kiseki

Is it a novel adaptation ?

You're free to enjoy it or don't enjoy it. I'm just saying that some people don't have the same qualms as you.

Myths and holy texts have always fed of each other and bred different and new stories. For instance, - correct me if I'm wrong - the djinns predate the islamisation of North Africa , but that concept was later integrated in islamic literature - and later western literature as well. That is what makes mythology and theology such an interesting field.

One can view this drama as a -maybe poorly executed - mishmash of pre-islamic and islamic folktale, with a Korean twist

I think you misunderstand me.
We both agree that we should respect each other. Because we should respect our fellow human beings, regardless of faith, political beliefs, sexual orientation... provided they don't cause harm to others.

I'm just not convinced we should extend that respect to every idea , belief or practice. Because I just don't see why they inherently deserve respect ; they are just thoughts ( even if they are thoughts we hold deeply in our heart to be true ). In short, everything should be discussed and tolerated provided it is not hateful

As for the "Japanese history" comment, it's a matter of objective truth and science. Nothing to do with respect

Meh, as a catholic, I fairly enjoyed the "judge from hell". People shouldn't get their panties in a twist over something as inconsequential

Not trying to be overly confrontational, but I've always wondered : why should we respect religions ? They are not people, merely ideas, at most social organisations ( whether you have faith or not )

They get together about halfway through, but there are plenty of cute and romantic scenes before that.
There is no huge miscommunication, and no real break up though the couple does experience some trials and tribulation after getting together.
It's a happy ending with plenty of time devoted to their happy ever after

I'm sorry if I mislead you. I meant superb as in fitting and well executed. Not necessarily as happy

After the last episode, since Hongrang sent him to the afterlife quite easily, I'd say nope

Also :
How to elope with your lover through a dark forest at night :
Wear dark unconspicuous peasants clothes : Nope
Wear the shiniest white robe ever and a straw hat while she downs the purplest hanbok skirt : Of course, smh

It ended in apotheoses ! The last episode was, for me, as close to perfections as it can get

Park Eun Bin and Sul Kyung Gu gave us a masterclass on acting. Their dynamic completely carried the show.
As for the story, for me, it was refreshingly different, the pacing was on point, every character was well developed and the drama told every story it wanted to tell beautifully.

That explains why he could have gotten rich, but not necessarily how. ( which is reassuring, it means I didn't miss a cool and badass scene where our ML start to build his empire )

It's such a shame they didn't include a few of his "get rich fast schemes" like in reborn rich. It would have cemented the character's ruthlessness and its business acumen as well as eased the transition into the third act of the movie

Yes, but not the cash. And the goods naturally returned to the shop owner, didn't they ? None of that helped the ML get richer. Or am I missing something ?

Question : does anyone know how Song Joong Ki's character acquired his money between the killing of Alejandro and the third part of the movie ? What made him richer than the other Korean smugglers ?

yep

To show his devotion ? And of course, for the obligatory shirtless ML scene ^^

Then again, what's one more plot hole in Hanyang ?

Kim Ji Eun stuffing food into her mouth like a starved hamster is my spirit animal. This girl hard-carried the whole drama (and its lackluster plot)

It wasn't something I had seen before, so it's refreshing maybe ? I must say, even if it was underexploited here, I love a good historical piece of media with a queer character or two. It's different and it adds layer of deception, fear and angst to the story. Also, these people existed, their stories deserve to be told ( maybe not in such a caricatural way )

But I agree on the doppelgänger plot line, that was the stupidest shit. At least we escaped the amnesia plot line ( looking at you "last year's acclaimed Qing invasion sageuk" )

1) when you use "faggot" as an insult, you're pointing out (and mocking/belittling ) his sexual identity, not his character, supposed lack of intelligence or selfishness. So if you do want to insult a fictional character for the aforementioned flaws, you should do it appropriately, for instance : he's a selfish prick and his only two braincells are fighting for third place.

2) one could argue the screenwriters shove far more hetero propaganda down our throats than they do LGBTQ ones, it's a straight romance afterall

3)even if you take aside the LGBTQ thing you so dislike, what makes his character interesting is precisely the conflict between the urge to fight for justice and his familial obligations. On one hand, he needs to be a good confucian son, brother and husband/beard, and on the other, he needs to protect children. You can see this dilemma in many driven people, be it with soldiers (joining an army and leaving your wife home ), freedom fighters (ex, resistants during WWII saw their families disappear in night and fog because they chose to take action ), activists (for instance Youth of May 2FL ), even scientist at time ( when they neglect their partners to focus on research for instance )

4) "his brain is in his groin" yet we never see him in love or even having sex with anyone. He has no lover in this show, he has comrades, but it's not shown that he loves anyone of them.

Totally, they should have shown more of him, of his struggles and activism. I would watch the hell out of a special showing his time apart from his wife

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_gender
Here you go. Some titbits of information that show that in some culture there is more than two genders. ( Friendly reminder that gender in itself is a social construct totally different from biological sex ( and even that is not binary ))

And some additional fascinating info on LGBTQ people in Goryo and Joseon :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBTQ_history_in_South_Korea . It seems that there were indeed at least some intersex people there although they were persecuted