Reviews

Queen of Mystery (Mystery Queen) is a mixed genre Korean drama with slice of life/mystery/thriller/comedic elements that overall I found to be a satisfying though sometimes uneven drama. If you want something a little different and romance isn't a must, give it a go.

But first the Cons:

Pacing: After one of the most satisfying first episodes, I found the next two to be in okay territory. This ends up kind of being a cycle with some very enjoyable episodes followed by satisfactory episodes. I did do some skipping here and there but it was limited. Also, one particular mystery in the first half of the drama goes on too long.

Too Much: This drama has solid actors but too many of them and a solid story to tell but they glutted it with more more more. I actually wished the drama had focused less on Inspector Woo, the chaebol characters and really would have been ok never meeting Seol Ok's husband. This is nothing against any of the actors but, rather, the lead actors and the neighborhood crew were so good, it didn't need all those other characters and story lines.

Suspending Reality: Various times there are things left hanging or one particular instance in particular where the audience has to suspend all sense of reality. I will leave it there to avoid spoiler territory but it involves the sister-in-law. Also, like many k-dramas there are some coincidental connections that are just too much to believe but again, this is kind of standard.

The Pros:

Actors: They are all great and a shout out to the leads. I am not as familiar with the actor's dramas, but he has the charisma and timing to pull off comedy without a problem. It actually took me several episodes to realize that the actress was the same one from Heart to Heart. She is lovely. All the co-stars are great as well, and the drama has one of the best, most honest representations of a mother-in-law. I loved that the actress is the same that plays the opposite type in Secret Garden, Heirs and Mask.

Direction Etc: Directions was quite good and music was solid though no OST songs really stuck with me.

Story: Flawed but overall enjoyable and quite honestly something different than a thriller or rom/com. The idea is nothing knew (Scarecrow & Mrs. King - a US show from the 80s - was a housewife and a spy), but I like seeing Korean dramas expand out into other avenues and it gets a little extra love from me for that.

As you can tell I really liked but didn't love this drama. I took a point off for pacing issues and a point off for the uneven story, plot holes and problematic ending. It still gets an 8 from me because this drama made me care about these characters and they grew as the drama went on in honest, realistic ways.

Complaint Other Viewers Have:

Now overall I didn't have issues with the ending because I knew going in everything was not going to be tied up with a red bow. However, there are some unhappy viewers regarding the ending. I felt that I knew where the characters were going so, at the end of the day, I was happy enough with that. At the same time, I understand why others were not. It has now come out that the production team is hoping for a Season 2 so they did this on purpose. Shame on them. I hope they get a second season because they could totally do a fun drama and close up some story lines, but I think the fans deserved better because second seasons are hard to come by in k-dramaland.

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4.5/10...
...Because 18 episodes felt like 50

If you've read my reviews before then you know I'm a major binge watcher but this Kdrama was purely unbingable!

When I first started this drama I thought the concept was great and it completely chained my interest but as I saw the mystery unraveling I got disappointed and the concept turned cheesy. Which, if I'm to be honest, matches the rest of the story because this show has a heavy emphasis on ROMANCE.

I'm not a big fan of pure romance and the comedy was not my style so this drama did not hit home with me. Yes it is somewhat super natural but it's only there to fuel the love story. so if you're a major romantic, you will love this. If you like awkward but proud women, you will like the lead. If you like the concept of evil exes then this is for you. On the other hand, if you dislike loud humor, lovey dovey couples and mothers you'd like to kill then this is NOT for you.

the acting was average, the music was good, the scenes were pretty and the script tickled my vomit reflexes but if you're a fan of Eric, ignore all the above and...

...ENJOY!

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Sorry to all, but it seems that I'm the only one who doesn't like the pairing of the two lead couple Fuse and Tee. The rest is good. It has nothing to do with the story of these two which remains interesting, what lost my interest in these two is their chimestry, phisycally, they dont match, emotionally, errrrr one of them do not convey what really the emotion containedi n the story. It seems that, among the actors, he's out of place. Who am I refering to, you'll find it in my comments in other sites. I don't intend to hurt anybody...sorryyyyyyyy:)
Overall, I love the plot, the acting (though there's still enough space for improvement), the chimestry (physically and emotionally) between the secondary couples like (in the first season) Nie/Nine-Rodtang, Book-Frame (even their name really matched- i would say: Frame of the Book..heheeh). Let's find out who are the other couple to emerge in these season.
Thanks to all the casts and personells behind the camera! Job well done!
May the force be with you all!!!

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STORY: * BL STORY * This does have a sci-fi feel to it. As unrealistic as it is that an phone app can summon a hologram (or a virtual person anyway). It also is part psychological thriller. I really liked that it showed a long-term relationship of two guys, even though it is going through tough times. This does have a happy ending.

ACTING/CAST: Absolutely superb. I was amazed at how well these actors conveyed the emotions of their characters. They weren't bashful during the "making out" scenes either. The actor playing Lin has some very pretty eyes.

MUSIC: It was good and a bit sorrowful.

REWATCH VALUE: I liked this enough to watch it again with a friend.

OVERALL: I WANT THAT APP! Watch this and you'll know what I'm talking about.

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I LOVE historical dramas so its a given that i watched this one too. On the scale it holds its own, i still prefer the princes's man and ljimea to this one but if you enjoyed the before mentioned you will enjoy this one as well. It is a invigorating, exiting and generally pleasant to watch i caught myself laughing out loud on several occasions and the acting was superb "Aigooo" i do love all the little side stories as well, as it shows us just how corrupt the legal system can be. it also gives you a better overview of what you had to endure in those times. so this one is a thumbs up from me!

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Beautiful mind tries to be an in-depth story about a brilliant but antisocial doctor. However, it never gets to really solve the cases it presented. Maybe the fact that it ended too soon (14 episodes when the most of the dramas have 16 in average) didn't help with it. So, was it good? It's good enough. The romance was sweet, though it was quick and short, but I guess it works as the drama manly focuses on the hospital, the illegal activity that takes place there, the doctor and his relationship with his father, and his emotional issues. I think that the illegal cases were too ambitious, as they weren't really got solved satisfyingly. The medical cases were interesting, and the way they were solved was quite entertaining. Also, the story about the doctor was really good, as the character evolves and changes throughout the drama, as well as his relationship with his colleagues. One thing that bothered me was the fact that everyone called the doctor a monster because of his condition. I hoped that it would be like "It's okay, it's love", were they handled the issue very sensitively and introduced the audience to not discriminate people with mental illnesses. However, in beautiful mind, that's not the case. The guy was called a monster till the very end. Finally, the acting was good and that helped with the development of the story. So, 6 out of 10.

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One of the two period dramas that aired at the same time, Love in the moonlight had to compete with Scarlet heart, a drama that occupied most of the male actors of Korea and had in its arsenal big idol names like I.U. and Baekhyun from Exo. However, Moonlight managed to hit the big ratings and still gets the buzz even though it finished. That is mostly due to the good story: a girl who pretends to be a boy her whole life, ends up becoming a eunuch to serve the crowned prince, that ends up falling for her. Then there is the chemistry of the two actors, even though the girl was under-aged in real life, but still the age gap wasn't that obvious. Also the delightful performance of Bo Gum not only aided the drama, but also gained him a big fan base and surely future roles as well. I would like to add the good performance by Jinyoung as well, even though his story was side lined and it would have been better if his background story would have been explained better. Unfortunately the last episode was a little disappointing, as the story could have concluded in the previous episode. So, 6 out of 10.

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The concept of this drama was interesting enough, but it didn't quite succeeded on getting it through till the end. One of the positives of this drama was the fact that it had mini cases in each episode, like the background story of the ghosts. Plus, the pace was fast, and it didn't drag along at the last few episodes, though the final one was not that good. As for the romance, it was okay, and they did find a way to make it work (in K dramas they always do!!). However, the ghost stories didn't blend smoothly enough with the main story, which was a little like a replica of Oh my ghost (especially the evil spirit situation). The performances were okay and the action was really entertaining, so, for that, 7 out of 10.

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My unfortunate boyfriend is an easy drama. Well, first of all, its not actually a drama. Is a light comedy, with romance and a little of a power game. The story is about a guy, who's all kind hearted to the point of being foolish, and a girl, who lies and cheats in order to get what she wants. The romance is quite sweet, with a nice enough love triangle. The first episode was almost idiotic, however, fortunately, the rest of the drama is quite entertaining and fast paced and it doesn't repeats the flash backs and the background story too much to make it unbearable. The quick story line is one of the positives of this drama, in addition to the easy story and the cute atmosphere. All in all, a nice drama to spent some relaxing hours watching it.

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Story
For a crime / mystery drama, it has a relatively bright storyline which is refreshing and untypical. The idea of a middle-aged housewife being so hooked onto solving cases in her neighbourhood is really entertaining. Her passion is so adorable, making the mystery cases seem less grim. Every single episode was engaging!


Acting
The two lead actors portrayed their characters very well. Side actors were also great with their supporting roles. The baddies would annoy you, the good guys were hilarious. I have almost no complaints for them.

The only actress I thought was a little lacking was Shin Hyunbin, playing the role of the bad lawyer Jung Jiwon. She would look awkward at times, giving a blank expression. However, her acting does not affect much of the drama.


Music
I do not look out for music in dramas thus I am unable to comment on this.

Rewatch value
I would rewatch this and I would recommend this to all crime drama fans! If you are bored of the mainstream dark crime dramas, do give this a try!
(It's only May but I can confidently say this is my favourite drama of 2017!)

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Heist/scam artist shows aren't unique to Korean dramas/movies, what really made this show enjoyable was the ensemble of characters, especially the partnership between a bumbling upright civil servant and a sleek smooth talking scam artist, which was the beating heart of the show. Ma Dong Seok and Seo In Guk had great chemistry and partnership.

At the start, the heists and scams were impressive, logistically and also psychologically. However, with the inevitable escalation of the stakes of the heists, my expectations were raised again and again for what the final heist/scam would be. I feel a little sad to say that I was somewhat disappointed by what was meant to be the final plot or climax of the show.

However, even if the snazzy heist plotlines were taken away, the show would still be buoyed by the chemistry amongst the ensemble of characters, which were lovingly written and assembled, and gave the show a lot of heart.

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