Historical life of Iljimae
What starts off as an exciting scene in modern Seoul turns into a historical drama and draws you into this unique story. You spend the entire drama waiting for it to switch back to modern times but it doesn’t, until the last minute of the final episode. I felt tricked into watching something that wasn’t there. The story flows well but the plot is a mixture of eternal loneliness and a macabre tragedy. The characters, some of them strange, are the real makeup of this drama. Some of them are annoying. The beggar who found Iljimae as a baby and claims to have raised him got on my nerves midway through the drama. All he did was whine and complain. He overacted but I think it was supposed to be funny, it fell short. The sideways man was amusing at first but his little squeal soon became fingernails across a chalk board. At times he sounded like Chewbacca from Star Wars.The lieutenant who fell in love, at first sight with Iljimae’s mother, was a main character that spent the entire drama in a state of morose. He was ultimately responsible for getting Dal executed, although the story kind of left that part out. Something about his character never quite rang well with me. Maybe it was his constant state of depression.
Iljimae, played by Jung Il Woo, was a good fit for the part. However, his character was just not quite the big hero they tried to make him out to be. Although he seemed to be on the side of good, he treated every woman around him with distain. Even Wol Hee, his final girlfriend he treated like a piece of furniture. Why she waited for him I will never understand. It didn’t feel like love, ever.
Iljimae’s mother was a breath of fresh air throughout the entire drama. Jung Hye Young was beautiful as Baek Mae and was the foundation of the entire drama in my opinion.
Yoon Jin Seo was great in her portrayal of Wol Hee. She was charming and giving and strong when she had to be. Her loyalty and dedication to Iljimae was beyond amazing. I didn’t feel a lot of chemistry between them because he never stayed around long enough to form any real kind of relationship. She waited nine years for him the final time. Who does that? Maybe as a single mother in historical times there are few options. Instead of feeling sweet and heart wrenching the long awaited for meeting felt awkward.
The drama kept me watching because it had a lot of exciting parts. Sadly romance wasn’t one of them.
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Unique lawyer drama with a slow burning romance
If you like lawyer dramas with some unique court scenes then you will love this one. The acting is fantastic. Yoon Shi Yoon did a great job with a dual role, playing both sides of a set of twins. Lee Yoo Young really surprised me with her portrayal of the law trainee. I’ve only seen her in one other drama and I liked her in both. The slow burning romance between the FL and ML kept you in anticipation and exploded with the first kiss in episode 22.The side story of the missing sister was heart wrenching and emotional. All the characters were well developed making every episode interesting. The OST was fantastic and I was immersed in this drama the entire time. Only good dramas can hold you like this. Try it, you’ll like it.
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Action and Swordplay
If you’re looking for a great action drama with a lot of realistic swordplay, then look no further. This drama had it all. There were even some “Kill Bill” moments, if that’s what you like. The story was captivating and the acting was top notch. It had English dubbing with Netflix quality but I found myself listening to it in original Korean and reading the subscripts. I like it that way. I feel more submersed in the story. Sadly it didn’t have any romance but I can forgive that small shortcoming because I loved the movie.Was this review helpful to you?
Relationship Heaven
I was a fan of Season 1, but this season was head and shoulders above that. It was interesting and fun to watch with raw emotions on display. The women were beautiful and the guys were handsome making for interesting matchups. One woman did draw a lot of attention, like last season, which made for a very exciting and emotional ending. Strangely enough one of the women got very little attention which surprised me since she was beautiful and one of the nicest women there. In a sense that’s what made this season so interesting. You just never know what makes feelings grow in a person or who will be attracted to who.I really like the format but it lacked the visual satisfaction of seeing an individual relationship grow. Every conversation and activity was G rated with feelings held in check until the end. But overall it was interesting and worth the time.
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Love or Friendship?
You can read my profile and know that I would like this reality series. It was all about finding romance and how to win the affection of the person you like. The time line was a little short to get to know each other and make a decision on how you feel about a person. However, I thought the concept of choosing who you liked and who you wanted to go to Paradise was unique and interesting. In the end it worked, sort of.As you watch you immediately find yourself picking who you like. I did that but changed my mind during the 8 days on the island. Other than seeing them eat and talk a little bit, we didn’t see much of them in Paradise so it was definitely G-rated. The only kiss in 8 days was a tiny peck on a cheek. So, it leaves you a little confused but you do see relationship form. How long they will last who knows. Maybe we’ll find out in Season 2.
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A life story
First let me say I hate school bullying stories. With that being said, I was somewhat surprised by this one. If you take the time to immerse yourself into the two main characters, you will find a complicated story of love, betrayal and vengeance. The story is really about Jae I and her life. The side stories and even the influence of Kang Ha only help define her story. I found her life poignant and painfully sad. A controlling father, a narcissistic sometimes brutal boyfriend, and a school broken by all moral standards are enough to alter the path of any normal young person. Her tenacity to survive this onslaught of emotions is a tribute her strong character. While I could have written a different ending, I wasn’t disappointed in the one I watched. I think Roh Jeong Eui did an excellent job portraying Jae I.Was this review helpful to you?
