#tjfh

[kdramarot]

The Judge From Hell does something new. Let Me Explain.

The show had great visuals, witty dialogue, and high stakes. But so do most shows, so what sets apart TJFH from them?

Let's begin with the gore aspect. It was a very decisive move to pick a demon that's not a man. Compare My Demon to The Judge from Hell for example. The action sequences in MD were not nearly as emotionally and physically charged as the ones in TJFH, and that's very intentional. This sort of boils down to how violence of man-on-woman crimes looks on TV, and how many shows, rightfully so, avoid showing that. MD couldn't show excessive aggression from Song Kang's character because it wouldn't bode well to have a all-powerful man beat up all characters that he has deals with (and since that included women, you can't really show that). That's why his retribution style was simple and casual, and importantly, blood-less. It adds suave to his character, because we know he's capable to getting his hands dirty but he just chooses not to.

Alternatively, Justicia's job is to get her hands bloody. Her role couldn't have been done by man, and if the role had to be played by a woman, it couldn't be something like Song Kang's character in MD because that would easily fall prey to the trope of women retaining their delicate virtues and tempers. If it's going to be bloody, and if you want to take that character seriously while also root for them, you need to have a badass woman without no remorse.

On top of that, the questions on morality were so delicious. This show gave us the classic enemies to lovers arc—he had a crush on her until he finds out just how ugly she can get, and vows to catch her. His morals fail when injustice hits too close to home, and it was treat to see Daon finally relent on his morals for a bit. His dark side is precisely what also engaged Justicia—it made him normal in her eyes because upto that point, she'd seen him as an adorable inconvenience.

I could go on talking istg

[imakimseonhoe]

Low-key thought we were getting a bloodied & battered post-hug kiss right there 👀

[livingart28]

The Judge From Hell Ep 11

[my-drama-heart2406]

Mannn we're all going to be so sad, so upset, soooo disappointed if it turns out that Daon ISN'T Satan.

[castlescrumblingdvwn]

words cannot explain what this scene did to me

LIKEEE. those smiles brimming with pure joy? the way they're holding each other? the overall warm colour grading with that gorgeous backdrop? just. everything about this. and they say romance is dead

[morrithal]

[navami7]

first friday without tjfh, with no more 'the court is adjourned' by bitna, no more smirks from daon, no more daonbitna, how are we holding up

[lastofthe20thcenturygirls]

sbs sold their soul to disney too along with the streaming rights for the judge from hell WDYM it's only 14 episodes??? does just 2 more episodes traditional style were too much for them?????

[dramaism]

You all I've watched live broadcast of the finale and it's 40 now 😅

I may be not so little obsessed anymore. 27 gifsets ideas and counting, I'm too deep into this shit

[anotherfanaccount]

Funniest plotline of TJFH is Justitia and the angel granny beefing. Her waking her up in the middle of the night just to show off her true self and then legit saying save your boy because I can't anymore. That's peak frenemy.

[mrinafria]

Seen some viewers not liking The Judge from Hell for different reasons, and I think I kind of get why (just my guess). Also, disclaimer (in case it's not obvious enough): I respect and am fine with anyone disagreeing with me and not liking the show for whatever reason.

If you've watched The Devil Judge, then The Judge from Hell is not that. Unlike The Devil Judge, it doesn't have a dark, grim, ominous setup that stays true to that heavy vibe till the end. If you've watched Lucifer, it's not that either. Close but also not really. Unlike Lucifer, The Judge from Hell hasn't shown us an anti-hero/anti-heroine who, underneath the charisma and confidence and tricks and looks, is full of self-loathing, unprocessed angst and human-like emotions. I'm just going off of the 8 episodes of TJFH aired so far. Unlike Lucifer, Justitia doesn't seem to display a subconscious desire not to be misunderstood and abandoned, nor does she feel complex emotions about humans and humanity (it's just starting with Daon she still has a long way to go). We don't see a Fallen/Demon with a semblance of a moral compass here.

Even her "I trust what children say" doesn't mean much because she doesn't do that out of some morality; to her, it's just facts that children are the least crafty and least vile amongst humans. Justitia is very mechanical (and petty even) in what she does- she's not on some great self-discovery or redemption journey in here to even entertain the notion of humanity or morality. If we expect such nuance from her so early on in the story, we maybe setting ourselves up for disappointment. Y'all she's been doing this for Lord knows HOW many hundred years. It's not her first gig. If you have been having coffee at night despite being an insomniac for like three decades, it's highly likely you'd stop thinking or caring about the morality, the 'rightness' of drinking coffee even when it destroys your health.

It's like that for her, to the point where she can, in fact, treat every murder, every crime, every criminal lightly. She's been the judge, jury and executioner all along, and that's the job she needs to do well on earth too. As audience, we may be living on earth longer than she's been but the moment Justitia stepped in, it became 'her world' that we're now getting a peek at.

She's not some vigilante or messiah; just an eccentric, murdering demon from hell who likes Z cola and a pretty wardrobe and Han Daon too- what's wrong with that lol. I remember seeing similar sentiments when Vincenzo was on, because some felt the comedy and humor didn't go well with the overall theme, with a psycho CEO committing all kinds of crimes+ ML's childhood grief and mafia ptsd+ revenge etc. I feel like it was a conscious choice not to make the show so heavy or serious, despite the subject matter. TJFH feels like it treats heavy stuff casually because it is mostly shown through Justitia's lens, and so far, SHE has been treating heavy stuff casually. She really doesn't feel anything emotionally for the girl being in an abusive relationship, or the child being with that horrible excuse of a stepmom. All she sees are the sinners and their sins, and whether they can help her fulfill her mission.

But even that is changing now, gradually, with Justitia/Kang Bitna starting to feel more and more human emotions (props to Daon).

Now, could we have gotten a more nuanced character arc with a serious undertone? Maybe yes, maybe no. The story is yet to unfold fully so I say it's too early to decide that? However, three things that come to mind are: 1. kdramas generally don't get seasons unlike TV series in the US or UK, to explore things gradually with each season geared towards a certain theme or development. Lucifer did what it did in six seasons. 2. I've noticed that unless it's a super horror, super apocalyptic or dystopian show, kdramas like to incorporate humor in their story no matter what genre it is (even shows like The Light in Your Eyes or Moon Lovers or Hi Bye, Mama have their lighthearted moments). Kdramas aren't perfect. Different shows become perfect to different audiences because of their personal preferences. I watch the show because the trailers promised us a fantasy drama with angst between the leads, because it gives me a good laugh, and also maybe because a small part in me kinda sorta lives vicariously through Justitia's ultimate reckoning lol.

I'm actually glad it's not a heavy show because the stuff they've shown so far can be quite disturbing and triggering and I'd be very hesitant to proceed with it if that were the case. 3. I think it's also okay to acknowledge that not all writers/creatives would prefer to do the research needed to pull off certain themes, nuanced character arcs and dynamic, which can leave some viewers wanting more out of a character/show too.

It's fine not to like a hyped drama or a character (happens to me too). But in my opinion, the show is delivering what it promised to deliver initially, and I'm glad it is.

[captainjoongki]

TJFH ending was so good!

right! very very very good. wrapped up things nicely, teased things nicely for a future season 2 but left in a good place, no random ass deaths or weird plot points introduced, just very concise and satisfying.

like maybe i'd take .5 pts away just for not telling us what's up with the real kang bitna but mayhaps that's a season 2 plot either way we got a makeout and happiness so can i complain? nope!

[esperanzasthoughts]

I cannot believe it happened again.

I loved watching TJFH and FBC but i stopped again, i don't know why. I can't seem to continue them. It's crazy because i don't find them boring. Me and my stupid brain.

[castlescrumblingdvwn]

just realised i so badly want to make a separate post for all the instances daon has hugged justitia because, BECAUSEE.

[chansbabygirl]

No I see what you did there TJFH.

BUT YOU CANNOT GIVE US A WEDDING SEQUENCE WITHOUT GIVING US A PROPER HAPPY ENDING.

I need Daon and Bitna (Justitia) to be together and happy.

[navami7]

saw this on twitter 😭😭