Drama Falls Short in Story and Character Development
After reaching episode 7, I decided to stop watching this drama. The main reasons for this decision were the lackluster elements of the story and characters. Despite the potential, the plot felt underdeveloped, failing to draw me into its world. Additionally, the dynamics between the leading characters lacked the depth and chemistry needed to truly engage an audience.As an admirer of Ok Taec-yeon, it was disappointing to see his talents not fully utilized in this project. While he has shown exceptional skill in previous roles, particularly in 'Vincenzo', this latest endeavor didn't seem to match up. It's my hope that future projects will better showcase his abilities and provide more compelling storytelling.
Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
pretty good!!
it’s a pretty typical historical drama!! got the typical evil doer and the heroic government official that somehow always has plot armor. despite the tropes, i enjoyed it. i’m a big fan of taecyeon and his acting was pretty good in this. i believe this is my first drama with kim hyeyoon, though, and i wasn’t disappointed at all. her crying scenes had me in TEARS!! loved her mom as well. I need someone’s help though!! there’s a part in episode 7 where her mom is singing a song. it’s very folky and melancholic. if anyone knows the name of this song (hoping that it exists outside of this drama), please let me know!!Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Adorable
Overall this story is absolutely goofy and fun. The two main leads are feisty and adorable together. I get the feeling I'm watching an old western. The serious moments of the show are outweighed by the comedic moments. The storyline is a little slow at points; however, the characters and acting are five star. I would definitely recommend watching this again.The crossdressing scene had me dying and laughter. And when the female lead came in saying she was the investigator's wife. All those slaps were hilarious.
Was this review helpful to you?
Being with the one you love come what may....
This was funny. I enjoyed it. I always like see Ok Taec Yeon in dramas and not to mention Kim Hye Yoon with her fast talking.I think they paired well. Kim Hye Yoon character displays a strong woman who is also smart and quick witted. I love that Ra Yi Eon and Kim Jo Yi stood their ground on how they love and want their relationship to be and no one was really forcing them (aside from the grandma - but she gave up). It is okay not to get married. If they love and understand each other, that is their business. I had hoped they would start a family though but I guess the ending was a positive one - just being with the one you love come what may....
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
refreshing and comedic drama
I loved this drama! Kim Hyeyoon did a great job acting as always. The cast of characters was amazing with diverse personalities, and one of the highlights was seeing the friendship between them, particularly in the last few episodes.The show stands out among other historical dramas by portraying the women in a very nuanced manner, as they were strong, and even the side characters had personalities and motivations outside their relation to the men. A good example of this is the relationship between Jo Yi and her mother, which, while not being perfect, shows a realistic dynamic.
I also liked the complex relationship between the antagonist's family, particularly Park Tae Soo's character. You can see how the circumstances he was in shaped his actions and behaviour, but at the same time, he was awful in some scenes. I definitely began to empathise with him by the end; his last scene with his father was heartbreaking.
The plot was dragging a bit in the middle of the drama, but it picked back up towards the last few episodes. I have to say, I did not see the need for a second male lead, as he showed up for approximately 30 minutes and a couple of flashback scenes, and added nothing to the story that another character couldn't have replaced.
Overall, I think it is a very good watch if you are looking for a lighthearted and comedic drama that is focused more on relationships and day-to-day life than heavy court politics.
Was this review helpful to you?
Not Good Enough
Korean Drama " Secret Royal Inspector: Joy ", not to be confused with the other korean drama "Secret Royal Inspector" with the similar name and plot, is a period comedy drama.The story is pretty basic, with some interesting cases here and there, that aided to the entertainment. There were some funny moments as well and a light-comical atmosphere overall throughout the drama. However, and apart from the main villain who was tragic and gave some depth to the story, the rest of the drama was silly and boring. The romance too was cheesy and lacked chemistry.
On the other hand, the performance were enjoyable and pretty great, especially from the main lead. The chemistry between the cast was smooth as well. However, the main girl was annoying.
So, overall, three out of ten.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Modern social concepts meet old fashioned values, making for some fun easy comedy
Man, this drama started out SO GOOD. It was fun and funny and engaging, I loved every interaction and every scene…It’s very break the 4th wall modern despite the setting. …and then they went back to the castle, and things dipped so far into boring that it was honestly difficult to slog through. The end picks up ok, but gosh that middle is almost like an entirely different drama.A lot of kdrama comedies are like this though, they start off fun and then try to get too serious for themselves and turn the comedy from a 10 down to a 1. Normally something like this would get a much lower rating from me, but the good parts were too good to discount. If I were to try to put my finger on exactly what went wrong, I think the FL and ML were exceptional when they were playing off each other. In many episodes toward the middle they get comparatively small amounts of time together, which sucks because they had great chemistry together and that chemistry spread to the entire side character group and created something fun and magical.
The pop culture references were really well executed by both the director and the cast. The music was pretty good, and the sets were gorgeous. All of the actors were fully engaged and invested in their roles. I enjoyed having a strong female lead outsmart all of the overtly sexist men. The production team really cleverly and unobtrusively plays with current social issues without impacting your immersion in the story and without being too preachy. That part was exceptionally well conceived.
Overall it’s worth a watch, I might even watch it again some day.
Was this review helpful to you?
Lighthearted comedy!! With a pretty decent plot!!
A fun and humorous saguk styled drama!Definitely contained some good plot points - but had way more potential to have had a better storyline. The ending was okay - it was good but could have been better of course; especially with the condition of how the enemies were handled (some portions were just too dark etc).
Love love the cast - Taecyeon & Hyeyoon are such both wonderful actors!
Will definitely give such big credits to the villian - son; Lee Jae Kyoon did a fantastic job!!!
All of the support characters were hilarious and wholesome as well~
Overall, a good, light-hearty watch!
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Sweet, little watch
I wasn't too sure about this show when I first started but two things made me stay: one, when the protag, a Joseon era male, rejects the notion of having children, and two, when the series states that no animals were harmed in production. Both of these were different enough to make me watch on.Other things that I found refreshingly different and new were seeing "honour among thieves" in how the antagonists were given backstories of their own and also an insight into what it was that made them bond. It was quite a pleasant surprise as well to see Choi Tae Hwan's acting range from having met this actor on Hello, Me! He did a good job on an enabled, psychopathic legitimate heir and the family dynamic of the father and son were well played out, imho.
The leader of the angatonists, Tae Seo, was a well written character that was played to perfection by Lee Jae Kyoon; LJK manages such intensity and vulnerability that it was difficult to hate on this antagonist. Even his friend, Cha Mal Jong, was a grey character. Though CMJ is the usual stereotypical cruel villain I found myself admiring his loyalty to his friend and his "band of thieves". He died protecting them and their secrets and such loyalty was rare to come by, even amongst "good guys", and rarely associated with villains that I admired the writer's approach to the characterisation.
Other noteworthy acting was Chae Won Bin who has to portray two characters and honestly, when I saw her on her second character I didn't even realise she was the same actress. Even when there was a part, at the end, where she portrays both characters one after the other, I was amazed at how she managed to exude such different presence and aura as to make those characters so different and separate, though they were portrayed by the one, same person.
What I loved about this series is the sense of equilibrium that it gives the viewers. Seeing three women supporting each other as sisters and being entrepreneurs with their natural talents and "businessing" themselves to success, in such a harsh era for women, was a pleasure to watch. And seeing the men that their efforts also inspire, and whom supports the women back, gives a feelgood vibe. There's just a certain sweetness to this series that is satisfying to the heart and soul to watch.
The only criticism I have for the show are the flashbacks. Imho, they're not handled as well as other shows. The too similar lighting and place and similar hairstyles and such doesn't delineate the past and present enough and makes it confusing between the present and past switches.
Aside from that, I would recommend this show to anyone wanting a nice change to the stereotypical cliches found in this genre and also the subversion of male-female r/ships, expectations and responsibilities, overall.
Was this review helpful to you?
This is just good
I wont go into detailed analysis others have done that well. I agree with one post which says binge this for better enjoyment.It is funny heart warming with some serious aspects and an understated but powerful message about the plight of women and their role in Joseon time with relevance for todays world too. The whole cast have great chemistry the FL is brightness personified. The ML is comedically very good. Its just enjoyable.
Was this review helpful to you?
Lee Jae Kyoon for a main role!
It will be short and concise review. The acting wasn't bad and the script wasn't bad either. However, many episodes were dragged out, too many side scenes and weird out-of-nowhere characters were added. I don't understand the appearance of some childhood friend or the switching of children. It made practically no difference to the main story, but we lost 1 episode because of it 😓 Someone had too many ideas and wanted to cram them all into one drama.When it comes to characters, most of them were well build. Main couple .... they looked great together and played well theirs characters, just didn't feel them together. Not enough of chemistry. Ok Taec Yeon had it more with Jeon Yeo Been in Vincenzo thank with Kim Hye Yoon here 😟 I also feel his "best villain ever" character will for long be his best role as he was more than excellent there. Here he turned out to be mediocare+.
I cannot say much about Kim Hye Yoon as I saw her now for the first time but I will be on a search for something else with her😏 Lee Jae Kyoon on the other hand was EXCELLENT! PEOPLE! GIVE THIS GUY A MAIN ROLE! He is incredible. To be honest, the main storyline could be omitted and replaced with Park family. Love the complexity of relations and interaction. I don't want to reveal too much about the content because a lot happens in each episode so all I will say is that the history of the Park family was ultra interesting! Who would have expected such a twist at the end! But it was too late revealed to save the show. The drama was too stretched till then and lost it's shape 😣 Nevertheless, I am recommending the show but just don't expect too much of it.
HALF SPOILER: If you decide to watch this drama, be on a look out for crown prince. His and king's story is shocking. I didn't understand my immediate dislike towards the king since the first moments but later I exacly knew why it happened! WHAT AN ASSHOLE! He totally deserved that what came at him.
Was this review helpful to you?
