Dark Hole / 다크홀 [2021]

[UnniSara]

@abs-oluteM

I am not a psychiatrist but abused victims who never fully recover from it especially when it is from a loved one. I don’t consider them weak but people who needs love and protection. It is hard to become strong from the abuse  or hurt from a family member.
Bully Jin Seok’s will is strong but Hwa Sun beat him , Dong Rim talks back to him even the teacher stand up to him when he does something wrong. He isn’t weak that is why he isn’t killing people like the rest of the other monsters. The Principle was also a bully , look at him standing outside the school in episode 6 staring at his school. He also has strong will , he isn’t acting like the other monster who are killing people. Each individual react differently due to fear. These individuals who aren’t killing people are just angry people unlike the other who are only afraid. 
Remember this girl (  FROM THE SINKHOLE),  her only fear was losing her mother, so she didn’t kill anyone but herself. 

 
 

The Shaman

She isn’t in control but another puppet, she doesn’t care as long as people kneel before her and follow her orders. Small towneenare easily pursuaded and used . 

 

I can’t wait for Park Soon II’s Karma like this punk . Everyone is scared and all

he thinks about is how to make money.!

 

I hope it makes sense 

[40somethingahjumma]

Oh man this show moves so slowly otherwise it seems to have some good ideas. It annoys me that Lee Joon-hyuk is marketed as one of the leads but there's so little of him.

 

If you ask me, I think the whole thing feels like some kind of experiment or test. The residents increasingly feel like lab rats running around dancing to the tune of the Voice in the dark hole. Whether the Voice is of extra-terrestrial origin is probably not in question but it's obviously observing and assessing human behaviour through instilling fear, in the hope of controlling them. Whether this is a precursor to an invasion, it's difficult to say definitively at this point. But the way the Voice manipulates mutants and pre-mutants suggests that it could be precursor to something. Especially now that he has got the shaman on side to do his bidding in creating a religious cult that will be under his control.

[UnniSara]

1 hour ago, 40somethingahjumma said:

Oh man this show moves so slowly otherwise it seems to have some good ideas. It annoys me that Lee Joon-hyuk is marketed as one of the leads but there's so little of him.

 

If you ask me, I think the whole thing feels like some kind of experiment or test. The residents increasingly feel like lab rats running around dancing to the tune of the Voice in the dark hole. Whether the Voice is of extra-terrestrial origin is probably not in question but it's obviously observing and assessing human behaviour through instilling fear, in the hope of controlling them. Whether this is a precursor to an invasion, it's difficult to say definitively at this point. But the way the Voice manipulates mutants and pre-mutants suggests that it could be precursor to something. Especially now that he has got the shaman on side to do his bidding in creating a religious cult that will be under his control.

I am feeling the same way @40somethingahjumma. All due to the locked room that the doctor told that nurse to never open. 

[UnniSara]

Why hasn’t anyone mention Lee Seo Yeon? The serial killer??? The red bracelet can also be associated with her. I I am sure it is a nurse the killer is impersonating right now. Who donyou guys think it is ??  

At first I  suspected  Yoon Saet Beol. Why??? Because Han Ji- Soo never saw her before. But after what happened in episode 6 , I am doubting it.  I also suspected Han Dong-Rim because of the red string bracelet but from Flashback about her dad’s death, the picture from the picture on the phone was similar . 

I wonder where did they get the bracelet from . 

Now I have no idea at all. We do know the killer has hair is black. 
 

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

 

[abs-oluteM]

Sigh, I need more LJH. 

 

[abs-oluteM]

Preview for next week

 

[40somethingahjumma]

I think the show is getting more interesting now that Sun-hwa is catching on to what's going on and she's inadvertently developed some kind of superpower from the fact that she's able to resist the call of the dark hole. Episode 8 felt to me like an important turning point from the relentless cat and mouse chase of the early episode. There's reprieve for some now hiding at the supermarket. The selection of survivors is interesting. Why does the tentacled monster let some live and others die? As Dong-rim points out astutely, the mysterious entity is far more powerful than the piddly human who are mere ants in its eyes. This is the ongoing question of the story. No doubt that the voice is fascinated with Sun-hwa's ability to never quite cross the line. The explanation seems to be that she has people rooting for her and pulling her from the brink. It's not her will alone but encouragement and the individual's will combined. Plus she's far too busy generally trying to save lives to think about her own issues. 

 

My biggest complaint is still that Lee Joon-hyuk has so little screen time, relegated to skulking around corridors and saving  the odd person here and there. That said, it is his character Tae Han that gets to the supermarket first and helps the other survivors relocate there for a bit of  a respite. It's a much needed rest. It's the ideal location for a pit-stop.

 

The other part of the show that's quite good is the development of the death cult headed by the shaman. My personal interest in humanity's natural impulse for religion leaves me fascinated by how this newly formed cult works to the entity's advantage. This extra-terrestrial being seems to be using not just to control survivors but as a game to use their survival instincts against them to wreak more carnage without him lifting a finger. Divide and conquer, I believe, is the modus operandi. He is breaking them internally as seen in the case of the security guard so that they are rendered incapable of revolt. They become irrelevant in whatever plans he has. Or it could be that he's having a good o'l time watching these earthlings floundering and being foolish. Religion can be a tool for much evil if it's function is primarily about control rather than human flourishing.

 

This show is as much about evil as it is about the exploitation of human weakness. Evil first and foremost resides in the human heart and given the right opportunities it can be a catalyst for horrifying outcomes. However, as seen in Sun-hwa's case, it can be restrained with the right influences although one sees in the case of the serial killer, that there can be a point of no return. The lack of a definitive answer to evil makes sense because there are no easy human answers.

 

[UnniSara]

Lee Seo Yeon 

I was correct that Yoon Saet Beol was te serial killer. There were clues to something maybe wrong with her. Isn’t funny that Yoon Tae Hoon was the one who found her. Episode 7-8 were awesome. 

@40somethingahjumma I love your insight on each character in the drama. It is on point because we all do have evil thoughts, what matter is if we act on these dark desires.

Han Dong Rim now knows Lee Hwa Sun is infected  and Jung Do Yoon was able to pull her back. 
 Now I understand why HDR doesn’t like her teacher even though he feels bad for what his father did. His father is a horrible human being. 
 

Question  Do you think the Principal loves his son??? 

[UnniSara]

The Shaman

is crazy and has no idea she is being used. I can’t wait for her to realize it. Once she does, it will be too late. I do think this drama Version on how to be a Shaman makes me wonder if it is like that in real life.

 

 

Spoiler

Karma is beautiful. Lady you knew she was fake and then you decided that you wanted to be CHOSEN ONE. Lol 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[abs-oluteM]

I am surprised that Sun Hwa's is now able to see what goes on elsewhere. The smoke she inhaled seems to be like some sort of network that she has tapped into. I suppose , she and whoever has a grip over their fears and not succumb to it will provide an answer to how people can be "cured'' of this. Initially I thought the doctor in the hospital was experimenting on the patients for sinister reasons . But it turned out serial killer nurse planted the idea in her in looking for a cure. So now the doc starts "sacrificing" weak patients to understand what is going on.

 

I was happy initially  that Tae Han and Sun Hwa ended up at the supermarket and away from that crazy shaman - that gives them higher chance of survival given that food ,water etc are available. But looks like Tae Han is going back into the lions den again to save the cops there. Anyway the supermarket may not be so safe since the monster is around though I am surprised the monster is selective in who it decided to kill. 

 

Subbed BTS

 

[abs-oluteM]

New stills

https://sports.donga.com/article/all/20210528/107161196/1

[UnniSara]

Dong Rim

What do you guys think of her??

I am worried about her because of what she said on episode 8. Will she live til the end of the drama??? It is sad to see a girl like her having no one to depend on. It is so sad .  

@abs-oluteM @40somethingahjumma
 

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

 

Knowing the nurse also lost consciousness, makes me weary? This is the nurse that knows what happy to Dong Rim’s father. She kept quiet so she can get a permanent job at the high School. 

[abs-oluteM]

@UnniSara @40somethingahjumma Have you guys watched the latest episodes yet?

 

From what I understand, some being ( deity or whatever it is ) controls the monster and releases the smoke. The shaman is the messenger of this thing but she isn't the "Chosen One" . Seems like Hwa Sun is . So far she (and I think the shaman as well)  is the only one with the ability to see what is happening elsewhere. The monster did not harm Hwa Sun, and now they discovered it is afraid of liquid nitrogen. The monster has been following HS and gang everywhere, and HS realises that it was able to do that undetected because it uses a host ;  they discovered it was the music teacher who finally turned mutant. So far only HS and DongRim have been able to resist turning.

 

Small highlight for me was seeing a bit more of Tae Han 's back story. The gangster in the hospital is the same one who knocked over his brother . And when he was still a cop, TH was looking for him, and the gangster was the one who got him framed for bribery.

 

Preview

 

BTS

 

[UnniSara]

Deity

The evil doctor stated that they worshipped the Monster as a Deity which made him more powerful and you are right @abs-oluteM The Shaman is the messenger. She thinks she is the Chosen. I am so conflicted on how to think of the shaman because her life was pitiful . She has been used her entire life and is still being used. She knows why she getting followers so that her God can eat . She has all the followers as we speak in in place just for him to eat.  
 

Detective Hwa Sun

i believe she must be the ultimate Host, I don’t know if DR is the host now but she said it herself she isn’t as strong as Hwa Sun. Hwa Sun has tried to get her to open up. I am glad she HS saw a small part of how DR lived. So glad to see the doctor has died . She was so annoying and so righteous. 

 

 

 

 

[abs-oluteM]

Stills . Drama will end this week

 

[abs-oluteM]

Stills for the finale. Will watch eps 11 shortly

 

[abs-oluteM]

Hmm the ending of eps 11 seems to hint that this supernatural phenomenon originated from something man made - the smoke may have very well come from the chemical factory . Is this some sort of experimentation by the unidentified man dragging the dead bodies to the store room in the factory? Is he the one communicating with the shaman and now working with Dong Rim.

 

The Shaman in her desire and impatience to be the chosen one disobeyed the deity ( trying to hurt HS , something it clearly told her not to do)  and it killed her with its long tentacle. Before that she was crazy enough to let him the mutants from outside which ended up wiping most of those who were at the lobby. I can't say I feel sorry for her or her "believers". The mutants got to the ICU and almost killed the cop who just had a baby - his wife saved him by stabbing the mutant. Somehow despite her having moments where she was going to turn, her love for her husband and baby ( and vice versa) seems to be preventing her from fully turning.

 

As we know from previous episode, Tae Han got fired from his job due to bribery charges , and the older cop finally confessed he was the one who ratted on Tae Han as he was blackmailed by the gangster to do so. Gangster's hold on the old cop was that the latter had gambling debts. Old cop was very sorry he did it.

 

We also find out that Dong Rim is the host  for the monster . Sadly she had given in to her desires for revenge as she was very disappointed that everyone in the town bullied her or turned a blind eye to her sufferings. We find out that the kind male teacher's father was the one who killed her father , and he did not have the courage then to do the right thing to turn his father in to the cops.  That was why he tried to make up for it now - being extra concerned for DR. But as far as DR was concerned , it was too late. She killed him ( or the monster in her did that).

 

But DR or the monster controlling her ultimately wants to have Hwa Sun. DR kidnapped Do Yoon to  lure HS to the factory. 

[abs-oluteM]

Finale spoilers...goodness ...what the heck was this...LOL...some Groot looking monster

 

[UnniSara]

Last two episodes good and well done.  Hwa Sun and TH’a characters were consistent. I can understand why some people wouldn’t like this drama but I love the lesson here. Bullying can cowardice abs greed are all things in life everyone suffer through. It is up to the individuals to pull through. The victims suffer mentally and physically. Sometimes these victims have no one to rely on or trust and it tends to end badly. 
 

@abs-oluteM @40somethingahjumma

[abs-oluteM]

@UnniSara I don't think the drama fully explained what caused the mutation but I am guessing it is a result of the chemicals but there's also the supernatural element to it. Nevertheless, am glad that things went back to normal . But of course typical of OCN, the ending shows that the mystery isn't really solved .

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TBH, this drama was a little lackluster for me . It did not hook me in the way Sweet Home did. I felt that the writing was a tad generic and they tried to have too many angles - the shaman, the monster, the mutants etc. I would have dropped this if not for Lee Joon Hyuk. This drama was a waste of his talent as an actor. Sometimes he felt like a supporting character running around just to provide back up to kill the mutants. 

 

Final BTS

 

 

 

 

 

Final filming done.