The Best KDrama to Date!!!
I’m in absolute awe and in love with this drama. For those who are hesitant of watching this drama, don’t be because this drama is a masterpiece! There are no words to describe how amazing this drama is. It’s just that good! For someone like me who doesn’t watch/like historical dramas, I was very impressed by the quality and I don’t think any drama can top this one (well at least to date). The cinematography, production, costumes and OST were perfectly executed and I thoroughly enjoyed it.Pacing
It does start off a bit slow at the beginning but it does pick up the pace at episode 3 or 4. I’d also like to point out that episodes 15-17 were also kinda slow but other than that, the overall flow of the story is good and doesn’t really have any pacing issues.
Characters
- I love the female characters so much. Both very strong characters and don’t rely on anyone. We’ve got one that’s a sniper and the other who does fencing. I also just like to mention the fight scene between the two as it really showed some women empowerment. A power duo indeed!
- There’s a little bit of bromance between the 3 male characters, which I absolutely loved as well. I wish we got to see more of that.
- Ae-sin is my favourite character hands down!
- I live for Eugene, Ae-sin and Dong-mae supremacy.
OST
Every track perfectly matches the scenes and is top tier.
Cinematography
You can tell that they really thought about what shots, colour grading and angles they wanted. It was like watching an Oscar-worthy film. No doubt that this drama has the best cinematography to date.
Overall, this drama is one of the best ever made and for someone that doesn’t even like historical dramas as much, that kinda speaks for itself. This drama will always have a special place in my heart that’s for sure! I do suggest for you to really know the history before diving into this drama just so you can fully understand what is going on. I personally did a bit of research before watching. GO WATCH IT! IT’S WORTH IT. TRUST ME.
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This review may contain spoilers
I don’t even know where to start. There’s just too many layers to this masterpiece.The story and writing were beautiful. It made me google about Korean History a few times just to check fiction from fact, and to know some parts were inspired by real history just made it even more engaging. The fact that this made me curious about another country’s history... that’s a win for me.
The cinematography, oh my gosh. Your eyes will surely be in for a feast, and you’ll leave fully satisfied and in awe from almost every episode. The music also heightened the emotions.
The characters. Most dramas usually reveal their backstories mid way or towards the end as a plot twist, but the writer in this drama chose the opposite. You’d appreciate every character from the very beginning since their history is revealed as early as the first episodes. Though it got confusing for awhile, be patient and wait for all of these beautiful characters with beautiful histories meet and create an even more beautiful story for us.
Can I specially mention the bromance? They added humor in this very “heavy” drama. This is probably one of the few dramas that really had me literally laughing out loud, all thanks to the peculiar friendship of the three.
And sorry, special mention for Yoo Yeon Seok. His acting was totally out of his usual character, and damn sir, you really pulled it off. I rarely fall in love with characters, this is one of the few moments.
The heart ache. You felt for the characters, their desperation, anger and frustration for a country that was falling, and their eagerness to stand up and fight for a cause... damn, this makes you realize how lucky we are in the times we live in.
Spoiler: this one particular scene in the end made my heart ache in particular... this was when the shop that buys stuff and does favors opened again, and they started having a collection of the many things that hold too mny good memories. It gave me a familiar feeling I have about growing old- the feeling of sadness when you’re reminded of the good moments and how you’ve lost the people you’ve spent them with. This is the pain of passage of time.
Thank you, Mr. Sunshine. This was truly a treat and I’ll surely be reading articles about you for days.
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An epic saga in turbulent Joseon
Set in the troubled times of early 1900s, Joseon empire (Korea) is in decline with a number of foreign powers trying to gain control. It's a lesson in history. And if you know the history, you know how it ends. All five protagonists have their own reasons but they all are originally from Joseon and share a love-hate relationship with their motherland. All of them also carry the burden of their parents: either trying to live up to them, or living beyond their sacrifice or trying to get to terms with their cruelty.From the writer-director pairing of the Guardian and DOTS (star writer, Kim Eun-sook and Lee Eung-bok), the brilliance of the show is in its poetic writing. The first English words Go Ae-shin learns are 'gun, glory and sad endings' which defines her as well as Joseon; her character is possibly a metaphor for Joseon. The cinematography turns each scene into a painting, supported by beautiful sets and soulful music.
Acting is of course, wonderful, although, the brilliant Lee Byung-hun looks a tad too old for his role. He looks solemn in the serious scenes but a bit out of place when he acts silly. Kim Tae-ri is absolutely fantastic, drawing romance into her expression with barely a breathe.
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The true is that I see Mr sunshine as a masterpiece and it really set my standars so high, The cinematography is awesome and you feel like you are watching a whole movie, The characther are so well written and the actors and actresses did an amazing job portraying them, The story is interesting and keep you invested in it, Also I have all the OST in my playlist.
I am a fan of historical dramas, So I was not surprised at all by the end, But i got depressed for a week, Overall This drama is the definition of perfection.
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I cried so much that i had to paused for a while and catch my breathe, I feel like i am watching an Oscar winning serial.
Writing for a TV is a skill, and not one that many have. Having to maintain pace, coherence and continuity within sharply limited six or seven-minute segments is a remarkably hard thing to do. That the writers of Mr Sunshine succeed
The show has action, creative dialogue, and maybe the most badass TV character ever in , a good political intrigue. Excellent villains. I enjoyed the strength and conviction of Lady Ae Sin's performance, the absurdity of the Japanese caricatures. A drama of cornball sentiment, humorously anachronistic dialogue, and expensive Colonial sets.
I imagine myself in the Joseon period how frightening it would be :)) Having fought the Japs.
The rough-and-tumble of Joseon life during the Revolution and brave men struggle against his own violence.
Long live Joseon, Long live South Korea!
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This review may contain spoilers
Exemplar cinematography and beautiful patriotism
Superb! Superb! Superb!This drama left me in shambles by the end of it with its stunning but heartbreaking ending. Nevertheless, I have been deeply touched by this drama's depiction of Korean independence fighters of the early 20th century and of the unspeakable violence committed by the Japanese army and government in Joseon during that time.
Moreover, the beautiful, healing romance between Go Ae-shin and Eugene Choi was like a rose through its painful beauty.
I was also heartbroken by the death of Gu Dong-mae, as he had quickly become one of my favourite characters through his complexity and good soul.
It is also worth mentioning the stunning soundtrack of this drama, which will keep being played in my house! Astonishingly beautiful!
I will certainly keep thinking about this drama for a long time and will re-watch it for sure.
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Gun, glory, and? Well, you name it. (Also, the OSTs are OUTSTANDING).
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A Genuine Piece Of Art
I will not waste your time with a long review.There are many awesome ones with great analysis if you want to find out about this Masterpiece.Or,better,you can go completely blind,knowing the minimum.I guarantee,the experience will be greater this way.
Iam writing this to bring it up for those who haven't watched it yet and mostly for those who hesitate to start it.As i did too for a long time until few days ago when i decided to start it with a cold heart to be completely honest.
Once again words like Romance and Melodrama prevented me from start watching it,as these 2 Genres are not my cup of tea.
4 days later and just few minutes after i finished it,iam telling you this was my best watch decision in 2022.
If i had to use only one word to describe Mr. Sunshine,that would be the word "EPIC"
Epic Production/Direction/Cinematography/Acting/Music/Story/Characters.
It is a flawless,fair and square,amazing, 10!No doubts.No debates.End of story.
For me,Mr. Sunshine,is a complete Drama.It doesn't lack anything.Is not good there,average here and bad further.No, is PERFECT all the way.From the first minute to the last second you don't want to take your eyes off the screen,you don't want to take a break to use the toilet or go to sleep.
24 long episodes,over one hour each and yet after finishing, you are craving for more.You wish this journey never ends.
It is a piece of art for the eyes(amazing cinematography and visuals)for the ears(the Ost is unforgettable)and mostly for the soul.
Gosh i cried as i never had before with any other Drama.I felt so many emotions.Had shivers in my spine.Butterflies in my stomach.My heart was beating fast.Sad moments.Happy moments.Funny moments.
Great friendships.Amazing love stories.Sacrifices.Fights for a free country.
Ok i must stop here cause i can write all night.
Just pause what you are currently watching,add Mr. Sunshine to your watch list and hit play.
Make sure you have plenty of snacks and water nearby.You MUST watch this before 2022 ends,so you will have an excuse to rewatch it in 2023!
Enjoy.
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A visualy stunning historical kdrama!
This kdrama absolutely wrecked me. I'm writing this on my second watch, and it took me a whole year to rewatch this series because I always end up sobbing my eyes out lmao, but it definitely has a high rewatch value. You can tell by the stunning cinematography and production and the characters and the overall story that they made this kdrama with a lot of care. I definitely recommend this series; I feel like even people who don't usually enjoy kdramas would love this! Specially people who love period dramas!Was this review helpful to you?
Wow!
I started watching Mr Sunshine a while ago, but gave up after the first two episodes because I found so many characters a bit confusing and I didn't know anything about Korean history. I then discovered (and fell in love with) Kim Tae Ri after watching Twenty-Five Twenty-One and re-started Mr Sunshine. Am I glad that I did!Kim Tae Ri is luminously beautiful as Go Ae Sin, and her Hanbok are sumptuous. Go Ae Sin is an amazing character and no wonder everyone around her loved and wanted to protect her. All the other actors are top-notch and memorable. Yoo Yeon Seok was sexy and smouldering as Gu Dong Mae and it was such a different role to the doctors he usually plays. I liked the character of Kudo Mina and the fact that she reluctantly became Go Ae Sin's ally when she could've easily been a rival. Go Ae Sin's servants, Ms Haman and Mr Haengrang, were so funny and loyal.
Everything about the production, especially the cinematography, is top quality. A minor quibble is that the special effects make-up (eg blood) was a bit amateurish.
I always knew that Mr Sunshine was a top-rated drama and now I now why. There are many laugh out loud moments but you'll mostly need tissues. It's one of the very best dramas I've seen and is highly recommended.
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This review may contain spoilers
Watch Mr. Sunshine you won’t regret it!
This is the most beautiful Kdrama I’ve ever watched. I just finished it and I’m crying like an idiot. I’ve never been more invested in a historical drama. It is a cinematic experience that may bring on the waterworks. It gets an audience to truly think of that precious history that brought us to where we are today. All the sacrifices that gave us the world we live in. I loved it and hopefully y’all will too.What drew me in to this drama was the fact that I had heard the love story was beautiful, and it was. However, I didn’t expect to fall so deeply in love with all the characters. From the comedic relief characters to Eugene himself (I just shed a tear typing his name so you know his death hit me hard), all of the characters made me root for them, made me want them to succeed.
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The story was beautiful. I might be a little biased since my country also has a history of independence fighters and a lot of losses against oppressors and so I buy this kind of stories very quickly. Nevertheless it was well-told and I am happy with it.
I loved the cute little friendship between the three main male leads. Even if they stayed in denial about it.
The acting was great. I remember the first time I saw AeShin cry I was really surprised because usually during dramas when people cry you can see that they are sad and you can see the tears coming out of their eyes. But with her there was sadness, self control, helplessness... You could actually see from the way that she cried that she was a noble girl who grew up with everything but wants to be more than just a pretty decoration for her husband, so she becomes strong. And thus when something bad happens she tries to keep her composure and yet that darn lower lip just keeps twitching and doesn't listen to her!
All of the other actors did a great job as well. I think the acting was superb for the most part(except for maybe a couple of scenes where dead people's eyes were moving a little but I guess it's really hard to stop them so I'll let it slide). You could see each characters whole life story written on their faces.
I loved it that the characters changed a little throughout the drama but they didn't change their key character details, it was very well done.
Also I just want to mention the casting. The characters really looked A LOT like their parents and the younger versions looked like the older ones. I don't see it done that often and I was really happy to see it. Even the adult gunner Jang looked so much like his father, even though as a kid he didn't look that much like him. That's what happens in the real world as well.
The music was really good but maybe because I recently watched a drama with soundtrack that is still echoing in my heart I can't bring myself to give this one a ten.
I would gladly rewatch it sometime because I fell in love with a lot of characters as well as the wonderful directing.
Overall a great drama. A must watch.
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