Actor Jung Jae-sung heightened the drama's immersion by delicately portraying the narrative of a character who harbors deep fatherly love for his son and wounds from the past as Lee Bong-seok, the father of protagonist Lee Han-young (Jisung), in episodes 3 and 4 of the MBC Friday-Saturday drama The Judge Returns, which aired on the 9th and 10th.
In episode 3, which aired on the 9th, the time-returned Lee Han-young (Jisung) visited the junk shop his parents run to see his mother Shin Nam-sook (Hwang Young-hee) and father Lee Bong-seok, and scenes were shown in which he made coffee for his father and cooked doenjang stew himself to prepare breakfast, reflecting on his past neglect.
Jung Jae-sung vividly expressed Lee Bong-seok's human warmth, who, while bewildered by his son's sudden change, smiled warmly, and he moved viewers by showing the deep bond between father and son as their initially awkward relationship gradually became more affectionate.
In episode 4, which aired on the 10th, the tense scene from when Lee Bong-seok was wrongly branded a criminal was vividly revealed through flashbacks. Jung Jae-sung delivered a harrowing performance, resisting to the end while being struck by the thugs' clubs, bringing the drama's tension to a peak. The injustice of the judge unilaterally accepting the security company's false testimony at the time was made even more stark by Jung Jae-sung's all-out acting.
In particular, Jung Jae-sung portrayed, with sober acting, a father who endured his own pain in the hope that his son would become a judge, creating a perfect father-son chemistry with Jisung, and the two actors' rapport produced memorable scenes in every episode, firmly anchoring the drama.
Furthermore, the black-covered ledger that appeared at the end of episode 4 hinted that it would become decisive evidence to exonerate Lee Bong-seok, arousing curiosity about future developments. Attention is focused on whether Lee Han-young will be able to clear his father's name through this ledger and approach the true nature of the vast evil.
Meanwhile, with expectations that Jung Jae-sung's performance will remain a key viewing point in the unfolding process of solving upcoming cases, the MBC Friday-Saturday drama The Judge Returns airs every Friday and Saturday at 9:40 p.m.
[Photo] MBC drama The Judge Returns (Inyeon Entertainment)
[OSEN]