I believe that watching movies and series without knowing anything but the logline should be more regularly practised. Regarding the show that I am going to be discussing, I did not know what to expect. I knew there was something about a police officer, murders, and a parallel universe travelled to by train. Upon discovering that practically the entire plot of the first two episodes was on Wikipedia, I was glad I never read it and would advise anyone who wants to watch this show not to either.
(photo taken from IMDb)
Train is a 2020 South Korean TV series written by Park Ga-yeon and directed by Ryu Seung-jin. The series follows police officer Seo Dowon, as he travels to a parallel world to track down a serial killer.
I first want to praise the writer, Park Ga-yeon for how the first two episodes were set up. I cannot stress how glad I am that I did not read the Wikipedia page as it would have spoilt everything for me. Immediately after the show starts, viewers are welcomed to an eerie opening where two men are dead, one murdered in his house, the other outside by a hit and run and both their children find them respectively on a gloomy rainy day. Fast forward a couple of years, those kids are now the adults of Seo Dowon, portrayed by Yoon Shi-yoon, and Han Seokyung, portrayed by Kyung Soo-jin. The two of them are at odds with each other about a case they’re both involved in as a police officer and prosecutor and as the first episode goes on, bodies are quickly found at a train track leading to an investigation which somehow has an unsolved case from years ago mixed up in it.
(photo taken from IMDb)
The first two episodes do a great job of hooking viewers into the story by presenting the peculiar murder cases, building intrigue, and subverting expectations. The episodes reveal just shy of what is needed to know in the moment which keeps one invested and later satisfied but also possibly on edge when puzzle pieces fall into place as new information is presented later. The world is also set up pretty well as viewers are introduced to an ominous train station that is supposed out of service but mysteriously is not.
(photo taken from IMDb)
Aside from the plot and the world, the two main characters were also a strong part of the show. Seo Dowon and Han Seokyung of World A (the world our protagonists are from) were strong characters that one can grow to be emotionally invested in immediately after meeting them and learning about their individual backstories and joint one as well. Seo Dowon and Han Seokyung from World B (the parallel world) were a perfect example/characterization of the exact opposite of our main characters which leaves one wondering… what happened to them in World B? Aside from Seo Dowon and Han Seokyung, I wish there was more of an emotional narrative/connection with the other side characters as it would have made certain plot twists and reveals even more hard-hitting not just shocking or predictable to an extent.
(photo taken from IMDb)
The show only has twelve episodes which I think was the perfect number for telling this story. However, I found the pacing to be a little bit iffy in some places but every time the story seemed to drag on, something surprising happened which kept me invested in it. Although I did enjoy Train, I was not fully satisfied with the way it concluded but I won’t go into much detail about that.
I’m not too sure there was a scene I would say was my favourite but I did love to see a character evangelizing! It’s always nice to see the good news of Jesus Christ being spread!
All in all, Train was interesting and enjoyable, and though the pacing fell short for me, it was still a fun watch.
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