Celebrity 
Excellent Cinematography, not so excellent story telling
I really wanted to enjoy The Scandal, especially because the cinematography is absolutely gorgeous. The visuals, costumes, and overall atmosphere were easily my favourite parts of the film. The actor/actress were okay, not exceptional but also not terrible.Unfortunately, I found the pacing of the story much less compelling (may be they should make it 10-12 eps instead of 8). I also felt that many of the sexual and overly explicit scenes added very little to the plot or character development. Rather than making the story more impactful, they often felt unnecessary and distracting.
I also have to admit that some of the vulgarity felt surprisingly modern for an ancient setting. I found myself wondering whether people in that period could really have been quite that openly crude.
Ultimately, I didn’t particularly enjoy the plot or the amount of nudity, but I can't deny that the film is beautiful to look at. For me, the cinematography was by far the strongest aspect of The Scandal.
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This review may contain spoilers
Great acting
I did find it difficult to focus entirely on the show. After each episode I wasn’t particularly excited to start the next episode.I felt the acting was very well executed by the leads, particularly because I didn’t like the characters that much, and was getting pretty frustrated and upset with each of them. It was hard to like them, particularly JCW who I adore… but he just reinforces in my mind how well he performed that he could confuse me with his facial expressions and body language. But ultimately he fooled me at times too!
I did quite enjoy watching this series, but just didn’t like the storyline unfortunately
The love scenes were executed well.
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A complete trash
Only the male and female leads are good, but unfortunately, not their characters in this drama. The story is mostly focused on erotica, with a very weak and disappointing storyline. There’s absolutely no chemistry between the leads. I couldn’t make it past episode 3. Honestly, one of the worst Korean dramas I’ve ever watched. Such a waste of time.Was this review helpful to you?
Why?
Great actors. Entertaining, sexy. Script -problematic.I’m not sure I understood these characters, their relationship and how they became capable of making a game out of hurting others. Not sure I believed in their love, inescapable because unobtainable?
Supposedly both were promising scholars in their youth. The FL got stuck in an arranged marriage (a no-show to a runaway rendezvous in their youth). The charming first love ML becomes a womanizer with a confusing connection to the emperor.
I watched hoping this lifelong bond would redeem them. Not so. Same with several other relationships: failures. No love conquering here. Scoundrel might have been a good title choice.
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This review may contain spoilers
Chemistry-free casting and colorless storytelling ruined this series—not the “explicit” sex.
I’m giving this a 3 because at least the acting was good. Everything else, not so much.I guess the pearl clutching over a little T&A is warranted if viewers haven’t venture outside of specific types of K-dramas, but if a viewer has done a deeper dive into K-dramas beyond the puppy-love romantic shows that are often the most popular, they will know Korean entertainment does not shy away from T&A. The sex in this is hardly memorable or controversial when compared with K-dramas like Somebody, A Frozen Flower etc.
That said, this series is not a love story, and it is not a romance drama. It’s not even about lust. Its about seduction purely for the sake of manipulation. Or at least it tries to be. This series is clearly the Korean version of the French book Dangerous Liaisons, but unfortunately did a poor job at interpreting the work. The acting was good. However, the story left a lot to be desired. There was no set up that these individuals had a history of being master manipulators. Though I understood Lady Cho’s reasons for wanting Cho-won to return to town to stir up trouble. The writing did a poor job at exhibiting how oppressed she felt and thus her reasons for resorting to such actions.
Moreover, it failed to raise the stakes, making this game of manipulation intriguing and the risks it posed tangible. Watching the “manipulation” play out I did not feel there would be any severe consequences if these actions were exposed. Maybe a little gossip amongst the aristocrats, but the writing did a poor job of setting up what these characters could lose if their schemes were exposed. Lastly, the lack of chemistry amongst the actors made it difficult for me to care about who they were and what they meant to each other. For a story like this to work, chemistry is key. Even if the writing is less than stellar.
The writers really should’ve watch the American movie version of this story to get an idea of how its done. In that version, the stakes were clearly high. The chemistry between the characters was palpable and the story was deeply engaging. Unfortunately, this series failed to live up to it’s potential.
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somehow overhated
I actually have nothing against this drama. I am a sageuk enthusiast, plotwise it's just very sageuk and historical, every character has such deep emotion and very complex. so I think people are just overhate towards the plot.personally, I didn't like the show but I don't hate it. as someone who usually simply skipped kiss scene because I don't watch show for the kiss (esp the emotionless), I didn't skipped the erotic scenes in this drama to find the art in it, and to fins the answer why people hate those scenes so much.
IMO maybe it's because of the ML. because my son yejin mama was doing fine, but someone said she didn't act well and the ML carries the whole drama. wrong. XXXXX
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This is not a sweet romance tale. Its about cruelty, deception and consequences of actions.
People should be open minded about this K-drama. It`s an adaptation of a classical french novel "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" or "Dangerous Liaisons" English version, which was about two members of the old French Aristocracy who were famous for elaborate games of seduction, manipulation and the ruin of others. It portrays the decadence and corruption of morals of society at that moment in time. It is not a sweet romance tale. It`s about cruelty and deception and the overall consequences of the actions taken, which lead to tragic events.I understand that it is not to everyone`s taste and that some people may feel offended by it. However, I personally liked the drama and thought that the Korean version, screen play and acting were great. It was beautifully scripted and the artistic photography was executed accordingly. Well Done!
Son Ye Jin is excellent as the icy cold, unbending noble lady bent on vengeance out of frustration of having been born a noble woman in Josean times, who due to societal norms was ignored and bound to a life of subordination and seclusion by a male dominated confusion culture. JCW is brilliant as the handsome rake, or cad, alluring and devious, confident that he will win the "Bet" which was of course to be with his first love Lady Cho (Son Ye Jin). As in the original book, the true characters may not be likeable, but the actors did a good job trying to show the human nature and emotions underneath the depravity and the consequences of the actions taken.
It is worth noting that the original novel had significant bearing in that historically it impacted on the whole of European Society by exposing the moral decay, sexual hypocrisy and predatory games of the nobles of french Aristocracy. It illustrated how powerful individuals weaponized seduction and reputation for sport. It fuelled anti-aristocratic sentiment that historically contributed to the psychological backdrop of the French Revolution.
Modern adaptations continue to impact upon today`s society by sparking conversations like we are having today about the manipulation, consent and toxicity of the wealthy elite. There are still moral and ethical lessons to be learnt from both the actual novel and screen dramas that we watch.
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Pointless.
I didn't understand the series at all. I couldn't figure out what its purpose was. There was a lot of explicit content; I kept thinking there might be a reason for it, but I didn't grasp that either. All I gathered was the story of a playboy who makes a wager with the woman he loves, wins it, and ultimately commits suicide. If that was the intended plot, then that is all I understood. I watched it out of curiosity.I don't understand why this cast chose to appear in this series; it didn't seem like a good fit for them. I didn't like it. Everyone played their parts adequately—the acting was standard, without any over-the-top moments. I preferred the younger actors; Shin Youn Ha and Kim Min Ji, in particular, caught my eye. I think they have promising futures ahead of them. Aside from them, Han Sun Hwa gave a great performance. She really did justice to her role—in fact, I think she was the only one who truly delivered a solid performance in the series. I couldn't quite tell what the others were supposed to be portraying. That said, let's give credit to Nana, too; she put in a lot of effort and I liked her work, though she didn't particularly stand out or have a major impact. Ultimately, the show lacked a coherent premise. It was a series without rhyme or reason, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
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WTF did I just watch and why
Wtf… I really regret not dropping it but I had to wait that maybe maybe it could get better, but instead it got worse. I always respected Ji Chang wooks work and appreciated his choices of acting but now, I won’t want to see anything with him… what a disappointment. But overall the acting wasn’t good as well, the blank stares were not convincing. All o can say is wtf and whyWas this review helpful to you?
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A great story, told without its tension
The story at the center of this show is one of the best ever written about seduction and its cost. Anyone who knows Laclos's Les Liaisons dangereuses (or its screen versions, Dangerous Liaisons and Untold Scandal): a cruel, charming libertine, a devout woman he sets out to conquer, and a scheming noblewoman pulling the strings, with all three ending up ruined. I tried to watch this as a fresh take rather than a comparison, but the core is the same, so the question is how well this version tells it. My answer is: not well enough.The biggest problem is length. This story works as a pressure cooker, and the mind games between Lady Cho and Cho Won are the whole point. Here they keep getting interrupted by palace intrigue that adds runtime but no tension. It also leans toward tragic romance, when the story is at heart a psychological chess match that nobody wins.
The second problem is chemistry. I never felt the pull between Cho Won and Ahn Hui-yeon, or the old power struggle between him and Lady Cho. Beautiful leads do not guarantee spark, and the direction did not create it. Cho Won often plays as a caricature, and Hui-yeon's fear reads as timidity rather than a woman with real convictions being slowly worn down. Because of this, the central arc never lands. I never saw him change from a man who respects nothing into one who realizes what he could have had. The intimate scenes are explicit, but they show no tenderness, doubt or dawning feeling, which is what would have given them meaning.
Lady Cho's ending is the last disappointment. She is one of literature's great villains, and here she suffers no real consequences and moves through society as before. The final scenes then imply she was pining for him all along, which turns a schemer into a heartbroken woman and removes the downfall the story needs.
Across Netflix's Asian productions, I've also noticed sexual behavior that would carry real social weight in these cultures shown as casual and consequence-free, whether or not the story needs it. Tribhuvan Mishra: CA Topper is one example, where a married chartered accountant with a respectable day job moonlights as a gigolo for women in his community. Aap Jaisa Koi is another, pairing a conservative, socially awkward man with a much more worldly woman, while his sister-in-law begins a relationship with the woman's uncle and the film frames it as reclaiming her independence. Many viewers in these societies seem to experience this as imposed from outside rather than growing out of the stories being told. A drama like this one, set in a rigid social order, is exactly where sexuality should carry consequences, and the lack of chemistry and consequence here shows what happens when it becomes decoration.
None of this is a criticism of the cast. They worked with the scripts, direction and choices they were given, and the blame belongs with the writers, producers and platform.
A great story, badly told: the scandal here is what they left out.
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they were insane for this
If I'm completely honest, I started watching this drama because I wanted to watch something while I ate and I kind of didn't actually read the synopsis lol I kept watching it because hello??? Incest??? I wasn't zure if the subs on Netflix were real so I tried to wrap up my head about it.I got quite lost with the plot at the beginning, because, I don't think Yun and Won had an actual reason to do all of this. Yun could've just simply fled with Won instead of marrying the minister but maybe that's just me.
I don't know much about acting, but I don't think Nana did bad, maybe because of her character she needed to be passive. She had lost her husband and was mourning during 20 years but also was a woman in the ~1500s (?) she started grew fond of Won but knew people will talk if they were together carelessly, I think it was only fair for her to be like that. (I have never watched anything from Nana' filmography, but even with the lip filler she's still gorgeous, maybe she didn't need it but she doesn't look bad either imo)
The sex scenes also weren't unnecessary. I mean, Yun literally told Won he needed to get Heeyeon pregnant because she wanted to see a child that resembled to him and at the end of the day, Won was a player......
I wasn't expecting Yun and Won not ending up together but it was only fair the end they gave Won. He was tired of going after women. Heeyeon wanted to flee with him but he wanted Yun and she wouldn't ever be with him like that. (I thought they would explain if he was actually dead, or if they had found the body tho)
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A Netflixized Kdrama
I am hardly a Kdrama expert but I can see that Netflix is trying to drag Kdramas into the mainstream of sex and nudity that must sell well around the world. I guess I missed any disclaimers prior to starting the series other than the "Sex, Nudity" note at the beginning, which is a laughable understatement. I know where to find softcore porn if that's what I am in the mood for and didn't expect it in this series. Not knowing the book it was based on or caring that it was based on a book but simply looking for some mild entertainment--getting harder for me to do with Kdramas--I spent much of the 3 episodes I watched waiting for some kind of clarity. After reading some reviews and learning what it was supposed to be about I am happy that I only invested 3 episodes worth of time at 1.25 speed. After a couple of years and a hundred plus series I might have come to the end of my Kdrama (and Jdrama) phase. If Squid Game and The Scandal are the direction that at least Netflix is headed--which is where I watch Kdramas--I might take up a new hobby.Was this review helpful to you?
