“Long Time No See” is a 5 episode action-packed series about two mafia enforcers, whose serendipitous or duplicitous circumstances meet and begin a romance. It was one I didn’t know existed back then in 2017 when it was being made and first premiered. The series stars Tak Woo Suk as Chi Soo aka Flying Dagger and Yeon Seung Ho as Gitae aka Wild Dog. The net series features a small cast of characters. Chi Soo’s adoptive father Black Rose (Independent Mafia leader) is played by Kim Myung Hwan who is the brother of Black Leopard played by Won Tae San. Black Leopard’s criminal organization was the one Chi Soo and Black Rose belonged to before he took his son and went his own way. Rounding out the cast is Gitae’s elder sister (Her name was never mentioned) played by Ra Sun Young. She is more like a mother to Gitae as their parents weren’t around for again unmentioned reasons.

The series begins with Chi Soo performing a hit for Black Rose. Each shot felt like watching a big-budget movie as the lighting and shadows played at making the scene as menacing as it was intended. The series is directed by Kang Woo, who knows how to create a mood in the scenes; moving from that brutal first kill to Chi Soo meeting his uncle at a sauna for a short conversation that ironically explains the backstory effectively.

The series is made like a graphic novel and told with a well-written script that gives just enough information so the viewer never feels lost or disconnected from the story. At the same time, I wish we could have some back story on the characters outside of Chi Soo, whose past as an orphan at an orphanage is orchestrated well. As a child, he was gay enough for his peers to target and violently bully him. Black Rose saves him from one of these instances, as the bullies were pissing on him in the bathroom. Black Rose adopts the boy, and he becomes the man we know today.

A bulk of the series is told through these happenstance moments with allusions made to the character’s past. These conversations allowed me to immerse myself in the stories happening organically alongside each other. Whether it was Gitae’s sister being a single mom to her brother; Or Chi Soo being happy over readers enjoying the web novel he is writing, which Gitae is. The two have correspondence on this. It was delightful to see both characters reacting to the text exchanges. Seeing the cold-blooded killer giddy was especially sweet.

Be that as it may, some parts of the story still had questioning aspects. Why Chi Soo was writing a book with a fictional version of himself doing exactly what he was doing as Flying Dagger (no fear of being found out?). Why was Gitae’s sister raising Gitae? Where were their parents? These questions are never answered as the series focuses more on the gay relationship between the two men. They fall in love over a period and their scenes together felt both natural and filled with chemistry. There were no fish kisses as the two hungrily approached their love scenes.

What made me adore these characters was knowing how fragile human life is and how short it can be. Something they both seem to take into consideration as they move forward as a couple. Black Rose takes great offense to this and reminds him that he owns him. The tension between the two in that scene felt perfectly acted and taut with tension as Kim Myung’s eyes become moist with emotion. I was hovering close to the screen as he spoke words, giving a possessive almost homoerotic vibe to the scene (could just be me). But the moment he left, Chi Soo broke down as a clear sign the emotional damage his father had created hit the mark.

The series as a whole shines as you see moments like these- good and bad throughout it, blood and martial arts or intimate scenes or even family moments. The actors brought a rawness to their roles that made me feel throughout the series. Even Black Leopard, who was largely indifferent to the actions his brother was committing against him, had a touch of emotion in all his scenes. Whether it was accidentally pulling the two off his adoptive nephew in the shower and being in awe of the anaconda sleeping between the younger man’s legs. He has funny one-liners for that. Or his annoyance at his brother for trying to break up the couple. Won Tae San was made for the role and I wish he had gotten more screen time.

Black Rose wants his brother’s territory, and he intends to use Flying Dagger to get it. Chi Soo has always believed the family he has been given to be better than the blood relatives he has never met. So his emotions are strong as he tries to express his misgivings on the mission he is being handed out. Black Rose dismisses him in such a cold way, not caring at all. The series shows Black Leopard making sure that Wild Dog is proceeding with the plan and protecting him. He is invited to an obvious trap by his brother. Gitae understands the assignment trying to keep the emotion off his face and failing as he exits the car.

Gitae had been given a honeypot mission in the form of seducing Chi Soo (he did) and when the two meet in battle, it’s a well-choreographed fight. Brutal in every aspect save as they fight, Gitae can not follow through, hesitating to take the numerous kill shots. With Yeon Seung’s face covered and all you can see are his eyes, they give such a masterful performance as he starts and stops the hits, and tries to give Chi Soo abundant chances to hit him. When the truth is revealed, it’s painful.

Here, for me, is where the script takes a left turn. Gitae promises to tell Chi Soo everything and that he can trust him. But I didn’t see it as the series sprints toward the conclusion. You do see some bonding moments which were lovely. It’s so nice seeing Gitae’s sister as an ally. But between a spy for Black Rose tailing the couple to a gay bar, making a scene, and being in debt to Chi Soo in a random cut to that short fight scene, which was mainly to show Chi Soo’s phone is broken, the storyline plummets. Then Gitae is beaten and kidnapped after going to a location for (reason not explained). Chi Soo goes to visit his sister and Gitae, finds him missing, and storms out.

Black Rose calls to offer more ominous taunting before Chi Soo rushes to the same location. (We’re going to assume the old school building has some significance to all the mafia cast. As they all appear here, save Black Leopard who’s been alive this long because he knows not to go into dangerous situations for the most part). Chi Soo finds Gitae bloody and OMG. Can we take a moment to ignore the glaring plot hole and appreciate the acting of Tak Woo Suk? Chi Soo is on the edge of an emotional breakdown, but swallows that visibly as he focuses on offering emotional support to Gitae. The tears, the way he stammers, his shaking hands, just chef’s kiss to the acting here.

Black Rose appears ready for the fated showdown with his son. The two have an emotional confrontation as Black Rose rips any paternal connection from Chi Soo to shreds with his hateful words. The two commence an expertly done knife fight, which quickly ends as Black Rose was too overconfident. Chi Soo does an arm slash, only to get Black Rose to leave his leg open to allow Chi Soo to slit the artery there. As Chi Soo takes Gitae to safety, Black Rose shouts they are disgusting perverts as he bleeds out.

The last and happiest scene of the series is the two boyfriends/husbands (They are dressed like grooms) with Gitae’s sister taking a family portrait. They are all the happiest I saw in the entire series offering a satisfying conclusion to the series. Short, sweet, and bloody “Long Time No See” wasn’t perfect, but it came pretty close. Ignoring the plot holes, which only would have served to give viewers a better understanding of the school, I recommend watching it.

Rating- 5 out of 5