This drama was really entertaining and enjoyable for me to watch up to about Ep. 35 and then it started going downhill both because the story made less sense and because the male lead became unbearably arrogant and self centred. At one point I found myself cheering for the villain and hoping that the good guys would all get defeated. From then onwards unfortunately for me there was no turning back on supporting the main couple of this drama. It is a shame as I was going to rate this with a 10 as, even though some parts were totally unrealistic and exaggerated, I liked how the story was developed up to a certain point. Luckily there was a twist at the very end which I appreciated as it gave back some dignity to the female lead, but it still wasn't enough for me to be happy with the last part of the drama. This could have been a masterpiece for me and it was a missed opportunity.
I was very pleased with this drama as the acting and the story were absolutely superb. There are only very few dramas that keep me so interested notwithstanding the incredible amount of violence and this usually happens when I get really involved which was the case here. I was also very pleased with the ending which was exactly how I hoped it would be. I highly recommend it.
I was totally new to vampire themed stories as generally I keep well away from them as I hate bloody scenes and violence in general. However my addiction to LJK made me want to try this drama and I didn't regret it at all. I considered the whole story as a vampire tale and as such I stopped trying to make sense of what I saw and just enjoyed the ride. I appreciated all the cast and I loved the OST which was particularly good (lately generally so and so in dramas). I now hope to see LJK in a new project possibly different from saeguks.
Tks, curiosity to how they got to that point is also the reason why I am carrying on watching it. I will see how I can tolerate the makjang as I carry on and if I can watch it all the way through.
Thanks very much for this brave article...I realize the subject is very delicate however I appreciate the fact that it has been addressed here as I have always been quite bothered by these aspects in Asian dramas. What bothers me most are the face slaps probably because they are given so, so frequently (mostly in Kdramas) and for me they are a true expression of physical violence which is totally unnecessary in most cases. This doesn't mean that I don't appreciate many other aspects of Asian dramas so I grit my teeth and try to ignore the scenes that bother me and carry on watching them. ;)
I will probably be watching Second Time Twenty Years Old, She Was Pretty and The Innkeeper. For what concerns the other dramas I will wait to read some opinions and decide if to watch them or not.
This drama was really very original as far as the story goes. What I enjoyed most was the psychological aspect of it and therefore the interactions between the three male leads which were excellent as they took place most of the time just with looks and without words. It would have deserved a very high rating because of this aspect but there were some parts which were naive and quite a few questions were left unanswered at the end so my rating is 8.5. In any case I agree that this is one of the best dramas of this year.
What a great article that perfectly describes this awesome drama...I agree that CSW's role here was absolutely perfect and it's too bad we don't see him any longer after Ep. 30, infact somehow the last four episodes lacked some spark. Everyone else is doing a fine job and also Kim Jae Won whom I have always seen play the good guy in other dramas. Yes romance is definitely lacking in this drama infact I feel it could end up like Queen Seon Duk where she sacrificed her love life for the throne.
I enjoyed this very much as for the first time since I started watching dramas I actually felt as if I was watching a live novel. The story had every element that can be found in a classic novel in a war setting like loyalty, courage, betrayal, friendship, romance and family ties. I personally thought that the mix between romance and war/real life scenes was well balanced and the episodes were very pleasant to watch all the way through. As always in Chinese dramas I really appreciate the fact that interactions between the different characters are realistic and balanced and never too exaggerated (like in most K dramas) or too cold (like in some J dramas). The romance here was really deep, involving and beautiful to watch as the main leads had great chemistry. I appreciated many of the side characters such as the doctor and the secretary general of the main lead. I definitely recommend watching this drama which is poetic and heart warming.
In this drama there were positive and negative aspects: the positive aspects were the very good cast and its great acting, the originality of the story, the nice settings, the oustanding fashion wear and OSTs.
The negative aspect was the bad writing which for me is fundamental as I can't enjoy a story which has no logic and obliges me to put my brain on hold wilst watching it. It is a real pity as with a little more effort from the writers this could have been an excellent drama.
I don't know how to express how much I enjoyed this drama. It was witty, funny, realistic and also very warm hearted. Sometimes a few of the divorce cases dragged on a little but it was all presented with irony and humour which made it a great watch all the way through. I absolutely loved the two main leads and the amazing relationship they had both in professional terms but also friendshipwise which later developed in a very mature romance story. I won't easily forget Luo Li and Chi Hai Dong with their strong personalities (so unusual in dramaland especially for female leads) and the fun I had watching how their relationship developed. Besides the fantastic leads I really appreciated the laid back realistic way in which relationships were described here...friendship, marriage, divorce, betrayal everything was included in an interesting yet relaxed manner. I know I will miss this drama so much and a rewatch will be soon on its way. This is much, much better than its K-version.
This was a very poetic and heartwarming drama in the typical Japanese way. I like how they always depict feelings in such a realistic way whilst keeping their dialogues and general attitudes very essential. The more I watch Jdramas which are set in this particular time period (Showa) the more I appreciate them as I understand it must have been very influential for Japan. Here Sato Takeru was exceptionally good as well as many others in the cast and the story was deep and touching with an encouraging self-determination theme. I agree that it deserves the maximum rating so it gets a 10 from me.
As it so often happens with Korean dramas, the last two episodes here made the ending totally bitter. I understand the importance of the psychological wellbeing of a child, however it is really not acceptable that because of that perpetrators can easily get away with their ill-doings which affected the lives of many people. And this mainly happens because the victims decide to keep quiet and not openly and quickly talk about what they have been through. This is a typical pattern in Korean dramas (with makjang) which unfortunately repeats itself over and over again. In any case what I appreciated mostly in this drama was the amazing acting and the very romantic atmosphere that could be felt throughout the story. I can't rate it with more than a 7 because of the poor writing at the end but I look forward to seeing the leads in other dramas soon.
I am watching Scholar and I am planning to watch Last out of this list. Both are genres that I am not too keen on (vampires and excessive violence) but the casts in these dramas are too good to skip them. I hope they will be worth my suffering whilst watching them. ;)
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The negative aspect was the bad writing which for me is fundamental as I can't enjoy a story which has no logic and obliges me to put my brain on hold wilst watching it. It is a real pity as with a little more effort from the writers this could have been an excellent drama.