‘Trolley’ Season 1 Review: The Truth Always Comes to Light

It is almost the end of the year, but that doesn’t stop Netflix or, indeed, South Korea from pumping out more and more content. Korean shows have really taken off in the last couple of years, and outside their country of origin, Netflix has become the home of many of the most successful K-dramas in the international market. Trolley, a new dark drama series, is just the newest entry in Netflix’s Korean offerings, and it brings with it a ton of mystery and very peculiar family dynamics.

Trolley is a TV series developed by SBS TV and distributed by Netflix to the international market. The series stars Kim Hyun-joo, and Park Hee-soon. It tells the story of a married couple who are very much in their own world. She has her own business as a restorer of old books, while he is a member of the National Assembly. They seem very much in love, but it is clear that there is more than meets the eye and that there is a serious secret in the middle of them all.

Trolley, follows the classic structure of most Korean dramas nowadays, especially those that want, above all, to build a mystery that can drag audiences from beginning to end. Sadly, for a series that will run for 16 episodes, the mystery presented here might not be the most compelling ever presented on a TV show. The mystery feels very much like one that will not have an answer satisfactory enough to actually surprise us. A mystery that loses steam quickly can only recover from this by presenting compelling characters.

So, while Trolley might not have the most compelling of mysteries, it balances things out by presenting a very compelling cast of characters, and those dynamics will be the ones that really make the show an interesting watch. Our main characters are surrounded by mystery, but you can see and feel that they are trying to be good people, even under the most terrible of circumstances. This is wonderful because even when the story goes to dark places, the characters are still easy to root for.

Or at least, it will give you pause knowing that these people can be both good and terrible at the same time. It is pretty boring to follow characters that are just one thing and don’t have anyone to contrast their behavior with. Here, the writers have managed to create a cast of characters that very much feel designed to create drama through their interactions. This is what we want, and it is great to see a show that knows that the characters and not the answers to some questions raised by the plot will be what drives audiences to watch every episode.

The direction is pretty good, and it reminds you of some of the best crime dramas in South Korean cinema, of which there are many. Writer Ryu Bo-ri, and director, Kim Mun-Kyo know how to take the time to introduce the characters in their natural habitat. And from there, dismantling their zone of comfort and making them do things they and we didn’t think they could do. Pacing is very important in every story, and here, the pacing feels slow and calculated and interrupted every once in a while with an explosion of emotion and even violence.

Kim Hyun-joo is a very famous actress, and she has already proven in many other shows and films that she can carry a story all by herself. Here, she is at the center of the drama and the mystery. You will really want to know what her character is hiding. Not only because you want answers to the mystery. But because the character she is building here is so interesting, and with so many little and particular idiosyncrasies, you just want to know how she became the person she is.

Park Hee-soon is equally powerful in his role, but the character falls into more familiar territory. This is not bad, but there is definitely something more appealing in Hyun-joo’s character. At least at the beginning. Hee-soon’s character also goes through some major changes throughout the show. It is very powerful to see his stone-cold façade falling down under the pressure of what is happening to her family and what is happening in his work life as a member of the National Assembly.

The writing is very solemn, and some parts of the plot need a couple of rewatches to actually sink in. The creators have sometimes opted to be quite confusing in the way they display information. This helps keep the mystery alive, but it also might feel frustrating in the long run. Is the mystery going to be powerful because there is an actual mystery to solve or because the show is confusing in the way that it delivers the information? These are two different things, and sometimes it feels like the show chooses to be the latter.

In the end, Trolley proves that South Korea is really miles away from any other Asian country when it comes to delivering quality TV content. Netflix has really found one of the best providers in the business, which will surely keep us watching their mysterious and dramatic stories for a lot more time. The acting is great, and while the mystery seems off and some information delivery seems confusing, the core of the story seems compelling enough to warrant an entire watch.

SCORE: 7/10