REVIEW: ‘Glitch’ Bends Multiple Genre To Its Will

Glitch is Netflix’s latest Korean Drama that embodies all the weirdest and best parts of science fiction grounded in reality while also using other genres to explore a winding narrative of loneliness, religion, and discovery. “Aliens stole my boyfriend” is one hell of a premise and Glitch runs with it, as far as it can to explore adulthood, life choices, and finding something greater than a banal existence.

Directed by Roh Deok and written by Jin Han-Sae, Glitch is centered around Ji-hyo (Jeon Yeo-bin), a woman who can see aliens and Bo-ra (Im Jin-Ah), who has been chasing them. Two sides of the same coin, the two meet when they’re young, drift apart in adulthood and are pulled back together when Ji-hyo’s boyfriend vanishes off the face of the planet without a trace and only a malfunctioning smartwatch left behind.

Jihyo’s life is relatively easy. She works an office job that she got thanks to her connections, she has a boyfriend who wants to move in with her, and even if it’s boring, it’s complete and normal. On the other hand, Bo-ra is a content creator, covered in tattoos, doesn’t brush her hair, and just gets by with her other alien otaku friends. As the two begin to work together, they uncover a cult, a mystery, and secrets that run deeper than they thought.

The best thing that Glitch does is keep you guessing about the reality that the characters are living in. Is the cult on to something? Are the aliens real? Is everyone just crazy and obsessed? While our lead duo, Ji-hyo and Bo-ra seem to have the most grounded foundation of all the characters, it does shake as new developments arrive. On top of that, their own history together begins to morph their trust and dynamic as the series progresses from episode one to episode 10.

That said, regardless of what is really happening, actresses Jeon and Im deliver phenomenal performances as women we don’t often see in Korean dramas. Bo-ra is brash. She smokes, does as she pleases, and isn’t afraid to play chicken with a bull. she has a grit and determination that doesn’t steer clear of violence and looks at rules as suggestions. She’s fearless and yet vulnerable enough to be grounded by the past.

Ji-hyo is empathetic but lives in her own world, unbothered by keeping up appearances. And to top it all off, she is entirely disinterested in her romance with her boyfriend of years all the way down to a comedic sex scene that captures her romantic apathy. In fact, the absence of any substantial romance in Glitch helps keep the series’ focus on the task at hand: find the missing boyfriend, but in doing so, prove that a crazy cult is abducting people or figure out if it’s really aliens instead. The boyfriend of it all becomes a formality as Ji-hyo and the others search for larger answers.

Glitch combines sci-fi and mystery expertly with twists and turns moving the narrative outside of your expectation. It takes hard turns between genre, oscillating between sci-fi, action, mystery, and comedy at the drop of a dime. But what the series really does well manage to showcase how easy it is to get people to believe once you gain their trust. You can make people see UFOs, you can make them give their lives up for a religion built on selfishness, and you can even change how they remember past events. The series also offers up critiques on religious experience and pastors, and the cults of personality that easily manipulate their followers. Glitch succeeds because it shows how fragile people are and how in loneliness and desperation we can latch on to any bit of hope.

Now, all of that being said, Glitch’s pacing can be glacial at times. With plots continually being extended and drawn out even when it feels like they’re hitting their natural crescendo, there are times when the narrative begins to wander around the central themes instead of actively engaging them as if there needs to be more time to fill an episode. But this is far and few between, and only slightly dampens the experience.

Ultimately though, Glitch is a success. It’s humorous, and thoughtful, and has a pair of leads that are compelling and complete characters. Moving between so many different genres, it’s amazing that Glitch manages to find its footing and never slip. Glitch may not be pure sci-fi, but its imaginative storytelling and genre-blending makes it something endearing nonetheless.

Glitch is available to stream exclusively on Netflix.