That’s right, my friends, I just could not ignore the tremendous amount of buzz surrounding this show, and finally sat down to watch it.

Do I think that it’s the most amazing thing, evar?  Well, no, but then I’m also not part of Show’s target (I assume) tween audience.

Did I have a fun enough time, though, that I don’t regret the investment of my drama hours?

Yes. And that definitely counts for something, right? 😁

WHAT IT’S ABOUT

Huntrix, a kpop girl group by day whose music has the power to protect humankind from demons, suddenly finds themselves up against a cute boy group, who’re really demons in disguise.

MANAGING EXPECTATIONS / THE VIEWING LENS

Here are a few things that I think would be helpful to keep in mind, to maximize your enjoyment of your watch:

1. This is not a romance

Yes, there are some beats that are romance-flavored, but romance isn’t the point of this story, and I think it’s helpful to adjust your expectations around that.

2. Think broad strokes

Because Show is a short little movie, I find that, more often than not, it has to be economical.

So don’t expect a lot of backstory for our characters, nor a lot of detail, around how the mythology of this story world works.

I think rolling with what Show serves up, would give you a better watch experience, than trying to make sense of every detail.

STUFF I LIKED

1. The premise is fun

It sorta reminds me of Buffy the Vampire Slayer – except with kpop, and demons instead of vampires.

2. The music is catchy

Unlike many other viewers who’ve fallen in love with this music in this show, none of the tracks have become earworms for me, but I definitely found the music catchy, and a plus point of my watch.

Extra points for smart lyrics that were clearly written for this specific story.

3. The way Show mirrors the kpop experience

My kpop experience is very limited (I only became an actual fan of a group – 2PM! – very late 😅), but my observations from the sidelines, of the entire kpop experience, felt very well demonstrated, in this show – and I found that fun.

4. The way Show includes kdrama tropes

My experience with kdramas is a lot wider and deeper than my experience with kpop, and I had fun with all the little nods to kdrama tropes, like the magical hypnotic power of abs, ha. 🤭

5. The unexpected spots of funny

Honestly, I hadn’t had any real expectations that Show would be funny, but I gotta say, I found myself pleasantly surprised by an involuntary chuckle, more than a few times.

That’s pretty darn good, in my books. 😁

6. The derpy tiger [MINOR SPOILER]

I developed an unexpected soft spot for the magical derpy tiger that Rumi meets; it’s so awkwardly cute, and I love how he keeps trying to right things that he’s knocked over – or are just knocked over, in general.

He’s just so slowly, clumsily earnest, and I luff him. 😍

Honestly, I think that the inclusion and treatment of the tiger and his crow friend, was pretty genius; now I kinda want the tiger to have his own show. 😁

For some cultural insight into the tiger, check out the video that I embedded at the end of this review.

STUFF THAT WAS OK

Show’s very selective characterization

I mentioned earlier, that because of its short runtime, it’s understandable that Show would prioritize some things over others.

However, I will say that I found it rather odd, that we never learn much about the other Saja Boys, aside from Jinu (voiced by Ahn Hyo Seop).

All we get is a very quick rundown of their names, in a variety show scene, and then.. nothing.

We don’t know whether these boys had ever been humans, or had been born demons; we don’t know anything about their personalities; literally, we know nothing about them.

I thought that was kind of odd, because even with the Huntrix girls, we get a flavor for the personalities of Mira and Zoey, even though the story focus is heavily on Rumi.

I found this rather imbalanced, from a viewer standpoint.

THOUGHTS ON THE STORY & ENDING [SPOILERS]

Overall, I found myself having a fun, boppy kind of time with this movie, with its zippy pace, its knowing portrayal of the kpop experience, and the various nods to drama tropes, like the almost meet-cute between Rumi and Jinu, where the theme song from A Business Proposal (review here!) plays.

It’s really all fun and games – until Show starts to delve into more difficult territory, like Rumi’s secret about being half-demon, and Jinu’s debilitating guilt over how he’d forsaken his family, when he’d been human.

I think this is the part where it gets tricky, because I feel like these ideas could go in so many different directions, which means that viewers would likely have many different expectations, around what Show would do, and what would constitute a satisfying ending.

For example, the agreement between Rumi and Jinu is that he would help her to create the golden Honmoon, which would then seal him and the other Saja Boys on earth, away from Gwi Ma (voiced by Lee Byung Hun).

It’s presented with a great deal of hope, and we even get Rumi and Jinu singing a duet about potentially being free, after facing everything.

I think this would lead many viewers to hope and expect for this to eventually happen, even though Gwi Ma reminds Jinu of how he’d abandoned his family, and causes Jinu to sink into a cloud of self-condemnation.

In the end, though, Jinu’s sacrifices himself, to help Rumi overcome Gwi Ma, and that is a very different sort of ending than the one that viewers might have envisioned.

As a silver lining, though, we do get Jinu assure Rumi that she had set him free, by giving him his soul back, which he now gives to Rumi, which somehow enables her and her fellow hunters, to suddenly gain a lot of power, to fight all the demons, including the other Saja Boys.

..Which might beg the question of why Jinu had been worth saving, but not the other Saja Boys, who get sliced down by our trio of Hunters – which is why I say that it’s helpful to just roll with everything and not question it too much.

Out of the various messages that Show could have chosen to leave us with, I think the one that this ending gives us, is the idea that we don’t have to be defined by our past, whether it’s a birth secret, or guilt over something that we’ve done.

Either way, it’s never too late to choose self-acceptance, nor to choose good instead of evil, which, together, is the path that leads to freedom and empowerment.

That’s what both Rumi and Jinu choose, which ultimately gives us an ending where the world is saved from having every soul being eaten by demons (though the ones that were already eaten don’t seem to come back), and peace reigns, once again.

Not a bad takeaway, for a zippy little animated movie, yes?

THE FINAL VERDICT:

Fun for a whirl, with nuggets of meaning as a bonus.

FINAL GRADE: B+

TRAILER:

MV:

KOREAN LANGUAGE & CULTURE INSIGHTS:

PATREON!

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