Messy storytelling
Murky time jumps. Is anyone else tired of rich kid criminal chaebol types? And the modern day female lead in modern times - she’s plays an actress, carries herself like royalty but she looks like a bag lady most of the time. Wardrobe people, why? Likable characters got me through, like grandma, boy manager. Shame because was a hopeful start.Was this review helpful to you?
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Wasted potential
Heo Nam-jun — finally his main lead moment, and he absolutely owns it. Charisma, comic timing, emotional range: all there. Lim Ji-yeon anchors the entire show. Playing a dual role — Joseon villainess and modern actress — she makes both feel real. Jang Seung-jo brings texture as the rival. Even side characters punch above what the writing gives them.This drama showed us that bad writing can ruin a series even when you have a good cast. Time-travel dramas are well-worn territory in K-dramas, yes — but the concept alone doesn't sink a show. What sinks this one is that the writing never bothered to build the world the characters live in. You are handed a cast of people and expected to care about them on faith alone.
No character backstories. Why is the villain brother the way he is? The show simply never explains it. He is mean because the plot requires a villain. That's it. No context, no arc, no reason to understand him — just a function with a face.
The time-travel logic is unexplained and then abused. How did Dan-sim end up in the past? The show shrugs. When the rules of time-travel became inconvenient, they were changed. Going back, coming back, going back again — no internal logic, just drama when the story needed stakes.
The shaman is a narrative cheat code. An all-knowing mystical figure who appears to hand the female lead information, nudge the plot forward, and disappear — used as a shortcut every time the writing wrote itself into a corner. Convenience wearing a costume.
The second half collapses into melodrama. What began as a genuinely funny, warm enemies-to-lovers comedy became a tearjerker — and not a convincing one. Hospital scenes stacked on hospital scenes. The comedy, which was the show's actual strength, got buried.
The show had 14 episodes and still ran out of time for its own plot.
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Horny, Sharp, Unhinged
Starts as royal time-travel nonsense and then, quite rudely, turns out to be smart.The chemistry? Insane.
The banter? Genuinely worth rewatching.
The acting? Much better than this genre usually gets.
What I love most is that the romance feels adult. These are not two decorative mannequins waiting for an accidental wrist grab to rearrange their lives. They’re proud, difficult, funny, vain, slightly unwell, and extremely into each other. Which, naturally, is exactly what makes them so fun to watch. The flirting has real voltage because it grows out of personality, not just proximity.
And the show knows it. It gives us actual desire, actual tension, and jokes that understand these people are grown. Secretary Son turning herbal tea into a stamina joke? The arm-size Namsan Tower bit? Excellent. Deeply unserious, but delivered with enough confidence to work.
It also helps that the cast fully gets the assignment. Im Ji-yeon and Heo Nam-jun do much more than look good and bicker well — though they do both at an offensively high level. They give the chaos structure. The supporting cast is strong, the comic timing is sharp, and the dialogue has enough bite to make you want to replay scenes just to hear them spar again.
My only real complaint is the last few episodes. The grandmother/soul arc takes up too much space, and the show loses some of its earlier edge. Se-gye gets less bite, Seo-ri gets less room to be gloriously difficult, and the family conflict doesn’t get the clever handling it really deserved. It never becomes bad. It just becomes less sharp than it was.
Still, I had a great time. Funny, sexy, weird, and much smarter than it first appears. And anything serving this much chemistry, this much banter, and this many scenes worth rewatching has already done more than enough.
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Heo Nam Joon That's it, That's All!
This is the kind of romcom I live for—funny, swoony, and carried by two leads who are endlessly charming. The early episodes are top‑tier comedy, with Seo Ri’s fish‑out‑of‑water chaos and Se Gye’s dramatic sincerity making every scene pop. Secretary Son is a comedic treasure, delivering lines like “zero‑gravity breathing” that had me howling. Even when the plot leans into fantasy tropes that make me roll my eyes—white truck of doom, convenient amnesia, soul‑swap martyrdom—the romance stays emotionally resonant. Episode 6’s kiss alone could power a small city.The show does stumble with its fantasy logic and a few baffling writing choices. The Joseon flashbacks raise more questions than answers, the grandfather is infuriating from start to finish, and Mun Do never gets the karma he deserves. Some conflicts feel forced, and one actress’s sudden sabotage of Seo Ri comes out of nowhere. But the emotional sincerity of Se Gye’s character, paired with Heo Nam Joon’s standout performance keeps the heart of the story. Seo RI & Se Gye's relationship is —sweet, funny, and quietly devastating at times—makes the journey worth it.
Despite the weird detours, I genuinely enjoyed the series. The comedy is sharp, the romance is swoon‑worthy, and several supporting characters (especially Gwang Nam and Secretary Son) add depth and charm. It’s not perfect, but it’s memorable, heartfelt, and full of scenes that made me laugh out loud. A romcom with flaws, sure—but also one with a whole lot of heart.
7/3/26
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Maybe it's me but I don't understand
Seriously I don't understand the plot. Okay it's a story about reincarnation but I really don't understand all the plot behind the fusion between Seori and Dashim.I mean the story started really well with a great potential but at a certain point it became madness. Somehow the 2 team leads saved the show thanks to their chemistry and facial microexpression. Also when Segye get injured at the end it was commissioned by Mundo or no? Like i said this was another hole in the plot.
Not talking about the girl from the troupe: why she was so mad about Seori? A lot of questions and zero response
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Not perfect, but definitely worth the watch.
Finally finished this drama after having it on my watchlist for so long, and I have to say: it was good. Not perfect, but good. The main leads and their chemistry are what kept it interesting and made me want to keep watching after episode 10, even though the story became a little nonsensical. I honestly don't know what the writers were trying to do, but I guess it worked. Maybe it's not a 10/10, but I had a great time watching it overall. Ofc you should judge it for yourself and give it a try..Was this review helpful to you?
Strong Beginning, Weak Second Half
This drama started off really strong for me. The first few episodes were funny, entertaining, and had a lot of potential. I genuinely enjoyed the chemistry and the overall vibe of the show at the beginning.
But as the story progressed, it slowly started falling into very predictable K-drama clichés. The biggest issue was the lack of communication between the leads. So many problems could’ve been solved if the characters had simply talked honestly instead of hiding things, pushing each other away, or creating unnecessary misunderstandings.
At first, the female lead felt smart and refreshing, but later her character started making frustrating decisions just to drag the drama forward. The misunderstanding arcs became repetitive and easy to predict, which made the second half lose its charm.
By episodes 10-11, I was honestly getting bored, watching in faster speed, and skipping scenes. Eventually, I dropped the drama at episode 12 because I completely lost interest.
Overall, My Royal Nemesis had a strong and fun start, but the second half became too cliché and frustrating for me to stay invested.
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Refreshing honesty and openness
It's worth repeating what another reviewer said, he yearned! That was so attractive in the ML that I can forgive any little story inconsistencies. We need more of that in dramas. They had each other's backs and I was so glad we didn't have to play relationship games.Styling could have been better. ML is handsome but that brushed back hair style was terrible. FL had some unattractive outfits.
Overall it kept my attention and had some nice romance to it.
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Good Finale, But the Pacing Held It Back
i think the last ep is the only episode that was good from start to finish. i get that the writer was going for an emotional drama with a bit of romcom on the side, but the pacing was way too slow and honestly got boring at times. there were moments where it felt hard to even finish an episode. i feel like it would've worked much better if it was cut down to 10 or 12 episodes. the cp dynamic is really carrying this series because everything else feels like a pretty standard k-drama with nothing particularly special. they're lucky they cast Heo Namjun, that's all i'm gonna say.Was this review helpful to you?
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peak leads mid finale
this drama started off so strong! the characters were enjoyable and the plot was genuinely good. that scene in ep 13 with grandma and seori was absolute emotional peak television. sobrang gandaaaa! the writers clearly knew how to pull the heartstrings and build up incredible character dynamics, which is probably why the finale felt a bit nakakabitin! the last ep was underwhelming bc i was actually hoping for more scenes between segye and his grandfather. just a few more quiet meaningful scenes would have given their dynamics the closure it deserved. also, i was expecting a much more satisfying downfall from choi mundo. super sayang nito bc he was actually a great villain (talagang kuhang kuha nya pika ko ever episode) so he deserved a proper, drag down ruin. but looking at the big picture, it’s still a massive win. the chemistry between the main leads was top-tier, and as far as time travel dramas go, it was such a refreshing, well-paced ride for the most part.Was this review helpful to you?
Perfect for Killing Time
Let me start off by saying that Im Ji Yeon is a national treasure and must be protected at all costs. Without her, this drama simply would’ve fallen apart. There’s an incredible intensity to her performances. It’s always a pleasure to watch her on screen. She was also the main reason I struggled to rate this series.The writing was unhinged from the very beginning, so I don’t really understand why so many other reviews mention a decline after episode 10. I’d even go as far as to say that this drama is perfect if you’re just looking to kill time. There’s always something happening, but it still follows plenty of kdrama clichés.
Overall, the rest of the cast delivered decent performances.
I’d recommend this drama to anyone who’s still experiencing withdrawal symptoms from mid-2010s kdramas.
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I was surprised I liked it as much as I did
The most pleasant surprise for me was Heo Nam Jun. He has such a completely different look from other Korean actors. He's got the face suited to a villain, and I didn't know what I'd think of him in the role. Oh, my goodness! He's harsh and hateful at times, yet vulnerable and loving at other times. I watched this on the heels of a drama where every time the ML yelled, he was seriously overacting. Not so here. There were a couple of times that he yelled, and I could feel his hurt and anger. This actor has yearning down to a fine art. The economy of movements, the blank stare, the tears in the eyes - it was excellent.I didn't LOVE the main couple, to me, she seemed older than him. Maybe that was because she was supposed to be from the Joseon era. I do have to say that her continuing to talk like she was in the Joseon period was irritating, and I feel that there were many opportunities lost for her to be a fish out of water and trying to learn technology, etc.
Episode 13 - when her grandmother was dying (which I felt was completely unnecessary), the bus they were on stopped at the bus stop made famous by BTS in Spring Day. It was like the perfect product placement. Though they didn't use the song, if you know the words, it conveys loss and sadness so well. That got me in the feels.
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