Celebrity 
This review may contain spoilers
Great acting - Disappointing plot
My favorite k-drama genre is historical, and I typically am super drawn and invested while watching a historical k-drama, but this was probably one of my least favorite and most disappointing historical k-dramas to date.
Main reason: The plot -> The reasons behind decisions and character motivations were very unclear. I know that the actors themselves said that a lot of things were open to interpretation from the viewers but this was too much and made things not make sense and therefore, it also made the viewers not really invested in what happens to these characters. I found myself bored, confused, and not that invested throughout most of the show.
Spoilers below:
- #1: The foundation of the story is the bet, but their bet was very stupid (or it was very poorly explained). The bet was either (1) you win the widow's chastity and then you get to sleep with me or (2) I win and you impregnate my husband's consort because I want to raise your baby. Given the fact that they loved each other, this "smart" woman could've easily said hey I love you, can you please impregnate this consort for me, and then you get to sleep with me too – a win/win for both of us. The bet was illogical and so unnecessary.
- #2: I wish they explained the mourning situation for widows a bit better. What is typical of widows during that period? How long is a typical mourning? Is the widow supposed to kill herself or is it preferred if she does? What happens to the widow if she doesn't kill herself? What are their options for the future? It wasn't made clear so it added to feeling confused about what this poor girl's options for the future are.
- #3: Episode 8 - the final episode was a BIG disappointment. If our ML abandoned the FL and her manipulative love for the widow's pure love, that would've been real character growth and a beautiful arc. But the ending was disappointing all around. I found both the ML and FL's motivations unclear and confusing. The king finding out the ML lied because of the rain was also very stupid since the ML was in the city helping the widow escape that day so he 100% knew the weather so it made no sense for him to get the weather of that day wrong. Idk if the writers even read the script properly themselves to see this big plot hole. They really should've done some audience testing.
Anyways, the only good thing at the end was that the widow survived and lived on. I still didn't like the fact that the one maid she had, somehow joined the underground church that she was at (what are the chances of that?). They could've at least given us one satisfying ending showing that the widow got settled and found some sort of freedom and peace at the underground church. I guess I also liked the FL's ending of losing her love because of her own manipulations and games, and the ML's death was somewhat deserving given his playing/toying with the widow but I wish he had grown from that and lived to correct his mistakes rather than simply dying.
Great cast, great acting, and great visuals, but the story fell flat.
By the end, I was just disappointed by the story, and a little relieved that at least it was done.
Main reason: The plot -> The reasons behind decisions and character motivations were very unclear. I know that the actors themselves said that a lot of things were open to interpretation from the viewers but this was too much and made things not make sense and therefore, it also made the viewers not really invested in what happens to these characters. I found myself bored, confused, and not that invested throughout most of the show.
Spoilers below:
- #1: The foundation of the story is the bet, but their bet was very stupid (or it was very poorly explained). The bet was either (1) you win the widow's chastity and then you get to sleep with me or (2) I win and you impregnate my husband's consort because I want to raise your baby. Given the fact that they loved each other, this "smart" woman could've easily said hey I love you, can you please impregnate this consort for me, and then you get to sleep with me too – a win/win for both of us. The bet was illogical and so unnecessary.
- #2: I wish they explained the mourning situation for widows a bit better. What is typical of widows during that period? How long is a typical mourning? Is the widow supposed to kill herself or is it preferred if she does? What happens to the widow if she doesn't kill herself? What are their options for the future? It wasn't made clear so it added to feeling confused about what this poor girl's options for the future are.
- #3: Episode 8 - the final episode was a BIG disappointment. If our ML abandoned the FL and her manipulative love for the widow's pure love, that would've been real character growth and a beautiful arc. But the ending was disappointing all around. I found both the ML and FL's motivations unclear and confusing. The king finding out the ML lied because of the rain was also very stupid since the ML was in the city helping the widow escape that day so he 100% knew the weather so it made no sense for him to get the weather of that day wrong. Idk if the writers even read the script properly themselves to see this big plot hole. They really should've done some audience testing.
Anyways, the only good thing at the end was that the widow survived and lived on. I still didn't like the fact that the one maid she had, somehow joined the underground church that she was at (what are the chances of that?). They could've at least given us one satisfying ending showing that the widow got settled and found some sort of freedom and peace at the underground church. I guess I also liked the FL's ending of losing her love because of her own manipulations and games, and the ML's death was somewhat deserving given his playing/toying with the widow but I wish he had grown from that and lived to correct his mistakes rather than simply dying.
Great cast, great acting, and great visuals, but the story fell flat.
By the end, I was just disappointed by the story, and a little relieved that at least it was done.
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