A Korean Odyssey

Story-wise, it had so much potential. Being an adaptation, there are plenty of material to go by. I have no problem with many sub-plots as long as the narration good and essence of the story is conveyed. That's not what happened here. The drama itself is convoluted with unnecessary sub-plots. Case in point, what was the dragon prince's purpose in all that? A sacrificial lamb so PK doesn't die? His existence in the drama itself is useless. Second, peddler and her grandson. I know the grandson is really Ma Wang's son, and then? I'd say having the GGG to make the great sage love Seon Mi is genius move but the gravity of it being relevant just sort of faded. And then there's Bu Ja and her entire story. After being possessed by Ah Sa Nyeo her existence just vanished. There were many redeeming points, the comedic strips, the love-line, but boy was that not enough to off-set every horrible thing going on in this drama.

Acting/Cast: As far as the actors go, this cast probably has the best performance and chemistry I've seen in a while. Many viewers (myself included) are kept from dropping the show solely to see an exceptional portrayal from the cast. But even then, the lousy story telling cannot be carried by great acting alone.

Music: The OST of this drama is great. As a music enthusiast myself, I'd put it up to my favorite OST's joining (Scarlet Heart, It's Okay That's Love, Cheese in The Trap, Just Between Lovers, to name a few). Song's where on point. I love it.

Rewatch Value: It's not a drama I'd go for a marathon for. I wont even recommend it to friends for first viewing. That's how bad it had been. After the emotional investment I had for this show, that sloppy ending and lazy story narration was a total slap in the fans faces. So, no rewatching for me.

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GEUDAENEUN HABGYEOG (you pass)

Okay, first things first—this drama had me hooked from the get-go. Not because of the romance (which, let’s be real, was as underwhelming as a half-baked pancake), but because of the sheer chaos, bromance, and absolute fashion madness. If you’re here for a unique fantasy story, congratulations, you’re in the right place. But if you’re here for an epic, swoon-worthy love story… well, let's just say you might find yourself distracted by literally everything else in the drama.

Bromance > Romance

The bromance between Son Oh Gong (our monkey king) and Ma Wang (the bull demon) was the real MVP here. These two were constantly at each other’s throats, throwing insults and furniture, yet still had the most unbreakable bond. Ma Wang, with his theatrical expressions and over-the-top reactions, was basically me when my food delivery is late. Oh Gong, on the other hand, was all sass and mischief but had a weirdly charming way of showing he cared. Their interactions alone made the whole show worth it.

Bu Ja - The True Star

Now, let’s talk about my precious zombie girl, Jin Bu Ja (aka Ah Sa Nyeo). She was adorable, tragic, hilarious, and somehow at the center of everyone’s lives. Her interactions with literally every character were more interesting than the supposed "main romance." Watching her navigate her fate, get tangled in magical nonsense, and even steal some hearts along the way was one of the best parts of the drama.

The Fashion Game Was Unreal

Forget the supernatural creatures and demon-slaying—let’s talk about the outfits. Every single male character looked like they just walked out of a high-fashion runway show. Son Oh Gong’s coats? Legendary. Ma Wang’s flashy suits? Iconic. Even their sleepwear was straight-up chef’s kiss perfection. Like, do these guys even own a single bad outfit? I swear, their wardrobe budget was bigger than the CGI budget.

Speaking of the CGI...

Ah, yes. The special effects. There were moments when I was impressed, and then there were moments when I had to pause just to process what I was seeing. Some of the magical creatures looked like they had escaped from a 2005 video game, and yet, it all somehow worked? Maybe because the drama itself was so extra that it just fit the vibe.

Repetitive Plot Syndrome

As much as I love this drama, I have to be honest—some plot points went in circles. Like, how many times can the same villain manipulate the same two characters with the same fake promises? We got it, move on. There were moments I wanted to scream, "Bestie, we’ve been here before!" But did that stop me from watching? Absolutely not.

The FL Was… There.

Now, about the female lead. Poor thing. It’s not even her fault—her character was written like an afterthought. She spent most of the show crying, getting into trouble, and being rescued. At one point, I genuinely forgot she was the main character because the side characters were outshining her left and right. The drama tried to make her "strong" by giving her some mystical powers, but even then, she just felt… bland.

The Real Show-Stealers

Let’s be honest, the true stars of the show were:

Ma Wang – A literal drama king with the best expressions.

Jin Bu Ja – My adorable zombie girl.

Dog Secretary (Lee El) – The most loyal and savage assistant ever.


These three carried the show on their backs, and I loved every second of it.

The OST Had Me in a Chokehold

The background music was immaculate. "Always Behind You" has been living in my head rent-free ever since I finished the drama. The songs just hit, especially during the emotional scenes (even when I wasn’t emotionally invested in the romance).

Final Verdict

Despite its flaws, A Korean Odyssey made it onto my favorites list. The magic, the chaos, the fashion, and the side characters made it an unforgettable ride. Will I rewatch it? Absolutely. Will I fast-forward through some parts? Also absolutely. But hey, that’s part of the charm.

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absurd, wonderful and heartbreaking

The Korean Odyssey/Hwayugi is the 11th script of the Hong sisters. 2018; 20 eps at 1hr20 mins ea. Hwayugi (HW) was one of the first few kdramas I ever watched. It is absurd, wonderful and heartbreaking; an indelible memory. The comedy/romance/supernatural fusion combined with sophisticated filmmaking and an absurdist/surreal panache was enchanting but difficult to ease into; it made me an instant fan, obsessive and curious about the Korean industry and its history.

And yes, I bawled buckets the first time... and the second....and...
Please, please give it a try and become a Hong Sisters fan too!

I was amazed at this remake of/take on the chinese buddhist novel Journey to the West (one of the six classic pre-modern chinese novels), whose characters permeate pan-asian cultural products of all kinds.

That premise is essentially a comic set-up. The 3 companions from the novel, the monkey King, the pig, and the fish king are like Homer Simpson -- they are driven by human appetites to constantly get into trouble. It is the job of this motley crew to protect the Monk, Sam Jang (Tang Zang/Xuansang), on his journey to the West, but even he cannot save them from their own idiocy.

But in Hwayugi, Son Oh Gong (SOG) tricks a little girl who sees spirits into releasing him from heaven's punishment of imprisonment. So heaven punishes her by forcing her to take on the dharma of the Monk in modern times. Is this fair, no. Is this a tale of the supernatural, yes, so fairness does not pertain.

The monk in the novel is looking for texts, but in Hwayugi she/he has become a sort of "sin-eater" who has to bear the burden of human evil. Her flesh still has the monk's fragrance of lotus flowers and even a tiny bite of it grants immortality. Meanwhile she grows up plucky and resourceful and turns her spirit-seeing ability to good commercial use as a real estate agent.

The Bull (Demon) King, Ma Wang (MW), who had sent her on the original errand and gotten her into the situation with the Monkey King, ends up remorseful when they all meet later on, He is no longer the novel's villain, but a more ambiguous figure, a media mogul, a celebrity show host. The group moves into his house, SOG (the monkey king), PK (the pig) and the elusive CEO (the fish king). They all pity her but also cannot stay away from her fragrance. Thus the comedy.

Even SOG is uneasy at what they have done; he refuses to admit it but has probably kept an eye on her all along eve,r since she was a child when he tricked her and lied to her. Deities are fundamentally different from us -- but the Monkey King is a demideity; in an ambiguous position, he can fall in love and he does so unwillingly.

There are some cool props: the slave-love bracelet the Geumgango; the Onggi of prophecy in the little shop--as soon as the FL lifts the lid out of curiousity, a pandora's box situation occurs; the Doom Bell and the Love Bell. Spoiler alert, there is no HEA.

ps. The scriptwriting duo of the Hong sisters set the bar if not the entire tone for the kdrama industry renaissance overseas -- not primarily in the West, mind you, but across South, East and West Asia. They are famous for being consistently commercially successful.

Each HS drama stands on its own, rarely repeating genres. The HS use literary tropes and texts with abandon, reinventing them, combining them, with a mastery that is hard to describe. Not only do they always catch the wave of audience interest with their creative wildness, but they also appeal to all different sorts of viewers who can tune into the dramas at differing levels of meaning and complexity.

A Studio Dragon Show with the composer unknown. Writers -- the Hong Sisters.

first posted july 31st 2024 on Viki

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My heart sang with happiness and sadness watching this series

I have to first say, I am a huge fan of this show. To the point that I have the monkey stuffed animal that Oh Kong gives the female lead! but I will say, for me, the ending left me heart broken and sad. I will advise anyone who is searching for happy ending, to not watch this series since I still haven't fully recovered and I still tear up listening to "when i saw you" by bumkey since it just brings it all back lol.

Even with all of that though, I still loved this show, it was the most amazing mix of fantasy and comedy that leaves you hooked watching every episode back to back since its hard to be left on the cliffhangers at the end. I enjoyed how much the female lead was a badass on her own and the male lead respected her strength and would offer his own only if she needed it or asked for it.

Each of the characters were amazing, so i didn't mind when the story didn't focus on the main leads and we got to learn more about the side characters and their pasts. Some of them were absolutely heart breaking, and made you empathize with some of the scariest characters.

I truly wish they would make another season, or a spin off since It was just a great series that fully immerses you into this fantasy world and definitely leaves you wanting more.

On a side note, I am completely in love with Oh Kong's first hair style (the long hair he had in his prison) vs the one he had for the rest of the show... so sad he didn't keep that hair cut the whole time.

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This is a fun and fantastic chimerical fantasy drama. This is a modern Korean interpretation based on the book Journey to the West. The acting is amazing! The cast did a great job bringing these complex and enigmatic characters to life, especially Cha Seung Won (as Woo Whee) and Sung Hyuk interpreting both male and female siblings. There is great chemistry and romance among the lead couple, the “frenemy” relationship between the lead males is priceless, and the rest of the cast kept the chemistry going. This drama evokes all sorts of emotions and leaves the viewer with a good feel. Enjoy it!

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My favorite Korean drama yet to date and I've seen probably over 100. Lee Seung Gi is one of my favorite Hallyyu stars and major eye candy. The coats he wears in this are pimp. I've seen the majority of his dramas and this is by far my favorite although I'm enjoying his newest one Vagabond. The bromance was epic! It reminded me of Lee Dong Wook and Gong Yoos in Goblin, a major love/hate relationship. The chemistry between the leads was HOT, especially the kiss scenes. It was a slow build romance but so worth the wait. The ost was bomb AF. I even added the main song to my YouTube playlist. PK (Lee Hong Ki) was one of my favorite characters. The CGI could've been better towards the last half but still pretty good for a Korean drama. All the acting was brilliant by every main and supporting characters.

Rewatch value... definitely imo

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Hwayugi proves that I should never pick up anticipated or over-hyped dramas. While touting a star studded cast, a legendary production team and adored source material, this drama left a lot of potential on the table.

After a few very turbulent weeks for the production crew including blatant CGI issues, debacles in this drama’s airing schedule and a terrible on set accident that threatened to stop production all together, Hwayugi finally seemed to get somewhat back on course. Even so, this drama was never able to establish a consistent tone or pacing. Most weeks it was a garbled mess with a Monster of the Week format. Each new arc and challenge that our protagonists have to face are all resolved before they can have any greater significance to the lead couple. This setup prevented me from becoming at all vested in the story, its characters and its romance. This drama is chalk full of filler just not a lot of substance here.

This drama’s saving grace is certainly the magical and impish Lee Seung Gi in his role of Son Oh Gong! Here Seung Gi is so charismatic and playful. The only reason I continued to watch this drama, was to see this monkey in his natural environment. Lee Seung Gi truly shines here championing all of his hallmarks. His performance as Son Oh Gong kept me watching even with the subpar plot.

I can’t really recommend this drama due to how it is lacking in its story, pacing and tone, but if you are an avid fan of Lee Seung Gi, you may need to weigh your options again.

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This drama was a roller coaster ride. I watched this when it was still ongoing and I was hooked from the first episode. loved all the characters and the cast was just PERFECT. The main leads were cute together and it was great seeing Lee Seung Gi back in action after a long time. I feel that it started out great but the last few episodes felt a little lacking for me. I loved the ost especially the song when I saw you. Personally, I didn’t really love the ending of it but when I gave it another thought I realized that the ending kind of suited the story considering most of the characters were immortal. This drama was a good escape from reality and it was fun having to tune in to this show every week. Overall, this drama may not be everyone’s cup of tea and may be lacking in a certain areas but it sure is interesting and captured my heart in its own special way with its humor and lively characters.

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Romcom disguised as fantasy/horror

For a Netflix show, this has some crappy CGI. But it didn't really put me off as the whole show is more silly and comedic than serious and horrific as I've been led to believe by the trailer. If you are planning on watching this, prepare for 20 long episodes whose storyline could've easily been shortened to 12-15 episodes max. It's a whole lot of fun with plot holes galore.

STORY
The series follows demons who are trying to become deities and an airheaded human who can see them, who's also destined to save the world (even though the stakes never seem so high). The premise of the main storyline is extremely interesting even though it's nothing new in dramas, but it ultimately failed to wow me in the last episode in which the entire story seems to plummet into a confusion of random developments. Stories following the side characters were much more fun and engaging to me, but only one of them is completely wrapped up in a satisfied way (Ma Wang's story). By far my favorite was the potential of the geumganggo and I would've loved to see so much more done with it (philosophically and otherwise), but I'm also satisfied with the story we got along with it.

ACTING/CAST
Through the first part of the drama I was absolutely in love with Lee Seung Gi's portrayal of Son Oh Gong, but by the end all of the side characters really stole the show for me. Perhaps my favorite was Jin Seon Mi's coworker Lee Han Joo because he is so ridiculously human as opposed to all of the other demons/evil spirits which was refreshing. Also, whoever was the costume designer behind Ma Wang's and Son Oh Gong's coats and eclectic formalwear... Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. As for the female lead, I have nothing to say bc wow, she was boring and she could've been done so much better. Other female characters were done so dirty or were just underdeveloped (Secretary Ma, Bu Ja, Summer Fairy, Alice even).

MUSIC
If ''Let Me Out'' and ''When I Saw You'' isn't featured in an episode of Hwayugi, is it even Hwayugi? Those two songs and ''If We Were Destined'' are my favs. Others are ambiental and nice, it's a good soundtrack, albeit forcing some songs too much and too often.

OVERALL
I probably won't rewatch it, unless there's going to be a second season after that open and ambiguous ending (but that's sth that the Hong sisters are famous for, so there's probably not going to be another season). It's fun and silly and brimming with crappy CGI and great side characters, it never takes itself too seriously even though I wish it has at certain times. This is for people who like bromances and overpowered main characters, who don't mind crap effects and long shows.

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IMO this was good until around episode 14 (or maybe when the priestess showed up). I skipped through episodes 17-20 so i am not very clear on the ending. This show started out pretty good for the first few episodes however after the bracelet was on son oh gong, i feel as if the show lost a bit of its direction for me. I spent the next 10 episodes wondering, if the love is fake whats the point of watching this, and that thought never left my mind. I've seen many commenting on the chemistry between the leads, however i very much liked them together, and the geumganggo put me off because i could tell it wasn't real. The OST was great, i definitely would listen to them even outside of the drama. The cast was great, and in all honesty the only reason i continued watching up until episode 16. Honestly the ending just felt random, with all of the jade dragon and the prosecutor guy. (I didn't may much attention when those two became important to the plot) I would probably rewatch it tbh, not for the plot, but i enjoyed the interactions between all the characters, and this show definitely made me laugh. I would say watch it, as long as you like the cast, or if you enjoyed goblin this would probably be your cup of tea, even if i thought it lost its direction.

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One Big Wacky Drama.

I've been avoiding A Korean Odyssey after hearing caveats about it's quality, but chose to pick it up this year. (Lee Seungi's performance in Mouse was beyond impressive and I wanted to check out his previous works.)

I know nothing about the original Chinese story this was based upon. The only time I've heard about Sun Wu Kong was in 'An Epic Crush of Genie Lou' and in 'Seizing Dreams' by Chicken Gege. This was a positive point as I had nothing to compare the plot and characters too.

☆ The Plot:

… is incomplete, and I can see why, considering how expansive the original characters and work has to be. I'm considering this as an original work by the Hong sisters that is loosely based on 'Journey Across the West'. It doesn't follow the main characters constantly and branches out often to explore the supporting ones.


A young girl, Jin Seon Mi, is born with the power of seeing spirits, leading her to get ostracized by everyone due to her strange reactions.
When a chance encounter with a mysterious man named Ma Wang gives her a hope to protect herself, she snatches it without a second thought. Going into a secluded mansion to retrieve a prized fan as a part of the deal, she stumbles across an 'oppa', Son Oh Gong, its eccentric prisoner. He convinces her to set him free in exchange of a contract, and she does as he wishes, despite being told by Ma Wang to never listen to anything and anyone in the mansion. Now free, Seon Mi asks for his protection as a contract -- Son Oh Gong agrees to come whenever his name is called, but cons her by taking away the memory of his name. He vanishes, breaking his promise.

The first episode is hands down one of the most intriguing and interesting ones I've seen to date. I can rewatch it mutliple times and nevet get bored. The drama, inspite of it's flaws, is definitely a highly entertaining treat for fantasy lovers. Yes, there are questions that still need answers (the story is pulled from all sides and plots, and it might make it difficult for someone to enjoy, particularly if you are not much intrigued by the characters), but I was completely satisfied by the characters, cast, and the story.

☆ The Characters:

… are the best part of the drama. And Hwayugi needs a better poster than the one we have now. I can count four more characters who play very important parts and have significant screentime.
And they were absolute wackos. I'm not kidding. Except for Seon Mi, the Summer and Winter Fairies along with Bu Ja, not a single character was 100% in their right mind for one complete episode. It was weird, seeing a completely same human among the bunch of animals… that they clearly are.

Ma Wang was an unexpected scene stealer for me. I will forever remember him screaming 'ttorai!' when I think of Hwayugi. I loved his bromance with the naughty Son Oh Gong and his Secretary. This series should have alternate names such as 'The Errors of Ma Wang'.

Strange, but there was an ominous atmosphere throughout the whole drama. Seon Mi and her co-worker were the only real humans and the 'demons and deities' where depicted in a a rather grey manner. Even Ma Wang and Son Oh Gong make decisions that makes us doubt them.
Son Oh Gong in particular, was immature. I was confused as to why Seon Mi was holding a grudge against him even after 25 years, but later realized that she must have been in a state of constant distress due to her special condition.
His 'betrayal' comes back at him, though. I loved his interactions with every single character. He was quite witty too, unexpectedly, and I began to wish for his happiness.

The supporting characters are vital to the plot as a whole. Without their schemes and the intricate web that connects them to the main characters, the story would never take off. And the cast was amazing in portraying every role to a tee. (I loved the relation between Bu Ja and PK in particular.)

☆ The Music:

Hwayugi has a stunning soundtrack. I am quite shocked by how beautiful and memorable the tracks were. Someone commented on Youtube how the drama is never complete without certain songs and I agree with them.
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All in all, I immensely enjoyed the journey that I went through with every single character by the end. The finale is definitely rushed with a few last minute additions seemingly added, but I was satisfied with how things wrapped. Atleast, the ending is hopeful instead of bleak.
I wish that every single character grew up, overcame their struggles, and finally found what they sought for.

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