Sageuk

2023 – A Hit & Miss Year for Korean Dramas

/ Lady Divine / 4 Comments

There were so many shows that SHOULD have been incredible this year but just kinda let me down. But let’s not be all doom and gloom, there were definitely some stand outs and new favorites, too. If I thought it was worth watching, I’ll slap a pic with it… so if you just wanna find some recommendations it should be a quick scroll. Listed alphabetically for your convenience.

  • Arthdal Chronicles: The Sword of Aramun – 9.5/10

Arthdal Chronicles went out with a bang. After waiting FOREVER for this second season, getting used to several major cast members replacements, and then trying to figure out where to actually watch this thing in the USA… I am pleased to announce it was worth all the hassle. It’s just a cool story, ya’ll. It’s epic in scope and concept, in costuming and set designs, and character development and plotline. It did not get a 10/10 because Kim Sung-cheol was my favorite character, Ipsang, in season 1 (so much so that I wrote an entire post about him) and his replacement Lee Hae Woon, though good, could not really compare. My other minor complaint was the chemistry was lacking between the ML & FL in this second installment…. who were perfect for their roles in the show but maybe not so perfect together. But otherwise, the cast replacements totally held up to the standard set by Season 1.

  • Behind Your Touch – 4/10 – I mean… it’s about a woman who accesses her psychic abilities by touching people’s butts. If they’d leaned hard into the comedy of that, it might have been great… but it tried to be a drama, a romance, and even a murder mystery. Ridiculous.
  • Black Knight (Netflix) – 5/10 – I don’t know why they bother to gather all this Korean talent if they’re just gonna churn out basic “American Style” garbage science fiction.
  • Bloodhounds (Netflix) – 6/10 – I love a good bromance but… what were they doing with Woo Do-Hwan’s character? I did not understand if he was supposed to be just… stupid… or mentally challenged… or… I dunno. He was so off putting with his weird child-like character mixed with so much physical violence.
  • Castaway Diva – 6/10 – Okay, sure I am a sucker for childhood trauma stories but mixing that topic with this super cheesy idol story was just awkward.
  • Celebrity (Netflix) – 8/10 – Trash. Glittery, devious, guilty pleasure trash.

Celebrity is a totally over the top mystery, revenge thriller that had me in its manicured clutches from the first episode until the last. I had a ball watching every episode. Don’t think about it too much, don’t pull at the delicate stitching on the designer gown or the entire plot might unravel in an instant. Just turn off your brain and enjoy the glitzy drama of bitchy girls and rich assholes. This show is the definition of guilty pleasure from beginning to end and I would recommend this for fans of trash… like Penthouse.

  • Crash Course in Romance – 8/10 – I liked this one.

Crash Course in Romance had K-drama from the 2012-2016 vibes, including all the annoying tropes that I’m not sure work as well in 2023, but it made me happy and nostalgic watching this show so I’m definitely tossing it into the recommendation pile. I’m not sure I will ever understand the competitive nature of college entry in South Korea, and I will certainly never be able to wrap my head around math… but it was cool to learn about these study schools and watch this struggling lady strive to ensure the best possible future for her teenager. The romance between the celebrity math tutor (I know, right? what a weird world) and this hardworking middle aged lady made me kick my feet in the air it was so cute and stupidly adorable. What can I say… late to love stories work for me.

  • D.P. Season 2 – 9/10 – Feel like being emotionally wrecked and sad for a few hours? This is your show. Guess they don’t have to worry about it hurting their recruitment stats as enlistment is mandatory in South Korea. This season hurt more than the first one.
  • The Deal (Korean Drama) – 6/10 – I love this type of plot, but unfortunately they did nothing to expand upon this well-worn territory. Not to mention the incredibly shallow character development of the three main guys. I felt nothing for any of them, or their problems, it had the emotional weight of a commercial. Did an AI generator write this script or what?
  • Doona! (Netflix) – 6/10 – One day I will be able to put my finger on why I hated this drama so much. Maybe I hated it more because I really wanted to like it more. That will be a reoccurring theme this year.
  • The Eighth Sense – 10/10 – Gorgeous, emotional, romantic, and concise.

The Eighth Sense was a gay romance that tackled a lot of themes – first loves, familial pressures, survivors guilt, and the various complexities of friendships. The cinematography was stunning – capturing all the flickering emotions on the two main lead’s faces. It felt like falling in love, watching this show.

  • Evillive – 7/10 – if you’re gonna queer bait us to this extent, just be queer. Especially if you can’t fix the plot up enough to be great without the ambiguous gay angle. Ultimately a let down, this had a lot of potential and the dynamics between the leads was very enjoyable to watch.
  • The Glory – 10/10 – HOLY SHEEPLE. This show, ya’ll!

The Glory wrapped up in 2023 with a deeply satisfying conclusion. I was horrified, traumatized, and totally hooked by this show. Watching a woman’s steely resolve to destroy the lives of the monstrous people who had destroyed her own life was addictive. I usually don’t like Song Hye-kyo because I don’t think she’s very good at portraying emotions – her best roles are when she’s cast as these cold, closed off ladies who don’t want to let anyone near their fortified hearts – so she worked perfectly for the lead in this show. One of the best revenge dramas I have ever seen.

  • The Good Bad Mother – 7/10 – I do not understand the hype over this show. And I adore the leading male, he’s one of my favorites. Even so… I just did not enjoy this show. I struggled to finish it.
  • Gyeongseong Creature – 6/10 – Another disaster. A shoddy patched up mess of a monster movie that really had no right being as bad as it was. The elements were there, but whoever was in the kitchen just did not know what to do to create the masterpiece that this show should have been. A-List actors came across as flat with one dimensional characters. Just… not good. Sorry, ya’ll.
  • Heartbeat (Korean Drama) – 6/10 – Vampire comedy writes itself, so I was looking forward to some giggles with a South Korean slant. But nope. The comedy is stale. The chemistry between the leads is non-existent. The story line was promising but ended up being a huge waste of my time. Deeply disappointed. Don’t bother to stake it, this one was dead on arrival.
  • The Heavenly Idol – 3/10 – I don’t even know what to say about this hot mess of a show. I am giving it a 3 because I had a blast making fun of it… so much so that it was totally worth watching. It’s like if Pureflix made a K-Drama… but with a weird mix of mythology. This is another one where if they had just leaned into the camp – it could have been a hit. Just be silly and over the top, don’t try to reign in your nonsense show with moral messages and unnecessary elements. Know what you are.
  • The Killing Vote – 9.5/10 – Preposterous. And super fun. I loved this show.

The Killing Vote had a Devil Judge vibe to it, with the same societal distrust in the justice system and a self-righteous man pretending to empower the people when really he’s got his own personal agenda. This show was a blast each week and I was won over by the young secondary couple who were swept into the madness due to their familial connections. This is what I mean when I say a show should know what it is. It won’t be for everyone, but I am particularly fond of over-the-top social justice type stories.

  • King the Land – 5/10 – The most boring, cliched story elements tossed together and yet people seemed to like this mess? Do they not realize there are literally a million better dramas about a dickish-rich guy slowly figuring out that… uh… most people have to work for a living and do shit they don’t wanna do in order to eat? And some nice, capable lady comes along and sorta-kinda helps him be a slightly better person without actually making any significant changes to his wealth, status, or company. I mean, just cause you stick two attractive people together does not mean the show has any merit. I didn’t even bother to finish this one.
  • Kokdu: Season of Deity – 6/10 – Okay, you are probably wondering how I could give this turd of a show a 6… and that’s fair. But at least it tried to go camp. It attempted to be silly and stupid and have a good time with its nonsense story. It reminded me a lot of A Korean Odyssey, actually, which was also a mess but had a good time being terrible. Unfortunately, the silliness just didn’t pan out as well with this show. The leads had no chemistry at all (just like A Korean Odyssey, actually!) and the FL did not have the comedy chops to play off the zany romance (also just like A Korean Odyssey, actually!). Kim Jung Hyun is so good at comedy, I really hope they keep casting him as these insane wacky characters – but you know, next time make sure it’s a good show first and be sure you hire one of our comedy queens to hold up the rom-com dynamics.
  • Miraculous Brothers – 8/10 – I wish I had watched this all at once – but when I started it only 11 episodes were out… and I was totally drawn into the story of stolen books, unsolved murders, and a time traveling magical boy. Then I kinda forgot about it… and when I finally finished it up, it didn’t have the same appeal anymore because I’d crammed too many other dramas in my head inbetween. I still think this drama was totally unique – and I enjoyed the odd bitter friendship between the time traveler and the book thief. It’s unique. And definitely worth watching. But learn from me – watch it all at once.
  • Moon In The Day – 8/10 ESTIMATED – I haven’t finished this one yet, but I’m enjoying the melodrama of it. I doubt my rating will go up with the end… if anything, it might go down… but I’ll collect my thoughts on this once I’ve seen the whole thing.
  • Moving (Korean Drama) – 7/10 – It started out so good, too! But this show wanted to make every character the MAIN CHARACTER – and there were just too many characters running around to pull this off. Entire episodes dedicated to one character’s plotline or backstory, leaving the other characters completely out of the mix. I could barely remember the kids by the time we came back to them. It was so frustrating. And it’s not that I didn’t like the backstories and side characters – it’s just that every writer has to chose their leads. The side characters can rock, can have amazing stories, but they should not overshadow the leads. And if you’re gonna be an ensemble story, you gotta share screen time with some consistency and “track” with everyone. What a waste.
  • My Dearest (Korean Drama) – 9/10 – And here we have Gone with the Wind, Korean-style.

My Dearest was a ride. It’s set during the Qing invasion of Joseon, so, you know, times were tough. Slavery. Hostages. Girls being shipped off to foreign lands as “tributes” and whatnot. And in all this turmoil, we have the sassy, brash lead female Gil Chae (played to perfection by Ahn Eun Jin) trying to win over the heart of a dude who’s clearly in love with someone else. Enter the suave, player Jang Hyun (again, played to perfection by Namgoong Min) who has sworn off marriage but becomes infatuated with the beautiful, spirited Gil Chae. If you’ve seen or read Gone with the Wind, then… just… imagine it. Just like Gone with the Wind, this story is more sorrow, heartbreak, and hard times than anything else – but at its core it’s a fiery romance about two strong willed people trying to figure out their feelings. Loved it.

  • My Demon – still watching… it’s kinda dumb but I’m enjoying it anyways.
  • My Lovely Liar – 7/10 – The concept was fun. I hate to say it, but I don’t think the Leading Male is much of an actor. I should have realized Hwang Minhyun is an idol. Hidden Side is a gem of a song, though! This show, however, is not very impressive. I enjoyed the concept, and I love the Leading Female, Kim So-hyun… so I watched it all… but there are so many better shows with a light supernatural twist that are far superior. If you’re just looking for something light and cute, this is a solid choice, I guess, but it’s hard to get excited about it.
  • Not Others – 9/10 – Applause to the non-traditional story line, characters, and vibe of this show.

Not Others found a way to turn a basic rom-com into an unexpected treat by shifting up the traditional starting point. Who knew a story about a grown woman happily living with her single mom would be so freakin’ good? I really loved both these gals – and their respective love interests, who were perfect compliments to their personalities. Besides the dynamics of the two women figuring out if they know how to separate their lives, there were some good mysteries and crimes to keep us excited. It was so nice to see something different.

  • Perfect Marriage Revenge – 8/10 – This is my brand of nonsense, but it also felt kinda deflated.

Perfect Marriage Revenge… what can I say… the concept was fun, the couple had great chemistry, but I just didn’t particularly like either of them. I didn’t find them interesting, charming, or unique. And if you’re gonna give me such vanilla leads, then you better make the Evil Queen larger than life… and again, it just didn’t quite reach peak evil in my opinion. Though there were moments when the dialogue was there, it just didn’t feel earned. However – the step-sister was stellar – and I thought her crazed desperation was absolutely the show stealing performance in this drama. Whenever I considered turning it off, she would show up and revive my attention with her theatrics. So, yeah… watch it for the irredeemable evil step-sister.

  • Revenant (Korean Drama) – 10/10 – Helllooooooo horror drama!

Revenant creeped me out. I have enough religious upbringing to be utterly compelled and horrified by the idea of demonic possession. Unlike your Western possession story, this one did not involve priests slinging holy water. Revenant treated us to traditional Korean mythology and folk customs. To the tantalizing and horrifying aspects of working with the dark arts to gain power. I was on the edge of my seat each week watching a young woman’s life fall apart after she inherits her estranged father’s eerie legacy (Kim Tae Ri is really one of the best actresses out there). I especially loved the non-romance in this story… as there was definitely something there between our possessed girl and the cop who was drawn to her, but also… not quite. Add to that the unusual relationship she had with the academic who was helping her and the whole thing was just a non-stop exploration of uncharted territories. If you wanna be unnerved – this is your show.

  • Song of the Bandits – 6/10 – Great actors, great sets, great costumes… and yet, I was not at all drawn into this story and basically had to force myself to finish it. And this is a short show, too. If it weren’t for Lee Ho-Jung turning me on every time she sauntered into a saloon with her blood soaked hands, I don’t think I would have bothered. But dang, girl! Why weren’t you the main character???
  • The Story Of Park’s Marriage Contract – 7/10 – It’s corny and cute. I’m still watching it but feel like this is a safe bet of a mid-show.
  • Strong Girl Nam-Soon – 4/10 – I was one of the people who asked for this. I wrote an entire review praising the first show and begging for a spin off series to show off other “strong women” with the family genes. Listen, you gotta be careful what you wish for. This is like one of those old parables where the devil starts cackling immediately after you sign away your soul and says “You forgot to say you wanted the spin off series to be worth watching!” And I just stand there, defeated, knowing that’s true. At least we got sexy reels of the bad guy all over our socials. Silver lining, eh?
  • Sweet Home 2 – 7/10 – To say I was disappointed in Season 2 is the understatement of the year. This season felt so disjointed – whose story was this? I’ve rewatched Season 1 about a half dozen times over the past two years, and it remains a stand out in K-Dramas as well as proof that Netflix can help fund some truly wild and creative projects. This season, however, will probably just remain the necessary bridge between Season 1 and Season 3. What can I say, I still have hopes they can salvage this mess for the finale… save us, Lee Do-hyun!
  • Taxi Driver 2 – 5/10 – We did not need a Taxi Driver Season 2. I know most of ya’ll wanted it, but it was absolutely unnecessary. This season was repetitive, boring, and uninspired. Though I will give it snaps for introducing me to that amazing Dragon Bridge that goes over the River Hàn at Da Nang, Vietnam. Did ya’ll know that thing actually breathes fire??? It also spits out a fountain of water, too, depending on the holiday. Seriously – type in Dragon Bridge Vietnam in a search engine. It’s far more interesting than anything that happened in this lame season.
  • Twinkling Watermelon – 8/10 – You know when you drink a slushie too fast and get brain freeze? But you keep drinking it anyways cause it’s delicious?

Twinkling Watermelon was a surprise hit for me. Okay, hear me out here (no pun intended). There is a cuteness saturation point and I think this drama definitely was soaking in the sugar-sweetness tooo toooo toooooo long. But maybe it’s because I listen to so much K-Pop that I did not mind this sickeningly sweet teen drama about a time traveling boy who jumps back in time and befriends his own father – and tries to set him up with his future mom. Sometimes you just want to jam out to STAYC, okay? There’s no shame in loving adorable and super-sweet-cutesy things, including this show. Everyone was absolutely lovable and charming in this drama, but it’s the two male leads that will steal your heart. Their cute friendship with the unusual dynamics of being secretly father/son was the colorful icing on the cake.

  • Vigilante (Korean Drama) – 7/10 – This was on the border of being a hit. It was so close! It had such potential! It had all the the ingredients, too. Anger at the failure of the justice system. A burning need for revenge. Masterful secret plans to root out evil above (or below) the law. Great actors. But it didn’t quite congeal, ya dig? I think this one needed to bake a little bit longer. It was still gooey in the center. Give the writers time to iron out the kinks, please. Maybe add a few more episodes if you need to and if that’s not possible then cut out some of the plot points so it works better.
  • The Worst Of Evil – 7/10 – This is another show that needed a little more work in the writer’s room. This is a story about a married couple, both police officers, except the wife keeps getting promoted but the hubbie is struggling to move up in the field. He takes on an undercover assignment to infiltrate a local gang and becomes friends with the leader only to discover his new bestie is still harboring a crush on his first love… who just happens to be the cop’s wife. I mean, WUT!? I love this more than words!!! I wanted 2 things from this show: MORE of that delicious complicated love triangle with MORE drama, emotions, and insane consequences cause… that’s the most over-dramatic ridiculous melodrama recipe ever! And I wanted MORE of the friendship/bromance between the cop and the gangster. They should have made this show longer so we could have those two things more – and this could have been the 10/10 show of the year. The Worst of Evil brought us SUPER WOOK back, for God’s sake – Ji Chang-wook is too good at action not to be making more of these types of shows. And we got to see Wi Ha-joon kiss a woman? Finally! But since they didn’t play up the love triangle it felt kinda awkward and strange. Sigh. What a disappointment. If you’re a fan of gangster shows, though, I would still recommend this one.

Review – Bulgasal: Immortal Souls

/ Lady Divine / 4 Comments

I mean… can you resist this goth aesthetic???

There’s gonna be a lot of gifs and images in this review… so if you’re internet is slow, give it a minute to load up cause… lights camera action.

Ah, Bulgasal! I’ve been sitting on this review a while because this is a tricky show to discuss. Like many other poor fools out there, I watched this drama as it was airing. And in a strange way, that contributed to my love/hate relationship with this fantasy. Cause I should have hated it. I shouldn’t really recommend it to anyone in good faith. But I had such a blast watching this show!

I was soaked in the fandom, giddy with anticipation as the mystery unfolded, and horny over too many characters not to love it. I was amused as often as I was annoyed with the outcome week to week as the story unfolded two episodes at a time. It doesn’t deserve a high rating. It’s slow paced, the plot line is a huge mess, and the characters are weird. But I’m giving it a high rating cause I loved this dumb, beautiful disaster of a show with my whole heart.

Everything you need to know about Bulgasal is revealed in the first ten minutes of the show with the narration introducing the last monster, the flashes of mysterious scenes on a bridge, and the cool opening title sequence. Not once did I hit the skip button, either. I love that title sequence.

Bulgasal has an unknown story line (we’re not following any real historical royal families or diving into era specific conflicts or politics), so there’s no easy guessing of the plot’s major conflict. It’s got reincarnation angles, so there are multiple timelines with multiple versions of characters popping up. It’s got a grumpy protagonist who spends the large majority of the show sulking around a dirty house while a bunch of sunshine characters come in upset his world. It’s got a very enjoyable and theatrical antagonist who has more chemistry with the leading man than the leading lady does. And it’s got all kinds of wacky supernatural stuff at play without clear rules so it’s always a mystery how it’s going to effect the storyline and all the characters.

I mean, you won’t really know what’s happening or why in this show for a long time and even when you find out it’s not particularly inspired, but it’s so much fun guessing. If you have any imagination whatsoever you will invent a plotline three times better than the one offered and bask in the glory of your mental fanfiction as you stare at the beautiful people on your screen.

Bulgasal is a whole vibe. You’re either on board or not. Do you want on this ship?

Wait, I’m sorry. What was that? I don’t think I heard you.

I said DO YOU WANT ON THIS SHIP?

Meow Meow.

ALL ON BOARD.

My personal rating 10/10. My subjective rating? Uhm… 7/10? But why be subjective with Bulgasal? That’s not what this drama is bringing to the table. Let’s adjust to uh… Overall rating: 9/10. A beautiful disaster that captivated the fandom.

Now let’s talk about what made Bulgasal… Bulgasal. Or rather, let’s just follow tangents along and ramble as I reminisce on the fandom and the characters in this show.

SPOILERS BELOW.

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Review – The Red Sleeve

/ Lady Divine / 3 Comments

The Red Sleeve had a solid start but unfortunately wandered off the track towards the end and got lost in its own introspection. For nearly everything I liked about this drama, there was a counterweight of something I didn’t like. I will also admit I went into this with expectations of a sweeping historical romance, as I had heard this was a drama that captured people’s hearts with its love story, but, uhm… well, more on that in the review. Cause there was good and bad there, too, unfortunately.

The story itself was interesting and fresh. Though I am familiar with the fate of Crown Prince Sado, I am less familiar with the story of his son, King Jeongjo. I was captivated by the struggles of this young man, his fierce battle to always appear even tempered, intelligent, and upstanding so as never to be compared with his violent, mentally unstable father. You could really sense the pressure this young royal was under, how practiced his manners were, how he forced himself to endure any hardships with near silence and restraint. Lee Joon-Ho was surprisingly good in this role, for the most part, his bright eyes barely hiding the amount of intense suppressed emotion he carried around inside him.

He was especially charming in the beginning of this show. We got to enjoy one of the most tried-and-true tropes, the prince in disguise, as he sat around the library flirting with our lead female, the palace maid who somehow failed to recognize him as royalty.

These were the best episodes, in my opinion, and where both the lead male and lead female truly shined. At this point in the drama, the script felt focused and on track to deliver a great story of a young man navigating the complexities of politics and the dangers of the royal court while finding a loyal and intelligent woman to stand by his side. The King even says this. Verbatim. Like a thesis statement. That the crown prince will need to find solace and comfort in a woman, someone who can be his rock as he navigates the raging sea of politics. And for about half of the drama, that is the storyline we were given. And it was great.

As a casting director, I can’t say Lee Joon-Ho would have been my first choice for this role, but overall the actor pulled it off. Personally, I think he’s better suited to comedy, maybe, but whatever.

The most emotional aspect he was required to deliver was his conflicted relationship with the King. And he nailed it. You could sense how much he feared and probably despised his grandfather. And with good reason.

For those of you who may not know – Crown Prince Sado was murdered by his father. His death was particularly cruel – as no one wanted to outright murder him – so they shut in a small box until he died from starvation and dehydration. There were a lot of reasons behind Sado’s murder, but the constant criticism and strict disapproval of his father, the King, were certainly culprits. The King, played by Lee Deok-Hwa, was outstanding and captured both the disarming charm of the man as well as his mercurial nature, his fits of rage and suspicion, and his descent into dementia. Would it have been nice to have a little more overview into what exactly transpired between the King and his son Sado? Well… yes. I imagine it’s common knowledge in South Korea and no one needs the refresher course, but for us foreigner viewers I was grateful I had seen several movies and shows about Sado so I knew what was going on.

So that’s the basic plot. The male lead, our crown prince, is doing everything in his power to appease his grandfather the King and stay in his good graces so that he may one day take the throne. Our crown prince has many ideas for improving the country and is eager to step up and rule. Again, this is another area of the show that is both good and bad. Good, cause I understood why he’d been so studious and forced himself to remain stoic and even tempered in order to secure the crown. Bad, cause the show remained quite vague about the specifics of his grand plans of improvement. It was also quite vague about all the political and bloody turmoil that happened after he took the throne. They felt rather skimmed over and when they did take to the front of the stage, the emotional weight was lacking because those characters hadn’t been developed enough for me to care. Where the script chose to focus its attention often meandered and left me, the viewer, quite annoyed by its choices.

Listen, creating a good historical drama is a tough gig. Most sageuk’s end up like this one, with some solid episodes but overall sort of messy. They can’t all be Six Flying Dragons, I guess. For me, this was worth watching but I’ll never rewatch it. And if I am going to be recommending historical dramas, this won’t be near the top of the list.

Overall Rating: 7/10.

To say more is to venture into spoiler territory so come along with me, my friends, further down the page if you want to dig into the female lead and the awkward handling of gender in this tale.

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Review – Gu Family Book / Kangchi, the Beginning

/ Lady Divine / 4 Comments

I watched this series when it first came out, slapped a 7.5 star rating on it, and moved on with my life. Except I didn’t move on. I kept coming back to it. I don’t know how many times I have watched it now, but it’s a lot. A lot, a lot. And I honestly think it gets better with each rewatch. Now I’d say it’s a perfect 10/10. Occasionally our first impressions are just… wrong, okay?

Listen, sometimes you have to change your mind about stuff. It’s good for the soul.

Just like this drama.

Just like these two.

Bae Suzy and Lee Seung-Gi are the two leads, both of which are notoriously charming in all their dramas. Sticking them together was like the first person who thought to create a double layer cake. What if we put a cake… on top of a cake? Afterwards humanity forever wondered why they hadn’t been doing this the whole time. Cause of course, of course, cake on cake is perfect.

And Bae Suzy and Lee Seung-Gi are perfect. They’re both charismatic actors who bring innocence, humor, and sincerity to all their roles. And just so you know – they don’t even really show up until episode 3. Like Queen Seon Duk, the first two episodes are all about the laying foundations of the story with the generation before.

The plotline of Gu Family Book is fantastic – both the supernatural plotline and the political one. There’s melodrama, action, revenge, political intrigue, and the supernatural. But at its core, this is a romance. And the romance is achingly romantic, with the plot winding slowly around your heart until by the time things start coming together for these two, you’re already desperately bound to their stories.

The warrior’s daughter and the gumiho’s son

Oh, Gu Family Book! This show has it all. It packed in everything you can think of in its suitcase of plot devices to spellbind an audience. Kang Eun-Kyung wrote a script to rival some of the best historical dramas of all time. The story is huge, complicated, and multi-generational – yet it’s easy to follow and just builds on itself as it goes. There’s tons of humor to balance all the tragedy. The stakes are high but realistic. All the characters are fully developed, and I mean all of them. And they all get complete characters arcs, too, with transformation and growth (even if towards the dark side). I’ll get into all of this in more detail in the spoiler section.

Sometimes your protagonists are only as good as your antagonists, and Lee Seung-Gi plays one of the most monstrous villains of all time. You’ll be rooting for someone to cut this man down from the very first episode. Lee Seung-Gi will make your skin crawl. He plays his role with such menace, such devious certainty, that you never once doubt his character’s soul is blacker than the eyeliner of the lead singer of The Cure.

There are really dark aspects in this drama – human slavery, rape, torture, and murder – though their presentation is PG-13, you might be disturbed by the content. Gu Family Book does not pretend that the past was an entirely pleasant experience – it could be a very, very harsh world. But our characters still find ways to survive, to find beauty, joy, and pleasure, in the world they occupy. Sometimes the darkness can be overcome, and sometimes people have to make room for the light despite of it.

Listen, I’m hard pressed to think of a reason why you won’t like this drama. Other than the “old-school” special effects – which okay, sure, they’re old fashioned… it’s just glowing lights and rather painful looking colored contacts most of the time, but whatever. I’m embarrassed to admit I was overly dismissive of the simplistic special effects first viewing – which now don’t bother me in the least. In fact, I actually prefer a lot of these FX tricks over more tedious CGI.

Don’t let your modern eye keep you from enjoying this fairy tale goodness just because its special effects are a bit dated. Maybe at first you’ll be a little unsure of how to feel about some of the show, but it will hypnotize you. Next thing you know you’ll be utterly delighted every time those little blue will-o’-the-wisps show up, every time Kang Chi’s eyes switch colors, every time the operatic theme song by Yisabel busts in… “There’s a stone for the things forgotten…”

Around the early 2010’s is when Korean dramas started picking up a substantial fan base in America. There is something particular about the shows coming out during this time – they were so universally loved by viewers (with a few problematic elements here and there, sure) – they were so addictive, so shamelessly full of love, sorrow, hope, honor, and friendship – that they swept people up into the fan base and retained them as permanent K-drama addicts. Warrior Baek Dong Soo, The Moon Embracing the Sun, Queen In Hyun’s Man, Sungkyunkwan Scandal. If you’ve watched any of these dramas – then you know what I’m talking about. They’re distinctive. Distinctively freakin’ good.

Check it Gu Family Book and fall in love with a smitten tomboy warrior girl and the half-human half-mythical creature whose big heart and dimpled smile will win you over.

Overall Rating: 10/10. Supernatural Tale Involving Magical Blue Lights and Colored Contact Lenses.

Character Discussion & Spoilers Follow…

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Review – Mr. Queen

/ Lady Divine / 1 Comment

I love time traveling Korean dramas. And I’m also a sucker for the “enemies to lovers” trope. So I figured there was a fair chance I would enjoy this drama. But Mr. Queen surpassed all my expectations by providing a new twist on the old “boy disguised as a girl/girl disguised as a boy” routine. A modern man ends up transplanted into the boy of a woman from the past – not just any woman, of course, but the queen.

This show has a lot of people to thank for its success, but at the heart of it I would say the two leads ruled supreme. The chemistry and the comedic prowess of our king and mister queen carried the vast majority of the weight on their shoulders. Shin Hye-Sun completely nailed the posture, facial expressions, and often over-bearing and oafish behaviors of an attractive modern male. Kim Jung-Hyun blew me away with his sincere performance of a flabbergasted, frustrated monarch. Without his grounding anchor of calm nuance to balance our actresses flamboyant shenanigans, I don’t think the comedy would have landed. The two actors also had incredible chemistry and sold me on hating each other, begrudgingly accepting each other, and ultimately falling madly in love with each other. I confess, I didn’t expect to be so enamored with this couple, but as the show progressed I was spellbound by their story.

The writers, of course, should also be praised. Historical dramas can be tricky business, and managing to create episodes that will entertain the average viewer while also maintaining some sibilance of historical accuracy is no small task. Finding fun ways to incorporate the “modern” interests of the viewers, the “modern” behavior of the time traveler, and still staying true to the rules and regulations of the era is a challenge. This show embraced the current global love of cooking shows, using the challenge of cooking modern dishes with historical tools. I myself do not enjoy reality television, but I admit I was charmed by these kitchen scenes.

The twist of having a modern man in a woman’s body was explored in intriguing ways. While most of your basics were covered – such as discovering your physical body is weaker, the “gay” comedy, the behavioral comedy of gender roles and expectations – there were some elements that were hysterically ignored. I mean, I thought it was funny that they did not have even one scene in which the dude figures out how his downstairs business functions for gratification. Seriously? And though our queen gets menstrual cramps, they completely gloss over the experience of a man finding out what its like to have a period. I dunno, maybe I’m just knit-picking on this, but I have always found it hysterical that women masturbating and having their periods is so taboo.

I was impressed on how many subtle criticisms or critiques of gender and social norms they snuck in – both about the historical era and the modern one. If you’re looking for commentary about gender roles, various sexualities, and even transgender allusions, you can find them. But if you’re not interested in such things, you can blithely ignore all that commentary and just laugh over the standard poop jokes. Honestly, it’s a path to discourse that has proven successful. Scatter the seeds around (even if only a few take root subconsciously) so you can take a larger step into more “controversial” narratives next time.

Another creative choice was focusing on the close friendship and comradery of a female group instead of a male group. In the majority of historical shows, it is the close friendships of men that are generally the focus of side plots. Guards, scholars, politicians, rebels, commoners and royalty. Whether they are friends or rivals, opposite ends of a love triangle or standing side by side for a goal, it’s usually the dudes who get the most interesting side stories, even when a female is the focus of the show. Think of… well, any historical Korean drama. If there are other girls, they are generally rivals, enemies, or not heavily involved with the other ladies in the show. Mr. Queen gave us the endearing relationships of the Royal Court Ladies. It was so refreshing to watch these women come together and form strong attachments to each other, despite age and status differences. Though the king also had his entourage, I think it’s safe to say the focus for this show was on the queens court.

Historical comedies are generally a mixed bag. Finding one that can balance the conflict of the plotline and the romance, while also keeping its audience engaged and occasionally giggling for hours at a time is a struggle. My favorite historical comedy is still Sungkyunkwan Scandal, but I admit this drama ranks highly with other contenders, such as Moonlight Drawn by Clouds or Queen In Hyun’s Man. Was I invested in the political plotline? Uhm, no. Not even a little bit. But I was invested in the main characters, so I’d call it a win.

Overall Rating – 9/10.  Discovering Your Bisexuality Through Time Travel and Body Swapping.

A few additional thoughts about Mr. Queen’s sexuality and the final episode below…

SPOILERS FOLLOW.

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Review – Kingdom of the Winds

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Review – Kingdom of the Winds

How epic is this cover image, am I right?  Well, don’t be fooled…. cause this drama doesn’t live up to its own glorious press.  I might have enjoyed it more if I had watched it when it originally came out – before bigger, better, more impressive historical sagas came out and destroyed all contenders.  Maybe this drama helped pave the road for the big budget beauties I so adore, but I still can’t hep but feel underwhelmed.

It’s basically about this prince whose life was ruined on the day he was born after a shamen said that the heavens cursed him – doomed to kill his parents, his siblings, his own children, and destroy his country.  Yup.  All that.  It was enough for his daddy, the King, to seriously consider stabbing his own infant son – but instead he sends him away and tells the nation he died.  Well, our young prince grows up.  Goes through a series of misadventures.  And basically proves he’s immortal – cause the man escapes death a billion times, it’s ridiculous.  He falls in love with this blank faced medic, who just happens to be a princess (conveniently allowed to leave the palace, wear commoners clothes, and be unattended by guards… wtf?  Since when does that happen?).  He’s got a dorky side kick.  He’s got a rival for his love interest.  He’s got a bunch of political schemes and hurdles to leap over before he can jump on his rightful throne.  The bad guys aren’t terribly malicious or cruel, the schemers don’t seem too troubled when their plans are constantly thwarted, the action never makes you wonder who will survive and whose heart and soul will break in the process.  And even with the tragic ending (was it though?), it still felt like a mediocre historical adventure through cliches and tired story lines.

This is our leading ladies’ expression about 90% of the show… blank, bewildered and beautiful… for someone so interesting, with her regal past and medical interests… she was so boring. But it’s not just her. They all were.

Where are the grand ambitions?  Where are the personal faults and self destructive tendencies of our heroes?  Where are the clash of wills, the grand romances, the small moments of humor and heart?  Well… scattered to the wind, apparently.

I had a lot of time to kill, so I watched it all.  Every stinking episode.  I confess I napped quite frequently and didn’t seem to miss a thing.  There are better sageuks.  Far better.

Overall Rating – 6.5/10.  An Echo Chamber of Worn Cliches.

Special shout out to Kim Sang-Ho – who played a devious, funny merchant.  I got him.  His character made sense – his ambitions, his life, his personality – there were no question marks around his motivations.

Review – The King Loves / The King in Love

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Review – The King Loves / The King in Love

This drama was divine.  It took your basic love triangle and raised it up to levels of discomfort, pain and joy that I don’t recall ever experiencing in another drama.  Kings are always lonely, isolated people – by design – the people they can trust or count on are few and far between.  In this story, our King had one friend.  One.  So when they both fall in love with the same woman… cue the twenty hours of beautiful agony this show will provide.  I think what made this particular love triangle special was that our lady in the middle really loved both men.  She just happened to love one of them a little more…

Add to that some outstanding political intrigue – none of the boring filler that so often accompanies historical dramas – and brilliant side characters – and you’ve got yourself a historical drama that stands above others.  Let’s not forget how freakin’ sweet this show was!  So many sweet moments.  And tons of genuine humor, too.  There was a great mix of everything, honestly.  Gorgeous cinematography,  detailed costuming, and a complicated but tightly woven plotline that deeply satisfied.  Until the very end.  The very bitter end.  Cause… only one of these absolutely lovable men is getting the girl, after all.  And your heart is going to break for the other dude.  It wouldn’t have mattered which one.  That’s why this drama was amazing… it was a win-win and a lose-lose either way…

Overall Review – 9.5/10.  Love Is A Game That Demands Losers.

More musing on heartbreak, some spoilers, and character thoughts follow… let’s dive in.

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Review – Sungkyunkwan Scandal

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Review – Sungkyunkwan Scandal

I recently rewatched Sungkyunkwan Scandal, for… what?  Maybe the sixth time?  It’s an adorable romantic comedy.  It is, in my opinion, the best historical romantic comedy.  Still standing strong since 2010.  It has it all.  The best of all the tropes.  All your favorite things.  All the things you hope to see in a romantic comedy.  All the tricks of the trade done just right.  And for some reason, it’s impossible for me to write a review about it.  Every time I try, I just end up wanting to watch it again.  Sometimes you just have a to watch it.  When everyone agrees that it’s awesome – how many reviews do you need to read, anyways?  Trust the crowd.  It’s true.  It’s really, really freaking good.

The cast is perfect.  The lead male is the most delightful stick in the mud nerd… and let’s face it, how often is the main character an uptight, mega nerd?  But it works!  It works because they paired him off with a equally smart lady disguised as a man, who has a sense of humor and a flair for drama.  It works because they balanced him off with polar opposite friends – a carefree, socialite who is interested in fashion and flirting (Yeorim!  Oh, how I love him!) and a misfit, rebel who is interested in fighting and social justice won through actions over words.  They’re all awesome.  I wanted to be bestie with all these besties.

Just watch it.  You won’t be sorry.  You’ll laugh and be entertained and smitten and charmed.  It’s unavoidable.  It’s so well written – the cast is large and memorable.

Overall Rating – 10/10.  Nerds in Love.

Review – Queen for Seven Days

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Review – Queen for Seven Days

Did you order some tears with your romantic salad?  This was a good show… that I’ve been watching unfold over the summer.  Not quite great, but definitely on par with most quality sageuks.  As you can tell from the name, it will not have a happy ending.  But until then, it does manage to be shockingly romantic – more so than any other sageuk I can think of.  Or least, more overtly romantic, in a modern contemporary way, as opposed to the subtle, slow burn romances we generally get in these historical shows.  Our lead couple was charming – in particular, her overt nature compared to his reserve.  Especially when they were older, her understanding of his introverted tendencies showed a level of maturity rarely seen in dramas – with her always knowing when she needed to go back to him first after an argument, or infer all the things he left unsaid.  And like Romeo & Juliet, their romance was all the more delicious as everyone was actively trying to tear it apart or come between them.  Nothing like opposition to make things exciting, eh?

I’ve seen a real shift lately in understanding the power of a strong psychotic character to make any drama more interesting.  The crazed king motif never gets old, frankly, and Lee Dong Gun’s performance as the seriously unstable, yet strangely sympathetic/pathetic ruler was outstanding.  Plus he had the best wardrobe of any royalty I have seen in a saguek to date – the man encouraged color and variety in his kingly robes, thank you.  Scheming adults, lovable sidekicks, secret identities, and a variety of palace drama and violence kept the pace in each episode.  This is a good drama to watch when you’re in the mood for a flagrantly emotional rollercoaster, as the emotional aspect of show is definitely its strength.  The plot is not overly complicated, nor are the characters, really.  At it’s heart, it’s an uber-romantic-romance (it’s not all tears, either, there are some very fluffy care-free episodes and cheeky romance moments before the melodrama sinks in).

There’s also a surprisingly modern soundtrack, yet it worked well with the show, which was sort of a hybrid anyway (there was definitely a lot of modern elements covertly woven in).

Overall Rating – 8.5/10 – If There Is A Prophesy Dooming Your Relationship… You Might Wanna Reconsider Your Choices.

Review – Six Flying Dragons

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Review – Six Flying Dragons

This drama was outstanding.  It’s about the end of the Goryeo period and the beginning of the Joseon period – in particular, the revolution leading from one to another.  And it’s the best historical Korean Drama I have ever seen.  Ever.  After the second episode, I was pretty sure it was surpassing my favorites.  And after the epic 3-Prong Rescue Sequence from the Biguk Temple in Episode 6… I was hooked.  By the end of the loop to the opening scene in Ep 1 closing in Ep 10, I thought… wow… holy crap… that’s extremely good writing.  It’s by the same writing team that brought us Queen Seonduk and Tree with Deep Roots… this male/female team, Kim Young-Hyun and Park Sang-Yeon, know their stuff.  And they have been perfecting their craft.  Tightly woven plots in each episode, building on each other throughout yet changing enough to keep you enthralled, extremely complicated but fulfilling character development, action, historical significance, and even some romance.

Seriously.  BEST HISTORICAL DRAMA I HAVE EVER SEEN.  Just… mesmerizing.

Overall Rating – 10/10.  The View Is Only Better From the Moral High Ground If You Don’t Look Down.

More about characters – spoilers spoilers spoilers – thoughts and more…. please watch the show before treading into these waters, you don’t need to muddy up your experience by reading details first.

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