Idk why so many people are surprised by how corrupt the ministers are or by the fact that they are allowing Ju Gang Chan to attend such a high level meeting between delegates of two countries. They are even comfortable letting him sit there and give his opinions.
Imean, Ju Gang chan is portrayed as an pretty wealthy chaebol from one of the country's most powerful business families. People like that dont just have money, they have influence. He is basically the drama's fictional equivalent of someone from samsung or LG style chaebol family. In real life, these conglomerates have historically had enormous economic influence and close ties with politics so its not unrealistic to imagine someone like him having access to high level govt officials or being involved in important discussions.
And who knows in real life they might also have connections with north korean govt so drama is clearly using Ju Gang chan as a stand in for the kind of powerful chaebol figure who can influence politics behind the scenes.
E8 was not as exciting as E7 and felt like a more normal episode, which was expected after such a great E7. I think they are using this episode to set the stage for a much bigger finale by building up the plot. Finale week is going to be much bigger and more exciting.
Spooky in Love had a good first episode. As expected, E1 mainly focused on introducing the main leads, their backgrounds, their personalities and how they first crossed paths.
Park Eunbin plays the reserved and strict CEO of a hotel chain. From the teasers, i expected her to be the typical cold, arrogant chaebol CEO but she isnt like that. Beneath her cold exterior, she is actually a lonely, kind hearted woman. Because she is cursed with the ability to see ghosts, she deliberately keeps everyone at a distance, which causes people to misunderstand her as rude and arrogant.
Yang Sejong also fits the ML role really well. He is good at comedy and his funny, scared reactions to ghosts are quite entertaining, making him a perfect fit for the character.
The leads already have good chemistry. From what i have seen in the first episode, they look great together and their bickering feels natural and fun.
Although the drama has horror elements, its not really scary since most of the ghosts are victims rather than evil spirits.
The FL's family feels straight out of an SBS romcom chaebol family. Im not a fan of these over the top, caricaturish families but we will see how it goes.
if anyone's watched this, I have a question regarding the big snake spirit. I understand that i feeds on the negative…
I think drama never explicitly explains how the snake spirit was originally created.
It is implied that the snake is an ancient evil entity that feeds on and amplifies negative emotions like hatred, greed and resentment. The palace's long history of massacres and betrayal made it especially powerful but those killings strengthened it rather than created it. Its true origin is intentionally left unexplained.
Btw lets take a moment to appreciate Kwak Dong Yeon. This guy always plays characters who faces the injustice the most (not here though), yet he does 110% justice to every role and every emotion he portrays.
He was absolutely phenomenal in the second half. After the major twist involving his character, the drama went from great to one of the best and he deserves a huge share of the credit for that.
When he was dying in that pond, the way he cursed the entire royal bloodline gave me goosebumps.
can someone explain, so the first crown prince was killed by emperor for what reason? and then the grandma started…
Look, in the past, the King and his bio mother poisoned and killed the original princes (the Queen Dowager's real children, born to the main Queen) to seize the throne. They were helped by the FL's real mother, who was a court lady. Later, realizing that his biological mother would eventually kill her to silence the truth, the King made her (court lady) his concubine in an attempt to protect her. But even that wasnt enough as his bio mother later poisoned and killed her using the same method.
Years later, history began repeating itself. The King's own son, Crown Prince (Kwak Dong yeon), uncovered the truth about how his father had taken the throne. Instead of being horrified, he chose to follow the same path, secretly killing his own brothers one by one so he could become king. When the King discovered what he was doing, he killed the Crown Prince himself because he refused to let another ruler ascend the throne with the blood of his own brothers on his hands. In his own twisted way, he wanted to stop the same bloody cycle that had created him.
This drama felt similar to many shows like Stranger Things, Sweet Home, Kingdom & The Haunted Palace. If I had to compare it to just one, i would pick The Haunted Palace. However its much darker and more intense with far more layered characters, morally complex conflicts and a story that keeps unfolding in unexpected ways. In comparison, The Haunted Palace follows a much simpler and more straightforward narrative.
So what? She accepted his past relationship too. But do you kmow what's the main problem?? Just observe how she handled her ex and how he handled his?? She set clear boundaries with her ex from the beginning and repeatedly told him to stop contacting her. Meanwhile, he continued staying in touch with his ex wife and kept meeting her. Despite that, she was understanding because she believed they were only meeting for work. Her insecurity didnt appear out of nowhere. It started only after she found out he had lied about meeting his ex wife and kept it hidden from her. Anyone in that situation would naturally feel insecure and start questioning things. She never asked him to cut ties with his ex wife. What she expected was honesty. So how is she supposed to be okay with him lying about meeting his ex wife and hiding it from her and lying about it??
I was just going through the comments about this drama here and on other social media platforms and I realized how easily people are harsh on FLs while MLs get away with mistakes, sometimes even bigger ones. Everyone is acting as if the FL committed most heinous crime in history of mankind and the ML was nothing but her victim. But lets be honest for a second and look at what actually led to her emotional outburst at the end of Ep 8.
From the beginning, she kept seeing the ML with his ex wife, yet she tried to be understanding. She kept reassuring herself that it was only because of work and chose to trust him. But then he secretly met his ex wife in the car behind her back and when she simply asked if he had met someone, he lied to her. That was the turning point. From then on, her insecurity and jealousy naturally started growing and thats completely understandable. Then came another incident. His ex mother in law, who has dementia, called him. The FL asked him directly about it and only then did he finally tell her the whole truth. If she hadnt confronted him, he most likely would have continued hiding it. He was even planning to meet his ex mother in law without telling her. Now put yourself in her shoes. Imagine your partner lying about meeting their ex and making plans to meet their ex's family while keeping you completely in the dark. Even if there is absolutely no romantic intention behind it, wouldnt you feel insecure?? Wouldnt you question why they felt the need to hide it in the first place??
All of those incidents kept piling up inside her. Then, on top of everything else, he almost missed her performance in the wedding because he was with his ex wife and her mother. That wasnt the reason for her breakdown by itself, it was simply the final straw after days of bottled up emotions. Yet the oppa fangirls are bashing her left, right and center for having one emotional outburst while completely ignoring everything that led to it and pretending the ML did nothing wrong. Either acknowledge that both characters made mistakes or stop pretending only the FL deserves criticism.
The reason the ML gets away with it is because he is calm, mature and understanding so people overlook his actions. So double standards are painfully obvious here.
And on a side note, to everyone saying this drama is ruined because the FL felt jealous.... Im genuinely worried about some of you.What kind of delusional world are you living in?? Just because the FL felt a very normal emotion like jealousy, you are acting as if the entire drama has fallen apart. I honestly wonder how you are going to survive in the real world😭😭. If your partner ever feels jealous, are you just going to break up immediately and never get into another relationship?? Imean, i will be blunt, what kind of unrealistic expectations have dramas set for people that the moment a show portrays genuine human emotions and relationship problems, people start screaming, this drama is ruined?? I also wonder if you will say the same (Ohh you are ruined), when someone you love experiences those exact same emotions because i dont expect you perfect creatures to ever feel normal human emotions though.
I don't get it. Every time in Dramaland if someone is a divorcee, it feel like they are represented as a subhuman…
Well in asian culture, divorce is still a huge taboo so thats why people often have a negative reaction when they find out that someone is divorced.
Her friend doesnt want her to date a divorcee because she is worried and thats very common in many asian societies, where friends and family often react this way when they learn that someone close to them is dating a divorcee.
Whereas when his divorce will be revealed at the office, i think the reaction will mostly be gossip about how two company employees were once married and later divorced. It will probably be treated more like lunchtime office gossip than anything else.
Idk about others but i dont have a problem with Ji Yoon being bothered by Si Woo's divorce and his ex wife. Si Woo is quite comfortable about Ji Yoon's past but Ji Yoon has always been insecure. These kinds of feelings can naturally happen in a relationship when one partner is divorced and still in contact with their ex.
Not everyone is perfect and its completely natural to feel insecure or uncomfortable about your partner's ex. While Si Woo is pretty relaxed about it, Ji Yoon is constantly walking on eggshells. They simply have different personalities and different perspectives on their partner's past relationships.
Thats why i love how the drama is addressing this issue instead of ignoring it. Its shedding light on these insecurities and resolving the conflicts in a mature way. Because of that, i dont find Ji Yoon's reaction to Si Woo's divorce or his ex wife annoying at all.
Another sweet and fluffy episode. I really liked how they resolved all the misunderstandings from E7 instead of dragging them out. Then, ofcourse they ended the episode with yet another misunderstanding lol.
That said, im not really worried because this drama has been pretty consistent so far. I have noticed that whenever a misunderstanding pops up, its usually resolved in the very next episode rather than being stretched out for unnecessary drama. So im expecting this one to be cleared up quickly as well.
1 
Imean, Ju Gang chan is portrayed as an pretty wealthy chaebol from one of the country's most powerful business families. People like that dont just have money, they have influence. He is basically the drama's fictional equivalent of someone from samsung or LG style chaebol family. In real life, these conglomerates have historically had enormous economic influence and close ties with politics so its not unrealistic to imagine someone like him having access to high level govt officials or being involved in important discussions.
And who knows in real life they might also have connections with north korean govt so drama is clearly using Ju Gang chan as a stand in for the kind of powerful chaebol figure who can influence politics behind the scenes.
There is SML guy Ong Seongwoo but I heard he is one of main villain here so idk if he will be in love with FL or not.
Park Eunbin plays the reserved and strict CEO of a hotel chain. From the teasers, i expected her to be the typical cold, arrogant chaebol CEO but she isnt like that. Beneath her cold exterior, she is actually a lonely, kind hearted woman. Because she is cursed with the ability to see ghosts, she deliberately keeps everyone at a distance, which causes people to misunderstand her as rude and arrogant.
Yang Sejong also fits the ML role really well. He is good at comedy and his funny, scared reactions to ghosts are quite entertaining, making him a perfect fit for the character.
The leads already have good chemistry. From what i have seen in the first episode, they look great together and their bickering feels natural and fun.
Although the drama has horror elements, its not really scary since most of the ghosts are victims rather than evil spirits.
The FL's family feels straight out of an SBS romcom chaebol family. Im not a fan of these over the top, caricaturish families but we will see how it goes.
Overall it was a nice first episode.
It is implied that the snake is an ancient evil entity that feeds on and amplifies negative emotions like hatred, greed and resentment. The palace's long history of massacres and betrayal made it especially powerful but those killings strengthened it rather than created it. Its true origin is intentionally left unexplained.
He was absolutely phenomenal in the second half. After the major twist involving his character, the drama went from great to one of the best and he deserves a huge share of the credit for that.
When he was dying in that pond, the way he cursed the entire royal bloodline gave me goosebumps.
Years later, history began repeating itself. The King's own son, Crown Prince (Kwak Dong yeon), uncovered the truth about how his father had taken the throne. Instead of being horrified, he chose to follow the same path, secretly killing his own brothers one by one so he could become king. When the King discovered what he was doing, he killed the Crown Prince himself because he refused to let another ruler ascend the throne with the blood of his own brothers on his hands. In his own twisted way, he wanted to stop the same bloody cycle that had created him.
But do you kmow what's the main problem?? Just observe how she handled her ex and how he handled his?? She set clear boundaries with her ex from the beginning and repeatedly told him to stop contacting her. Meanwhile, he continued staying in touch with his ex wife and kept meeting her. Despite that, she was understanding because she believed they were only meeting for work. Her insecurity didnt appear out of nowhere. It started only after she found out he had lied about meeting his ex wife and kept it hidden from her. Anyone in that situation would naturally feel insecure and start questioning things. She never asked him to cut ties with his ex wife. What she expected was honesty. So how is she supposed to be okay with him lying about meeting his ex wife and hiding it from her and lying about it??
From the beginning, she kept seeing the ML with his ex wife, yet she tried to be understanding. She kept reassuring herself that it was only because of work and chose to trust him. But then he secretly met his ex wife in the car behind her back and when she simply asked if he had met someone, he lied to her. That was the turning point. From then on, her insecurity and jealousy naturally started growing and thats completely understandable. Then came another incident. His ex mother in law, who has dementia, called him. The FL asked him directly about it and only then did he finally tell her the whole truth. If she hadnt confronted him, he most likely would have continued hiding it. He was even planning to meet his ex mother in law without telling her. Now put yourself in her shoes. Imagine your partner lying about meeting their ex and making plans to meet their ex's family while keeping you completely in the dark. Even if there is absolutely no romantic intention behind it, wouldnt you feel insecure?? Wouldnt you question why they felt the need to hide it in the first place??
All of those incidents kept piling up inside her. Then, on top of everything else, he almost missed her performance in the wedding because he was with his ex wife and her mother. That wasnt the reason for her breakdown by itself, it was simply the final straw after days of bottled up emotions. Yet the oppa fangirls are bashing her left, right and center for having one emotional outburst while completely ignoring everything that led to it and pretending the ML did nothing wrong. Either acknowledge that both characters made mistakes or stop pretending only the FL deserves criticism.
The reason the ML gets away with it is because he is calm, mature and understanding so people overlook his actions. So double standards are painfully obvious here.
And on a side note, to everyone saying this drama is ruined because the FL felt jealous.... Im genuinely worried about some of you.What kind of delusional world are you living in?? Just because the FL felt a very normal emotion like jealousy, you are acting as if the entire drama has fallen apart. I honestly wonder how you are going to survive in the real world😭😭. If your partner ever feels jealous, are you just going to break up immediately and never get into another relationship?? Imean, i will be blunt, what kind of unrealistic expectations have dramas set for people that the moment a show portrays genuine human emotions and relationship problems, people start screaming, this drama is ruined??
I also wonder if you will say the same (Ohh you are ruined), when someone you love experiences those exact same emotions because i dont expect you perfect creatures to ever feel normal human emotions though.
Her friend doesnt want her to date a divorcee because she is worried and thats very common in many asian societies, where friends and family often react this way when they learn that someone close to them is dating a divorcee.
Whereas when his divorce will be revealed at the office, i think the reaction will mostly be gossip about how two company employees were once married and later divorced. It will probably be treated more like lunchtime office gossip than anything else.
She having those thoughts about his ex are very natural.
Not everyone is perfect and its completely natural to feel insecure or uncomfortable about your partner's ex. While Si Woo is pretty relaxed about it, Ji Yoon is constantly walking on eggshells. They simply have different personalities and different perspectives on their partner's past relationships.
Thats why i love how the drama is addressing this issue instead of ignoring it. Its shedding light on these insecurities and resolving the conflicts in a mature way. Because of that, i dont find Ji Yoon's reaction to Si Woo's divorce or his ex wife annoying at all.
Another sweet and fluffy episode. I really liked how they resolved all the misunderstandings from E7 instead of dragging them out. Then, ofcourse they ended the episode with yet another misunderstanding lol.
That said, im not really worried because this drama has been pretty consistent so far. I have noticed that whenever a misunderstanding pops up, its usually resolved in the very next episode rather than being stretched out for unnecessary drama. So im expecting this one to be cleared up quickly as well.