Queen of Tears

Such a roller coaster, but I enjoy the ride

This drama has many genres, and the genre keep changes as the story goes.

We begin the drama with dark comedy, then progress into romance, these two is the main genre. The progress is good, sometimes funny, other time is melodrama, little bit of trill, some heart fluttering moments, some family moments, pleasant plot twist here and there.

After 13 episode, the genre kind of sifted to makjang. The shift is kind of rough in term of storyline and editing, but the cast shining in this part. Emotional part tackled so well. The angst, the complex emotions of all characters. Especially the main couple, their acting play a big role here. Episode 15 is makjang peak. It will make you angry, it can make you anxious.

Then the last episode is heavy on melodrama. This episode is crafted so well. The cinematography, acting, editing, set and prop, lighting, grading. The team must be pour all their hard works on this episode. It's beautiful. Not easy to wrap that much plot gap and unfinish business from earlier episodes. But they do it right, the pace is also good on this episode. It also have a tone of slice of life, which is I love.

Overall, this is a great drama. There is some part that can be too tropey and cliché, but if you see in big picture, it's a great drama. But the highest regards goes to the cast. There are a lot of good actors in this drama. Actually most of them are seasoned one, and we can see that. They giving flesh to all character into a complex and unique being. Most of my rating come from the acting department. They give 12/10.

But let me give even higher praise to our FL and ML. They definitely carry this show. They are stole our heart. Jiwon and Soohyun give their all in this role. Their acting are stellar. And their acting is... having conversation(?) Like it's good separately but together, their acting speak to each other. Maybe this is what they called chemistry? At least acting chemistry, it's exist between them. Thank you for giving lives to Haein and Hyunwoo!

This drama is quite a roller coaster. But it's a pleasant journey. Not lie kinda make me angry on episode 15, but it's end in a very good note :) Thank you for cast and production team. It's a success drama for sure :) ❤️

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a perfect drama: many plot twists but a consistent story line

I think this drama can be described just like its main character, hyunwoo: perfect but not boring at all. This is the first drama that I finish so fast and it's for one reason only. IT HAPPEN. SO. MANY. THINGS. you're on the edge at every moment, constantly wanting to know what's going to happen next, what's the secret behind it all. even if it's a bit cliché at times you never know what's going to happen next. It has romance, drama, comedy, action and MORE. but everything is done so perfectly, alongside with the brilliant cast and clever dialogues, you just don't get tired of it all.
well, and of course, the main characters SHINES on this. every single actor and actress is brilliant but the main couple explodes in good acting and chemistry.
won't forget this drama so soon (of course, as I'm in love with hyunwoo just like everybody else)
completely 10/10

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A Melodrama

This is a melodrama filled with arguments, cold wars, crying, secret pining and at times lovey-dovey moments between the lead couple. Hae-In and Hyun-Woo were a married couple from very different background. Hae-In was the daughter of a rich conglomerate family. Hyun-Woo was from a humble village upbringing but made it into Korean's top university. Their friction stemmed from an inability to communicate properly and to give each other the support they needed to sustain a healthy marriage relationship in a highly pressured family environment. Their friction inevitably opened up opportunities for ex-boyfriend, in-laws, and villains to make use of against them.

The story started off quite well but getting more draggy towards the end as the drama wallowed in more stagy moments. I had trouble trying to endure to the end. Three episodes to the end, I was tapping the 10 second skip button continually to move the drama forward.

The story was poorly constructed and full of holes. I shall give some examples. Why would Hyun-Woo confide so much in the double-headed snake, Grace? For a smart lawyer, he should know she was likely to convey the information to the rival camp. The Hong family could not confide in each other but could tell Grace things she should not know, even after it became clear she was with the villain.

Hyun-Woo and Hae-In should be hurrying to Germany for her treatment given the time she had wasted. Yet the drama lingered on what seemed like a second honeymoon.

The family kept the information that the medical treatment would result in a loss of memory from Hae-In, justifying that she might refuse to undergo the treatment. She would eventually know anyway. Is it not better to let her know in advance to prepare for it?

The Hong aunt knew the true identity of the villain. Yet she did not use this effectively against her to revoke the villain's lasting power of attorney.

The Hong family was evicted from their home when the villain exercised her power. But the Hongs have difficulty evicting her when they returned, based on residency rights. What's the difference in the residency rights?

Also, Hae-In had a horrible character and personality: stubborn, hot-tempered, self-indulgent, obsessed with achievement to the exclusion of humanity, arrogant, distrustful, acid-tongued. Other than being pretty, she had no other lovable qualities. For her husband to fall back in love with her and her ex-boy to be so obsessed with her was just an unlikely fairytale.

Yoon Eun Seong, one of the villains was a smart man. If he was not so obsessed with Hae-In and dark in his character, he could have continued on his successful career.

It seemed it is like a fashion in Korea for guys to spot a bang (hairstyle). But I think it looks quite stupid - a vain attempt to imitate Prince Harry when he was a teenager?

Also, owning a department store was hardly rich enough to live like a king with so many staff and servants. At least the drama should show a chain of departmental stores.

I am not a fan of melodramatic dramas, much less a makjang and poorly constructed one. I think the 8.8 rating on mydramalist.com is overrated.

However, the cast was good and acted their part well. The chemistry between Hae-In and Hyun-Woo was great. For this, I rated it a 7.5, although the story was barely passable.

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Quite good but was a little draggy and slow

My Rating: 9.2

Ep 1 ~ 6: Loved it!
Ep 7 ~ 8: ARGHH NOT AGAIN🤦‍♀️
Ep 9 ~ 14: 😍
Ep 15 ~ 16: 😒 WHAT THE 🤨 😑😡

What I liked about QOT:
- The leads
- Aunt and Soo-Cheol
- OSTs

The Dislikes:
- Pace (It was too slow draggy and kept repeating itself like WHAT?!!)
- Plot (A bit not logical)
- The grandfather (He’s So Dumb and naive)
- Too much plot twist (Im tired of it)
- The villain
It was overall not bad, considering the great acting from the cast, but seriously the HUNDREDS of plot twists are making me very tired tbh. I feel like the writer gave the villains too much spotlight and they almost ALWAYS had the upper hand, its like is the villains were much of the main leads than the actual real leads.

Reason for 9/10: Made me quite happy for sometime, Loved the OSTs and Leads, The chemistry between all of the main leads was AWESOME! I like how Hae-In became much more open throughout the story, I liked the backstory for Eun sung as he didn’t have a loving family when he was young which is what made him to be so obsessed on getting Hae-in (Poor thing).

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what happens to the characters after they have already experienced a drama love?

I loved.

It is a new plot, what happens to the characters after they have already experienced a dramatic love?

I liked the villain, he is a very great villain every moment made me hate him more and more with everything he did.

I really liked the story of the little brother, it made my heart shrink and fill with love at the same time.

I liked the comedy they gave Baek Hyun Woo to cope with the fact that he will be widowed, I also liked how Hong Hae In's character grew and she was able to express her feelings with his to stay together.

It was a super fun drama to watch, with a lot of intrigue, it was easy to follow and always have interest in it.

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A drama that was saved by Kim Soo Hyun - Kim Jin Won 's amazing chemistry (& their tears)

Having two of my favorite actors in a drama was enough for me to tune into this drama. This drama has a love hate relationship for me...

What I LOVED:

The drama had me just from the initial episodes of how we got a couple that had already dated, married, coworkers and in a love-hate relationship. It's was rare to see a couple in a brink of divorce but still in love and denial, making you just wanting to root for them and solve their martial issues for them. When Hae In announces she is sick and Hyun Woo decides to get a divorce at the same time, there I was on the brink of my sofa watching them onscreen and worried about their marriage and life, than my own. LOL!

I wanted to smack Hyun Woo when he was initially happy about his wife's impending death. I disliked his nonchalant response. I remember writing here on MDL saying how I am team Hae In till the end and wanted Hyun Woo to cry buckets of tears non stop for this treachery. And boy did he cry or what and make me cry along with him? Hahahaha... I learned my lesson for wishing ill for him later on the episodes... But then its amazing looking back that how much his character developed and had come along to win me back over and root for him to fight for their lives together and that's what he did. He cried, fought, sulked, schemed, loved and got back into my good graces and I found myself to being Team Baek-Hong.

I loved them onscreen. The characters they were, their personalities... and And the CHEMISTRY!!!!! omg... I could write sonnets about just the chemistry. It was tuned into max since episode 1 and there was never a moment onscreen where it was toned down... not even a single screen till the end.

This drama till Episode 12 is perfection. I don't have a single complain nor irk towards a single scene that was in there. I loved it and ate all the crumbs the drama delivered... And then the unthinkable happened... The last 4 episodes... which so often in dramaland, where the writer just loses their mind and make us lose our mind along with them!!!!!

WHAT I HATED:

The last 4 episodes.... Episode 13 had me like stop halfway through towards the end and seriously question if it was the same drama I was watching... It was so frustrating mainly because I found myself guessing how this was going to turn out and I hate it when I not surprise or when it becomes so predictable. Especially with all the cliches... which is so tiring and frustrating after some time.

I took a leave of absence and waited for all the last 3 episodes to air and watch it together so my frustration and anxiety could handle it. And I am glad that I did this.

The writer had to bring in all the cliches and drama tropes and she did and delivered. It was irritating but then I think the theme of those last 4 episode was that it was going to be super melodramatic and makjang. Clearly the main aim wasn't the writing anymore. It was the rating and being dramatic. But I have to grudgingly acknowledge that, no matter what it was done in style.

I wanted more scenes between Hae In and Hyun Woo... were once everything was resolved towards the end, I hoped the last few minutes would be scenes of them together and rebuilding again... I didn't like how it was closed scenes where we assume and guess about their progress in love and doesn't get to see Hae In fall in love with Hyun Woo all over again... AND WHERE IS A KISS SCENE? I mean for a drama that delivered more kisses in one single episode than a whole kdrama combined, I was expecting to see a kiss scene towards the end.... AND WHAT DO WE GET? Nothing... Ahh.... the disappointment I felt is astonishing...

Also... that ending broke me. I never saw it coming... I mean its a happy ending but still... seeing death of your loved one is inevitable even in a fictional world just hit me in my feeling and broke me. I didn't expect that. I cried a lot over that scene. A long life of 84 years is amazing... but still it was so bittersweet. I want to live ignorance that once a characters that I love and cherish get their HEA in the end, they go on to live on forever. I don't want a reality check that they are mere mortals like us. It's like breaking the 4th wall and bringing them into the real world, where us mortals live.

IN CONCLUSION:

This drama is all about the chemistry between Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won. My god, what terrific actors. The emotional scenes where they were crying... I found myself mesmerized thinking, how can they act so damn well and look so beautiful at the same time.

I have always loved Kim Soo Hyun's acting. Especially when he cried. He is the prettiest actor in kdrama land who cries so beautifully... considering the female actors too... He is always my top pick. But then Kim Ji Won came along and she delivered those scenes along with KSH and I was like, how are these two so talented and beautiful....

The writing may have gone off in the end but this drama is only saved because of KSH and KJW. They single handedly carried this drama... and kudos to the duo for such a great job.... I can't wait to see their future projects... Until then! x

Would've rated it a perfect 10 if not for the last quarter.

Rating : 7/10

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I'm terrified because i don't know if ill just lose my memory or who I am entirely. But i don't want to lose you

Great storyline, and to think one of the directors was also involved in the making of another drama, which I am fond of, Little Women, I expect it to be this grand in terms of scale. It is a story about a third-generation heiress, a "chaebol," caught in an infatuation with a regular employee. It started with just pure love. All twists and turns unfold as they handle work-related conflicts and family pressure to the point of a relationship with no return. The couple finds their way back to each other as they go through even more overwhelming problems. Getting in love and even getting married for the "third time," as they say.

The common question comes in again: is the storyline predictable? I beg to differ just on some parts. The genres and themes like this are entertaining, and they capture my interest. If you like Korean drama OGs or G.O.A.Ts such as Sky Castle, The World of the Married, and Mine, you would love this one. War on places and roles in a corporation, sucking out money from all sides, greed with power and influence—if you are looking for themes like this, this drama would satisfy your needs. I enjoyed every episode. The characters were diverse; some had undergone character changes, and some were loyal to what they stood for. They executed their roles very well, especially how they maneuvered "Amazing Grace," Private Secretary Ko Jeong-A, played by Kim Joo-ryoung, the Ajhumma we all have an ick for. She was switching sides so fast that we couldn't help but curse her every time she appeared on screen. But then again, humanity prevailed, and we see her being accepted back into the Hong family. Moreover, I could not stress enough how both Kim Soohyun and Kim Jiwoon excellently played their characters; I certainly felt warmth and joy every time they interacted. You could feel shifts in emotions from anger to periods of intense love. If I were to have a conversation with them in real-time, I would ask how they managed to pull out those crying and passionate scenes so well that not a single scene felt dry or better than the others.

The drama was so good, that it left me with a question to ponder for myself: given that I am young and have never been in a real-deal relationship before, would "lady luck" or even God let me experience the same sweet feelings of love as Ms. Hong Hae-in and Baek Hyun-woo showed in the drama?.

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I just finished this and now I feel empty inside.

IMPORTANT: No real spoilers just very subtle talk about the ending, I don't say what happened only how I felt about it.


I literally just turned closed Netflix and came directly on here, so now i have fat tears running down my face and ruining my makeup as we speak. Took Queen of Tears a bit too literally. At first I was avoiding this cause I thought it was one of those dramas that I wouldn't like until something possessed me to press play. Ngl it was a tad bit boring at times but the again is there a drama that is immune to that? The answer is no. The cast was PERFECCCTTTTTTTT everyone really fit their roles perfectly, great plot great execution great everything. Would a 100% reccomend. Anyways I don't want to spoil anything so all I will say is that it had a very emotional ending that I personally really loved.I wasn't expecting it to end like that and I ended up literally full on sobbing, audibly sobbing. And the OSTs were pretty good as well, unlike almost every other drama may I add, I always had this urge to mute because I hated the songs so much but it wasn't the case woth Queen of Tears lols. One of them is gonna join my playlist, she's gonna be welcomed very warmly.

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진짜 이상하지? 사랑해서 결혼하는데, 결혼하면 왜 사랑은 안 하지?

Here goes the most viewed tvN drama in history, and I still can't take it seriously because I just watched Kim Soo Hyeon dance in trash bags in Dream High. Whatever way you look at it, the drama was bound to succeed because of the stellar cast, the two fantastic Kims who acted their souls out, the top crew, and the huge budget of ₩56 billion that allowed shooting in actual Germany and detailed portrayal of the luxurious life of the elite.

I find it curious that this type of K-dramas about millionaires and their inconceivable affairs seem to dominate the viewership ratings, e.g. Sky Castle, The Heirs, The World of the Married, Reborn Rich, Sandglass. It's obvious that tired working class people on weekends want to immerse themselves in the lives of those who knock on no doors. That explains why Twinkling Watermelon and Lovely Runner struggle on cable TV. But compared to the 2022 Reborn Rich, Queen of Tears is also a hundred times better in writing and production quality.

The most memorable character for me is Hong Soo Cheol. Not usually found in dramas, a big character transformation is assigned once again to the actor Kwak Dong Yeon by the director Kim Hee Won (as was Jang Han Seo in Vincenzo). His character is a vivid and adorable illustration to the change of mindset that the Hong family goes through in the story. This is the best part of the drama made with good humor and inventive situations that place the spoiled Hong heirs in a challenging unfamiliar setting. Kwak Dong Yeon is an amazing actor and needs to be protected at all costs!

Many viewers complain about the uninspired ending, but I think due to the genre and popularity it had to end this way and play safe. The story is also filled with sentimental distractions that bear no significance, e.g. Hyeon Woo saving Hae In in the water when they were kids. She might as well have been saved by anyone else and nothing would've change between them.

Of course I couldn't miss the light homage to the Cassano family and THE VINCENZO CAMEO HOLY SHIT. Thank you Kim Hee Won for letting us know he's doing well!

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makeup

From episodes 1-7, this drama was really boring because it only showcased wealth and companies. But from episode 8 onward, it became more interesting with a lot of events happening. The makeup is not realistic—injuries from punches and accidents disappear the next day without even a scar. Also, rich people don’t keep their assets in cash. Logically, how long has the grandfather been keeping that money? Wouldn’t Korean currency change over time? Usually, wealthy people store their assets in properties, hotels, or land because those won’t disappear and their value increases as time goes by.

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It started with sarcasm ...

...and jokes that keep me interested and watched till ep. 8, where there is a plot twist, which is the peak of the drama.

Afterwards, it goes downhill esp. ep 13 onwards where there are too many flashbacks and romantic conversations btw the main leads, which bores me and reluctant to continue watching.

However, there are still many meaningful and funny portions, e.g. the aunt and her bf made up the most hilarious parts.

Eun Seong, a cool psychopath from the 'Psychopath Diary' plays a cold-hearted person too in this drama; except that, he falls in love with FL, which made him vulnerable and looked unconvincing, which is a pity.

Hence, I rated it 8/10. Overall, it is still a good watch and writing.

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