Through the Darkness [Those Who Read Hearts of Evil] 악의 마음을 읽는 자들 [2022]

[abs-oluteM]

 

13 hours ago, UnniSara said:

Hi  I love a good crime drama and when it is based on true story. I will be there

It will be aired at Viki 

https://www.viki.com/tv/38312c-through-the-darkness

Me too. This one reminds me of Signal since we're focusing on the work of profilers. It will be interesting how profiling work was done then 1990s since the tech and science available then would not have been as state of the art as it is now. 

 

Another teaser. (pre-released for eps 1) 
Very happy to see KNG back on the small screen.

In the trailer, we see Jin Seon-gyu, who felt the need for criminal behavior analysis as unmotivated murders continue, and Kim Nam-gil, who analyzes the criminal's thoughts.

Jin Seon-gyu thinks that Kim Nam-gil is the right person to analyze crimes with him and recommends a book, ending the first trailer for 'Those who read the mind of evil'.

[abs-oluteM]

Subbed trailer

 

 

 

[abs-oluteM]

This Naver article is pretty insightful about what the drama wants to achieve. I extracted some stuff here:

출처 : 한국강사신문(http://www.lecturernews.com)

 

All human beings experience deviations and make mistakes in childhood. But not everyone becomes a criminal. It is often said that angels and demons are only one point apart. If so, where did the minds of most people who live ordinary and natural lives intersect with the minds of the wicked who commit the heinous crimes of murder? What made them so evil? This drama begins with such an original question.

 

What is it like to look into the human mind? It is said that the heart of a person is difficult to understand and there are people who do things that are even more difficult to understand.  Hence the need for people who are able to read the minds of 'criminals'  known as  'profilers'.

(This story is set in the 1990s , no profilers then until the main characters here started focusing/ analyzing  criminal behavior.)  

 

It's not a story about a serial killer, it's a story about people 'going after' a serial killer. This drama is about a time when even the word profiling was unfamiliar, a time when there was no concept of a psychopath, and a time when heinous criminals committed by Yoo Young-cheol, Jung Nam-gyu, and Kang Ho-soon who put the Korean people in fear appeared one after another. (These are names of actual serial killers).  It depicts the story of a profiler who had to fiercely look inside their hearts to chase after demons who could not be called human.

 

Character description

Song Ha-young / Criminal Behavior Analyst  (Kim Nam Gil) 

Ha Young gives off a cold vibe but he is not without emotions. In fact he is a person who looks more deeply into humans than anyone else. At times , he looks into the inner side of others with a more delicate gaze, so his emotions are gradually built up inside of him instead of being revealed on the outside. This is why Hayoung seems different from others.

 

When Hayoung first saw a corpse bloated up in the water as a child, he felt pity rather than fear. Everyone was concerned that it would be a  tremendous trauma for a six-year-old child suffered, but in fact, such worries were only the assumptions  of adults who were accustomed to a series of easy emotions. Because Ha-young was the first to feel the wave of emotions, 'How scared and lonely the person in the water must have been.' Even after becoming a detective, that mindset did not change.

Hayoung always looked for victims and their families first, and took care of them until the end.

 

'A good criminal investigator makes a good profiler.' It was a theory established by Young-su to find the right person to be a criminal behavior analyst. Ha-young was the perfect fit for that theory. A detective who has better empathy than anyone else.  Besides that , he was a detective who could keep his cool without letting go of his affection for humans. 

 

Ha-young was the only person who could enter the minds of criminals and penetrate their psychology.

 

Youngsoo Kook / Head of Criminal Behavior Analysis Team (Jin Seon-gyu)

Even among conservative police officers with strong hierarchies, he is not swayed by prejudices such as authority, formality, and bureaucracy , and is like the godfather of the forensic team who shows what true authority is. Thanks to this, he is very popular with his colleagues, and was the was quick to realize the need for psychological analysis from the beginning, and after a long strategy, he hires Ha-young and succeeds in creating a criminal behavior analysis team.

 

Recalling the foresight of the chief investigator of the old days, 'The taller the building, the longer the shadow.' He predicted that a crime of involving serial murders without a motive would occur in Korea.   No one could have imagined that an ominous prediction would soon become a reality. Then no one knew that a hastily created criminal behavior analysis team would be so urgently needed as a series of terrible serial killers without a motive appear in Korea.

 

His ominous premonition was never wrong. Everything went as Young-soo had thought. 

Taegu Yoon / Team Leader of the 1st and 2nd Division of the Mobile Investigation Unit (Kim So-jin )

One of the best detectives in town and often people are surprised that it is a woman . She has the ability to tell any male detective to go away. Strong, sharp, and rational. Such a spirit led Taegu to become a detective in the homicide squad.

At first glance, she look crooked and militant, but she is sharper than anyone else and exudes a lot of charisma. Although she often clashes with Ha-young, she secretly trusts his strength. A person who always looks at events and people without losing focus. She found it  more difficult to face the numerous  prejudices she had to go through as a woman detective than to face criminals.

 

After enduring countless prejudices of  a conservative society and organization, Taegu rose to the position of the leader of the strong team of detectives under her. Still, everyone tends to be more interested in her hairstyle than what she does. However, Taegu doesn't bother  to explain herself because she knows it's a question she doesn't need to answer. Taegu's heart and reason is that, compared to the feelings of the victims and their families, this sort of prejudice  is nothing  and that she will not let go of this job even if she has to face such prejudice. 

 

 

 

[abs-oluteM]

2nd Subbed trailer . Kocowa subs would be better than Viu's

 

[UnniSara]

@abs-oluteM Hi do you know if Kocciwa’s subs will be faster. I don’t have VIU in my location 

[abs-oluteM]

@UnniSaraI should think Kocowa's subs would be faster.

 

----------------------

The cast introduces their roles

 

[peperomia]

I really liked the first episode.

 

Spoiler

The serial killings are a bit scary – even sad knowing that the drama is based on a nonfiction book, but so far, it is good storytelling from Song Ha Young’s perspective. I was not surprised when the head of criminal behavior wanted to recruit him. Although he has a quiet and reserved nature, he strongly believes in his intuition and will take actions. From his childhood incident, he developed a deep ability to empathize with others (including the dead), which when looking at this on the positive side, it appears to be another quality of his. I can see why it would drive him as a detective/profiler.

 

I think the pacing of the story is good and it would be a good one to binge. (I sort of regret not waiting until it is complete.) Hoping with 12 episodes, it will remain a tight plotline through the end.

Edited January 15, 2022 by peperomia

[abs-oluteM]

Will check out the episodes soon

 

[UnniSara]

2 hours ago, peperomia said:

I really liked the first episode.

 

  Hide contents

The serial killings are a bit scary – even sad knowing that the drama is based on a nonfiction book, but so far, it is good storytelling from Song Ha Young’s perspective. I was not surprised when the head of criminal behavior wanted to recruit him. Although he has a quiet and reserved nature, he strongly believes in his intuition and will take actions. From his childhood incident, he developed a deep ability to empathize with others (including the dead), which when looking at this on the positive side, it appears to be another quality of his. I can see why it would drive him as a detective/profiler.

 

I think the pacing of the story is good and it would be a good one to binge. (I sort of regret not waiting until it is complete.) Hoping with 12 episodes, it will remain a tight plotline through the end.

 

This episode started on a good note and I too wished I had waited to binge this drama. Some drama's are meant to be binged. Since i started I will continue watching and go through the suspense for when the next epsiode will air @peperomia

@abs-oluteM I see you haven't watched it yet it iw really good. 

 

Spoiler

Song Ha Young must be an empath because he clearly feels for the dead & Victims. He isn't a bad guy and he clearly want to to work as a team player but the cops are so determined to do things the olda way. He is okay beating up suspects, charging the innocent as long as they close the case. 

 

The Red Cap Case Interesting case because this serial killer has changed his MO. I wonder why and his fingerprint isn't in the system at all. 

 

TO anyone watching this drama , It looks like this drama is set to air there on a particular day. I had to watch it Kocowa. I think for this drama,  i will hae to watch join Kocowa to watch this drama. 

[peperomia]

 

Episode 2 was really good as well. The drama reminds me a lot of Criminal Minds.

 

Spoiler

Through the time span, the story seems to be evolving Ha Young’s character from a detective to a criminal profiler. I like how it utilizes his character to highlight the importance of analyzing criminal behavior to solve the crimes and to try to prevent from happening.

 

The moment Ha Young suspected Cho Kang Moo was the real culprit kept me at the edge of my seat. Their conversation during the interrogation leading to the confession was so good. Kept me in suspense.

 

After Bang Ki Hoon was exonerated, I was touched when Ha Young visited him at his tent bar. At first, Ki Hoon felt awkward, but when Ha Young was ready to pay for the ramen, he said won’t take money from a friend and thanked him for finding the real culprit. What he said to Ha Young seems to sum up his character – “You were always like that. You pretended like you didn’t care about people, but you were always considerate behind their back.” After Ha Young left, Ki Hoon ended up finding money he left with a note saying – “If you’re mind friend, take it.” The overall mood of the drama is quite dark and serious, but I think getting to know Ha Young’s inner kindness (that is kept hidden) adds some warmth to the story.

 

I really like Kim Nam Gil’s portrayal Song Ha Young. It is a pleasure to watch him here.

 

@UnniSara If you happened to watch episode 2 already, it will answer your question about the fingerprint.

 

Spoiler

The explanation is that he was a minor.

 

[UnniSara]

5 hours ago, peperomia said:

 

Episode 2 was really good as well. The drama reminds me a lot of Criminal Minds.

 

  Reveal hidden contents

Through the time span, the story seems to be evolving Ha Young’s character from a detective to a criminal profiler. I like how it utilizes his character to highlight the importance of analyzing criminal behavior to solve the crimes and to try to prevent from happening.

 

The moment Ha Young suspected Cho Kang Moo was the real culprit kept me at the edge of my seat. Their conversation during the interrogation leading to the confession was so good. Kept me in suspense.

 

After Bang Ki Hoon was exonerated, I was touched when Ha Young visited him at his tent bar. At first, Ki Hoon felt awkward, but when Ha Young was ready to pay for the ramen, he said won’t take money from a friend and thanked him for finding the real culprit. What he said to Ha Young seems to sum up his character – “You were always like that. You pretended like you didn’t care about people, but you were always considerate behind their back.” After Ha Young left, Ki Hoon ended up finding money he left with a note saying – “If you’re mind friend, take it.” The overall mood of the drama is quite dark and serious, but I think getting to know Ha Young’s inner kindness (that is kept hidden) adds some warmth to the story.

 

I really like Kim Nam Gil’s portrayal Song Ha Young. It is a pleasure to watch him here.

 

@UnniSara If you happened to watch episode 2 already, it will answer your question about the fingerprint.

 

  Hide contents

The explanation is that he was a minor.

 

 I have watched episode 2  @peperomia and it was good as well. I am hooked and I am loving the Yang Yong Chol ( the criminal ) too. He seems psychotic and wished he had someone to care for him.

Spoiler

 

His ( Yang Yong Chol)  insight was spot on. He asked the same questions  Song Ha-Young thought. SHY's insticts were screaming at him and I was glad ( The Red Cap Killer) answered his questions.

 

I hope to never see Captain Park Dae -Woong again for the rest of the drama. What a jerk and remained a jerk till the end. He gave the interiew to the reporter just so he can escape from being punished. What a loser and a terrible cop? He had no remorse for what he did and for the coercion of a confession for  his arrest. This man was willing to let murderers be continued individually so he can say he was right. 

 

@Tofu @mademoiselle @40somethingahjumma  Join us here to watch this drama. It is a short drama and the pace is just right.  

@abs-oluteM Looking forward to your insight of this drama

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mademoiselle]

Thanks for the tag, @UnniSara. I'll check it out soon. I think this one we should summon @Chocolate who likes to watch crime thriller and who also falls for ahjussi more than young Oppa

[abs-oluteM]

@UnniSara @peperomia I just got off eps 1 and it was indeed such a solid premiere. Love Kim Nam Gil's calm  personality. He was attentive to  the details and sensitive to people's reactions and emotions. He was also kind and caring  , often checking on the victims' families. HaYoung already demonstrated great empathy as child. Most kids would have been traumatised seeing a dead body like that but he felt sorry for the victim instead. He was also very observant spotting the a strange man from afar.

 

The Red Cap Incident & the difficulty in catching the real criminal sets the narrative that old school ways of staking out and going undercover may not work with catching psychopaths. And it was clear that there were plenty of bad investigative practices then. The custodial violence to force a confession angered me and it was clear that Ha Young was not comfortable. But it isn't easy going against your senior and the 'system' then.  They off course ended up putting the wrong guy in jail and the actual killer was still roaming around.

 

But this would start seeing some change. Chief Kook Young Soo , who knew that there was a great need to set a team that analyzes criminal behavior saw a lot of potential in Ha Young. And though HY wasn't so receptive about the idea in eps 1, I believe he will be joining Young Soo soon,  seeing that the Red Cap murders have started again.

 

@SilverMoonTea I think is watching this too. @Darkarcana if you have time, this is a must watch. 

 

 

[SilverMoonTea]

This is a solid show and perfect for KNG's comeback. I'm happy that he choose a serious but calm character which differed greatly with his role in Fiery Priest. 

 

Since the setting is in 1997's and gradually move to 2000, profiler was rather still unknown in Korea and the police's investigation with coercive and abusive tactics still rampant. Ha Young handled it well with his superior, eventhough he must be dying to stop him from punching his friend, but he still being polite to his boss. 

 

Somehow Ha Young as small child reminded me of Mouse Ba Reum's young time. But the different they're a total opposite. HY have too much empathy and the later totally no empathy.

 

I almost miss this drama as the poster not so eye catchy 🤔, luckily saw lot of twitter update from dear @bluepebbles. 

 

I'm so excited for next case @abs-oluteM, and for some reason all the dramas that I like only will have 12 episodes 😯

 

Spoiler

@JenL@Tofu@ktcjdrama come watch with us, I think you guys will like it too.

 

[ktcjdrama]

This is on my watchlist @SilverMoonTea I just haven't gotten the chance to start yet. Been waiting for this drama to start since forever, haha...

[Tofu]

@UnniSara @SilverMoonTea I plan on watching this but Jisung ahjussi is taking up my time currently. I'll watch this once I'm done with that drama. 😅

[Chocolate]

1 hour ago, mademoiselle said:

Thanks for the tag, @UnniSara. I'll check it out soon. I think this one we should summon @Chocolate who likes to watch crime thriller and who also falls for ahjussi more than young Oppa

 

Eh, you don't go around announcing that I like ahjussi leh. I also like some young ones, like... 

 

I will watch this. Probably start during the lunar new year weekend. Tons of work for start of year plus my whole house is being painted so it is a big mess.

 

33 minutes ago, Tofu said:

I plan on watching this but Jisung ahjussi is taking up my time currently. I'll watch this once I'm done with that drama. 😅

 

Oooh, which Jisung drama? I find he has surprisingly few watchable ones.

 

[peperomia]

8 hours ago, UnniSara said:

I have watched episode 2  @peperomia and it was good as well. I am hooked and I am loving the Yang Yong Chol ( the criminal ) too. He seems psychotic and wished he had someone to care for him.

 

I really liked Ha Young's interactions with Yang Yong Chol too. I think Ha Young knew Yong Chol didn't have anyone close to him which is why he always met up with him in the family room. For this reason, Yong Chol felt a strange closeness with him and was willing to give him insight without further money. Even with the backlash when the public found out Ha Young went to get help from a convict, he didn't care and said he would do it again as long as the real culprit was caught. Such a stand-up detective.

 

I agree with you about Captain Park. The thing that I did like about him was that he expedited the fingerprinting of the scissors and did not tamper with anything, despite knowing the repercussions if he was indeed wrong about Bang Ki Hoon.

 

3 hours ago, abs-oluteM said:

I just got off eps 1 and it was indeed such a solid premiere. Love Kim Nam Gil's calm  personality. He was attentive to  the details and sensitive to people's reactions and emotions. He was also kind and caring  , often checking on the victims' families.

 

Yay, I am glad you were able to start it. I love Kim Nam Gil here too. His character is well thought-out. His ability to connect to people is really great to watch

 

3 hours ago, abs-oluteM said:

But this would start seeing some change. Chief Kook Young Soo , who knew that there was a great need to set a team that analyzes criminal behavior saw a lot of potential in Ha Young. And though HY wasn't so receptive about the idea in eps 1, I believe he will be joining Young Soo soon,  seeing that the Red Cap murders have started again.

 

I am excited for this happen. It is nice to see Ha Young warm up to this new specialty over the early episodes. I like his relationship with Chief Kook. He seems at ease with him and they seem to share the same beliefs in approaching crime-solving.

 

3 hours ago, SilverMoonTea said:

Somehow Ha Young as small child reminded me of Mouse Ba Reum's young time. But the different they're a total opposite. HY have too much empathy and the later totally no empathy.

 

Thanks for pointing this out. Ha Young as a child at the end of episode 1 did remind me of Ba Reum, but I did not take note of how they are total opposites in empathy. I am relieved there are no signs he is anything like Ba Reum. LOL.

[liddi]

My very first Kim Namgil drama, so I did not quite know what to expect going in, but am very pleasantly surprised. Love the genre, love the execution and the performances - gritty, haunting, with no over the top theatrics. There is a stillness about SHY that is disquieting yet paradoxically calming to watch, instilling a inexplicable sense of confidence that he will not be foiled and the truth will be revealed in the end. He is by no means infallible, but his dogged tenacity, his extraordinary powers of observation and incredible empathy makes him a sympathetic protagonist despite the lack of overt emotion that he expresses. I truly appreciate the attention to his little quirks as well - the diabetes-inducing 2 cubes of sugar in that tiny cup of coffee, his obvious love for sugary snacks, as well as his camaraderie with KYS who deeply respects and affirms his abilities at a time when he is considered an odd duck among his peers. The buildup to the formation of the Behavioral Analysis team is seamlessly woven into the controversy of SHY's consultation of a criminal amid the outcry over coerced confession leading to the BKH's wrongful incarceration. Well done. Does anyone know how closely this follows the actual setting up of such a team in South Korea? 

 

I must admit though while never really doubting that SHY would snare the Red Cap killer, I was terribly afraid for a long time that BKH might be exonerated too late and have killed himself by then, especially when his request for a retrial was rejected yet again while CKM was brought from one crime scene to another to recreate his actions. Thus it was with great relief when SHY visits his stall again, and there is a tacit exchange of gratitude and acknowledgment which reaffirms the rightness of SHY's decisions.

 

Now to mentally prepare myself for the horror of the 2nd case, which includes dismemberment of a child. 

Edited January 17, 2022 by liddi

[UnniSara]

14 minutes ago, liddi said:

I must admit though while never really doubting that SHY would snare the Red Cap killer, I was terribly afraid for a long time that BKH might be exonerated too late, especially when his request for a retrial was rejected yet again while CKM was brought from one crime scene to another to recreate his actions. Thus it was with great relief when SHY visits his stall again, and there is a tacit exchange of gratitude and acknowledgment which reaffirms the rightness of SHY's decisions.

To be honest in Real life @liddi this is how they sometimes catch serial killer or how serial killers stop their killing spree. They will be charge for another crime or will be caught through EVIDENCE OR DNA MATCH IN THE SYSTEM when they are arrested.  I too wished to know if this case was solved the same in real life chingu.  

Luckily SHY had gotten the fingerprints done and put in the system then the killer would have been free to kill again. I thought it was sad that a cop couldn’t believe CKM who was teenager as the red cap killer. I am amazed CKM was killing so early, he was also te neighborhood bully , extorting money from kids , robbing and killing people. He was a horrible person but I can understand why he turned out that way, him grandma ( on the paternal side was abusive) Dad was abusive and his mom ran away from him and his dad. He had no good role model all his life. Smh smh 

 

[SilverMoonTea]

@liddiBeing the significant other (boyfriend/husband) of the victim, who accidentally being at the wrong place and wrong time can easily landed that person as murderer. Actually all the circumstantial evidence did lead to BKH's conviction. It was not so bad that BKH only served 1 year, in US some individual served for 25 years before exonerated by DNA evidence. 

 

Spoiler

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Morton_(criminal_justice)

 

The way SHY interrogate the real copycat Red Cap is very imperceptible. He asked him to write and he doesn't try to outsmart the guy. By doing that slowly the guy implicate himself further. I think SHY can read him well especially on his unconscious need to brag and challenge police to try to catch him. His young age also didn't help him to be more calmer. And hence his conviction is secured. 

 

3 hours ago, liddi said:

 Does anyone know how closely this follows the actual setting up of such a team in South Korea? 

 

It was pretty close to real event and the Korean first profiler Kwon Il Yong.

 

Spoiler

http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20170526000482

 

Anyone know more details on the book about profiler that being recommended to SHY? 

[liddi]

@UnniSara @SilverMoonTea Definitely, by all intents and purposes, BKH is the most likely suspect based on the evidence. What I actually meant was that from his devastated reaction when his appeal for a retrial was rejected, I was afraid that he would had killed himself before they could exonerate him, an event which could have been used as a plot device to drive SHY even more to stop such tragedies from happening again. Hence my relief when we finally see him alive and well at his stall later.

 

@SilverMoonTea Thank you so much for sharing the interview with Kwon Il-yong. Truly chilling and horrific... knowing that these are cases that actually happened. It takes someone of strong mettle and faith to be able to work through such horror and be able to walk away from it mentally and emotionally intact. Truly deserving of respect. I do see how Cho Kang-moo is adapted from Jeong Nam-kyu, based on how he was arrested and his diminutive stature, and there is also the reference to interviews with Yoo Yong-chul (upon whom it would appear Yang Yong-chul is based). It doesn't quite describe what led to the actual establishment of the Criminal Behavioral Analysis Team though.

[SilverMoonTea]

Finally have time to check more details on the book. 

 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindhunter:_Inside_the_FBI's_Elite_Serial_Crime_Unit

 

It seems to be available on my bookstore. I probably will try to check it. I actually always have a lot of curiosity about the motive of murders, hence profiler job is very interesting to me. 

[UnniSara]

1 hour ago, liddi said:

What I actually meant was that from his devastated reaction when his appeal for a retrial was rejected, I was afraid that he would had killed himself before they could exonerate him, an event which could have been used as a plot device to drive SHY even more to stop such tragedies from happening again. Hence my relief when we finally see him alive and well at his stall later.

I was worried too @liddiwas glad he was released. 
 

@SilverMoonTea why do you think BKH only spent 1 year?? I thought he was in jail  for 5 years 

[bluepebbles]

3 hours ago, SilverMoonTea said:

@liddi

The way SHY interrogate the real Red Cap is very imperceptible. He asked him to write and he doesn't try to outsmart the guy. By doing that slowly the guy implicate himself further. I think SHY can read him well especially on his unconscious need to brag and challenge police to try to catch him. His young age also didn't help him to be more calmer. And hence his conviction is secured. 

 

It was pretty close to real event and the Korean first profiler Kwon Il Yong.

 

 

The KCSI /Criminal Behavioral Unit composed of the team pioneered by Kwon Ilyong (Song Hayoung) and Pyo Changwon Yoon Oe Chul (Kook Youngsoo) .

 

The Red Cap serial rapist happens to be Yang Young Chul. After episode 2, I guess we still have to see him more if we based on the docu of Yoo Young Chul (Raincoat Killer , you can find it on Netflix. My only regret in watching this series is i watched the 3 episodes in one sitting, and i looked for any cartoons to watch on YT after) . It's just tricky here because YYC already committed murder where as Yoo was charged with rape and sentenced to 3 years before he committed his serial killings in 2003. 

 

Jo Kang Moo on the other hand, like other copycat crimes, mimicked the real red cap serial rapist and made his first victim. 

 

Kwon Ilyong designed the main characters of this drama, this is how close the collab of writer Seol Yina , Kwon and Goo Namu (the journalist who cowrote the book ) was . Ilyong also visited the filming site regularly as the overall advisor. So no wonder when he said that he is very delighted on what he witnessed during filming ( he archived his photo with KNG on his IG lol )

 

We would be seeing Yoon Taegu on episode 3, which is one of the involved forensic officers in the YYC case, Ms. Kim Heesook. She was the first woman who was dispatched to the first crime scene in Seoul . 

 

Some details that we i-fans might have missed when watching:

 

The 1-2-3 code used by Kangmoo is referenced with Korean citizen's registration/citizen number. It is found on the 7th digit of their RN, indicating their gender (and what year they were born). It would make sense (and later this will be trivial to future investigations i think) that the print found by Hayoung and Youngsoo was not found in the database, because minors are not yet registered with their RN. Their names are only found on their parent's as dependents. 

 

And another: