Evasive Inquiry Agency (2007)

Evasive Inquiry Agency
얼렁뚱땅 흥신소 / Mixed-Up Investigative Agency
(Oct – Nov 2007)

who’s in it
Lee MinKi (Dal Ja's Spring, Really, Really Like You)
Ye JiWon
Ryu SeungSoo (Thank You, 200 Pound Beauty – film)
Lee EunSong

what’s it about
Not your conventional kdrama and when I say that, I really mean it. Four people spend sixteen episodes trying to solve the mystery of some gold leaf bars hidden in the wall of their work and residence, and the dead body that accompanies it. On top of that, there’s hardly any romance to speak of, which is downright unheard of in a kdrama.

commitment 
16 Episodes

network
KBS2

wildcard factor
No romance. A comedy, but not a romantic comedy. If the development of loooove is your favorite part of watching these things, this might be a stumbling block to your enjoyment.

after the first episode
I thought: man, this is an odd kdrama. Interesting…palatable…but strange. I kinda like it!

gave up

snoozer moments
There were naturally other parties investigating the gold leaf bars as well. They were necessary to the story but I wanted to spend all my time with our leads.

soju-guzzling
More like jajangmyun-guzzling (black bean noodles). They sure ate a lot of the stuff.

what didn’t work
The lack of romance didn’t hurt the show or the story, and actually probably made it all the more realistic (as much as a gold leaf bar mystery could be realistic), but I don’t think it would have harmed to have added a little more of it either, just to help the viewer grasp onto more than just the mystery.

what did
The truly ensemble cast was great.

what made me want to gouge my eyes out
n/a

what kept me going
The mystery of the gold leaf bars, of course.
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Other factors:
predictability Not at all
engrish No
originality Yes
eye-candy Lee MinKi is a cutie—pie, albeit a way too skinny one
hair and fashion n/a
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is it worth trying to find?
Yes

total enjoyment factor 
8/10

total disdain factor

why this review is completely biased
It was so original that I had to like it. This would be as close to an “indie drama” as we’re ever likely to get, if the term “indie drama” could ever be real. Though, come to think of it, Someday had a similar vibe. They just defy the usual tone of their genre.

could a non-kdrama fan like this
Um…I don’t even know if a kdrama fan would like this. It’s truly oddball.

verdict
The story didn’t center around a love story and that may turn off a few viewers because the honest truth is, there’s usually a formula followed in dramas and a great lot of us do watch them for the romance factor, but as far as interesting goes, Evasive was better than most kdramas that do air. That’s a fact. Definitely worth giving a try. If you can’t love these four people, then you may want to consider going to the wizard to ask for a heart.