When “Nine Puzzles” was first announced, it instantly caught our attention! With a strong cast and an intriguing premise, our expectations were high. After watching the series, we are happy to say it does live up to its hype.

The story follows profiler Yoon Ena, played by Kim Dami. As a child, Ena discovers her uncle murdered in his home with a puzzle piece left by his side. Through the years, the case stayed with rookie policeman Kim Hansaem, played by Son Sukku. He has always suspected Ena was involved in the murder and has been torn between believing she is hiding something and wondering if she truly has no memory of what happened like she claimed.

Years later, a new series of murders begins, each with a puzzle piece left behind. Hansaem is put on the case and ends up working closely with Ena, even though he still thinks she might be involved.

As the investigation unfolds, the possibility that the killer is someone within their circle becomes hard to ignore and several characters are introduced, adding to the mystery. Kim Sungkyun plays Yang Jeongho, Hansaem’s team’s leader. Hyun Bongsik appears as Choi San, a junior detective who keeps ending up in suspicious situations. Noh Jaewon plays Hwang Inchan, a psychiatrist whose interactions with Ena are unsettling. Park Gyu Young plays Lee Seung Ju, Hwang Inchan‘s colleague and Ena’s psychiatrist and confidante.

In our opinion, both Kim Hansaem and Yoon Ena can be described with one word; frustrating! Both as exasperating to work with in different ways.

Kim Dami gives a strong and compelling performance as Yoon Ena, a character we can’t decide we like or not. Ena is definitely what people would call ‘an acquired taste’, she acts on instinct, rarely explains her decisions, and often ignores the team to follow her own path. With her razor sharp instincts and impressive deduction skills, she constantly leaves her partner Hansaem trying to catch up, doing his best to piece together what she’s already figured out. Ena sees what most people miss, making her invaluable to any investigation she is assigned to despite not being a team-player.

Despite being a profiler, Ena often ends up on the other side of the interrogation table. Kim Dami pulls off these moments with ease; nonchalant, sassy or even lost, Ena is always the epitome of a very frustrating and unhelpful suspect.

One particularly chilling and unforgettable scene shows Ena lying down on the exact spot where her uncle was killed. Most people would avoid the place entirely, but for Ena, it is just another step in her process. Another interesting moment that stood out for us was Ena boldly breaking into Hansaem’s apartment, and even challenging him to study her more closely as a suspect while being unsure if she even was her uncle’s killer. It makes us wonder, what exactly is going on in that head of hers?

Hansaem, by contrast, is deeply committed to justice. He stubbornly refuses to bow down to authority when he feels the higher-ups are being unjust, which makes him unpopular at work. As the story unfolds, we see him begin to question his long-held suspicions about Ena and start to suspect the other characters. He starts to see Ena differently and becomes concerned that she might not be the killer but the next victim.

The series ends with the revelation of the villain (the hints were there but we couldn’t see it!) and a cliffhanger; we are introduced to a new puzzle!

The entire cast turns in solid performances but the slow shift in the relationship between Hansaem and Ena is one of the most interesting parts of the show. There is a spark of something more than partnership, though the series never spells it out, maybe it is just a deepening friendship, or maybe there is something else starting to form? (are we thinking too much? She has already met his mum and they seem to get along well!) 

“Nine Puzzles” is a smart, gripping mystery with characters that stay with you. While the pacing can drag a little at some points, the steady buildup of suspense and shifting suspicions will keep you guessing along with Ena and Hansaem. We are definitely hoping to see what the next puzzle holds, how about “Sixteen Puzzles” next, Disney+?