Deserves so much more love!!
I started this drama because of the good ratings here in mdl and boy they were right!Tbh the very first episode didn't give me much hope about the future, but I continued watching, without much expectations. And it turned out to be one of my all time favourites.
There is much that could go wrong with this story but they have managed to pull it off amazingly exceeding all my expectations. Here's my humble review on this drama and as it's my very first, please excuse the mistakes.
Story -It may seem like you understood the whole past story at first but the writing presents us with believable plot twists one at a time, at the right times and keeps you interested till the end. The end is on where all the personalities, childhood traumas, secrets and grudges held by characters start to make perfect sense. So the story is well paced and will keep you interested till the very end. And the characters are also very well written and believable according to their circumstances, Specially our tortured but kind hearted Mr.Cha Do Hyun and all his personalities (Shin Se Ki is my personal favorite) You will rarely come across a complex protagonist like him.
Acting -It's my first time seeing Ji Sung's work and I'm already a fan😍 His portrayal of 7 different individuals, ranging from an ahjussi to a teen girl, is top notch. Our FL too must be appreciated as I came to love her quirky but smart nature and I rarely like these type of FLs in kdrama😅 All other members of the cast are also well suited for their characters and have done an amazing job.
Music- This has one of the most beautiful and heart touching osts I have ever come across. The theme song Auditory hallucinations really enhances the theme and all the emotions in this drama. The contrast of the male singer's rap and females singer's ballad is beautiful! And as someone in yt comments has said the rap kills and the ballad heals💖 It will surely bring tears to your eyes more than once, with the way it is used throughout the drama.
Rewatch value -I am not usually one to rewatch a whole drama so my rewatch values can be comparatively low. Instead I would watch the osts or some scenes that I specially enjoyed, but this drama is one I would definitely rewatch if I had time (but sadly I don't😢) It is the kind of drama you can enjoy over and over, from time to time.
Overall - Totally recommended!!!
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Endearing watch that could've been better
Firstly I will give you a little insight to the political situation in the movie's premise, as it might be difficult to understand for someone who has not heard this story before.The King's warden is set in a tumultuous period of Joseon's history, where our titular king,Yi Hong-wi had already been forced to abdicate the throne by his uncle, Grand Prince Suyang. And after the attempted coup by the 6 ministers whom we see being punished in the beginning, the deposed Hong wi is sent away from the palace into exile at a remote village. And as I came to learn, the rest of the story, except some facts about Um Heung Do (village chief) is fictional or based on folklore.
The strongest point of this movie was the acting. Almost all the characters here are somewhat stereotypical, serving as a means but are likeable nonetheless. As someone who was already an admirer of Park Ji Hoon after Weak hero class 1, his acting was phenomenal as usual. The way his eyes transform from utter despair and emptiness in the beginning into quite strength and ambition like a tiger's afterwards. And also the village chief, though a somewhat stereotypical character still managed to make him endearing through the acting. Lee Jae Hoon was stunning and a delight to watch as Prince Geum Seong.
The only characters with some character development were the king and the warden/ village chief, whereas it seemed like a missed opportunity for the characters of the devoted court lady and village chief's son.
The music was alright I guess, but there was nothing memorable about it. It feels like this movie could have benefitted from a better soundtrack and cinematography. But it won't bother you very much while watching it as it is carried successfully by the actors. In the end, I have no regrets about watching this and it made my heart ache for king Danjeong.
The King's warden has it's heart in the right place and succeeds in being a heartfelt watch.
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