Categories: K-dramas

Vagabond Rises in Ratings and Barrels Ahead with Action and Still No Character Development

My growing frustration with SBS Fri-Sat drama Vagabond is that it could be so much better. There is a compelling conspiracy and tight action sequences, but the writing is in all CAPS with no subtlety or depth because everything still goes a mile a minute. I’m exhausted watching, without the pauses there is no time to absorb what is happening before the next twist and mostly because there is zero character development. Male lead Lee Seung Gi remains the unkillable action hero who misses his dead nephew and wants revenge while Suzy is just a plot device to move things along beside him. Ratings for episode 5 rose to 7.4%, 8.9%, and 11.5% which is great and this drama remains an entertaining watch for weekend nights but without digging deeper it’ll miss out on a chance to be more than just good.

ockoala

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  • Watching LSG running and bashing anyone in his way is exhausting and I need to pause and get my bearings again and then pick up but so far so good. I got no complaints I’m in for the ride and it is a good yarn. That said I’m happy as with the flow and seeing SSR and HBR do their bit and Suzy too. ?

  • I like the side characters more..like Ki Tae Woong, Hwang Bora, KTW's team. Dalgun needs to stop running and shouting. He has heart but he doesn't take the time to think about anything. With that said, I do think his recklessness drives the drama.

    Give me more Ki Tae Woong. I like his calmness.

  • It is a flop in ratings considering ita budget . Delusinal fans like marie can keep saying otherwise.
    @Marie u were saying suzie is top movie actress? From what angle? Her last movie was super flop amd finally she lands a useless role in lee byung hun and ha jung woo movie where she will have nothing to do. Ur claims of director lining up for her falls flat there bcoz if they were intersted she couldve got some decent role in 5 yrs and her 4th movie with pbg n cws who is movie star. 4 movies in ten years dont make someone movie star when one is flop . One was sold in han ga i name who had great 2012 and the one has lee byung hum where she has nthng to do. Suzy is not even D list in movie industry and now with flop drama she proved she cant bring ratings as well when her drmaa is averaging just in rnage of 8% in free public channel considering the budget.
    Yes i know she is cf popular but this year even iu has overtaken her in drama world where she carried a sjow without big male lead n cf deals.
    In movie world i dont need to bring top veteran movie actresses. Likes of kim tae ri kim go eun ( who also has big drama cmng up next yr ) r already top movie acclaimed actresses. With great movies. Kim tae ri is alredy signing for big alien movie. So ur theroies of directors dying to work with suzy falls flat. Suzy isnt even hit movie actress. She is flop movie actress and got a role after 5 years . A showpiece
    Yes now keep saying about her popularity and how she lands best script. I dont know what best scripts? She has nthng to do in vagabond and it is flopping. Her movies roles r nthng to write about. She is nothing in movie industry
    And yes u can keep talking abput cfs. Only thing u suzy fans can boast about as ber acting has nhng to write about. Flop movie actress. Noe flop drama actress too

    • You're obsessed with me aren't you? When did I talk about her being a top movie actress? Maybe if she chose to do more movies, but she is quite selective when taking on projects because she can be. She rarely does movies and is mostly into dramas, where it it TRUE that she gets offered the best projects and co-stars due to her top star status. And i don't know why people keep bringing in IU and Yoona here when the only reason their projects did well is because of good writer/director and popular male leads.. "carried the show" my a*s. Also, Vagabond is doing better than it's predecessor, Doctor John, despite having top actor and ratings draw, Jisung, so how is it flop? hahahaha

  • For soapy and weepy character development, please watch gu family book. The industry has yet to find a formula to kill its main character over and over again while showing off big bads with big actions and blasts, therefore unkillable is necessary. This series is putting high standard action on the plate for the limited Korean-make genre. It's almost like a tribute to stunt artists. So I'm surprised by comments saying they are disappointed by its seeming lack of, there is obvious fixation on the textbook and standard storylines that has to be believable, characters relatable, random tear jerking with final plot twist awwww ever since Sixth sense.. VG did make efforts to tear jerk with very quick handouts. Action thriller in fact is an acquired taste. I'd think this series is a gem that adds to production's resume. And it's not easy to get notable artists to spend time train for and do their own stunts and fist fights. VG turns out to have enough nice subtle touches throughout, while main character continues his bulldoze-ing which for those looking for character development, hasn't realised Lsg character's strength, caliber and persistence has already made us believers that he will stay true to his fight for justice till the end. That is character development.

    • Agree. I don't understand the people who can not appreciate the hard working of LSG to show the character of dalgun, and how suzy showed us a low performance of haeri, the nis agency

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