Hopeless show, disappointment for Kim's come back show
The woman lead Im Soo Hyang is sooooo bad and irritating that really puts me off to watch this show. Come on, it is now 2023, but her character is like those acting innocently bitch from the 90's romantic soap opera. And she really acted so bad and plastic that I cannot understand why she deserves any love from the guy lead.Other than that, the whole shooting production is pathetic also. the story flow is very chocking, and chaotic. The shooting technique looks very low cost and old fashion too.
I watch the show because of the guy lead Kim Jung Hyun, but sadly I don't find his usual charisma in this show also. Most of the time I just find his bickering with Im Soo Hyang plain boring, with Im being unreasonable and force him to do the thing that is against his will. Again, I blame this to Im's poor acting skill. I skip a lot to barely watch it, and I am hairline close to drop the whole show.
I am very disappointed for this is Kim's come back show. From his past record I believe he is a capable actor, and he shouldn't be responsible for the failure of this show. I hope next time he can pick a better production and deliver a better show.
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A Man Who Loved A Woman
To boil it down into the simplest terms, Kokdu: Season of Deity is a drama about true love.Kokdu is a man who became a god because he refused to follow the Creator's wishes and travel to the afterlife as he wanted to wait for his true love. His punishment for disobeying the Creator was to become the god of death, escorting others to the afterlife, only being on Earth for 99 days every 99 years. During his time on Earth, he has to suffer the prayers of others and reap the soul (take the life of) those who are so evil that people pray for their deaths. By the Creator's command, in order to end the punishment Kokdu's true love has to tell him that she loves him. On one of those trips to Earth, he meets Han Gye Jeol, who is the reincarnation of his true love. The story follows the journey of Han Gye Jeol and Kokdu as they work to figure out the love of a god of death and a human towards a happy ending.
This story had its funny moments, as well as its frustrating, heartwarming, and truly sad moments. It was everything I could ask for in a rom/com. Kim Jung Hyun shows that he is a master of his craft while acting as Kokdu. Im Soo Hyang does a fine job acting as Kokdu's good-hearted but naïve counterpart, Han Gye Jeol. There were many other great, seasoned actors as well, filling out an amazing supporting cast for their story.
I very much enjoyed watching this drama. The fantasy elements of this show were creative and the suspense elements were good. The lighthearted elements, such as the couple running the cafe and the gods of rumor and greed, made me smile as they performed their antics. The award for best actor of this drama, however, has to go to Kim Jung Hyun, as we were able to see all sides of Kokdu, from childishness to anger, despair to love, sympathy to righteousness, and everything in between with his incredible acting.
It is unfortunate that this doesn't have a better rating on MDL. However, there are a slew of netizens that want to judge the actors for real-life drama/actions/incidents and past performances instead of rating them on how well they played the characters put before them in this particular script....and that's a shame. More than that, there are some people who simply did not like the characters or story line, but that is a matter of taste. For me, it was a good show with some great performances., and I looked forward to each episode.
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not even Kim Jung Hyun can save this mess
Kokdu: Season of Deity is Kim Jung Hyun's first drama comeback since Mr. Queen and was one of my most anticipated dramas of 2023. But despite the interesting premise, talented cast, and Kim Jung Hyun's especially strong performance, Kokdu: Season of Deity is a huge disappointment and not really worth watching in its entirety. The drama is a convoluted mess lacking clear vision and direction. It's like the writers can't decide if they want to be a comedy, a melodrama, a thriller, etc. They try everything and none of it really works. As a result, the drama feels really disjointed.The main romance in this drama is one of the worst I've seen in years. I'm a fan of both Kim Jung Hyun and Im Soo Hyang but they have terrible chemistry. The only time there's any spark between them is when they bicker. Everything else is a snoozefest. AND the writing for the main couple is bad.
The writing + main couple are awful but there are strong performances from the talented cast especially the two male leads, Kim Jung Hyun and Ahn Woo Yeon. I also liked a lot of the relationship dynamics like the Han siblings and the 2nd lead couple. But the drama spends a lot of time on the boring villains/hospital conspiracy so in the end, all the relationships feel underdeveloped.
If you're a fan of any of the actors in the cast, just watch clips of their scenes and behind the scenes footage. You'll thank me later.
dramatoast.com/kokdu-season-of-deity-kdrama/
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This review may contain spoilers
The end is BAD!
The ML is amazing. He's super funny and always makes you smile. The FL is horrible! Her acting is horrible and her pig nose ruins it for me. The storyline was great up until the end. He remains a God and has to go through the same thing over and over for eternity. So basically the real "God" is evil for making him watch his woman die for eternity while he never ages or changes. Personally the writer ruined a good story. I did like his sidekicks though. They added to the humor and made it easier to watch.Was this review helpful to you?
A story of redemption
Although so many of my fellow MDLers have focused their reviews and dissatisfaction on holes in the plot and the female lead, I want to take a different view of this charming and sometimes beguilingly beautiful story. While so much of the focus is on the title character, Kokdu - the God of the Afterlife - played by Kim Jung Hyun - the real story is the touching search for love, redemption, and self-acknowledgement of Dr. Han Gye Jeol, persuasively acted with conviction, passion, and emotional range by Im Soo Hyang. She is a highly capable and caring doctor but came with the wrong credentials - a graduate of the least regarded medical school and parents that died when she was young. Stymied in every aspect of her life plus carrying a huge burden into her current life from her past lives, all deeply twined together with Kokdu, she still strives to be the best person and physician she can. Her honesty as a character and an actress kept this drama alive for me. Her quirky, silly side also was effective as a sort of sweet defensive mechanism. And when she finally accepts the truth of who Kokdu is and who she was, this drama - with a few nods to the even greater Goblin - becomes compelling.I know that Kim Jung Hyun has a deservedly large fan base here but I found his acting, despite its immense vitality, verging on caricature. Perhaps this to make his transformation when he was finally able to admit his deep love for Gye Jeol feel more real.
And those strange plot holes - Ok Shin and Gak Shin are described as the God of Greed and Goddess of Rumor, respectively, but their deity seems limited and their roles as these gods seems left ignored and undeveloped. Kokdu's powers are vast but limited in several fundamental aspects. And who exactly is the strangely ambivalent Grandma Goddess.
Similarly the secondary story - the evil Kim Pil Soo playing a cardboard villain though well acted - is underdeveloped. On the other hand, the love of Han Gye Jeol's brother, a police detective, and Tae Jung Won, a doctor who was a one time friend of Han Gye Cheol is sweet, charming and everything a secondary love story should be.
Perhaps if re-watch Kokdu, these plot holes will disappear. In any case, knowing how beautiful the last four episodes are will help me get through a few of the less ideal parts. But if you like the fantasy genre, this is a very enjoyable drama with some very touching moments. I'm going to look for other dramas with Im Soo Hyang - she was superb!
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People are being too harsh on this one
1st of all yeah i understand that some of you might not like the directing and editting of this drama, but it only happens a few times. It's kinda endurable.+writing & directing: the idea is not one of a kind and new. A grim reaper who is cursed bc of the things he has done in his previous life. He has to find a woman to cure her pain & let him to be free. But 15 min in the show and you'll see he's not even a grim reaper! He's totally different. Then we have do jinwoo who himself has another seprated story. Not to mention gyejeol and his brother who seem to be related in many issues happening in future eps. So it's not an ordinary story line at all. But the thing is... the directors were not able to show the beauty of story. Some scenes seems to be cut from each ep. It makes the story to look cheap. Sometimes it's ok but most of the times directors have been unable to show the beauty of the story and therefore, its meaningful dialogs seem nonesense.
+ casting: flawless. Kim jung hyun be handling 3 characters is just phenomenal. Esp in latest ep (ep10) when kokdu pretends to be jinwoo, you can definitely say the difference between true jinwoo and kokdu pretending to be jinwoo. That's hella amazing
Im soohyang is good too. Her character is not written so well, but she's so relatable in many scenes. And idk why she recieves so much hate. I mean i can give you a long list of famous actresses who can't act well, but only bc they're pretty and have manu fans, no one can attack them. It's the 1st time i'm seeing her and she's decent tbh.
Other actors/ actresses are doing pretty well too. Only tae jungwoon's actress lacks a bit and it might be bc of the character it self.
+OST: SO BEAUTIFUL. Honestly i couldn't find a flaw with osts. They are just too good and completely match the vibes of this kdrama.
+my fav parts? Definitely comedy parts. I love them sm. That's why i'll rewatch this kdrama soon after it finishes.
Kim jung hyun's acting is like the cherry on top.
There too many MOOD scenes that i relate sm.
It's not boring or rushed.
It boosters my energy.
I love the locations they chose. Outfits match each character very well and the stylist has done a good job.
+things i didn't like? Story seemed to not be developing in ep5, ep 8, ep9. And i blame the director for this.
They cut too many scenes that it seemed nonesence.
The writer should've worked on romance a bit more. Sometimes there are plot holes.
But overall it's not sth that you call awful or the worst kdrama. Yes maybe kim junghyun (and other actors) deserved a better production team. Esp bc it was his comeback project but it's still okay! Hopefully his next kdrama will be better (a hit🤞🏻)
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it was unpredictable and beautiful on its own
this drama wasn't everyone's cup of tea! if you love super fantasy dramas with chaotic leads, well, give it a try.the thing i loved the most about this drama is that it was unpredictable! writer was so creative and made many plot twists. some of them didn't make sense for me, but in general, i enjoyed.
they put so much on kim jung hyun's back, from portraying 3 characters to showing comedy and melodrama acting. so it was definitely acting worthy to watch
i loved how they portrayed family. gyejeol with her brother and kokdu with okshin gakshin. it feels so warm while watching
the editing sucks in some eps but it wasn't that much that force me to drop!
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Possibly the worst k-drama I have ever seen
I like the ML as an actor so I really tried to preserver, but it's just so bad. I don't know if it's the script or the directing but honestly do not watch this. I typically enjoy anything fantasy, and the basic plot was really interesting but they have just butchered it.There is poor chemistry between the main characters and the characters are very dramaticised in a way which I thnk is supposed to be funny but it just is not. There are quite a few different plot points also occurring at once which are easy enough to follow, but just not engaging.
(if you enjoy this then I am happy for you but I really do not understand how anyone can rate this above a 6 even being generous)
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Wonderful acting, mediocre story.
Story:Overall, the story was rather boring. At the beginning, it felt that some parts were rather confusing and I thought they were going to develop the story as it goes by to fill in the gaps but nope.
Acting/Cast:
I honestly finished watching the drama because of the wonderful cast. I think both leads portrayed their roles really well and I believe there was a scene in Ep 14 or 15 where Kim Junghyun acts a very emotional scene and I felt goosebumps.
Veteran actors Kim In-kwon and Cha Chung-hwa who were acting supporting roles delivered great acting as usual. The younger supporting actors also acted satisfactorily, although sometimes they were a bit stiff (?) but I think they still have a long way to go to continue improving their skills, looking forward!
Music:
Music was quite lovely. My favourite is Secret by Han Dong Geun, it makes me relaxed. Kudos to Kim Junghyun for singing I am as well, he has a very gentle voice. On a side note, the song Latte latte by Jihan from Weeekly is a pretty a fun song when it plays during the drama.
Scenery:
The scenery, the lighting and the artistic production of the show is really pretty.
Summary:
The only reason I will recommend this drama is if you like the actors in this drama as they do have pretty solid acting! But otherwise, I do believe there are other dramas which you may better enjoy watching.
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Awesome acting
The story is refreshing and interesting . Most importantly, leads and supporting casts are superb in their role. Acting skills on point especially the male lead. He can portray into his character with many levels of emotions which I think is remarkable as an actor. For the female lead, portrays the image of a doctor really well. Both the supporting actor and actress who’s always beside the male lead, kudos for making the story extraordinary funny . Overall, the drama is awesome. Worth watching .Was this review helpful to you?
Read this before you decide not to watch it
I consider myself to have quite a good taste in dramas, as I usually don't waste time with bad stories and acting, except for when I just need to watch something that doesn't require brain work. I decided to write this review just so I can clear up at least *a part* of this drama's name. HEAR ME OUTThe first two episodes are terrible, as is the story and, more or less, so are the other episodes. No, this is not an "award winning" kind of a kdrama, yes, you will question everything about it, yes Im Soo Hyang's acting is as terrible as ever, yes, there are plot-holes. If you are in general not a flexible person, maybe you shouldn't watch it. At the same time, don't rate it with 1 star either if you haven't seen all episodes.
THE HIGHLIGHT of this drama is no one other than Kim Jung Hyun who managed to save this entire series. Please, at least out of curiosity watch a few episodes (more than 2, because, again, the first 2 are really bad) and check out his acting. He had to portray around 4 different roles, 4 clashing personalities and he did it beautifully. In contrast with others, this was my first contact with him as an actor and his great ability made me look him up so that I could eventually watch Mr queen and Waikiki while Kokdu was still airing. In my opinion, if from the beginning your mindset is about having fun, watching something really strange that makes no sense, having curiosity, you might like it, at least 50%. To be true, even I am wondering how I got to finish it, but, as I said, Kokdu's character really saved everything. Never in my life have I seen someone with so many different and entertaining ways of speaking. One more thing I have to say is that, once again, we are surprised by Jung Hyun's singing, as he sings one beautiful song from the OST
On the other hand, even if I've never finished a drama with Im Soo Hyang, I felt that I could stand her character more here. The flashback to her past probably improved her image. I really liked -shockingly- how she portrayed the final moments of her past self.
I also don't get why no one is talking about the reunion of Kokdu, Ok Shin, Gak Shin (who were together in Mr Queen). Their interaction was really funny and pleasant to watch, equally together and apart.
In conclusion, if you have no expectations and you really try to enjoy it, you can, as I believe this was their exact purpose: to create a funny and enjoyable story. I believe that everyone knew what they were doing which is a full on stupid romantic-comedy that was SUPPOSED TO BE STUPID. No one tried to remake Goblin, you can rest assured.
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I am sticking to the end for Kim Jung Hyun
What is happening with this cute story? Once again I fear that the female lead is to blame, at least for me. I am invested into Kokdu's story, but I really do not care if they end up together or not. I did love how they showed the Creator in the early episodes, very fresh take.I am ecstatic to see Kim Jung Hyun in a new drama. Was Mr Queen so good that this one just does not add up? I will stay to the end for him, but will not watch another drama with Im Soo Hyang in a lead role.
This seems to be only the second screenplay by the screenwriting pair of Kang Yi Hun and Heo Joon, Woo, perhaps that is the weakness.
How about you?
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