Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency (2019)

Central Romance is really heart warming, interesting premise, minor "flaws" in some element

8.5/10 is my rating. This is a 2019 South Korean Historical Romantic Comedy Drama with 16 approximately 60minute episodes.

I first provide a synopsis then a review.

Synopsis:
Marriage is a big deal in Joseon era Korea and, at the top of their game Ma Hoon, (Kim Min-jae) Young-soo (Choi Seung) and Do Joon (Byeon Woo-seok) are three handsome bachelor's who use their unusual charm, intelligence, and good looks to run the most successful marriage agency in the land. Things are going well for the trio until the groom is stolen and the bride jilted during the wedding of Lee Soo (Seo Ji-hoon), a blacksmith's son and Gae-ttong/Yoon Soo-yun (Gong Seung-yeon) whom Lee Soo has loved for many years. But things are not what they seem and Lee Soo was a hidden prince who was abducted to fulfill his destiny as the King of Joseon. The marriage agency feels like they have to make it right for heart broken Gae-ttong and vow to help her determine what happened to Lee Soo and get the marriage back on track. When Ma Hoon foils an assasination attempt on Gae-ttong it is clear things may not be as they seem. The matchmakers pull Gae-ttong into their circle to protect her until they can figure out what, exactly is going on. Lee Soo still has not given up on marrying the girl he loves and asks Ma Hoon to help him figure out how to marry the girl who is now below his social station. Love is a tricky business though and destiny may have other plans.

Review:
Overall I really liked this. The concept of these match making men was a unique twist. The fact that each had a unique back story was very interesting. I loved Gae-ttong as she was very spirited and a-typical. It was a very heart warming story of love and friendship and good overcoming evil. Great all the way around on the surface.

Spoiler alerts**I did not like the romance between one of the matchmakers and the snobby noble daughter. I never found a single thing redeeming about her character and could not fathom a reason, other than her hard to get nature, why he would like her. She looked down on basically every one and the only consistency in her character was snobbery. Every time those two were focused on I just couldn't wait for the story to move on.

I felt very sorry for Lee Soo. He never asked to become king and his love for Gae-ttong was complete. My daughters, who watched it with me, found it nearly unforgivable that the only time he forced his powers as king was to try to force a situation where he would marry her. I think that is a bit generational. I thought his persistence just showed the depth of his love for her. They thought it was stalker level I just thought he was steadfast. I knew he would come around and he did. Said she could marry whomever. But it was sad to me. He mentions that he is married to the nation. I would have loved for him to have a happy ending. I know that is not realistic but I don't watch dramas to have them match sad reality.

There was no real sense for how her life with her brother went after they reunited. Was he living with her? It showed them hanging out a time or two but not if they had any sort of deep connection beyond that. It seemed he understood who she was but there was no emotional moment where it was clear that he did. When Gae-ttong was in trouble for impersonating a noble, he seemed to actually know her and suppress it to protect her, but that was it. And the maid that seemed to have something going with him. I liked that she was protective but to envision she had romantic feelings for him was a bit of a stretch. He was so child like in his thoughts that it would be weird. So that could have been cute if it was just a strong friendship but the implied romance was a little strange.

After all the effort and Gae-ttong to become a noble lady I really wanted to see her keep it. Like the noble who allowed her to use his name would fully adopt her. I mean he complimented her and said he thought his daughter would have been like her but I thought that was a missed opportunity at a really compelling relationship and another heartwarming story. He defended her at just the right time. But I wanted a real relationship to develop between them. It seemed he needed a daughter and she definitely needed a father figure.

I was disappointed in the last episode like so many others were. I really was asking in the second to last episode how the heck were they going to tie up all the political intrigue. Some prince, who we never saw, was supposedly coming back and two friends, turned enemy (the two high nobles) suddenly unite to back stab the king. So that could have been a big thing but it was so rushed it was like wait, how did they go from hating each other and seeming to have different goals for the throne to being in alliance again? It was just strange. A cool plot twist would have been that Do Joon was the prince. Then the snobby noble lady would have had to reconsider her actions. And I wanted him to fully tell her off. He minorly chastised her one time but I wanted him to call her on it and not like her anymore. So she was the one who wanted him but he was so over her. Instead he still wants her, even after she basically told him she wasn't interested because he wasn't a noble and not just any noble but a member of the royal family. So I think him being the hidden prince would have been a great twist.

After all Gae-ttong and Ma-Hoon did for Lee Soo I would have thought he would have given them high positions. I mean who could you trust more than them? It was unclear who filled his "cabinet" after expunging the traitors and how he turned public opinion. They started but never really finished that tangent. What happened with the Queen regent?

In conclusion I think this is well worth the watch. Despite some of the minor plot failings the characters were compelling, the romance was cute, and there were lots of interesting social constructs explored. Don't expect a perfect story. There are, in my mind, some unfinished tangents, and some questions left unanswered. It does end happy which is important to me and most of the major plot elements are tied up.

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A really cute, easy watch.

This is a really sweet drama but your enjoyment of it will depend entirely on what you go into it looking for. If you want a serious, dramatic political intrigue story, this is not for you. If however, you want a sweet, breezy rom-com then you will probably enjoy it. I wanted something light, fun, and with a cute romance, so I really enjoyed it and ended up breezing through it in two days. There were no late-drama lags or angst fests, no big dramatic breakups or noble idiocy. Just a cute simple story that is basically a cohabitation rom-com with Joseon wrappings.

Somewhere, there is a parallel universe where this drama focused on Lee Soo (Seo Ji Hoon) as the main character and was about his rise to being a good king and his struggle to reunite with his past love. That drama would have likely been really good and interesting but that is not what this drama is. Soo's journey, while very compelling imo, is definitely in the background and is not the centre of this story. You can argue that's a shame and maybe it is but if they had focused on it more in this drama, it would have just bogged it down.

So what is good about this story?
- A very cute main couple at its centre. There are a fair amount of cliches and tropes galore but hey, if it's not broke....
- A ML who seems to be your typical cold asshole at the beginning but you quickly realise is actually a total sweetheart and is incredibly kind and caring, not just to the FL but to everyone he cares for. He's honestly one of the sweetest MLs I've seen in a while.
- A FL who manages to maintain her personality throughout the entire drama. So many dramas have their quirky, likeable heroines become weepy damsels in distress by the end but not Gaeddong! She absolutely stays true to herself the whole time and there is something so satisfying about seeing her take charge of her own story and stand up for herself when she's been wronged or lied to. (Slight spoiler: I audibly laughed out loud when she kicked the guy in the balls and headbutted him in the final episode to escape! Who needs someone to rescue her? Not Gaeddong lol.)
- My favourite pace/development for a love story. Guy falls first, and there are loads of sweet moments but it's a slow burn, they don't get together until fairly far into it, no huge angst, no noble idiocy (the bane of kdramas) and the two make each other better people.
- A SML who you could totally develop SLS for. He's an absolute puppy and it breaks your heart everytime he's sad. And he and the FL have a genuine connection, unlike many SMLs who are just pining ineffectually in the background.
- Likeable secondary characters who grow on you. Even characters like Go Young Soo who I found incredibly annoying in the beginning, end up having more to their backstory that make them more interesting and likeable. The SFL who I thought was initially your average bitchy SFL turned out to have a compelling arc too, held down by the limitations of being a woman. I didn't agree with much of what she did, but I understood them. And her romance arc was nice.
- NO LATE DRAMA LAG. Honestly this is a big one. In 90% of kdramas I watch, by the time you get to around episode 12/13, they've often lost a lot of their initial charm and become a drag to complete. I never felt that with this drama. It's sweet, easy to watch and enjoyable the whole way through.

Look, whether you like this drama or not, it comes down to what you're looking for. It's not overly serious or complicated. It's fairly standard, there are a bunch of tropes and cliches and it's probably not very historically accurate. It's never going to be one of the best kdramas out there but if you just want a cute romance and an easy watch, then you'll probably enjoy it. Give it a go!

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Absolutely loved it!

I first saw this on Netflix, and there is a very different synopsis there than on here, but even taking that into account, it's not completely wrong. Also, people are being way harsher on it than it deserves.
I thought the story was great overall. Was a certain character's backstory introduced a bit late? Sure, but it didn't ruin anything. The romance was the best part and how Geo Ddong became a part of the crew. The second lead couple had a good story as well, though her personality wasn't as appealing. But he loved her, so what can I say? I love the actress though, since I also saw her in Business Proposal.
The music is also really good, though I am slightly biased since one of the OSTs is by Yesung "Drawn on the Heart." A really beautiful song that made me melt during the romantic scenes.
I don't know what else I can say, just that I'd be happy to watch it again, and think it deserves a better rating. Give it a try!

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I didn’t have super high expectations but I ended up enjoying this a lot! There are some plot elements and character dynamics that felt original and different, and almost all the leads bring something to the table: there’s the brash but good-hearted one, the serious one with deep restrained feelings, the sassy playful one with a past, the one who was torn from his life and figuratively thrown in the deep end and is struggling to stay afloat while the sharks circle around… (Can you tell I found that last character especially compelling?) There were a lot of fluffy moments, but also ones with surprising nuance and shades of moral gray. It’s not what I’d call an outstanding drama, it has its missteps and questionable writing choices, but it’s a solid and fun experience that never dragged and hit some familiar beats as well as some creative ones.

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Lee Soo fan

I never write any review before. Sorry for bad english.
SPOILER ALERT.
I think the story was fine until they kill King's friend, Se-Ah. Since Gaeddong and Hoon will end up together, it would be better if Soo character have that maid as queen, or (if that was impossible) at least keep her alive to be Soo's friend. Soo never wanted to be a King. After be a King, he lost many thing, including his freedom and the most painful is he lost the only girl he loved. I know he become selfish later, but still he regret it and give up on Gaeddong. So, I really wish for his happiness in the end of this drama, but it's not happened. In the end, Soo decided to be single, but I don't think he is happy. Even his eunuch said he looked gloomy, sad and not agile like before. That's why, I hope the writer keep the maid alive, at least she can make the King smile and not feel so lonely in palace. I feel sad for Soo character, and make me can't really enjoy this drama. I don't want to rewatch it, that's why I give low score. If it's possible, I really wish for second season for Soo character where he finds love with another girl and have a happy ending.

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One word to describe this drama: meh. If I had other better dramas to watch, I would’ve probably dropped this. But personally, I don’t like leaving tasks uncompleted so I made myself finish it and tbh, after finishing it, it wasn’t all that bad.

The start was pretty interesting, when they introduced the characters etc etc. But the middle part just got so draggy and boring. And the ‘interesting’ scenarios were all too typical. I feel like there was no storyline for the middle 5 episodes at all ... the storyline in general isn’t the best but the setting was good, like the idea of the matchmaking agency etc and the kings story etc but the small milestones were all so insignificant and boring. Personally, I really hated the 2 lead roles, I just didn’t like the fact that she fell in love w the matchmaker and I was shipping her w the king all along, it actually took me pretty long to realise he wasn’t the male lead zzz

The actors in this are all fantastic on their own, I don’t dislike any of them but together, I felt like the 2 leads were very awkward (not their acting but compatability in general) I just didn’t enjoy watching them at all and many lines felt very cringy and forced to me, even as a melo kdrama fanatic. However, this drama really drew me towards seo jihoon, i feel like he shone the most to me. His crying scenes made me want to cry too and when he looked at gaettong w those eyes, my heart melted istg. I felt like he really outshone Kim Minjae in this, which is strange since I actually really enjoy Minjae’s Acting normally. Gong Seungyeon did average too, she was great sometimes but there were some scenes that were just so awkward.

I feel like it has potential to do so much better, if they made a few tweaks to the plot and did some recasting. I feel like Kim Minjae wasn’t the most suitable for this role, he really didn’t manage to stand out. Seungyeon, however, despite her not fantastic acting skills honestly fit the character pretty well in my opinion. But they need to cut down the number of crying scenes istg theres at least 2 people crying every episode.

The couple that felt more natural and I actually enjoyed watching were the 2nd Leads. I felt much more chemistry watching them than the main leads. And the way the guy looked at the girl omg my heart beat so fast,, they cast him pretty well in my opinion, he had that seductive vibe LOL.

The music was fairly good, no complaints. Overall, this drama was meh. It could’ve been much better but wasn’t terrible. And I can see why so many people dropped it and why others like it so much. It’s a mix of typical cringe + a interesting setting so it’s worth a try if you think you’ll like it, I guess.

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Now I know why this drama annoyed many and had low rate
Although the story was a great fertile soil for romance, the romance between main leads was really cold and lukewarm
Because the writer didn't know how to express the feeling between main leads
Hesitating between keeping it platonic pure romance or normal one
And the result was definitely this Cold romance
The end was deliquescent and something weird in it

I loved a lot that women in this drama were having strong personalities

inspite of the 2nd FL were extremely Bi*** with dead face expression
And Do Joon was too good for that Bi*** ?

And I didn't feel sympathy at all with Young soo
I dislike his character a lot
He is so coward in spite he had a lot of people around to help him , he chose to betray them

and the end was too rush as if the writer remembered suddenly he reached ep 16 and he should end it anyway

In spite of all its flaws I really enjoyed and liked,
and i didn't feel bored
it succeeded to keep me going on watching

HOPE the 1st ML improve himself more and to see him in more main roles
He is really good
Kim min jae (FIGHTING)

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I really liked this show but I was disappointed by the ending. In the end Gaettong picked Hun which is obvious because he’s the male lead but I think the story would of been better had she picked Su. It just made me dislike her character because she just completely forgot about everything he had done for her and immediately fell in love with another man when she had been ready to marry Su. And although Hun said he wouldn’t interfere, he seemed to do a lot of things that would make Gaettong fall in love with him more. And in the end they didn’t even give Su the justice of him falling in love with another woman, he’s just left alone and will probably marry a Queen he doesn’t love for political reasons. There was just so many moments that were supposed to be romantic moments between Gaettong and Hun but it was hard to find it romantic when Gaettong is just abandoning Su. In conclusion: I think the show would of been better with Su as the male lead and the plot be like how the Netflix description described it.

Other than that, I really enjoyed everything else about the show and thought it had a good mixture of comedy, romance, and serious moments. I found myself excitingly anticipating each episode and put off watching the last episode because I was too scared to finish it and for it all to be over. Usually I lose interest in kdramas half way through but this one held my attention throughout the whole show.

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For the cast, they've good chemistry even I watching their Behind-the-scenes. The ost so far they show us 3 songs but 2 has been released. It looks like gaeddong will end up with mahoon cause the story is about matchmaker live. But I'm scared that lee soo will become evil king if he didn't end up with his 1st love. Doojoon and that noble lady are one of my fav couple for this drama. You can see how they met and interaction so far so cute but it'll be more complex bcz of her father. And youngsoo is my favorite character in this drama, his reaction more like drama but at the same time it's looks like he has many secrets. So far I know thet he hiding some information from his friends, because he always saying kim soo name with lee soo(it's look like he already know from the start), he even know mahoon past, and he had more than 100 bottles of perfumes because his hobby is mix and match scene.

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