consider me a fan
There are those who dislike Goblin and those who love it. I am, in fact, now among those who love it. There was bromance. It was funny, heartwarming, wholesome, painful, etc. it had everything I could’ve wanted along with an amazing ost and amazing cast. I know there are people who dislike the age gap, but it didn’t really bother me and honestly, if it’s not for you, no need to watch. overall, I really enjoyed watching. it wasn’t perfect, but it’s one of those that’ll stick with me for a long timeWas this review helpful to you?
I started watching for the fantasy aspect but considering how hyper-focused this story is on the couple(whose chemistry feels super forced!) I could not continue watching it.
I like both of these actors on their own. My biggest problem is that the male lead is very old(cannonically) and idk what's wrong with the stylists but with some of his clothing he looks straight up in his late forties. The female lead, on the other hand, is in high school!!! She walks around in pivotal scenes in HER HIGH SCHOOL UNIFORM. I don't care if she is older than 18. It feels very gross and these two have terrible chemistry together. The actress also looks very young. In general, their visuals do not go together in the slightest.
2nd problem: The plot is SLOPPY. There is so much "back and forth" and with the horrible pacing it's just a absolute pain to get through. The amount of times the plot was like "she can see the sword??" "no, she can't." "yes she can!" like omg it drags on so much. The female lead is supposedly the main character but any moral dilemmas she goes through with having this old ass man wanting her to be his bride, it hardly shows! Instead, the story telling relies on the male characters TELLING you this female lead is going through a hard time. garbage show.
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sad love ?
Omg !!!!! I have so much to say but ill try my best to shorten it fr u guys , i'll try my best to avoid any spoiler 😃. If you've seen the 5 stars and hv already gone to watch the show you did a great job , but if you're still here reading this review ill give you guys some 'more than satisfactory' points so tht u go and watch this master piece!😁First is the storyline ! Its unique and has its own plot twists... I love how each and every characters stories get together with each other forming a beautiful complete circle! The cinematography and directing is great! I love how chronologically they have arranged all the event's of the story , all the events fall in the exact place and time where they should be in both the past and the present storyline...! The dialogues were awesome , it had a great effect causing on the mood and emotional impact! I specially love how they sometimes tried to make the dialogues poetic for some of the characters lines wherever there was a heartfelt romantic or emotional scene!
The humor in this drama is super hilarious and sometimes savage 😂! Love how they try to give us some good giggles during an emotional scene!
Now comes the characters and actors , I loved all of them so i'll give separate credits😁 :-
Goblin/kim shin - the lonely and great god who's been alone all this time , saves and helps people a lotta times,waiting for his bride so tht she can remove the sword just so he could die and lift the immortality curse upon him since the last 900 years! If theres a problem , call him , he will be always there for you all you need to do is blow a candle😉. He is loving, caring & a great warrior.
Grim reaper - became a grim reaper bcz of the sins committed in his past life , now guiding the dead to the right way , this reaper is different than the ones you've seen before. He's cold , clumsy, cute and stupid!😁 but tht doesn't stop him from being a good person and being a really good friend!
Ji eun tak - an orphan , life full of miseries until she knows shes the goblins bride ! Falls in love with the 'ajussi' 🥰 . she has a really adorable 😍smile! On a dark silent night , she comes bearing the stars in her hands singing songs of angels without wings😌.
Sunny - 'SHE IS PRETTY'💖!!! She is the most straightforward yet cool , loving person you'll ever meet ! She deserves a lot more happiness!!!
Duk hwa - one of my most fav character 😍😎!!! A chaebol heir , handsome, goblins right hand , loves his end-room-uncle and goblin uncle,loves credit cards, silly yet smart, knows each secret from the age of 6 , will call NASA if the weather seems sus !😁
President kim - the TT dancer , trustworthy, obedient,adviser.
Things I loved the utmost - kim so hyun , kim min jae ,the chemistry between all the characters, hated the villain,suspense, the bromance , friendship, humor, ost !!!🥰 overall enjoyed every bit of this show , highly recommend to anyone who has a good choice for dramas !!!!
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Fanservice 10/10
Story does not suck and they managed to put in all the fanservice you need, 15/10. Only, there’s an episode where I didnt feel the chemistry so I am giving it a 9/10My otp is the grim reaper and his queen. Best ship of the century (ofc that’s not debatable /j)
Anyway, like everyone else, enjoyed it a lot, so just watch it for feel good entertainment, happy scenes (and sometimes sad), I mean, it’s good drama with the best actors/actresses.
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AMAZING.
Do yourself a favor, if you are reading this and you are unsure if you want to watch this classic drama, WATCH IT. This drama is hilarious, funny, and a cute Rom-Com. Gon Yoo and Lee Dong Wook's Bromance in this show is so funny and cute! i have rewatched this drama 5 times whenever i am in a funk or need a pick me up, because it is just so cute! The actress who plays the main leading role is so adorable and i think she did an amazing job in this role and really captured the personalitly of her character. please WATCH IT you wont regret it!!Was this review helpful to you?
.
Chorei. Chorei muito. Tem muito coisa nesse dorama. A história dos dois casais foi muito bem trabalhada, a trilha sonora tbm é muito boa. As histórias na casa de chá me fizeram chorar um monte, a história dos protagonistas tbm, tudo.A única coisa que eu teria a reclamar é a diferença de idade dos atores E dos personagens. Se eu nn me engano os atores tem quase 20 anos de diferença e a personagens da trama tem 19 no começo. É umas das coisas que eu só fui me importar dps de terminar pq eles tiveram um carisma tão grande na série que eu só fui perceber as idades quando comentaram.
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must watch
Since Goblin is known as such a classic and must-watch kdrama, I finally decided to watch it - and didn’t regret it.At the beginning this drama was a lot more mystical than I expected, but I got used to it pretty quickly and it didn‘t take me long to get invested in the story. I guess it‘s fair to say that Goblin has a quite unique story that is very emotionally investing and made me both laugh and cry. This drama definitely has its fair share of laughs and funny moments, but also serious scenes and moments that made me tear up.
I also loved the cast and their chemistry - especially the bromance between Kim Shin and the grim reaper never failed to make me smile. To be honest - I had to get used to the thought of the age difference between the Goblin and Eun-tak, but their chemistry was still great. I don‘t think I even have to mention Sunny and the grim reaper. <3
This drama has a lot of really pretty shots and scenes in Canada and Korea and I also really enjoyed the OST.
Would recommend!
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This review may contain spoilers
Tearjerker and healing drama with great chemistry and story
The show is really really good at start storAs fate would have it, Eun-Tak grows up able to see ghosts and is commonly referred to as “Miscellaneously Omitted Person” by this same Grim Reaper who just so happens to be Kim Shin’s best friend. With Kim Shin destined to be joined with Eun-Tak, the former is able to summon the Goblin every time she blows out a candle.Believing herself to be the Goblin’s bride, this 19 year old is whisked up on an unforgettable journey of love, heartache and laughter across 16 unforgettable episodes.
With echoes of the past life bleeding through, the early episodes work to build up each of our main characters, who are joined by the mysterious Sunny who rounds out this quartet. There’s also a number of supporting players who lend their voice to this one too, including Duk-Hwa whose family have been indebted to the Goblin for years.
There’s also a mystery deity in a red dress called “Birth Grandmother” too. Although the drama doesn’t explicitly tell us, Koreans will recognize her as Samshin, the Goddess of childbirth and life.
The story does sag a little around the midway point though, taking a little too long to get to the crux of the drama. There’s a lot of will they/won’t they surrounding Kim Shin’s fate but as this one moves into its third act, the pacing does get a lot better. It’s also during these middle portion of episodes that an abundance of flashbacks are used to pad out the run-time.However, the chemistry between the actors is absolutely off the charts so it’s easy to look past this. Whether it be the budding bromance between Kim Shin and the Grim Reaper, the doomed romance between Reaper and Sunny or even the romantic angle between Shin and Eun-Tak, every single relationship is given a decent amount of time to grow and evolve over the course of the show.
There’s a lot of bittersweet moments leading up to the ending too, which will go down as one of the best finales of any Korean drama to date. No spoilers here of course but this one is worth persevering with during the slower chapters to reach this incredible conclusion. Be prepared to come with a pack of tissues though – this is one heartbreaking drama.
In fact, heartbreak and humour both go hand in hand here, with Goblin managing to perfectly balance both its romantic and comedic elements. The best moment of comedy comes midway through the show, as Shin and the Grim Reaper walk with shopping while the main theme “Round and Round” plays in the background.
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This review may contain spoilers
If you liked “Faith (the Doctor),” then you will really enjoy this drama.
From the very start, I noticed many similarities between the two.The female leads (FL) in both dramas have a similar acting style, but I found this FL more credible and less annoying. Yes, they pull their hair in both, but it only happens once in this drama. They share the same facial expressions and exhibit a childish, clueless demeanor. However, since she portrays a 19-year-old and then a 29-year-old here, it feels more acceptable to see her naive and innocent attitude. In contrast, in "Faith," she was around 30 but acted like a teenager throughout, which felt ridiculous.
The male lead (ML) in this drama is 12 years older than the FL in real life, whereas in "Faith," the FL was older than the ML by 10 years. I did not mind. Both ML are really great actors.
There are no kisses and barely any hugs in this drama, just like "Faith."
Both endings are similar, but this drama took the time to explain the FL's reappearance. But same “few minutes” to close the dramas. There's the same endless staring at each other and a lack of hugs. I thought this ending was a tiny bit better because we truly see the characters cry. It wasn’t just a single tear from the FL and misty eyes from the ML; this time, the emotions felt genuine.
"Faith" aired in 2012, while "Guardian" came out in 2016.
I wonder if both actresses, who were of similar ages, went to the same school or had the same teachers, which might explain their similar acting styles. In "Guardian," the FL has more credibility, possibly because she physically appears to be 19.
That said, I enjoyed the drama up to episode 8. After that, it started to feel a bit redundant. Both leads fall in love but are reluctant to admit it. I actually found the other couple more intriguing and interesting somehow.
I appreciate K-dramas for their openness to supernatural themes. However, I’m not pleased with the lack of physical affection like hugs and kisses; it feels too teenage-like to me.
I did find many humorous scenes that I enjoyed, and I loved the bromance, which I believe is the highlight of this drama.
It’s not a high-budget production. Interestingly, I was in the same city when they filmed the Quebec City scenes. You will not find CGI special effects. In fact they filmed in 5 places: a field (battle), outside a palace (slaughter), inside a castle (old bricks walls), s-korean street and Quebec city (the crew enjoyed the city a lit as I saw many different places lol). All in all it was well done.
In conclusion, it’s a nice romantic supernatural drama with a somewhat happy ending for all, although it’s not the usual conclusion one might expect.
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This review may contain spoilers
It's necessary viewing for a well-rounded K Drama lover
I waited a long time to watch Goblin, for all the reasons people take issue with it. But I finally decided I just needed to jump in and find out what makes it so beloved, despite obvious foibles. I'll mainly address the age gap and why it eventually didn't bother me. As the story unfolded, the way it was reinforced that she wouldn't even have been born if it weren't for him, and that she was born expressly for him actually started to make it feel like she was less of a human and more mythical too. Hence, the age difference ceased to be a problem for me, especially as the series progresses. I'm sure I wouldn't have experienced that phenomenon if it hadn't been a fantasy series, but that's just what happened. Anyway, I was able to overlook things that would normally annoy me and because the cast was so good, I didn't mind the draggy pace. It also felt so novel and unique at times and like it was it's own thing, not trying to copy anything else. I know there were some tropes, but it's hard to explain why it just felt magically original; It was probably the cast and the writing.Was this review helpful to you?
Goblin: A Tale of Love, Loneliness, and Immortality
There are few dramas that go beyond storytelling and become an experience — Goblin is one of them. Directed by Lee Eung-bok and written by Kim Eun-sook, Goblin (Guardian: The Lonely and Great God) is not just a Korean drama, but a melancholic poem brought to life through breathtaking cinematography, haunting music, and characters that feel both mythical and painfully human.At its heart, Goblin is the story of Kim Shin, a cursed immortal warrior who has lived for centuries, burdened by his eternal life. Played by Gong Yoo with quiet brilliance, Kim Shin is a man trapped between life and death, waiting for his bride — the only one who can end his immortality. When he meets Ji Eun-tak, a bright and lonely high-school girl who can see ghosts, their fates intertwine in ways both magical and tragic. Kim Go-eun brings warmth, innocence, and courage to her role, creating a contrast that perfectly complements Gong Yoo’s brooding presence.
What makes Goblin so special is the way it blends fantasy with raw emotion. Every episode feels like a cinematic experience — from the snow-covered streets of Quebec to the soft glow of candlelit rooms. The show captures the essence of loneliness, destiny, and the search for meaning in an endless life. It’s not just about romance; it’s about time, memory, and the quiet ache of existence. Even side characters, like the Grim Reaper (Lee Dong-wook) and Sunny (Yoo In-na), carry their own stories of love and redemption, adding depth and beauty to the narrative.
The writing is poetic — filled with lines that make you pause and reflect. The dialogues often feel like verses from a timeless novel, exploring themes of fate, forgiveness, and the bittersweet nature of human connections. The background score, especially songs like Stay With Me and Beautiful, adds an emotional layer that lingers long after each episode ends. Every scene feels crafted with care — slow, graceful, and deeply evocative.
But beyond its visual and emotional beauty, Goblin asks profound questions. What does it mean to live forever? Is immortality a blessing or a curse? Can love transcend life and death? These questions echo through the story, making it more than just a fantasy romance — it becomes a meditation on the fragility of life and the eternity of love.
In the end, Goblin is not about gods or ghosts; it’s about the human heart — its longing, its pain, and its endless capacity to love. It’s the kind of drama that stays with you, not because of its fantasy, but because it mirrors the very real emotions we all carry.
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