iindu
India
Probably because the plot isn't well developed. There are gaps in story telling that are never fixed.
The story itself took about 4 episodes to warm up. From then on, it was definitely entertaining to watch. Once Iljimae appears, things become exciting and fun. Everything about the character of Iljimae is very interesting- his adventures as Iljimae, his life as Gyeom and Yong, and the people in his life.
And it would have been great, if only for the blunt and inconclusive ending. Perhaps it is due to lack of time? but the last episode ends like a recap of the first episode, without adding any explanation on what happened or why the characters are the way they are now. It just feels incomplete.
Lee Jun Ki is great in the lead role. He gives the character an undeniable charm and exuberance.
Shi Hoo is a character who is built up almost parallel to that of Gyeom, but his character felt inconsistent at times, as he shifts from one side to the other. More than a sense of being conflicted, he gave a feeling of being closed. I can only wonder what was going in that head.
The music was fine, the stealing and fight sequences are very good. Then again, don't look for logic in the many fight scenes, where he miraculously fights and escapes. It's a wonder he isn't praised as much for his martial arts skills in the drama, considering that he manages to conquer everyone he spars with. (Every time he gets hit is because of his often-proven-wrong-yet-unshaken belief in the opponent's righteousness)
The romance bit starts off very well, and sustains till almost the last quarter, only to peter out to nothing by the end. If the romance bit had been handled better, it would have added to the charm surely, but as it is- When Iljimae himself has no time for romance, why would we care?
Overall, Iljimae is entertaining and has charming actors, but left me unsatisfied.
Was this review helpful to you?
The story is good, though at times, (like after several major characters pass away) it seemed as if there isn't much for the plot to go on. Then new problems were created and the story goes along.
The transformation of Baek Dong Soo from a deformed kid to the stunning warrior is a long journey, and is shown through the course of the drama with realism and beauty.
The character of Yeo Woon, who is the other pillar of the drama, is equally strong and leaves an impression.
Among the characters, The Sky Lord and Sword Saint are very impressive. The female characters are very resourceful, and not clingy or weak.
The negative characters are highly selfish and evil. The main villain is very annoying with his typical "Villain"ish laugh.
The music is pretty good. I especially liked the music in the climax fight scene inside the palace.
The series does drag at times, when it focuses too long on melodramatic scenes, but it's an entertaining watch except for the way they choose to end it. My only suggestion would be to wind up with the second last episode for a good ending, because the last one leaves us disillusioned.
Was this review helpful to you?
The lead characters come from a place of great trauma and carry dark shadows within them, but the feel of the drama is far from gloomy or sad. It is the beauty of the characters that they find happiness and comforts even with a background of pain.
I really liked the character graphs of Chen Ling and Qi Lou. The actors too were perfect for the roles. Every other character in the drama too is well written and real. There are no fluffy or pointless characters.
The drama handles many serious issues in our society and characters with mental instabilities/psychological problems, and it does so with great sensitivity and care.
I liked the music, because I felt it was used appropriately and enhanced the beauty of the scenes. The happy moments had a track that made you feel the happiness, whereas in the more tense scenes, the background score completely stopped, adding to the intensity.
The first half does remind you of Devil Beside You- probably because of the character of the male lead and having been shot in the same campus, but MARS is definitely more intense and on a broader canvas than DBY.
I can't think of any drama that I've as completely appreciated as MARS. It took me in completely, and I will happily re-watch it any number of times.
Was this review helpful to you?
The lead characters are people who carry many scars and pain in them, with no thought of finding love, yet they find a love that heals their heart.
I really liked the character of the female lead. Her background, profession, the way she behaved and the people in her life were very interestingly drawn. Lee Ji Ah who played the role was very good. Her body language and expressions were perfect for the role.
I have watched the lead actor Yoon Shi Yoon earlier in King of Baking Kim Tak Goo. He does a very good job in this drama too, though I felt he looked much cuter in the earlier one.
Among the others, there were many endearing characters. Even Hwa Young who makes us want to hate her most of the time with her larger than life ego, has such a side to her.
The only annoying element in the drama was probably a song that played in somewhat angsty times and was grating to the ears.
The ending theme is beautiful too- that love can heal us all.
Was this review helpful to you?
Unlike what the name implies, I didn't find anything that romantic about the story or the princess. The princess was more like a child, even with all the fancy clothes. Maybe it was Angela Zhang's petite frame that made me feel that.
Even so, there were things that I appreciated about this drama:
For one, blessedly, there is no love triangle. Which has to be mentioned because the there are four boys in the place when Xiao Mei comes in.
That's the next thing- The actors are good. Almost all the characters in the drama are very interesting and fun.
The four guys,(besides being eye candy)each have good roles.
The grandfather, butler, Xiao Mei's parents are all great characters that add a lot of fun.
Refreshingly here, the grandfather, even when he is being tyrannical, comes across as adorable and with a sense of humor.
The story, is obviously over the top and has holes in logic, but they do try hard to keep up the logic most of the time.
Overall, I guess if what you need is just time pass with some laughs, Romantic Princess might do it for you.
Was this review helpful to you?
Mostly the plot sticks to the theme of the couple learning about love, family and responsibilities that come with it. The development of the lead characters and their relationship to each other is shown well.
The nature of the relationship between the lead couple in this drama reminded me occasionally of the lead couple in 'It Started With A Kiss 2' (Naive girl,mature guy). But the similarity is only at an outer level,as the characters are different in both.
The actors were good- all except for the lead actress. She was attractive and it would have made a big difference if only she had toned down the over acting. She was trying too hard to play up to the role of the naive/innocent teenage girl, and it was unnatural to watch. In contrast, the male lead actor was just right in emoting- that was a relief.
Another relief was that that though the negative characters are there, their 'evil'ness doesn't amount to much and towards the end, even becomes humorous.
I liked how the drama,while it deals with heavy family stuff, tries to set a middle tone about compromise between responsibilities and individual preferences.
The drama ends on a positive note. The message they end the drama with is beautiful.
Was this review helpful to you?
The drama delivers on the story. The characters are interesting and even those we come to dislike are shown to have a different side to them.
Through most of the series, you feel sorry for the male lead, for what he goes through. But, in a gratifying sense, when he figures it all out, his reaction and the questions he asks are the very same ones that's been running in our mind until then.
The kid is very cute and has been used to obvious advantage throughout.
Another character that leaves an impression is that of Guang Xi's mother who is antagonistic from the beginning but gets a 180degree change in character later on.
The one problem I had with this drama is that I didn't like the character of the female lead for almost all of the drama. Most of the time, Mu Cheng acted like a damsel in distress, like she needed saving from someone or something. There was some level of sincerity to the character in the first part of the drama which is lost and I couldn't recover it in the latter half. I think all the lies and denial got to me.
The actors (save for the female lead for lack of expressions) are pretty good. The photogenic moments they show in the OST are beautiful but aren't really very significant moments in the drama itself.
The drama in all is very watchable for the situations and overall feel.
Was this review helpful to you?
I don't think I've watched any drama until now that felt so absolutely pointless at the end of it. That doesn't mean that everything was great until the end though.
First of all, it was real slow. Throughout most of the episodes, there isn't anything much happening than characters wallowing in emotions or doing what they do without any background score.
There was no getting used to it, you just had to bear with it. Mostly you bore with it because, while the screenplay inched along and something finally happened, the actors emoted well and those scenes were good.
Also, I can say with certainty, if it were not for my liking both Mike He and Ariel Lin, I wouldn't have made it even halfway through.
And, Then there is the ending..
After you sit through it all, the way they choose to end it is nothing but absurd. I didn't fully watch the last two episodes. There was no point to continuing with the torturous-ly slow process when the only reasons for watching the show took a beating.
That's all I can put into words now. The only reason any one can have of watching this,in my opinion, is if they like the lead actors, because it's a tough ride even then.
Was this review helpful to you?
The plot is very well written. There were hardly any places where anything felt absurd or artificial. The story along with the characters falls into place right from the start.
Matsumoto Jun as Momo is completely lovable and walks right into your heart as the boy who is a pet. Kato Koyuki is just perfect in the role of the girl who becomes the 'master' of the pet.
I think what made this drama work is the well rounded-ness of the characters. We come to understand the workings of every person- why and how they are the way they are. There aren't any purely negative characters, rather we are all people with imperfections of our own.
It's beautiful and endearing to see the relationship between Iwaya and Momo grow as they find comfort in each other. Their journey from 'master and pet' to where they openly accept their love for each other unmindful of anything else between them is great to watch.
Was this review helpful to you?
The characters are beautifully crafted. Through the episodes you can see the characters opening up and growing as people and situations affect them. It is heartening to see such a solid set of characters and actors to play them.
I have to say, you surely will like Mike He if you watch this drama. His character was the soul of the drama and he carries it brilliantly. Rainie is adorable and plays her part perfectly.
What I really appreciated about this drama is the non dramatic, almost natural way the characters deal with their relationships and situations.
Ah Meng and Qi Yue share a love that is beautiful and heartwarming to watch. Their individual parents are so the opposite of 'drama' parents, it was such a relief!!
I have to mention the music and background score..I found it brilliant and it really made a big difference to the drama.
The sub plots of their friends is also shown to some detail, which I felt it helped in the completeness of the drama. More focus on the lead actors alone might've caused it to be a drag.
Was this review helpful to you?
I haven't seen the japanese drama, so I can only wonder- Maybe the
story needed more time to be developed on screen, or what?
It's bright and cute and there's enough eye candy to tune onto when nothing else is happening on screen.
But from the beginning to end, I couldn't feel any connection to what was happening.
Jang Geun-Suk is cute all along, and that's about it. The scenes moved along sketchily. At no point was anything shown about why or when Momo starts to feel something for his master.Not to mention, there was absolutely zero chemistry between the lead actors.
The first time he kisses her during a fight, the scene was so devoid of any passion or emotion, it was a sham. The ending is equally so,leaving me with no idea of why exactly they got together.
All I can say is, it was disappointing.
Was this review helpful to you?
The story was interesting and it didn't drag anywhere. I also really liked the main actors. They did a great job. The music was cute and added to the feel of the scenes.
Another thing was the number of episodes was just right to tell the story well, without dragging it much. Every episode I finished watching, I wanted to watch the next one more. In fact, I felt they could have taken some more time to show more of the couple in the last episodes.
The one disappointing thing was the ending. After all the drama about Yi Lie, the way they chose to end it felt incomplete.
If there is one thing worse than one of the lead characters having some illness towards the end, it is ending the drama without being conclusive about it.
Other than that, the drama was good to watch.
Was this review helpful to you?
I've watched a couple other long(28-30 episode) dramas before without much trouble, but this one was more a test of patience. The plot crawled along at snail's pace, with situations, cliched as they were, happening over and over again; even the characters seemed to be bored of repeating themselves.
I couldn't sustain beyond halfway. It didn't seem to be worth the effort beyond that.
Was this review helpful to you?
