KIM HYUN JOON
VERSUS
THE IMPERSONATOR
THE EVIDENCE
The murderer was on the loose but time was running out for him. His topsy-turvy world had spun crazily with his murders.
The NCI profilers had unobtrusively shadowed Kang Dong Jun back to his rooftop dwelling. The counsellor-turned-murderer had arrived home to find a notice from the landlord stuck on his door. It was a reminder that his rent was 3 months overdue.
 
The guilty man, affected by his evil doings, dragged out a hidden bag from the false bottom of the base cabinets in the kitchen.
Did a sense of unease sweep over Kang Dong Jun while poring over the incriminating blood-soaked notebook and photographs that he had taken from his brother?
    
A knock on the door broke his reverie. The landlord was asking for rent payment that was long overdue.
Surprisingly, he opened the door without further thought. Boy, was he in for a surprise! The three male profilers, Kim Hyun Joon, Team Leader Kang and Lee Han were there to invite him to the NCI headquarters. The arrival of the NCI team couldn’t have been more timely.
 
Restrained by Kim Hyun Joon’s strong arm, Kang Dong Jun was kept immobile. The other two profilers were able to make their way in without any hassles. Standing stock-still, panic must have swept over him.
  
It was not difficult for Lee Han to find evidence of his criminal activities. It was lying on the floor, ready for the taking. ‘I think of that all-day long. That’s why I came up with a plan.’
Lee Han held it up triumphantly. It was the very evidence that they sought.
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KIM HYUN JOON
VERSUS
THE IMPERSONATOR
In the interview room, Kim Hyun Joon, who had confidently placed his hands clasped on the table, sat opposite the anxious suspect, Kang Dong Jun.
Knowing how wily the suspect was, Kim Hyun pursued a new line of inquiry that was totally different from the previous one that he had conducted on the homeless man, Han Gi Cheol. Different types of suspects call for different interview or interrogative techniques.
A cup of water was brought in for Kang Dong Jun. The suspect did not sip but drained his cup swiftly. Was his scorching thirst a sign of drug addiction? Sweat must have been trickling down his back.
Kim Hyun Joon lost no time with the pleasantries. He wanted to establish the suspect’s guilt right from the start. Rattling the suspect’s self-confidence and shaking him up was his priority. Shoving some photographs towards the suspect, he rapped on them.
 
In an accusatory tone, he pronounced firmly, ‘This is the first murder your brother, Kang Dong Min committed.
Then, you impersonated your brother and committed the next one. Am I correct?’ Kim Hyun Joon did not move a muscle; his feelings were inscrutable. His face was impassive but his questioning eyes, which were fixed on his adversary, were intense.
Impersonation of another person and taking over his identity was a punishable offence. Was there something wrong with Kang Dong Jun? Imagine, he had been working in the Cozy Psychology Consultation Centre.
       
The question sank in and took hold but the suspect gave a smirk, confident in the fact that they would not be able to pin him down without any incriminating evidence. What they had was just a conjecture. The investigation lapsed into a silence.
 Team Leader Kang was certain that despite the suspect’s refusal to admit to his guilt, he could not escape from justice. The suspect was oblivious of the fact that Kim Hyun Joon’s carefully honed skills could easily trap him.   
Kim Hyun Joon pored over the contents in his files and leafed through his notes. When he raised his head, he stared at Kang Dong Jun.
  
‘Why did you kill him? It was a loaded question. It implied that the suspect was guilty of doing away with his younger brother. The confrontation was direct.
The suspect did not miss a beat. He feigned ignorance. ‘Who’s that?’ He was evasive and pretended not to know the person referred to.
 
Kim Hyun Joon, who had been maintaining an impassive countenance, eyed the suspect so intensely that the man facing him blurted out his lie.
‘I’ve told you already. I was only keeping his stuff for him.’ Although he had managed to suppress any panic in his voice, he was oblivious of the fact that his answer was an indication that he had understood the person under discussion was his brother, Kang Dong Min.
   
Kim Hyun Joon persisted. A direct question. ‘Then, did you kill your own brother?’ The profiler had a not-unpleasant smile on his face. His eyes, like concentrated beams of light, bored into the suspect. It was beyond rational comprehension that Kang Dong Jun should kill his own brother.
Caught off guard, the suspect did not respond.
The profiler’s patience had suddenly vanished and he hounded him relentlessly. Not only was the profiler’s tone sarcastic but also domineering. 
‘What? Did you think your brother was better off dead? Is that why you killed your brother? And then by impersonating him, you committed murders.’
         After the initial shock, the suspect got a grip on himself and smilingly responded, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ 
With hard and searching eyes, the profiler let fly some hard-hitting rhetorical questions, ‘Do you think your life’s any better? Think about it. Are you any better than your brother? You were renting a place in a small mountain town. You lost your low salary in the stock market. You can’t even support your family for months now. You can’t even afford to send your children to kindergarten, so you stayed at home!’
            Kim Hyun Joon’s mouth curved into a supercilious smile. The NCI man seemed to have injected full energy into the investigation. The accused knew what he was driving at.   
‘Stop it,’ the suspect was shaken and worked up. His body stiffened.
‘No, listen to me,’ the profiler insisted, looking him hard in the eye, a wry smile on his lips. ‘I’ve only got started!’ He looked animatedly at the accused, speaking words that were bound to irritate and provoke the other.
      
‘This is who you really are,’ Kim Hyun Joon denounced, holding up a sheaf of official papers in a plastic file. It seemed Kang Dong Jun was not all what he claimed to be.
Kang Dong Jun looked down, shamefaced. The damaging reports against the counselor came as a surprise to him. Kim Hyun Joon seemed to have the facts at his fingertips; it was useless to contradict him. The profiler continued his scathing attack on the man.
 
‘You physically abused your children regularly. Not only do you take drugs and have delusional disorders but you also secretly checked on your wife!’ Kim Hyun Joon smiled, derision was plainly etched on his face.
‘I said I don’t want to hear it!' The accused half rose as he shouted.
          
‘You just wanted to escape the dump you’re living in.’ A contemptuous smile appeared on the profiler’s face. ‘Am I wrong?’
        One could feel the profiler’s blood surging round and round his body. The choice of words was provocative. The hair on one’s neck must have stood up. Shiver. There was that all-encompassing sense of fear in every fibre of one’s being. Dread rose from one’s feet right up to one’s head.     
‘Shut your mouth! I could rip it out!’ The suspect was livid. The tension in the room was ready to explode.
With furrowed brows, Kim Hyun Joon, provoked him, ‘Yes, this is it. This is the real you!’ The profiler’s head moved emphatically as he gave the other man a searing snarl.
         ‘You just wanted to kill people, didn’t you? Don’t hide like a coward and tell me that was why you killed people!’ Kim Hyun Joon hissed menacingly. His neck stretched forward; veins protruded from his neck. Kim Hyun Joon’s eyes were like the muzzles of two guns targeting the suspect. If looks could kill, the suspect would have been dead at that very moment. The interrogation was conducted at a punishing pace. And, the tone the profiler had adopted was cold, relentless and merciless, as if he was going to spring across the table like a jungle cat - a hungry tiger, ready to grab the suspect by the throat and eat him alive.            
The suspect’s furious reaction was instantaneous and spontaneous. By
now, he was unhinged. Seething with fury, the suspect leapt up from his seat.
‘Shut your mouth, you scum! What do you know? What do you know about the reason why I killed them? What do you know?’
Kim Hyun Joon had hit bullseye! He stared at Kang Dong Jun for a long moment, grateful that he had trapped the suspect.
            
Too late! The suspect realised it was too late to retract the damaging and incriminating confession that had rolled out of his mouth. He had unconsciously allowed himself to be provoked by Kim Hyun Joon; he almost choked knowing that the game was up.
Such an interrogation would have taken an eternity had it not been for the skills of Kim Hyun Joon. The profiler rose steadily to his feet. He looked towards the direction of the observation room where they were being watched by Team Leader Kang and Lee Han, and nodded firmly.
  
‘Kang Dong Jun, listen to me carefully. Just like you said, you’re just a lowlife murderer!’ His facial muscles twitched, his eyes narrowed.
Kim Hyun Joon delivered his punishment not with a Cheshire cat’s complacent smile but with a contemptuous flashing of his white teeth, resembling the snarl of a wild cat's.
With that, he strode out of the room, without a backward glance. The suspect tried to retain him but the clock could not be turned back.
        
In the observation room, Yoo Min Young announced that she had been given the primary DNA results. Kang Dong Jun’s guilt was conclusive. Several bloodstains of recent victims were found on Kang Dong Min’s clothes that Kang Dong Jun, the suspect, had been wearing.
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JUXTAPOSITION
THE
TWO TECHNIQUES
OF
INTERROGATION
In TVN’s Criminal Minds, Lee Joon Gi has showcased a remarkable
variety of interrogation techniques, all of which are awesome. In Episode 17,
Kim Hyun Joon’s two different interrogation techniques, which have been placed
in juxtaposition, showcase Lee Joon Gi’s amazing but sharply contrasting skills.
Lee Joon Gi is able to flesh out the role of an interrogator
with two different interrogation tactics; one casual, subtle and
non-threatening, and the other - passionate, intense and fiery.
 
The interrogative method, used on the homeless man, Han Gi
Cheol, is conducted with an air of coolness and inscrutability. Although Kim
Hyun Joon wears an expressionless and impassive mask, the interview is
conducted in an amiable, pleasant and non-hostile manner. And, the words used
are cordial and unbiased.
But, of all the interrogation techniques used in TVN’s drama,
Criminal Minds, Kim Hyun Joon’s most chilling interrogation technique in Episode 17, which is alternately cold and fiery, is the best. At first, the profiler’s facial expression is cold and eerily calm. As the interrogation progresses, the more Kim Hyun Joon thaws, the more he bristles with venom and belligerence. The viewers’ skin starts to crawl as Kim Hyun Joon unmasks the murderer, grinding him to dust.
His verbal attacks become swift, sharp and relentless, and his accusations are delivered with such unexpected sarcastic force that they stun the copycat killer. Similar to dynamite that is ignited at the top of a hill, his condemnation is the boulder that rolls down and crushes the shocked suspect.
Although there is no shouting or furious pounding of the table, Lee Joon Gi, in the role of Kim Hyun Joon, holds the
unwavering attention of the audience throughout the interrogation. Lee Joon Gi plays the intimidating interrogator to perfection, and his scary performance is nothing short of awesome.
THE
FIGHT
  
Lee Joon Gi’s action scenes are an exciting and significant part
of TVN’s procedural drama, ‘Criminal Minds’.
As usual, Lee Joon Gi’s action scene in Episode 17 is impressive.
The audience love his versatility, athleticism, physical litheness and
flexibility – his running, jumping and fighting prowess. The thrilling scene
sends hearts pumping and pulse racing yet again.
A frisson of excitement must have risen as the audience watch
Kim Hyun Joon and Han Gi Cheol, the homeless man use different close-combat
weapons in their duel beneath the overpass. The scene makes it abundantly
clear that Han Gi Cheol is no coward nor weak adversary.
When Kim Hyun Joon stylishly flicked open his expandable
tactical baton, the unsuspecting audience must have been taken by surprise. Oohs
and aahs must have escaped their lips.
Lee Joon Gi has made his presence thoroughly felt in the three interesting
scenes; the fight scene and the two interrogation scenes.
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VIDEO
THE
EXPANDABLE TACTICAL BATON
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CRIMINAL MINDS KOREA
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