Sign - 2011 - 5/10
AKA - Sain // サイン

Exasperating K-drama that takes forever to find its groove, only to perform a cliff dive at the end.
I cannot decide whether to blame incompetent writing or wrong headed directing, probably a combination.
Episodic show occurring in and around the NFS (National Forensic Service). Yes, the coroners. Corpse cutters.
A new crime/mystery happens ever few weeks and wraps in a couple of episodes. In each time, the examiners are summoned to determine what transpired. Some are frightening, one poignant, others are mis-assumptions.
Weaving throughout the narrative is the murder of a beloved pop singer, the cover up, the destruction of evidence, the conspiracy, and the bullheaded doctor who probes remorselessly toward the truth.
The doctor is extraordinarily unlikable, argumentative, with the manners of a pitbull. No way, no matter how gifted, such an individual would be tolerated in any structured hierarchy.
The three assistants are complete and utter idiots. Their main purpose seems little more than comic relief. Any professional skills they may possess is dwarfed by their moronic behavior.
After ten episodes, the characters (and writers) find their footing and the cartoon antics subside, the stories tighten.
Still … viewers had to endure half the series before this locked into an intense thriller.
The final episode was moving - and preposterous. The finale seemed rushed, contrived, and unbelievable.
There were well reported production problems, but the root cause seemed to point toward the writers who apparently had written themselves into a corner.

This was one of the chilliest K-dramas I have ever watched. Most of this was photographed in bleak winter. It looked downright cold. Definitely not the travel postcard for Korea tourism.
Three lead male characters boasted spiky haircuts. Couldn’t tell if this is a fashion trend, but it was noticeable.