Categories: K-dramas

Vincenzo Ends with a Whimper and a Bang in Final Episode 20 and Series Ratings High of 14.636%

There was a lot to take in for the final episode 20 of Vincenzo and as a huge fan I was split in my reaction, the critical side thought it was well done and consistent with the path and message but as the pure drama viewer I didn’t enjoy this finale content. It veered into biblical imagery torture porn territory (dancing with the devil, devoured by birds, etc.) to make a point that felt incongruous with how much this drama has been keeping that fine line between evil ways used to punish even more evil people. But I felt this episode crossed that line and I didn’t enjoy seeing Myung Hee and Joon Woo get their just desserts because ultimately I cared more about the well being of the good guys and this episode took out the bestest good boy at the outset. Han Seo had the best character development arc in the entire drama and actually stole the show in the final few episodes, hopefully Kwak Dong Yeon will FINALLY get his due stardom after this.

After Han Seo died I felt the drama went through the motions, everything Vincenzo did was as he said he would but it couldn’t bring Han Seo back, and unlike the two dead parents I thought Han Seo didn’t need to die for that extra heartbreak. Everyone else made it out alive, though Cha Young was sidelined for the majority of the episode after being shot, and perhaps that was for the best I don’t know how she can be with Vincenzo after watching the torture to death he devised for Myung Hee and Joon Woo. The final ending had Vincenzo back in Italy with a side spot in Malta, and perhaps he and Cha Young can have a future with only a few months out of the year to be together. Theirs touched me more for the meeting of the minds and personalities, it wasn’t a romance to write home about in terms of sizzle. In the end I thought Vincenzo the middle 16 episodes were so strong this drama is a major win still despite the choppy beginning and rather unsatisfying ending. It also marks a true comeback win for Song Joong Ki, proving naysayers wrong and finding a new career high that didn’t need the hype of a Kim Eun Sook project or the extra buzz from a real world romance.

ockoala

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  • There's no happy romance ending, like wedding and a baby. Hehehe .
    I guess there's no grey area, black is black, white is white.
    Am satisfied with the ending.

  • I love the ending. I love that it's brutal. There is self-righteous hypocrisy from beginning to end, but what do we expect from a mafia? Guess my lack of deep understanding of religion made me see the tortures in a different light. Myung Hee and Han Seok's death were so in line with their characters' triumphs. Myung Hee celebrates her wins with Zumba, and it's just fitting that she dies in her own victory song. Han Seok fed to the crows. "Raise crows and they will pick your eyes out", and it was Han Seo who was responsible for his demise.

    And speaking of Han Seo, at first I thought killing him off was too much. He was THE BEST CHARACTER IN THE SHOW (and Kwak Dong Yeon played him oh so well I'm now a full pledged fan). Though I didn't like the execution, of how Vincenzo suddenly became useless in a fight, but Han Seo dying a courageous man is the most poetic way of sending him off.

    Kwak Dong Yeon, off to bigger, better projects now mi dongsaeng! This noona will cheer you from here on! ?

    Vincenzo stayed true to his dark roots, and I love that there was no unnecessary character growth, change of heart kind of shtick that happened to him. He's evil. He is guided by some dubious virtue but that's him. And that was story is about.

    Vincenzo may not be a perfect show. But it provided some of the best fight scenes choreographies, musical score, casting, and cinematography in recent KDrama history. This show is one for the books!

    Goodbye, show. Taxi Driver will have my full attention now.

    • Just to add. Taecyeon. He wasn't the strongest actor in the cast. He was serviceable in majority of the show's run. But that ending. Dude gave his best and delivered! Kudos Taec!

      I don't thonk Joong Ki needs any more validation with how good he is. Haha. It was a'right. ??

      • Their punishment fits their crime..since they backstab, play with other people's lives and wouldn't be bothered to have a heart for their victims

      • For real, Taecyeon's tear drop and scared sh**less expression, that was the kind of acting I was waiting for!!

      • Agree, finally he did improve in his acting!
        Hope he continues to chuck away his wooden acting.

  • The revelation in this show was Jeon Yeon Been for me. She killed it as Hong Cha Young, who is now my favorite kdrama female lead. She has enormous acting range.

    • Word! I will be on the lookout for her works in the future. It's a pity that her character totally got sidelined in the latter half of the drama.

      • If you havent already discovered, I recommend Be Melodramatic! Her character (&the whole drama really) is just a different level of wholesomeness (to me at least) that I wish to see more of in the kdrama sphere :D

    • agree, Jeon Yeon Bin is awsome, and even outshining Song Joong Ki at times. Her character has more meat to it than Vincenzo's char might be help. And man, Can She KISS? I think the last kiss scene It's One of best SOng Joong Ki on screen kiss

  • I say... I don't even know now whether to start this drama. I knew it was intense and didn't have the mood for something intense. But I am now free- but is it worth watching? Just for the storyline I mean. I don't particularly know most of the cast.

  • i love the ending. its somewhat realistic to the theme of evil fighting evil so i know it will be brutal and inhumane the way that two evil villains will end coz thats just how evil punish who they want to be punish. i have no complain except for the gold. who gets how many and how did they spend it or keep it.

  • Agree that Han Seo has the best char development on the show. I think the char Han Seo, coupled with Kwak Dong Yeon's acting talent outshined all the other characters in the drama, which were for the most part 1-dimensional, or 2-dimensional at best compared to Han Seo's character. The script made Song Joong Ki's character too cool that to me, the character sometimes came across as robotic. The first few minutes of EP20 were a head-scratcher - Vincenzo is used to guns and fighting for his life - he could have helped Han Seo tackle his evil brother, get the gun away from him and ensure that all 3 of them are safe, instead of tending to Cha Young first. I mean, it was out of character, but it did make Han Seo shine. Taecyon's final scene was artistically executed, so his character kinda left a strong mark as well. If I were to be honest, EP20 did nothing for Vincenzo's character development, it could have been written some other way to make his character shine better and shine the most. That said, although I found some episodes repetitive and pressed the fast forward button in some parts, overall, I liked this drama and happy for SJK, JYB and KDY and the talented supporting characters. I'm sure this will lead to better, bigger projects for them in the future.

  • I don't think that killings were too much. During all the drama, Vincenzo was clear that a simple death wasn't enough for monsters like them. If they didn't show it, it would have been the easy way but kinda hypocrite. They made the ML as a mafia and they assumed this fact till the end, I like constancy in a drama (so rare).

    I wasn't surprised by Kwak Dong Yeon, whom I love since Puberty Medley, neither by Jeon Yeon Bin whom I love since Be Melodramatic. I was so happy to see them in a new drama. Song Joong Ki was great, he mastered the charming and dangerous sides of his character and made me forget the awful Arthadal Chronicles.

    In a general way, I was kinda disapointed to not speak Korean because the writing was top notch and I think I missed a lot of pun words or easter eggs.

  • On the contrary, I like that there was no whitewashing of Vincenzo character. I enjoyed immensely the fact that his character stayed true to his setup as a person who climbed his way up in a brutal environment of mafia life. A clean death is too cheap for some villains. It's refreshing to watch a drama that showcase this idea and proudly revel in this concept.

  • IMO, the chemistry between Song Joong Ki and Jeon Yeon Been was INSANE. Their chemistry single-handedly made me sit up and get invested with the romance.

    Despite it being a frustratingly slow burn and not the center of the drama, Vincenzo and Hong Cha Young had the most moving romance I've seen in any Kdrama, including proper romance dramas.!

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