Reviews

Let me preface this by saying I could be biased... I decided it would be a good idea to watch this during the election season (you know, lighten up the time with some comedy in a relevant situation). No. Not funny. It just depressed my with how accurate it was. So I could very well watch it again and love it... but not until I get past the trauma.

But let's break it down.

Story: It's a circle. It's a constant reflushing of the same plot and that doesn't change until the end. The angst gets reused, the conflict gets reused... it's one giant circle.

Acting/Cast: I actually did enjoy the performances put in by both our leads and the supporting cast. But unfortunately the motions they were put through only allowed them to stretch themselves so much, so the drama suffered. Kim Soo Young was admittedly better than No Min-Young here, but no major complaints.

Music: I suppose it was adequate, nothing special really. And adequate gets a 7.

Rewatch value: Unfortunately the laughs are the sort that lose their funny after the first watch. So don't expect to giggle the second time through. Don't expect to giggle at all if you're electing anybody anytime soon.

In the end I might still give it a go if you're into politics... or if you know how to use your ff button wisely.

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This drama deserves the 10. And no, it's not just because I love Lee Jong Suk. Yes, I do love him. But honestly the series managed to live up to my expectations and more. It was exactly what I wanted from this writer--something fast paced, something that poked fun at the world and the way people think, something with sizzling chemistry and fantastic acting. Best of all, it was something that didn't feel like it needed to explain itself to it's viewers. I know that threw a lot of people off--and some even put it down to the writer not respecting her viewers. But I think W: Two Worlds was like a good Terry Pratchett novel--they drop you in, make you dizzy, tear your heart in two and then patch it up again, with little meta asides to make you smile. The directing too blew my mind: thoughtful, a little bit philosophical and generally gorgeous. There were scenes in every episode that just... stick in my brain, because the directing and videography managed to capture the moment so well. Let me name a few, tell me if I'm wrong: the rooftop exit, the real world street-crossing, the crazy smile during torture, Yeon-joo's interrogation. The world reset, the forgot-me-mantage, The introduction of the book. It's rare for a single series to have so many moments that just stand out in your head like that.

But let's break it down.

Story: Is this the first time this sort of story has been told? No. Among other things there's an A-ha music video, the Inkheart trilogy and the CS Lewis classic series The Chronicles of Narnia. All feature stories that come to life and real world character's interactions in them. But none of them have so deeply explored the existential ideas inherent to the premise. As for the premise not being explained... well... it's the premise. That's like asking Harry Potter to explain why wands make magic. They just... do. Or asking Brandon Sanderson what broke the Cosmere. The story is tight, fast-paced, makes you think and allows the viewers to have an imagination. It's got the details to make it work and the flexibility to let you run with it.

Acting//Cast: Here I will admit to being biased. Lee Jong Suk is the only actor I admit to wanting a giant poster of on my wall. But I have good reason--he's one of those actors who's value lies in the microexpressions. Not all emotions need to be spelled out blatantly, and he does a great job using the minute facial tics we have to convey his thought process. Han Hyo Joo was fantastic as well, one of the best K-drama heroines I've seen to date. She had a strong will, never gave that up, knew what she wanted even when it was impossible and thought on her feet. She had good comedic timing and made a good foil for some of the more subtle emotion on Lee Jong Suk's part. And the villain killed their part, no spoilers.

Music: Since I'm not super picky I don't feel qualified to give it a 10, but I will say that the music added to the tone and world of the drama. W: Two Worlds feels like a well done super-hero story, and the music reflects that. It's not overbearing but it's not absentee, either.

Rewatch Value: So much. I rewatched episodes three or four times (in pieces, mostly) while writing my first review of the series. And I've rewatched the beginning episodes with other people. It's still just as good as the first time around (again, like Terry Pratchett).

In the end, you'll have to form your own opinion. But for me it's one of the best K-dramas I've watched to date, tying only with Marriage Contract and Signal for 1st place. I don't really know if this is allowed, but I wrote a massive 5 part review of this series on my own blog, if you want to really know what I think of it. Link is here:

https://cozybooks.wordpress.com/2016/09/20/drama-rant-w-two-worlds-pt-14/

(That's only a link to the first part, just search the title for the rest).

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The Good:



I'm having trouble coming up with things for this one. I think very often it's easy to overlook a drama's strong points because its flaws are so obvious. It is especially so for Moon Lovers. And so I'll acknowledge that this review perhaps isn't really that great of a reflection of the quality of the drama.



Firstly, I think the drama did a pretty good job in executing several parts of the story, particularly when the supporting characters die. I think that's partly due to the actors' portrayals, and partly because the writer seemed to have gotten his grip on at the right moments. It would have been great if the writing was more consistent throughout the drama. If the drama managed to relay such poignant emotions more frequently I wouldn't have felt as detached from the story. In any case, I think those scenes were possibly the most awesome scenes in the drama.



Next, Lee Jun-ki. I'm certainly biased, but I think he delivered his character well, especially during the more emotional scenes. I can't elaborate more since I don't want to spoil the story. I also appreciated his cleaned-up look after he became emperor. It was about a thousand times better than that side-swept fringe hairstyle. I'm not that fond of his acting as a "blood-thirsty" emperor however. I like how his expressions changed, but imo he overacted a little when trying to portray Wang So's darker side. I also think Hong Jong-hyun was pretty good in his role as well. All in all, I don't think the acting was deserving of all the criticisms it was subjected to. I won't deny that there are some jarring scenes here and there because of "not-so-great" acting, but on the whole it was pretty watchable as far as I'm concerned and the actors did improve.



Lastly, the romance. I don't think the chemistry was great. However, there were certain scenes which were really cute. I'm personally not a huge fan of lovelines actually, but people who like to watch romance scenes will like it. It's a pity that a couple of scenes were cut from the international version, and you have to scour the Internet to look for the SBS version.



The Bad:



I think they got the OST choices very, very wrong. I'm personally not a fan of rap songs, and I don't think rap songs have a place in a historical drama anyway. The music was really annoying in some of the scenes because of this. Also, the fact that there were English lyrics in a couple of others as well. However, I did give a high score to the music because:

1. The "dadada" song was really catchy, despite the fact that it's not very suitable for the drama.

2. I also liked My Love by Lee Hi and Wind by Jung Seung-hwan.

3. Im Sun-hye's Will Be Back was really really really good. Not something I'll listen to in my spare time, but I felt it added value to the drama.

And seeing how they phased out the more unsuitable songs towards the end, I'm alright with giving them a higher score.



Many people have also complained about the directing. I have to say, I was actually overwhelmed by it at the start. I loved the shot with Wang So riding away from the eclipse. It was beautiful. Till I realised that that's perhaps the only redeeming scene. A lot of close-ups were wholly unnecessary. I don't mind that the director likes to take close-up shots, but I think it should be done in moderation, and only when it's contributing to the drama. The poor directing and editing knocked a lot of points off this drama.



Also, this may seem like a minor point, but despite it being a high budget production they didn't invest a lot in calefares. I understand that they wanted to put focus on the main characters, but does it make sense that no one is on the streets when Wang So and Hae Soo snuck out? I thought a festival was supposed to be ongoing but there wasn't even a soul on the streets. It just seemed too "cold" because there were only the two of them.



The Ugly:



The writing really let the drama down. I was actually looking forward to more political intrigues, a stronger heroine, better character development in general, and more cohesiveness.



I don't know what the writer was thinking of when he/she first starting conceptualising the characters. They had to dig into Kdrama tropes and hand Wang So a parent issue right at the start. Was that necessary? Was it necessary to give him a scar too? I think the writer was trying very hard to plant conflicts, but it didn't work to plan. And because of the scar, they made the female lead a cosmetics saleswoman. Not very useful in the ancient times. In fact (minor spoiler), it's was awkwardly hilarious that at the end they spoke about how Goryeo was very advanced in terms of cosmetics and tea culture. Riiiiiiight. Furthermore, Hae Soo wasn't the female lead I expected as well. I wanted a stronger, smarter, more independent female lead. Plus the fact that all the princes were crazy for love made them seem like really superficial characters. Personally, if your only motivation to fight for the throne is love, I absolutely will not love you. That's just too lame a reason.



Characters aside, I also have qualms about how they choose to leave out certain scenes. A lot of scenes were left to the viewers' imaginations, and that made the show really incoherent. At the very least they should have added in some of the more important scenes. How Wang So got the throne and all was pretty poorly thought out. The time skips weren't handled well as well (though the same can be said of the Chinese version). They were just there to advance the story so that the next scene can be played out, but the characters didn't really grow or change. Side plots such as the Baek-ah and Woo-hee story line was also choppy and they were given what I'd consider a slipshod ending that didn't make much sense.



Conclusion:



The drama is just disappointing. I expected a lot from it, but I don't think the fact that it was a pre-production did anything for it, nor the fact that it was a high-budget production because that totally didn't show. I think it may be worth a look if you like any of the actors, but that's about it.

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After watching this drama, it did made me feel good. a lot had said this this is quite long and draggy. I felt the same way but the pacing of the story was superb. When I decided to watch this drama, my expectations was somewhat like this is going to be hilarious all the way through but I was wrong. The drama has more sense. A lot of people have dreams of becoming a royalty but seeing this drama has shown a different side of it. There is a price to pay. Greed, selfishness, ambition, innocence, love, family, crisis, pressure has been tacked in this drama. We are not royalty but Goong did touched base with reality.

The acting part was outstanding, I cannot say anything bad about it because they delivered well. From the innocence of Shin Chae Kyung to the coldness of Shin Goon it was all believable. The greed and ambition of Yul and his mother. The quirky and innocent Queen Mother. The King and Queen. And all supporting cast did a terrific job.

Music was superb as well. It blend well with every situation.

This drama is worth to be watch again once in a while.

Overall, I rated this drama high because of the sensibility and the realities of life it shown. Even royals have a lot of troubles. We may see how happy they are but who knows it's all a facade. I just love this drama. This goes directly to my Instant Classic List.

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Warning! This review will be long because I can't help having *A Lot* to praise.

Let me just start off by saying that I had been waiting for this drama to air since late last year, when it was first announced. When the first of January arrived, I was excited, but then my soul was crushed when I found out that it was to be pre-produced and that while the shooting began in early January, the actual drama would not air until August. I thought I was going to die! >_<

Finally, August 29th arrived, and with it, the airing of the very first episode. I was immediately captivated and hooked. The original Scarlet Heart is one of my favorite dramas, so I was really looking forward to the Korean adaption. I was *not* disappointed at all. I stayed hooked and obsessed with this drama the entire way through.

Story:
This was an adaption, so even I was a little unsure how faithful to the original it would be. There were a couple of times I was sincerely worried that it was going to veer off course, but my fears there were proven to be groundless. Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Goreyo truly impressed me with how faithful it stayed to the original story while adapting it to real, actual Goreyo history. There were a couple of things it did leave out that did disappointment me, however. The relationship between 4th Prince and 13th Prince was not shown as often as in the original, at least in the earlier episodes. It made up for it in the latter episodes, though, plus, having only 20 episodes, extra things being cut down is understandable. The only other missing piece for me is very minor, but still felt like an endearing part was left out. In the original, 4th Prince had a habit of teasing the female lead by thumping her on her forhead. Here in Moon Lovers, that only occurs once, and it is a light smack on the head instead. I missed the thumps very much! :(

Cast:
I sincerely think that the whole cast was excellent. Especially Lee Joon Gi as 4th Prince Wang So. This man is my bias, it is true, but here in this role, it is easy to understand why. He is, quite blunty, amazing in this. He dominates every scene he is in. His emotions are raw and heartwrenching and I daresay he deserves a best actor award this year for this.

IU as Hae Soo was very good, as well. During the airing, a lot of netizens were putting her down and criticizing her acting, but I think she was great. Honestly, the Korean version of this character was written differently than the Chinese version. She was not nearly as strong or independant, so that is a reason in the writing, not IU's acting. I liked her here.

Kang Ha Neul as 8th Prince Wang Wook was truly impressive. I have always liked him, but he really blew me away here with his portrayal of hopeless romantic turned manipulative bastard. He really shines here, especially as he evolved into the antagonist.

Baekhyun as 10th Prince deserves a mention here too. Despite also getting a lot of grief from netizens, I was truly impressed with him and how he acted here. I wonder how many of those that shamed him had ever even seen the original Scarlet Heart or even knew what sort of character 10th Prince was, because Baekhyun was absolutely perfect! The character of 10th Prince is, frankly speaking, childish and not very smart. He is overly enthusiastic and quick to respond, but slow to 'get' things. Baekhyun portrayed this perfectly and it was not a lack of talent at all, in my opinion, but a truely legitimate rendition of the character. I say this, by the way, as someone who does not follow K Pop at all and whose only knowledge of EXO is what my friends post on the feeds here and the song that was used in this drama.

Hong Jong Hyun as 3rd Prince impressed me as well. I knew who he was before, had seen him around, but he never really stood out to me before this. He was wonderfully manipulative and evil here, plus he shows a wonderful range of conflicting emotions as his character evolves. He makes a great bad boy and looks *very* sexy in guyliner.

Music:
The music was great. I fell in love with every OST that was released. Even though it was, essentially, a historical drama, most of the non instrumental songs were modern K Pop. However, I found it a lovely paradox that fit very well, given that the heroine is a time traveller from our modern times. As the story goes on, she adapts so well to her new home in that time period that it is almost possible to forget that she doesn't really belong there. The music that plays during the drama feels like a reminder of this fact. It is like a link from the Goreyo period to modern times.

In the end, I enjoyed this drama more than any other drama this year, and more than all other dramas I have seen thus far. There are some things that I feel did not quite match up to the original, but then there are also aspects I felt were better. After thinking on it a good while, I have decided that I liked this Korean version even more than the Chinese version. For me personally, I feel I was more emotionally invested and it just seemed to hit me harder. It has earned the #1 spot on My Favorites list. It has made me feel a range of emotions, starting even before it ever aired. It has both enthralled and enchanted me. It also broke my heart. Very few dramas have ever actually made my heart flutter or truly brought me tears. Moon Lovers was one that accomplished that. Now that it is all over, I am left in a daze, not knowing what to do next, just as I was after completing the first Scarlet Heart. I do not often rewatch dramas, especially the very emotional ones, but I feel like this one will end up being an exception. It is hard to say goodbye to it and let go. For me, Moon Lovers is a masterpiece.

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This was a cute, short and quite clean drama. (By clean I mean not much violence, no sex.)

I don't want to spoil anything but the plot premise is this: a student is working in a hostess bar - her teacher comes there - cimcumstances change so that the girl temporarily lives with her teacher and of course complications arise from that.

This is not a very deep drama, but it was a good time-filler. I watched it without subtitles on a site called VK but it was simple enough to understand even with my lousy Japanese.

I liked the cast, they had to work with the characters they were given, the male teacher was my favourite - might watch something else from him. The girl was cute and side characters, while not memorable, were okay.

I'm a fan of series about taboo topics (like this: a kind of a relationship between a younger person and an authority figure) so I'm not sure if this really was as good as I think or if I really just like the plot concept. But if you're bored, and don't mind watching without subs, then it's a nice time-filler.

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Ok, this is the first drama that i watch when it was still airing..

STORY
It is based on Bu Bu Jing Xin novel from China, so i cannot criticize it for it's weakness.
However, I still think that this show should have more episodes coz the few last episodes seem to be fast forwarded, everything happened so fast and somehow i don't understand why certain people did certain things? There are too many characters that have not been developed well enough, so I don't really have attachment with the characters here except maybe 4th Prince character lol.

As for Hae Soo character, I really dislike her character so much. I know the author of that novel created her that way, ok, ok, but i really don't like her. She is weak and too naive. Somehow her sense of justice is twisted too, i don't understand her action.. Or maybe since this show does not have many episodes, i still don't understand hae soo's character.. I don't know. I don't see what's the reason many princes fall for her. She is quite pitiful though, to be trapped between palace politics.

I like the politic but the politic is not deep enough, too focus on romance and romance as the reason for them to act. Certain part/scene seem to be forced just like that without any reasons to back up. Certain action is also questionable and without explanation why they do it. I still left with questions even though the drama has ended..

ACTING
Acting is good, especially for Lee Joon Gi and Kang Ha Neul. IU is also not bad, could be better.
Lee Jon Gi can act perfectly, he can show 4th prince character so well without being disrespectful.

MUSIC
Music is good from the beginning although some musics are too modern for this era.. So it's a bit out of place while listening it during the scene...hahahaha so weird, but if the songs are listened by itself, without the movie, they are catchy..

Re-watch
I don't really re-watch anything

OVERALL
My feeling while watching it just like a roller-coaster, sometimes annoyed, sad, angry, happy, disgusted etc.The ending is satisfying for me, coz i believe hae soo need to get a lesson for her poor actions, but i think she does not even realize what her mistakes. I don't really like the Chinese novel original story, But this show really bring Lee Joon Gi for more fame and I don't mind since he is such a talented actor..

I admit that this drama is great, they put everything in details, like the scenery, the costums, make up, the palace, really beautiful, but i really disike lead female character so it may harm my review..
I still recommend u to watch this drama, if u want something unpredictable u should watch this.




****SPOILERSSSSS!!!**************************************************************************************

When I said certain things seem to be forced without any reason, that Eun's death, oh come on, it's Yo who Killed him and why Eun asked So to finish him instead, it does not make sense.

I also don't understand why woo hee needs to sacrifice her life, yes she is baekje princess but there is other way to stop the war.

Don't understand why Queen Yoo hates her child 4th prince so much but love her other kids so much????! There is no reason at all, Why is she so cold blooded with her own blood? If he is not related to her, i would understand, but he is her own flesh and blood. Also don't understand Kang family, i thought they hate 4th prince but then why they are helping 4th prince to take the throne? I NEED TO SEE MORE WARS!! HAHAHA, i really hope to see how well they fight when 4th prince take the throne, but there is no scene like that hix!

Don't understand why finally Won drink poison when he read ChaeRyung's letter, i mean he is clearly a cruel person whose hobby is to kill his own brothers but why only now he is sad and regret of his action only because of 1 slave that he used before? No idea. And so many more that i could not explain one by one here. The writer nim is weird.

Jung is being a good husband, perhaps if Soo did not die, she will be happy with Jung... Too bad Soo does not have enough time to turn her affection to Jung hahaha

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Scarlet Heart Ryeo is the kind of drama that you wished it won't ended that fast. Not because of the rush story plot (I think it's well paced), but mainly because everything about this drama is so good you wish there will be more. That is why I am writing a review only few hours after watching this drama last episode.

As far as the story goes, I am glad. I am glad that they didn't try to change the history of Goryeo and the original version of Scarlet Heart China just to make an ending that will please all the hardcore fans (because many people, including me, who wish there will be one happy ending). I am glad the production team decided to stay true to the original version and produced this drama as a really solid piece of a remake drama.

I can't even start describing how good all the actors portrayed their characters. The development of each and every important characters are there. From the good, to the bad. They really did it well. I love all the actors, although I know I will leave Scarlet Heart with a deeper love to Joon Gi. I started this drama as a Joon Gi fans, and when I watched the first episode I did worry slightly: How if I don't love him here? Am I expecting too much from him?
But I am so glad to breath a proud sigh of relief, as Joon Gi has done a very good job as usual. What I love about him is that he can tackle countless roles and characters which is what is very clear here, by displaying elements of being an heartless to many yet caring prince becoming a somehow "cruel" king in the end.

Now, although I have watched a lot of K-dramas, I am not the one who will listen to their OSTs, until Scarlet Heart Ryeo. I can't stop playing and replaying all the tracks in my phone even when I am writing a review for this drama. All the songs works very well with this drama and I really enjoy listening to all of them. I know I do, since I have been humming ever since.

Well, enough said, I know I will rewatch this drama. Simply because this drama is almost flawless in its delivery - well executed story plot, excellent casting, and brilliant soundtracks, with each episode leaving you wanting more. Recommended!

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Moon Lovers and I go wayy back. When Scarlet Heart first came out back in 2011, it was all the rage. At that time I was into my second year of drama-watching and I hadn't watched anything much besides Korean dramas. But I remember a bunch of my online friends strongly recommended me to start Scarlet Heart. In fact, 5 years later, I still haven't been recommended a drama like that, with such intense passion and by so MANY people. But sadly, I never got around to watching it. I was really uncomfortable with the language, the historical setting, the bald-look of the princes (okay, I SAID IT, I'm sorry, I was shallow). But somewhere, at the back of my mind, I had made this little tale that the drama is going to be made into a Korean drama one day, with all these hot actors as leads and I'll just wait it out and watch it then. And okay, a remake is pretty logical because they go around making a lot of remakes but when they announced this, I swear I got goosebumps. Like "I don't believe this--this what I have been dreaming of all my life--someone please pinch me--I should star in the next Final Destination movie now" sort of goosebumps.

So yes, saying that I was excited for Moon Lovers was putting it very mildly. I was exhilarated. Ecstatic. A lot more words with an E. And they made us wait even longer by making it a pre-produced drama and waiting a whole year before it actually came out.

But the best part? It didn't disappoint one bit. I mean, after such high expectations, it is only natural to feel a little let-down just because of all the hype you've been experiencing. But Moon Lovers actually ended up surpassing all my expectations. The drama was perfect from the beginning till the end.

Coming to the plot, it was extremely well-paced. I mean, for dramas it is rare to find such consistently well-paced dramas. Sometimes the beginning is not that good and sometimes the plot dies down after ep 12-16. But here, you never feel like there is too much or too little. It is really hard to skip anything. You just don't want to. Another important fact is that because an older version is already out there, viewers are prepared for a possibly sad/tragic ending. Even if you come without knowing anything about the parent story, the vibe of the show itself whispers the possibility of an un-fairytale-like outcome. There is an intense and gloomy feeling in the show.

The characters are the strength of the drama. I mean, can we talk about the fourth Prince? He is going down in history as one of my favorite characters ever. Firstly, he is so sexy. I mean, you simply can't get enough of him. I have never really been into Lee Jun Ki before but after this, I plan to check out all his dramas. I have seen a couple of his shows but I never realized he was THIS good. The character of Wang So is so complex and so hard to deliver. And yet, Lee Jun Ki plays him so effortlessly, becoming one with the character. What is even more surprising is that he is such a cutie in real life (lol). I really don't know anyone more perfect for this role. I mean, Kang Ha Neul's character turned to the dark side too but it was nothing compared to Wang So. Wang So was simply..addictive!

Coming for Hae Soo. IU faced a lot of flack for her poor acting skills but I felt she was good in her role. I mean, she wasn't as good as Jun Ki or Ha Neul but she did really well. You could feel her transformation from a 21st century person to Goryeo lady to a woman with a lot of scarring experiences. In her previous works she has only done cutesy roles. I really enjoyed her work in this, she showed her versatility as a serious actor. The 13th Prince. He was gentle and kind and the most perfect friend. I loved his chemistry with Woo Hee. It was surprisingly great!

Wang Eun was a big baby but he was a sweetheart too. I wouldn't say Baek Hyun is a good actor but he was given an easy role and it was handled well. Ji Soo was a delight to watch! So far I have loved him in all his roles (I think I have watched everything he has starred in). The rest of the cast was really good too. My favorite among supporting characters was General Park. His acting was so on-point even though he only starred for a few episodes. I liked his daughter too. Ji Mong was a delight to watch. And court lady Oh Sang Goong, I loved her! I can really go on and on about the characters - the good ones and the bad ones, all did well. The acting was so good here, I just couldn't get enough of it. I cried with them and laughed with them.

The music. OH MAN, the music. I love each and every song. This hasn't happened to me since Dream High (I think). I really can't pick a song that I like more than the other.

I am definitely DEFINITELY rewatching this. I know for sure.

The biggest tragedy that comes out of this drama is that the Korean audience could not fully appreciate the perfection that this drama was. The ratings were so low there. Thankfully, it did well everywhere else and made up for it.

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As i was reading some the reviews i saw a lot of negative ones and honestly i'm not really surprised. The acting was average, the music was average and some of the story line seemed a bit unrealistic. Now having said that. I have read the manga, watched the anime, watched the original Japanese drama and the newer Japanese drama and watched the Korean version. And this was by far my favourite one out of all of them.
Like i said the acting was average and came off cheesy in most scenes, but it was just one of those things that just for some reason or another captivated me and kept me thoroughly entertained. I guess you could say i in some ways or another related to the main character Xiang Qin. A unrequited love throughout high school not knowing how to call it quits even when the other party does not seem the slightest bit interested. Now i can't say that i ever have lived with one of my crushes before but that was one of the things i loved the most about the story. Was how funny and out there it was.
I guess one of the main reasons why i loved this version so much is because of how much detail they put in the story line. IF you watch season 1 and 2 they cover from their high school years all the way up to the point they are old enough to go out there and try to chase the their careers. I also loved how the portrayed Zhi Shu's character. I thought Cheng Joe did an amazing job portraying that character. At least out of all the other male leads in the different versions of this drama. He was cold, mean, nasty at times and yet could be gentle, kindhearted and loving and not even know it. I will admit for the first time i watched this i absolutely hated his character. I kept thinking is there really a reason to make him so dang nasty all the time. But there was. Out of all the characters in this story he grew the most. From the first episode to the very last you could see how much his character had changed. And yet even though he had changed his character didn't end being one of those wishy washy characters that you just find annoying at the end of the series. Another thing i will give credit was they didn't add in a lot of cheesy dialogue where you are thinking oh my goodness please just end it already. I thought it was rightly timed and executed. It is really hard as well when making a romance to not have cheesy lines, because to most people anything romance related is pretty cheesy. Now i know a lot of people will disagree with my rating of this drama but at the end of the day, at the end of each episode i finished it with a smile on my face and constantly going back in for more. Now if that's not what you want an audience to feel then how should one feel after watching a romantic comedy? But again this is all in my humble opinion.

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Let me just start of with saying i was extremely excited for this live action. I absolutely adored the manga series. I re-read it i don't know how many times. That being said i find it sad to say i have found this live action to be a massive let down. They changed some very important events from the manga, which were some of the biggest turning points in the series. As well as they added in nearly all of the supporting characters with characters that don't even exists in the manga. Don't get me wrong if i hadn't read the book i would have given this a much higher rating. I just feel if you were a big fan of the manga like i was there is a really good chance you will find this to be a huge let down.

One of the bigger issues i had with this drama was how they interpreted the main character hokuto and chiwa.
Hokuto in the manga came off as a very stand offish character. Very cold and very self centred. From the very beginning of the series his main goal was to be the head of the mamiya company which has been in his family for generations. In the manga he did not have any friends or family he felt he could rely on. In his world he was virtually alone and that was the way he wanted it.

One of the issues i had with chiwa was in the manga she did start out as a semi damsel in distress. However she never once stopped and whined and complained about her situation or her family's situation. She was always strong willed and a pillar of support for hokuto even when he didn't know he needed it. They were always helping each other out in ways they didn't even think were possible.
One of the other bigger changes they made was in the manga Chiwa was actually an employee of the mamiya company although they never really specified what that was but that was one of the things that got the manga off to such a good start in my opinion. That was where you really saw them start to grow and develop a relationship with one another, however rocky that relationship was.
The original story line in the book wasn't one of the most original piece's i have ever read but it defiantly was one of the most entertaining. There was romance, suspense, twists, comedy and so much more. A lot that the live action was missing. The book was so intense in some parts like wow did they really just do that. Or you would think wow did he just really say that about that person etc. I honestly feel like this is one of those dramas you watch because you either have nothing to do or just simply want to watch something simple and cliche. But hey again this is all just my opinion. I do recommend though reading the manga if you haven't already and see if you agree with the changes they made and what this drama was seriously lacking.

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I'm going to be honest here. This is by far the worst drama I've ever seen. First few episodes were misleading, they made this drama seem promising. However, as the time went on, each episode gradually got worse and worse, to the point where it was laugh-worthy. However, I continued to have my hopes up, thinking maybe it would redeem itself more towards the end. My hope was shattered, the last episode was terribly disappointing, though it honestly was to be expected. Almost gave it one star, but gave it a second one due to the fact the very beginning wasn't all that bad, and some of the characters were actually very lovable. (I say "some," because really, the majority of the characters were just ridiculous and downright stupid).


"Acting/Cast" score clarification:
The actors were not bad at acting, but the characters they played as were ridiculous. I'm therefor not sure how to rate this category properly.

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I really enjoyed this drama, especially the first few episodes. I am a sucker for Romantic Comedy so this was a hit for me. It very much reminded me of Sungkyunkwan Scandal, but it had a different twist to it. The later episodes was more the politics -- so it kinda went draggy for me but not that bad. The Prince is just too eye candy and it is as if makes you forget that it is not a perfect drama. I felt the pain when the main couple are in pain - meaning their acting was superb. You just want their love to succeed in spite of the odds against them. There is just something captivating about dramas when a girl pretends to be a boy...

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Warning! Long Review/Reaction/Opinion

First of all, the drama title caught my attention since I’m very much in love with fairytales ever since.
From the start, I don’t have too much expectation from the drama since I know the story line is already a cliché – rich guy falling in love with poor girl. The only twist is that she has four knights in shining armor. But in my opinion, it’s three knights only.

PLOT
As I mentioned, plot is already a cliché. The development for me is very slow. I find some episodes boring but I still keep on watching, hoping it will develop sooner. I’m bothered by the missions given by rich grandpa. Is it only 3 missions? After the trip mission, what’s next? The 3 grandsons don’t even get closer after the 3rd mission. They just get closer on the process. The 4th mission I believe is just an excuse of Ha Won. The ending proves that this is indeed a fairytale with a “Happily ever after”.

CHARACTERS
I love the characters since I knew most of them especially Jung Shin – CNBLUE Fanatic here. :)
The main female lead is not so beautiful but definitely cute and with lot of charms. I believe, she gave justice to who Cinderella is.

Until now I’m calling Jung II Woo as the “Scheduler”. Yeah, I knew him since 49 Days and I knew how good an actor he is. It’s regretted that he can’t show his 100% skills since this is just a very light drama. Nevertheless, there’s indeed chemistry between him and Ha Won that you should definitely watch for.

I find it really hard to watch Ahn Jae Hyun! As if I’m controlling myself to fall in love with him more. Haist! If only he’s not yet married. Well, I still cheer Ahn Jae Hyun from behind. Let’s get back to his character. I just don’t get it after his broadcasted confession with Ha Won. He had 180 degree character change. And his story just revolved with Hye Ji afterwards. He confessed that he like Ha Won but he didn’t give justice to that confession. He got rejected, so what? He can fight for it or formally accept defeat. But atleast he should do something and don’t let that scene left hanging. He just switch right away to Hye Ji. Although I knew he love Hye Ji from the start but I felt that his confession to Ha Won is somewhat true as well.

Jung Shin! The so called “Avatar” of his CNBLUE brothers. Haha. I find his character very genuine. Actually, I still find Jung Shin in his character as Seo Woo. I’m wondering how his fellow CNBLUE reacts everytime they watch him. I love Jung Shin but there’s nothing too much to say about his character in this drama.

I also knew Son Naeun way back WGM stunt with Taemin of Shinee. I am quite surprise that she also acts. Is this her first time acting? If yes, I will forgive her poor acting skills. She has a lot more to improve if she really wants to pursue this field. I find her character a nuisance in this drama. I think it’s better if she just played a real antagonist. Maybe, she’ll be appreciated more that way. I felt that even without her character, the drama will still go on as it is.

The fourth knight but a not so knight at all, Secretary Yung Soung. IMHO he is the knight of the rich grandpa and not by Ha Won. :) I don’t know why they include him as the fourth knight but we can’t barely feel his presence as Ha Won's knight at all.

OVERALL
If you are just looking for a feel good drama without any high expectations, I will recommend this one. It’s not bad at all and it’s still worth the 16 episode watch.

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