Queen of Tears (2024)

Queen of Tears: An Emotional Rollercoaster but a Must-Watch!!!!!!!

This is the first review I'm writing for any Kdrama and I will like to start by saying that I will NEVER regret watching Queen of Tears.
Don't let people fool you by saying it's dull or boring. This show may be simple but it's the very BEST and FINEST that will go down in Kdrama history,

What I Love the Most:

Kim Soo Hyun, Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Soo Hyun!! This actor is a LEGEND and you will understand why when you'll watch this show. Whether he's acting cute, sexy, happy or sobbing, you will feel Every Single EMotion!! That's how good He is. I promise you won't just have a crush on him; You will fall head over heels for THE Kim Soo Hyun!!!

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Just Something Else...

I already miss this show soooo much after finishing it 3 hours ago... i literally loved EVERYTHING...from the cast and the music ,to the story and the intrigue. My heart fluttered from the family time , it ached from crying , it twinkled from the chemistry and it stopped from the thriller. I loved everyone's acting, especially Kim Soo Hyun's ,Kim Ji Won's, Park Sung Hoon's,Lee Mi Sook's, Kim Jung Nan's, Kim Joo Ryung's, Kim Gab Soo's, Na Young Hee's, Kwak Dong Yeon's ,Jeon Bae Soo's, Hwang Young Hee's, Lee Joo Bin's... Bruh,did i LITERALLY write everyone here???I was thinking of writing a few but i couldn't stop writing the actors' names. The songs Love You With All My Heart and The Reasons Of My Smiles were reallyyy good especially LYWAMH. But wait...i forgot to describe KSH, KJW, LMS, and KJN's actings : KSH was amazing,i am speechless . He could cry at any moment and he portrayed his character so well. KJW was amazing too,she could also cry whenever she wanted +she was so like IU's character in Hotel Del Luna, a seemingly emotionless person,with a broken heart of gold,and she played that character PERFECTLY ,and she was GORGEOUS ! I AM LEFT SPEECHLESS FOR LMS...She was PERFECT AND PHENOMENAL...She scared me sooo much ,because of how good she portrayed her role. Finally, KJN, was Just as good as the three i mentioned( i don't have anymore adjectives to use on her lol),she just ROCKED it though. She played a caring and loving character who wanted her entire family to reunite and reconcile and she loved them with all her heart. Just thanks,KJN for your acting...Of course, the cinematography ,writing were so good .Thank you so much Park Ji Eun for a new drama that enlightened us!!!

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QoT is not a cliche and ordinary Makjang drama.

Queen of Tears exploits seemingly common tropes such as tycoon drama, love against status barriers, catastrophic sickness, and so on, yet it does not evoke any old feelings. On the contrary, it is a completely fresh breakthrough, offering storylines that defy established traditions that have become embedded in the consciousness of Korean drama fans over the years.

The drama begins with a familiar picture of the beautiful love story between the main leads: Hyun Woo a normal office employee falls in love with the company's new intern, Hae In. However, when Hae In's identity as a third-generation billionaire was revealed, Hyun Woo was swiftly taken into a picture-perfect world of money and luxury. And three years later, when he faced a horrific life, the bland and stale mood of the Korean love film genre vanished completely. Reality dumped cold water on Hyun Woo, but it intrigued viewers. Their fantasy love tale is now officially over; they sleep separately, eat meals apart, and eventually live separate lives, communicating only for work or disagreements.

Queen of Tears worked hard to show Hae In as a lady who is not frightened of anyone, never does anything she does not want to do, is hooked to work, and is fiercely motivated to achieve her goals but deep down her brave face was just a cover she built up to deal with the people who had mentally "abused" her and neglected her for many years. It could be her own family, her competitors, or even her husband whom she no longer dared to rely on... Hyun Woo, who was born into a loving family and normally utilizes tears to solve problems, is stranded in loveless ruins. Those differences in personality and perception led to miscommunication, and their sentiments gradually cooled.

What remained in my mind throughout the 16 episodes were: a cold wife who only admitted that she loved her husband very much when she knew her illness was about to reach its limit, a father who looks steady but crying secretly in an empty room when thinking he about to lose another child, a mother belatedly regret not being kind enough to her daughter for years, a brother that loves his sister so much but was insecurely by her image and talented... --> Hae In is simply the definition of this quote: "the most frightening thing is not death, but the realization that as you become accustomed to being loved and pampered, you will be unable to leave".

This is not a cliche story as some people said, it's a not story about a fairy love story but is: about parental love, a brother-sister relationship, and husband-wife where the loving changes because of circumstances and miscommunication. No matter how harsh life is, somewhere there is always someone who will cry, be heartbroken, and trade everything for you. It's just that you realize it sooner or later. Although there is some plot hole in the drama, it still entertains me and makes me cry like a river, excitedly waiting every week to watch.

Kim Ji Won is truly a "Queen" in the phrase "Queen of Tears", from appearance to acting, all have reached maturity and perfection. If 10 years ago we had a haughty lady Kim Ji Won at The Heirs, now that lady has become a luxurious and powerful tycoon. Every frame in which she appears, from her arrogant and decisive appearance when running the company to her clear, sunny beauty when she first started dating Hyun Woo, all me vibrant and nostalgic. Her micro expression, lines, her eyes are all so exceptional, she truly can play a brutality cold boss, a sensitive and vulnerable girl in just one ep. Kim Soo Hyun just proves that he's the highest-paid actor with his acting, and he has talent in choosing the best drama that led him to this success.

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Too Many Cooks/Troupes Spoil The Broth!!

For me, this drama "almost" lived up to its hype. The premise was strong and beautifully executed. The visuals in the drama were so scenic and beautiful making me want to visit Germany! The characters in the story had flaws and it was reasoned well.

But from episode 13, the messy and lazy writing sank the ship. Too many unnecessary troupes were introduced in the later stage of drama where we should have been resolving issues from the previous episodes. Hyun Woo getting into an accident in the penultimate episode and the antagonist arc stretched till the last episode was nail in the coffin for people like me who have been religiously following the drama from its teaser and were waiting for the "Rom" in the said Romcom!!
For the last episode, too many questions and drama were left to unfold leading to a rushed and unsatisfactory ending. It was sort of bittersweet for me. I understand death is a natural phenomenon but showing in the last few minutes instead of them living a healthy life together is a grudge I am willing to hold with the writer for a long long time.

Acting was exceptional. Even If I nitpick I can't find faults. Despite how shambled the writing was, their acting made it convincing. All the aegyos made me laugh. Hyun Woo crying and breaking down when Hae In was hurt made my hurt heart. Hae In from being cold-hearted and emotionless at times made me angry but once her story was out you couldn't help but sympathize. The one kiss (Germany) gave me butterflies.
I wish they work together again in a drama where the script does them justice to their commitment till the very end! The other supporting characters also did a great job!

The OST's are one of the best that I have heard. It matched the story and theme perfectly! The placement of the OST in the drama is done well making them more enjoyable and memorable.

Overall this was a 9.5 for me from episodes 1-12 but so many NEEDLESS twists/turns in the last few episodes led it to 8.5. If it wasn't for the extraordinary acting of leads and the great and intriguing premise I would have rated this somewhere between 7.5-8. (I know it's biased but it is what it is!)
But again, a drama I would recommend to everyone with a fair warning of the strenched antagonist's arc! Still one of the finest Kdrama for me till episode 12!

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Tears (and interest) dried up mid-way

I really wanted this drama to have a strong finish because it started out strong. Hae-in's character was well-written and they did an excellent job casting Kim Jiwon for the role; one of the few borderline psycho female leads that was actually likeable and did not start irritating me 3 episodes in (cue IONTBO, CLOY, MLFTS FLs).

KSY and KJW's acting was amazing and their chemistry was satisfying to watch, there was a good plot twist in the middle with the riches to rags thing, the drama found clever ways to play tribute to other popular K dramas and past KSY FLs, and the OST was amazing (and probably what buoyed this drama for me). But that's where the good stuff ends. It was as if the evil-doers lost their braincells after they took over the company or some disney fairy powder was sprinkled over their noses and they turned good overnight. My braincells died along with theirs and the drama became devoid of any intellectual stimulation.

Would I download the OST and hit the reply button? Yes! Would i rewatch this drama? No thank you.

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The reason of my smile only for the couple interaction

It was so good from ep 1-8 then it add another "roller coster" plot twist every new ep
Until the viewer not focus on which one are the main problem
Divorce? Brain Tumor? Amnesia? Queens Bankrupt ?
Haein brother dead? The grandpa girlfriend motive
And the editor or writer just hoping the viewer glup and take it or leave it for 40 minutes redemtion arc
If the writer or director can show more and focus on divorce and just solve that brain tumor and focus on how the main lead love story more it would be better
Showing the past and present of their relationship
How he got shock on haein background, how the miscariage problem more detail
Now we only left with the visual ost and the top actor actress acting
As hard carry the whole show

The reason i watch is SooWon
Thanks for potraying kim ji won and kim soo hyun, if i rewatch it again i will skip of all the unecessary part
Villian arc, the extra story of muderer etc

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Great acting, interesting story - ending both brilliant and lacking (Spoilers marked)

This series was extremely well done. The acting, all around, was great. The couples were cute, and the chemistry, when the story allowed for it, was awesome. The main couple, the Kim’s IRL, were, of course, stunning. Wow! And when they were getting along, they were so cute! But it is another Asian drama with so much trauma and sadness. We eagerly watched each episode since it was so well done, but we kept hoping for some extended period of happiness.

I feel sorry for the actor portraying Sun Song (Park Sung Hoon) because he did a great job of making you hate his guts! Ha ha. Obviously great acting.

Honestly, other than feeling bad for the ML and a couple of other characters, I did not get too emotionally attached to parts of the story, perhaps because so many characters were so bad for so long. Well, and some plot holes/irrational decisions. But that is all too common in these dramas, so it’s hard to focus too much on that aspect of the series.

The ending had brilliant elements, different than we had seen before. I loved the last few minutes in particular! That part of the story will stick with me for sure.

(Spoilers Here)
But the was lacking in that the post-reunion happiness was just not long enough! They should have cut out on traumatic story line and given us an entire episode of marriage and happiness. Dang that would have been great, and would have greatly increased our satisfaction with this series. It would have perhaps elevated the rating from us to a 9… or maybe a 10???
(End Spoilers)

BTW, I have heard folks were not happy with the Mercedes product placement bonanza. LOL - I loved it! Beautiful cars, made me jealous although I’m really a BMW guy. :-) Product placement in general is something I love since it makes the show seam more real and relatable. I mean, I can’t relate to owning a US$ 100,000 Mercedes, but I can relate to seeing cars and other products I have seen IRL. Bring on the Product Placement!

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when love is loaded with life baggage's ..

"what if we we broke up that time ? If we hadn't got married ..we would have cherished the little happy memories we had ..there would've been no need for wounds to fester or scars to form" —Heain .

This drama made me dream about it for 4 weeks ...
the amount of real emotions I received from the two main leads was unbelievable ..

the story is real demonstration of the old saying "'We don't truly appreciate what we have until it's gone" ..
the cold-hearted cheabol daughter Heain who were deprived from affection fell in love with the soft-hearted kind Hyunwoo ..
Hyunwoo with his provider instinct fell in love with a beautiful Heain who seems has no means to survive this world and zero social skills .. (not knowing she is cheabol)

the two got married and were put in a situation were they have absolutely no skills to survive ... a lot of interesting topics were explored in the show of why marriage fails .. bad in-laws pressure , bad communication , emotional partner getting overwhelmed , emotionally-unavailable partner not being able to support , facing trauma individually instead of facing it together , silently resenting each other thinking they are suffering alone ...
there is a lot of subtle details in this show that is very interesting in the perspective of married relationship ..

what makes the show solid is the established relationship concept .. the love here is not the romantic one but the dirty painful one ... its when I respect your mother and tolerate your gossiping siblings .... its when I protect you even when I resent you / or even hate you... its when I forgive you and trust you even after disappointment ...the intimacy here was as simple as holding hands in bad times but it meant a'lot .

my only issue with this show is the plot progression .. the story at some points was progressing very slowly and other times was rushed and too many serious elements was pushed fast ..

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Queen of Tears, like many TVN series, suffers from being overly extended to 16 episodes. The script often lacks enough substance, leading to repetitive story arcs. With long episode durations, numerous side plots are added just to fill time.

Typically, I watch dramas like this for the main characters' dynamics. However, despite any appealing side stories, they tend to become excessively tedious over time. While I used to push through such moments 5-10 years ago, now I find myself fast-forwarding through them. Yet, in this drama, the standout feature is the superior casting and the chemistry among the actors, which surpasses the shortcomings of the script. The lead actors excel in their roles, making the series compelling to watch. Kim Ji-Won shines in aggressive, affluent, and glamorous characters, while Kim Soo Hyun effortlessly embodies humble and emotive roles.

One downside of the series is the character portrayed by Park Sung-hoon, whose portrayal was so off-putting that I felt the urge to punch the screen in every scene. Such one-dimensional characters, written solely to provoke viewer frustration, fail to engage me and come across as a version of "rage bait" tailored for tv dramas.

Nevertheless, despite its flaws, I found Queen of Tears enjoyable, evoking a reminiscent feel of dramas from 2015.

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Cathartic, but a bittersweet ending

Queen of Tears is a K-drama of two halves. The first, composed of its early episodes, is an innovative take on K-drama romance. The other is a chaotic second half that squanders much of the potential of its beginning. The Netflix hit ended Sunday with a global audience that exceeded the wildly popular Crash Landing on You.
In terms of chemistry, the leads were a perfect pair. It’s like they were crafted from the cosmic dust of perfect on-screen couples. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for other characters and sub-plots on the show, which are more disconcerting than fascinating.
Plotwise, the series started losing its charm in the second half as well. The amount of scenes that felt repetitive and the back and forth between the main leads only showed the lack of creativity of the writer. While the show we ended up with remains compelling, even fun, to the end, the decision to dispense with its profoundly tragic and emotional core makes the endeavor more rote and, at times, even boring. The series never recaptures the rare thrill of its early episodes, but nevertheless had a sweet ending that will surely be a satisfactory element.


My Rating : 7.5/10

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