kim Go-An

Judge Kim Go-An was assigned to assist Judge Kang Yo-han. When they first meet each other, Yo-han stares at his face in surprise. Go-An asks him if there is a problem but Yo-han says it’s nothing. Kim Go-An does not realize that the reason for the stare is that he looks just like Yo-han’s brother who had passed away. The death of his brother left a hole in his heart. His brother always showed him love and didn’t treat him like a monster. Because of “that face”, as their relationship grows, Kim Go-An fills a part of that hole with genuine friendship and understanding.

Initially, Kim Go-An does not know if Kang Yo-han can be trusted. He tries to gather information about his past life and bugs his office hoping that the conversations he overhears might shed some light. Mainly, he wants to know:

• Does Kang Yo-han rig the court cases for a specific outcome?
• Is Kang Yo-han as corrupt as the people he says look like the devil?

Kim Go-An is an idealist, who believes in true justice. Kang Yo-han tells him there is no “true justice”. It’s a game rigged by people in power and he is willing to do whatever it takes to make sure of the right outcome. Go-An lost his parents because of a scammer. His father committed suicide and his mother died from the shock. For years, he believed that the scammer had been brought to justice and was serving time in prison for his crimes. To convince Go-An that the system is rigged, Yo-han shows him indisputable proof of how the justice system failed him and his parents. Then he tells Kim Go-An to CHOOSE. Will he work with him to mete out justice or against him?

Main Characters:

• Chief Judge Kang Yo-han (played by Ji Sung)
• Junior Judge Kim Go-an (played by Park Jin-young, “Yaksha: Ruthless Operations”)

Where to Watch

Memorable Quotes:

• “… There is no justice in reality, there is only game. A dreadful unjust game…”

• “… A system has no chance against power. Power can control a system however it likes.”

• “.. No matter how much you hate the world and the people in it, you can never live alone. you always need someone to rely on. As long as you are human being…”

Viewership and Rating:

• IMDb Rating: 8.3 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 8.7 out of 10 stars
• Viki Viewers gave the series 9.7 out 10 stars.

The Viki viewing audience was close to 45,000+, and I totally agree with their rating. Plus, the OST (original soundtrack) was dynamite! There is not much buzz about a Season 2, but there talk about a webtoon adaptation of this K-drama.

LINKS OF INTEREST:

• Legal Eagles: 8 Must-Watch K-Dramas With Savvy Lawyers | Soompi
• The Devil Judge Review: A Drama Reminiscent Of The Dark Knight | The Smart Local Korea
• Top 13 Best Korean Dramas Based on Popular Webtoons/Manhwas | Anime India

TRAILERS/TEASERS:

Viki Global TV. “THE DEVIL JUDGE – OFFICIAL TRAILER | Korean Drama | Ji Sung, Kim Min Jung.” YouTube, 30 June 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnJE8_oomP4.‌

solariene. “►Kang Yo Han & Kim Ga on | Power.” YouTube, 12 Sept. 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=dp1lgrqeBd8.‌