Joyce_Tyler

The Great Queen Seondeok (for which she won a Baeksang award even though she was the anti-heroine & not the title character); Sandglass (which blew my mind); Spring Days (not great but addictive); and Daemul (a.k.a. Big Things - for which she won another Baeksang award).

Have you read anything about the director of this drama? https://kisskh.at/people/29883-byun-young-joo

I mean an epic shocker. A Hitchcock shocker. One that would show our queen from three separate camera angles cackling maniacally for the final ten seconds of the show. (I know the project you're referring to. "Return?" I watched it and kept wondering what changes were made that caused her to react in a way that could've cost her lots of money and legal problems. I actually thought she'd be blacklisted after that or, at the very least, that SBS would never hire again. And yet, here she is, starring in an SBS drama. Ha!)

Are we being set up for an ep. 8 shocker?

Exactly.

You're reacting the way the creative team wanted you to react.

The director of this show would not have accepted the job if trans people are villainized in it. Believe it.

Closed- or narrow-minded or just plain prejudiced people will always long for the days when dramas didn't dare "go there." Thank goodness creative artists don't listen to them and the SK government doesn't censor k-drama content.

Thanks for your comment. I think the director, with Go's help, is sending the message that gender issues should NOT be a taboo topic; that allowing a patriarchal mindset to prevail rather than prosecuting the guilty is wrong and can lead to antisocial behavior on the part of the victims. K-dramas have begun to address SK's societal issues more strongly, and imo that's a good thing.

I had to buy her earliest ones on ebay! She has a huge fan in Hawaii who sold spare copies of her earliest ones in his Go collection to me and made them affordable. They are fantastic, single-genre dramas.

She's attracting many new fans as a result of Queen Mantis. I hope they also make an effort to see her earlier work.

Yes, she has quite a personal history. Her marriage and subsequent divorce are right out of a k-drama.

She also does amazing work in Reflection of You, Dear My Friends, The Queen's Classroom, Queen Seon-deok, and Sandglass. She's the queen of complex characters.

She is fearless.

Both odd and very annoying. Perhaps when the drama ends those who are willing to take the time to write a serious review will raise the rating to where it belongs.

Actually, in her other dramas, her younger male co-stars always raise their performance level and credit her for it.

I suspect the director has a lot to do with the casting of Go Hyun-jung.

For sure.

Korea Times Review (in English) at www.instagram.com/p/DOYTkpVgf00/

She seems to be the go-to actress to play these meaty roles. (No pun intended.) I first checked her out when Jang Nara expressed great admiration for her in an interview. Since then, I've managed to find DVDs of even her earliest roles. No, I won't watch Mantis until all 8 eps are available, but I've seen enough clips on YouTube to know that all of the talking to herself that she does between camera setups is in aid of producing that magnificent performance.