The Season 1 of Night Has Come presents us with an exhilarating plot of high school death game, in which students are thrown into a lethal mafia-like game. The setting takes place in what appears to be an ordinary retreat center with the series swiftly seeding the air with paranoia, suspicion and mental paranoia. When night comes, the students are given threatening messages informing them that survival can only come with betraying friends and telling who among them is the “mafia.” The claustrophobic atmosphere is perfectly augmented in the show, highlighting that fear and mistrust can make even regular teenagers desperate, cunning survivors. With a thrilling and fast rhythm, and the dramatics increasingly becoming stakes, the viewer is kept on his toes, wondering about the motives and morals of every character presented.
The actors do a good job, presenting the viewers with their engaging performances and their various states of emotions. Lee Yoon-seo is an intellectual, capable, and well-intended character that was driven crazy by her visions that she cannot seem to understand. The indecisive yet intuitive behavior towards the game takes precedence over the steadfast loyalty and protectionism of Joon-hee, thus driving emotion into the story. The indifferent nature of Jung-won and the merciless desire shown by Kyung-jun intensifies the level of discord whereas the quick corners and summoned power unexpectedly shown by Jin Da-beom is a lesson on how underestimated persons can affect the game. The relationships between these characters explore the themes of trust, betrayal, and survival showing how minuscule social connections turn out to be when people have been left to die.
The aesthetics of the series is dark and tense, with the deliberate use of lights and close-ups to further perpetuate the tension and emotional stance in the series. The crisp dialogue and pace of the storytelling in the script maintain the only clue that no one is actually sure what will happen next, and every episode seems to be a new revelation. The most striking part was how human nature is explored in critical situations and what happens when fear, ambition, and loyalty mix up in the storm of survival. Night Has Come is an emotionally charged show with lingering mystery as to how much people would do to arrange a life that leaves viewers wondering in their hearts and minds long after the last show of the season had concluded.
