I dropped this drama at ep 16 and realized I did the same with Seung Gi's last drama. I don't remember if the Hong sisters were involved but, the Donkey Kong ball setup in the Gu Book was too much for me.
Back to this drama though, I dropped this drama after I realized I wasn't enjoying the episodes as much as I thought I was. This usually happens for me after I finish a series a month or so after, not while watching.
watch this as filler while waiting for you main drama to come on.
I wouldn't recommend it.
*Edit* I came back to see how it ended.....I wish I hadn't. All this talk of prophecy and a big bad to do nothing but piss you off in disbelief. Don't watch this!!
A bunch of charming magical characters surrounding another boring heroine isn't worth it, especially with such a poorly executed story. Hong sisters, ya wrong for this.
Watch this mess and you'll see I'm right but, remember, I warned you. Dropping this from a 6 to a 4.5 because you should only watch it if you are a fan of the actors and want to watch all of that person's work.
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Hwayugi was my first introduction to the Hong Sisters and I am happy that I didnt allow it to taint my view of them because imo, the Hong Sisters are very good storyteller but the execution doesnt always live up to it.
If Hwayugi was watchable all the way till the end, its because it had an extremely compelling cast of characters as well as actors who had charm flowing out of their butt.
For 75 percent of the drama, you really get what you signed up for. Drama, flair, action, romance and the like. Its the last 25 percent that makes you want to throw your slippers at the screen.
On one hand, I do want to recommend it to people because on it's own merits, its a decent drama. But if things like plotting, pacing and neat endings get you going, it's best to stay away from this one. Or alternatively, watching all the episodes except the final one and plot your own happy ending.
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Excellent story, could have better execution
I just finished binging so the feelings are raw. Wow, I'm going to think about this drama for a long while.Where do I start? Firstly, I was hooked right from the beginning. Based very loosely on the Chinese legend 'Journey to the West', a story I grew up with due to my Chinese heritage, I was immediately intrigued. Also, the romance was a huge plus point.
The plot. It had many things going, don't get me wrong. From the start where it followed many parts of the legend while adding romance to the mix, I was very excited for this drama. However the plot gradually dragged on, for I think 20 episodes were too long. 15-16 would be perfect. The cast was huge, so that means that there were many sub-stories for our secondary characters, which were all interesting, but they diluted the storyline for our main leads. Seriously, the chemistry and romance had so much wasted potential, I felt like I didn't see enough. Also, as the drama progressed, we got to see less and less of our female lead. Like seriously? I was mildly infuriated, if you ask me. However, when we got to see our main couple, the romance was so cute (and sometimes heartbreaking, prepare yourselves), I learned to treasure those moments. The CGI- seriously, what the heck was that? Not the worst, but could have been so much better, sometimes I feel sorry for our actors, if they knew they acted their hearts out only for lousy CGI.
The ending. Too unsatisfactory. After all our leads been through, we only get that ending? Seriously. And our secondary characters were not given justice too. However all in all this drama was great, the romance, the plot, the fantasy aspect, the ending- unsatisfactory, but I'll live.
Now the actors. Lee Seung Gi as Son Oh Gong- fantastic acting- he really brought the character to life- and it followed the Chinese legend closely too: he was cheeky, mischievous, arrogant, and had his strong morals. The chemistry with our female lead was strong too- so overall, his acting was one of the best in the show.
Cha Seung Won as Ma Wang- acting was also superb by our actor- but the character seemed at times to only provide comedic relief for our male lead, which means: wasted potential. His backstory could have been given more attention too- I didn't feel as much for him as I wanted to. However, CSW was great, and his acting was fantastic.
Oh Yeon Seo as Samjang. I've read many complaints, however, if you guys knew about the original character she was based on (Tang San Zang)- it would explain a lot more: the original character was passive, powerless, and meant to guide Son Oh Gong (Sun Wu Kong). He was Ohgong's mentor or shifu in fact. However, this could make her character seem very one-dimensional, which I agree, but she also had many points going for her- she was strong-headed and stood her ground, and very independent and mature. OYS's eyes are beautiful and I wished she used them more to her advantage- her acting definitely falls from LSG's or CSW's. But not horrible to that extent, for I still enjoyed her character and her romance with LSG was fantastic.
Lee Se Young as Bu Ja/ Ah Sa Nyeo. Loved her- my favourite character in fact. When she was Bu Ja, she brought out the lifeless zombie character, when she was Ah Sa Nyeo, she was bolder and more charismatic, and I could see the difference. Of course she fell to our more seasoned male actors, however she was impressive for someone building experience. My favourite character because she had so many layers- when she was Bu Ja, she was finding her place and identity, when she was Ah San Nyeo, a supposed antagonist, she displayed many signs of humanity, that made me feel for her. Sometimes she was confused too because she didn't know if it was Ah Sa Nyeo or Bu Ja that made her act/feel this way. Ahhh, the layers. Seriously, just watch the drama to see what I'm talking about.
I'm only going to talk about my favourite characters/actors haha. As I mentioned above, the cast is huge, so i'm not going to bore you guys any further.
The OSTs: 'Let me Out' by Nu'est has been stuck in my head ever since. Music was definitely done well in this drama.
Lastly, the rewatch value: Maybe if the feels get too great I would open this drama again. However I would skip some of the secondary leads' stories because all I want is our main lead's haha. Their moments were simply not enough.
Overall: watch if you have the time, for you are bound to get drawn into this mystical world and and the feels that our main leads are going to bring to you. Great show that left me thinking and wishing that there'll be a season 2.
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****This contains MASSIVE SPOILERS!!! It is a completed series rant. Do NOT read if you haven't seen the entire drama yet.********Can I also point out that the main couple did not have their proper and official third wedding where she wears a proper and nice wedding fress !!!!!!!!!!?????
and about the ring or bracelet , I thought that it will shine and save the day, or do something but NOOOOO.
AND FINALLY , why , just why most of the important female characters DIED, I'm not sure if anyone noticed but out of the main cast that were important, women dies while men remained ??????
First the summar fairy died (i know she died before but still she went and her brother remained), then ma haon's wife/lover also died in the end while he remained and thank you for the fact that he finally found out his son (I think that is the ONLY good part here), Bu Ja also died and her "brother" piggy remained and lastly the couple star femaled lead died too !!!!!! while He went to search after her.
OK from what I saw, I strongly feel that this drama needs desperatly a second season, if not then the writers, directors and everyone that worked for this drama FAILED !!!!!!! (maybe not the actors since it was agreat cast that just acted acording to the writers/directors etc.) So yeah, dear writers/Directors this needs a second season ASAP , I do not care just please bring it Back nicely and sort out every female character's death since it is not fair. Believe me even if Bu Ja was burned and dissapear, in a story they can do something, BUT if they want to be mean and leave it to be realistic lets talk about the quality of the dragon, that was not realistic/real or scary, not even in 1,000 million years. So Yeah, I don't care HOW, or WHY just please do a season two with a lot of adventures or twists to somehow bring back the main females characteres please.
Thank you.
This is all I had to say, Also, sorry for the super long comment, I just had to say those stuff.
P.S.- Seriously the most failed part was the "dragon" XD come on, you can't tell me that was scarry or real.
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Rewatch value... definitely imo
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translation made by Google translator, may have typos in the text
a drama that without a doubt for those who have been in the world of dramas for a long time know how acclaimed and epic it is by fans. the story, narrative, twists, are captivating and unique, it's a story that is hard to forget and is very striking!!! you get involved a lot with the protagonists and when it comes to the end you get obsessed with a new season, which you'll never have, but which you deserved!! an exceptional drama, which has few low points. you get involved with each of the characters, you want to know more about each one and delve into the drama, it's really a watershed for those who like kdramas.but as nothing is flowers, unfortunately the ending leaves something to be desired, I particularly wanted something more for the ending, but I know it turned out nice and suggestive! I wish it had shown an alternate and happier ending, but the rest of the story is so worthwhile and remarkable, acting is great, character dynamics are comical and unique, a reference drama!
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Wonderful plot, great chemistry, overall win
This is one of my all-time favorite Kdramas! It has everything you could want! Supernatural elements, romance, mystery, kick-butt female, action, and comedy. The plot is intentionally outrageous! It keeps you laughing the whole time.I loved the connection between the main characters. More than just the main couple, the side couples are also great! And the friendships are beautiful.
This one really allows you to get to know the characters before the end of episode one! It keeps you on your toes, though, as it progresses.
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I tried watching this once & ended up dropping it after a few episodes. I found myself being annoyed by Seon Mi because it felt like she was trying to be two (sort of) conflicting characters. On one hand, she's this BA ghost whisperer who has dealt with living in a never-ending horror movie her whole life; but on the other hand, she's this whiny, weepy recluse who spent 15 years waiting for someone to "protect her." She had this really touching moment early on where she argued with Son Oh Gong that she didn't need a normal happy life, because she valued herself and loved herself enough to keep going, but then she later went on and on about wishing she weren't able to see supernatural things anymore. The character never felt like it settled into a clear, REAL person. I don't know if this was an issue of the actress or the writing, but I never really felt like I had a clear sense of WHO Jin Seon Mi was as a person.HOWEVER, the rest of the cast was really delightful. They were pretty over-the-top and caricature-y, but I found that fun and interesting. Honestly, the cartoonish antics of Son Oh Gong and Ma Wang were what brought me back to this after I had initially dropped it.
The STORY was fun and funny. The world-building around this supernatural/fantasy story line was engaging and brought out a lot of unique creatures and characters. The romance didn't feel too rushed which was a nice change for a lot of kdramas that I don't feel like really take the time to clearly illustrate the journey that brought the OTP together. I felt like I understood why JSM & SOG fell for each other, and I was rooting for them throughout (so much so, in fact, that I looked up the ending of the source material to find out that the character SOG is based off of goes to the underworld/afterlife in order to reunite with the JSM character!). I even felt the feels for the side characters' romances - especially the zombie/pig-superstar pair and even the weird body swapped octopus prince's crush on the pig. I didn't feel that strongly about Ma Wang's tragic love story, but I really enjoyed his bromance with SOG.
Overall, I felt that the story was fun and unique. I would definitely not recommend it to someone NEW to kdramas, but I would recommend it to someone who's been around the block and is looking for something fresh and fun.
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More than the sum of its parts
This was the first kdrama that I watched and enjoyed, which is strange insofar as I know that it's not, strictly speaking, good -- but it is so entertaining! The third episode is, truly, among the funniest things I have ever watched.The show's strengths and weaknesses are kind of mixed so that there is not one single component that makes the show "good" or "bad". Taking them one by one:
1. The story is a little up-and-down at times; sometimes it makes sense and sometimes it does not; sometimes it's fast and sometimes it's slow. However -- the mood of the show (more comedic than dramatic) accommodates the inconsistencies. And the comedic scenes in the beginning of the show are absolutely brilliant.
2. The acting is a bit of a mixed bag. I admit to absolutely buying into and adoring the male lead and almost all of the supporting cast. The female lead and the Devil King are less to my liking -- but I think that a large part of that is the script / what they have to work with and the types of roles they have been cast to play. And there are scenes in which the FL and DK absolutely kill it!
3. The music: The songs in this are wonderful. The "dramatic" music sometimes is over the top -- but regarding the show as a comedy makes it work, weirdly.
So a lot of good mixed with some bad. But, really, I think that fixing the bad elements would take away from the lightness of the show and make it less entertaining.
Personally, I have already rewatched it a few times :)
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Daebak
I remember watching this for the first time, I really liked it.But to understand everything, I had to re-watch it. (That's what I do sometimes) And I liked it even more.
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The plot was interesting, I really enjoy watching supernaturals based dramas.
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The actors were great. I actually really enjoyed Ma Wang's character. I think some of his scenes were so funny to do. I don’t know how he did them. 👏😂Amazing actor.
I also love Lee Seung Gi as an actor, he's amazing.
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I'd re-watch it maybe, or maybe only some scenes that I enjoyed more😂🙄
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I'm only writing this because I got zero info when I went online to find out if this would be a happy ending or not - if this would be worth investing 20 hours into. If you're into melodramas, a lot of 'will-they-wont-they', action/fantasy, steamy kisses and implied sex, watch this! The progress of their relationship was obviously frustrating because it's a melodrama and you know how long it takes for k-drama leads to make up their minds and say that they love each other. But hey, this was good! There were plenty of sweet and steamy moments to make the watching worth it.
Before starting the drama I read somewhere that 'everyone dies except PK' and that's total bullshit. Ma Wang, Son Oh Gong, Secretary Ma, PK, Sa Oh Jeong - they all live! Literally almost everyone lives except Jin Seon Mi, Zombie and the Prince possessing Alice. More importantly, Jin Seon Mi's soul even comes back from the dead for Son Oh Gong. The ending is a solid happy ending, or a heavily implied one if you're a pessimist. Ma Wang finds his son, Son Oh Gong gets to confess to Jin Seon Mi that he was actually head over heels in love with her even without the Geumganggo (that he takes off by himself in front of her), Son Oh Gong literally gives Jin Seon Mi the power of one of his eyes so that when he goes to the underworld he can find her easily and make her his completely. It was worth the watch. Go watch it!
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For me: This is quite good drama despite of the worst CG effect
This is the 1st time i'm writing a review (sorry for my bad english)I think this drama is QUITE GOOD and have great potential to be top drama but lost the steam when reaching the final episode.
STORYLINE is GOOD and i love it. (Although, there's a lot of people say that, this is a copycat of Goblin. Not at all, its totally different.) The thing that i HATE is the unnecessary scene, the drama duration is too long, so they add too much of unnecessary story.
ACTING is 10/10. Lee Seung Gi, Oh YeonSeo, Cha Seungwon & all other characters really save the show. I watched until the final episode because of their great acting skills.
MUSIC/OST: The OST IS GREAT. If you don't plan to watch this drama, i PREFER you to listen to all of the OSTs (Seriously, its Gold but very underrated, idk why)
WEAKNESS/LACKING:
1. Too much unnecessary scene (Might be because of long duration)
2. WORST Cinematography/CG EFFECT
3. The finale episode is slow
My advice is don't compare this to other fantasy drama, watch first then judge
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