Moon in the Day (2023)

Absolutely great drama, smart and original - a Korean take on Romeo and. Juliet

To the persons who would pick this drama thinking it is light: it is not. It is not a romantic comedy (on the contrary to See you in my 19th life or Destined with you .
it is more a tragedy like Romeo and Juliet. They can’t love each other in the past, can’t in the present…. It is smart, very well constructed and makes perfect sense in every regard. It is impossible to guess what truly motivates the main protagonists in the past until ep. 11/14.
This drama is sad, a real tragedy took place in the past, the ML having no clue as to how to repair/end a terrible cycle repeating for the FL, not aware of it. This drama has the only ending that makes sense. In that regard, it is better than See you in my 19th life or Destined with you, whose tropes also use past reincarnations and doomed love stories. On another good note, the glimpse of her 20th life in the end is perfect …

After having watched the absolutely awesome c-drama « Wonderland of Love », I had difficulties finding a drama that captured my interest from the first moment…Moon in the day has done it. It is extremely original in its take of the Enemies to lovers trope in the past and present…maintaining the suspense as to why the ML has been killed & become a vengeful spirit while the other has been protected by a talisman to the end, without making it possible to guess what actually happened that resulted in the tragic past events …
Very smart storyline, very well constructed in its development and insertion of moments of their past lives when it is meaningful.
Kim Young Dae is excellent, leaving no doubt as who he is portraying at any moment …very charismatic, what a Fierce vs. Candid looks! Perfect in this role.
In general, the cast is just absolutely great. The range of emotions displayed by the main leads is a far cry from haters comments…their roles are difficult ones. Again, it is not a romantic comedy. Don’t be mistaken by the 1st episode…
the storyline is well balanced between past and present, …not messy at all, you just have to pay attention, …;) as it is not a shallow comedy after all… actually, it really makes you want to understand what really happened between the 2 in the past…(like the ML who doesn’t know why he has been killed, a bit like with « Destined with You » in which you have to wait until the last ep. To understand what happened between the 2)


(… Amazing the number of negative critics by haters who can’t have actually watched the series after ep1 considering the false remarks on the storyline or acting (no it’s not a question of taste)…

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Fumbles the basics

If there is a theme that has trod a well worn path in recent dramas, it is the wronged-in-a-prior-Joseon-era-life-reincarnated-to-seek-revenge setup. Certainly, some of the most recent productions have left room to improve on this plot but "Moon in the Day" never approaches doing anything remotely competently.

There's some shoddy special effects during a fire scene.

The flashbacks to Joseon era are tedious and circle over the same plot points repeatedly.

These flashbacks would be more of a distraction if the modern era scenes were any more compelling but, oy, those aren't much better.

The supporting cast is not great. Even the usually reliable Lee Joon Hyuk is cast as a humorless agency fixer and it's not a good fit.

Pyo Ye Jin is somehow supposed to be both an asskicking firefighter and a stereotypical helpless damsel in alternating scenes.

One or two of these flaws aren't fatal. Even all of them together might have made just been annoyances. But there's simply no way that any show can succeed with a lead as badly acted as Kim Young Dae does here. He can certainly crush the petulant, lazy narcissist that present day Han Jun Oh is. But then he's possessed by the spirit of the Joseon era warrior and it is hard to imagine a worse pairing of character and actor than this one. Taciturn? Grizzled? Intense? Nope. Nope. Nope.

So, there's nothing new plot-wise, it's choppily directed, alongside an uninspiring cast and there's not much left that can possibly turn it around for the show. Not recommended.

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The base isn't strong enough for the building :(

Alright. Honest review. I love Young Dae. I enjoyed his performance is Sh**ting Stars. He was excellent. (Go watch that btw if you haven't already).

Now coming to the review:

The first episode was pretty good I'll say. It was mysterious. It attracted me and I felt like watching the second episode immediately. I did.

The second episode was okay ish too. Not too bad. I did. I watched and waited. I waited for the basics.

Finally I gave up on the 6th episode. I had waited long enough. It just wasn't doing it for me.

Look it's not the actors. The actors are great. It's the plot. The plot essentially sucks.


SPOILERS:

I was essentially confused as the scenes jumped a lot. From the past and back to the present. It kept revolving around the same plot.

This thing for historical drama comes up which seems like a good factor until it becomes predictable. Given that Han Jun Oh was pretty much useless in the beginning becomes a little more useful when Do Ha takes over his body. But this body has cancer and what not. Please.

Kang Young Hwa (played by Pyo Ye Jin) is supposed to be that "apparently" strong FML who stereotypically (Korean version) becomes useless and at mercy of this apparent "Han Jun Oh".



I don't know. Don't watch it if you have a lot of things to watch already. And I say that as a concerned citizen who is very picky about the dramas she likes but whatever she says turns out to be super true because she is just a genius with excellent intuition.

Love, Skye~

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Intriguing Reincarnation Storyline So Far.....

Let's be real, the reincarnation with the enmeshment of the historical past and modern present day of the lead characters is not new and seems to be a popular theme in KDramas and CDramas lately. I still find those storylines intriguing and this underrated drama seems to be doing a good job in ensnaring you in the first episode. I find the FL to be good for her role as a tough firefighter with a heart of gold. The ML is good looking but his narcissistic character as the modern day actor is pretty annoying which was the intention of the story,. I'm hopeful he will be less of a self centered character with his transition.

With reincarnation dramas, the ML and the FL's lives and destinies are intertwined, the question is will the deep resentments continue? It's a love hate relationship they had in their previous lives in the Goryeo period?? and will the story makers pull off a compelling doomed love story of revenge that bounces between the past and present?

I don't know what will unfold since its just four episodes in so I may update the rating as I watch future episodes but they have done a decent job so far in keeping the viewers hooked. It's not a perfect drama but it seems to be underrated, worth giving it a chance.

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binge-worthy but lacking depth

Moon in the Day combines historical & modern settings in an intriguing story of a tragic couple that reunites after 1500 years.

Kang Young Hwa is a present day fire fighter who has been shadowed her entire life by the lost soul of a 6th century army general & nobleman. The shadow finally comes to light when Young Hwa crosses paths with Han Joon Oh, a feckless entertainment idol whose star power is on the decline, & who becomes the new vessel for the dark & vengeful spirit Kim Do Ha. Although Young Hwa is the 19th incarnation of Han Ri Ta, an enemy general's daughter, she is the first incarnation to regain Ri Ta's memories.

Young Hwa & Joon Oh/Do Ha's relationship becomes infused with past resentments as their previous lives come into greater focus. The historical background is of two people so lacking in control of their lives as to be completely indifferent to life & death, until they meet each other. Han Ri Ta lost her entire family at the hands of Do Ha, who is a puppet of his adoptive father, a court minister, & used only as a killing machine in order to maintain his father's political power. Although Ri Ta's vengeance brings them together, they begin to understand they are both caught in the same web. They give each other reasons to stay alive, only to end their relationship in a desperate betrayal.

Questions arise as to how much responsibility does one bear for an ancestor's actions? What obligation do you have to fulfill another's promise? And is the release of one's suffering only dependent on the sacrifice of another? Are Young Hwa & Do Ha able to cut the web that has ensnared them for 1500 years?

I liked Kim Young Dae in Forbidden Marriage but his performance in Moon in the Day wasn't as strong. His modern day character was not unlike his role in Shooting Stars, so he wasn't challenged much playing the two roles of Jooh Oh/Do Ha. Pyo Ye Jin was good in Taxi Driver & seems to hold her own in the lead dual role as Young Hwa/Ri Ta, but she & KYD had little chemistry & were quite stiff together. One sympathizes with the characters' relationship due to their circumstances & the story, rather than how well they actually understood each other. This could also be the fault of the writing which stagnated quite badly in the last few episodes. The ending was satisfactory, but that's due to the strength of the story itself. There were no stand out performances from the rest of the cast.

Overall, the show fell short of fantastic because the writing & acting lacked sufficient depth. However, the story itself was engaging enough to make it a bingeworthy watch.

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Needs season 2 to explore that ending. (An extra episode wouldn't hurt either)

The story was quite interesting.

The presentation lacked flow, as a viewer you start out believing that the ML hated the FL and wanted to kill her as revenge. But later the writer wanted us to believe that wasn't the case, he just wanted to end the cruel rebirth cycle and didn't exactly wish the FL any harm. Although I forced myself to follow the change, I'm was still not fully convinced.

However, it could be that he hated her just as much as he loved her, which is why his expression conveyed hatred so much making it so hard to believe. This could have been planned that way by the writers.

The ML was kinda great when you think about it and FL just didn't put enough faith in their relationship. Even when the ML was willing to put faith in their relationship, she decided to literally do away with the relationship and the guy. Very cowardly. She just didn't love him enough.

So, I was glad for the consequences she had to face for the actions.

*Spoiler Alert*
What's more, I was so glad that Han Jun Oh got to experience life. As much as you admire Do Ah, if it wasn't for Han Jun Oh, the show wouldn't have been that interesting. He was very adorable and I'm glad that his brother didn't have to mourn him.

I am glad that both Do Ah (ML) and Kang Young Hwa / Han Ri Ta (FL) got the fresh start, however I wish to see how Kang Young Hwa lived out her life, similarly for the other characters. Furthermore, it would be interesting to watch both leads live out their reincarnated life. Although I'm pretty sure there won't be a season 2, i was hoping that we could get a few extra episode where they could explore all of this.

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An iconic start followed by dismal second half

On the surface it looks like a common revenge theme drama, but it is a lot more. Case could made about various flaws of this - story too focused on main pairing, a simplistic story, not too much going on. In spite of these flaws this has been a mesmerising drama for me.

I was already a lot excited as it was Pyo Ye Jin's first drama where she takes a spot among first 2 leads in MDL casting list. Needless to say I've liked her role a lot in Taxi driver, Our blooming youth. I wish her luck for future successes.

Now coming back to this drama. It starts with your usual bickering ML-FL, but it takes a sudden turn. And we are introduced to their past lives. ML is a military general mired in a battle against rebels. And FL of course is somehow related to rebels. This is the past connection. Story goes forward, ML dies and blames FL for his death. He takes a solemn vow to exact revenge on FL.
Now, it's not a typical revenge. And this non-typicality of it makes it such a decent drama.

I initially gave it a 10 after first 4 episodes, but was heavily let down by second half. Major flaws of the drama would be the:
1. The unnecessary storyline of Han Min Oh
2. The execution of the past foster father's revenge

After introduction of above 2 storylines, even the main romance plot lost its lustre.

If you want to watch this drama, it's very good in first half. Rest you can skip or skimp.

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Solid Start

I've been in a bit of a KDrama slump lately, so I've been looking for a show that I can get past the first week of, and so far, "Moon in the Day" looks to be that show. The best part right now is the acting; Pyo Ye Jin and Kim Young Dae are great in the first episodes and have good chemistry. They were the main draw for me to give this show a try, and they didn't disappoint. Where I do hope the show can improve is in the story. It's not bad, but a little convoluted at this point, and even with a 14-episode order, I worry that the show might end up overextending itself. So, despite a few issues, I enjoyed these first episodes as they were also pretty funny, and the flashback scenes were well done, doing a good job differentiating the time periods while making both parts interesting.

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A Reincarnation Saga with Fantasy Element

Adapted from the webtoon “The Moon that Rises in the Day” (낮에 뜨는 달) by Hye Yoom (헤윰), ENA’s new drama “Moon in the Day” is a heartbreaking, remorseful romance that transcends over centuries. Starring Pyo Ye Jin and Kim Young Dae in lead roles, the storyline depicts the story of a vengeful spirit seeking retribution for his wrongful death. The main actors portray two different characters, from variant timelines. It has been an eventful week with quite a few new premieres like “Castaway Diva”, “Perfect Revenge Marriage” and “The Matchmakers”. Certainly, the show has a tall order to compete with when compared to those recent releases. What works in its favor is the rustic chemistry between the main actors. The script is slightly odd paced, but that doesn’t take away the fact that the characters are intriguing and their backstory is equally riveting. We are given glimpses of their past lives as the first two episodes concentrate on the character’s present lives. As unlike as they are, Kang Young Hwa and Han Jun Oh aren’t peas in the same pod. Let’s dive into this narrative and learn more about them!

Read the complete article here-

https://kcdramamusings.wordpress.com/2023/11/03/moon-in-the-day-first-impressions/

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SALGO CON UN CRUSH CON KIM DO HA

Me ha gustado la historia y los protagonistas.
El final me ha gustado porque yo entiendo que al final reencarnar y pueden vivir juntos una vida normal.
Lo que no me ha gustado es como han tratado lo de Han Joon Oh, antes que estuviera poseido por el espiritu de Kim Do Ha, era un enfermo terminal de cancer y ahora que Do Ha muere, ¿revive?. ¿No había muerto en el accidente del rio Han?. No me ha gustado nada como han manejado eso. Yo ya sabia que no iban a poder estar juntos como Kang Young Hwa y Kim Do Ha por el simple hecho que, él estaba en el cuerpo de un cádaver, yo no querria que mi novio estuviera así. Aparte me parece un poco feo en el ultimo capitulo cuando Young Hwa se vuelve a ver a Joon Oh y este es un total cretino.

Los outfits son superbonitos. Deberian haber dejado a Young Hwa mas con el pelo suelto y no tanto con coleta. La actriz es guapisima y a veces parecía que querian ponerla fea a proposito.

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