bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Pierce Conran

This article contains spoilers.
3/5 stars
Lead cast: Cho Jin-woong, Yoo Jae-myung, Kim Mu-yeol, Yum Jung-ah, Lee Kwang-soo
With its rotating roster of characters and dizzying series of twists, the creators of No Way Out: The Roulette could never be accused of taking the easy way out.


However, breathless though this punchy crime thriller undoubtedly is, the failure to follow through on story threads results in diminishing returns over the course of its eight episodes.
This began with the show’s introductory conceit, of a masked man compelling people to inflict bodily harm on criminals for financial rewards in videos where he spins a customised roulette wheel. Yoon Chang-jae (Lee Kwang-soo, Live), the first target, has his ear sliced off by someone who is then paid a billion won (US$758,000).
The plot thickens during the investigation when the attacker accidentally dies while being chased by cash-strapped Detective Baek Joong-sik (Cho Jin-woong, Signal), who finds the money and stashes it away for himself.
Things kick into high gear when the masked man spins his roulette wheel again. This time, the needle drops on the name of notorious rapist and murderer Kim Guk-ho (Yoo Jae-myung, Itaewon Class), who is about to be released from jail. The prize money is now 20 billion won and anyone who wants to claim it must kill Guk-ho.

In the pandemonium that ensues, Joong-sik is assigned to Guk-ho’s protective detail, an assignment that no one on the force is keen to take on. While dealing with the shifty Guk-ho’s demands and hiding his new-found fortune from his colleagues, Joong-sik is soon tracked down by Chang-jae, who believes that the money rightfully belongs to him.
Following this exciting opening flurry, No Way Out: The Roulette expands its scope to include a number of other characters who come crawling out of the woodwork thanks to Guk-ho’s headline-grabbing infamy.
These include the hotshot lawyer Lee Sang-bong (Kim Mu-yeol, Sweet Home season 2), who offers his services to Guk-ho; local mayor Myeong-ja (Yum Jung-ah, Sky Castle), who sees an opportunity to boost her poll numbers before a coming election; and the assassin known as Mr Smile (Taiwanese actor Greg Hsu Kuang-han).
Each larger than life than the last, these characters chew up the screen while they are on it but do not have a lasting impact on the story and leave it as abruptly as they entered it.

Also stepping into the spotlight, but more anchored to the story, are Guk-ho’s conflicted son Seo Dong-ha (Sung Yoo-bin, Mr. Sunshine) and Sung Joon-woo (Kim Sung-cheol, Sweet Home), the handsome but suspicious pastor of a church.
Dong-ha is a promising young violinist who has an opportunity to study abroad, but the presence of his father and the effect it has on his poor mother prevents him from boarding the plane with a clear conscience.
As a not-quite corrupted youth, Dong-ha offers a refreshing contrast to the other amoral or villainous characters in the show.
When evidence appears linking the masked man to Joon-woo’s church, it is immediately obvious that he must be the man behind the mask. It is so telegraphed that you would be forgiven for expecting it to be a red herring, but this show moves a little too quickly for that kind of narrative subterfuge.
Joon-woo has a dark backstory and his twisted game turns out to be an elaborate act of revenge. Cackling and sneering like a madman when not pretending to be a good Christian in front of his congregation, his character leaves much to be desired.

Although never less than engaging and always easy to follow, thanks to a strong sense of spacing and the clear and crafty direction of filmmaker Choi Kook-hee (Default), in the end, No Way Out: The Roulette is not able to live up to its early promise.
The narrative is dynamic but lacks surprise, and the characters are largely performative caricatures. One or the other could be overcome, but not both, and the series steadily sinks under the weight of its superficial busyness.
Furthermore, some of the best elements, such as the vivacious constable Park Eun-jeong (Oh Woo-ri, A Killer Paradox), who aids Joong-sik in his investigation, are carelessly cast aside when the show would have benefited from lifting them up.
As with many recent Korean streaming series, No Way Out: The Roulette makes a big effort to set up a second season, which as yet has not been confirmed.

No Way Out: The Roulette is streaming on Disney+.


Netflix K-drama The Price of Confession review: Jeon Do-yeon, Kim Go-eun in prestige pulp

K-drama Taxi Driver 3: Lee Je-hoon and company kick new season off in style in Japan

Netflix K-drama Dynamite Kiss: Ahn Eun-jin, Jang Ki-yong up the heat in Cinderella romance

K-drama Moon River: Kang Tae-oh, Kim Se-jeong navigate meandering period romantic comedy

Korean drama reviews

Disney+ K-drama No Way Out: The Roulette review – crime thriller is digestible but light

Cho Jin-woong as Detective Baek Joong-sik in a still from No Way Out: The Roulette, which is engaging but becomes bogged down by the weight of its own story. Yoo Jae-myung, Kim Mu-yeol, Yum Jung-ah, and Lee Kwang-soo co-star. Photo: Disney+

Yoo Jae-myung as rapist and murderer Kim Guk-ho in a still from No Way Out: The Roulette. Photo: Disney+

Greg Hsu as assassin Mr Smile in a still from No Way Out: The Roulette. Photo: Disney+

Yum Jung-ah as local mayor Myeong-ja in a still from No Way Out: The Roulette. Photo: Disney+

Cho Jin-woong as Detective Baek Joong-sik in a still from No Way Out: The Roulette. Photo: Disney+

14 of the best new K-dramas to watch in August 2024, including Disney+’s The Tyrant

Kim Seon-ho in a still from The Tyrant. Photo: Disney+

Kim Seon-ho in a still from The Tyrant on Disney+, one of 14 Korean drama series dropping in August. They include season two of Pachinko, romantic comedy Love Next Door starring Jung So-min and Jung Hae-in, and Jeon Jong-soo in period drama Queen Woo. Photo: Disney+

A promotional poster for Black Out.

Mine actress Lee Bo-young offered lead in Mary Kills People, and more K-drama casting news

Lee Bo-young in a still from Mine. She is being eyed for K-drama Mary Kills People. Photo: Netflix

Kim Seon-ho in a still from The Tyrant. He could join Bae Suzy in vampire-themed K-drama Delusion. Lee Jae-wook, Choi Sung-eun and Kang Ki-young among other names in our round-up of the latest Korean drama casting news. Photo: Disney+

Han So-hee in a still from My Name. Photo: Netflix

Choi Soo-young in a still from If You Wish Upon Me.

Lee Jae-wook in a still from The Impossible Heir. Photo: Disney+

Lee Bo-young in a still from Mine. She may take the lead role in a drama series called Mary Kills People.

Netflix K-drama The Frog review: stylish mystery favours philosophy over reason

Go Min-si as the mysterious Yoo Sung-a in a still from The Frog, a Netflix original K-drama thriller series that also stars Kim Yoon-seok, Yoon Kye-sang and Lee Jung-eun. Photo: Netflix

Yoon Kye-sang as Koo Sang-joon, the proprietor of a rural holiday home where 20 years ago a woman is found dead, in a still from The Frog. Photo: Netflix

Kim Yoon-seok as Jeong Young-ha, proprietor of a rural Korean holiday home in the present day, in a still from The Frog. Photo: Netflix

Lee Jung-eun in a still from The Frog. Photo: Netflix

Go Min-si as the mysterious Yoo Sung-a in a still from The Frog. Photo: Netflix

Netflix K-drama Love Next Door: Jung Hae-in, Jung So-min in colourful healing romcom

Jung So-min (left) and Jung Hae-in in a still from Love Next Door.

Jung So-min (left) and Jung Hae-in as childhood friends Baek Seok-ryu and Choi Seung-hyo in a still from Love Next Door, a new Korean drama on Netflix.

Jung So-min as Korea-returnee Baek Seok-ryu in a still from Love Next Door.

Jung Hae-in as architect Choi Seung-hyo in a still from Love Next Door.

Jung So-min in a still from Love Next Door.

Jung Hae-in in a still from Love Next Door.

K-drama DNA Lover: Jung In-sun, Choi Si-won lead tacky and mawkish romcom

Jung In-sun as geneticist Han So-jin in a still from K-drama DNA Lover, currently streaming on Viu. K-pop star Choi Si-won co-stars.

K-pop star Choi Si-won as Shim Yeon-woo in a still from DNA Lover.

Choi Si-won (left) as Shim Yeon-woo and Jung In-sun as Han So-jin in a still from DNA Lover.

Jung In-sun as So-jin in a still from DNA Lover.

Choi Si-won as Yeon-woo in a still from DNA Lover.

Lifestyle

K-drama

Entertainment

Culture

Film & TV

K-Pop

While the show started off strong, it is bogged down with hammy characters and a plot so superficial that it flounders under its own weight


Although engaging, an overabundance of hammy characters and a superficial, twisty narrative means the series steadily sinks under the weight of its own story. Will we see a season two?


K-drama news

What's hot in Korea

South Korean celebrities

Fame and celebrity

TV shows and streaming video

Disney+

An assessment or critique of a service, product or creative endeavour.  Film reviews, restaurant reviews, reviews of art exhibitions. (Eg. Crazy Rich Asians: an important film, yes, but a good one?)


Review

Review | Disney+ K-drama No Way Out: The Roulette review – crime thriller is digestible but light

While the show started off strong, it is bogged down with hammy characters and a plot so superficial that it flounders under its own weight