Kate

Objectively great rom-com, subjectively I had a few beefs with certain aspects. Specific parts and elements were perfect, but they did not quite make a perfect picture. Be in the characters, plot, set up, twist - some imbalances and conflicts just made me roll my eyes a few times too many. I had fun while watching the episodes, but I was never truly excited to start them.

Se Gye was the true unrealistically perfect male lead. His undying love for Seo Ri made all the best men on the planet combine seem mediocre. Handsome, hot, devoted, rich, smart and dedicated, but also willing to show vulnerability to the person he loves. As a romantic interest, he did not have any flaws. The man that no one deserves. What’s more? I adore how the moment he figured out he likes Seo Ri (which did not take him that long), he did not act dumb and was not led by his ego - he acted according to his feelings, did not hide them, did not pretend like he was not interested. Do I want one for myself? Of course.

As amazing as a romantic lead he was, it’s not the same story outside of the lovey-dovey scenes. From the start he was set up to be a masterclass of manipulation and schemes, a fool only to the woman he loves. So why did he keep making the dumbest mistakes over and over again by the end of the drama? You want to tell me that this man with what they claim is a working brain would not take precautions against whatever wild plan Mun Do might have, being fully aware his dear cousin had no issue killing people? Apparently, the moment you drove your enemy into a corner is also the best time to be alone at night in the dark parking lot, asking to be stabbed. He kept underestimating Mun Do without proper explanation, while also writers claiming he can predict every step Mun Do makes to bring him down… so which one is it?

Then we have our lovely female lead Seo Ri - I love this woman as an individual. From the opening scene I knew her story was worth following. Strong, brave, smart. Caring for people she loves. Her strong will to survive and lead a good life was truly inspiring.

I was excited for Seo Ri's scenes outside of the romance. Her slow journey into becoming actually content and confident and not just putting the front as a defense mechanism. Her search for who she was and how to navigate in the “new” world. Her growing career and how she slowly took the spotlight with her sheer talent. Her story was truly amazing.

As for the dynamic between the main characters vs their individual stories… For most of the screen time I did not care for Cha Se Gye as a character outside of his romance with Seo Ri. I did not care about Seo Ri as a character inside her romance with Se Gye. And that clashed badly. I was half excited for the romance scenes, because of Se Gye. Seo Ri gave me the bare minimum, and the last two episodes with grand gestures and sacrifices were not enough. Yes, I loved the last two episodes, but that does not negate the lukewarm romance I’ve got from her in the previous 12… Only in the last two episodes they tried to switch the focus for the leads - we dived deeper into the company politics and schemes on Se Gye’s side, and Seo Ri’s love and devotion to Se Gye. Too little, too late.

Their relationship just felt painfully uneven for most of the drama. She was his whole life, but he was not hers. They made him unrealistically perfect, and made her beautifully realistically flawed. And these two writing types do not match well together. It makes the viewer frustrated with the well written complex character, because they keep hurting the unrealistically perfect one. So when she blamed him for her own mistakes, or pushed him away, I kept thinking - do I even want them together? When he is always the one giving in? It’s kind of annoying to watch. If we talk about character writing she is so much better and more complex. But if you talk about my delulu feels, Se Gye is the gold standard. Love her as a female character. Love him as a love interest.

And I want to state it clearly - Seo Ri’s behavior was valid and made perfect sense. I understand why her character was written like that, why she made the choices she made. Does not negate the fact their relationship did not feel equal up until the last 2 episodes. For quite a big portion of the story she was too self-absorbed. For valid reasons. But one can be right for themselves and that makes them wrong for another person. Too many times she did not learn from her past mistakes at all, did not trust him no matter what he did for her and how open he was. And again, all valid behavior taking into consideration her past, but it's also true that it was all unfair towards Se Gye.

Still, the last episode was so strong, they did make me momentarily forget about that tiny frustration I felt when watching the show.

For the other characters, the two I was especially happy with their developments: Mo Tae Hui and Cha Dal Su. For my girl - I love how they did not let her burn and become the evil second female lead. She fought as long as she thought she had a chance, and when she clearly saw it wouldn't work - she gave up that romantic relationship and entered partnership. I loved that for her. She would work hard for a man, but she would not destroy herself for one. As for Cha Dal Su - obviously an asshole, but in a realistic way. I was scared they would make him oblivious to Mun Do’s schemes, so knowing he was up to date with the shenanigans made me happy.

On the other hand, Mun Do was a huge disappointment. Flat, poorly written, annoying. A lot of things shown about him made no sense. Did he even do any work himself? He kept spying and following Se Gye and Seo Ri personally, as if he would not have people to do it for him. I wish they explored his relationship with his son more - 2 or 3 phone conversations about the kid is not enough to validate his last scene with Seo Ri. It had no emotional impact, because they did not set it up enough.

Moving strictly to the plot.

What I love about this show is how unpredictable it was on a tiny scale. You had all the cliches and they all got a royal twist to them. The scene starts, I recognize the pattern I have seen 938475645987654 times in other dramas, I know how this ends... and then it takes a sharp U-turn. The end of ep 7 and beginning of ep 8 was a good example of that: you expect them to announce they are dating and even if not announced, this coming out in public as gossip. Nope. Seo Ri had a different plan to calm the media and explain the situation. Lead up being exactly what you expect, the conclusion not so much - love it.

On a more technical part of the storytelling and choices made - love how Seo Ri did not adapt to modern time on day one. She kept the speaking mannerisms of Joseon till the end - even if it became less and less obvious. And how Se Gye was just okay with her weird behavior. For the longest time he did not know about her time travel, he just thought she was strange like that and vibed with it.

Sadly, the whole past storyline was a complete flop except for the opening scene in episode 1. Underdeveloped and honestly inconsequential for the modern story for most of the show. They went with "past is mimicking the present" and not "present is mimicking the past" and it completely changed the viewing experience.

Less of the drama flaw, more of a difference in perspectives, but I always feel so conflicted about this whole "scarifying yourself for the other person's life" plotlines... It's hard to call it selfish since the character is giving up so much, but also... it is by all means selfish. Because if they were in the position of the person "dying" they would not want their loved one to give up anything for them. So at the end of the day they are choosing what will be easier for them - give up what's important to you, save the person you love, instead of living alone with the guilt of them being gone. What the "saved" person wants and decides is not even part of the consideration. It’s a well known trope and plot development, so it’s not necessarily a dig against My Royal Nemesis alone, but I wish if the dramas decide to use it, they would present it in more depth, as a moral dilemma it is.

For the big plot twist of Seo Ri from the past actually being the original Seo Ri from the modern times - great idea, mixed execution. I wish they actually set up the existence of said twist better. For most of the drama, the majority of viewers did not even consider the possibility of the twist existing and for me that’s a bit of a failure for the storytelling. It means the twist was simply not set up, just revealed in its full glory when the timing was right. It felt more like a cope to give a happy ending, and not the well developed part of the plot.

I am also honestly shocked how much I loved the last episode. Even though I am 100% confused about the past storyline… I guess that past story has an open ending, we are not meant to know what happened to them. The little “flashback” is more of the imagined ending by the leads, and not a confirmed conclusion. Still, what a solid last episode. I am so used to being disappointed by the last episodes of the drama, I am shocked with my current level of enjoyment. Not gonna lie, the angst desperate era Se Gye went through was everything I needed in life. Seo Ri stepping up and matching Se Gye’s dedication was also something I kept craving to see. The bad guys being published, the good guys moving on with their lives. Loved the details like using the deepfake team from earlier episodes against Mun Do. Little moments that put a smile on my face.

We obviously, as always in any drama in existence, had a whole set of dumb choices from not caring for danger, misunderstandings, miscommunications, saying you will be honest with each other, to lie and hide shit next scene - the usual sins of kdramas. Things we slowly learn to accept, ignore and move on.

As for the performances - bless Im Ji Yeon and Heo Nam Jun. Will start with Heo Nam Jun since it will be shorter - this man knows how to act in love. There are some actors who are so good at showing love with their eyes and micro expressions I could easily be fooled to believe they actually love their co-stars.

As for Im Ji Yeon, this was an extremely hard role to deliver. She truly had to give us everything - tragedy, comedy, romance, mystery. She had to feel strong and imposing because of her Joseon back story, but also vulnerable and delicate because of her modern circumstances. The slow changes in her behavior, mannerisms, way of talking, moving, addressing people. Showing how the character slowly adapts to her situation while not losing the hints of the past life impact. She did not miss one beat, not one scene seemed off.

For the production - this is a typical case of good, but not memorable. Do I remember one moment that stood out because of the scenery, set design, editing, camera work? No. Be it in a good or bad way.

Side note, can we get a new hair stylist for Se Gye. Heo Nam Jun should have his hair either all up or all down - this weird side bangs… not it.

Overall, a really enjoyable watch. A lot of unexplored potential might be the reason I did not rate it higher. I was good, but it could have been great. There are some shows that exist for pure entertainment and nothing would fix the plot to make more than that. But I feel like a few changes here and there could make this drama great.