Queen of Tears

Disappointing !

I watched this drama with great expectation . The ratings were high , it ranked high on Netflix global top 10 .
But I am afraid to say I did not find it so . It is watchable , but I will not watch it again and I am pleased to know that there won't be a second series because we ended up in 2074 !
I agree with the first two comments on this page . The first 8/9 episodes were interesting but I could not place this drama , was it a black comedy , was it meant to be serious , or not . The characters did not grip me . Hae-In is cold , stony , intransigent, her family not any better . Baek Hyun-woo is not only clever , good looking , but perfect in every way . His family more ordinary .What could have been an emotional journey to reconciliation between the two main characters became a not so believable story and the writers seem to have lost their way . Come on , being hit by a car at full speed and taken to hospital with severe bleeding and injuries to the head , , and on the same day being shot in the shoulder and back in ER after losing consciousness and much blood again . Ridiculous . To emerge from these traumas with not so much as a scratch or scar , or side effect is pushing it into the ridiculous and then I lost all interest and emotion. The twisted plot , the villain and his long lost mother , just not gripping . It had to end , and the ending left me cold . It had been a hell of a journey .

Read More

Waste of potential + Overratings

I was looking forwards all episods to being available on Netflix to start watching this drama.

Way different lead characters (rich strong and « bad tempered » FL + poor calm and easy going ML), story/plot (couple and family relationships, disease, finding love again, etc), amazing casting (Kim Ji Won, Kim Soo Hyun, Lee Joo Bin, Park Sung Hoon, Kwak Dong Yeon) and OST.
From my point of view there was a lot of positive things making me feel that I’ll really enjoy QoT.

But actually this drama didn’t met my expectations. First episods were good but then it became worse from an episod to another. Overacting sometimes (but still love actors I mentioned above), unrealistic or stupid situations, lack of character development, predictable twists (it ends exactly how you think it will end from second half of the drama),

The production/filming was great but unfortunately writing and direction could have been better. It didn’t allow actors to show how good they are (like in My liberation notes, IOTNBO, The glory, Be melodramatic, etc).

For me, it is same as for CLOY => waste of potential, overratings and no rewatch value (rewatch drama listed above would be better)

Read More

Kim Soohyun and Kim Jiwon are the real definition of powerhouses of acting

Didn't really believe in "less is more" until the last two episodes of this drama because what the hell? I'm thinking the writers had some sort of animosity towards Baek Hyunwoo because why was bro hit by a high speed car and then shot in the back all in the span of a couple hours?
All that aside, I can understand why this drama blew up, because god were Kim Soohyun and Kim Jiwon absolutely AMAZING in it. I was genuinely blown away by their performances. I knew Kim Jiwon had it in her after watching her as Choi Aera in Fight For My Way, but she still surprised me. I just wish the stylists did more with her beautiful hair instead of giving us the straight blowout every time but oh well.
I think award shows should now introduce a best hug category because man those hugs that Hyunwoo and Haein shared were truly sensational. I will always think about the ones they shared on the steps of Berlin Cathedral and the church before Haien's surgery.
Besides that, I was planning to give this show full stars before the last half, when the villians started to seem very cartoonish with no real depth to their evil motives, and Hyunwoo and Haein never had a real conversation about why they fell apart in the first place, and they just started dating again when it would have been more enjoyable to see them fall for each other again. I understand that the thriller aspect of this show was just a subgenre, but if you're going to include it in your story, you should do it well. Seeing as this was directed by the director of Vincenzo, I had high hopes for it all, and while it was doing pretty good in the beginning, it fell through soon after because of how unrealistic it was getting.
I also enjoyed the representation of family in this drama. The character development that the Hong family went though was very nice to witness, but Hyunwoo's family was just so exceptional.

Read More

I wish more dramas were this riveting! Hate waiting for the new episodes... But I will.

When I first heard about the drama, I liked everything about it. The title, the description, the cast, so, I was looking forward to the drama. I knew that it would hold my interest from the first episode. A lot of spoilers down below, so avoid reading it if you don't like spoilers.

Based on the the 1 episode I have seen, I love it! I can't wait to see how this one unfolds. Its so good to see Kim Soo Hyun be so emotional in his role. Before this, all the characters he has portrayed were so stoic. The drunk scene was so adorable! The distance between the ML and FL just makes me curious as to what caused it? Can it even be bridged?

With what little information we have at hand, I currently don't mind if they get divorced. In fact, one of my most prominent thought throughout the first episode was, "I hope he gets a divorce." He was so damn stressed! I have seen and read countless stories where it is the submissive FL that marries into a family that thinks she is not good for their son. And the son won't even stand up to them or speak for her. Here, while she defends him behind his back, she still lets them talk to him that way as if he owes them.

The FL looks kind of unrecognizable in the wedding scene in the beginning. I kept questioning, was that even Kim Ji Won?

At the end of the episode 2, we could all see how relieved he was when she told him that she only had 3 months to live. We could all hear the gears in his head. So, no need to file for divorce anymore, just endure for 3 months. Just started 2nd episode, which only confirms his feelings. I'm honesty not surprised though, throughout the episode we can see how hard he is trying to control his happiness. One would think, that it is not possible to salvage this at all. So far, the FL seems a bit heartless, so I'm wondering what she can do to convince us that there is more to her.

Episode 3 started out pretty boring, but we do have two interesting developments, our SML (Yoon Eun Seong) might be harboring some serial killer fantasies. I think, Mo Seul Hee [Man Dae's girlfriend], is behind the boar attack. I might definitely be suspecting someone is innocent, but she seems pretty suspicious at this point. At least in this episode we get to see that FL does have some feelings for the ML, my favorite dialogue so far, "You'd be the biggest waste." Never thought this could be said in romantic context with such possessiveness. One thing I find a bit hilarious about the FL is that she is delusional about her illness, arguing with the doctors that she will experience a miracle.

Episode 4 did not disappoint. The FL kind of reminded me of the Lee Young-joon from What's wrong with secretary Kim and Min-Min from Strong Woman, with her over-the-top self-praising shenanigans. It was quite fun to watch. What I liked the most was the ending, it was the first time the ML displayed genuine feelings for the FL (Most of the time he just wants to run away, which actually seems like a good idea for him in this setting) With the memory loss angle, I wonder if the FL is going to be cured and then loose the memory of falling in love with him again and mistreat the guy in future.

Okay. After watching episode 5, I'm sure that she is going to die and make us cry. Since we have only seen the FLs horrible side with a dash of niceness here and there, it was hard to like her in the first 2-3 episodes. But since then, we get to see more and more of her struggles and while not completely a decent character, its easy to identify her coping mechanism. She dealt with everything alone when she should have relied on her partner. Loosing a child can be a terrible blow to the parents, so it is not uncommon that they lived separately since then, relying on their own. I am starting to like the FL somewhat and like the ML, its going to be a bitter ending. Also, can't believe we have such a interesting cameo: Sebastian Roche! I thought my eyes were playing trick on me, so I had to google and it was confirmed!

Ep 6: Damn, she found out. I get that she is hurt, but once I want her to put herself in his shoes and think about all he has been through to take that extreme measure. Also, what the hell is wrong with the Hong family, is everyone crooked, except for the weirdo aunt that I very much enjoy watching. She seems to be the only other person who cares about people in that family!

Ep 7 & 8: Okay, the drams is called queen of tears because it is making us all cry. One thing you have to say about the makers of the show, they gave us such great cameos! First we had Oh Jung Se, then Sebastian Roche, and now Vincenzo. Who are we going to see next? The Vincenzo arc was too short for my liking it just ended abruptly, at least Oh Jung Se got a decent arc. I finally have started liking the FL, more so because she accepted that the reason for divorce was her. Can't believe that we are only halfway through, I just want them to drop all the episodes right now.

Ep 9 & 10: Gotta love Hyun Woo's mom, she treats Hae In so well, which can be readily seen in front of her treatment from her poor excuse of a mother. She even calls him a scumbag, calling him out on his behavior when he found out that Hae In was going to die. The epilogues are so good. I see many people comparing this one to Uncontrollably Fond, but I disagree. Apart from the terminally ill lead there's not a lot in common so far. Hae In is a lot better than Joon Yeong who was abominable to Noh Eul for the majority of their relationship. The bad times between that couple were a lot more with only a handful of good times, that as we can see is not the case with our Royal Couple Of Tears. I like how we get to see little tidbits from their past, the epilogues are always appreciated. Okay, while I'm not a big fan of Eun Seong, it was easy to see his devastation when Hae In sold him out in front of the people. He did deserved it, after all, who told him to threaten the Queen? He found out that the woman he loves is going to die, so the best he could come up with was threatening her? What an idiot.

Ep 11 & 12: Okay so much happens in this episode. Everyone's reaction was as expected when they found out about Hae In's condition. I'm not a fan of her mom's so what she said still doesn't get her off the hook for me. I'm a bit upset about the amnesia trope, it is one trope that I never want to see again. So damn convenient to use but just doesn't make for a good story. Poor Hae In, the tumor is slowly taking away her abilities to recognize people. The last part of ep 11 was so heartbreaking. Glad, there was an epilogue featuring cute Hyun Woo. Ep 12 was a bit slow. I enjoyed the scenes with the leads and skipped most of the other scenes with Eun Seong and his mother. I didn't much like Soo Cheol in the beginning, but he has grown on me. While he may not seem like smartest of the bunch, he is so damn good to Da Hye and their child.

Ep 13: The part about the Baek asking for snow for rehearsal was a bit confusing why was he so excited? The later excitement I get that he found out about being Hae In's first love. That was great scene. With Eun Seong also living for Germany, it is clear that he plans to take advantage of Hae In's memory loss and might claim that he is her husband or boyfriend. We'll find out tomorrow.

Ep 14: Called it! It was such an obvious route to go with the writing. But you do feel for Eun Seong, despite his character traits, in any other drama he might have been the ML who ends up with the FL. Here, his love is just unrequited. Why does the poor bear, Soo Cheol, keeps suffering. I hope he lives happily and stops with all the blunders.

Ep 15 & 16: I didn't enjoy the final two episodes as much as the rest of the series. To me, it was all a bit over the top, but the with the way the story was set, it was bound to end up like that. I never really hated Eun Seong's character, the same couldn't be said for his mother. I was a bit surprised to hear that Hae In did clue in Baek about her family before they married. (I didn't' like how she treated him in the beginning) But I'm glad that they have rediscovered each other.

Read More

Extremely overrated - riddled with bad writing.

The narrative began with promise, but as the episodes progress, the flaws in the writing become increasingly apparent. Thankfully, KSH's performance injects vitality into the drama, salvaging its appeal. While many commend KJW's suitability for her role, I struggle to perceive it; perhaps it's the writers failing to flesh out her character adequately. Her contribution to the protagonist's journey seems minimal compared to how the ML helped her, which becomes irksome. Furthermore, her constant facade of toughness feels unwarranted in various situations, detracting from the authenticity of her character.

The shift from intense hatred to deep love between the main characters feels rushed and hard to believe. It happens too quickly, so it's tough to really get into their romance.

Read More

Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda as Taylor Swift says

This show was a great promise from the trailers on Netflix. I loved how they tried to showcase that sometimes happy endings aren't the marriage itself. I laughed out loud with the first episodes, Kim Soo Hyun is an amazing actor, and if they had led him interpret the character as he did with the improvised scenes he pulled off, the character would have made so much sense.

I loved it at the first episodes because it brought the sitcom factor into a kdrama that is not often seen in romantic genres. I would have enjoyed it so much if they left it that way and didn't start all the unnecessary drama plot lines that threw off attention from the actual problem, the marriage between the leads.

Started it for the comedy but finished it because of the crush I have on Kim Soo Hyun, take it or leave it.

Read More

Beautifully Acted, But Maybe Not Worth the Hype

Okay, hear me out. I wanted to love Queen of Tears. I really did. The cast? Stellar. Kim Soo-hyun and Kim Ji-won acted their hearts out — every tear, every fight, every quiet moment between them felt real. The production quality? Chef’s kiss. Gorgeous locations, strong OST, stunning visuals. It had all the ingredients.

But somewhere along the way… I just couldn’t help but feel like I was watching something that looked deep, but wasn’t actually saying anything new.

The story revolves around a chaebol marriage falling apart and coming back together through illness, misunderstandings, and corporate chaos. And while there were touching moments — like Soo-hyun’s emotional breakdowns (which he totally nailed) and the flashbacks to their sweet early days — it often felt like the script was trying too hard to make us cry. Like it was pressing a button labeled “EMOTIONS” again and again.

Yes, it had some solid episodes, especially in the second half. And the chemistry? Unquestionable. But overall, the drama leaned heavily on melodrama rather than authentic emotional layering. Side plots felt rushed. Some characters, like the villain arcs, felt cartoonish compared to the emotional weight the leads were carrying.

Honestly, it’s a good drama — just not the life-changing masterpiece the buzz made it out to be.

Watch it for the acting, the aesthetic, and the feels. But maybe go in with realistic expectations. Not every tearjerker needs to be a crown jewel. And that’s okay.

Read More

Queen of Tears, like many TVN series, suffers from being overly extended to 16 episodes. The script often lacks enough substance, leading to repetitive story arcs. With long episode durations, numerous side plots are added just to fill time.

Typically, I watch dramas like this for the main characters' dynamics. However, despite any appealing side stories, they tend to become excessively tedious over time. While I used to push through such moments 5-10 years ago, now I find myself fast-forwarding through them. Yet, in this drama, the standout feature is the superior casting and the chemistry among the actors, which surpasses the shortcomings of the script. The lead actors excel in their roles, making the series compelling to watch. Kim Ji-Won shines in aggressive, affluent, and glamorous characters, while Kim Soo Hyun effortlessly embodies humble and emotive roles.

One downside of the series is the character portrayed by Park Sung-hoon, whose portrayal was so off-putting that I felt the urge to punch the screen in every scene. Such one-dimensional characters, written solely to provoke viewer frustration, fail to engage me and come across as a version of "rage bait" tailored for tv dramas.

Nevertheless, despite its flaws, I found Queen of Tears enjoyable, evoking a reminiscent feel of dramas from 2015.

Read More

Old K-Drama Vibes

At the start, I was very intrigued. I thought it beginning with a married couple with one wanting to divorce was unique from most K-Dramas that are about a couple falling in love-- but this being a married couple falling back in love was different for me. Both characters were also both flawed, and I didn't really like them at the start, but, by the end, you really care about them and their families. I was shook like halfway through the series, they had already kind of addressed or answered some of the most burning questions, so I had no idea how the show as gonna go. Yet, they surprised me, they kept adding new drama and chaos each episode. The villains were wild, and the plot twists were so old-school. It felt like an old K-Drama for real. I was mixed on the ending, but it was technically happy. I just wanted more happy moments, and answers for some side characters' stories.

Amazing acting, OSTs, and cinematography. Funny moments despite lots of tears shed, and iconic cameos for K-Drama fans! I'm just mixed about the story and ending.

Read More

“don’t make me want to live”

first i would like to thank whoever casted kim jiwon and kim soo hyun for their roles. no one could have ate these roles like them. the church scene, the truck scene etc. they were so good. the story started so strong, i was really invested in baekhong’s story but it went down in last 2-3 episode. ep 11 was their peak, but the rest wasn’t that good. they mixed everything up like why hyunwoo got hit by a car and WHY DID HE GET SHOT IN THE NEXT EP?? i was rooting for haein then she recovered but hyunwoo was in the hospital?? i actually wanted to watch baekhong’s marriage story while waitin haein to recover like how they were like in their early stages of marriage, how they got sick of each other, how they lost the baby 1031… i wanted to see those but we only got some scenes. also, grandfather’s third child, he was irrelevant to story? his only role was the unwanted child like why did we even see him if he wasnt going to do anything. anyway, it was good overall i liked the ending but they didn’t have to kill off haein like what do you want from her? instead we could have got he baby scenes. however it was still good i would recommend it, because everyone needs to see my divorced parents,

Read More