This takes me back in a bad way. Having worked in juvenile "justice" for the first five years of my legal career, I could not decide (and I still cannot) which was more disheartening: the fact that given the cards some kids are dealt, with respect to family/economics/education, it was a virtual certainty that these kids ended up dead or before the criminal courts by the time they reached their teens, or the fact that more than a few of the youths were already permanently formed as sociopathic predators who have no limits as to malice and cruelty. Hard pass.

I expect this will be disturbing and disheartening, but I hope it really delves into the problems with the juvenile justice system and South Korea's Juvenile Act. The cast is amazing and can certainly deliver.

This show looks primed for good sociopolitical commentary on how the law treats juvenile offenders, but not sure if Netflix would go that route since their wheelhouse is more violence, action, darkness, and good chase scenes.

Kim Hyesoo is amazing so might watch just for her.

This looks like the type of issue-based drama that I enjoy. I love these actors too.

Lee Sung-Min! I really like this actor. As well as Kim Hye-Soo, so I'm pretty happy!

The theme is interesting. I hope the characters won't be too caricatural.

I'm definitely watching this.

Lee Sung-min seems to me like a semblance to Judge Carmichael in All Rise.

Can someone confirm that SBS’s JUVENILE JUSTICE has a content rating of 19 in South Korea? I am under the impression that that is the case but I can’t confirm it at any of my regular kdrama english sites.

I love Kim Hye-soo, but I’m extremely worried about the direction this show and how it can tackle retributive and carceral justice. I’m personally of the firm opinion that the current state of prisons and incarceration is doing more harm to society than good. I can’t speak to the state of juvenile justice in South Korea, but where I live, minors from disadvantaged backgrounds (whether that be racial, economic, educational, etc.) tend to be disproportionately incarcerated for the smallest infractions. I’ve personally seen several class and schoolmates sentenced and criminalized for life because of the pettiest reasons - reasons that rich kids get away with routinely. Again, these were my peers. Some were even acquaintances and friends. They were not bad people, just children living their lives in the harsh realities they were born into and had no way of changing. Most of them absolutely did not receive justice or even the proper respect and care they deserved as minors. Its upsetting and I don’t care to see it glorified on a show with a wide international audience of impressionable young people.

Given how routinely police officers are portrayed in kdramas as a net positive to the communities it ‘serves’, I am deeply skeptical about how the show can even properly critique the systems they are portraying, much less show solutions to the deep systemic issues it is bound to bring up. I am reserving final judgment because that cast is fantastic and I want so badly to see a show handle this topic with the sensitivity and care it requires, but I cannot go into this with optimism.

The premise seems good and has potential to be great and gripping like DP or extracurricular. And it being produced by Netflix, giving it greater chance. A must watch.

I'm a big fan of Kim Hye Soo, but I really wish they would dispense with the filter they always give her, she is older, it is okay, she is still stunning even with some wrinkles. This will be rough for me, but I will still watch.

Great cast and PD. Haven’t watched anything by this writer but her filmography is interesting - mostly movies and not run-of-mill fare. Will certainly check it out.

Would Netflix release all episodes in one go?

While I don't know if I'll commit to watching this particular show, I do like this cast. Kim Hye-soo hardly ever disappoints.

Kim Hye-soo is not my cup of tea (is that heresy?) but Kim Mu-yeol has always seemed interesting to me, not your standard k-drama leading man. And it's time Lee Sung-min made up for Money Game. Oh those MG scenes where he struggled to speak English! He wasn't the only one but he may have been the worst.

These types of shows are very important to have. The only (repeatedly encountered) problem I find with them is not really a hard subject, it's that sometimes the writers need to remember that they are still writing a piece of entertainment (in this case, infotainment, really). I see a lot of the shows just getting caught up in its own meandering narrative, which puts the average layperson viewer to sleep. I feel like the modern US document series are very much aware of this problem and have done some wonders in bringing the issues to the fore while also making them very entertaining to watch. I don't remember the last time I've seen a fictional k-drama or a tv show combining the elements of important issues with entertainment elements but one example always stands out in my mind: The Wire. It was wickedly entertaining and searingly explorative of social realities, and I have a hard time finding shows like these these days.