King Maker: The Change of Destiny (2020)

I absolutely love historical dramas and if you add in romance that is a major bonus for me. I was hopeful that this would give me the warm and fuzzy I was looking for.

The series starts out at a descent pace and you get an opportunity to see our two leads in their youth. It was fun and gave you the young love feeling. Their personality/character was revealed in the beginning so there is no mystery about whether or not they are bad or good. You can just tell. You will get a lot off political scheming and a hint romance (that’s right a hint). Although our leads performed well together you you don’t get to see the real chemistry between them together/together. You know they have feelings/love each other but you don’t feel it.

This series definitely highlights reform int this culture in the sense of foreigners, trade expansion and etc. I believe the overall premise for the series was growth of the culture, Progression and adapting. Well displayed.

What I enjoyed most about the series was the acting. The overall plot was well maintained.

What I didn’t like was the the lack of clarity and gaps. So many things were left out. How do I know? There were so many 3 years later or 1 year laters. After a while things got a bit confusing. There was a sudden infatuation by a character. Just strange. In truth, after the female leads identify was revealed I couldn’t understand why she lived where she lived and why these people were left to care for her. These things made absolutely no sense to me.

I do love the male leave. He starred in a similar series title “princess man. “ Some of the same events happen.

Important notes
-90% politics
-little to no romance but you do get love
- nice fight scenes.
-no redemption for those that were done wrong (yeah, you heard me)
-no major power plays (aka -shocker moment)

Read More

Joseon's last days

This was a great telling of the factors leading to the decline of a 500-yrs old dynasty. Was it 100% accurate historically? No, but that's why it's a fictionalized account, not a documentary. I was delighted that this centered on history with a love story woven in, rather than a love story with a historical backdrop. This one had me researching Korean history after each episode.

Fair treatment was given to the main players at that time, and very few were portrayed as "all good" or "all bad." Actual power resided in certain noble families, so family connection trumped capability and family interest trumped national interest. Jockeying for positions of power- Kim versus Jo, insider versus outsider- lies at the heart of this series. The means used to obtain that power were explicit, and clearly showed that at the end of the day, the welfare of a nation was secondary to the elites. Heungseon may have wanted to destroy the factional powers for a centralized government, but his own ambitions proved to be just as harmful to the people. Queen Min may have had a heart for the people, but her desire to topple her father-in-law to replace with her own influence, would add burdens on them. And hapless Gojong, as sad a figure in this series as he was in actuality.

Despite all this, the message I got was one of hope for the future of the Korean people. The foundations being laid to put value on a person's talents rather than geneology, value on education for all citizens, and value on being open to new ideas, as well as the idea of redemption, would see Korea through the years of darkness until her liberation in 1945. Sadly, the same issues that led to a divided Germany divided Korea in half. My hope is one day Korea, like Germany, will be united again.

The cast was amazing. Park Shi Hoo played Choi Chun Joong to perfection- inscrutable but with passion just below the surface. Jun Kwang Ryul was frightening with his changing persona. And Im Hyun Soo as Yeon Chi Sung made my heart ache for his utter devotion to any one who showed him he was valued.

Read More