What this drama has going for it is the element of a modern drama AND a historical drama in one. The element of time travel makes it all the more interesting.
My favourite moments are when Dr. Heo Im goes into full-on doctor mode and saves his patients. They are so epic, and I never got tired of it. He has this ‘magic touch’ where he can tell exactly what’s wrong with the patient and fixes them like a superhero. It was just so cool! Especially when he and the female lead Dr. Yeon Gyung save people TOGETHER! Quality
Although, that being said: there are so many goddamn needles in this show. There’s even 3D graphics of the needle going INSIDE the skin, I don’t need to see that!! I get the idea! And there are SO MANY medical scenes... so yeah, I’m never watching Grey’s Anatomy. I've seen more than enough lol. I can't complain though, this is a MEDICAL DRAMA what were you expecting @myself?
Although it is crazy the amount of people who have medical issues. With every sick person they find, I'm thinking 'isn't anybody just...healthy?'
Best quote to sum up this drama: “Why are there patients wherever you go? Your timing is amazing” I’d been feeling that way since Day 1.
But ignoring those minor flaws, this drama is a very good one. And at the heart of the show is our couple. I appreciate what the writers have done with them, constantly paralleling each other. Started the story with them both being successful doctors but they still have areas they need to grow. Their journey together is so beautiful, as they heal each other's scars to become better doctors AND better people.
On the whole, this is definitely a drama worth your time.
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Don't miss this one
Skillful acting makes this series a success. This drama is worth watching if only for the sake of the impressive range of Kim Nam Gil who plays Heo Im, a Joseon doctor who transforms from youthful arrogance to clownish clutziness to heartwarming tenderness to heroic competence without missing a beat.The secondary characters are mostly effective, and there are even a couple of lovable animals--in particular, a certain baby pig that steals every scene he's in.
The pacing is good, the plot moves along and (mostly) doesn't drag-although there's a little too much hand-wringing and wailing in the last two episodes. But just when you think you know where things are going, the writers pull a switcharoo and send things reeling in an unforeseen direction. I like that in a drama.
Is it worth a watch? Absolutely.
Now--for the not-so-good. No series is perfect and this one's no exception.
1. The product placement is a little too in-your-face for me. Would a man who had lived most of his life in the Joseon period really be amazed and delighted by the excellence of packaged noodles? Maybe not so much.
2. Throwaway characters. The stellar acting of the main couple make it easy to overlook the minor characters who are treated unfairly. Everyone should be a three--dimensional human being, even if the viewers only get hints of who they are or what their ultimate fate is.
For example, there's an orphaned brother and sister that the main couple meet in Joseon and travel with for a short period. The kids are passed off to some random guy who seems to know them. We never find out what happened to them. There's also Mak-Gae, Heo Im's loyal 15-year-old assistant. In her case, it's out of sight, out of mind. After a certain accident, instead of showing concern, the main dude goes chasing after his lady love...leaving Mak-Gae to fend for herself.
3. Metaphysical inconsistencies. The "rules" of time travel are confusing. Conveniently, it turns out that physical wounds are healed when someone leaps through the chronosphere. Got a sword thrust through your belly? Not to worry. You can die in the past and emerge unscathed in the 21st century. Except it doesn't always work that way. Someone gets slashed in the back and, whoops!, it turns out, time travel doesn't heal all wounds after all.
4. Other contradictions. It's not clear why some of the older characters, who seem to have been back and forth from Joseon previously, can make authoritative pronouncements about the "rules" of time travel-most of which turn out to be malarky. The ending is another head scratcher. First Heo Im goes away, and then he comes back. Choi Yeon-kyeong accuses him of being unreliable, although the viewers just saw that the return was a complete accident. Instead of straightening her out on this point, Heo Im acts like he made some kind of deliberate choice. OK, maybe they're just joking around, but whaaa? This also would be a good time to mention that he accidentally brought someone else along with him. But no...
Still, I give this series a solid eight stars.
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Beautiful and Provocative Series of Love and Healing that Transcends Time
I'm going to sound like a broken record in these reviews of Korean shows, but they continue to surprise me with deep, complex, and beautiful stories, such as this one. I can usually tell when a series is getting to me because I feel it in my heart and soul, and I end up watching several episodes at once because I cannot get enough. "Live Up To Your Name" is such a series for me.The series follows two doctors. One from 400 years ago in Joseon, and one from today. Heo Im (wonderfully played by Kim Nam Gil) is the most brilliant acupuncturist of his time--perhaps of any time, if truth be told--and yet he wonders why he's stuck in a "lowly" post of a small village rather than being exalted by the King of Joseon. And given a proper position worthy of his talents. Dr. Heo Im soon finds himself transported to the future when he is shot by two arrows intended to kill him.
Next, we have Dr. Choi Yeon Kyung, an equally brilliant doctor as a cardiologist who sees patients as a means to an end. They are there to be saved. She has little-to-no personal contact with any of them. It is ironic that a doctor's greatest strength is often perceived as a weakness: caring. Even hospitals and other doctors expect their physicians to act like robots.
Both characters are victims of traumatic pasts which hinder their true gifts from shining through. And, ironically enough, it's through each other that they not only learn to heal and learn from the past but to also love.
We have Eastern medicine meeting Western medicine, like two halves of a coin, both are equally effective and necessary. Western medicine tends to focus more on the physical body. Eastern medicine--especially in the case of acupuncture, is a science handed down from the last Golden Age that had more to do with healing the body through its various energy centers. The body is, in fact, made up of energy, and doctors from that age understood and knew how to manipulate that energy in order to heal various ailments.
I love the mystical needle box, which provides enough magic without the need for explanation and the power it represents. The acupuncture scenes were always the most fascinating to me.
This series provides us with some incredibly beautiful and touching moments as both characters learn about each other through each other, and in the end, become the doctors they have always meant to be. Thus, living up to their name. However, it is the undeniable chemistry between Nam Gil and Ah Joong that really makes this series soar!
I've seen Kim Nam Gil in "The FIery Priest" which I also enjoyed. Every time he cracks that big grin, it makes me laugh--and in a good way! He is such a master of bringing charisma and spirit to his roles. He's like a child lost in modern times when he first arrives. He's a little mischievous and a little conceited, but you can't help loving his character anyway. His emotional range is also spectacular, and you really feel what he's exhibiting.
I have not seen Kim Ah Joong in anything until now, but she equally impressed me, bringing her own incredible range to her role. First, as a doctor who is much like a robot, to a wondrous beauty who begins to shine like the sun as soon as allows her heart to open. Her scenes with Ha-Ra.
The character of Yeon-Yi was so adorable, that I enjoyed those scenes with her. I think this young actress (Shin Rin Ah) has a very bright future!
Heo Im imparts the true wisdom of healing: that it isn't just the doctor who is involved, but the willingness of the patient is equally necessary. And, yes, sometimes, despite all efforts, people still die. Adn doctors should not see this as a failure.
As with so many K-dramas--the series is complex, and expertly imbues heartfelt moments, with inspirational ones, to scenes of complete hilarity. I don't believe anyone does this to such perfection like the Koreans. They are deftly able to navigate and cover so much of the emotional spectrum, that one cannot help being utterly amazed by it.
This series is one of my favorites--and it deeply touched my heart--and it's become extremely challenging to pick out a "top 5" of K-dramas, because there have already been so many that I have watched that have been so good! And yet, having only watched shows over the last 5 years or so, I feel like a kid in a vast candy store, knowing that there is still so many more to watch! I can prove extremely challenging to decide what to watch next!
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How far would you go for love?
*Minor SpoilersAs a result of watching "Mr Queen," I became more open-minded about historical Korean dramas. As a result, I watched 'Under the Queen's Umbrella', 'Mr Sunshine', " Flower Crew: Joseon Marriage Agency", "Kingdom" and 'The Kings Affection'. However, in between all of those titles, I wanted one that was more lighthearted. My choice of "Live Up to Your Name" turned out to be great.
While it wasn't nearly as funny as "Mr. Queen", it also had time travel between the modern day and the Joseon Era. The twist was that both time periods were included throughout the journey.
In terms of the story and plot, this is important. Both Dr. Heo Im and Dr. Cho Kyung are mentally and morally challenged, both in modern Korea and the Joseon period of 1592. There are a number of medical choices that each of the leads make depending on their beliefs and past experiences. Each doctor has their own style of treatment. They use these techniques to their benefit.
The story opens with the main character Dr. Heo making a series of decisions that ultimately lead him to the present day. He discovers It is necessary for him to be close to death or even die in order to change time lines.
Dr. Choi's past family incident haunts her to the point it effects her performance at times. A series of circumstances brings the two leads together. Both are very capable doctors. As a result of their union, they have to make a series of difficult moral and ethical decisions. Due to this, the series gets very creative with combining modern and old themes by putting them in challenging settings.
The characters were developed and arced well to the point where I included them on my list of favorite couples in Korean dramas. There are a couple of scenes in both eras that sealed that decision for me.
If you're looking for a time travel fantasy infused with dramatic themes, romance, and humor, "Live Up to Your Name" is a terrific choice. As a result, it leaves one thinking about ethical decisions entwined with skill, moral choices, and love. The acting is good because the leads make the situations relatable and plausible.
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Great time travel drama about acupuncture
Likes:1. I appreciate acupuncture now thay i know something about it
2. Like how they showed that both traditional acupuncture and modern hospital can help save lives
3. I liked the character development and romance between of Heo Im and Yeon Kyung
4. The whole time travel always came ay the right time but sad that Heo Im have to kill himself over and over again to do it
5. Loved the scene where Heo Im was crying after Duchil's brothers death. That was one emotional scene. Actually any scene where KNG and KAJ were crying were so good. KNG is seriously going up my list as one of my fave actors.
Dislikes:
1. Not much really. Sometimes the parallel story in Seoul and Joseon can get cheesy but it's ok because they needed to learn their lesson
2. We dont really know where the magic needles came from
3. Wish Makgae had more screen time
Rating: 8/10
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Could have been great...
Foremost, having only seen Kim Nam Gil in The Fiery Priest, I love how he shows his versatility here and hoping he actually does more of the historical genre. It is his scenes in the historical setting that were the most interesting in this particular case.Still not the greatest fan of time travel themes but this one was hilarious in the beginning. The plot had so many good things going for it along with a great cast but there was too much drag with the modern era politics (fast-forwarded most of it). They tried to portray how despite the dichotomy in era, the medical field still undergoes similar political and class issues. But they really tried to do too much in the series with the complex base of constant time travel. The series felt like it didn't know what genre it wanted to be and just mashed together a little bit of everything including the excess "cuteness" of the ML/FL romance. There's modern day politics which flips back and forth to the historical politics, prolonged scenes with patients that really didn't add much to the drama, predictable trigger events, and then add in a war with some random foreigners thrown in. If there was more focus on the main basis of the plot, it could have really been a great series. It also didn't help that they forced in a happy ending that really made no sense.
Overall, it's one of those series that's difficult to hate on but of the cast and the potential but unfortunately it's also one that's forgettable with no re-watch value.
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As far as time-travel romances go, this one is really enjoyable! Both main characters end up going back and forth a few times to their various origin eras which allows them both to understand the difficulties that they each face within those eras. I thought the ML was a bit too goofy in the first few episodes and it was hard to swallow. It also seemed weird that the FL liked to go clubbing, a hobby she seemed to drop like a hot brick when she met Joseon Man. As the series continued, they both come and go from modern-day Seoul to historic Joseon together, not apart, which was important in developing their relationship. In so doing, the FL at least is able to see how ML suffered so much and her sympathy for him grows. BTW, what is up with all the hats and headgear from the Joseon era??? Seem might uncomfortable frankly! I think the straw lampshade and the black cap with the propeller on the back are standouts, though. OK, I have to address what I can only label ML’s bipolar-ness. I get that he’s going through a transition as a person but he seems to choose the extremes. Either he’s really serious about doing his work and in his life or he’s Mr. Happy Bubbly. When he came back from Joseon and worked for Director Ma was when he was really, really weird. He completely cut off communication with FL. Then, finally, when he realizes and/or matures into being the best version of himself, he abandons the Oriental Medicine Hospital and goes back to the oriental clinic where he seems to be on Cloud 9. Anyway, it was great to see that he finally matured into the ultimate version of the doctor as a compassionate person but a bizarre process. SPOILER ALERT HERE: Onto the last episode--I cried through 80% of it (and 75% of previous episode) and really thought that their separation was final, but no, in the end, despite that he’d been told when he goes back, he can’t return, he actually returns!!! What?!? Was that by accident? If so, how did that work? And, I know this is fiction but HOW is he going to practice without a license? I HOPE that there’s a way for him to get it without having to go through formal schooling. The last 5 minutes of joy left me with more questions than answers! Was this review helpful to you?
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A gem in the time travel genre with a few notable flaws
8/10 is my rating. This is a 2017 South Korean romantic fantasy comedy drama. It iis a historical medical drama with a time travel element. It has 16, approximately 70 minute episodes.First I will provide a synopsis then review.
Synopsis
In Josean times,, Heo Im (Kim Nam-gil) is a well respected and sought out doctor of traditional medicine. He makes an error when treating the king and the soldiers hunt him down and shoot him. He falls in the water but instead of dying he wakes up in modern day South Korea. As he wanders around trying to figure out this strange pace, he bumps into Yeon-kyung (Kim Ah-joong), an up an coming superstar in the cardiothoracic field. Destiny has plans for them as two lives become intertwined and they travel back and forth from Josean. Falling in love brings new meaning to a long distance relationship. Can they figure out what strange destiny brought him forward in time and what he is supposed to do?
Review
The romance between the leads was well paced and believable. Kim Nam-Gil did a masterful job of playing the slightly bumbling yet brilliant Josean doctor. The main supporting characters and side characters were well developed with just enough information on then pm to be compelling. Overall it was a good medical drama and another gem in the time travel genre.
Spoilers*. Two things I did not like about it was to me there was a character inconsistency. Where in the end he goes back to Josean, even though he had fulfilled one of his main goals back in that timeframe, and he had said earlier in the series that he preferred modern times. Nothing has significantly changed back in Josean, other than the fact that they were at war with Japan, which would’ve made it an even more unpleasant place to be, I didn’t like that tge way he had to travel was to kill himself and found it disturbing when he had to put a needle through his heart multiple times. I also thought the end where it didn’t seem like he would be able to time travel again but then suddenly dad was not logical. He is in Joseon amped that seemed to be that but then he saved his friends in a completely unexpected accident which sent him back to modern times. Instead of being shocked by the unexpected eventt and getting his bearings and deciding if he was ready and happy to be back, he shows up around her and he’s like hey I’m back I’m staying and let’s get together, To me that was a weird way for him to return to her it wasn’t like he had been trying to find ways back he seemed to have accepted he was staying in Josean and was settled in. She said how can I trust you as you said you weren't leaving before. I completely agreed with her. I would not have trusted him either. Then it sort of abruptly ends with the, bantering about his sudden return. It felt very rushed.
#Liveuptoyurname
#kimNamGiil
#KimAhJoong
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One time watch
I randomly stumbled upon this drama while finding for new dramas in Netflix, so i gave it a try. The first 2-3 episodes pulled me into the story and grabbed my attention. the first half of the drama was interesting and liked the silly antics of ML (Kim Nam Gil). It was my first time watching Kim Nam Gil's drama and tbh i felt like his acting in this drama was quite okayish. in the first half his acting elevated the storyline but at some point of time i lost interest in the story and even his acting in the second half felt mediocre.There were many scenes that felt illogical for me:
1. when he is about to treat the king his hand tremored from what is shown as the child's death. but she is alive and waiting for him?? then if we consider that his hand tremored coz of ill intentions of the doctor then why didn't his hand tremor all those nights he treated for rich and in those cases he treated the higher officials in modern world?? *confused*
2. When mak gae (moon ga young) also can time travel to modern world from joseon (ep 16), why did he leave her with doo chil in joseon and come back to modern world with FL after his humiliation by minister of war?? it seems like they know the game that if he held onto somebody they would also time travel with him.
3. Why did Heo Jun knowingly didn't promote Heo Im further than superintendent when Heo Jun is shown as a fair guy. it seems he also came to know about heo im's ability to time travel when he saw that needle box with heo im while treating the king. so what made him feel like heo im is not potential enough for a promotion before that??
Also i felt like there were some unnecessary fillers and cliches just to extend the story. Lyk why would they kill Ha ra's character when she is doing all fine after surgery just to add extra emotional trauma to FL and ML and make the entire episode about FL feeling bad about not saving Ha ra when its not even FL's fault!! *sigh*
Anyway for me it was a tough watch from second half. Had to skip some scenes and fast forward it just to make it to my completed list.
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It Keeps you Hooked on and The ending was done right
I think its my first review or maybe a review I am writing after ages. I found this drama after a long slump period but I am so happy that I found this. The story is about time-travel and enlightenment. Naturally it has the laughter and tears for you. Its a Medical drama so it has the Life-Death equations. The Script keeps you curious, though there were parts in ep 5 6 and 7 where I might have dropped the show the curiosity of whats gonna happen now kept me going.The part that makes me the Happiest is that they left us with very satisfying Finale.....which is rather rare....So I absolutely Loved it
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I really tried to like this drama
A person who grew up with money constantly yelling at person who didn't grow up money to not work for money even though the person, who didn't grow up money, has already shown he cares about people.Found the main female lead petty, self-righteous and judgmental and not in a cute way. It didn't seem that she was working for free. Still don't understand why the male lead didn't put some of the money and jewels in his pocket when he went to the hut on his first trip back to Joesen since he was on the run whether he was in staying or going back to the future (like how I did that?) and his primary focus supposedly is having funds to feel secure.
The female lead stops the male lead from getting modern training in his field of expertise so he get gainful employment and then drops him over and over again. So annoying. In the end I just couldn't take her character or the script any longer.
Th acting was really well done and I liked most the cast..
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