El asesino mediático

It's a dark, violent and gritty thriller nominally focused on the hunt for a sadistic serial killer. Although based on a Japanese novel and set in Taiwan, the dour tone and deliberate pace are reminiscent of Scandi-Noir. Genre cliches abound and the show doesn't shy away from depicting brutality. It's also guilty of the same thing as virtually every other streaming series in padding the run time with extraneous subplots and overcooked melodrama. That said, this show is nevertheless well-done and engaging, with good performances, slick production, and enough twists and turns to keep things interesting.

What a nice surprise!! I didn't think I would see such a good Chinese series, and I'm saying it because I'm not a big fan of Asian series, maybe it's the language.

For me it's absolutely necessary to always see them in the original version with subtitles. And from the first episode I lef wanting more, the tension, suspense and the theme are so different.

The acting is also very good and the editing is very well done. I didn't realize who the murderer was until a few episodes had passed, and besides, it wasn't entirely clear to me, they got me confused, and that made me appreciate and like the series even more!!

The prosecutor and main role was fantastic in his role, I really liked him, finally someone who cares about the victims and their families and wants to go all the way to catch the murderer. All the characters are quite varied and some of them very interesting and some funny, others very boring, especially the female roles I like less. I hope I'm not going too long, but I had to say it, the series reminded me a little of the Spanish movie Thesis(1996), but only a little, I had to think about it during this series, and it's been many years since I saw it, it's one of those that you can't foget, like this series, strong, full of suspense and very realistic.

What I liked least about the series is that it's too long and the flashback moments are sometimes unnecessarily repetitive. Also the names of all the characters are confusing at times, being in Chinese it is difficult to remember them.

I recommend it without a doubt, it does not disappoint.

A killer is targeting women in Taiwan in a way that ensures maximum media coverage in the 1990s. This includes making calls to a specific news station. The crime shares distinct similarities to a previous apparently solved murder. The prosecutor in charge becomes convinced that the cases are linked. As the series progresses we follow the prosecutor, and his police colleagues, as well as characters at the TV station. Tensions raise when somebody close to a member of the investigating team is snatched on a night out.

I thought this was a really good addition to the crowded serial killer genre. The identity of the killer becomes obvious a little earlier than I expected but that wasn't a problem as watching the authorities working to catch him was still gripping. We get a nice twist with a few episodes to go; this is neither too obvious nor unbelievable. The cast do a really solid job making the characters feel believable. I enjoyed the nineties setting; modern enough not to seem dated but old enough to avoid certain modern technology that would make solving the case easier. Things do get a little melodramatic towards the end but not enough to spoil my enjoyment. Overall definitely worth watching if you like the genre.

These comments are based on watching the series in Mandarin with English subtitles.

Superbly shot. Excellent attention-to-detail on old equipment; CRTs and analogue equipment of the late 1990's. Superb acting. So reminiscent of 'Memories Of A Murder' and a lot of voyeuristic viewing.

The build-up play is full-on Hitchcock suspense. It's extremely sleek and professional with a good budget but also it's done to a very high standard.

There's probably a bit of troll-rating happening as it's 6.8 but it only dropped to Netflix very recently so there's clearly bogus reviews. Anything Asian+Murder+Gore gets trolls it seems.

The sequencing of each episode and how the story is set is excellent. It's proper storyboard-to-series. I love how artifacts from the era are in pristine condition despite now being 25 years old!

Actos are great. I feel at ease with them and Cammy Chiang is a future star. Wu Kang-ren is astounding. The way he acts like a cop more than a prosecutor is refreshing. There's a bit of Triad crackdown involvement which is true to history after a Google search found a 1997 article in the Indiependent about that.

The style is very like the artistic leadership of 'Memories For Murder' (Director of Parasite) which the creators deserve huge credit for. It's glossy and well-produced and a real nugget in SEA TV criteria where there's an incredible amount of choice. Great stuff! More please.

This show started off very promising until it became clear that the writing was just not upto the level expected of a good serial killer drama show. All the major characters involved in solving the crime/s i.e the Prosecutor and Police Task Force act illogically and irrelevantly throughout the whole show making the viewing rather infuriating.

The directing, production values and cinematography are all top notch however. The acting is generally pretty good except for a couple of actors.

There is a good show hidden underneath but unfortunately the creators were unable to execute it successfully due to subpar writing.