Reviews

So first of all, I think this drama is really overrated. I really liked it but the drama got some flaws that are hard to just overlook.

Story:
I liked the story. It was actually pretty interesting and different in a way. Some would say that the age gap between the 2 main character is hard to overlook but it was okay for me. What I mean is I wasn't really paying attention to that part as the drama is based around something fictional, the age gap is just a part of that. I like the relation between the two main characters but also with the second couple. The bromance was also a very good part of that drama. I just wish Deok Hwa played a bigger part of the drama. Usually, there are some characters that I don't like in a drama, like a big villain but I just liked every characters here. And also, I enjoyed everything regarding the Grim Reapers organization and especially the Grim Reaper (Lee Dong Wook).

Acting/Cast:
They all did a great job and I think they all suited their role. Gong Yu as always is a very good actor. I was also very surprised by Lee Dong Wook, if was just perfect as the Grim Reaper. Also, Kim Go Eun is a good actress (that I saw in Cheese in the Trap before) but rather than feeling sad with her when she cried (near the end) I was just impressed. I usually don't like the cryings in dramas also so seeing Lee Dong Wook always with teary eyes/crying was kind of hard for me but he did a good job! I also often find the main female lead annoying but she was okay.

Music:
I think Goblin wouldn't have been that great without this OST. Seriously, the music in the drama was just perfect. All the songs were just beautiful. If the music wasn't that good, I think I would have rated the drama 7.5 instead of 8.5.

Rewatch value:
I would probably not rewatch it, or I would skip some parts. The episodes are unnecessarily long.

So why do I think Goblin is overrated?
- There are tons of flashbacks and they are ALWAYS the SAME!!! That was SOOOO annoying! I hate when they do that in dramas. Like they would put the same flashback twice in the same episode and in almost episode... And for what? We didn't forget that happened so why? This is why the episodes are long but it is just long of flashback I think... It could have been maybe 10 minutes shorter if it wasn't for that...
- Then, that wouldn't really affect the rating but it kind of annoyed me to some point.. The product placement here it just too strong. So we can see it everywhere and in every drama but usually it's more subtle than that. They were literally saying: eat SUBWAY and your life will be better. (or something like that). I understand that they needed money to have that good quality in the scenes but come on...
- Then I feel like the story/plot could have been better used... It is kind of a waste of the characters I think. And I wanted to know more about the deities.

So yeah, I'm happy I watched it but I wished the realization of the drama and the use of the characters would have been better handled. When I finished the drama I had a bitter feeling. I enjoyed it and really liked it but I felt like the potential was a bit wasted. So I think there are many more stuff to talk about regarding that drama but I'll just stop here :)

Anyways, Goblin is a drama that need to be seen ! :)

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If you're a die-hard romantic, you simply can't afford to miss this one!

You won't believe how much I'm in love with this series! From the heart-touching soundtrack to the captivating storyline inspired by folklore, everything about it is a perfect balance. The chemistry between the leads is off the charts, and the rest of the cast is equally amazing. The narrative is so beautiful that it never lets you lose interest for a second. And don't even get me started on the bromance between Goblin and The Grim Reaper - it's pure entertainment! Plus, Deuk Hwa's character is just too cute for words. Gong Yoo's charm and wit will leave you swooning, and the female lead and Deok Hwa are absolutely adorable together. The narrative and the poetic elements of the show are so enchanting that they'll make you want to fall in love and believe in magic all over again. If you're a die-hard romantic, you simply can't afford to miss this one!

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I picked up this drama due to Zhao Lu Si and also since I kept hearing great things about it. This drama had a nice premise and somewhat lived up to the hype. There are things I liked and I didn't like about this.

PLOT:
Age gap between the leads in dramaland isn't very common. At least not in the way that you'd see the characters ever acknowledging this. I've seen age gaps which were fun or cringe, but this was actually quite nice. The way the drama started off and the interaction between the leads felt like a Western story to me. They form a genuine bond and their love and relationship follows that. I wasn't a fan of the male lead but he was watchable and watching him being in love with the female lead was a lot of fun. The only downsides started after Ep 15 where the good moments were less and secondary melodrama took over. If it weren't for the leads, I wouldn't have watched this nor completed this as none of the secondary characters were interesting. The uncle and the friend were super boring. The drama with the second leads and the mother-in-law didn't go with the plot at all. There were times the drama ignored the cooking aspect and concentrated on some other uninteresting points. I also didn't fully love the food aspect as I am a vegetarian and almost all the dishes had meat in it.

ACTING/CAST:
Zhao Lusi steals the show for me. This role was slightly different from her previous dramas although she always does comedy in all her dramas. She looked fabulous and her playful side always made me smile. I like the fact that she has good chemistry with whoever she acts with. The ML actor was new to me but he did a good job too. He looked older than he was supposed to be, but he never let age get in the way of affecting their chemistry.

OST:
Normally I wouldn't like these kinds of songs, but all of them fit the mood of the drama pretty well.

OVERALL:
If food and romance with a big age gap is your thing, go for it. I would say don't lead the age gap deter you from watching because the leads did a genuinely good job of it. Zhao Lusi is a treat to watch and the food that they show seems delicious. A special mention to the SL because I felt like he matched with the FL better. This drama is a one-time watch and you'll find some delightful moments to watch. If you don't like the leads then don't watch this as the drama doesn't have much else to offer.

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Short but the storyline is really good. It's a sad short drama about reality. I recommend watching this a lot.
To be honest it broke my heart a little. I don't want to spoil anything, just watch it!
The synopsis does not tell a lot about the story and sounds a little bit boring, but trust me, it's good.

Seoyeon's choice surprised me a lot, didn't expect that AT ALL. At the beginning I found Minjae kind of creepy but then I understood what was happening.

The acting was great, they both did an awesome job portraying Seoyeon and Minjae. (In case you didn't know, both of them worked together in Thirty but Seventeen.)

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I wanted to leave a review while the show is still fresh in my mind. I just want to say exactly what I felt. This show is downright one of the most beautiful things you'll ever see. From the casting, to the cinematography, to the writing, everything is sheer perfection. It's kind of EPIC. You can feel the beautiful way the creator sees the world, with its particular touch of darkness. It will hurt you, and make you laugh, even in the midst of your pain, like the Grim Reaper in that one scene, you'll not have a choice. Rating the show the highest possible rating wasn’t even up for debate. The thing about a good story is that you can have a massive budget and top rated actors but if you have a stale, unworthy story and half boiled characters, it just doesn't work. The value of this show is that every character is so deep, so believable, so REAL, you can't help getting lost in them. Few minor gripes I have was that Duek Hwa and Jung Hae In should have had better storylines. Second, toward the end the amnesia bit dragged a bit for me. (Minor spoiler) Even the whole finding love in past lives instead of present was again a bit typical for a show of this caliber. What you can do in a next life you can do in this one, for this reason the last two or three episodes in places it got a bit boring for me. Still, I'm happy to have seen this show, I've never quite seen anything like it. All in all, bravo!

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I would first like to state that this drama contains mature content that I would only recommend for 18+ or anyone able to emotionally handle such mature content.

Intense. This Lakorn was one of the first I ever got into watching and It was worth every minute. The story line was so unique and dramatic that I couldn't wait to see what would happen next!

I didn't honestly get interested in the story until the second sister was introduced.

The main actor and actresses pretty faces were icing on the cake to their WONDERFUL acting. Some of the conflicts the actors and actresses were put into seemed to really affect me.

The main lead almost seemed too nice to me though.. if that is possible... and the first female lead introduced in the beginning seemed too naive to the point I got very angry.

The actor who played the main antagonist of this drama did a wonderful job because I truly despised his character with every bone in my body.

I didn't pay attention much to the music because of how interested I was so into the story.

There are a lot of different emotions in this drama and I would recommend going into this lakorn prepared to cry , and very much prepared to become angry.

The chemistry between the leads was not the greatest but somehow it was made up for by the end of the drama.

I definitely recommend this lakorn to anyone looking for a dramatic drama full of secrets, revenge and learning to forgive.

You should definitely check it out!! Enjoy!!!

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the lack of slice of life in cdramas

my sister recommended a drama to me because the male lead is her favorite k-pop idol. i declined several times, but after finishing taeri's drama, i decided to give it a chance. my dear friends or my unfamiliar family showed koreans doing slice of life so well but there's no good slice of life in cdramas, but i found "the forbidden flower" to be an exception. recently, i started watching "sweet games." these types of dramas may not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you enjoy this genre, "sweet games" is a solid choice. i wish "do you like brahms?" had more comedic scenes like this drama because it strikes a great balance between drama and comedy.

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Story

Heo Im (Kim Nam-Gil) is a very famous acupuncturist doctor who worked in one of Joseon's superintendents, caring for the most needy people. It turns out that at the same time, he was accumulating a lot of wealth going to treat senior officials at night.

The opportunity Heo Im so much hoped emerged: he was cast to treat the King's disease, and completing the treatment, he could finally win the position of a royal doctor.

At the beginning of the journey to palace, he was surprised by a desperate father with his very sick daughter in the lap and decided to leave them waiting, giving priority to the treatment of the king.  It occurs that before starting with acupuncture, Dr. Heo's hand began to tremble and he wasn't able to apply even the first needle. The incident was considered an insult to the King and he had to flee the palace before being imprisoned. But the officers chased him and cornered him on a bridge. After receiving an arrow, Dr. Heo fell into the river and traveled in time.

~

Live Up To Your Name, Dr. Heo ... I started to watch without many expectations and I was completely stunned by the script! It is simply amazing and very well written. No flaws, the story flowed very well and was a phenomenal experience. It's from another level. It isn't a simple time travel drama.

The drama is a mix of medical, historical and romantic comedy genres with a more adult twist. The exchange of environments (Joseon / Seoul) is fantastic and very well made and occurs at the most opportune moments. They also succeeded in highlighting the change in medicine between the two centuries, focusing, for example, on equipment such as the needle, herbs, then scalpel, medicines and others.

Oh yeah, the story brings up several other historical points and characters that were important to medicine. The history pass in the time when the Japanese invaded South Korea. Let me cite an example: Dr. Heo Jun (Uhm Hyo Sup) was actually one of the best royal doctor during the King Seonjo Dynasty in Joseon and constantly appears in the drama , bringing brilliant lessons; So we still take a "bath" of historical knowledge.

Acting/Cast

It's even funny because, at the beginning of the drama, I watched two completely flawed protagonists. Dr. Heo had been torn apart by the injustices of the world and could no longer be considered a doctor, for his values had been lost in the arduous path that life was in Joseon. Choi Yeon-Kyung decided to be a doctor after losing her parents and resent her grandfather, she became apathetic (apathy - lack of passion), a little arrogant and did not sympathize with her patients.

The evolution of the characters is the big point of the plot! They with their own faults help each other, correct and grow in an impressive way. And you know what else? The story unfolds at a perfect and exciting pace.

I can say that I followed Dr. Heo's path and that today I am his great fan. That I understood your feelings, your inner conflicts, your responsibilities and your despair. And this is all merit of the brilliant performance of Kim Nam Gil.

The secondary characters are so charismatic and I've been falling in love with them little by little. Everyone has some influence on the plot and their presences have made the story even more unique.

Music

The OST is beautiful and exciting.

Rewatch Value

Yes, this drama has a flaw: it's over. Oh really! I'm missing this drama, I didn't want it to come to an end so quickly.

And the romance? The romance is beautiful! Perfect! The protagonists have a lot of chemistry! Really! And as the Japanese samurai said there in episode 16 ... They look beautiful together!

So if I could honestly say to you guys not to miss a drama that was broadcast in 2017 I would say that's the one. I know a lot of people don't know and didn't follow and that is why I need your help so that this review reaches the hearts of our chingus!

It's a drama to get involved, get excited, have fun and that's exactly what we're looking for!

~ Sorry for my English.

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B oldly D iving into S omething M emorable

Please bear with me. There are exciting aspects to Hua Yong and Mr Sheng´s story that extend beyond X. However, I am not that convinced by the series overall, despite agreeing that it´s impressive that they actually opened a wild door like this in 2025. I think it´s understandable why this series is hyped so much: It´s bold, it´s fresh -- It´s a lot of things that lovely viewers out there have yearned for. I mean, Omegaverse live action? In my younger years, I would not have thought this could ever be filmed. Yet here we are. What a journey ....

So what bothered me?
Where should I start? There are too many confusing, unspoken facts, almost as if some parts were purposely left unfinished. Completely leaving aside how toxic the whole omegaversa is in general ...... Additionally, I think the way they handled the music scores was sort of boring and predictable. Very repetitive. Besides Huang Xing´s (Hua Yong) performance for most parts, the acting was not convincing to me, even a bit frustrating at times. I admit there are some actors new to the industry, and everyone should have the chance to cultivate their skills -- and yet, I have to consider this when reviewing. Overall, the editing and acting were a bit too messy and anticlimactic.

Nonetheless, I was intrigued by the non-conventional take and idea of the story and what they did with it as the first "players in this genre" (Even though there were more coherent elements they could´ve added, especially to the plot of the side couple). I´m hoping to see similarly bold concepts and scripts like ABO Desire in the future.

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Torturously realistic to the point of pessimism

This is a very well-written show with well-developed characters. None of the characters are shown to be particularly good or particularly bad - but as human beings, which is something I greatly appreciate as a writer and avid drama-watcher. The realistic themes covered here will definitely get the viewer to think long and hard about our societal framework and how that can either help or hinder our happiness.

Another thing I like is the acting of the main four. Though all of them are subtle with their emotions, they still form distinct personalities which make for great performances overall. Understated acting is perhaps one of the hardest types of acting to accomplish, so I believe the lead actors did a superb job with their characters, being neither overdramatic nor wooden.

A warning for those who want a happy ending: you will be sorely disappointed. The ending is an unconventional one which feels like a missed target. Especially with the emotionally-draining situations the characters are often stuck in, not experiencing even one moment of true happiness, the ending feels like somewhat of a waste, especially for viewers like me who watched the drama as it aired. If you decide to watch this show, be careful to not get too emotionally invested in the main characters as I did.

To close, I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys rich character development and unpredictable, yet realistic outcomes. The best part of this show is how incredibly human the characters are, which is something I believe needs to be shown more in movies and TV.

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Please stop hiring unpaid interns for script writing

Genuinely think the script writers are insulting the audience's intelligence. The story never lines up, the logic falls apart time after times.

This drama is what we call 脑残恋爱剧. that's exactly what it is, you need to leave your brain at home in order for this drama to make sense. You need to watch this for the purpose of "watching two attractive people fall in love" because that's the only thing it (questionably) delivers.

At ep 34 I finally realize they tried to copy the plot of nirvana in fire and my goodness, it'd be an insult to even call this a dollar store NiF.

Pros:
Good casting, if not for these phenomenal actors I absolutely could not have finished this

Cons:
I don't know why nobody mentions this, but the ML's sister is what we call "a cast with funding". Because if she did not sponsor the production there's no way she would've been in this drama.

All throughout I've never seen any character more annoying. Purpose? None. Character development? Please don't piss me off. Is involved or is critical to any part of the story line whatsoever? Absolutely not. This character genuinely could've been replaced by a passerby and the story would've moved on just fine.

With regards to the script writing, long story short, they introduce conflict for the sake of conflict, ignoring if it makes sense of not. I started noting some down after some episodes because just wanted to see how ridiculous this gets:

- EP 10, fight in the forest about to break out, let's bring the FL who cannot fight at all, we will see this later.
- EP 10, grandma of course needs to go back and fetch things while enemies approaching.
- EP 11, FL as expected cannot help with anything, the reason why she was here the first place is just so she can be "saved" by ML.
- EP 11, village got raided, people died, what the kids do? Play football.
- EP 11, ML FL cannot go back home because being chased by the crowned Prince, after seeing some mountains, they magically could now.
- EP 11, ML remembers to check FL's background after married for ages now.
- EP 15, poisoning a foreign princess is apparently 罪不致死 (no biggie bc attempting murder on a royal is just a prank I guess) , make that makes sense.
- EP 18, 4th Prince just got saved and woke up from poison, very sought after and is in great danger, so of course he immediately leaves protection in literally undergarments with ZERO guards with him.
- EP 19, bad guy holding FL hostage, ML prepares bow and arrow to shoot, bad guy of course stands still waiting to be shot because using the FL as a body shield would make too much sense.
- EP 19, falls off a cliff, survives, wakes up in full face makeup looking pretty
- EP 20 FL's brother was like 9 or 10 years old in EP 1. It's not been that long as every pill is one month. It's not been years, but somehow this boy is a grown man now.
- EP 21, Prince of the country is in love with the Empress of the enemy country because mommy issues. I'm trying not to roll my eyes.
- EP 23, FL got captured, they knocked her out, but of course they wait for her to wake up first, before attempting her life because otherwise it'd make too much sense.
- EP 23, drowning cured her amnesia and I'm supposed to accept that.
- EP 26, at 22 min you see the most random jumps. So they also didn't pay for post production and edition I guess.
- EP 27, a massively important witness. Which means Meng is allowed to just walk into the prison and murders him because in this world, we don't have prison guards.
- EP 29, FL finally meets up with her brother, bad guys approaches, what do we do? Run in opposite direction of course. We use the table as a shield for arrows, fair enough, but don't forget to use an umbrella as well as that is somehow a stronger shield than a table.
- EP 30, the ML FL and her brother are now together, as a villain you see 3 of your worst enemies what do you do? Send assassins after them? Send your thousands of soldiers after them? Get some archers and snipe them? No, you explode the city, because the script writers said so.
- EP 30, as the evil empress is now leaving the city, wide in the open with 20 guards around her. You, as the good guys, hiding in background and somewhat of a high ground, what do you do? Shoot her down with swift arrows? No, you go melee attack into her 20 guards because the script writers said so.
- EP 32, as a crown prince, the best way to get yourself lined up to be next in throne is to of course hook your dad up to crack because then he's depended on you dealing him drugs.
- EP 33, 3rd prince is now revealed in court as the bad guy, stabbing officials one by one. You, as an official in court what do you do? Run? No. Jump the guy because there are 30 of y'all and there's only 1 of him? No. You stand still and wait for your turn to be stabbed because again, the script writers said so.
- EP 34, the most useless father in the world finally appears. I think there's supposed to be sympathy for him but help, I must've lost it somewhere.
- EP 35, using a homeless person as hostage for some morality test is dumb. Morality testing not the guy that's gonna be on the throne, but his sister instead, is another level of dumb.
- EP 35, instead of having the FL who is already poisoned to test the cure, we of course feed the poison to the ML so he can test instead, because again, the script writers said so. I guess it is to set up conflict for the sake of conflict for...
- EP 36, yep, the conflict is here, he is weak to fight because poison, he only saved enough flower to cure one person. This is making sense, because otherwise, how else are we gonna play gardening simulator to save him after? We need conflicts for... I don't know, for the sake of conflicts

Overall, I'm just upset that I wasted my life on this.

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Absolute Disappointment

The live action doesn't even match the novel. The writer put much effort writing the story only for the live action to be a joke. What is this? Out of budget show?

Bihyung even look like a freaking labubu, what was that for? Is it so hard to follow the original story? Bihyung is a dokkaebi for god sake also a gun? So you telling me getting atleast a fake sword is hard now too? Wow. Rather saying "adaptation" It's more suitable to be "inspiration" the live action is a joke.

Yoo Sangah as a healer? What is this? I thought this is supposed to be Omniscient Reader Viewpoint not Director Viewpoint. Ridiculous, live action. Other than that, Yoo Joonghyuk look like a hongdae guy on his way to ask Kim Dokja number. Yoo Joonghyuk design were way more better than that, he's wearing a hight level clothes from the novel unlike the live action.

Honestly, the live action were completely different from the novel. I would not recommend this live action. The live action were nothing but a disappointment, changing the story won't make it cool because the original story were already peak. This live action is a total downgrade. Ain't Omniscient Reader Viewpoint anymore, It's Director Viewpoint no Hell Viewpoint itself.

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need a lot of patience to sit through the first half

first half is both annoying AND boring but if you have patience, the second half is truly beautiful.

The goods :
1. The way this drama showed grief and how different people confront it. The lack of healthy communication was frustrating at times but very realistic and relatable. Yongpil was the first one who realized they were drifting apart cuz they were all running away and decided to put an end to it.
" why you didn't run? why you didn't try to forget?"
" but what if I did forget you?"

2. Go Mija. easily the best character in the whole series. She is the most well written character along with Yongpil. Her character has layers and I cried each time a new layer was revealed. She was so kind and brave. A great mother for her daughters and Yongpil.

3. Go Mija and Bo Mija flashbacks. tear jerkers.

4. Yongpils dad redemption arc. God knows he is one of the most annoying characters I've seen in my 12 years of being into Kdramas but I'm happy with the result.

5. Samdals family ( minus Samdal herself ) are all intriguing both in characters and their relationships with each other. I wished we knew more about the sisters pasts. Their love stories were more interesting than the main couple in my opinion. The family dynamic is very fun to watch.

6. Samdalri island and its beatiful beaches and gardens.

Now the bad;
1. Our female lead Samdal. I dont know why she and her collogues were so dumbfounded that she fell into a scandal given the fact that she's both unprofessional and a BRAT. Samdal is unlikable from episode 1 to the very end. She is an immature girl with a big ego who constantly throws tantrums.

2. Alcoholism. Samdal developed a horrible drinking habit after going back to samdalri and I think its an irresponsible portrayal if none of the other characters in the drama mention it in a bad light. She wasnt just sad, she was Addicted.

3. Samdalri people and their big mouths. small villages where everyone know each other have their own problems for sure ( gossips, lack of personal space, fear of being judged etc etc) and this has been touched upon in few other dramas but it doesn't make watching them any less insufferable. Yongpils friend had nothing else to talk about other than Samdal.

4. Second male lead. What was the point of his existence?

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