Capolavoro

Earlier this week I mentioned how much I enjoyed Vincenzo, which I almost skipped because I assumed it was a courtroom drama (aka not my thing). There are some court scenes and legal issues throughout the series, but they're very minor. This is a k-drama centered around Vincenzo Cassano (portrayed by Song Joong-ki), a consigliere (Italian Mafia lawyer) who leaves Italy after the death of his mob boss to retrieve a fabulous forgotten treasure hidden in South Korea.

For various reasons Vincenzo ends up protecting and fighting for the people between him and his goal: corporate lawyer Hong Cha-Young (Jeo Yeo-Been) turned justice fighter. and a group of quirky small business owners under seige by a powerful, monstrous psycho CEO (not revealing the actor's name due to spoilers.) Much of the comedy in the series centers around the business owners, some of whom are not what they seem.

Some backstory: Vincenzo, a Korean orphan adopted by an Italian couple, was raised in Italy, and ends up becoming a mob lawyer after his parents are murdered by thugs. The series starts off with a stellar depiction of the title character in his element in Rome, where his Mafia boss has just died. After carrying out his last order in spectacular fashion in the first episode (and this is so good I just fell on the floor while watching it), Vincenzo ends up being targeted by his boss's son.

After turning the tables on that he leaves Italy for South Korea, where he intends to retrieve one and a half tons of gold he hid for a now-deceased Chinese gangster under an old building. This leads to him becoming involved with the building's tenants, especially Hong Yoo-Chan, a defense lawyer who specializes in helping the helpless.

Yoo-Chan's daughter, Hong Cha-Young, is the type of ruthless corporate lawyer who protects the rich and privileged without worrying about moral issues; this causes a deep rift between her and her father. As they butt heads their relationship begins falling apart, something they both regret but are incapable of stopping due to their opposing beliefs. When Vincenzo arrives and allies himself with Yoo-Chan for his own purposes, she's hostile toward him -- but also intrigued.

Vincenzo and Cha-Young's instant enemy dynamic swiftly changes when her most important client -- the psycho CEO -- orders Yoo-Chan killed, and ends up injuring Vincenzo in the process. Suddenly Cha-Young finds herself on the other side of the battlefield with only the Mafia lawyer and a bunch of her father's clients and neighbors. Later on in the series, when she discovers who her most important client really is, this also pours petrol onto the fire.

Vincenzo has no choice but to oppose the psycho CEO in order to get to the hidden gold. Yet as the battle rages on he begins to find other reasons to fight for the people who are actually in his way, and to help Cha-Young get justice for her father. I don't want to say much about the antagonist in this series so I don't spoil the reveal, which is pretty epic. I will say that the actor who played the psycho CEO was incredibly convincing, and a perfect match for Vincenzo's dark ruthlessness. You really feel the escalating tension in every episode.

I've been thinking about how to sum up Vincenzo and Cha-Young as characters: he's like bringing a grenade launcher to a knife fight; she's almost as scary. I think throughout the series I never had doubts about how dark Vincenzo truly is; this despite his charm and ability to relate to the goofiest characters. Song Joong-ki did an incredible job of letting the consigliere aspect of his role show through no matter the situation. Cha-Young is a little more complicated as a character, but just as interesting. I also thought the understated romance between Vincenzo and Cha-Young was realistic and convincing; she is probably the only woman who could accept him for who and what he is. It's a bittersweet situation that made me a little wistful, especially during the last episode.

There is a fair amount of violence and fear in this series, but it all felt appropriate to the story. If you only like heroes who are good guys and never do anything wrong then Vincenzo is definitely not for you. I'll be watching this series again so I can marvel over the actors and their portrayals, especially Song Joong-ki and Jeo Yeon-Been, who are wonderful together. Available on Netflix in the US.