Tragic and painful
one of the best thrillers drama if not the best already in my opinion.., This is an S tier showStory wise, characters ,cast and acting, direction
All take 10 rates for me , It’s a complex and smart story with a great sense of thriller and tension throughout the drama
and its psychological part is so well written
It will hook you from the first episodes until you wish you don’t finish it because you will miss it but guess what? you still can’t stop watching it until the end
it leaves you curious every single episode
Most thriller dramas.., don’t focus on the psychological aspects and doesn’t makes you attached to the characters .., mostly cares about the storyline only
this is not the case with this drama because it’s tragedy drama to begin with, told through thriller lens and I think too little watchers will notice that
“Kim go eun is the goat”
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Masterpiece
I don’t have many things to say about this drama other than it broke me every timethis drama is told with a creepy tone and high tension level that you can feel it every single moment
I loved everything about this except the brother story.., they could have handled it better than that but still wouldn’t make it a big difference
“Too real that it hurts you”
best Netflix drama until this moment
maybe Netflix damaged the korean drama industry but at least brought us some great stories if you think about it
the only thing I don’t like is that Netflix dramas don’t have the classic endings songs at the end of each episode
you don’t change that,, it should be a blueprints for all k dramas regardless of who the original producer is
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Classic
This is the definition of “Rom-com” this is the pinnacle of Romantic comedyand this is how it is supposed to be done
I know many people downvoting this drama but you know what? I don’t understand them
This drama has everything, comedy, good characters, great chemistry, a little melodrama moments,
a good message of how a poor unemployed man can’t afford to be with a rich woman who is being spoiled all her life
The dynamic between the poor and the rich is common in Asian dramas but this one is done differently somehow
eun hye is the goat man
“never believe the ratings”
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So Realistic Sometimes
one of the best to watch, story, acting, characters, even directingthe atmosphere of this drama makes me feel like watching a jdrama more than a kdrama.., how the direction and cinematography were shots and how the storyline went
I never saw anything similar to it In kdrama
it has a weird pace., sometimes it gets fast paced for a 3 episodes then suddenly it goes quiet and slowly builds up again then starts to pick up
if the drama doesn’t have that pace problem then I would give it 10 no doubt because there’s nothing more to dislike about the drama
the strategy game between the two leads are amazingly realistic.., you either enjoy it or don’t
because it doesn’t have much dramatic elements in it
no drama to escalate the battle
the story goes fine without much drama
but its realism is what makes it interesting and powerful
you rarely see it in a revenge driven drama
“loved it”
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Unique
This drama is the definition of “if you are not into historical drama, it won’t be for you” seriously not jokingbecause it has that unique vibes, than the usual historical drama that people actually can enjoy.., wether the romance or the action one
this drama is based on novel tells a story of a real historical timeline with fictional characters but tries to explain and solve a mystery in korean history on why korea in 1568-1592 was so weak internally and externally
this drama story at 1570- years when the jurchens attacked joseon many times that years
It deals with the internal corruption in a gangsta style which is something unique to historical korean dramas
the only problem with this drama is that it’s so short.., only 9 episodes and it’s only 47 minutes each episode
so if you liked it from the beginning then you will feel disappointed by its short
“loved it”
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Balance
great drama overallit started with a good performance then unexpected twist and became lighter at the end
it has a great music and romantic elements
and a good portrayal of the moral aspects and losing your own soul to the evil
it’s in the middle between high intensity and the realistic approach
it has some intense moments but also many realistic moments .., good balance
good characters with great chemistry
This is choi wan kyu (screenwriter) touch
he doesn’t like his dramas to be overly dramatic and overly realistic
great screenwriter
“watch it”
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“Shine or go crazy” indeed!!!
I will start this review by saying “I am shocked by the results”This historical kdrama is not like any historical kdrama nor does it have the “usual” atmosphere of what makes it a historical kdrama
it’s more similar to a historical “cdrama” to me which is why I find it interesting
then I discovered that the drama is based on a web novel then I knew why it looks similar to these cdramas since the web novel culture dominated by the Chinese writers.
now for the story, it’s about the wang family of goryeo and the aftermath of achieving their dream of uniting Korea under one nation,
here you have the wang geon children battling for the throne, and some political parties that against the wang children
which is their uncle who contributed to the unification and wanted his share of the throne
so it’s a family battlefield.., then you have shin yule who is a merchant from a fallen kingdom “balhae” …, she got involved in this fight of the throne
story wise it’s so interesting and beautiful to witness
the characters all played their roles right and made me both love and hate them
the acting was great by the mains
the music is a top tier.., arguably the best historical drama In music
I loved many historical observations in the drama
like how wang so loves another woman besides his Wife and queen
another one is shin yule and how is she a from a fallen kingdom.., balhae at that time was absorbed completely by goryeo so she’s being in the story as a balhae person not something off from historical standpoint view
the insane chemistry between the triangle Wang so , shin yule , hwangbo is just a chef’s kiss man
the only thing I don’t like is I think it’s short despite being 24 episodes.., I think the drama should’ve been 28-29 episodes but overall the writers did so well
the drama title “shine or go crazy” is the best title I’ve ever seen in any drama
because it represents the heart of the story overall
how the characters interact, fights, survive, love, hate etc
either it will shine or go completely crazy
no middle ground unfortunately and that’s why the story is so bitter
the shift in tone from the first 12 episodes into an emotional poetic one is something I didn’t realize I needed.., kdrama rarely has a poetic tone like cdrama has but this drama did a good job with it
the symbolism, parallels, characters destinies, the irony, and so on
“In love with it”
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sorry
How should I start? Since a long time and I heard about this Nirvana in fire and how “Great” it isI mean the rate itself being 9 out of 12k users says alot 🤷🏻♂️
so I started it .., and suddenly surprised that it was a revenge story disguised in political battles
The worst kind of any revenge stories in my opinion
because that’s will minimize the political weight and its moral impact over the nation
you don’t see a political battle or ideology
you see a man disguising himself just to revenge on his nation
this premise disappointed me
the other thing is the storyline of his revenge story and how it unfolds .., he will keep coming to the weakest to the strongest in order
so the story is already predictable from the start and you just wait and see how each character will die.., this is also what was bugging me so much about it
it reminds of a harem dramas where the main female character going against other females harem to defeat them until she wins
but here it’s a male version
the characters are okay .., the acting was not it sorry.., he gu character without any emotions so I couldn’t emphasize with him
the things I loved in the drama
the mind games between the characters.., it was fun ngl
the ending music
the females characters and their stories
“not that great”
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This review may contain spoilers
Great Journey for a Great Queen
This is not a simple drama.., it’s a journey full of emotionsanger , joy , sadness, satisfaction , tension
Can be your greatest historical drama depends on what you enjoy most.., for me I dont have problem call it my favorite historical drama since it contains all the elements I love in a single drama
great story with a sorrowful tone and them, top tier political thriller and power struggles.., great characters in an upheaval times that understands what they are doing
has one of the greatest villains ever “Misil” and its followers
facing the best character in the whole show “Deokman” we’ve seen her youth until her last breath
tho the drama has dramatic liberties for some characters but that doesn’t change how realistic the drama was
every episode carries emotion with it until you feel sad that you’re going to finish it one day
this kind of feeling tells you how great the drama to you was
my favorite characters :
1- Deokman
2- misil
3- kim yu sin
4- Bidam
there are also many good characters like misaeng , munno , chun chu and his mother
seolwan and all misil children , jukbang and all the hwarang
literally all the characters
if you love politics and wars with a touch of melodrama then this is it
“the best”
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Deep And Complex
This is probably my favorite modern drama ever.. as you can see all take the 10s rate for meI tried to find something I didn’t like but just couldn’t.., it’s purely well-done and written drama from the story, characters, writing, lore, direction and so on
I was entertained from the start to finish, not a single drop of boredom
I loved the characters and how complex they are and how the writer was trying to relay a message through the characters hardship in a emotional way
this is not a makjang drama to me .., I have seen people call it makjang or light makjang but I refuse this statement
it’s a complex story written in a witty style with a very good characters that understands their worth in the world
I thought the direction the drama would take was 1V1 female rivalry like all the makjang stories but i was completely shocked by the results and fall in love with it
“the best”
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Best Romantic-action Xianxia ever?
The best xianixa in a long time.., This drama delivered in all its aspects from Romance, action, politics, plot twists, fights and even musicThe acting is so refreshing especially The leads
ming Yi and Ji bozai are the best couple in 2025 Cdramas without a single doubt
it’s a great show that makes you want to watch the next episode every time
I honestly don’t have any negative things about it
perfect score for me
“entering my top list”
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War
This drama will hook you up with its intense War of money and chaebol successionthe drama started with a weird flow of storytelling.., you almost feel there’s inconsistency in between events
especially the first 5-6 episodes
then it started to pick up..,
i am not exaggerating this drama can be your favorite drama ever or your worst ever
you know why? because the screenwriter “park kyung so” is a master of toying with one’s emotions
he will make you nervous, excited, angry and all emotions throughout the story
he’s good at writing morally ambiguous characters especially the leads
and all the three main leads are so good that you will cheer on them all for winning the Battle
I sided with the male lead at first (Go so) then at the end wanted the female lead to win so bad
the ending is controversial but I loved it
“so intense”
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enjoyable
I have a love/hate relationship with this drama but in a good way.., I don’t hate it because it’s bad or something.., but because it started so intimidating politically so I thought we are ahead with a great political dramathen boom the surprise, everything changed by episode 5-6 when Xu feng(protagonist) started his “journey to cultivate” where he will become a better version of himself and challenges the upheaval world
so the shift in tone from politics to journey caught me off guard
still didn’t change how entertaining the show was from the beginning until the end
I love the world and the characters so much
like literally all the characters are insanely good and lovable ,, how they interact, help love,hate each other was so good
the show has politics(tho little) , schemes and mind games, fighting scenes (so good) , power shifting and betrayal etc
it’s just unique, I haven’t watched something like it
and if anyone thinks it’s similar to joy of life then sorry you clearly haven’t watched both of them and don’t understand the difference between them
because they are not similar at all except for some characters and how they interact
both have that “witty” style
Anyway I am in love with “jiang ni” , she’s my favorite
way better than “lin wan” of joy of life
“waiting for season 2”
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No more injustices
Unbelievable truly unbelievable, what a great story and well written piece of work from the beginning to the middle until the endthis drama is almost like a novel or a narration of stories
it deals with different timelines of one big story that begins in 2006 and finishes at 2023
the villain is one of the best villains in kdrama history…, he’s the center and the hero who started everything then goes down the hill and slowly falling apart
the detective and the reporter dynamic and chemistry is just so good ..,
Watch it without hesitation
“underrated man”
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absolute entertainment
The most underrated family drama ever, and my favorite family drama in the 30-39 episodesI was hooked from the beginning and couldn’t stop watching it
they were at episode 8 and i caught up in two days and finished it weekly
it’s not your daily “family drama” that has shock value like a mother against her daughter or secret birth or these melodramatic elements
its purely realistic with an engaging storyline and plot and all the characters played their so well
don’t get me started with the main couple, because they are still my favorite couple in the history of asians dramas
their slow burn was burning me weeks by weeks until they left me satisfied
the money plot and the reality of it was relatable which is what made it painfully realistic..,
the theme of the drama is what makes it so good because in the surface it’s a witty, funny everyday story but in hidden they play with their lives and can cost them everything at any point
that creates a sense of tension throughout the story.
“The best”
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