This review may contain spoilers
A Great Cast Doesn’t Translate to a Good Drama
I decided to watch Lovers of the Red Sky because it stars Kim Yoo-jung, Ahn Hyo-seop, and Gong Myung. Having such high hopes for this good lineup, I was ultimately left disappointed. While the drama isn't entirely bad, it certainly isn’t great either.
The Story: We meet Hong Cheon-gi (Kim Yoo-jung), a blind girl whose dad is a famous painter, and Ha Ram (Ahn Hyo-seop), a boy who has the "gift of water." In the first two episodes, a massive supernatural event happens, during which Cheon-gi gets her sight back and Ha Ram loses his. They get separated and don't meet again until they're adults. By then, Cheon-gi is a brilliant painter and Ha Ram is a blind royal astrologer who can read the stars. They then become entangled, and a love story starts. It gets complicated by different factors, including when Grand Prince Yangmyeong also takes an interest in Hong Cheon-gi.
Too Slow and Too Chaotic.
The biggest issue is that the story never actually hooks you. The pacing is incredibly slow, and honestly, some parts are just plain boring. I found myself skipping through a lot of it. Take the whole painting contest in episodes 5 and 6—I get that Cheon-gi winning was important for the plot, but did it really need that much screen time?
The plot picks up slightly in the middle, but it still fails to maintain momentum. I am usually a classic binge-watcher, so the fact that I had to take a prolonged break from this series speaks volumes.
Instead of focusing on a solid, well-paced conflict, the writers chose a chaotic need for twists: the evil spirit requires a magic ring to be contained, the ring then has to be broken, the restoration suddenly requires two divine painters instead of one, and they even throw in a Hwacha (a green-eyed goblin).
Flat Main Characters
Ahn Hyo-seop’s performance here doesn't compare to his work in other dramas. I’ve seen him thrive in Dr. Romantic 2 and Abyss, as well as his subsequent hits like Business Proposal and K-pop Demon Hunters. His acting in those roles was far superior. Perhaps the role of Ha Ram was too restrictive for his talent, as playing a reserved, blind character who must constantly mask his intentions is no easy feat. He is supposed to be driven by a deep desire for revenge for the past slaughter of his family, but I just didn't feel that burning hatred or drive from him at all.
Plus, his character's logic makes zero sense. He lives a double life as Ilwolseong, an elite information broker who is supposed to know everything. Yet, despite having 20 years to look into the tragedy of his childhood, he somehow never found out that the king's portrait burned, that an evil spirit got loose, or that his own dad had a ring to control it. How did an omniscient information broker miss that?
The show also breaks its own rules by the end. We're told they can't touch because it triggers the evil spirit. But right at the end—when he's supposed to be losing control of the spirit—he holds her hand perfectly fine to give her the ring. Then, literally five minutes later, the spirit randomly flies out just because he's stroking her hair.
Kim Yoo-jung is also underutilized here. She was amazing in My Demon and Dear X, so we know she can act, but her script here was just weird. She says "Is that true?" a ridiculous number of times. Her character also suffers from emotional whiplash; one minute she’s incredibly bold, and the next she’s acting like a shameful, apologetic little lamb when things go wrong. She goes from fiercely determined to crying in deep despair at the drop of a hat.
Lack of Chemistry
Having witnessed Kim Yoo-jung's electric chemistry with Song Kang in My Demon, her dynamic with Ahn Hyo-seop feels incredibly limited and flat. Furthermore, Ahn Hyo-seop had much better chemistry with his co-star in Business Proposal than he does in this drama.
The Supporting Cast
Gong Myung plays Grand Prince Yangmyeong, who starts off as a free-spirited, gentle prince. I'm actually watching his new 2026 drama Filing for Love right now, and he is so much better in that. In this role, however, he felt totally unimpressive and had the most meaningless lines. It got even worse when he started liking Cheon-gi; he turned into an annoying, possessive guy who treated her like a prize to be won.
As for the villains, I ended up skipping almost all of their scenes. They didn't bring anything to the plot other than constantly repeating, "I want the evil spirit for myself." The evil Royal Shaman, in particular, annoyed me from day one.
The Saving Graces
The true highlights of the drama belong to the minor supporting cast. Jo Ye-rin, who played the Tiger Goddess (Ho Ryeong), and Cheon-gi’s two best friends (played by Hong Jin-ki and Hong Kyung) gave highly convincing, good performances.
The absolute cutest part of the entire show is the final episode, seeing the main leads genuinely happy while interacting with their on-screen children. They looked so natural that I'm guessing both actors just really love kids in real life. It was a sweet note to end on, but definitely not enough to save a messy, chaotic script!
The Story: We meet Hong Cheon-gi (Kim Yoo-jung), a blind girl whose dad is a famous painter, and Ha Ram (Ahn Hyo-seop), a boy who has the "gift of water." In the first two episodes, a massive supernatural event happens, during which Cheon-gi gets her sight back and Ha Ram loses his. They get separated and don't meet again until they're adults. By then, Cheon-gi is a brilliant painter and Ha Ram is a blind royal astrologer who can read the stars. They then become entangled, and a love story starts. It gets complicated by different factors, including when Grand Prince Yangmyeong also takes an interest in Hong Cheon-gi.
Too Slow and Too Chaotic.
The biggest issue is that the story never actually hooks you. The pacing is incredibly slow, and honestly, some parts are just plain boring. I found myself skipping through a lot of it. Take the whole painting contest in episodes 5 and 6—I get that Cheon-gi winning was important for the plot, but did it really need that much screen time?
The plot picks up slightly in the middle, but it still fails to maintain momentum. I am usually a classic binge-watcher, so the fact that I had to take a prolonged break from this series speaks volumes.
Instead of focusing on a solid, well-paced conflict, the writers chose a chaotic need for twists: the evil spirit requires a magic ring to be contained, the ring then has to be broken, the restoration suddenly requires two divine painters instead of one, and they even throw in a Hwacha (a green-eyed goblin).
Flat Main Characters
Ahn Hyo-seop’s performance here doesn't compare to his work in other dramas. I’ve seen him thrive in Dr. Romantic 2 and Abyss, as well as his subsequent hits like Business Proposal and K-pop Demon Hunters. His acting in those roles was far superior. Perhaps the role of Ha Ram was too restrictive for his talent, as playing a reserved, blind character who must constantly mask his intentions is no easy feat. He is supposed to be driven by a deep desire for revenge for the past slaughter of his family, but I just didn't feel that burning hatred or drive from him at all.
Plus, his character's logic makes zero sense. He lives a double life as Ilwolseong, an elite information broker who is supposed to know everything. Yet, despite having 20 years to look into the tragedy of his childhood, he somehow never found out that the king's portrait burned, that an evil spirit got loose, or that his own dad had a ring to control it. How did an omniscient information broker miss that?
The show also breaks its own rules by the end. We're told they can't touch because it triggers the evil spirit. But right at the end—when he's supposed to be losing control of the spirit—he holds her hand perfectly fine to give her the ring. Then, literally five minutes later, the spirit randomly flies out just because he's stroking her hair.
Kim Yoo-jung is also underutilized here. She was amazing in My Demon and Dear X, so we know she can act, but her script here was just weird. She says "Is that true?" a ridiculous number of times. Her character also suffers from emotional whiplash; one minute she’s incredibly bold, and the next she’s acting like a shameful, apologetic little lamb when things go wrong. She goes from fiercely determined to crying in deep despair at the drop of a hat.
Lack of Chemistry
Having witnessed Kim Yoo-jung's electric chemistry with Song Kang in My Demon, her dynamic with Ahn Hyo-seop feels incredibly limited and flat. Furthermore, Ahn Hyo-seop had much better chemistry with his co-star in Business Proposal than he does in this drama.
The Supporting Cast
Gong Myung plays Grand Prince Yangmyeong, who starts off as a free-spirited, gentle prince. I'm actually watching his new 2026 drama Filing for Love right now, and he is so much better in that. In this role, however, he felt totally unimpressive and had the most meaningless lines. It got even worse when he started liking Cheon-gi; he turned into an annoying, possessive guy who treated her like a prize to be won.
As for the villains, I ended up skipping almost all of their scenes. They didn't bring anything to the plot other than constantly repeating, "I want the evil spirit for myself." The evil Royal Shaman, in particular, annoyed me from day one.
The Saving Graces
The true highlights of the drama belong to the minor supporting cast. Jo Ye-rin, who played the Tiger Goddess (Ho Ryeong), and Cheon-gi’s two best friends (played by Hong Jin-ki and Hong Kyung) gave highly convincing, good performances.
The absolute cutest part of the entire show is the final episode, seeing the main leads genuinely happy while interacting with their on-screen children. They looked so natural that I'm guessing both actors just really love kids in real life. It was a sweet note to end on, but definitely not enough to save a messy, chaotic script!
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