Since 2020, the drama The Penthouse has been an unexpected and extraordinary success and few dramas have been able to conquer the hearts of viewers after that. However, Vincenzo proves the opposite by offering the audience an innovative and captivating story, on the cable channel Tvn. During the broadcast of the latter, the audience had exceeded 10% on all episodes. The broadcast of the drama Vincenzo stopped on May 2 and is now available on Netflix.

A great success for Vincenzo?

The series is directed by Kim Hee-won and is written by Park Jae-bum. It features Song Joong-ki who plays the role of a lawyer and consigliere for the Italian mafia. Back in South Korea, Vincenzo has one goal: to recover as quickly as possible the gold bars that one of his customers (deceased) has hidden under a building in the capital. But very quickly, he understands that things will not go as he wishes. It will be embroiled in the corruption stories of the Korean government and big corporations that have power. All techniques will be good to finish these stories and to achieve its initial goal. After seeing Song Joong-Ki in Descendant of the Sun, where he played an important role in his career and one of his best roles, seeing him play an Italian-Korean mobster is a revival. The role suits him well and the development of his character is pleasant to watch. There are some similarities between these two roles, they have a certain charisma and a natural presence. On the one hand, he is a high-ranking military officer who handles all situations perfectly and on the other, he is an Italian-Korean consigliere and mafioso who finds a solution to all problems. Although the story focuses mainly on Vincenzo and Hong Cha-Young, the heroine of the k-drama, the series introduces us to the secondary characters and reveals more and more their personal lives throughout the episodes. Despite the heavy plot, the many characters do not fail to amuse viewers throughout the episodes. The series takes on a humorous, dramatic and slightly romantic tone. This brings a certain shift to the atmosphere posed at the beginning of the drama. During the first episodes, we need some time to adapt in order to understand the context and the real plot of the series. Vincenzo doesn't really respect the codes of Korean drama. You have to hang on for two, three episodes to get into the dynamics of k-drama. Although the story does not start immediately, Vincenzo has distinguished himself from other dramas broadcast at the same time and quickly placed himself number 1 in the South Korean audience. (TOP 10 popular dramas airing the 3rd week of April 1 – vincenzo)

Breaking standards can be good

Compared to other rather standard dramas, the directors took risks by killing off some characters already well introduced to the story. In addition, the series is shot in such a way that Vincenzo Cassano manages to keep an image of "nice" and this, despite the many murders to his credit, using the past of the character and giving a logical aspect to his actions. We can observe a development in each of the characters, whether they are good or bad. It's interesting to see the protagonists change as a result of events, to see them befriend or develop feelings for each other. The role of Jang Joon-Woo, presented as the anti-hero of the story, leaves us perplexed. This character is supposed to bring tension and fear. However, over the episodes, we understand that he acts mostly in anger and does not really develop a counterattack plan. It is quite confusing all the more so that he manages to respond to the exchanges of the hero Vincenzo thanks to the place he occupies in society. Despite this, thanks to the role of the anti-hero, the character Jang Hae-seo is highlighted and is better appreciated in the eyes of the public. We can see him grow around different characters and obstacles and appreciate (or not) his evolution. On several occasions, the characters and Vincenzo refer to the history of France especially with the comparison of a scene with the famous painting Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix. The director also makes a small nod to the dramas Itaewoon Class and Crash Landing on you with subtle and intelligent references. Vincenzo refers to Crash landing on you, using the actor who plays in both dramas. As for Itaewon Class, the drama refers to the humorous characteristics of Park Saeroryi, the main character of Itaewon Class.