KBS2 “Crime Squad” and its Characters

Mar 14, 2011

Song Il Kook is a very versatile actor; he is able to change himself to fit any character. For example, he lost about 33 pounds (15kg) for his character in MBC’s “A Man Called God.” Song Il Kook is also a very serious and precise character – he’s the type who thinks over every answer before responding to a question. However, it was very hard to detect the Song Il Kook we knew and loved at the press conference for his new drama “Crime Squad.” He made the first approached to reporters, cracked jokes with them, and even told them about his experiences with the real crime squad. He was noticeably brighter and bubblier. In the past, Song Il Kook has always played the hero. Here, he has jumped in as the police who uses every means possible to chase after suspects. He also has a dead daughter who is buried deep in his heart. There have been many stubborn yet passionate inspector characters in the past, but Song Il Kook’s character is a bit more complex.

“Crime Squad’s” advantage lies in its diverse characters. While a big case occurs in the first episode, the drama still spent a great deal of time developing its characters. The first episode showed biology teacher-turned-detective Se Hyuk (Song Il Kook) go through the trauma of losing his daughter, as well as shocking.com’s intern reporter Min Ju (Song Ji Hyo) finding out about his mother’s Alzheimer’s disease. There were also scenes where veteran investigator Shin Dong Jin (Kim Joon) goes undercover as a gangster for a stakeout. The overall tone of the story changes from bright to serious depending on the character it follows.

The detectives in “Crime Squad” do not show off. They talk about their suspects with each other, and randomly take bets as to who will get hit. They freely talk about public searches and rewards. While we can’t expect these detectives to be like the dashing and honorable men from American dramas, we can still expect fun interaction between the characters. All the characters have extremely different personalities, making the exchange between them even more dynamic. The relationship between Park Se Hyuk and Jung Il Do (Lee Jong Hyuk) is very complicated. While on pursuit, Il Do accidently kills Se Hyuk’s daughter; and as a result, Se Hyuk quits his job as a teacher and becomes a detective. The two are also involved with Huh Eun Young(Park Sun Young), Se Hyuk’s ex-wife, further complicating their relationships.

“Crime Squad” is also the first Korean drama to be shot with a special camera called the Alexa. Its director Kim Jae Hwan has also directed KBS2’s “Chuno” (2010) using a special camera called the Red One. The Alexa camera allows for more depth and better resolutions. The drama aims to express pursuit scenes and others a little uniquely using this camera.