Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Set in 1999, amid the Y2K panic and fears of the end of the world, ‘The Wonderfools’ follows Eun Chae-ni (Park Eun-bin), the wacky granddaughter of a successful restaurateur known as the “train wreck of Haeseong,” her small hometown. But when she and her two friends gain superpowers after a freak sequence of events, they become their town’s only hope against a group of supervillains plotting to destroy it.
Directed by Yoo In-shik (Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Vagabond), ‘The Wonderfools’ is a little reminiscent of Netflix’s The Imperfects: in both shows, superpowered individuals aren’t accidental creations but the result of scientific experimentation. So, a parallel subplot follows the ambitious doctor Ha Won-do (Son Hyun-joo) and his “children” (his genetically altered creations) as they search for a supposedly immortal child while eliminating those who develop mutations after coming into contact with toxins leaked from their experiments.
Actors Im Sung-jae and Choi Dae-hoon play Chae-ni’s misfit friends, Kang Ro-bin and Son Kyung-hoon, who also gain powers that activate under bizarre circumstances. The clueless trio turn to Lee Woon-jeong (Cha Eun-woo), a sincere city official with abilities of his own, for training and advice. Much of the comedy in ‘The Wonderfools’ comes from these clueless “losers” (they call themselves that, not me) trying to figure out how to control their newfound gifts.
The first few episodes of The Wonderfools are the most entertaining, as the creators comically introduce the primary characters. Considered the town nutcase, Chae-ni is an energetic, impulsive young woman who dreams of seeing more of the world. However, a doctor’s diagnosis suggests she doesn’t have much time left, prompting her grandmother, Kim Jeon-bok (Kim Hae-sook), to become fiercely protective. We’re talking ‘spy on her’ level protective. A hilarious sequence in the premiere sees Chae-ni throwing a tantrum in front of evangelists warning of an impending apocalypse. Frustrated, she wails that she wants to witness the apocalypse too, instead of dying before experiencing anything noteworthy.
Not one to go down without a fight, Chae-ni hatches a plan to extort some money from her grandmother with the help of the timid Kang Ro-bin and Son Kyung-hoon. Somehow, the trio end up at a dumping ground where murky water brimming with toxic substances grants them superpowers. I won’t reveal what those powers are to avoid major spoilers. But let’s just say the three of them are the “Wonderfools” of the title, training under a reluctant Woon-jeong, who warns them about Doctor Ha Won-do’s “Wunderkinder” (German for “wonder children”), a group that might want them all dead.
Lead star Park Eun-bin powers ‘The Wonderfools’ as the carefree Chae-ni, who is often dressed in oversized, streetwear-inspired outfits that make her look more like a rapper from an idol group than the heroine of an action-comedy. In fact, Chae-ni kept reminding me of J-Hope, the styling is so similar at times that she comes across as the BTS dancer’s long-lost sister. Park Eun-bin portrays Chae-ni with a childlike spirit, which is consistently endearing, especially when she determinedly tries to train under Lee Woon-jeong and insists on calling him ‘master’. Actors Im Sung-jae and Choi Dae-hoon are entertaining as her comical side-kick friends, but some of their scenes are just not funny enough.
Cha Eun-woo’s Lee Woon-jeong is perhaps one of ‘The Wonderfools’ most interesting characters, thanks to a substantial flashback arc that reveals he was once part of Ha Won-do’s “Wunderkinder” experiments. In fact, this is also a rare superhero show where the villains are given genuine depth, sharing a history and emotional bond that makes them feel like a dysfunctional family rather than a collection of henchmen.
Jeong Yi-seo, Bae Na-ra, and Choi Yoon-ji play the antagonist trio, who work for Ha Won-do and call him “father” because he genetically modified them and gave them a new life. Woon-jeong briefly grew up alongside them as well, but eventually escaped Won-do’s influence. The other three, however, remain fiercely loyal to their creator, viewing one another as siblings while running a cult-like church in his service and helping him carry out new experiments as part of a sinister plan to take over Haseong.
Jeong Yi-seo’s Seok Ju-ran can control minds and bend people to her will, while Choi Yoon-ji’s Seok Ho-ran creates vivid hallucinations that blur the line between reality and illusion. Of Ha Won-do’s “children”, these two emerge as the most morally conflicted, repeatedly questioning their actions yet remaining trapped by years of emotional manipulation and grooming. Besides, they need Won-do to help find a cure to some of the life-threatening ‘side effects’ they suffer from. This also gives them more than the simple stale ‘I want to rule the world’ motive. By the time the finale arrives, it is their tragedy and not the heroes’ journey, that delivers the show’s most devastating emotional moments.
Since ‘The Wonderfools’ is a superhero fantasy show, there’s probably little point in nitpicking its logic (like how not everyone casually owned a cellphone in 1999, yet even the perpetually broke Ro-bin seems to have one). However, there was no need to force a romantic subplot, especially one so bizarrely timed that a character (trying to keep this spoiler-free) practically hands their love interest over to the villains knowing they’ll probably be killed, only for the pair to be kissing the very next day. What? Why? Thankfully, the romance remains a relatively minor part of the story.
The last two episodes of ‘The Wonderfools’ could have used some trimming, but the show’s quirky humor, likable losers, and emotionally complex villains make it a fun one-time watch.
The Wonderfools is on Netflix.
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