Time loop in multiverses or the paradox of the Schrödinger cat in Korean In the 2050s, there is an organization called “Alice” (a reference to Lewis Carroll’s book) engaged in the maintenance and sale of temporary jumps. Many rich people in Korea are willing to pay any amount of money to travel back in time to see their deceased relatives or friends. But since Alice’s technology allows you to transfer not just back in time, but also to parallel worlds, time paradoxes as such do not arise. The paradox of time is if, for example, you move into the past and kill yourself in it, after which you really cease to exist (this principle is clearly demonstrated in another South Korean science fiction series “The Myth of Sisyphus”).
The plot revolves around the special agent “Alice” Park Son-yeon and her son Park Jin-yom, who since childhood is ill with alexithymia (inability to express their experiences and recognize others). After the mysterious murder of his mother, a low-emotional but very intelligent young man has risen to the rank of a Seoul police detective, after which he meets an exact copy of his mother in his youth, physics professor Yu Tae Yi. True similarity was only external, and in her soul she was a perfect other person. Breaking his head in an attempt to determine whether it was his miraculously resurrected mother or not, Park Jin-yom decided to find Park Song-yeon's killer at any cost. The desire to punish the criminal who killed his mother became the meaning of his life. Of course, this could not but attract the attention of Alice, whose leadership is obsessed with finding a book that contains a prediction about the end of temporary travel. The book hunt endangers Park Dmin Yoma and Yu Tae Yi, whose fates are closely intertwined and linked to prophecy.
The series has only the main storyline. Gradually, events add up to one general picture, allowing the viewer to understand who is behind all this and most importantly, how it will end. The end of the story is recorded on the last page of the book, which was specially torn to avoid getting to the staff of Alice. The series raises an interesting question, which, I am sure, few people thought about: time travel is for people good or evil? What are the side effects of temporary jumps? And this is not only about the state of the body, but also about the mental health of travelers. In whose hands will these powerful technologies ever be created? Heroes periodically reflect on this, and the viewer will reflect with them.
The series focuses on the relationship between the characters, which without exaggeration can be called complex. Each hero has his own motives for certain actions. The main plus of the series: it shows the relationship between a man and a woman, as well as between mother and son, based on high vibrations (love). At the same time, they did not overdo it with romance and naughtiness. There are many moments in the series that cultivate traditional family values.
The show has its downsides. In especially responsible and decisive moments, villains make long high-flown speeches, and positive heroes frankly dull and hesitate to strike the final blow. I have noticed this at least three times. All this reduces the degree of realism of what is happening, and the degree of stagedness increases. As for the game of actors, it is at a high level, especially liked how they played: the star of the series of the 90s Kim Hee-sung (professor of physics Yu Tae-yi), actress Lee Da-in (girlfriend of the main character, journalist Kim Do-yeon) and Si Yang Kwak (time traveler, special agent Yoo Min-hyuk). Korean women in the series are only beautiful, even Tae Yi’s mother, played at that time by 55-year-old actress Oh Yong Shil, look how good she looks! There is nothing to say about the 43-year-old Kim Hee-sung! It looks very young.
Towards the end of the series, a light entourage of the secret society was added (the balachon of the Illuminati, as in the series “12 Monkeys”), as well as temporary paradoxes, which are explained to the viewer in simple language and directly affect the course of the plot. The ending leaves positive emotions and makes you think about a lot.
7 out of 10