King the Land

Maybe being so focused on success, King-The-Land almost lost track of the core of a KDrama´s heart

As far as I am concerned, "King the Land" triggers extremely ambivalent feelings. I'm still undecided whether to classify this KDrama as a Trojan horse or as a successful prototype AI product. In other words: is it deliberately engineered brainwashing (that at times comes very close to even insulting the human intellect), or is it the result of an AI (programmed for max audience share) as showrunner in its first, but surprisingly successful test run?

"King the Land" is a Rom+Com. A fairy tale we have known and loved for generations. The unthinkable becomes possible: the hard-working girl next door finds Knight in Shining Armor - a Jaebeol offspring who can afford the luxury of not even being interested in the rich heritage of the conglomerate. Well, if you feel like something like that, you get a highly polished version of a cheerful, trivial (and conservative) love story that opens up clichéd insights into the upper segment of the shamelessly high-end luxury world.

Here my criticism. My irritation. Even annoyances.

--> These days, we can (and obviously have to) get used to product placement. That´s nothing new. However, "King the Land" undauntedly puts an almost obscene shovel on top of that. It goes so far that at times I felt like I was stranded in a 16-episode commercial, which I consider quite intrusive. Shameless. Apparently it can always be worse.
I rarely fast forward. But rarely have I fast-forwarded as much as in "King the Land". Usually, I'm ready to get involved in moments - looks, gestures, stand still, in my opinion all of that can be part of the dramaturgy. But here the long takes far too often serve a product placement or a Lifestyle-Statement being deliberately staged on the occasion, or some triviality that may or may not be considered nice, yet without any impact for the story. Just for fun, so to speak, because it is (supposedly?) so pretty. Most of the time it's about a haunting, almost mean display of a lifestyle in the highest-priced luxury segment, which will probably never play a role for the vast majority of the audience. Then I get angry. Not because the story is set in an exclusive social class, but because it is staged in such an oversized manner, while giving it a lot more screentime than would be necessary or coherent for the feeling and understanding of the story.
My understanding goes like this: The high-gloss, stylized luxury lifestyle of the absolutist elite hides a message between the lines that is addressed to all classes below: “”” You'll never get there! Forget it. Enjoy what you have. Make an effort, then it could even be a little more. Yet, be aware: WE play in another galaxy, light years away from you. Give up. Surrender. Let us do it all. Then it shall not be to your harm.”””

---> Additionally: The KDrama chooses a nasty mixture of proven dramaturgical elements and links them with another hidden, questionable message that might be hardly noticeable, yet effective.
There is the world of the employed, that so many people in the country (and elsewhere in other countries) share. In particular in South Korea this is often enough about an authoritarian hierarchy within a corporate structure. This includes almost as a matter of course: bossing around, exploiting, abusing, and some more exploiting. This goes through all instances. It is nothing new. This is everyday life for many.
Thus, a rebellious protest is always welcome in KDrama. “King the Land” also grabs into this box - courageously and with some humor as the hero immediately counters the frustration that nothing ever changes. He rebels. Dares to speak back. Pushes through, with vigorous means when necessary. And keeps the upper hand. How wonderful! … It's just too bad that he happens to be the chairman's son and can afford to do that... Here, and there, and almost everywhere...
So, the positive, rebellious (democratically inspired?) message turns into the (autocratic) opposite: “””Only those who swing the scepter of (monetary) power can change something, because they are the ones, who actually have something to say. The ones at the top. An this is, because they are at the top for a good reason, because they have the background, the stamina and the right genes to de facto be responsible for the rest.”””
“King the Land” never tires of throwing this message into the audience's eyes and ears - in all its possible epic breadth. In particular, embodied by the protagonist's stepsister and antagonist, but even by the protagonist's trusted secretary. Sure, our hero ticks differently, but (this is the harmless insight to take home with us): “””It's not the evil chairmen, but there is an economic reality with which all people who think and act halfway responsibly have to put up with. Period! These are given contexts that one cannot escape from when in such a responsible position. Ergo: THOSE up there are no worse than we down here. On the contrary: THOSE up there bear responsibility, we down there don't. And THOSE up there actually mean well with us. We can actually be happy: we are doing well after all...”””
Yes, it may be true, that many are better off than others, that they lead a more comfortable life than their parents or grandparents did. Nevertheless, I feel this message (that so often resonates in this KDrama) as one that basically wants to keep people little and hold their potential down. I personally don't like that.

Therefore: Is “King the Land” trotting along as a Trojan horse of the autocratic backroom masterminds, selling their notion for a modern absolutistic society?

Or - with a wink:-) - another assumption: Is "King the Land" an AI product? An AI, which with all its algorithms, its heuristic search for solutions and its logical conclusions, yet blind for socio-political nuances, reaches into the colorful pot of success guaranteed dramaturgical determinants, inflates those for even more success and breathes life into it with popular (success-guaranteeing?) mimes, music and light. However, one can sometimes get the impression that the heartbeat is missing. Its rather forced here and there. (Some even reproach the KDrama for lacking any cross-cultural sensitivity.)

In my opinion, the 'done with love' of this KDrama bobs back and forth between 'yes' and 'no'. A pretty face has to be enough, a harmonious tune, a touching gesture, a look, a kiss at the right time to make amends for the rest. Towards the end, the KDrama tries hard again, the amorous and yet tricky relationship dynamic emotionally comes to the fore a little more (e.g. as a relationship that isn't appropriate for the Heir), and some processes come across quite promising, to the extent that maybe something actually might possibly change about the cemented corporate culture of King Group. Nevertheless, being embedded within the absolutist brainwashing of the overall scenario, it loses some of its charm. (For me) A bland taste remains.


--> However, the good news at last:
I cannot say I totally wasted my time. If in between I was able to ignore all of the above-mentioned allegation (which was actually possible!), then the KDrama also delivered: a nice, clichéd love story in the Jaebeol milieu, with some cat-and-mouse games, without much depth, but with extra (!) cream. Simple as that. (By the way, some are already treating "King the Land" as the KDrama with the best kissing scene...)


--> Conclusion:
Maybe being so focused on success , “King of the Land” almost lost track of the core of a KDrama´s heart. However, at least a few within the production team obviously tried to put quite some effort into emotional finetuning, too.
So, I'm ambivalent. In spite even the unabashed style I criticized, I watched to the end. Not only out of professional curiosity. Despite all the indignation that inevitably spread through me again and again, at times I eventually enjoyed it, too. (Otherwise I would have dropped it - and then quite early.)
For all that, that's KDrama, too...

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interesting drama

delivered by the cast. The main characters portray a myriad of emotions flawlessly, effortlessly drawing me into their struggles, triumphs, and heartaches. Their chemistry is palpable, making their on-screen interactions all the more believable and heartfelt.

Not only does "Unfolding Hearts" excel in its storytelling and performances, but it also shines in its production values. The cinematography is aesthetically pleasing, with beautifully composed shots that further enhance the emotional impact of each scene. The soundtrack, composed with care, adds an additional layer of depth and resonance to the narrative.but the episode 7 about that Arbic prince was annoying.

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King of Cringe and Kisses

This is one of those dramas that is so hard to rate as some parts are so annoying and cringey they made me want to cover my eyes, skip, throw up, yell oh come on this is just stupid... While at the same time offering me some of dreamlands hottest kissing scenes, fun references to dramas passed and well Junho entering in slow mo wearing a suit, by suites I mean a lot of suits and a lot of scenes making me wonder if the makers of this drama where trying to check how many slow mo shots of Junho in a suit are to many... And well they tried their best but nee I am sure they could have fit in more of them and it would have only made this better.

In between the awful and the amazing there was a decent cliche story done mostly good, with mostly predictable twists a slight attempt to talk about some issues without really exploring the issues... All kind of meeh. But then agin we were offered some pretty amazing shots, nice music and mostly lovable leads with friends to die for (even if there stories and characters where annoying and over the top at times all characters had their moments of decency and greatness.

For some reason I find myself comparing this drama to Hometown Cha Cha Cha, and while it does have moments as cringy as the ones in there not a single one of the characters is as annoying as the people in Cha Cha. And while the FL in Cha Cha takes a turn to the annoying this one is mostly good from start to finish. what Cha Cha had that this one did not have was a beautiful bromance. But while Cha Cha truly took a dive from fun to oh my let this embarrassment end , this dramas journey of annoying cringe and greatness was more of a roller coaster type thing.

So if you love watching Junho in slow mo in a suit, steamy wet kissing scenes and can handle some cringe and annoying elements this is a really good watch.

P.S there was also a small referens to pretty women hidden in there....

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my mom only hated 2 dramas, into the ring and this
she said the whole plot and characteristics felt like something made for teens should've been played by teens xD

anyway, they had three good things, 1, no breakup*, 2, no childhood connection and 3 junho's smiles

the bad, well everything... no real plot, no real thought process just a bunch of random cliches after another, no follow through and all cliffhangers/angst/conflicts were resolved and brushed over...
and tbh, woong felt too clingy, too "involved", too rushing it too fast
and sarang felt too uncarying of him, not as in love and I don't mean she put herself first but like she didn't seem as happy and she always found a reason to nag at him and lecture him..
i thought she was a bit of a gold digger but i'm glad she built her own career xD tho speaking of her successful fully booked business. no one besides woong was ever there. even the first night, no one came after booking which made me think she only had one room and he was the one always booking
mom was also sad the friends didn't visit her there, like was it really one room no one could ever book in? xD
the stupid sister building 30 years of anger over him being loved by his parents when she could've just joined in, no one hated her... and the mom leaving over the grandpa, and never coming back as if she was a side character to her son's life when even the dad still loved her... atleast they should've made a sob story of her getting ill or whatever... and ofc the deadbeat husband of 3rd fl was wrong but dang she made him a doormat... yeah fixing the problem isn't done by making another...
and the final ep, one stupid ad after another, that's how cheaply they thought of this drama, just a fan service and piggy bank...

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A stress-free story with the theme of sincerity.

Whether it's romance, family, or career; the series shows us that if do things with sincerity, it will not go unnoticed. Not everyone will be moved by it, but there will always be people who will see and feel it. The story is simple, nothing ambitious or unique. However, the chemistry, the heartfelt moments, and honest interactions between characters made this series very memorable for me.

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● SHORT REVIEW
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[ --LIKES-- ]

✔ Very likable leads and a mature relationship. Loved the chemistry. A very capable female character and a very green-flag and sincere male lead.

✔ Good communications between the lead. Very drama-free relationship

✔ Lots of cute moments


[ --DISLIKES-- ]

✖ While I loved Ro Woon with Pyung Hwa, his inclusion in the Sibling Six or whatever they called themselves felt rushed. Would've loved to see more development and him building relationship with the others.

✖ The resolution for both Pyung Hwa's and Da Eul's felt too easy given the time we spent seeing their struggle.

✖ Sa Rang's exile to the tourist hotel seemed pointless to me since she was easily brought back to King The Land. Just felt like a nice vacation to me.


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● IN-DEPTH REVIEW
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[ --STORY/PLOT-- ]

The story around the workplace politic and the power struggle between the brother and sister wasn't something I was super interested in. I can't even say that it was the journey of their love that kept me interested as they got together relatively quick. What truly captivated me about the series were the characters themselves and the sincere interactions between them, whether it be cute, funny, heart fluttering, or just pure honesty.

Gu Won is our main male lead. Initially, he was just some chaebol who hated pretentious smiles and could not care less about his family's hotel business. However, he became more interested in the hotel when he meets Sa Rang, whom he falls for. What I absolutely loved about his pursuit of her is was his sincerity and willingness to learn how to be in a relationship. He got to know her bestest friends and her grandma, and they all had advice for him. The core advice was honesty and clarity. Showing how we feel with actions is great, but saying how we feel and what we're thinking helps avoid drama and miscommunication. It's also very romantic to me. Consent is also very sexy. Loved that he asked permission before kissing her during their date. Also, Gu Won's dad was a very likable parent for me. He never really forced his son (mostly since he knew he couldn't) and there were lots of nice father-son moments where he was understanding. The only thing I disliked was when he sent Sa Rang to the tourist hotel. I don't even know what the point was since Won easily just brought her back.

Sa Rang is our beautiful female lead. She is a very capable and hard working girl. She doesn't needs much saving for the most part and was able to take care of herself. The employees of King The Land did not like her at first but her sincere attitude won them over eventually. Sa Rang's growth in this series has less to do with her character development, but more a realization on what she truly wanted to do as her dream career. I wished we had spent more time earlier in the series to build up to the idea of Sa Rang wanting to start her own hotel. Maybe they did sprinkle the idea that she was not happy doing what she was doing subtly and I missed it, but it felt sudden to me. I'm happy though that she found what she wanted to do at the end. I also absolutely loved Sa Rang's grandma. Most memorable for me with her was where she was helping Won set up a savings account, it really touched me.

They pair was great at talking to each other. There was a lot of honesty between the characters and I'm thinking that's what I like so much. Even the interaction between the villain and her brother was for the most part very honest. And the characterizations of the characters were honest in that we knew who to root for and who not to.


[ --ACTING/CAST-- ]

I can't lie, 2PM was the first KPOP ground that I really got to know so the members hold a special place in my heart, even if they aren't my favorite group. With that said, I think this the first series with Junho that I was interested in seeing. I might go watch some of his previous stuff later but they're not super high priority. Watching King The Land, however, did leave a good impression on me with his acting. And I loved his chemistry with Im Yoon Ah. She's so pretty. I need to dive deeper in Girls' Generations. I think everyone did a group job, I felt the feels when I needed to feel them. Special shoutout to Kim Sun Young who play Won's sister. Great antagonist!

[ --MUSIC/OST-- ]

"Yellow Light" from Gaho and "Confess To You" from Kim Ye Yim both stood out to me as my favorites, but all the OST were great! Need to relisten to some of them and see which ones I need for my playlists, but they're all great songs. Not much else to say in that regard.

[ --REWATCH VALUE-- ]

I can't say I will watch this in its entirety but there were so many cute, romantic, and funny scenes that I adored. So I wouldn't watch it again for the plot, but I would rewatch clips just to feel the butterflies.

[ --FINAL THOUGHTS-- ]

So my overall impressions was that this was a very light, fluffy cute series where I didn't need to stress about the villain, overthink anything, or even get overly frustrated by anyone. Very stress-free watch for me. It was funny and it was romantic. Checks both the boxes for a romcom for me. Also, lots of scenic scenes. Loved Thailand. Loved the forest vibe of the tourist hotel. Loved the cityscape shots. Yeah, this was an easy watch and very enjoyable watch. I've watch so much kdramas so one would think it would be boring and stale for me, but it wasn't. This series has a lot of charm due the characters and I definitely recommend watching it at least once.

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● NOTE
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I'll always conclude my review by saying that ratings and reviews is not really a indicator of whether you may enjoy something. We all have different criteria and standards. Don't let a bad rating, review, or comment discourage you from watching something. My advice will always be to give something a chance if the premise interests you, and only use the ratings/reviews to determine priority if you have a list, or if you're deciding if you want to continue it due to time limitations.

♥ Thanks for reading my review! Feel free to comment or hit me up if you want to discuss anything ♥

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Simply enjoying a series

Very generic romance comedy, not anything groundbreaking. Is it enjoyable though? Yes. I have laughed more at this drama than I have at any other this year paired with my favorite OST as well. Each week I am sitting at the edge of my seat waiting for a new episode to drop and have enjoyed so many moments in the show.

There were portions of the show I was unhappy with and questioned why it had to happen the way it did in the series. I do have to say that even though I never felt as if the show was dragging, I do think though that this series could have been shorter as there was a lot of filler content.

Favorite character of the series was Kang Daeul portrayed by Kim Gaeun (with Lee Rowoon in a very close second place). She was a great comedy relief of the series. I loved seeing all the scenes she was in, especially the ones with her daughter.

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Disappointed. Even JunHo can't make up for the sloppy writing.

I'm sad that I didn't really enjoy King The Land. I've waited for weeks for it to finish airing so I could binge watch it, but after the first 6 or so episodes I was actually forcing my self to carry on.

THE GOOD:
- There is no doubt that Junho and Yoona are very pleasing to the eye, and put together they make the perfect eye candy. They've got good chemistry, and since the Red Sleeve Ive been ready to shout at the top of my lungs that Junho is a very good actor, he doesn't disappoint here either. Yoona was decent too, I have no complaints about the acting.

- The show has very nice aesthetic, it obviously had a very big budget and so it was very well shot.

- There were definitely many funny moments, I'll give the writers that.

THE BAD:
- The OST wasn't bad per day, but to me something was missing. I've seen clips of the show on Instagram with different music which just worked so much better with the show.

- JunHo's voice. There were times, were I could tell Junho was unnecessarily making his voice deeper, and adder this baritone to it. And it hit me so hard I could not ignore it, it was too distracting.

THE UGLY:
- The writing for King The Land was sloppy, it was even embarrassingly over the top at times, to the point where it had me cringing internally.

Now don't come at me, I love RomComs. I don't expect RomComs to have great plot points, but things didn't work out here. I've seen shows like Business Proposal, Romance is a bonus Book, Weightlifting Fairy, and more do these same tropes but do them well. Here it felt the writers threw a dart on a board of tropes and just depended on Junho's good looks to pull things off.

It hurts me to say this, but this just isn't that great of a show.

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King the Land

King the Land is how romantic comedies should be done. Of course, it was filled with all the usual K-Drama cliches that you can think of, and of course, there were corny + cheesy parts but it all worked for the most part.

Sarang is one of my favorite FLs. She was not immature or created misunderstandings out of thin air. Yoonah does a great job expressing her emotions. I love her relationship with her grandma & her friends. Her friends and she were always having the times of their lives in this show. I love a good sismance.

Jun Ho as Gu Won will go down as one of the greenest flags in all of K-Dramaland. I mean I cannot resist my toxic king obsessive CEO troupe... hehe, but he might be the healthiest CEO ever. Of course, he had the usual CEO trauma, but the way he allowed himself to heal did not affect his relationship with Sarang or his bestie, Sangsik. His smile was also so healing... I mean I love watching him be happy. This is my first Junho drama & my 2PM guy can ACT. I need to watch his other dramas.

THE RELATIONSHIP WAS SO HEALTHY. No unnecessary misunderstandings that drag on for eternity. Whenever something came up, the leads COMMUNICATED. It was so refreshing. I love how they always support one another & always down for one another no matter what hardships come our way.

Of course, the OST was elevating all the scenes... highly recommended for a light, fluffy healthy romantic comedy. 9/10

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Cheesy to the point of tacky - unsure if it’s a parody drama of the mid to late 2000s?

I started the drama with my partner as it was hot topic and while his review is ‘not the best, but okay’, I was dying to finish it and get over and done with. We have a thing where we choose a drama and complete it together (bonding time) and this bonding time had me sighing and rolling my eyes too often!

While I understand that the show IS about the couple and it’s purely a romance drama, there are a million other dramas that have done this 3000 times better. Some Chinese dramas like You are my glory, Hidden Love. Korean dramas like Touch Your Heart (cheesy but not tacky).

I have no idea how to truly describe how tacky this drama is. Nothing was truly sorted out or explained. Supporting ‘evidence’ of why some people acted the way they did or did what they did are extremely weak (sister’s back story, mother’s departure and return, friend’s divorce story and more).

If the point was to make it a pure romance drama then there wasn’t really a need to include all that underlying stories and then deliver them so so weakly. Hidden Love did such an amazing job at just being what it was - romance. Touch your heart too.

I am disappointed that this was such a hype but delivered just tacky, slapstick comedy and cheesy lines. I even had a thought that maybe this was meant to be a parody on purpose! Of old Korean dramas. If this was the case, it’s acceptable but still has weak delivery of every other story aside from their romance.

Best trope and character? Chorong. You go girl.

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Cliched.

Pros - pretty faces, aesthetically pleasing drama

Cons - Everything else. Everyone is talking about sizzling chemistry but I found it forced, predictable and cliched. If you have seen a couple of romcom kdramas there is nothing new to appreciate here. Even the secondary characters and plotlines were quite predictable - the usual granny, close best friends of the FL, one confidant of the ML, screwed up childhood dynamics of the ML with a sad/traumatic past. And so many product placements. Also so many close ups, slo-mo zoom ins and repeats of key moments which felt artificial and took me out of the drama and roll the eyes rather than enjoy it.

Also the leads get together relatively early and after that it kind of lost steam. There just wasn't enough emotional investment to keep watching it.

This drama may work for first time rom com kdramas watchers. For everyone else, a timepass eye candy drama with FF button coming in handy.

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