beautifully made
Hotel del Luna is an amazing drama. Although it took me a few episodes to get truly invested in the story, it left me crying like a baby during the last episode.First of all this drama is just overall very beautifully made. The hotel, the scenery and the outfits (ESPECIALLY IU’s outfits!) are super pretty and pleasing to the eye. This might be one of the most aesthetical kdramas I have ever seen.
Second of all the story is emotional, fun, and investing and the characters are all very likeable. The dynamics between the main leads are great and it‘s fun to see how their relationship changes over time. IU‘s performance really stood out to me, but all the actors did a great job in this one.
Lastly the OST of this drama is amazing and features a lot of popular artists.
Would recommend everyone to watch this kdrama!
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Strong fantasy set-up and dynamic between leads with ultimately unsatisfying conclusion
I came into Hotel del Luna with several biases, but I enjoyed it for the most part (except for the ending, which I really found unsatisfying). Usually, the fantasy tag is an automatic skip when I'm looking for prospective dramas, since I think the extra layer of contrivance often sets up ridiculous plotting and a lot of fat a show could trim off. I didn't find this to be the case with Hotel del Luna, overall. I'm also not a fan of frequent flashbacks, which this has, but here it makes sense given the nature of the fantasy and the premise. The way they're interlaid into dreams makes sense and so the majority of the setup in the beginning and middle is pretty artful. More superficially, I think the costuming and set design was a definite aesthetic draw - it reminds me a lot of It's Okay to Not Be Okay in how it's used as a supplemental pleasure to the main drama. The music is also nice throughout. Overall, there's a lot of visual and auditory appeal in this.(General spoiler) I really like IU, as most going into this probably do. She does a great job, as does the ML; they have strong on-screen chemistry and their characters' dynamic works well. I do wish their romance was more intimate, though; much of their relationship is threaded through teasing banter, on the one hand, and long-term promises and commitments on the other. As the conclusion was coming up, I felt like the reality of the romance (indicated by the former) faded for the sake of the fantasy-driven resolution (the latter). They flirt but their relationship is weirdly desexualized because IU's character is somehow a 1,300 year old prude when the chips are down and the ML shows even sarcastic interest. Usually, I think shows can verge too far towards fluffy/intimate, but here I felt like the weight of their choices actually called for the sex/marriage institutionalization more than so many lighthearted shows I've seen that pursue that direction. She kisses him like 3 episodes in - or so it seemed - but that's basically the extent of their romantic intimacy besides some nice chaste hugging. Instead, we get extremely heavy romantic statements of commitment at the expense of fluffiness. Though I typically don't find it necessary (or even desirable to include it), I think having sex and more moments of intimacy in this show could've better shaped the drama at the end and added more levity as well (I think of how that would've fit within the pseudo-gossip the hotel workers had between them). In short, I think the desire to be true to the show's fantasy premise overwhelmed the desire to have a satisfying romance (with all the attendant intimacy), which is ultimately why the ending didn't work for me at all.
(Spoiler) Halfway through, my rating probably would've been closer to an 8.5 or a 9, but the ending made me rethink the parts of the show that I enjoyed from the beginning and middle. My central question throughout the run was, "are they going to be able to stay together in the real world?" But as I got to the end, the creators clearly thought more in terms of "what's the right way for IU's character to atone and thus for us to wrap up the fantasy side of things?" As someone who watched primarily for the romance, the ending was very unfulfilling and frankly didn't make sense to me, especially the ML's actions and what he says to the FL about moving on. I think having reincarnation as a facet of this drama was a fundamental mistake, though one the creators relied a lot on for conflict in the middle and end. Rather, I think the drama of losing immortality and reintegrating into society while dealing with lingering grudges would've been more compelling narrative. I don't think fated relationships - something established in this show via reincarnation - have any real stakes or emotional fulfillment (because choice is circumscribed by destiny), so having the resolution based on some nebulous possibility of meeting again in a reincarnated future does nothing for me. Here, they overcome and change in substantial ways only to lose what's most meaningful to them. Ultimately, the fantasy side of this drama, which I didn't mind for most of the run, led to this kind of unfulfilling conclusion (and on a shameless cameo no less). Like the show's creators, in the end, the main characters are more concerned with an imagined future than with the material reality of living and cultivating romance out of tragic circumstances.
(Spoiler) Rather than romantic or cute, I found the ending to be a weird mix of cynicism and idealism emerging out of the religiously-inflected fantasy. IU's character never lived a real life, never got to be someone because her life was conditioned by the cruel machinations of fate and the stain of vengeance. Once she meets someone with whom she can live and be free, she has to say goodbye because a gaggle of mercurial Fate bitches basically say so. In such a case, it's not clear what the ML should do in his regular life afterward. He falls in love with a gorgeous millennium-old demigod who he makes eternal promises to, but after she moves on, he's supposed to just live basically a regular life? His whole existence at that point is conditioned by the knowledge that his deepest happiness is contingent upon dying and meeting someone he won't remember in a reality he can't fathom. That's not the leap of faith that makes a good romance, but a religious deferral and rejection of the joy of living. The structure of the show really made me think the ending was a punishment of the FL (and the ML by extension), rather than the struggle to move on from her grudge (as it's presented). So the problem, to me, wasn't that the ending is sad (which it is), but that the basis for the resolution - reincarnated future hope - is nonsense and unfulfilling.
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Fun, beautiful, though the story was not so memorable.
Trapped in her resentment, Man Wol (IU) has to spend an eternity running Hotel del Luna, catering to the unresolved issues of ghosts before they move on to the afterlife. Go Chan Sung (Yeo Jin Gu) ended up working for Man Wol due to a deal his father made with her. Through his job, Chang Sung gets to know the mysterious Man Wol and her dark past. Will there be any redemption for Man Wol doomed fate?The first stand out point is the fantastic world building of Hotel del Luna, it is majestic and wonderful to look at. More than that, the visual effects, OSTs and costumes are all stunning. Man Wol’s costumes are something else! They are undeniably feminine & stunning with luxurious & rich color tones, and IU wore them with confidence that these clothes are not ‘drowning’ her. She really proves herself in this role, with her cold and powerful gaze that perfectly define cold, powerful, and ancient being Man Wol. The next point I love is the cast chemistry, the hotel staffs, the god ladies, and the chemistry between IU with Lee Do Hyun (they fought great together). Indeed, it’s not the chemistry between IU and Yeo Jin Gu, who is our male lead that I enjoyed most.
However, those are the aspects that I love from Hotel del Luna. The story itself didn’t grip me and some of the ghosts issues are not that exciting to watch. I enjoyed the comedic interactions, especially the beginning ones, but the main romance never felt romantic. Overall, it’s a great drama despite my pros and cons. I like how it ends with good life lessons as well.
Last edited-Mar 2024,
Find me on instagram: @kdramajudge
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Well how the turns have tabled....
Heh...yeah, I actually ended up watching this after all! For context: I dnf-ed this back when I first discovered k-dramas in 2020. I hated the male lead so much, I started hating the actor as a result. I couldn't stand him, I couldn't stand the show and just avoided both. Then I slowly watched him in other stuff and ...okay! I admit...he doesn't suck! Whatever! *eye roll* And then I sort of ended up watching this with my family and they loved it so we kept watching it and...yeah, okay, this was actually good. It was watered down and dragged longer than necessary, and nothing will make me ever warm up to those slow-mo music video style edits that Kdramas shove into every other episode. But I loved the lore and the whole concept of unfinished business after death and the grudges that keep our souls company. That was just so genuine and authentically explored. IU's character was tons of fun! I loved her brattish petty behavior and I was very curious about her past, though I feel like the payoff was lackluster. I was expecting something more dramatic? I don't know. It was also fun to see a female character have multiple proper love interests who aren't in competition for her attention and I also like the somber ending.The ensemble cast were good too though I disliked the side-character romances...weird...and uninspired!
Overall, I love that this uses Korean mythology and beliefs in its plot. It was FAR better than the new kdramas we get these days which are bland, boring and lack the spirit that these older shows have. I also can't believe I'm calling this "old" it's from 2019! That's like....yesterday! The fact that it was still far better than stuff we're getting now shows how bad things have gotten lately...
Anyway, watch it! We need more stuff like this.
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Beautiful Visuals Can't Save This Incoherent, Boring Story
Hotel del Luna is proof that production value and lead actress charisma can't save a fundamentally broken script. Lee Ji-eun is genuinely captivating, and the cinematography is gorgeous—it's a visual feast. But that's where the praise ends.The story is a mess. Plot points happen randomly without logic. The central mystery isn't intriguing; it's just poorly constructed. The romance feels forced and lacks chemistry despite the actors' efforts. Supporting characters are cardboard cutouts with throwaway backstories. Pacing is painfully slow in the first half, then rushed in the finale, leaving you frustrated rather than satisfied.
You're essentially watching a pretty box with nothing inside. Skip it unless you're desperate for aesthetic content.
Final Verdict: 6.5/10 - A visual spectacle that squanders its potential with lazy storytelling.
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This review may contain spoilers
i liked it very much but I wish I liked it more
hotel del Luna was on my watchlist for a while. finally I decided to give it a go reading the wonderful review and let me tell you, It was worth the watch.even though I liked it some things still bothered me.
first of all... del luna hotel. I know Italian and some Spanish... del Luna is definitely the wrong preposition. but this is just nitpicking for the sake of being annoying 😅
the story is really compelling. a bunch of resentful soul run a hotel helping other souls with their departures and unfinished businesses on earth.
the characters are pretty much all likeable, even the grim reaper who made me laugh out of the blue with his expressions. I don't know why. I just love him.
the staff member were initially marginal but got more flashed out towards the end. the last episodes I cried like a fountain.
unfortunately during the series they don't get that much depth. only the final episodes give us the real juice about them.
the main star is obviously IU. great performance and marvelous outfits even though I sometimes struggles identifying her angelic face with a 1300 old resentful soul. she looked too innocent.
the human manager was ok. I didn't dislike his character but I didn't love him. he was very Plain in my opinion.
i liked their initial relationship as manager and hotel owner/mentor but I didn't completely bite their love story. they didn't have THAT chemistry. they looked more like pals than lovers.
I think the love story, which we get literally crumbs of, was completely unnecessary to the plot and that's coming from someone who watches mainly romance.
the other characters were just there. especially the best friend Sanchez. we know nothing about him and then bam... he gets strucked by tragedy. i don't know.. they could hace done way more with him or others.
the manager mother story was also kinda meh. why bring her up anyway?
speaking on the drama itself I must say that the music choice was great.
the aesthetic was pleasant.
the only thing that annoyed me a bit were the long ass transitions. too many effects, camera changes etc.. a hug would last 1 minute. I skipped a lot.
end....
I was emotional but not gut wrenching as goblin. I compare the two because they have a similar Story/vibe
they both leave you with a somewhat open ending but goblin was just better.
this drama leaves you also with many questions.
why does the hotel need to disappears? do they have to build everything from ground? who will be the next owner?
if a resentful soul stays too long on earth the entire staff of the hotel should have become an evil spirit...
etc etc.
it is a good drama don't get me wrong but I wishing we got a bit more.
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This review may contain spoilers
✒☪Enchanting, Entrancing, Some Dancing & Romancing ⚜️ °8.4° °Excellent°
[Spoilers are contained in a separate section at the end]⚜️What A Delectable Diversion. HDL is a magical little fantasy about a hotel where the dead can rest prior to heading to the afterlife. You Can Check Out Anytime You Like 🌃 But /She/ Can't Leave…
While the hotel is magical & regular slubs like us can't see it (or its guests), it still exists in the real world. It's registered with the province & a human manager is required to handle all human affairs. Enter Mr. Koo. When Koo is young, his father, in a fateful encounter with Ms Jang, promises Koo's future to Jang. Dad is pressured into this promise in exchange for his life; otherwise, Koo would grow up parentless. The good news is that HDL will now fund Koo's upbringing. So Pop takes him to 🇺🇸 where Koo, in time, "pulls a Harvard" in Hotel Mgmt. Even so, like all humans putting on blinders, neither dad nor child took the obligation seriously.
Koo comes to realize, 25 years later, that he cannot shirk this obligation. Just when he has his dream job bagged, Jang runs interference. What plays out is a peek into this amazing world within our world. As all of Koo's training is OTJ, every episode is a treat to something new & imaginative.
HDL is a visual extravaganza, from the hotel to the fashion-porn. Filmed on location at the Hotel Seine Café, which is staggeringly beautiful (it's now on my bucket list), 'dainties' & 'fancies' are 360 degrees around. Some of those delights are revealed in my spoiler section. The filming bolsters the gorgeous spectacle. Jang's got an outfit to go with every occasion, even one to wear when dining on rice cake soup. But don't expect spontaneity. If you suddenly want to go somewhere & she's not dressed 'correctly', just fuhgettaboudit.
While there's plenty of side stories in which to become engrossed, the main protagonists are Ms Jang (owner of HDL), & Mr. Koo, her very reluctant 99th human manager. Jang looks like a porcelain doll & is as feisty as a Tasmanian Devil. She's also sealed herself off. We see her dismiss the former Manager of 40 years with perfunctory efficiency, devoid of emotion. She's taken on petulance as a primary personality trait. Consistency long ago abandoned, she will say anything in the moment to satiate her emptiness.
Jang's truly b@d@$$, but, Ms Snark - Ms Sourpus - Ms Oppositional - Ms Ill-Tempered Ice Queen - is about to get a change of perspective, not just a change of clothes. Koo might appear to be a feckless wimp (which is how Jang's been treating him) but he is, as it turns out, tremendously courageous & a problem solver of the highest intellect. He knows when to be reserved & when to step up. When he steps up, it's with every bit of panache that Jang displays.
There are visual cues to the romance. Jang & Koo gradually match each other more & more. At first it's just her nail polish that matches his outfit & it grows from there. Flowers are popping up everywhere. They are beautiful… & perishable.
There's plenty of laughs. Mr. Koo is lurched far off-balance by the rush of new experiences, & he frequently jumps behind Jang out of fear until he gets accustomed to dealing with ghosts. She looks like she might reach 5'2" in spiked Jimmy Choos, so it's absurd - and bang-on funny.
When Koo was still running away from the job, Jang went out to retrieve him. He passed out after a nasty ghost encounter. K- "How did you get me back to the hotel" ? J- "Well, I got something similar to a handcart. All you need to know is that I got you back safely." The way she actually got him back, however, is not analogous to a handcart! Not one little bit!
Once in awhile, live people insist on checking in. They are placed in Room 404, the error number we've seen on countless computer screens. In EP10 there's a deft little scene: Koo & Jang are at a restaurant where people died from eating (she can't get enough of that). She's ticked off at him, but she can't resist taking pictures of her food. Snapping away, she never diverts her fuming stare from Koo. She moves the camera around & clicks it but only looks at him. It's hilarious. Koo is gifted a big cat print suit. Will the fastidious Harvard grad be able to even get one arm into the jacket without a meltdown? It's worth watching to see.
There's some head-scratchers, unfortunately, & there's some glaring omissions, too. The ending is not my favorite part of HDL. Things went downward a tinge in the last couple eps. Ep16 was too slow, sappy, & drawn out. It's always sad when the wrap up of a great story is the worst part of it.
We watch them & all the staff develop individually & as a unit. To avoid any jolts to the system pay attention. The show creators will tell you where they are headed: Believe them. We don't see much of what happens going forward, which is a little letdown. That is why viewers are clamoring for a S2.
Things are mostly looking way up at HDL, though. This is appropriate to watch with kids who are around the ages of 12& up. The feel is almost Disneyesque. There's some elements (evil ghosts, murders) that are too scary for children of single-digit age, who would struggle with the subtitles anyway. HDL offers valuable lessons, such as forgiveness, & Koo is a walking ethics handbook.
While you may not get 100% customer satisfaction, make sure to check-in anyway. This is a hotel, & a show, like no other. I'm a little sad, but also very bedazzled.
⛔️SPOILER SECTION⛔️
From tidbits to broad strokes, here's some additional insights into HDL.
In the way of laughs and delight〰️>
The pool is actually a yacht-worthy ocean with sunlight-levels to order. HDL even has an amusement park. Who wants to go! Uh, hang on... I can wait a while for that, I guess. The entrance fee is steep.
After Koo starts putting his whole heart into the job, Koo finds out that he was the /3rd/ choice for manager. Having been 'committed' to the job for 25 years & presuming himself indispensable, he's shocked. The staff calls him 'Mr. 3rd choice' behind his back.
The way she got him back to the hotel when he passed out was by possession. It's best that Koo not know.
How could you say "no" to having a beer with the Grim Reaper!? SANCHEZ!
In the way of romance〰️>
The Romance between these 2 is magnificent. Koo actually pursues Jang. She exposed the tiniest opening & he wedged it wide to occupy all the empty space. It inspires a smidge of awe. Before long they are spending most of their time together. They continue the trend Koo started by conversing in metaphors. For example, when Jang says: "The sea is beautiful tonight. It makes me a little sad." She looks Koo in the eye & says: "I'm sad because it's more beautiful than it was before." They feel for e/o, but they haven't fully acknowledged it to themselves, so they can't express it yet. As their feelings deepen, they both want to protect e/o. Next, they begin matching. Once she gets past wanting to kill him, they match more completely & start to reflect e/o. He closes one episode by declaring: "You are devouring all my nights & all my dreams: Admit it, he just laid down a 🎤drop! Another time, Koo tells Jang: "The view is much better now that I'm with you." Koo's so smooth he could write dating primers. They show us the apex of his masculinity when Jang, in an attempt to coerce him into the cat print suit, threatened to take his clothes off if he didn't wear it. He looked at her & said: "Can you handle it?" She froze for a moment. He ain't weak at all.
In the way of heartbreak 〰️>
We see heavy foreshadowing in the rose he gave her: It's fragile & will wilt eventually. Some things are left oblique, such as the sex of the last Yun family baby, or the non-answer to the "capricious" deities that don't seem to be fair.
It was obvious they would be resolving grudges for the staff. It might have been better if they spread it out a little more. We don't see what happens to anyone going forward, which is another letdown. The ending is not to my liking. At all. Their relationship is priceless. They have so little time together once they settle into it.
I get it: Koo let Jang go. He made the choice. The show creators chose the ground rules they constructed, though, and not only are their constraints somewhat severe, but they don't always make sense. Worse, is that they are inconsistent, at times. Early on, we're told the tree looks dead because time stopped flowing (is dead) for Jang. She didn't die in the series, so why would she have to cross over to the Afterlife? Why would Jang even be sentenced to pay a 1000 year penance? Because she took out the rotten government that abused their power & her people? Does Jang's punishment fit the crime as well as Koo's tiger suit fits him? Jang's horrible circumstances seem worse than she herself is.
I spent most of the series thinking that when Jang's time flows again she'll be able to live her life out with Koo before passing. In fairness, the vibe increasingly felt ill-fated. It's not like they didn't forecast the weather. Nevertheless, I'm going through 5 grief stages over it. Right now I'm angry. YO! It's a fairy tale, for cryin out loud!! Why can't we have a fairy tale ending!? :( looks like I'm sliding into the bargaining phase)...
Mago “straight” asks Koo if she can do him a favor in exchange for the scissors' safe return. Why didn't he ask for more time? Mago used him to work on Jang. She set it all up 25 years ago, perhaps longer. SHE caused his broken heart. She didn't have to be so stingy… so dang capricious. They're making me hate fate.
Don't tell me that meeting in future lives is a happy ending. One happy life now is worth a hundred ‘possible’ lives later. If they do, indeed, meet up as kimchi & chicken noodles, is that happy? Doubtful. It's understandable that aspects of reincarnation are considered to be romantic. The potential downside is that we could look at all the misery in this world as being deserved by the oppressed due to indiscretions in prior lives. Every living thing could be in jeopardy within that philosophical circle, & compassion & empathy will take on damage under such suppositions, also. The worst thing is that if it turns out to not be true, then it is too cruel to the oppressed.
Things go downward a tinge before the end. Ep16 is too slow, sappy, & drawn out. The saddest thing is that I could be experiencing a warm firefly glow today, instead of anger. Finally, for Jang, running the hotel is a punishment, but it seems to be a reward for the next guy. CAPRICIOUS Mago winks at us again.
Enough of that.
I'm still alittle sad, and I'm also alittle angry, but still bedazzled.
Originally 〰️🖊 10/2021
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IU is my queen
An interesting kdrama consisting of the supernatural and the afterlife, with a touch of reincarnation lore. What may seem like a fantastical kdrama delves into more of the human side of mortality, exploring various storylines of people who have passed and require more than death to help their souls rest. IU is as beautiful as ever, and does her role justice as the owner of this purgatory hotel.Was this review helpful to you?
recommend to watch
Nice drama, but ML was a little bit, very little bit boring and serious whereas the FL was exciting and fun to watch due to the in-depth character. OST is top notch Punch, Taeyeonname them. but I did not like how Lee do Hyun was more of a bit or minor character and was shown way lesser.
well acting, great
ost great
storyline, the story writer needs some beating cos of the ending, too vague.
cinematography, well done
I can recommend it to someone else because of IU and the other hotel staff.
I cried, laughed, I was happy, disappointed and I had all the feelings while watching this
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The OST and Moonlight Sonata were all gorgeous, they really pulled the scenes together and drew you into their world. I really loved the side storylines with the hotel guests and learning about their grudges and what pulls them away from release. I also thought the side characters were all really wonderful and had great chemistry, so I didn't have issues when an episode was side-character-centric. I sensed more chemistry between IU and Jin-goo while they were just friends, but I never felt like they didn't adore each other through the end. I was a sobbing mess at the end.
The visual FX was pretty meh. It's okay that it's not great - I understand visual FX is expensive- but sometimes it was worse than cheap Halloween makeup and very amateur. I got over it after a few episodes though and tried to enjoy the show/scenes for their story and character chemistry. My only real "issue" is that I really wish there was a special episode to show the epilogue. I really wanted to know more about what happened after the end episode.
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Beautiful, but the backstory is what got me
Yes, just to get it out of the way. The cinematography of this drama is just gorgeous, IU rocks every single outfit, and the OST is also pretty great.In this entire drama, however, I have to say that plotwise I was just so much more invested in MW's backstory and in the enemies-to-lovers ship. I completely fell in love with the flashbacks and the high-stakes dynamics between the characters, even while knowing that everything was going to end in tragedy.
While I still enjoyed the modern story and the unusual dynamic between the main leads, I didn't love them as much as I loved the backstory couple, and I almost didn't feel any romance at all. I think part of this is just the time taken to the modern plot.
I wasn't a huge fan of this kind of episodic writing in Master's Sun and I felt the same for this one. Other than the subplots that connected us directly to the main or supporting cast, I didn't care much for the individual ghosts and their stories and pretty much just waited with bated breath to find out about MW's story.
She was undoubtedly the most interesting and layered character out of everyone, and I wish we had dedicated just as much time to the male lead as we did to her or even to any of the supporting cast (the hotel workers). Even with his backstory, his character and plot seemed a little shallow.
Ultimately, it was the backstory of MW that stole the show, my attention, and my heart.
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knowing at iu was being a part of the cast made me quite excited, and as expected i couldn't imagine who could play jang manwol better than her.
production wise, this drama is very aesthetically pleasing and definitely worth it's quality. from the interior of the hotel, manwol's outfits and also the cinematography that the drama has delivered is pleasing to the eye and i loved how the whole drama is shot.
plot wise, it wasn't the greatest plot i have encountered but it definitely wasn't bad at all. i enjoyed the character developments of each character, and the connections between the past selves with their the current selves and how fate brought each person together. however, for some reason in the middle of the drama i felt like i could predict jang manwol's back story and what made her receive her punishment.
overall the drama was good! it's worth my time and i loved the chemistry between all the characters in this drama ~
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