All of Us Are Dead

When I heard of this Korean high school zombie series I was interested, despite the subject matter being done to death over the years. Then I saw the trailer and thought it looked amazing. Having just finished up the show, I can confirm that this is one of the most entertaining shows out there, and far surpasses the likes of THE WALKING DEAD. The small scale works a treat and somehow they manage to eke out the momentum over the whole 12-episode arc. It never feels too small and it never feels dull, packed as it is with expertly directed action and tense mayhem. The Koreans excel in this one and I loved every minute of it.

I've read webtoon "All of us are dead (Now at our school)" right after watching the trailer of this show. It wasn't a lengthy comic with a heavy conversation, so it was easy to turn to the next chapters. I'm not a fan of the style of the comic, but it was still fun and intense. I'm in the 5th episode right now, and so far I've felt the show adapted the original webtoon quiet well which is why I wanted to write a review about it. However, I get to see these assumptions of promoting High school of the dead from the comments which is not okay seriously. I also watched High school of the Dead long time ago. All I can remember is that the anime was more about female body images rather than zombies and stuff. Plots and characters in both shows, there's no any similarity between the two. The only similar aspect is they both use high school students as main characters. Honestly, Is there anime that doesn't use high school students as main characters? Seriously, google High school of the dead anime, and watch it on youtube, you'll get the idea within 2 minutes. I would not recommend to watch it with female companions or friends though. Back to the show, All of us are dead, it's well made, and it adopted the original story very well.

Update: I ended up watching the whole series for 2 days. It's worth it just as other positive reviewers say. It's well paced, and mixed with good actions. Also it created a different type of zombie.

The action of the zombies in this show is very realistic. It is interesting to watch the relationship between friends. Well executed until the middle of the series. From the ridiculous lines, to the moronic "decisions" to the horrible way they treated some characters. The typical Netflix-style ending was a bit disappointing, but I really enjoyed this show.

The serie is quite fun to watch but it doesn't bring anything new or special, unfortunately because sometimes these kind of movies from South Korean production companies can be a hidden gem (i.e. Train to Busan). However, it is really a South Korean zombie production so if you don't like that, don't bother to watch it. However, it doesn't meet the level of TWD but it definitely is much better than FTWD.

For those who love South Korean zombie production, All of Us are Dead is worth to watch. Sometimes it is a bit annoying and slow that you start to wonder whether you are watching a highschool serie. However, I binged it in a weekend and I kinda got into the main characters of the serie. I just hope that Netflix won't kill this serie and that it will order a 2nd season as the story got potential for another interesting zombie season.

There's a lot to unpack here, but the core problem is that there are maybe 6 great episodes worth of content in this 12 episode series.

When it gets it right, it gets it very right. Love, loss, longing, poignancy, savagery and pathos, it's all there. The writing, acting and production are strong enough to get you engaged, so as the cast get chowed on, you'll feel it.

However, it suffers from uneven tone, with too many cliched tropes and characters. Big-awkward guy, punky-girl, straight-laced nerd hottie, alpha and beta heroes, coward, and generic thug villain. You've seen them all before, many times.

Some scenes eschew peril for jarring slapstick, which breaks you right out of immersion. There's far, far too much shrieking, repetition, indecision, repetition, pointless sacrifice, and repetition.

Still, the effects, both practical, makeup and subtle CGI are top notch, the overall story arc is well conceived, and there are a few touching character developments.

It's not amazing, but it's solid, and it ends strongly and credibly without pushing the To Be Continued too hard. Just about worth your time.