appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Pierce Conran

This article contains spoilers.
2.5/5 stars
Lead cast: Park Shin-hye, Kim Jae-young
Latest Nielsen rating: 11.9 per cent
The Judge from Hell is a fun and irreverent legal K-drama about a sassy demon banished to Earth where she must preside over human court cases. It has a few gruesome twists.
In the role of the titular character, Park Shin-hye struts around dressed to the nines, rolling her eyes at exasperated lawyers and judges while clutching her beloved cola cans.


Unfortunately, the fun does not last forever. Park’s demon Justicia, who takes over the body of the human judge Kang Bit-na on Earth shortly after her murder, eventually grows a conscience.
The prospect of an eternal demon with a moral compass may raise eyebrows, but the structure of the story makes the transition acceptable.
Justicia presides over countless cases as Bit-na, where she witnesses the inequities of human society.
Not only does she get a first-hand look at people’s wicked behaviour, but her judicial status also affords her insight into a corrupt legal system which often fails to punish wrongdoers.
Far less convincing than her moral development are her burgeoning feelings for doe-eyed detective Han Da-on (Kim Jae-young).

With his high cheekbones and moral rectitude, the youthful Da-on scarcely cracks a smile throughout the show, spending most of his time staring daggers at Justicia.
He eventually gets under her skin, and while Park does her best to sell this transition, it is hard to understand what she sees in a character who only seems to have one emotion – indignation.
Da-on is not the only character with limited facial expressions. Also in Bit-na’s orbit is her demon assistant Gremory (Kim Ah-young), who is actually Venato – a demon who punishes other demons who exhibit human emotions.
Venato does not display human emotions. The grin etched on her face is only shaken occasionally, by clichéd demonic cackles. She shares these with Paimon (Choi Dae-hoon), a demon who briefly poses as Da-on’s new team captain Jang Mun-jae.
A more effective character is Justicia’s assistant Valak (Kim In-kwon), who provides much of the show’s comic relief.

The Judge in Hell is largely about the humanisation of Justicia, but it attempts to liven up that trajectory with a mysterious but derivative serial killer case.
A murderer known only as J has viciously victimised many, including Da-on’s parents – hence the detective’s perpetually sour mien.
Tragedy strikes again for Da-on when J returns and murders his beloved team captain Kim So-young (Kim Hye-hwa), who took him in as a child.
In typical K-drama fashion, the killer is revealed to be someone connected to both Bit-na and Justicia.
Bit-na used to be engaged to construction firm executive Jung Tae-gyu (Lee Kyu-han), the son of powerful assemblyman Jung Jae-gul (Kim Hong-pa).

In Jae-gul and Tae-kyu’s mansion, Justicia discovers a hidden area where stepping through a magical painting leads to a room adorned with severed limbs belonging to the victims of J.
It is revealed that Tae-kyu killed his father Jae-gul 26 years ago, at which point Satan (played in a cameo by Park Ho-san) showed up to take over the latter’s body.
He promises Tae-kyu power and riches if he will help him with his master plan, which involves collecting body parts. Tae-kyu, who is poor at that point, accepts the deal – and becomes J.
The Judge from Hell joins shows recent shows such as The Impossible Heir and Flex X Cop in vilifying members of the social elite who grew up poor. In these shows, poverty is repeatedly and disturbingly portrayed as a corrupting disease.
The main problem with all the show’s twists and reveals is how anticlimactic they are.
The unmasking and takedown of J do not offer Justicia an opportunity to grow. Instead, they only serve to offer closure for Da-on, without contributing much to his character development, as he is not always involved in the case, even in the finale.

Following J’s arrest, The Judge from Hell unspools for two more episodes, offering a disappointing mix of emotional hesitation and treacly codas, including Justicia’s three-year holiday on Earth.
The show finally bows out with a half-hearted tease at a continuation, when Justicia is offered another deal: kill 10 more sinners in the space of a year in return for becoming human.
The Judge from Hell is streaming on Disney+.


Disney+ K-drama Doctor on the Edge: Lee Jae-wook, Shin Ye-eun lead island medical romcom

K-drama Reborn Rookie: Lee Jun-young’s corporate body-swap fantasy hums with melodrama

HBO Max K-drama Fifties Professionals: Shin Ha-kyun action comedy revisits hits of old

Netflix K-drama The Wonderfools review: Park Eun-bin lifts fun but flawed superhero romp

Korean drama reviews

Disney+ K-drama The Judge from Hell review: Park Shin-hye can’t halt death spiral

Park Shin-hye in a still from The Judge from Hell.

Park Shin-hye as Bit-na, a possessed judge, a still from The Judge from Hell. Despite the Korean actresses spirited performance, the legal K-drama sputters towards an anticlimactic end. 

Kim Young-jae as doe-eyed detective Han Da-on in a still from The Judge from Hell.

Lee Kyu-han as construction firm executive Jung Tae-gyu in a still from The Judge from Hell.

Kim Young-jae as Han Da-on in a still from The Judge from Hell.

11 of the best new K-dramas to watch in November 2024, from Gangnam B-Side to Mr Plankton

Lee You-mi (left) and Woo Do-hwan in a still from Mr Plankton, one of our top Korean drama picks for November 2024. Photo: Jiyeon Kim/Netflix

Yoo Yeon-seok (left) and Chae Soo-bin in a still from When the Phone Rings.

K-drama What Comes After Love review: cross-cultural romance is too slow to be special

Lee Se-young as Korean student Choi Hong in a still from What Comes After Love, a romantic K-drama co-starring Kentaro Sakaguchi.

Kentaro Sakaguchi as Japanese writer Aoki Jungo in a still from What Comes After Love.

Hong Jong-hyun as Choi Hong’s fiancé Song Min-joon in a still from What Comes After Love.

Anna Nakamura as book editor Kanna Kobayashi and Kentaro Sakaguchi in a still from What Comes After Love.

Lee Se-young as Korean student Choi Hong in a still from What Comes After Love.

New K-drama offers for Jang Ki-yong, Shin Hye-sun and Kim Yoo-jung, and more casting news

Jang Ki-yong in a still from The Atypical Family. Jang may return in a romantic drama, in the latest K-drama casting news. Photo: JTBC

Ahn Eun-jin in a still from The Good Bad Mother.

Ahn Bo-hyun in a still from Flex X Cop.

Lee Joo-bin in a still from She Would Never Know.

Shin Hye-sun in a still from Dear Hyeri.

Kim Yoo-jung in a still from Chicken Nugget. Photo: Garage Lab/Netflix

Who is Kim Tae-ri, beloved Korean actress in Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born and Revenant?

Kim Tae-ri in a still from Jeongnyeon: A Star Is Born.

Korean actress Kim Tae-ri, currently on screen in the K-drama series Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born, burst onto the scene in acclaimed 2016 erotic thriller The Handmaiden. Photo: Instagram/kimtaeri_official

Kim Tae-ri in a still from Jeongnyeon: The Star Is Born.

Kim Tae-ri (front) and Kim Min-hee in a still from The Handmaiden (2016).

Kim Tae-ri in a still from 1987: When the Day Comes (2017).

Lee Byung-hun (left) and Kim Tae-ri in a still from Mr. Sunshine (2018). Photo: Hwa&Dam/Netflix

Kim Tae-ri in a still from Revenant (2023). Photo: Disney+

Kim Tae-ri in a still from Alienoid (2022).

Lifestyle

K-drama

Entertainment

Culture

Film & TV

K-Pop

Park Shin-hye’s spirited turn as a demon who develops human feelings is failed by unconvincing characters and inconsequential twists


Park Shin-hye’s spirited turn as a demon who develops human feelings is failed by unconvincing characters and inconsequential twists.


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

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Park Shin-hye’s spirited turn as a demon who develops human feelings is failed by unconvincing characters and inconsequential twists

Park Shin-hye’s spirited turn as a demon who develops human feelings is failed by unconvincing characters and inconsequential twists