"Queen of Tears" is the kind of classic Kdrama I used to watch when I first started watching Kdramas. It is packed with old-school melodrama and insane plot twists, and the only difference is the role of stereotypical self-centered and cold-hearted Chaeobol CEO is the female lead, and the warm-hearted love interest who takes the abuse with empathy, patience, and unconditional love is the male lead. Of course, an old-school Kdrama wouldn't be complete without greedy and conniving family members and a fight to take control over the entire company by any means necessary. I don't like greedy, power-hungry, family plots unless they are done extremely well or are very campy and this one is neither, but it's entertaining enough mainly because of the actors. This drama's biggest strength is its cast, including many great surprise cameos, which kept me watching.

Kim Soo Hyun plays Baek Hyun Woo, a man who couldn't be more perfect. He is good at everything, looks good doing everything, and is super humble, with the caring of a saint. If you loved him in "It's Okay to Not Be Okay" like I did you will see a lot of similarities in Hyun Woo. Just like in that drama, he is matched with a commanding egocentric woman with no filter or sympathy for others. Kim Ji Won plays Hong Hae In, who is more likable than her character in "Lovestruck in the City", but once again I was left wondering why the main character would go above and beyond for a woman who was so difficult to be with. This drama does try to show the realistic side of relationships where we see their honeymoon phase vs what it's like when their relationship is at its worst. I won't speak too much about the details but I will say I questioned whether I could even root for them as a couple many times, but that's where the classic kdrama tropes come in. I'll just say the plot takes the wedding vows "...For richer or poorer. In sickness and in health." literally, and it helps that these two have amazing chemistry together. They are the type of couple that are enjoyable to watch whether they are fighting or in complete love, which helped when the story started to get too repetitive, too unbelievable, or dragged a little too much.

The rest of the cast is just as great. I genuinely started to like a lot of the supporting characters or despised them the way I was meant to, even if I didn't care about their specific storylines. Park Sung Hoon as Yoon Eun Seong is not a 2nd lead but the worst 3rd wheel ever. Lee Mi Sook is awesome and reminded me of how much I loved her craziness in "Money Flower". Kim Joo Ryoung plays a character with a similar two-faced personality to her role in "Squid Game". In a lot of ways, this drama is a cast full of MVP actors who are doing exactly what they have done so well in other dramas. They also all have great chemistry with each other, so I bought into how their relationships evolved even as the plot got more and more over the top.

Would I watch this again? Maybe. As much as I liked the chemistry and the cast I can't say the story as a whole was that rewatchable. I thought based on the title and the premise that this would be a much sadder drama, especially since I've dealt with a lot of grief recently, but besides a few tearful moments for me, it felt more like a typical rich family saga that may have too many frustrating moments to make me excited to watch this ever again. The story jumps from comedy to action to romance to suspense to tragedy and back to comedy. The ending also felt more obligatory than emotionally impactful. I did like the final scene but once I realized this drama wouldn't get too dark or serious I just felt like I was waiting to get to the predictable ending, filled with cliché and last-minute conflicts to stretch the last of the episodes out.

I will say the direction was beautiful. How they portrayed Hae In's perspective especially really drew me in, along with some gorgeous shots in even mundane scenes. I just hate that the acting and direction have such high scores from me but the script just felt so paint by numbers at times it turned the potential for a great drama into a messy mediocre makjang. I'm not mad that I watched it but it reminded me of other dramas that I saw these actors in that I liked so much more. It also gave me a flashback to some extra crazy old kdramas that I may want to finally revisit like "Shining Inheritance", "Baker King, Kim Tak Goo", "Hotel King", and of course "Money Flower".

Overall, "Queen of Tears" is a drama that's great if you are nostalgic for melodramas about elite families fighting for power while a couple from two different worlds who are destined to be together try to stay together despite every possible thing trying to keep them apart. Whatever trope you are thinking would be in a drama like that, yup, it's in this one. All of them... well, no fake marriage contract, but every other one.

Are you in the mood for good chemistry and some tried and true tropes, then this drama delivers! If you are looking for a reminder of what is really important in life, this drama has that too. If you want characters that make you angry enough to yell at your screen, this drama has plenty. I think the plot tried to do too much and please too many viewers to be original or touching, but it still has its moments that made me smile and tear up a little. I know I was able to like this drama more once I recognized what it was and what it wasn't. Maybe if it was called "Queen of Makjang" some viewers would be less disappointed,