User reviews

Is it the writer's problem or the directing's problem?

I've been enjoying it since episode 1.

The background of the main character was interesting, and the surrounding characters were harmonious.

I also like the setting of a smart young man who grew up in a difficult environment.

However, the director has to re-direct the final episode of this series.

This is one of the most terrifying endings in the series.

The life of the main character, which was shown from the first episode, is ending in vain.

I hope Cha Moo-shik of his youth will return.

Everything I liked was lost in the last episode.

This is an interesting and watchable drama that stars one of the best character actors in Korea (Choi Min Sik). It has a well-crafted script, engaging dialogues, and unpredictable plotlines. As a result, I kept watching to see how it developed. There are a few missteps, however, that make this drama not one of my favorites. 1) the story jumps back and forth with no particular purpose and leaves many loose ends behind.; 2) The show becomes disorganized, especially in the second half, with a ridiculous ending that seems unintended by the writer's initial plotline; 2) There are many unrealistic storylines that are inconsistent with the character of Choi Moo Sik. For example, he is too often unprepared for predictable attacks, and also, he is very gullible and naive-- unbecoming of a successful mob boss (although he thinks he is a businessman, not a mob boss). I think the writer tried to depict him as a mob boss with a heart of gold--unsuccessfully. 3) The last few episodes are very disjointed, showcasing thoughtless plots. Acting is terrific in general, especially that of the leading actor. For all these reasons, I give a 7 for this drama.

I have been watching a lot of Tv Series recently, from crime, action, adventure, drama, comedy, and this show got all of it. I'm not into drama romance type of series, because sometimes it will became lame, and always repeat the same story lines. This shows always catchy from the start, and very good in story/writing. I always wait every week for this show, and every episode was worth it. This show sould get more recognization and more rating.

This was my second Korean Tv Series after Squid Games, and I love it already eventhough just 5 episodes. No cliche', just pure great stories and twist. The actors that played the charactors also is a well known, so nothing to critics on acting, because they was genuinely can act. And actually, I just want to see Choi Min-sik act (because, I know him from Oldboys), and what a pro actor he was.

A half maybe. I saw this last night and was excited for something new. At first with the not so great dubbing and the older way it's shot I almost turned it off. The dialogue is pretty bad at times( as with dubbing) but I just kept on with it and now I must say by the last episode I was really enjoying it! I thought that was it and was pissed off but I see there are many more episodes. It can be confusing because it's all over the place and switches tiimelines and events etc. The main actor had me cracking up when he was in his room and says "F my life!!! I don't know why but the way it's said was hilarious to me! Haha! I used to love Korean horror films but haven't much experience with this genre. I just wish since there's a bit of fighting scenes that some of the actors would be proficient in martial arts. Can't believe there are only 2 reviews. Can't wait for more episodes!

OK, to be honest, most of Korean drama that Disney created so far was so brutally bad. But this one is different. We can only see 3 episodes of 16 episodes now. However, all 3 episodes are pretty good and the story is inserting and fast enough. None of them were boring. All the actors are doing great job on their acting. It's great to see so many great actors again that couldn't see these days often. And you know Choi min sik. He is the main charter in this series. He is from the old boy movie. He is killing it in this series. He is doing some actions too. I'm looking forward to see more episodes. I can't wait to see all 16 episodes. First season is finished on Jan 25th and the 2nd season is coming from Feb 1 5th.

Yes! Big Bet is giving Pablo Escobar a vibe. The Asia version. From the Intro, Location, Screenplay, and Actors. One of the underrated series. It needs a more promotional marketing strategy. The storytelling from season 1 episode 1 up until the end is wonderful. I'm now a big fan of K-dramas mostly RomCom, but, honestly, we need more shows like this. Fictional yet you know that the writer & director made a deep research into how gambling works. Plus, studying the location (Philippines) system adds a natural flavor to the story. The Filipino actors did a good job as well. Kudos to Disney+ and I can't wait for Season 3.

Pretty good I think this is one of the best k dramas out there - especially for guys, but girls would love it too Unpredictable and great acting by the casts such as Choi Minsik and the detective.

Great storyline, and getting to see two different countries : South Korea and the Philippines and from the 70s up until the 2000s.

Had they aired this from netflix it would have drawn much more attention for sure, quite sad that people dont expect much from disney anymore apart from star wars, marvel, and disney animations I am at episode sechs of season two Cant wait to see the rest it's killing me.

I really hate what streaming services do with dropping projects in batches. Either drop the entire thing or make it serializing. I couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment after a decent first season (more like the first half of a 16-episodes drama!). The plot ended up being all over the place, with twists that felt more like they were forcing us into paying attention than actually adding anything interesting to the story. Some side plots were only there to buy time. I wasn't a fan of the ending either, they should've just ended it in a normal fashion. The characters were fine but I wish there were more interactions between Moo Sik and Seung Hoon. I'm not sure why the drama had 18+ rating considering it wasn't that violent, although it had one tiny quick intimate scene and some smoking? The opening theme was cool.

Just finished Kajino (aka Big Bet), the cast and locations are amazing. Same goes for the production, attention to details and continuity. Truly a modern masterpiece. As usual Choi Min-sik is amazing but many other lead actors shine here. The transition between countries and languages is flawless. The majority is actually probably in English with then a lot of Korean and a little Filipino.

The ending might not satisfy every viewers but for me it was perfect otherwise I would have just ended up wanting more and more series.

Can't recommend this enough. I ended bingeing both series after the first episode.

Had not heard much about this drama before I started watching it, so I was pleasantly surprised to find myself hooked! The storyline and subject matter is something that I have never seen before on television. This is an entertaining story about the nature of the human condition.

The beginning of the drama was a bit confusing and slow, but because I had faith in K-dramas, I stuck with it. What I found was a group of unsavoury characters whom I would never go anywhere them in real life, but found that they all had some redeeming qualities that made them appear very humanistic and sympathetic. It's a marvel that so many actors on the cast were able to portray their characters so realistically without a single one over-acting.

The wait for Son Seok-Gu's character to appear was well worth it. I am so thankful that they did not turn him into some drug addict like any other American TV show would have. That flaw is so over-used that it's a become a horrible trope.

I've read that many viewers did not like the ending, but this is what a good story ending is supposed to be like.

• All loose ends are tied up
• Not everyone deserves their "end" the way it ends
• Very realistic portrayal of the human condition

What else I liked:

• respectful portrayal of non-Korean characters
• NKC's were not portrayed as dimwits to make the Korean characters appear more appealing
• story was focused and maintained a level of complexity that kept me guessing
• no excessive and meaningless sexual content (in fact there was very little at all)

What would have made it better:

• a good soundtrack with more instrumental music
• at least one likeable and strong female character (secretary had potential, but was neglected by the director)
• understand that that line of work and the times would have made this challenging
• good storytelling dictates that there should be a foil for Kim So-Jung & Ko Young-Hee

It deserves all of the awards it's won and more.

I thought there would be organized crime & violence. It was more bumbling business advantures into gambling. Feels drawn out and would've been better as a 2 hour movie instead of a long TV series.

Choi Min-Sik was top class as usual. The rest of the class was more lackluster.

The humour did not land as well as in other Korean shows. Nor did the general dialogue. You were often waiting for some action instead of interested in the conversations. That is why it was kinda dull. Also why it would've worked better in a shorter format like a film.

Overall, it was a disappointment. There is better stuff out there. I'd skip it.