This review may contain spoilers
Ending :not satisfying enough
SO firstly : if you like, want, need a traditional happy ending that's straight forward & doesn't confuse you & make you have to use your imagination to get to that happy place, then PASS on this drama!
Sadly, I did not take the the disgruntled & tepid reactions of some other reviewers to the ending seriously !!!!
The end is confusing :
Even by super imposing my own speculations on what actually happens- it didn't work, and it most definitely wasn't enough payoff for the viewer as the end of the romantic, emotional roller coaster this drama puts us on.
*Will put spoiler at very end in case you need convincing.
If you decide to proceed to watch this drama-Keep these 2 sentences in your head :
Do keep in mind that the female lead does most emphatically say that she wants someone nice (so be honest, IS the prince "nice" ?)
Also: the prince is quite taken with the intelligence & wit of his princess's younger sister (so be honest, IS the lead female intelligent & witty ?)
On to the review:
This drama struck me as Very similar to the drama :"Queen & I " which also came out in 2012 !! (BTW : For the most warm fuzzys in that drama :stop watching at the end of ep.14)
Rooftop Prince is much sillier in tone and has a MUCH less satisfying ending than Queen & I.
Speaking of silly :
They went really cheap on the Wigs .The long hair wigs on the guys are SO glossy & also So obviously wigs that you want to cringe when you see that other dramas done around the same time had more realistic ones.
All the sudden the Josen guys can drive cars(where did they even get an ID ??
Things not done well :
Tourism pitch for sight seeing was pretty obvious.
Classic trope : multiple break up/ get back together again (must take into consideration that this WAS released at the peak time of this trope's introduction)
Do the leads have Chemistry ?
Well: they fight like siblings. The female lead is at turns effervescent & vibrant. The male lead is a scene stealer & sells the whole "I am a prince" bit with his voice & mannerisms. (plus he emotes impressively).
But DO they have romantic Chemistry ? They try. The writers, director, cameramen, however have not done a great job for them to make it completely work though.
Take for instance, the kisses:
They are a fail. SO underwhelming & awkward. Can we blame it on a bad director/bad cameraman? I would. They have Him kissing her chin, pursing his lips in a stage kiss & then just a lip press. Nothing of any heat ,(not even later where they are actually able to finally get the lip location right, & are trying to "go at it". -there's just no warm fuzzys.
I
The lead's relationship: Considering what ending we are given-they take thier relationship too far.
The drama should have been 16 episodes & they should have kept the couple at yearning to be a couple but never becoming one.
Side complaint : When they started out in Joseon, it was somewhat believable (set wise) .When the drama returns to Joseon, it is obvious that it is just local places in modern Korea- the lighting, the colors, the location, it was like a re-enactment & looks fake.
***********Spoilers**********
The prince does not actually seem all that upset once he's back in Joseon !
Thankfully they do not consummate thier relationship, but I still say that they took it too far because in the end you have the male lead seemingly stuck in the past with his beloved dead & his wife in exile. There is no indication that he will die & be whisked into the future or that there is any other resolution /portal open to him.
The female lead is presented with what Looks like a substitute for her prince husband in the form of the newly revived CEO that was in a coma but even though he is not wearing his signature glasses, he's left a portrait drawing on a postcard, asking her to meet him. (but come on ! Why did he confidently smile at her even though she ignores him if he does not know her any better than he did when he saw her in the U.S. ?!)
when they do meet up, he suddenly changes appearances: from modernly dressed CEO to robed Joseon prince.
WHAT is that supposed to mean ? we are left to self interpret the short cryptic dialogue as they meet.
SO : in the last shot he looks like the prince
But : since we have never known the prince to draw-who drew the picture on the postcard ?
Can you have 2 souls in one body !? Sorry, that just doesn't work for me.
{the test would be for him eat crabs } !
_______________________________________________________
What other reviewers said that should have been the cue for me to pass on this drama
"bittersweet" / "sort of" happy ending, rather than a traditional happy one. While the main couple does end up together, it's with the understanding that the Crown Prince character is gone, replaced by his reincarnated modern-day self, Tae Yong.
doesn't that make her cheating on her new husband & also short changing Tae Yong as she is just using him as a substitute (though of course you assume he will eventually win her over, being the reincarnation & all)
Me : rolling eyes
Sadly, I did not take the the disgruntled & tepid reactions of some other reviewers to the ending seriously !!!!
The end is confusing :
Even by super imposing my own speculations on what actually happens- it didn't work, and it most definitely wasn't enough payoff for the viewer as the end of the romantic, emotional roller coaster this drama puts us on.
*Will put spoiler at very end in case you need convincing.
If you decide to proceed to watch this drama-Keep these 2 sentences in your head :
Do keep in mind that the female lead does most emphatically say that she wants someone nice (so be honest, IS the prince "nice" ?)
Also: the prince is quite taken with the intelligence & wit of his princess's younger sister (so be honest, IS the lead female intelligent & witty ?)
On to the review:
This drama struck me as Very similar to the drama :"Queen & I " which also came out in 2012 !! (BTW : For the most warm fuzzys in that drama :stop watching at the end of ep.14)
Rooftop Prince is much sillier in tone and has a MUCH less satisfying ending than Queen & I.
Speaking of silly :
They went really cheap on the Wigs .The long hair wigs on the guys are SO glossy & also So obviously wigs that you want to cringe when you see that other dramas done around the same time had more realistic ones.
All the sudden the Josen guys can drive cars(where did they even get an ID ??
Things not done well :
Tourism pitch for sight seeing was pretty obvious.
Classic trope : multiple break up/ get back together again (must take into consideration that this WAS released at the peak time of this trope's introduction)
Do the leads have Chemistry ?
Well: they fight like siblings. The female lead is at turns effervescent & vibrant. The male lead is a scene stealer & sells the whole "I am a prince" bit with his voice & mannerisms. (plus he emotes impressively).
But DO they have romantic Chemistry ? They try. The writers, director, cameramen, however have not done a great job for them to make it completely work though.
Take for instance, the kisses:
They are a fail. SO underwhelming & awkward. Can we blame it on a bad director/bad cameraman? I would. They have Him kissing her chin, pursing his lips in a stage kiss & then just a lip press. Nothing of any heat ,(not even later where they are actually able to finally get the lip location right, & are trying to "go at it". -there's just no warm fuzzys.
I
The lead's relationship: Considering what ending we are given-they take thier relationship too far.
The drama should have been 16 episodes & they should have kept the couple at yearning to be a couple but never becoming one.
Side complaint : When they started out in Joseon, it was somewhat believable (set wise) .When the drama returns to Joseon, it is obvious that it is just local places in modern Korea- the lighting, the colors, the location, it was like a re-enactment & looks fake.
***********Spoilers**********
The prince does not actually seem all that upset once he's back in Joseon !
Thankfully they do not consummate thier relationship, but I still say that they took it too far because in the end you have the male lead seemingly stuck in the past with his beloved dead & his wife in exile. There is no indication that he will die & be whisked into the future or that there is any other resolution /portal open to him.
The female lead is presented with what Looks like a substitute for her prince husband in the form of the newly revived CEO that was in a coma but even though he is not wearing his signature glasses, he's left a portrait drawing on a postcard, asking her to meet him. (but come on ! Why did he confidently smile at her even though she ignores him if he does not know her any better than he did when he saw her in the U.S. ?!)
when they do meet up, he suddenly changes appearances: from modernly dressed CEO to robed Joseon prince.
WHAT is that supposed to mean ? we are left to self interpret the short cryptic dialogue as they meet.
SO : in the last shot he looks like the prince
But : since we have never known the prince to draw-who drew the picture on the postcard ?
Can you have 2 souls in one body !? Sorry, that just doesn't work for me.
{the test would be for him eat crabs } !
_______________________________________________________
What other reviewers said that should have been the cue for me to pass on this drama
"bittersweet" / "sort of" happy ending, rather than a traditional happy one. While the main couple does end up together, it's with the understanding that the Crown Prince character is gone, replaced by his reincarnated modern-day self, Tae Yong.
doesn't that make her cheating on her new husband & also short changing Tae Yong as she is just using him as a substitute (though of course you assume he will eventually win her over, being the reincarnation & all)
Me : rolling eyes
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