The K-drama The Judge From Hell was exclusively launched on Disney+ in September, and it has successfully ended in early November. Actress Park Shin-hye, who takes on the role of Kang Bit-na, incarnated as an evil judge whose main motive is to eliminate violent criminals. The plot revolves around the idea of crimes and justice while adding a hint of romance between Kang Bit-na and Han Da-on (played by Kim Jae-young). The drama then puts a spotlight on the curse that forbids Bit-na from having romantic feelings toward any humans alive, which further contrasts with the romantic atmosphere Bit-na and Da-on have formed.
Before her incarnation, Bit-na’s true identity was Justitia, the Roman goddess of justice. The drama breaks the traditional image of Justitia by creating a contrast between the Justitia in the drama and the public perception of Justitia. The Justitia in the drama is headstrong and self-willed, which differs greatly from the original Justitia, who is willing to blindfold herself to sustain equality. As the audience dives deeper into the plot, the Korean version of Justitia raises the question “what really is equality?” for the audience to reflect on.
Justitia, and later Kang Bit-na, in the drama is given the ability to kill off criminals who do not self-reflect, who persist to believe that they are right. The scenes where a judge kills a criminal may seem like a misfit to our perception of a judge in real life. With this, the drama challenges the audience’s perception of justice—should all types of elimination of crimes and criminals be justified, even if execution will be exercised? This concept resembles that of a hotly debated topic in the United States, which is the morality of capital punishment.
In the storyline, the audience is made to realize that if Bit-na and Da-on fall in love, one of them will die. This restriction on the characters shifts the audience’s attention on an interesting question: can free will outwin fate? Using the unknown power of hell to represent the great strength of fate, Bit-na and Da-on may seem weak and helpless. However, the only way to answer this question is by watching The Judge From Hell.
