Lord of the Rings who?

I wrote a rather long review but it accidentally got deleted so I’m gonna try my best to rewrite this quickly.

I remember watching this years ago and loving it and the Dam Duk/Sujini duo, so I decided to rewatch again for the nostalgia factor. And wow, did I forget how well produced this show is. The special effects, the costumes, the sets, the lore - rivals just about any fantasy out there. If you love fantastical lore, then you will love this, especially since it’s original and well weaved into the story telling.

The word building was great, the characters were endearing (Hyeon Go, Cheo Ro, Sujini, Dam Duk and Mu Chi dynamics were my favorite), the music was brilliant (probably the best kdrama score right next to The Great Queen Seon Duk). Joe Hisaishi is a genius.


Of course, the drama doesn’t come without flaws. Although I wished the ending would’ve been slightly different and further expanded on, especially between 2 certain characters who have reunited after years, I understand why it ended the way it did. It fit the protagonist’s motivations and kept with the overall message/continuity.

What I would’ve done though was add at least an epilogue for the rest of the characters. From what I gather, there were some production problems toward the end and the show ended rather abruptly. An epilogue showing the ending of the characters we’ve grown to love - through animation if the actors couldn’t be there - would’ve been a wise add on, instead of the usual narration that we’ve already heard through out the show. I take solace in believing that Dam Duk forever watched over his child and fated love from the Heavens.

Other than that, this is the best fantasy saeguk I’ve seen still after 14 years. I wish there could be a remake of this or a continuation through films. But alas, I’ll treasure this story regardless.

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