Premiere Watch: Bait, Kokdu: Season of Deity

26 January 26, 2023January 26, 2023

Premiere Watch: Bait, Kokdu: Season of Deity

by missvictrix

This weekend we have a crime thriller marking Jang Geun-seok’s return to dramaland (which also stars Heo Sung-tae, who never left), and a fantasy rom-com that’s high on humor and hijinks.

Bait

Time slot: Fridays
Broadcaster: Coupang Play
Genre: Crime, thriller
Episode count: 6 (Part 1)

Reasons to watch: Jang Geun-seok returns to dramaland as a lawyer turned detective who finds himself dealing with a not-so-dead financial criminal and evil genius mastermind (naturally, Heo Sung-tae). The setup is completely familiar, but I think the drama has potential to come alive with this very cool casting — and with the story in the hands of the PD from Money Heist: Korea — Joint Economic Area and The Guest. Lee Elijah hasn’t gotten as much of the spotlight as our two leads, but she plays a reporter who also gets involved with the case. Sadly (again), the drama has been split into two parts, with the first six episodes coming first, and the final half coming at a later time.

TL;DR: Jang Geun-seok vs. Heo Sung-tae: bring it on!

Kokdu: Season of Deity

Time slot: Friday-Saturday
Broadcaster: MBC
Genre: Fantasy, rom-com
Episode count: 16

Reasons to watch: The expectations are high for this one, because it’s so ripe for hilarious hijinks and fun heart-stopping moments. I have no doubt that our leads — Kim Jung-hyun and Im Soo-hyang — will be able to pull off the comedy and chemistry required here. The question, then, is if the script will be tight enough to hold up the drama’s premise: a grim reaper returns to earth and finds himself not only playing a doctor, but getting entangled with one too.

TL;DR: Kim Jung-hyun is a grim reaper who’s confronted with a perplexing human female in the form of Im Soo-hyang

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1 Unaspirated

January 26, 2023 at 11:10 AM

It looks like both will be on Viki in the US, but Bait is under the name "Decoy" instead.

I think I'll be skipping these premieres for the moment. Open to both if they turn out to be good, but I have enough going on right now (and both of these genres covered) with other dramas, and I don't really trust Im Soo-hyang, unfortunately.

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Diana Hansen

January 26, 2023 at 11:39 AM

Oh I could hug you right thru the screen for telling us where they will be shown! I tried to find Kokdu on Viki the other day and it said it won't be there but I will try again now it is premier time. Bait sounds interesting so I have to decide whether to watch the first 6 and wait for the rest or wait til the 2nd 6 is out and binge watch it!

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Unaspirated

January 26, 2023 at 12:53 PM

No problem! I just stalk the "new and coming soon" section of Viki when there is something coming out that I really want to see.

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DancingEmma

January 27, 2023 at 2:18 PM

@Diana Hansen: Viki is showing it in my non-US region so I hope you will have it too.

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Diana Hansen

January 28, 2023 at 8:07 AM

thank you! I just looked again today and it is in the coming soon so I can watch it too!

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Elinor is trapped in the timeslip

January 26, 2023 at 12:25 PM

I love KJH's expression on the Kokdu poster and am impressed that ISH has an expression. Given how misleading posters have been recently, I don't trust it any more than I trust her.

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DancingEmma

January 27, 2023 at 2:28 PM

@Elinor: You said it. At this point, I anticipate the real possibility of false advertising through each poster.
And, I’m not familiar with ISH. Does she belong to the Lee Minhho school of acting?😂(Although I have to confess (again) I easily tolerated his acting in ‘The Legend of Blue Sea’ because of how wonderful Jun Jihyun was. He should be paired with her often as she is like a bad acting antidote.

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Eazal

January 27, 2023 at 12:30 AM

Thanks so much! I have already added them.. but Decoy/Bait is part 1 😳… why is it that we have our dramas in Teo parts??

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beffels

January 27, 2023 at 1:10 AM

Ugh I hate the two part thing; I’m trying to resist watching anything multi-part until both parts are out, but I don’t know if that will be counter productive in that I do want them to actually *make* the second part and not be like “oh no one was interested, guess we just cancel”

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DancingEmma

January 27, 2023 at 2:19 PM

@jls943: Thank you for the headsup!😊

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2 StacyA

January 26, 2023 at 11:36 AM

Bait isn't my thing but I hope it does well. I'll always have a soft spot of Jang Geun-seok.

Kokdu is on my radar as a potential watch, but I'll wait and see whether it tanks or not first.

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3 Kafiyah Bello

January 26, 2023 at 11:38 AM

Excited for triple K!!!!

Will try Bait.

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Kafiyah Bello

January 26, 2023 at 11:40 AM

Also is Bait supposed to be Friday. It currently says Wednesday.

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Eazal

January 27, 2023 at 12:31 AM

And two parts? But it’s Lee Elijah… I have a soft spot for her.

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Kafiyah Bello

January 27, 2023 at 4:14 AM

I do too, big fan of hers. I'm still sad she wasn't in Good Detective 2.

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Eazal

January 27, 2023 at 6:34 AM

I'm on episode 13 of TGD2 and I'm still missing her every time.

4 Lord Cobol (Kdramas, like water, flow downhill)

January 26, 2023 at 12:35 PM

Are you sure Bait is Wednesdays?

Other sites seem to think it is another Friday Night of Doom, to be followed by a Season Two of At Least They Are Upfront About It. (Which kinda makes the first season into Bait too).

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5 Gikata

January 26, 2023 at 1:46 PM

I'm SO ready for Kkokdu (give the man his lost K back!). I'd maybe try the other one for Heo Sung Tae, but Jang Geun Seok's face always reminds me of those earlier Hallyu days I don't really want to remember... Glad to know he's back into acting tho, his fans must be over the moon rn.

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Linarrick

January 26, 2023 at 7:54 PM

Yep as a Jang Geun-seok fan, I’m incredibly happy to see him back on my screen!

Curious why you don’t like those earlier Hallyu days? I loved them, I remember when You’re Beautiful was airing, I’d be on the soompi forum reading those live recaps. Man those were the days!

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Gikata

January 26, 2023 at 10:59 PM

Purely stylistic preference - 99% of kdramas made before 2010 are just a huge nope to me. I'm fine with cheaper productions and other retro technical stuff, but man, that pacing of a half-dead snail! The inhuman level of cringe! The torture galore of nonsensically heavy melo! The abundance of infuriating wtf-endings! The overdone to death and beyond tropes and archetypes without any fresh or ironic take on them! The lack of genre and plot variety, not to mention way less dramas to choose from! And the worst of it all - the fact that when I first got into kdramas (in early 2011) I was naive enough to trust my friends recommendations and overall hype when choosing titles to watch... HUGE mistake. I ended up suffering for hours and hours in a vain hope that "one more episode and maybe I'll finally get what's all the fuss about". So many meh impressions and wasted time that I'll never get back... In conclusion, I don't miss those days at all. I may not be 100% happy with the state kdramaland is in right now, but it's still much more to my liking than 13+ years before.

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Linarrick

January 26, 2023 at 11:26 PM

Haha fair enough and yep very much true. I find it hard to watch dramas made before 2010 too now since I’ve been so accustomed to the modern kdrama landscape. But I do miss the online hype back then, or maybe it’s just the nostalgia goggles

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Gikata

January 27, 2023 at 2:46 PM

Back then I didn't speak English yet and my online activity was limited to small local forums and sns (dramas were barely a thing here at the time) which is why I kind of missed that part of an era. So there's not even a nostalgia factor to soften me for Hallyu golden days, sadly)))

6 Firewife5

January 26, 2023 at 4:36 PM

Meh! Another drama split into two parts. This is a trend I was hoping to see go away soon. I'll pass on Bait.

Will be checking out Kokdu with fingers crossed that it's everything the teaser makes it out to be.

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7 cozybooks

January 26, 2023 at 5:44 PM

Excited for both! I will tune into the premiers.

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8 bong-soo

January 26, 2023 at 7:19 PM

Pleased that the suspense and availability angst is over and BAIT will be available on Viki US under the title DECOY: PART 1 but this may be a good candidate to postpone and binge at a later date.

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9 rochinipark

January 27, 2023 at 7:46 PM

Hi everyone, if you located in the Asia region, BAIT/DECOY is also available on Amazon Prime Video. For Kokdu it is also on IQIYI/VIU Asia as well. More towards South East Asia region.

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