REVIEW: ‘Death’s Game’ Explores The Meaning Of Life Through Death

Choi Yi-jae (Seo In-guk) was struggling in life. Since a freak occurrence caused him to fail a crucial job interview, his life had spiraled down the drain. After seven years of laboring, he realized he could no longer handle life and chose to end it all. But when the fall from the roof of his apartment building ended, his eyes opened, and he found himself in the presence of Death (Park So-dam). Displeased with Yi-jae’s actions and the motives behind them, Death decides that he must live 12 lives that are in peril of imminent death as punishment. If he can survive one of these lives while also learning why his choice was wrong, Death will allow him to live out the remainder of that life. If he fails, he must face the excruciating suffering of eternal damnation in Death’s Game, a K-drama based on the webtoon written by Lee Won Sik and illustrated by Gul Chan.

Yi-jae’s goal to survive his perilous returns to the land of the living crafts an interesting narrative thanks to the wide variety of lives he is placed into. From a teen being bullied at school under deep societal pressures, to a daredevil thrill-seeker and even an infant, Death’s Game establishes early on that there is no guessing where Death will send him next. This assortment of lives and experiences lends color to the lessons Yi-jae learns on his repeated visits back to life.

These different lives do more than just bring new experiences to Yi-jae’s story. They also bring various lessons about life and the world around him. From simple lessons about the hardships of others to more complex concepts like how one’s reality may not be how they perceive it, every life brings something new and distinct to the story through both their circumstances and due to the nature of how Yi-jae interacts with them.

Whenever the protagonist inhabits a new life, there is a brief period where he knows nothing about where he is and what’s happening. Then, a small floating crystal only he can see arrives, bearing with it the memories and skills of the person he is inhabiting, as well as some of their personality traits. He always remains Yi-jae, but if the previous personality in life was extremely confident, he would be inclined to be confident too. This further immerses the character in the lessons of each life, as it allows him to better understand the world he is stepping into.

An intriguing element of Death’s Game‘s story I didn’t see coming is the gradual interplay that forms between his various lives. Characters from prior lives eventually start to interact with Yi-jae in new lives, showcasing how surprisingly interconnected the world can be. It also gives the character opportunities to take advantage of his change of face, as he often knows things that who he is now shouldn’t. This presents the character with some moral conundrums he doesn’t always pass.

While much of the series’ exploration of life at its core comes together to deliver some deep and thought-provoking themes, there is one place where the narrative goes astray: its vilification of those who end up committing suicide.

Death isn’t just putting Yi-jae through these trials to help him understand how precious life is, or how his world wasn’t as bad as he believed it to be. Rather, his final act of desperation is treated as a crime. One that she states is born of his selfishness. While it’s true that when someone takes their own life, those who lived in their world and cared for them are also hurt by the action, to present the individual that has been pushed to this point as acting in self-interest is despicable. Being forced to stand at the proverbial edge of life and consider throwing one’s self over the edge is a choice one arrives at through pain, misery, and hopelessness. People who choose to go over that edge are just as much the victims as those who are left behind to wade through the emotional ashes. To push a narrative that claims anything else is simply hurtful.

Moving from the narrative elements of Death’s Game, another key ingredient in this series is the acting. The biggest achievement that this series manages is how consistently Yi-jae is portrayed throughout these first four episodes, despite his being shown in numerous bodies.

Both in between lives, as well as in some important emotional moments, actor Seo portrays Yi-jae, everywhere else he is shown in the physical form that he has come to inhabit. With seven different lives presented in these episodes, there is an amazing level of consistency in how the character is portrayed, with the obvious exception of the baby of course. While there are flourishes layered on from the various personalities he gains from these new lives, the way he talks and his mannerisms always feel like Yi-jae at their core. This provides a surprisingly solid level of continuity for the character, even as he bounces from life to life.

While I may not like how the show presents Death’s outlook on our protagonist, I cannot fault actress Park’s presentation of her character’s personality. Cold and condescending, Death always feels like she’s in on a hidden joke that Yi-jae cannot fathom. Her bluntness is often brutal as she derives him for his shortcomings, as well as when she demonstrates for him what awaits him should he fail. While the personification of Death at times is shown in a caretaker light, one who comes to gently usher us to what lies beyond, this Death is a far crueler interpretation of the character.

Lastly, there are some striking visual elements used to depict the land between here and the hereafter that Yi-jae returns to between trips. The snarling abyss and sea of blood and hordes of writhing creatures with claws and teeth are presented skillfully to deliver a terrifying element to the story. The meeting room where Death awaits him upon each return is sparse, save for a monstrous statue depicting the suffering of the damned, whose cold atmosphere perfectly enhances the personality of the lady that calls it home.

Death’s Game delivers some great narrative elements as it shuffles its protagonist from life to life. It presents its many complex themes well, and if it wasn’t for the single glaring problem at the core of its plot, it would be a series I would have little to complain about.

Death’s Game is streaming now on Amazon Prime, with new episodes releasing January 5, 2023.