Mercy For None ~ Whoever Killed My Little Brother … NO MERCY
“Mercy For None” is a 2025 Korean drama series, with 8 episodes, categorized as Action, Crime, Thriller, Revenge, and Noir or Neo-Noir; based on a webtoon “Plaza Wars: Mercy For None”; streaming on Netflix.
SUMMARY: A man who tried to leave his gangster life behind is drawn back when his brother is killed mercilessly. He wants to know who, he wants to know why, and he wants to get revenge. NO MERCY.
♦ It All Started 11 Years Ago
In “Mercy For None”, Nam Gi-Jun‘s life can be summed up with a famous quote from one of The Godfather movies. “Every time I try to get out, they pull me back in!” It’s hard to escape the gangster life.
11 years ago, there was one head gangster who wanted to expand his business. But he needed to get rid of a gang that wasn’t under his control. Nam Gi-Jun eliminated them. Perhaps exterminated is a better word. At any rate, he got rid of them so that the Big Boss could expand his operations. However, the Big Boss had a son who believed that his father was going to turn the business over to Gu Bong-San and Lee Ju-Woon, instead of putting him in charge.
So the son tried to eliminate them. His plan backfired, and someone eliminated him instead. Of course, the Big Boss was angry! He might not have wanted to put him in charge, but he was still his son. He didn’t want him killed. Someone had to take the blame for his death. Nam Gi-Jun took the blame, but he also saved the lives of Gu Bong-San and Lee Ju-Woon by eliminating the Big Boss.
With him out of the way, Gu Bong-San and Lee Ju-Woon divided up the “spoils”. However, because Nam Gi-Jun said that he was the one who killed the son, he had to accept punishment. They didn’t kill him, but he was injured badly. He left the life of a gangster and went somewhere to live quietly. But is a gangster’s life ever quiet?
Nam Gi-Jun had a brother, Nam Gi-Seok, who remained with the criminal organization. Nam Gi-Jun had agreed with Gu Bong-San and Lee Ju-Woon. They would never see his face again as long as no harm came to his brother. Sadly, his brother was murdered. That was it for the agreement. He had held up his end of the bargain. They had not seen him for 11 years.
But they didn’t hold up their end of the deal, so he came back to find out what happened. The police report said Nam Gi-Seok was attacked by a gang of runaway kids. But he found out that was just the “cover story”. Nam Gi-Jun was going to find out the true mastermind behind his brother’s death, and when he did, whoever was involved in … there would be mercy for none.
Main Characters:
- Nam Gi-Jun (played by So Ji-Sub, “Confession”, “My Secret, Terrius”, “Doctor Lawyer”, “The Master’s Sun”, “Alienoid 1 and 2”, “The Battleship Island”)
- Gu Bong-San (played by Ahn Kil-Kang, “A Shop for Killers”, “The First Responders 1 and 2”, “Tale of the Nine Tailed 1 and 2”, “Shine or Go Crazy”, “Bad Thief, Good Thief”)
- Lee Ju-Woon (played by Heo Jun-Ho,“Noryang: Deadly Sea”, “Dr. Cheon and The Lost Talisman”, “Escape from Mogadishu”, “Buried Hearts”, “Bloodhounds”, “Missing: The Other Side 1 and 2”, “Why Her?”, “Kingdom 1 and 2”, “Designated Survivor: 60 Days”, “The Emperor: Owner of the Mask” )
- Nam Gi-Seok (played by Lee Jun-Hyuk, “Love Scout”, “Vigilante”, “Stranger 1 and 2” “Along With the Gods 1 and 2”, “Dark Hole”, “365: Repeat The Year”, “Designated Survivor: 60 Days”, “Are You Human?”, “Baseball Girl”, “Naked Fireman“)
Viewership and Rating:
- IMDb: 7.7 out of 10 stars
- My Drama List: 8.2 out of 10 stars
My personal rating is the same as MDL.
“Mercy For None” doesn’t have an exceptional storyline. However, reviewers have described it as gripping and gritty, with awesome, action-packed fighting scenes. Yeah. I agree. But as much as people bragged about the fighting scenes, the Gold Standard for fight choreography will always be the inimitable martial arts moves made by the late Bruce Lee in “Enter the Dragon”. Nobody can top those fight scenes! But the fighting in “Mercy For None” is pretty intense!
LINKS OF INTEREST:
How ‘Mercy for None’ Ends | TIME
10 Intriguing South Korean Neo-Noir Movies | Movie Web
TRAILERS/TEASERS:
Netflix. (2025). Mercy For None [Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV6IZ14FZX8.
♦
