Mercy for None – Series Review | Netflix

MERCY FOR NONE on Netflix is a new South Korean action thriller mystery series (org. title: Gwang-jang). Of course, it’s labeled simply a “K-drama” as a catch-all. The series has seven strong episodes. Read our Mercy for None series review here!

MERCY FOR NONE is a new Netflix series from South Korea (org. title: Gwang-jang). This is a very intense, character-driven action thriller series where everyone is the hero of their own story. However, they tend to be the villain to anyone else.

In classic South Korean storytelling fashion, it’s a whole lot of gray areas, we’re confronted with. No one seems to be entirely good or bad. They do, however, seem to be overwhelmingly male in this violence-focused world. The series has seven 45-minute episodes.

Continue reading our Mercy for None series review below. Find it on Netflix from June 6, 2025.

Can anyone ever truly win?!

In Mercy for None, we meet an ex-gangster as he feels forced to return to Seoul’s criminal underworld. Having been gone for eleven years (this is part of the mystery, so you will get answers), he returns to search for the truth about his brother’s death.

And, obviously, also get revenge. As the title refers to, there will be mercy for none.

However, in a world where everyone is maiming and killing one another and aliances are as strong as they can be fickle, can anyone ever feel safe? Is there ever a true winner?! Not really. Instead, it’s about being the strongest, fastest, and smartest. Every single day.

For our main protagonist, violence is a talent. He is efficient and highly intuitive. Watching him fight is like a dance. But with blood. A whole lot of blood.

A Netflix K-drama with lots of violence

Not only does Mercy for None contain a lot of violence, it also has a lot of blood and death. Of course, this is directly related to the violence as this story plays out in a world where the winner takes all.

Of course, there’s always someone waiting to be the latest and greatest winner, so you’re on top one second and dead the next. The title of “Mercy for None” could almost double as the most simple plot description.

The same goes for the tagline of “A World Built on Blood” and the action scenes are gorgeous in this South Korean Netflix series. Personally, I love that you don’t see people take punches to their faces with no consequences.

With Mercy for None, we see people actually get knocked out when they receive a well-placed and direct punch to their face. As it would happen in real life. I much prefer these efficient fight scenes to the drawn-out and never-ending 1990s action movie style.

Watch the Mercy for None series on Netflix now

Mercy for None is based on the webtoon “Plaza Wars: Mercy for None” by O Se-hyung and Kim Gyun-tae. The screenplay for this Netflix series was written by Yoo Ki-seong, and the episodes directed by Choi Sung-eun (Little Sister).

Fans of South Korean productions (aka K-drama regardless of genre) will reccognize some of the main cast. Admittedly, I wasn’t happy that so few women are in this series. I mean, we’ve seen some of the toughest female action characters in other K-dramas on Netflix.

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With Mercy for None, the overwhelmingly male cast features amazing talent. The cast includes So Ji-sub (Alienoid) as Nam Gi-jun, and Lee Jun-hyuk (Stranger) as Nam Gi-seok, Gi-jun’s brother.

Also, we have Huh Joon-ho (Escape from Mogadishu), An Kil-kang (Watcher), Gong Myoung (Extreme Job), Choo Young-woo (The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call), Cha Seung-won (Uprising), Tiger Lee, and Cho Han-cheul (Gyeongseong Creature).

If you enjoy your action thriller served with a solid story and nuanced characters, then this Netflix series is a must-watch!

Mercy for None is out on Netflix from June 6, 2025.