Editorials 
Strong start, awful final episodes
I'm really pissed after watching it. Why? Because the the show was great but after episode 16 it becomes so bad that I was considering to drop it right there.Everyone points to the bad ending, but I started to fast-forward from episode 19 until the end, so it's actually bad even before the ending.
Let's start wit the good pars.
The acting was great, I can't complain there at all.
The comedy was really good and truly made me laugh outload.
The music fitted the show really nice with the comedy aspects and hit the mark.
Then the turning point for me was episode 17 when the show started to go downhill. (or more like falling in a hole)
Imagine a live version of twitter reenacted in a history drama, but only the gossip part of twitter, that was episode 17 for me. The first time was OK but the second... it was just stupid. And the plot started to rely on that twitter gossip... oh my... how can I describe how stupid it was. We have a saying in my country that describes episode 17 perfectly: "Your sister is a wh*re... now go and explain that you don't even have a sister".
After that we got the "eureka" moment when a specific character figured something out for no specific reason, turned evil and after 2min turned "good"... and after the moment the fast forwarding started for me and I didn't care for the show any more.
There were soo many bad things in the episodes after that, that it's hard to explain it without spoiling something.
It almost seemed that they switched the screen writer at some point, I don't understand how can the same person produce the golden 16 episodes and then sit and sh*t out the rest of them in this state.
Score:
1-16 eps - 9/10
17-20 eps - 4/10
So lets give it a 7/10.
I can't say if I can recommend it or not... it's good but brace yourself some really bad plot points in the end.
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Good premise
I really liked the idea—a time slip gender swap. First couple episodes were hilarious. Unfortunately turned into a subpar sageuk. I actually really like sageuk, with all the political drama included, but the writers really missed a lot of opportunities for anachronistic humor and examinations into Bong Hwan finding his feminine side. That said, it might be a good starter for sageuk newbies as it’s on the lighter side and doesn’t assume you’re well-read in Korean history. I actually prefer Scarlet Heart Ryeo for a similar feel but a deeper understanding.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Disappointing Ending
I really enjoyed Episodes 1-16, it was so funny and entertaining so I didn’t take this show seriously. Yeah I agreed not to be one of those who take ‘Sports Day’ seriously. However, when the show changed to a more serious tone after learning that the queen was pregnant, I couldn’t help but also follow the show’s direction and tone. As much as I enjoyed its first 16 episodes, the last four kind of ruined it for me.My rants:
1. I totally hate it when a drama drags on a potential ‘death’ of a major character and milk on having it for cliffhangers. My goodness, we all know that the king won’t die as early, and won’t ever since he has a plot armor. I feel so annoyed when they did it.
2. I know this is a drama but I hope they didn’t insult the science of pregnancy. The queen walked on her foot for days, slept on the cold forest, get tossed, hanged on a cliff, and chased by guards. Got stabbed and whatnot, I was really shocked that the baby in her womb survived all of these. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t celebrate miscarriages but having the queen miscarrying the baby at the end should be the most logical thing that could’ve happened. For the life of me, the queen and the baby fought for their lives overnight, but the next day, she was walking around bossing people around as if nothing happened! Jeez, unacceptable. I feel very insulted as a viewer. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. It would make sense scientifically and romantically to miscarry the baby because it was Bong Hwan in So Yong’s body when the baby was made. Now that So Yong is back, they could always bed and make a new baby that is really out of love and truth.
3. Why did they trash Kim Byung In’s characters like that? All the main cast (king, queen, Jo Hwa jin, had a happy ending but him? They wasted his character. Seriously, they left his body in the forest like that?? I feel so angry for him. I am very disappointed in So Yong. Girl, you don’t have a right to weep and call her Orabeoni!
It wasn’t also explained why those two swap bodies. What connection do they have that of all the millions of people in world, why him? Why her? I could’ve missed it? If not, what a waste.
I strongly feel Mr. Queen should have ended in Episode 16. The last four episodes turned it into trash.
I’d probably order something from McDunaldu to console my disappointed heart.
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This review may contain spoilers
I can't give this show a small grade bc it brought me a LOT of joy, laughs and heart-warming moments. I tried not to ship the main couple because I knew this could happen in the end, but the writers made such an effort to make us ship them, and root for their journey that there was no other way. In the end, this show was about the love story of two men and the writers were too coward to give it the ending it deserved, it comes across as unfair both to the characters as to the viewers. Nevertheless, I'd definitely recommend watching this show since all 19 episodes before the finale are a must watch. The characters are all highly interesting and nicely built and Shin Hye Sun makes the watch worth it! Unfortunately, the ending may give a bitter taste on your mouth. Was this review helpful to you?
Extremely entertaining and fresh but an ending that might leave you dissatisfied
Firstly, if you do decide to see this drama, please bare in mind that you should not watch it seriously and be bothered by the logical repercussions of certain actions depicted. I actually wanted to give it a 10 purely on the basis of the ENTERTIANMENT VALUE this drama has but I did not due to my disheartened viewpoint regarding its ending.Reasons you should watch:
-The Queen (Bong-Hwan) and the King understanding one another and slowly falling in love.
-The perfectly timed comedy that save all the serious moments too from getting overly-dramatic.
-The support cast add a lot to the story and are full of characters with distinct personalities.
-Never not entertaining- there is no dull movement and I would wait each week for this drama to take me by surprise.
-Brilliant modern day references incorporated in the Joseon Era.
-Last but not the least, THE ACTING. Shin Hye Sun does emerge as the star playing two characters with different genders simultaneously but Kim Jung-Hyun does an equally good job! Scenes were they are together- none overpower the other and they seamlessly deliver powerful performances. The entire support cast does an excellent job too.
My one and only complaint:
-The ending. I do not want to include spoilers in the review and so I won’t expand on this but it sort of undermines the purpose of the journey BH and CJ shared as CJ fell in love with BH as the Queen.
The ending might not sit well with you just as it did not with me but I do see people interpreting this as a happy one as well. However, I would still go on to say the show was refreshing, entertaining, comic, surprisingly romantic and worth a watch!
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This review may contain spoilers
Finally a fresh, less-homophobic take on the body-swap genre
What made me love Mr Queen was how the romance between Cheoljong and the Queen (who isn't really the Queen) crept up on me while watching the show. When I first started it, I didn't think I'd last long because I usually prefer romances. But then... BAM! They took me by surprise and it was delightful!Never had I watched a K-drama that had dared this much in relation to gender and sexuality, so I immediately fell in love with the drama.
However, it didn't come without its' flaws.
I didn't expect a happy ending. Eventually, Hwan Bong would have to leave everything and everyone behind, of course. And that's just what happened.
The expected "no-homo"ness of it all resulted in an ending where they try to trick you into thinking it was a happy one. I'd prefer to think that the interactions between Cheoljong and the Queen with Hwan Bong in her body were all genuine, it makes the story much more interesting and powerful. You can't just sit there and tell me that it wasn't all real and that Cheoljong fell in love with the Queen, actually. Not only that, but that Hwan Bong's feelings for Cheoljong only came from the Queen's soul that lived inside her body.
Still, it felt like the creators pushed for it, but I bet they couldn't make the ending a more satisfactory one due to censoring reasons.
The ending had to be at least bittersweet for it to work (considering that Hwan Bong *had* to go back), but I wish the bond between Hwan Bong and Cheoljong had been spelled out better for the viewer and recognised for what it was.
Besides that, I have to congratulate Shin Hye-sun for her portrayal of the Queen, this is by far the best performance I've ever seen in a drama. She ate and left no crumbs. I also enjoyed Jung Hyun Kim as the male lead, I really like despite of all the controversies lol.
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Smooth Sailing Plot So Grab Your Popcorn!!... Mine!!
Mr. Queen was a breath of fresh air because at that point, I had lost my interest in Kdramas and was moving onto Cdramas.Surprisingly, Mr. Queen got me hooked from the start of the drama to the end, it was a smooth journey. Most Kdramas become tiring to watch by Episode 12, 13 or 14 but I didn't want this drama to end.
I have to applaud our Main Female lead for her exceptional and professional acting skills, it really impressed me.
All other casts worked really hard and put their best. There was almost no character I could dislike even the supposedly antagonists.
The OST is also good.
I really enjoyed the drama and it's a big go ahead for me.
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Comic, well acted, clever , a must to watch!
Ok you need to watch this! It is hilarious, super funny, great acting, great facial expression, intrigued political schemes, a bit of drama... Yes, it also makes you cry a bit... well at the very end.. but everything just turned up fine... with a great and satisfactory finale. This is my second Kdrama as i usually watch Cdrama... but i think it got me converted to korean productions now! The FL is amazing, fantastic, she can impersonate a man in a female body so naturally, jeez made me laugh out loud a few times...Every episode is worth watching, you got very strong friendships and unrequired love, which was dealt with in a mature and realistic way. I have appreciated that people were direct, straightforward. Nice!
On my list of re watching when i want something funny 😁 😂 😀
The second lead for me was the chef, and the court lady and those two were so well matched and super funny! Ahahahahhaha i LOVE THEM! Ah, also, please don't get me started on the way the king laughter! Oh my god! A strong, deep voice, nearly a sarcastic one, dome with a serious look... he was taking the piss, big time! BRAVO!
And... I also must comment on the flirting side... the kissing... oh my oh my... love that kissing! Initially I didnt particuarly like the king , both the actor and the character... just to realise later on that i found him super sexy.. and every scene this couple was spending together... was hilarious! Add this kdrama to your list to watch, you won't be disappointed
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Things I liked-
1. Casting was perfect
2. All actors acted very well especially the actress who played queen.
3. Cinematography was good.
Things I didn’t like-
I thought the show was a little draggy. In some episodes same thing was happening again and again, it was entertaining but after a certain point I felt bored and I skipped some unnecessary scenes. If they made 17-18 ep instead of 20 ep then it does not make any difference to story.
Minor spoiler-
If u watching this because of BL then don’t watch it because it’s not BL. I could say go princess go was sort of BL but this is not.
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WHAT A GREAT SHOW! Loved the ending too, it was perfect!
Our Queen Shin Hae Sun was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING AND INCREDIBLE. Her mannerisms, her acting, her reactions, her voice, her humour, her aura, everything was perfect! She made the role iconic in every way possible. Her iconic dancing scene alone was worth watching the whole drama, to be very honest.Our King, Kim Jung Hyun, I've already seen him in two shows (CLOY, and School 2017) and he was brilliant as always. He was the perfect balance of dumb yet mysterious. I didn't like the arc where he was kinda involved with two women at once, and tbh I got the romantic angle but it did make me very uncomfortable that our straight male lead had to be physically and romantically involved with the King butttt but the actual leads looked so cute together! (I wish I could've enjoyed it as a gay/bromance type thing but I just couldn't).
Also I LOVED Kim Byung In AND Hong Byul Gam SO MUCH.
Kim Byung In was SO SEXY in his relentless love for the Queen, and he was steadfast and determined and didn't change his feelings till the very end! Hong Byul Gam was SO DAMN HOT whenever he had any action scenes, and he had a confidence in the show which was damn SEXY. Also he really reminds me of Oh Jung Se.
Also the Court Lady Choi, she was hilarious. Her arc with the Royal Chef was funny as hell.
The villain arc in the show could have been better, but I LOVED watching Kim Jwa Geun as the 'real power behind the Kim clan'. The other villains were forgettable lol.
However the story would've been great in a 16 episode format. The episodes were perfect till about 14, afterwards it dragged till 20.
Overall the show was fresh, thoughtful, all the characters had GREAT comedic timing, and the show was overall a delight to watch.
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Well-deserved hype
Story: The plot is straight to the point. A king wants power to eradicate corruption & evil doings in the palace and have his revenge as well. The key to enjoy this drama is not to expect anything and it’s what I did, that’s why it was very entertaining for me. First few episodes were highly entertaining, the middle was a bit flat while the rest were good enough for you to be curious to know what will happen next. The drama will get you hooked first that you have no choice but to find out how it will end.Acting: They were all amazing and perfectly casted, even the side characters. I think I only noticed one acting that was not passable and it was one of the court maids who were gossiping but overall, they were all phenomenal actors.
Music: Ahhh, the music(not all osts but effects) is like a mix of mission impossible & ocean’s series. When it’s time to cry, the songs were just perfect to cry on.
Rewatch value: Definitely the funny parts. Those laugh out loud ones.
Overall: It was 8.5-9 for me. The politics issue was just right and there were some unpredictable moves from the queen and king. However, there were some episodes that I found boring and some humor of the side characters weren’t that hilarious. Despite that, I still recommend this drama and will be one of the top kdramas this pandemic years.
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This review may contain spoilers
SO GOOD exept the very end
I loved it so much at first !! One of the funniest drama for me, So Yong / Bong Hwan kicks ass and is so entertaining. The acting is flawless, the side characters are amazing.But the ending made no sense to me... We don't know the real so yong, she is not the main character nor the one we get attached to during the whole show. Seems to me like they just wanted to avoid the gay part of the story at the end by blaming everything on hormones or something like that and that they didn't know what to do about real-so-yong's soul wandering alone... It also makes no sense bc it's not a happy ending they want it to be : CheolJong didn't fall in love with real-so-yong. How many time until he realizes that the queen is not the witty and arrogant woman he loves ? Or even worse, if he doesn't realize then the whole love story falls appart.. It's a cruel situation for him but also for Bong Hwan who wanted to stay and fell hard for CheolJong but then in a heartbeat is just satisfied to be set aside and go back to his old life as if nothing happpened... He was also exited to have his baby and so attached to it and then what ? Nothing ? We just see him happy that history changed a bit and that's it. What a heartbreacking twist. The ending really tarnish the show in my opinion because it turns a fantastic story into the background of a dull relationship... Kinda feels like the writers chickened out at the end to avoid writing a gay story...
If it was not for that, perfect !!
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