A Love to Kill is a 2005 Korean melodrama that starts off with a poorly directed and convoluted 1st episode, and that's just the beginning of its problems. I don't want to bash this show too hard, as I want to try to be objective, and the series does have a few good things going for it; It's an interesting premise to base a show on, and I appreciated its attempt to try to convey a more darkly themed love story compared to the norm for KTV melodramas. There are several solid romantic and dramatic moments, and many sad ones, throughout, but you'll have to wade through a considerable amount of filler and nonsense to get to them. Ultimately, there are just too many issues that affect this show for it to be considered one of the better Korean melodramas.
SPOILERS AHEAD!
So, where did it go wrong?...I'll tell you: The primary problem with this show is that it simply can't sustain its 20 episode length. I frequently complain about Asian productions being way lengthier than they need be, but this series might be the most egregious offender of this issue that I've ever seen. As a result, its pacing is often incredibly sloooowwww! This is a constant and reoccurring problem that effects this show on every level; several episodes don't progress the story at all, plot lines seem to drag along indefinitely, etc. This issue even manifests itself in many individual scenes; someone will say or do something and a good 10 seconds or so will go by before the other party responds, characters frequently reminisce or stare off into the distance for an interminable amount of time, etc. This all becomes excruciating to bear with as the series plays out, and I frequently found myself begging for something/anything to happen, or for someone to do or say something, in order to get this show moving along at a more expedient pace. I understand this is supposed to be a "slow burn" dramatic tale, but that's no excuse for it to be a tedious and boring watch (which it often is).
The premise of this revenge/love story is intriguing, but could they not think of a better way to implement it?...Essentially, this story involves a male lead character who wants to get revenge for his older brother's suicide (which he blames on the actress his older brother was in love with). Let's set aside the fact that any reasonable person would realize that this is not the fault of the actress, and just assume that the younger brother is filled with blind compassion and rage for his beloved brother. The only problem with this is that he hasn't seen his brother in over a decade, and he barely seems to know or care about him at all, so, it's rather unbelievable that he would be completely consumed with avenging him all of a sudden (despite how this show tries to explain to you why he is, via flashbacks to when they were younger).
In order to exact his revenge, the lead character decides to get close to the actress by becoming her personal bodyguard. Why not just walk up to her and say "Hi, I'm the younger brother of the guy you loved, and he's had a very bad accident, can we discuss the situation?" He could have easily gotten close to her that way, instead of using this absurdly contrived bodyguard plot. Nevertheless, he somehow manages to become her bodyguard; I guess background checks were not a requirement, since the people who hired him have no problem with the fact that he has no experience, don't bother to make a simple inquiry to discover he was the brother of the guy they were trying to keep away from the actress, and don't seem to care that he's a violent and unstable psychopath who shakes down people on the street for money when he's not busy losing club fights on purpose. What, was Hannibal Lecter unavailable for the position?...Jeesh!
There are a couple of secondary stories as well, the most prominent of which involves an heir of a major company wanting to marry the actress. This story line is absurd and unnecessary; the sole reason as to why these 2 characters should/must be married is essentially based on a single innocuous misunderstanding that could easily be rectified by reasonable adults...sadly, the writers are children and thought otherwise!
As for your actors; there's basically only 2 main roles: Shin Min A plays the part of the actress. She's usually does pretty solid work, and she does what's asked of her here well enough, but this is not a role that does her any favors. Rain plays the lead here; he has legions of fans, but at the risk of being beaten to death by a bunch of fan-girls, I'm just going to say it: He's not that great of an actor, and I've been less than impressed with many of the roles I've seen him in. His range primarily consists of being angry, sad, distant, or goofy (with, seemingly, very little room in between). He's certainly good looking, athletic, likable, and, he can do a wide variety of things, but IMO, he's lacking the nuances and subtleties needed at this stage of his career (now 2012), in order to be considered the preeminent new wave actor that so many people once claimed him to be.
This show wants to be an epic sad love tale meets revenge story, but it's not! Instead, it's an overwrought and underwhelming melodrama that features an unlikeable main lead and some badly contrived story lines. If it were 12-16 episodes long, and helmed by a more solid writing team, it could have been a lot better. Ultimately though, it never rises above the level of being just a mediocre soap opera at best.
Bottom line: 5 out of 10 stars. If you are looking for a Korean melodrama of a similar vein, there are many other shows to choose from that are far better than this one.
