RemmyB

No I think its a good writing choice to have her character evolve, it keeps a drama (especially a 30 episode one) very fresh and it's natural for characters forced into extraordinary circumstances to undergo major change. What I mean is I think JSM did a perfect job of portraying Naksu as a 'cold blooded' assassin but in comparison portraying the vulnerable and soft hearted Naksu that is breaking out of her shell has been much more challenging, for me it has on occasion felt forced.

I do wish almost all the characters got more action scenes, especially the female actresses like Choyeon or the Queen, but the drama is heavier on romance instead which a lot of people seem to enjoy as much or more.

That's okay, I understand.

I will say this much though: at the end of the day I think for people who go out of their way dismiss and attack Jung So Min in that way it doesn't matter how her acting is or what reasons other people say about her acting being this or that, because if people attack an actor/actress like that its because they want to attack the actor/actress, not because its what they truly actually believe. So I feel my comments would not change a thing, those people will still exist. If its mindless criticism it can just be ignored

I'm not sure what the point is here, because not only am I not a 'superfan' of the male lead (or any actor/actress/celebrity at all), I am also a guy.

I also think Jung So Min is a very good actress. I have seen two of her other works and she was great in both, just as she has been mostly great here. I hope opinions that are given with reasoning behind them can be posted on this site, without being dismissed as discrediting from ML biased female fans, because that is just not true.

It is frustrating because I really believe Hwang Min Hyun has the ability to do a lot more than he has. But even in situations where the context calls for some variation to his acting (e.g. when he is drunk with Mudeok/Naksu), his expression has not changed at all. I guess it is intentional because in episode 7, even the characters point out that Seo Yul's expressions never change even when he is startled, but even with the same blank expression I feel any actor still has the liberty to at least experiment with different micro expressions for the same blank look

I appreciate the comment. I will just add that I don't commentate on anything out of bias (nor am I a fan of any actor in this series above any other), and I have never understood the agenda behind anyone attacking other actors/actresses because they have a strong preference for another actor in the same work. Its literally a project they share, why degrade both of their work like that?

But I'm not attacking anyone, and certainly not unfairly I feel. I gave fleshed out reasons for it. It is indeed a very hard role, I would say all of the main leads have very difficult tasks to portray JSM most of all. But saying the role is very difficult only explains why perhaps a performance sometimes suffers, it doesn't mean that saying so is unfair or untrue.

I think the dynamic of the character of Naksu has just changed massively from the start of the series, her character has seen some notable development. Her core motivation for example, has shifted from tunnel visioning on revenge to avoiding petrification + helping Jang Uk achieve his goals. Her character has softened a lot and more than that her character isn't required to keep up with a facade of toughness anymore. She's also called upon to be more explicitly romantic with Uk now whereas before the relationship was so outwardly platonic you even had commenters here questioning whether Naksu had a romantic attraction for Uk at all and if they were the endgame.

For example, the earliest scenes of Naksu with Jang Uk - its totally believable in that JSM does an excellent job of highlighting quietly hostile tension with Jang Uk but also a platonic sense of either care, duty, or both, toward her student/master. This doesn't contradict Naksu's character of never letting her emotional guard down - her 'vulnerable' emotions are still hidden and her actions are explained as that of a master/student's + of an assassin acting in self interest to regain her powers.

Now her character is moving towards basically, what would Naksu look like if her father never ran wild/never got executed and Naksu was allowed to live a normal childhood? If Naksu was just a regular woman who didn't need to hide love and emotion as a weakness. She's doing more mundane things, she's cleaning up as a maid, taking servant tests, living day to day life, and she's actually living them rather than constantly zeroed in on a revenge mission. Its a very difficult role in that JSM has to portray that slow shift, but I think JSM was stronger at portraying vengeful assassin and she's still trying to find her groove with a more ordinary, 'real' Naksu.

Not at all, of the actors involved in AoS I have seen: LJW in Search: WWW and a guest appearance in MTH, Jung So Min in Because This is My First Life, and The Smile has Left Your Eyes, and Shin Seung Ho in D.P., I did not pick up this drama for any particular person but because the premise is really interesting and a Joseon era fantasy is quite new to me.

Yes, I agree her role is the most challenging, in that she has so many personas to portray. I gave my reasons as to why I felt her performance has not felt as strong to me in the recent episodes - she does well with the persona of the ruthless Naksu, and is mostly enjoyably campy as Mudeok the simple maid, and she's also embodied the mysterious Buyeon/original body with ample mystique. But as I said she falters when she portrays what is really the 4th, and 'true' persona of the role - the vulnerable Naksu when she lets her cold, unfeeling guard down e.g. when she is disarmed by Jang Uk's earnest affections or most critically when the script calls for her to be overwhelmingly emotional.

You disagree with me, that's fine. More than that, I'm glad you have really appreciated her acting in its entirety and that she has been well received. But I gave my reasons and explained in depth why I (personally, if that needs to be added) felt this way about her acting on occasion in these last few episodes - I do not believe that is unfair criticism at all.

Who are the strongest castings?

I think LJW has killed it from start to now, he's absolutely believable in his role and his expressive range has really been tested and passed. I took a liking to his character from the getgo with his aloof directness in his usual conduct, but the scene that first really, really sells me on LJW is the paddling scene where he conveys pain, rejection, angst, triumph and determination within the span of a single medium close-up shot. He's had the most opportunities to convey a myriad of emotions to date and he's done work with all of it.

JSM I really loved her portrayal from the beginning of the series but I think the writing of her character and her acting in the most dramatic scenes has faltered a little. The 'antidote' scene by Uk's bed made me roll my eyes just a little bit, it was certainly somewhat a writing issue but it also felt slightly forced for me. Sometimes her desperation doesn't feel fully believable either, because JSM as Naksu/Mudeok is trying to portray the desperation of a coldblooded and strong hearted killer who is never intentionally relinquishing her veneer of unfeeling but I don't think comes off particularly natural to JSM to portray that unrelenting cold-heartedness. E.g. when the mask slips off in her fears of being petrified/absorbing Uk's energy she doesn't quite strike total believability in expressing that vulnerability as a character who has never allowed herself to be vulnerable to that point. So for the majority of the drama so far JSM has been a really enjoyable and entertaining actress but when the show reaches the crux of emotions boiling over sometimes she doesn't nail it (for me).

SSH has done a superb job of portraying the Crown Prince, I barely noticed his presence from the start but now he's a real selling point of the show. Just that perfect balance between austere authoritativeness and a childish, almost innocent whimsy that leaks out beneath the veneer. He has done a wonderful job of portraying a character who has obviously been pampered and treated as royalty from the outset, but there's this ever-present hint of loneliness to him that prevents him from being a writer's comic relief character and grounds him as a living, breathing person in his own right.

HMH has probably had the most targeted complaints from the getgo and I think its somewhat understandable. There's a difference between a poker face and wooden acting, HMH sometimes falls into the latter category. There's just not a whole lot of micro expressions at work to him, which is a shame because outside of the series HMH can actually be a pretty expressive person. I just don't love his portrayal so far - it's adequate but he hasn't done a whole lot with it to suggest there's much more to Seo Yul underneath the surface.

ICS has really been a sleeper star with his enigmatic and indiscernible intentions and emotional states. He's been believable as a superficially warm and clement middle aged master, yet he can also convey the demeanour that he is secretly a century old man with some real uncertainty to the ulterior motives behind his warmness. And he can also convey inexperience in his flustered moments with Maidservant Kim. He's had the space to show a unique and extensive character and he's served good looks with it. Props to Im Chul Soo

I actually like the direction that Seo Yul's character is taking. For me a show being good is nothing to do with how much you like the characters as people but the meaningful narrative it tells. Seo Yul representing the greater good over personal interest and Jang Uk on the other side of that coin, that's a much stronger utilisation of Seo Yul's character than a dead end. The big problem for Seo Yul is that his internal conflict has been portrayed in such a repetitious way. The Naksu/Seo Yul scenes go around in circles as the backstory between them was exhausted entirely by episode 5. The endless flashbacks do not introduce anything new to the dynamic between them and there's no use trying to feign the uncertainty of 'will he, will she?' with who Naksu ends up with because Jang Uk so overtly the OTP here. So solid direction for Seo Yul, but it could do with some dialling down on the fluff OR at least flesh out Yul's character in more ways while doing so rather than reducing his backstory to the Naksu childhood crush guy.

I think the endgame is also becoming more clear for what Part 1 is about - the climax of this series is all about Naksu's fate in the balance and is more likely to centre the aforementioned philosophical clash than a big CGI boss fight against the evils of the shadowy villains in the back. What I also mean is that not all the plot elements and conflicts introduced in Part 1 may be responded to in full by episode 20 - Part 1 is not looking to be a self contained story where you can opt to stop watching past it and be totally at ease. Part 2 is really not going to be optional viewing. For example, I expected the two big plot points of the story midpoint (Naksu being uncovered and Jang Gang's re-arrival into the current storyline) to have happened by this point. Now it seems like Part 1 might end with Mudeok regaining her powers instead, which is a whole lot later than anybody probably had in mind before fully grasping what Part 2 was - not just a companion piece or an extension of this major storyline, but THE continuation of the major storyline itself.

What I suspect is that the decision to turn this 20 episode series into a 30 episode one was more of a producer decision than anything. Considering how egregiously expensive was the set of the series, perhaps the financiers in charge were not happy with the projected revenue against the costs and sought (alongside decisions such as that of replacing the rookie actress with a bigger name in Jung So Min) to recoup costs with a story extension. That may also explain the tonal differences from episode 1 to 8 - the pacing of 9 till 14 is much different as well as with more self contained plot lines - with more slice of lifey, tangential plot lines introduced that last much longer than the storylines before. And furthermore, I speculate that some characters like Heo Yeon Ok were added after the 10 episode extension in order to bridge that gap.

I wish the fight sequence between Uk and Yul had more bells and whistles to the whole fanfare - but again budget constraints do leave a 30 episode series hurting for resources.

Honestly, its still a solid show I've tempered my expectations at this point because of the reasons I have mentioned. My major disappointments were felt from the 9-11 episode stretch where that tonal shift was most stark and juxtaposed with the rocket propelled momentum of the storyline until the duel with the Crown Prince. Rationalising why that change may have occurred makes it easier for me to accept the reconfigured subject matter of the show. That said if Part 2 does arrive I feel more inclined to binge it than watch it weekly as I have done for Part 1 - that intoxicating breakneck pacing is something I really miss.

Hmm, I wonder if this show would've been stronger as a 20 episode show after all

I wish the morality ofthe protagonists was more consistently Gray. My thoughts was Seo Yul actually represented alongside park Jin the 'good' - duty before personal interests - and naksu Is somebody who literally stole someone else's body on top of being a mass murderer/terrorist. And then Jang UK of course represents the inverse - the series is spurred by his personal interest to prove his status as rightful son to gang, and now, his interest in naksu. But UK/naksu seem to be increasingly so quite black and white good guys which is a little less interesting honestly.

Seems like we'll be getting some real moves on the OTP right around the corner, nice to see. I do think this drama could honestly have worked really well as an even slower burn like Vincenzo though, no kiss until episode 18 - 20 ish couldve made for a more simmering romance. But then the show would be fantasy instead of romance so its just the intentional direction chosen.

Gah another shoehorned romance line 😩 so many good dramas could've been great ones if they didn't dally on pointless romances that add nothing meaningful to the idea of the show. Oh well. I like the actor so I hope its incorporated well

Mudeok/Naksu and Uk's chemistry shines stronger when they're looking out for each other in life or death situations. Bring on the high stakes it makes the drama great

Amazing work, you have just succinctly described why you have been responded to in the first place. Perhaps one day if you develop a capacity for self awareness you will be able to look back and see this as a critical learning point. I have faith in you, good luck!

Okay so you ARE going to personal attacks after all, you've finally stopped pretending to be ignorant enough to front like you are not. Awesome, then I am more than justified in saying this. You're a pathetic lowlife who sees mindlessly defending a show online as some badge of honour. You are a weak hearted dolt and you should stay away from people if the slightest criticism throws you into a whirlwind of hysterics. Just a sad, sad sight to see.

The plot is excellent but the drama has faults. Some people find it not a problem but some others will so just be cautious of this- it's not a problem of this being a weak drama with a good romance, it's a good drama with good romance but for a few episodes in my eyes it is too focused on the romance and loses sight of a cohesive plot for a bit. But it seems to be picking up again now

You're just contradicting yourself over and over. I have never called you a 'rabid' fan under the same logic - I made a 'generic' statement that anybody who fervently shuts down any sort of criticism as 'bitching'is a 'rabid' fan, that the point raised was 'idiotic', the nonsense blabbered was 'inane'. I never said it was specifically you as a person - I guess nothing I said was a personal attack then? Don't pretend like you're not smart enough to recognise that your 'generic' statement was indeed an unjustified insult on many, many people. Do better.

A really interesting development for sure, especially because it establishes more and more parallels between these schemers in the background and our protagonists.

You resorted to personal attacks against people who raised valid criticisms, including myself. Don't think I haven't noticed you passive aggressively replying to my every comment with offhand remarks about me not seeing the show properly as if my opinion is invalid so long as it isn't blind praise for the show. How dare you then try to find some high ground when I respond with the same sentiment over your needless insults. 'im tired of the same criticisms every time' - maybe, if literally thousands of viewers are raising the same concerns over 'filler crap', sounds like there was an issue with 'filler crap' being a noticeable problem then? It's an idiotic point because if you are tired of hearing the same thing over and over how do you not get 'tired' of hearing the same praise over and over? Beautiful cinematography this show has - would you mouth off and blabber with more nonsense about how you want to hear some original comments instead of the same appreciations time and time again? No. The reason you get so peeved is because you consider criticism of this show to be some sort of personal attack which is absurd and again, a pathetic way to view anything at all. I'm done responding to your inane nonsense. Grow up.