394. Web-series Reviews – 209

More web-series reviews…

Vera – Ran from 2011 to 2025 with the last season dropping in Jan 2025. 14 seasons in all! With her caustic wit and singular charm, DCI Vera Stanhope leads her team as they face a series of captivating murder mysteries set against the breathtaking Northumberland landscape.

Trivia

This show is based on the works of crime author Ann Cleeves. Her stories are set in Northumberland and North Tyneside, where the author has lived for more than two decades. According to Cleeves, the variety of the area and landscape gives the stories texture.

A review from IMDB...

Unlike the 156 reviewers before me, I am writing this after watching all 56 episodes of the show.

It's been quite a journey over the past 14 years but the standard has consistently stayed high with great writing and mainly unknown actors which allows the viewers to concentrate on the storyline and not spend 90+ minutes wondering what else you have seen them in.

Obviously, Vera is the star but a great support cast with the dogged, downtrodden but ultimately loyal Kenny appearing in all episodes bar 3. He missed the first ever episode and, in reality, I suspect missed the other two due to Covid restrictions.

Of course, Joe and Aiden will probably be remembered more with Edwards joining in after about series 4 but many more have featured in her team (how many pathologists? - Paul Kaye was my favourite).

Spread your wings pet and I'll see you at The Stanhope Arms for a pint if Kenny hasn't already drunk the place dry.

My Take – An excellent series. Saw all the seasons including the behind-the-scenes of the last season😊

 

Missing You – Came in 2025.  Eleven years ago Detective Kat Donovan's fiancé Josh, the love of her life, disappeared and she's never heard from him since. Now, swiping profiles on a dating app, she suddenly sees his face and her world explodes all over again. Josh's reappearance will force her to dive back into the mystery surrounding her father's murder and uncover long-buried secrets from her past.

A review from IMDB...

Missing You (2025), starring Richard Armitage, Ashley Walters, Jessica Plummer, and Rosalind Eleazar, presents an intriguing premise as Detective Kat Donovan's life is thrown into chaos when she stumbles upon her estranged fiancé on a dating app. This unexpected discovery forces her to revisit a painful chapter in her past, reopening the investigation into her father's unsolved murder. The mix of personal drama and detective work holds promise, but the film struggles to deliver on its potential due to pacing issues and a lack of depth in character development.

The story starts strong, with an emotionally charged setup that draws the viewer in. Kat Donovan, played by Rosalind Eleazar, is a character with potential for complex emotional depth. However, her journey lacks the necessary development to fully engage with the audience. While Eleazar does a competent job in her role, the screenplay fails to explore the full breadth of her character's emotional turmoil or the intricacies of her investigation. The tension between her personal life and her professional duties could have been more deeply explored but is instead skimmed over, making her actions seem somewhat reactive rather than driven by deeper motivation.

The supporting cast, including Ashley Walters and Jessica Plummer, deliver solid performances, but their characters feel more like plot devices than fully realized individuals. The narrative doesn't allow them to shine or develop beyond their functional roles, which detracts from the overall emotional impact of the story.

The pacing of Missing You is inconsistent, with moments of tension that quickly fade into slow stretches that do little to move the plot forward. The investigation into Kat's father's murder, which should be a central element of the story, is underdeveloped, and the resolution feels rushed and unsatisfying. The film's attempt to balance personal drama with mystery is admirable, but it doesn't quite manage to marry the two in a way that feels cohesive or satisfying.

While the premise holds potential, the execution leaves much to be desired. Missing You could have been a gripping mystery with a deeply emotional core, but instead, it remains a moderately engaging but ultimately forgettable experience.

Rating: 6/10. A promising story marred by weak execution and a lack of emotional depth, resulting in a film that doesn't quite reach its full potential.

My Take – Worth a watch!

 

Light Shop – Came in 2024. Koreas series. A group of strangers, each struggling to come to terms with a traumatic event in their past. Going about their daily lives, each individual is mysteriously drawn to a light shop that sits at the end of a seedy alleyway. Guarded by a vigilant shopkeeper, the light shop could hold the key to the strangers' pasts, presents and futures.

A review from IMDB...

After the success of *Moving*-praised as one of the best K-content shows on Disney+ Star Channel-another webtoon by Kang Full has been turned into a drama. This time, it's *Light Shop*, which was first published in 2011. While *Moving* was about superhumans revealing their hidden powers, *Light Shop* tells a story about life and death. It takes place in a space between our world and the afterlife, where people must decide whether to let go of their past and disappear forever or reignite their desire to live. This special place, called the "Light Shop," is where light bulbs flicker for one last time.

Like the original webtoon, the drama shows mysterious people wandering dark streets until they find the glowing *Light Shop*. These people used to have families, friends, lovers, and lives. They come to the shop to search for a light bulb that matches their memories and experiences. The shopkeeper quietly observes their choices without interfering. In the first half of the show, viewers only see glimpses of their stories, like a dim "30-watt bulb." It's hard to know who they are or why they're there. The only constant is Won-young (played by Ju Ji-hoon), the calm and watchful shopkeeper.

Hyun-min (Eom Tae-goo) keeps noticing Ji-young (Kim Seol-hyun), who waits at a bus stop late at night, even in the rain. Ji-young asks him, "Don't you remember me?" Meanwhile, Hyun-joo (Shin Eun-soo), a student returning from evening classes, often stops by *Light Shop* to buy bulbs for her mother (Lee Jung-eun). The shopkeeper, Won-young, gives her butter-flavored candy and tells her strange stories. Sun-hae (Kim Min-ha) and Hye-won (Kim Sun-hwa) argue while looking for a new home, but they can't seem to leave their current one. A student named Ki-hae (Heo Ji-woong) walks through dark alleys with a basketball, humming *Where the Wind Blows* by Kim Kwang-seok. A grieving detective (Bae Sung-woo) meets Kim Sang-hoon (Kim Dae-myung) while chasing unsolved cases. On a rainy night, bus driver Oh Seung-won (Park Hyuk-kwon) causes an accident, and nurse Yeong-ji (Park Bo-young) sees these souls at the edge of life and death.

Kang Full weaves together the stories of families, friends, and lovers, showing their lives in fragments. These characters didn't always realize how important their relationships were *while they were alive*. But after unexpected accidents, they begin to understand the value of those bonds-if they can still remember them. Yet, just as they recognize their love, they must say goodbye forever. No matter how much they miss someone, call out their names, or cry for their mother, they cannot avoid parting. The actors fully immerse themselves in their roles, making every story feel deeply moving.

With Kang Full's brilliant storytelling and the incredible direction of Kim Hee-won, Disney+'s *Light Shop* surpasses *Moving* as a touching human drama.

Through *Moving* and *Light Shop*, Kang Full's webtoon characters have achieved a kind of immortality. Stories born from the ruins of a collapsed apartment now connect generations through small tokens like candy, as Hee-soo and Young-tak prepare for the next stage of their journey. (Park Jae-hwan)

My Take – Worth a watch!

Adios till next time😊!!