An Interesting Romance and Political Story All Wrapped Into One
A Splendid Match does exactly what it promises. It splendidly matches up the main couple, who have quite different temperaments and yet are similar in enough in certain aspects aspects that it simply clicks. Certain characters truly grow and develop until the end of the drama like Ye Xian and Gu Lan, though Ye Xian is offered more screentime and is one of the best - if not THE best - SML's out there.The deaths of certain characters were incredibly heart wrenching. I had a good cry two times in this drama and I love when a story actually makes me care!
Overall, the Gu family feud at the beginning of the drama was just a little better structured. The last arc is both rushed and yet too few things happen at the right time. I would have enjoyed a bit more focus on Jinzhao's female relationships and her business ventures around those episodes. Some political things just happen instead of being reacted to by the joint force of the main couple.
One big caveat are also the excessive fade to blacks that are awkward. They are used for censorship but also lack of time and probably lack of budget.
Despite that, I actually enjoy the ending (as in the last episode). It does not wrap everything up perfectly but there doesn't need to be a lengthy epilogue. The goal is reached. The deed is done.
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I love the plot
The plot is my fav part. At the beginning, it is a bit slow, but it got better every ep. I really love the show. The only thing I hate about this is the costume. Women's clothes are ugly.I hope to see more show like this. Women might be seen as fragile at the beginning, but she is very strong, even with petite body.
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1A Perfectly Acceptable Romcom
Sometimes, I just want to watch pretty people in pretty clothes and surroundings entertain me. Perfect Crown fit that need perfectly.The Good:
• There's something about IU I like. She was achingly believable in My Mister, mesmerizing in Hotel del Luna, heartbreaking in Moon Lovers: SHR, and authentic in The Producers. She did well here as the striving, overachieving chaebol trying to secure her position by becoming royalty.
• Byeon Woo Seok was the perfect Prince Charming: tall, handsome, and a bit tragic.
• Gong Seung Yeon did a fantastic job as the Queen. She was a scene stealer.
• The supporting cast of a secondary romantic couple (very sweet and just the right amount of time so as to not take away from the main couple); the family members; and the villain were all top notch.
The Bad:
• The characters weren't consistent. Evil, vindictive people don't flip a switch and become decent and caring. Am I supposed to believe treating a child with demeaning, cold neglect was done out of some noble purpose? A person who has grasped for power all her life suddenly walked away from it? An ambitious person who has never actively pursued the object of his affection becomes willing to risk his career and soul by killing for her?
• The politics and machinations were never fully explained. Once the villain was exposed, there was no mention of him again.
• The drama felt as though entire scenes were cut, because the edits didn't always make sense.
• I realize this is an odd complaint, but those fake press-on nails were distracting. I'd feel relief when suddenly they were gone (hospital scene and others), but they'd return in the next scene. This is the second recent K-drama I've watched with those bad press-on nails. I hope this isn't a trend. I suffer through bad wigs in sageuks; must I suffer through bad nails in modern dramas?
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This review may contain spoilers
Too much fluff, not enough Investigating, and as you will find out, no mystery.
Let's start with the parallel worlds, which, for some reason, everyone believed Mum about without question. We have the main world, which is Mum's, then Dew's world that exists parallel to it. The interesting thing about the parallel worlds in this series is that it only works in room 609 from 12 am to 1:05 am. The month and years are the same, but the days are different; for Mum, it all starts on the 6th, and for Dew the 24th, and each day forward for Mum is a day backward for Dew.I both love and hate this late detail. On the one hand, it adds a layer of complexity that I hadn't seen before; on the other, it creates a couple of problems with the plot. First, because everything works backwards in Dew's world, that means at the starting point for Mum, Dew already knows everything that has happened to that point, especially when we learn that Mum told him everything on Dew's day one. Why didn't Dew tell him everything when he learned they were working in reverse order? Search me. To build suspense and tension? Didn't work. When I found out that Dew knew who killed him and why all along, I was so annoyed for reasons I will get to in a minute. The second problem is that it took the suspense and tension out of the 2 or 3 times someone tried to or thought about killing Dew (we didn't know it wasn't real at the time). We knew it wouldn't happen because we knew when it would happen. Dew's fate was sealed, and there was nothing that would change it because everything Mum was doing in Dew's world had already happened for Dew, just not for Mum.
Now, to the reason I was so annoyed with Dew when I learned he knew everything. I won't go into too much detail as I don't want to spoil too much, but to fix everything, all he had to do was break up with Mint. That is it. He didn't need to get An to keep her busy & avoid her. Just break up. It wasn't like he liked her as more than a friend anyway.
Mint is a good, if not overbearing and insufferable, sister. Honestly, I was confused when I learned she's the younger one. I get that she cares, and Mum is the only family she has left, but she was a bit much at times. That being said, Dew's world Mint has some mental problems. Not only does she badger him to date her for literal years, but she also fantasized about killing him when she thinks he might be cheating on her. Breaking up never entered her mind! Mum's world Mint was just as badgery, but she at least was happy that Dew was honest with her. I don't think Dew's world Mint would have been, not based on the amount of yelling and refusal to listen.
An should have been able to tell her that Dew wasn't cheating on her since he was following the boy. I mean, he would have told her he was, but his telling her Dew was gay didn't work out too well either. He was a headache; the only time I liked him was in the little time that he was helping Dew with Mint. He was an angry, drunk 95% of the time, who seemed to do nothing productive but follow Dew around. No idea what Joey sees in him.
Honestly, I hated both Mint and An's characters. An because of how entitled he felt he was to know everything about Dew and Mint's relationship, just because he liked Mint, and he accused Dew of a lot of stuff based on messages Mint posted on her social media. I didn't like Mint because she couldn't accept that Dew only sees her as a friend. After years of constantly asking someone to be your boyfriend, it should be obvious that they said yes, so you'd leave them alone. If I had a friend who wouldn't take no for an answer, I would simply cut ties with them. It could easily turn into something life-threatening if it goes on too long, or maybe I just watch too many crime shows and am paranoid. Based on Mint's reaction, I would like to think I'm not being paranoid.
If the goal was to make me hate Mint, Emi did a great job.
The last episode has an alternate ending, which I sadly couldn't find to watch. The canon ending, Wake Up, saw our characters getting their happy ending, but a lot of it felt unrealistic, and it happened too fast. Mint accepts that her brother loves Dew and helps get them together, and the parents are told about the relationship, and they are okay with it. To make it even more convenient, Mum's world Dew also somehow remembers things that happened between them in Dew's world, and after an encounter with a Mum from another universe, he falls in love with Mum. Almost no time went into building up the relationship between Mum and his world's Dew.
As a side note, these guys are having sex on the first meeting, 3 different times, and at least one of them each time didn't think they were gay . . . Why? And one of those times, life or death information needed to be given, but no let's bone first! I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt.
Probably my favorite thing about the series was Mum morning Dew, whether he knew what happened to him or not, is unclear, but regardless, he knew they wouldn't meet again. Then he picks himself up for the Dew of his universe, only for reality to crash in. His distancing himself from the situation and the people involved was very realistic. The ups and downs of Mum's emotions and mental state were well portrayed by Ohm.
I wish we could have seen a bit of the fallout in Dew's world. It's clear what happened, but I would have liked to have seen the other character's reaction, not just a fade to black.
I also liked Wee and Game as a couple. A was a grade A asshole, and I'm glad that Wee has Game to support and love him.
Overall, the series wasn't bad; I just couldn't stand a couple of characters, and that really brought down my enjoyment of the show. I also wish there had been some actual mystery to solve; we had mostly cute couple moments, not detective work.
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A fresh romcom that sucks you in!
Initial Review at the Halfway Point (Will Post Concluding thoughts after Finale):I don’t really know what I expected from this, but it’s been a blast so far. I’m really optimistic heading into the second half.
Pros:
• A fresh dynamic of the leads — We’ve got a role reversal drama here that took me by surprise. Our ML is NOT the normal K-Drama male lead, and, frankly, I’m here for it. Our FL? She is not our normal female lead, and, again, I’m here for it. The female is a domineering boss with secrets to spare and plenty of hurts while our ML is a cocky employee who has a thing for strong women (not that he’d admit it) and is more in touch with his feelings because he was raised by and around strong women.
• Chemistry — Oh my goodness. The chemistry is there. It is so there, and do NOT get me started on the kiss scene in episode 4. Good grief. These two are dynamite together. I can’t wait to see their dating era.
• Subplots — To my surprise, this show has kept me engaged so far in basically all its subplots. That is no easy feat.
• Production — Just wanted to shout out the overall production of this. The acting, directing, music, cinematography, etc. is very very good.
Cons:
• Slow start — This wasn’t a huge dea, but the pilot is a bit slow for a romcom. In fact, it isn’t until episode 4 that we really get to know the FL’s character (this begins as a male centric narrative and part of the story is the mystery around her). If it would have dragged out longer, I would have been annoyed.
• A potentially very messy love square — Already I find it weird as heck that the ML allowed his ex girlfriend to move into his apartment in episode 1. For the fist five episodes though, it didn’t seem like a big deal. Now it looks like we are about to dive into a very messy love square that has not been introduced very well so I have fear that it could do some damage in the last half. Here’s to hoping not.
Anyway, I am PUMPED for the second half.
Final Review:
This show was a gem, a literal gem. They handled the dynamics of all the shifting relationships with incredible finesse, and the writers/cast truly delivered a stellar second half. The ex-GF drove me crazy, but I actually have to admit they handled her downfall and eventual subtle redemption very well.
Our couple’s dating era was PEAK. And NO messy breakup!! The scene where Ki Jun is defending Inah in the police station had me in tears, and the finale had me cheesy grinning over and over. We got an awesome ending—starting in a similar way it began—with our two leads now a bickering couple. It was adorable and so wholesome. Well worth the watch. It’s my fave K-Drama of the year so far.
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This review may contain spoilers
Möhtəşəm başlanğıc
İlk Bölümdən Heyran Qaldım!Düzünü desəm, Fifties Professionals dizisinin ilk bölümünü izlədikdən sonra aldığım zövqü və həyacanı sözlərlə ifadə etmək çətindir. Hekayəyə belə dinamik, cəsarətli və iddialı bir giriş etmələri gözləntilərimi o qədər aşdi ki heç belə gözləmirdim. İlk bölümdən tempin bu qədər yüksək tutulması və xüsusilə döyüş səhnələrinin sözün əsl mənasında "bomba" kimi işlənməsi layihənin keyfiyyətini dərhal ortaya qoyur. Ekran qarşısında bir an belə darıxmağa vaxt tapmadım, açılış dərhal insanı özünə bağlayır.
Digər tərəfdən, dizinin "ajjushi" heyəti sadəcə mükəmməldir! Bu təcrübəli aktyorların xarizması, ekran enerjisi və rollarını mənimsəmə tərzi layihəni ilk saniyədən zirvəyə daşıyır. Onların hər birini ekranda izləmək, yaratdıqları abu-havanı hiss etmək böyük zövqdür. İlk bölümü çox sevdiyimi və tam mənasıyla heyran qaldığımı deyə bilərəm. Ümid edirəm ki, ssenari və bu yüksək temp heç bir eniş yaşamadan sona qədər belə davam edər və növbəti bölümlərdə də eyni həyacanı hiss edərik. İzləməyə mütləq dəyər!
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It wasn't horrible but it wasn't very good either.
I started this because I like the FL and she did a great job with what she was given.I fell in love with ML, he's very pretty and he also did a good job with his character. if not for how much I like those 2 I never would have made it through this.
The concept for the story was good, but the script and directing were rather lacking. The scenes often felt stitched together and they were clearly relying on violence and the flashing of skin to get us through this.
I managed to power my way to the end where one villain dies and the other gets locked up... and then it ended. No idea what the 2 leads are thinking, feeling, or planning... Just credits.
If not for how much I like the 2 leads I would call this a complete waste of my time. I am thankful I discovered the ML though, so it wasn't a total loss.
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Relatable, and Hopeful
I loved this show. I think it had a message many can relate to and provides a beacon of hope for those who are experiencing their own “slump” in life. We don’t have to push through when we’re tired; we don’t need to pretend to be okay; we can lean on the people in our lives; things won’t always be okay, but we can overcome.The story was mostly well-balanced and well-paced. I noticed that the ratings dipped in the last few episodes, perhaps because the more suspenseful plot points were finished; but I’m glad we got to enjoy our characters’ happiness as they began their next chapters. It had a bit of everything: suspense, romance, friendship, family, humor, and reality. It didn’t shy away from tougher topics and handled them fairly well.
The development we saw from each individual character as well as their relationships with each other was emotional and heartwarming. The way Jeong-woo and Ha-neul came into each others’ lives was fortuitous, and it was wonderful to see their relationship as friends, and lovers, grow. It feels extra rare and special to have someone in our life that understands our pain and wants to support us wholeheartedly. I love how they communicated, how they encouraged each other and allowed each other to be themselves. Sometimes words were needed, but other times they understood how to comfort without speaking at all. It was a treasure to witness.
The family dynamic was also emotional and touching. They showed how love and concern can often be misplaced, how honesty is important, and how we are all trying to love in the best way we know. Their love felt so real.
I cried a lot, but I also was laughing hysterically. The acting from our main cast, particularly Park Hyung-sik and Park Shin Hye, was fantastic. They were able to showcase their full range, and I absolutely loved their characters. It was especially nice to see PSH and her growth as an actress.
The next time I experience my own “slump,” I hope to come back to this show as a reminder that life is hard, but not forever.
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This review may contain spoilers
When the Loose Threads Become the Sweater
When the Loose Threads Become the SweaterI almost underestimated this drama.
For a bit of it, I kept feeling like the political plots resolved too quickly. A corruption case would appear and be solved within an episode or two. A scheme would surface, then seemingly disappear. Compared to stronger layered political dramas where tension quietly accumulates over long stretches, this initially felt too neat and too episodic for me to fully sink into.
But somewhere around the halfway point, everything changed.
The political scheming and maneuvering slowly revealed itself to be interconnected threads leading back to the same source. The drama retroactively transformed many of its earlier conflicts into part of a much larger structure involving corruption, factional manipulation, ideological betrayal, and the slow unraveling of trust within the court itself. Looking back, the writing was more deliberate than I initially gave it credit for — though I still think the series could have benefited from leaving more of those early conflicts visibly unresolved so viewers could better feel the long game developing underneath.
The emotional core of the story ultimately became far stronger than the romance.
Yan Yun and Jin Chao make intellectual sense together from very early on. They respect each other’s intelligence, capability, and judgment. Their partnership works best when they are solving problems together, navigating court danger together, or quietly protecting each other in practical ways. While I personally did not feel strong romantic chemistry between them, their relationship gained strength as the drama shifted its focus away from romance and into political loyalty, betrayal, survival, and shared responsibility.
And honestly, that shift saved the drama for me.
The true heart of the series ended up being Yan Yun’s relationship with Master Fu. What begins as mentor and student slowly transforms into one of the most devastating ideological betrayals I’ve seen in a historical drama in a long time. Yan Yun sincerely believed in the principles Master Fu taught him: that the people should come first, that power should serve the country, that morality mattered more than ambition. Watching him gradually realize that Master Fu himself no longer lived by those principles was heartbreaking in a very adult, layered way.
The drama’s strongest theme ultimately became this:
sometimes the student becomes more faithful to the ideals than the teacher who taught them.
That revelation elevated the entire second half.
The supporting cast was excellent overall, but Ye Xian completely stole the show for me by the end.
He starts off rough, sarcastic, emotionally reactive, jealous, and impulsive. He has been emotionally damaged his entire life by a father who viewed him as weak and useless because of his congenital heart condition. Yet underneath all of that anger is one of the most morally upright characters in the entire drama. Unlike many polished court officials, Ye Xian consistently protects people, investigates honestly, and places duty above personal desire. His relationship with the young emperor becomes one of the strongest dynamics in the series.
And speaking of the emperor: this is my absolute favorite child emperor portrayal I have seen in a C-drama.
He is not naive. He is not simply manipulated by adults. He understands the court frighteningly well for his age and often uses others underestimating him as a weapon. His scenes with Yan Yun and Ye Xian were some of the smartest political scenes in the drama because they felt like genuine strategic conversations rather than adults babysitting a child ruler.
Chen Xuan Qing’s downward spiral was also painful to watch in the best way. His obsession, resentment, inferiority complex, and eventual collapse never felt cartoonish to me because the drama carefully built his psychological dependence on Yan Yun over time. His tragedy was not simply romantic jealousy — it was the destruction of someone who spent his entire life trying and failing to become the man he admired most.
By the final stretch, the drama became genuinely gripping. The northern barbarian conflict, the hidden remnant faction, the exposure of Master Fu’s corruption, the emotional fallout between mentor and student, Ye Xian’s final arc, and the growing sense that the entire court system was rotting underneath its polished surface all came together beautifully.
Ye Xian’s death was especially devastating. His final letters — practical, gentle, accepting, and still focused on protecting others even at the end — perfectly captured who he was as a character. He never became softer, but he became deeply humane.
And the ending itself was unexpectedly strong.
Master Fu was not reduced to a cartoon villain screaming as he lost power. Instead, the drama allowed him to remain tragically human until the end: a brilliant man who truly loved his wife, yet allowed that love, his ambition, and his need for control to destroy the very ideals he once taught. Watching Yan Yun publicly sever ties with him before the final confrontation was one of the most powerful moments in the entire series.
This is not a flawless drama. The middle portion occasionally disguises its larger ambitions too well, which risks making viewers think conflicts are disposable when they are actually cumulative. The romance, while emotionally coherent, may not work for viewers looking for intense chemistry or longing-heavy passion.
But the final fifteen episodes elevated the entire series for me.
What began as a good political historical drama ultimately became a layered story about loyalty, ideology, corruption, mentorship, grief, responsibility, and the painful realization that institutions often survive only because a few good people inside them refuse to stop believing in what they were supposed to stand for.
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I expect that this series will be one of those that might stay with me for a while. As always, I go in blind if I can, and as always, I found that it was the best decision for me. The series started out as a classic horror in a Big House setting -- and then turned out to be something else entirely.
Instead, the drama follows the Thai tradition of happily mixing Western genres and making something unique. And what it is definitely not: A romance-focused BL drama for the masses. I guess that is why the rating on MDL is so low, as it always is for titles that look "BL" at first glance and then actually have layers and a focus elsewhere.
I had absolutely no idea what was going on for the first three episodes -- I was at least as lost as Alan there. Only during episode 3 and in episode 4 did I start to gather what was going on. And even so, the puzzle pieces did not form the whole picture for me until the reveal in the last episode: I had all of the pieces, and I had at least three theories but none of them wanted to fit.
So, for me, "Mystique in the Mirror" falls neatly into my favourite genre of "What on earth is going on?"
In all technical aspects, I didn't see anything I would object to. I did wonder at the start how they would keep up the suspense of the oppressive Big House-setting; but they did not, intentionally so. Likewise, at first I wasn't sure I liked that the second love story was even there -- but it, too, served a purpose: It kept the mood from getting too dark, it gave us hints about what is real and what is not, and it gave a generational balance to the main plot.
At times, I felt that the background music was too much but that was far and few in between. Similarly with the use of colours and shadows -- in some scenes less would have been more. Something that always, always worked for me were the camera angles -- both the use of reflections and the use of Alan's point of view.
Tou Sedthawut was brilliant in his role as Alan, and Nat Sakdatorn as Doctor Nil stood out to me as well. Gig Danai was a delight as always. And the other main cast did well too.
I have to mention the make-up too, which made Alan's face reflect his state of mind perfectly.
All in all, Meowchi on MDL expressed it perfectly in their rewiew here on MDL:
"So you watch this drama two times; first time for the journey and second time for the realization of being aware of the destination. It will hit the same as it did the first time."
Was it good?
Absolutely. It did have some snags, like the overuse of background music at times, but all in all it has an excellent script that neither gives away too much too soon nor has a deus-ex-machina surprise twist -- but *only* if you don't have any info beforehand, even just one tag would be too much. The actors were good to excellent, and everything fits well together in the end.
Did I like it?
Yes! I even replaced one of the four "favourites" on letterboxd with this drama.
Would I recommend it?
How could I not?
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What a mess is a story....
What a mess. I am severely disappointed with this show. I persevered to the end, doubling the speed so I can follow the storyline. After the big reveal in the last episode I immediately could tell that there were far better solutions to the story. It made Xue Wei looks incredibly incompetent.I do enjoy a good political story but this one just doesn't make sense and poorly executed.
I also don't like Ning Er's character. She was smart in first 10 episodes and somehow lost her common sense towards the end.
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Fun, Goofy, X-Men vibes
The show was so fun! Had lots of laughs from the comedy bits and so much joy in the found family aspects. The show picks up after the first episode, and is a fun, funny, and action packed ride the whole time. Loved the Y2K aesthetic; the prodution design is great. The special effects are a stunning mix of both practical effects and CGI, and they look amazing in every scene. And the "Cha Eun Woo can't act" allegations are completely untrue, especially in this series, he is stellar.There are some pacing issues in very beginning and in the middle, along with a few abrupt tonal shifts. Some of the aspects of the plot are not fleshed out enough, barely explained, or flat out ignored by the end. The ending was also a bit too rushed and convoluted.
But overall this show was so fun and sweet and unexpected. In a world where both superhero media and Korean dramas have become repetitive and stale, Wonderfools stands out.
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Surprisingly entertaining
The setting might be in ancient China but the premise can be applied to modern times. This drama shows that greed and the abuse of power transcend time. No matter what era we live in, there are greedy people in government who abuse their power to trample on the weak and helpless in order to enrich themselves. Kudos to the writers who found a light and entertaining way to depict this reality without being boring. A lot of other romantic comedies turn out to be childish and slapstick. This one is fun and light without being corny or ridiculous. It's a bit lacking in the romance department though. I didn't really feel that Xioa Ning was attracted to the princess at all. It was more of the princess who pursed him rather than the other way around. Aside from that, this is an enjoyable drama to watch. Perfect for unwinding after a stressful day. Plus, there are learnings on how to run a successful business too.Was this review helpful to you?
gambare !
how can people that are constantly burdened with loss and pain want to live?the movie doesn't answer the question but it shows you how does it feel.
it's like dark fairy tale, will the protagonists succeed in their quest, or will they just survive it?
it's a pathetic, sad, crazy, surreal coming of age movie. you will remember how it made you feel even if you didn't understand it
incredible acting, beautiful soundtrack, wonderful photography,
don't watch it expecting a plot, it's just about witnessing their life
I found the different endings of the manga and the movie to be and amazing addition to this story.
when you find out both you decide what happens, was the last part in the movie symbolic? why is it that the only moment he finally starts rooting for himself, is the moment after he gave everything up?
is there really redemption for him? does he actually believe that turning himself is enough to atone? can he finally see the love around him? is he finally at peace?
do not watch this movie expecting it to make sense and to finish all its lines and arcs, don't expect explanations of why they act that way and how they ended up so. don't expect a plot, because this is just about witnessing a bit of despair, hope and uncertainty
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