Bloody Heart

Conflict Between Ideologies and Life-Long Convictions at its best

Jang Hyuk utterly and undeniably stole the show.
His character, counselor Park, was so profoundly well-written that I am having difficulty hating his character, even as a villain. He had layers upon layers… Even his layers had layers. One of the best-written villain’s characters that I have ever watched since the character of Yi Bang Won from “Empire of Lust.”

Kang Han Na was unapologetically superb in her role as Yoo Jung/Lady Park.
Her character personified that old saying…
“If she was a man, what a King she would have made…” She had all of the necessary and all of the sort-after attributes of a great King. Again, one of the best-written Queen’s characters that I have ever watched since the character of Queen Im Hwa Ryung from “Under the Queen's Umbrella.”

Lastly, Lee Joon…
What What can I say about his role as king, Lee Tae…?
I do feel bad for the actor. Any actor placed in a scene next to Jang Hyuk, whether it is a first male lead role or a second male lead role, is going to look unfinished and less skilled. Then, we have the writing behind his character… While his 2 costars’ characters writings were profound, well-written and full of layers, the writing behind his character felt weak, untrustworthy and incomplete. Throughout the entire 16 episodes, I really didn’t see any growth in his character. His character remained abundantly emotional, vengeful and neurotic at times.

All and all…
One of the best Sageuks that I have watched from Jang Hyuk and I am utterly impressed by Kang Han Na‘s acting prowess.

Read More

"Bloody Heart" is a sageuk drama about the relationship between Prince Lee Tae and Yoo Jung. The two met as children, but Yoo Jung's family is framed, so she has to run away and live in hiding, but years pass and the two still keep in touch.

Lee Tae becomes a cold and calculating man, who does everything to gain power, since even though he is the king, the one who controls the palace is Kye Won. Kye Won then threatens Yoo Jung with the people she loves, forcing her to take on a new identity and enter the palace as Lee Tae's concubine, with the purpose of becoming the queen.

Yoo Jung is the big reason why the drama captivates attention, she is not a woman like the others, even though she is in love with Lee Tae, she does not let herself be used by him, much less by Kye Won. When she discovers Lee Tae's true identity, she decides to stay in the palace to gain power for herself, to protect those she loves with her own hands, not using the power of others, but later she still decides to sacrifice herself, using her true identity to incriminate Kye Won, but Lee Tae decides to choose to save Yoo Jung, I think this was the only time he made a non-selfish choice.

When Yoo Jung discovers that it was Lee Tae who poisoned himself, that it was all meticulously planned by him, that he made Ga Yeon become regent on purpose, all to get her out of the way, not caring about the deaths that could occur because of his decision, like poor Ttonggeum... Yoo Jung decides that she needed to be more than just an accessory for Lee Tae, she had to stand between him and the full power of a king, to be the person to stand by his side and against him at the same time. "You're my lover, my queen and my political rival"

It's been a while since I watched a drama of this style that was this good, this drama surprised me a lot, it's full of twists and turns and conspiracies, it's not just a simple love story. Of course, the romance between Lee Tae and Yoo Jung is a very important part of the drama, but is not everything. There's also the relationship between Kye Won and Ga Yeon, which is interesting and really catches your attention, there were times when they even stole the show from the main couple.
Another positive point is the women, we have an incredible female representation here, with strong, independent, intelligent, simply badass women.

Read More

A masterful gem

I'm not sure if it's a hidden gem, but it's definitely a gem and a 10/10 in everything.

#1 It has gorgeous cinematography. They really put thought into directing and what would be best angles and scenery. Simply pure beauty to watch.
2# The writing & plot was excellent. Not a thing too much or too little & thoroughly riveting. Each character had a role to play. If I didn't have to go to work next day, would've binge watched it all in one go - it's that good. Keeps you on your toes and excited for what will happen next.
#3 The music:
1. The opening title itself already has lovely music & the animation also is great.
2. The drama had few notable pieces throughout the drama but they were truly captivating and used perfectly for each scene that it had your complete attention and only heightened the emotions to the very top.
#4 They picked the right actors, that's for sure and boy did they deliver. Top notch acting & performance.

And miscellaneous #5:
1. The overall pace...while exciting, I'd say was rather measured and calm, yet kept you on your toes.
2. The good, the bad, the morals? The drama was, I'd even say, a good moral portrayal of human nature & society - there is no white or black - it's all gray. One can not always choose what to do, the situation may push you into it, or in fact, it may mold you to be what is needed even if afterwards you get cursed for it.
3. The many varied relationships & their changes.
Honestly, the drama had such excellent interactions & exchanges between the characters and how it changes & develops with the story... it's so good to watch.
I'm not gonna go into spoilers, but once you're halfway into the drama, you'll realise that our female lead & a certain minister have excellent chemistry - be it between the characters or the actors, and I don't mean it in a romantic way, but the two of them together make you wanna go - yasss, burn them all, if those two are together, nothing can stop them.

And a special mention deserves our female lead. Sadly, rarely do we get such excellently written female leads. That's who women are and can be. You think you control her, yet in the end she's the one to control you.
A true queen indeed.

Bloody Heart is a rare excellent & riveting drama that does not often come by. A must watch for sure.

And I didn't even mentioned romance, because while it is there & actually plays a rather huge part...everything else is so amazing that it actually kind of overshadows the romance if you start to think about it. The cinematography, the plot, the characters & their relationships...that takes precedence. Because it's simply that great.

Read More

Not your typical Joseon Era Royal Drama - it's all about Politics

I was really curious how the premise would unfold, and I have to say, I was really fascinated how politics were portrayed here. It was gripping and exciting until the end. Not only the main characters had their story and character growth, but also the supporting characters were portrayed in an interesting way. The entwined personal relationships gave depths to the story and made me invested in the drama.

I also liked the fact that the most characters had grey aspects to them, you can't say one is good and one is bad. Even nice people can make dumb decisions with grave consequences.

Motivations, backgrounds and beliefs were shown and helped me understand why characters made certain moves or decision. It was interesting to see how they dealt with the consequences of their behavior. Major and minor characters all had their own motives and we could see who was true to their core values until the end, who just had their personal gain in mind and who wanted the the greater Good to be considered.

There was one part in the second half of the season I didn't follow, I couldn't understand where certain actions stemmed from. but besides that I enjoyed it al lot, and I am satisfied with the end. Some plot lines might have been better if the Drama had more episodes though.

The portrayal was fantastic, the casting was really good and it was just a great joy to watch. I came to because auf Lee Joon, and found a very talented cast. I had a lot of fun watching Bloody Heart.

Read More

Bloated Heart

The drama had a good selection of cast with decent varied performances. Jang Hyuk working double and triple shifts here. It had some interesting characters, especially Gye Won which I feel we didn't get enough of him. While the story may have been fine for the first half but it took a worse direction in the second half, losing whatever interest and build up it had previously. The keyword here is "odd" regarding the state of the production. Odd and questionable choices of the soundtracks, some of which didn't fit. Odd and questionable shot compositions and editing. Some shots had slightly different lighting or color grading of the same scene. The drama is filled with very long takes/shots that were too annoying after the 3rd time, it came off as a poor attempt in trying to mimic film, most of them didn't hit right. The only highlights of this drama were the intriguing 1st half and the character Park Gye Won.

Read More

A drama worth watching for its magnificent cinematic delight and intricate storyline.

I am watching this again the 3rd time and I finally realise what it reminds me of. One word - Operatic.
This was a highly stylised segeuk that could easily be compared and even surpass some renditions of Shakespare at the Royal Albert Hall. I could clearly see the shakesperean influence in the hyper-surreal speech and movement patterns of the characters. Every line had a double, triple meaning and no word was wasted. Atimes, no words were needed, the blink of an eye, sidelooks, long stares, all spoke volumes.
.
Every move had a reason and was part of a larger puzzle. Even the wind and breeze was utilised in a most amazing way to convey environmental emotions.
Having the xters speak mind to mind was a brilliant piece of directing and portrayed the high intelligence and brilliant political maneouvering of the main xters.
.
And the Dowger Queen - she who sat like an all powerful coiled cobra and sibilantly hissed her way all through the drama - literally stole the show. And when she struck, it was with the force and speed of a wrathful King Cobra. Her venom was lethal and spared no one.
This was one of the greatest ironies of the drama - while Minister Park spent his whole life and formidable intelligence caging the late king and the current king to prevent tyranny (arrogantly so), he failed to see that the real tyrant was one whom he actually helped create. This was a tragedy on an epic shakesperean scale.
.
The deep and strong love and respect and loyalty between the King and Consort park/Yoo
solidly portrayed and played out perfectly the strenghts of the xters. Their emotions were
palpable and literally reached through the screen to grab your heart.
The King's reaction to his new born son was so realistic and one of the sweetest moments of the drama.
.
And the OST...oh my! This was the check mate that won the game. A modern piece that brilliantly evoked the history and drama that dominated that time period.
.
And the costumes - traditional with a distinct modern flare and cut, in gorgeous pastel shades and rich silks and cottons, fit so perfectly well and lent an air of class, elegance and strenght to the xters. I'd wear them today if i could.
.
This was Segeuk Opera - the first of its kind.
Shakespear could not have done any better.

Read More

Tropey, unoriginal and done to death plot. Great production though!

Another sageuk drama with a doormat Crown Prince/King controlled by a powerful minister and his faction. Where have I seen that before? No seriously it's ridiculous and such an overused theme in k-drama, I wonder if they even have other ideas than this tired plot. One or way another most of their court politics drama has this premise.

I tried to have an open mind with this drama but i watched the first episode and my original hunch was right. This is another power struggle between an all powerful minister and a puppet ruler. This drama is even worst. They magnify the ineptness of the king seeing how they show everyone having complete deference and loyalty to the minister. They then highlight the lack of decorum, the disrespect and contempt of natural order the minister's faction have toward the royal house to really drive the point. It seems to be a running theme for Korean court dramas to have this overarching plot over and over again.

I'm a voracious historical drama consumer, mostly Chinese historical ones and I barely recall where they show their rulers as inept and powerless and controlled by his ministers. The emperor would be either benevolent, gullible, nonchalant or despotic yet never powerless and never some puppet of a some minister. I think the problem I have with sageuk court dramas is how unoriginal, unimaginative and stale they are. They seem to gravitate towards this plot 3/4 of the time. A sever lack of originality and I can't stress that enough. There is no need to even imagine where this story will end. If you've seen one you'll know how this story goes. How the power struggle develops and how the king acquires power to defeat the corrupt and treacherous minister in the end.

Read More