A beautiful, fantastic journey!

In myth-fantasy K Dramas, it is often seen that only the male characters lead a tired and bored immortal life either by being a God or by suffering for his past sins. This trope has been successfully reversed in Hotel Del Luna.

Written by the Hong Sisters, Hotel Del Luna follows the story of Man Wol, a 1300 year old soul punished into roaming the human world for her past sins. Her time has been paused by the Gods by denying her entry into the afterlife, and connected to Hotel Del Luna and its Moon Tree - a moving hotel which transforms its ownership to a soul which has committed the worst of sins and still holds grudges. This hotel serves as a platform for fulfilling the unfulfilled desires of dead humans, before they can move to the afterlife. This is a stark comparison considering how Man Wol has to constantly send off her guests to the afterlife, while she is herself denied entry into the same.

Del Luna's Man Wol is hot tempered, narcissistic, tired of her long existence, pursues a rich lifestyle even while being constantly bankrupt, enjoys Champagne and caviar, and a clear foodie - all her food pictures go on her Instagram account, loves shopping and buys a lot of cars. Throughout the series, Man Wol remains true to her individualistic character traits, she nurtures her revenge, her grudges against the enemies and even acts on fulfilling them. She is portrayed to be strong - she is the one saving her love interest from supernatural elements, brave with thoughts and actions of her own, she knows what she is doing. She doesn't simply turn into an obedient, loving soul in a second upon meeting her human love interest, as is often shown in most of K Dramas.

Apart from Man Wol and her narrative, the small subplots this series follows are equally entertaining. Special mention to the quirky, funny and equally endearing side characters of the show with plenty stories to tell of their own. The show's cinematography and CGI effects are so very beautiful, the stark Moon Tree, the blooming flowers, making it a treat to watch it.

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A little bit of romance, a lot of history!

I started this drama because I didn't have much to watch and it was often tagged in Noona Romance list. I have never seen a period drama Noona Romance so I gave it a chance. And, boy, did it blow me over. Not in the field of romance thought. It was a cute romance. ML's acting needs to be better though. But what I loved about this drama was the rest of the plot! The way FL fights for her Independence in personal life plus years for a professional one is simply brilliant. The misogyny she and the other women historians had to go through to keep their place. Plus, The Royal Palace drama and how historians recorded history, the protests, it was all so fascinating to see. I am so glad they didn't just focus on the romance. I don't know how historically accurate the drama is in terms of historians, western education, Catholicism, western medicine, etc. but it is a must watch!

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