Mouse (Korean: 마우스; RR: Mauseu) is a South Korean television series starring Lee Hee-joon, Lee Seung-gi, Park Ju-hyun, and Kyung Soo-jin.[1] Directed by Choi Joon-bae and Kang Cheol-woo and written by Choi Ran, the story follows detective Go Mu-Chi (Lee Hee-joon) as he works alongside rookie officer Jeong Ba-reum (Lee Seung-gi) to hunt a serial killer.
The series aired on tvN on Wednesdays and Thursdays from March 3 to May 20, 2021.[2] It was ranked 3rd hottest drama for the first half of 2021 based on KT’s online video service (OTT) Seezn,[3] and ranked 5th in tvN’s all-time Wednesday and Thursday series (based on a paid platform integrated with cable, IPTV, and satellite/provided by Nielsen Korea).[4]
Background
Screenwriter Choi Ran was inspired by an elementary school murder case that occurred in Incheon, South Korea, in 2017.[5] During the murder trial, when asked about the most difficult thing the defendant is facing right now, the defendant responded, “The weather is nice, but it’s the hardest for me not to see cherry blossoms.”[6] Seeing that the murderer felt no remorse or guilt, Ran developed the drama against this backdrop, as he wanted to see ‘psychopath murderers feel the pain, reflect on their actions, and atone. Even if there’s only a slight chance that they will feel empathy, they should understand their sins sincerely and feel remorse. That would be the best punishment and salvation for the psychopathic murderers.’[7]
Synopsis
The story follows detective Ko Moo-chi (Lee Hee-joon)’s attempt to catch a psychopathic serial killer, after witnessing a horrific incident as a child and dealing with his demons from the trauma. Along with his rookie partner Jeong Ba-reum (Lee Seung-gi), he attempts to unearth the truth behind psychopathic behaviors and find answers about the genetic predispositions towards psychopathy — and how one might act on the knowledge in the event that such predispositions could be detected.