A rural setting. A house under siege, as snipers are raining bullets from a minivan. The focus is on a girl (Kim Hye-joon) crouched behind a fridge: She cannot move, else she dies. And then, the story moves to a pleasant flashback, the girl named Ji Ahn, sitting with her uncle, Jin Man (Lee Dong-wook), watching a rather pacey action film. There’s a reason for this brief recall: Her uncle gives her a little lesson in perception and blindspots, a lesson she needs to use currently to save her life.

And that sets the tone for Disney’s Shop For Killers, a rather criminally underrated show, which has much heart, as it has violence. The story seems familiar at first: It revolves around Ji-Ahn, who was adopted by her uncle Jin Man, at the age of seven. He seemingly dies by suicide, and she finds herself suddenly the target of assassins, as Jin-Man’s enemies begin to crawl out of the woodwork. And, meanwhile, she uncovers bits and pieces about her uncle’s past, that involves a dangerous e-commerce platform. And yet in all the bloodbath and grime-ridden scenes, it’s his taciturn lessons that she keeps close to her heart.  And there are many, which still don’t feel cliched and overdone, including one that Dong-wook delivers in a superbly grim tone, “Only the weak bark. The strong don’t.” It’s this hardened sense of resilience that Ji-Ahn carries through the show, even if it cracks at points.

You’re kept on your toes throughout the eight episodes, even if it gets a little dragged out at points, owing to the many flashbacks. You stand at attention, too like Ji-An, when you hear the words, Listen up, Ji-an.  Despite Dong-wook’s character being dead from the outset, the show knows it must rely on strong storytelling—and it delivers.  Even when inconsistencies creep in and suspension of disbelief is tested, the show rolls with the punches—carried forward by Hye-joon’s steely expressions and quiet determination. Of course, we aren’t bereft of Dong-wook, who has established a reputation of rarely disappointing, and his scarred, rugged, mysterious Ji-Man is just another example of his range of acting. The character is so completely flawed and makes wrong decisions, and yet, Dong-wook gets you to empathise with him. There’s a softness to him, which perhaps only shows up in bittersweet, happy flashbacks. between the uncle and niece.

The brilliance of the show also lies in the gradual build-up of tension, each quiet movement, word, look and gesture leaves you rather restless, wondering, what’s going to happen next? Who is going to die? Who really can be trusted? The last question is a rather dubious one, because at one point, you are just suspicious of everyone who breathes in that show. Nevertheless, the ending was rather predictable (no spoilers), and it sets up for a possible, and well-deserved Season 2.

It's a breathless ride. Sometimes, you might want to get off. And yet, you don’t want to, because you’ll miss the fun. A Shop For Killers is a stellar watch.

It's streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.