The Devil Judge - EP 16
Added 2025-06-09 14:00:10 +0000 UTCI feel bad for my neighbours because of how much I was yelling
Thank you so much for watching with me!!!!!
Comments
Old mate moriarty-ed himself - also, is it just me, or were some of kang yohan’s expressions giving Dwayne the rock Johnson - and now I’ve reached the end of the video, bloody hell what a journey, thank you for bringing us along popeking
Dan
2025-06-21 17:26:29 +0000 UTCWhere to start where to start where to start…oh I know, with ALL THE GAY! If anyone made it this far still believing this was just a bromance and not queer as hell, surely SURELY every decision – acting, writing, framing, music – made in this ep proves otherwise?? We’ve got Yohan longingly caressing his bloody hand wound cos it’s his only memento of Gaon, we’ve got Gaon going full suicidal – twice! – when faced with the prospect of losing Yohan, we’ve got a bomb defusal scene more homoerotic than Shakespeare and Greco-Roman wrestling combined, we’ve got an entire flashback montage comprised of the show’s gayest moments – boss offering to dress you and sneaking a peek? Check! Approaching topless dishevelled boss IN HIS BED? Check! – and finally, the clincher (and I’m actually dead serious now): if the show wanted it to be “just” a bromance, they would have ended it with the image of Gaon looking up at Yohan on the balcony as he salutes him and strides off, mentor to mentee, bro to bro. But no, instead they chose to end this sprawling dystopian noir mystery psychodrama with what’s basically a recreation of every desperate chase through an airport culminating in a love declaration scene from every romance movie ever made. That was a deliberate decision! Just as it was a deliberate decision on Jisung’s part – a veteran, award-winning actor mind you – to have Yohan staring into Gaon’s eyes, their faces almost close enough to kiss, as he slams him against the wall (even though you’d think he’d be more preoccupied with checking out the about to explode suicide vest he needs to defuse than the boytoy who just got him arrested!). And what about to have Yohan caress the bomb in what can only be described as a seriously sensual manner (flashbacks to the ep 1 kabedon!)? To have Yohan clasp Gaon’s shoulders well beyond the point when your average bro would let go? To have Yohan close his eyes when Gaon hugs him…do I need to go on?? That entire scene could have been filmed in a dozen different ways but THAT’S the one they went with? What does that tell us?? But seriously, that ending sequence: it’s the way the music shifts in tone when Yohan appears, like the sun breaking through the clouds, the way Yohan’s hand trails across Gaon’s seat as if he’s having to resist the urge to trail it across Gaon himself, the way the framing creates the illusion that his hand is resting on Gaon’s shoulder, the way Yohan apparently returned to Korea after only ONE month, risking exposure, with no expectations for himself other than the chance to see Gaon again, the way there’s no world in which Gaon is going to let him slip away again, the way, when Gaon calls his name, Yohan takes a second, then puts on his impenetrable Magnificent Bastard mask before turning round (and listen to the release in the music when he DOES turn round), cockily extending a hand as if to say ‘you called?’, only for the façade to crumble when he’s faced with the pure, all-conquering LOVE beaming out of Gaon’s face. And it’s the way Yohan has to look away because it’s *just too much* - he’s never been loved like this before and he’s overwhelmed, he’s shy, he’s unsure, but Gaon? Gaon doesn’t look away for *a single second*. In fact, it makes him smile even more when he sees Yohan’s uncertainty – he finds it endearing! Because once again the balance of power has shifted – in the courtroom Yohan was utterly in control, totally composed in the face of Gaon’s desperation, but now it’s Gaon who’s sure of himself and Yohan who’s floundering, Gaon who’s steady and true, who’s completely in love and not afraid to show it. This is the first time in the entire show that they’ve been face to face with no secrets between them. There’s nothing left to hide – nowhere left to hide, and that will always be scary for Yohan, but he finds the courage to look back up, as if to check, and he sees Gaon’s smile, Gaon’s eyes, all crinkled up with a tender joy, Gaon’s love, and it’s still there, it’s not going anywhere. And so it’s only then that the trademark Yohan smirk returns, and off he struts, into the metaphorical sunset. They’re standing ten feet apart in a busy concourse with not a single word exchanged, and yet it’s so *incredibly* intimate - it almost feels intrusive to watch them watching each other. But who needs words when their faces speak so loudly? Every time I watch that scene I feel like I notice yet another microexpression that heals my heart. (BTW the final card in the end credits is actually that image, but this time with nobody else in the shot, so it’s just the two of them. Says it all!) Other Yohan/Gaon thoughts: one thing I’m curious about is whether or not Yohan had the live court built with its destruction in mind, and if so, was his escape route always built into it, or did he originally intend to die for real in the explosion? Because I can definitely see that being a possibility, pre-Gaon – his sole purpose is to get revenge and ensure Elijah’s safety, but at this point he might very well think she’s better off without him, given the state of their relationship, so it wouldn’t surprise me if his initial plan was to ‘set her free’ with his own death, having made sure she’d be secure and looked after (probably with help from Attorney Hottie), maybe still in Switzerland. But of course all that changes once Gaon comes along and painstakingly puts their little family back together again, with his kindness and his hope and his patience and his understanding (and his cooking!). (What I find very poignant upon rewatching, though, is the scene in the very first ep just before the live court starts, when Yohan is sitting on his desk, tapping his fingers in agitation, his feet dangling (which is somehow boyish and so unlike him) as he stares at his robes and has the occasional vision of the fire (as his father recites the ‘father forgive them’ spiel – see my religious symbolism rant below - the Jesus parallels!!!) because this is it: what he’s been preparing and planning and yearning and *burning* for all those years, ever since Isaac died – it all starts now. And in retrospect you can see both the immense weight and the sheer relief of that written all across his face and in his body language. Seriously, Jisung’s acting here is godtier – he does so damn much with his face and his eyes and his everything!) Speaking of Yohan’s plans - when you watch the courtroom showdown knowing what he’s got up his sleeve, Gaon's offer to go with him takes on a double-meaning, because beyond the actual offer, to die with him (which in itself is pretty monumental!), it must surely make Yohan think about Gaon coming with them to Switzerland. We know Yohan would like nothing more, and I swear for a second you can see him almost imagining a timeline in which the three of them have buggered off together and are living in domestic bliss far far away from all this nonsense, and then he almost has to shake it off, and that’s when he ruefully says his line about hero vs devil. Because in order for Gaon to come with them, Yohan would have to make that choice FOR Gaon, then and there, because there’s no time to explain, so he would be both risking Gaon’s life in the explosion and effectively cutting any ties Gaon has left by ‘killing him off’. And sure, there’s also the fact Yohan has set Gaon up to carry his (slightly less psychotic) torch in the aftermath, but let’s face it, Yohan doesn’t care that much about the country! But you know who does? Gaon. And what does Yohan care about? Gaon! And so it all comes down to choices again, or, more specifically, Yohan refusing to make them on Gaon’s behalf. He has, if nothing else, been consistent in asserting that Gaon needs to choose his own path. And, by offering to die together with him, Gaon might THINK he’s chosen, but only Yohan knows that it’s actually a false dichotomy. And so he pushes him away. Which is why Gaon running after him at the end is so poignant, because that’s the choice he made for himself: to chase that sexy motherfucker down and eye-adore him into submission! And cos it wouldn’t be a DJ ep without a gut-wrenching parallel: ep 4 Yohan shoving Gaon away to join the elites in a toast vs ep 16 Yohan shoving Gaon away to join the elites in a (literal original meaning of the word!) roast in the finale. Pain! Sunah’s fate was quite divisive at the time, but I agree that it was the most fitting and, imo, in-character ending for her. Her story truly was a tragedy through and through, but increasingly a self-inflicted one, so it’s apt that her death was too. The show had been building up to this point, with all those little glimpses of her still feeling lonely and unfulfilled and hurt despite her wealth/power. I think she became increasingly self-aware as the show progressed, and in some ways her choosing to shoot herself instead of Yohan was the apex of that – it’s an acknowledgement that their paths have irretrievably diverged, that he has love in his life and that gives it meaning beyond revenge. I actually like that both her and Minister Cha, unlike the male antagonists, kept a degree of agency til the bitter end and chose their own fates rather than let the men do it for them (I mean, I know choices were limited, but still!), plus Sunah got to blow the President’s brains out as a final treat for herself! Speaking of Minister Cha, when Yohan is flashing back to the aftermath of the fire, he sees each of the rich folk in turn and, as in the past as in the present, they're all hysterical and squabbling and paired up...except for her, who he pictures last, and who is sitting off to one side, sipping on her drink, and looking pretty calm and collected. And I love the idea that it symbolises the way she always kept herself slightly apart from the rest of them, even in death - how she ultimately chose to withdraw herself from their seedy narrative. But back to Sunah - of course her very last moments were spent back in the fancy old house with the polite handsome boys and all the sparkly sparkly stuff – it’s desperately sad how she never managed to move on from that brief chapter in her life, and unbearably so when you remember how all that beauty masked so much cruelty and pain. For those invested in the toxic yuri – somewhere out there is a millisecond clip from a deleted scene featuring Jaehee yelling as she runs (I think in the live court building) before being intercepted by Soohyun’s boss. I’ve always assumed it was her running to where Sunah is, so I like to think she was loyal to the last. When Sunah tells her good work up til now, she makes this worried face, like she knows Sunah is saying goodbye, so that’s how I imagine it went down: she realised something was up and tried to reach her. The religious symbolism has obviously been there throughout the show but wowza does the finale really take it up a notch! First we have the President directly making the Jesus=Yohan/Judas=Gaon comparison, then a flashback to Gaon self-identifying as Judas in the very first ep, then Yohan with the stigmata, and then Yohan going full-on Jesus and sacrificing himself for society’s sins before being resurrected! (Though in this retelling, thank goodness, Jesus saves Judas from killing himself out of guilt and grief, and how much do I love that Mr. Kang “Spent A Decade Curating The Most Perfect Revenge Plan Ever Featuring Heavy Amounts Of Psychological Warfare Culminating In An Ending So Bloody Even Shakespeare Would Be Impressed” Yohan doesn’t give a flying fuck about revenge when it comes to Gaon’s betrayal – there’s no anger, no blame, no guilt-tripping or recriminations, no seeking of apologies. This is Yohan version 2.0 who has been enlightened by the healing power of gay love - he just wants him to be okay, to be safe, to be happy. Yohan of the early eps cannot relate! Everyone else can still burn though – he’s not THAT enlightened!) There’s a reason he destroys the site of the live court show at the same time he destroys himself, its creator and the instigator of all this strife – it’s not just the corrupt elites he’s ‘cleaning up’ for Gaon, it’s everything Yohan (publicly) stood for. By the end he’s no longer pretending to be the noble judge, wounded by injustice – he’s a criminal, he’s the devil, and he’s taking on all the bile and hatred and rage of the ppl, doing what they secretly want to do in their darkest of hearts, but by assuming that mantle and then dragging himself down to hell, he’s also setting them free – salvation through sacrifice. Because now he’s giving all the ppl who participated in this shitshow a free pass – they can tell themselves they were just hapless fools seduced by Satan himself. Now society can collectively wake itself up from the nightmare of the past sixteen eps and begin to heal. Yohan is both Jesus AND the devil! The Prof is yet another example of a superbly written antagonist who isn’t just suddenly ‘plot evil’ but a realistically contradictory human being – his betrayal and hypocrisy don’t change the fact he’s actually been making a lot of valid points throughout the series! I’m inclined to think he does genuinely care about the justice system, but his convictions are undermined by a) his aforementioned hypocrisy (how he managed to quote the abyss line at Yohan and keep a straight face is truly admirable!) and b) his ambition. He can tell himself he sold out to stop the ‘monster’ that was Yohan all he wants, but really he was more concerned about his own legacy. Ultimately, he’s just another ‘end justifies the means’ guy, which is precisely what he rails against in Yohan. I think of him as a bitter ex-idealist who just couldn’t accept the fact that his generation fucked things up so badly, and so in Yohan he found the perfect scapegoat to take the blame for how messed up the system the Prof so cherished had become. Stray thoughts: - Can’t believe the trashfire old man yaoi ended in betrayal too! I know they’re equally vile but I loved seeing the wives turn on their husbands – the First Lady yanking her hubby by what little hair he had left was a particular highlight, as was wife of business dude with the cane literally kicking her hubby while he was down! - I feel like I say this at least once an episode, but jailbird Yohan choking a man to death with his leg?? Never been sexier! - I like how the show has subtly highlighted people power throughout (and not just the bad mob violence kind!) – whether it’s the testimonials about Minister Cha’s son, or the insider who lets them into the studio during the ep 13 uprising, or the doctors in this ep - it all just goes to show how our guys couldn’t have done it alone. And finally…! I find that when I re-watch something enough, it takes on a life of its own complete with in-jokes and a permanent baseline hysteria, so to soothe our pain at the show ending, I thought I’d share a couple of moments that I can no longer watch with a straight face! The wonderful romantic chase sequence at the end now makes me giggle because how the hell did Yohan get all the way up to that balcony in the time it took Gaon to leave the room? I have this vision of him completing his sexy slo-mo strut out of the conference room, and then as soon as he rounds the corner suddenly going ‘shit shit shit’ and legging it halfway across and up the building just so he can pose like the insufferable show-off that he is. The fact it wasn’t only the audience who failed to recognise hair-down Yohan, cos what do you mean he strutted around that busy conference hall in the middle of the day and nobody recognised him, not even after Gaon yelled out his full name?!? There are also two scenes in particular which now exist in my mind solely in meme form: first one is when Gaon bursts into the courtroom to find everyone either dead or hysterical = the darkest timeline Community scene, when Troy returns to the apartment with the pizza – anyone?? And then it’s the whole Gaon asking Attorney Hottie for a suicide vest thing, because there’s no way he didn’t pass that nugget on to Yohan, right?? We know he’s in touch with him cos he’s in on the prisoner-swapping plan, so surely he’d tell Yohan bout Gaon’s request? I’ve decided there are two possible scenarios: he tells Yohan, Yohan tells him to give Gaon a fake vest, and then Yohan is like ‘can you just wait outside for a bit while I swoop in and do a whole thrilling homoerotic last minute disarmament thing? I’ll let you know when you can come in. ‘Kay, thanks.’ And then does precisely that, down to waiting til the last few seconds for peak dramatic impact all the while knowing it’s a dud. All classic, top-notch Yohan drama queen behaviour. But then there’s the other scenario, which is possibly even funnier, in which Attorney Hottie, still salty over Gaon’s betrayal, either deliberately doesn’t tell Yohan bout Gaon’s plan and gives him a real vest, or DOES tell Yohan, Yohan tells him to provide a fake vest, but he goes ahead and gives him a real one anyway, and Yohan’s like ‘YOU DID WHAT NOW?!?!?’ and Attorney Hottie just shrugs and is like ‘What? He asked!’, and so the last-minute dramatic rescue is actually totally genuine and only incidentally homoerotic cos it’s Yohan and everything he does is inherently homoerotic. And that’s where the meme comes in – you know that Anakin/Padme one?? Attorney Hottie as Anakin, and Yohan as Padme, saying ‘you gave Gaon a fake bomb right? YOU GAVE GAON A FAKE BOMB RIGHT????’ I’m sorry, that’s canon now, at least to me! Anyway, I’m so happy for everyone who got to discover this show for the very first time – you’re so lucky! It’s been delightful, I’ve honestly had a blast - thank you for putting up with my wanky comments! And now I’m off to press play on episode 1 and start this all over again…mwah hah hah!
fishinabook
2025-06-12 19:30:08 +0000 UTCI cannot believe it’s over, but I couldn’t wait for you to see this episode. Ugh this showwww. This is doomed toxic yaoi!! This is cinema!! lol. I’m so glad you watched it, it’s been so fun rewatching it with you ♥️♥️♥️♥️
Cute Ass Jas
2025-06-12 01:21:51 +0000 UTCGirl you really need to watch the photoshoot for this drama its full of gaon and yohan moments 😩❤️
Jade Peña
2025-06-10 12:09:57 +0000 UTCno way it is truly the end of an era... not much to say i just love gay people. and we'll always have switzerland <333
bella
2025-06-10 06:28:50 +0000 UTCAw, thank you so much for the shout-out - that means a lot to me! Though you'll regret it when I return in a couple of days with my 10,000 word thesis on the finale... In the meantime, I'm not sure whether or not this counts as variety, but these are, imo, the definitive Yohan/Gaon edits: https://youtu.be/dp1lgrqeBd8?si=1oAzRxCbqCUplZe4 and https://youtu.be/qAzY3PzfrSo?si=kgKE-QwLF_X_JTwI (watch the second one if you need cheering up/a giggle - it's the most perfect mash-up ever!) And lest there's any uncertainty bout the ending, the writer would very much like everyone to know it's actually a happily ever after (well maybe not for society at large, but for our little found family at least and that's all that matters!): "Kang Yohan . . . boldly appeared at the Judicial Reform Hearing to see if Gaon was doing well. This wasn’t in Gaon’s imagination, but there are viewers who misunderstand that. I would like to take this opportunity to tell you that Yohan is doing well with Elijah, and we will see him again soon with Gaon." (source: https://thequillandscreen.tumblr.com/post/662258994223742976/translation-of-relevant-portions-of-writer-moon - less fun is the news it was originally meant to be 20 episodes - we've been robbed!!!) Finally, I leave you with this thought: the DJ finale was originally aired August 2021. Guess which country voted to legalise same-sex marriage one month later??
fishinabook
2025-06-09 22:52:56 +0000 UTCthe homoerotic bomb defusing really got me too so i understand the immediate rewatch. seonah as a character is just so fascinating and her discovering that girl in the hospital gets me every time, she saw her younger self in that girl and truly wanted her to succeed only for her to become her victim.
Char
2025-06-09 20:51:52 +0000 UTCThis was my first time watching this show and girl I hate shows like this because it really IS still the same in the end😭 I want revenge and hope and reformation but it's real life and none of that really can be done so easily (not that anything anyone did in this show was 'easy' LOL), selfishly I'm like I hope gaon quits and moves to Switzerland and the 3 can at least spend the rest of their time as a happy family together but when you have such a strong sense of justice and responsibility how would you even be able to "abandon" your country when you feel like it's all on you to fix it now....oh gaon😭😭💔 I always get sad as hell at the end of shows but especially this one it was just emptiness after the explosion like even with all the happy reveal of everyone being alive and all that jazz, it felt like I was sat in that conference room right with gaon, just kinda frustrating and empty and hopeless ugh horrible I hated this show (jk it's one of the best I've ever seen LMAO but you get what I'm saying)
Gurocandii
2025-06-09 20:07:36 +0000 UTCOh my gosh what a riiiiide. I loved every moment of this show and was glad it ended this way! I am so glad they had a final moment- it was so so poignant and they are absolutely reuniting in the future. I also am glad for minor redemption for cunty bob, and was actually really devastated by her death. Also I laughed very loud at you mentioning how hot Yohan looks in prison because all I was thinking was will there be a conjugal visit?? These characters are going to stay with me for a long time… and will continue their reign in my head via the Ao3.
Ziggy_Zade
2025-06-09 19:53:52 +0000 UTCIt's really been a joy rewatching the series with you, so glad you enjoyed it! I really think this series is something special. now get thee to ao3!!
JoannaMaybe
2025-06-09 18:13:50 +0000 UTCThis finale really cemented this show as one of my favs. Before weak hero, THIS was my hyper fixation like I would make analyses and theories on tumblr when this was airing. And that final scene?? No words spoken at all between the two and yet saying so much with just their eyes. You have no idea how many times I’ve watched that scene just analyzing their stares to each other. I’m so glad it’s open ended so they can find each other again (on ao3 as well) Thank you for reacting to this show because it lowkey reignited my love for it! It’s been so fun re-experiencing it with you!
Leslie
2025-06-09 17:26:19 +0000 UTCTHANK YOU 🙏
Sarah
2025-06-09 15:08:02 +0000 UTCim so excited to inhale this once i’m home but before that i need to fire off THEE post canon fic recommendation for everyone’s sake: who holds the devil by amethystina (on ao3 obvi) it’s unfinished (for now) but genuinely the closest thing to a season two one could wish for, it’s saur good, i think miss amethystina understands the characters better than the original writer atp
vvxgidae
2025-06-09 14:14:09 +0000 UTCI am here and I’m ready to be depressed
Nimo
2025-06-09 14:01:36 +0000 UTC
