After a successful businesswoman is framed for a crime she didn’t commit, she takes her own life, leaving behind a daughter who thirsts for revenge. With the help of a wealthy friend, they set out to take down Korea’s corrupt prosecutors and their powerful allies.
Payback: Money and Power consists of 12 episodes. The reason I wanted to watch this series was because of Moon Chae-won, after seeing her in Flower of Evil, one of the best TV series I’ve ever watched. She was brilliant in that series, so I wanted to see if she was as good in Payback: Money and Power. And let’s not forget South Korea’s disturbing habit of ruining lives because of how their society works. After reading a lot about the case of Lee Sun-kyun, I’ve lost all hope in their system. It’s a mess. At least they’ve got good food and some really beautiful women, but it’s sad how the society functions. Rest in peace, Lee Sun-kyun. I hope your country wakes up and grows a spine again after killing you. They had one once, not so long ago—I remember.
I have to say, I was hugely disappointed by Payback: Money and Power. The first episode doesn’t set the standard for what’s to come. After watching it, I thought this would be a more grounded series with a lot of dark undertones. But that all changes when the rich man and the corrupt prosecutor start their war. It’s not just the prosecutor the protagonist has to fight; he’s also up against his former gangster boss, who loves money and, oh yeah, the prosecutor is his son-in-law.
So, we get the usual dose of South Korean corruption with evil prosecutors, greedy gangsters, action scenes, and prison scenes. They throw in all the typical South Korean ingredients, and the result is a disappointing series that feels too familiar if you’ve watched as many South Korean movies as I have.
The biggest problem with this series is that it forgets its own premise. The woman was pressured into taking her life after being framed by corrupt people—the prosecutor and the gangster. I expected an emotional journey, but that’s not what this is. Instead, it’s a series with a twinkle in its eye, where the good guys get hammered by the corrupt people for eight episodes before they finally start fighting back. And then it just gets stupider and stupider. This isn’t a grounded series with a clever script; it’s a dumb entertainment piece that fools you in the early episodes before putting on a clown nose. Oink, oink!
The actors are mostly solid. We have the late Lee Sun-kyun, who is, of course, excellent. The actor playing the corrupt prosecutor is also good, fitting the role perfectly with his snake-like face. I hated his eyes. He reminded me of Voldemort.
And then we have my favorite actress, Moon Chae-won, who is a huge disappointment. It’s not her fault; her character is written to be stiff and dead serious, which doesn’t suit her at all—especially if the last thing you saw her in was Flower of Evil. Whoever wrote her character this way should never be allowed to work in TV or movies again.
For the most part, this is a manly series with real men—except for one idiot who plays the protagonist’s nephew. He’s also a prosecutor, and do you know what he’s wearing? Can you see it? The goddamn idiot is wearing red lipstick. He looks so ridiculous and out of place standing next to real men with real lips and real sausages. And it doesn’t stop there. He’s also incredibly naïve, thinking he’s pure and above corruption, which makes him even more hateable. All while he’s wearing red lipstick and pretending to be a man. And don’t even get me started on his hairstyle!
In the end, Payback: Money and Power wasn’t the series I expected. It’s playful, with a ridiculous story about corruption that just goes way too far. The last three episodes especially are a mess, with characters who should’ve been in jail but somehow aren’t. I recommend skipping Payback: Money and Power. It’s a waste of time, especially if you’re tired of the corruption theme in South Korean movies and TV series. There are definitely better things to watch.