We have a weakness for revenge stories, and Mercy for None 광장 knew exactly how to use it. Eleven years ago, Nam Ki-jun (So Ji-sub) cut through his own Achilles tendon to prove to the gang world that he was out. Now his younger brother Ki-seok (Lee Jun-hyuk) is dead, nobody will say how, and Ki-jun is back. He still limps. It does not slow him down much.
Netflix released all seven episodes on 6 June 2025. The series is based on the Naver webtoon Gwangjang by Oh Se-hyung and Kim Gyun-tae, and this review contains no spoilers.
John Wick, with a limp
The comparison is hard to avoid. A man walks away from violence, the violence takes someone from him, and he comes back to settle it with very few words and a great deal of patience. So Ji-sub plays Ki-jun like a Korean cousin of John Wick, only heavier and slower, and that slowness is the point. He lost nearly 20 kg for the role, his first full action part in years, and he barely raises his voice in seven hours. He doesn't need to.
Director Choi Sung-eun built the action around the injury. Ki-jun cannot run, so he walks forward and keeps walking. The fights happen at arm's length, with fists, elbows and whatever is lying around, and there are hardly any guns. Watching a man who cannot get away choose not to try is a lot more unsettling than another chase scene would have been.
Two families, two heirs
The search leads Ki-jun into a city split between two organizations. Ju Un belongs to Lee Joo-woon (Huh Joon-ho), whose son Lee Geum-son (Choo Young-woo) has somehow become a prosecutor. Bong San is run by Gu Bong-san (An Kil-kang), with his son Gu Jun-mo (Gong Myoung) waiting impatiently in the wings. Huh and An play the old bosses with the calm of men who have nothing left to prove. The sons are the ones to worry about.
Seven episodes turns out to be the right length. There is no subplot to wander off into, and almost every scene moves the question forward: who killed Ki-seok, and what will it cost to find out?
Watching a man who cannot get away choose not to try is more unsettling than any chase.
Rain, neon and very little dialogue
It is also a beautiful series to look at, in a grim way. Wet streets, blue night light, the occasional red neon sign, long shots of Ki-jun standing still while everyone else panics. A lot of the storytelling happens in those silences.
The catch
You will see most of it coming. Revenge stories run on rails, and Mercy for None rarely jumps them; we had guessed the big reveals a good while before Ki-jun got there. It didn't spoil the fun for us, because the point of a story like this is less what happens than how. But if you need a twist to stay hooked, you won't get many.
Our advice: if you liked Bloodhounds or the John Wick films, start tonight. If screen violence bothers you, skip this one, because it does not hold back.
Mercy for None at a glance
- Korean title광장 (Gwangjang)
- Where to watchNetflix
- Released6 June 2025, all episodes at once
- Episodes7
- DirectorChoi Sung-eun
- Based onthe Naver webtoon Gwangjang by Oh Se-hyung and Kim Gyun-tae
Main cast
- So Ji-subNam Ki-jun, a gangster who left the life eleven years ago
- Lee Jun-hyukNam Ki-seok, his younger brother
- Huh Joon-hoLee Joo-woon, head of the Ju Un organization
- Choo Young-wooLee Geum-son, prosecutor and heir to Ju Un
- An Kil-kangGu Bong-san, head of the rival Bong San organization
- Gong MyoungGu Jun-mo, heir to Bong San
How it did
Three days after release, Mercy for None was already No. 2 on Netflix's global Top 10 for non-English TV. In its second week it climbed to No. 1 with 7.6 million views and reached the Top 10 in 75 countries.
Sources Netflix: Mercy for None main trailer, Korea JoongAng Daily: Korean-style noir action, Korea JoongAng Daily: So Ji-sub shows he's still got it, Korea JoongAng Daily: tops Netflix's non-English chart.
