So far I'm intrigued and it isn't just because I'm a fan of Jang Hyuk and Kang Ha-na. What surprises me is how central the romance is to this story. I wasn't expecting that. Even the power plays are centred around who should be queen here and the suitability of various women in the story. That is actually a key part of what's driving the plot but in a far darker much more ruthless way than a lighter weight story like The Red Sleeve. This show actually has real stakes for everyone concerned.
What's also really interesting is the antagonist Park Gye-won -- who isn't as villainous as I had imagined. (I should have more confidence in Jang Hyuk who almost never picks cookie cutter roles) He is undoubtedly a king maker but one who believes that he has a righteous cause. In some ways it is a matter of perspective. Of course it makes sense that our sympathies are primarily with Lee Tae but Park Gye-won, the left minister represents a viewpoint about the office of the king. He evidently objects to the notion of the king as despot but as a figure who is subject to the oversight of the royal court. I think he feels it is his job to keep whoever is king on their toes. On the other hand, it seems to me too that Park Gye-won has got the blinders on. By accumulating that much power and trying to control who becomes the next queen, he is perhaps becoming something of the monster that he fears will emerge from the throne.
I am also enjoying Lee Joon's performance as Lee Tae. He genuinely has that ability to convey the duality of what the king must be to regain the power that's been taken from his family. He can be sweet and he certainly has no compunction being ruthless when he needs to. He also has a vocal delivery of a Shakespearean actor which is always a plus. The pairing of Kang Ha-na and Lee Joon is a casting coup. And really, it's almost criminal that it's taken this long for Kang Ha-na to be the lead female.
So... it is possible for C dramas to do good resolutions... So why don't they do it more often? Fan service the heck out of the happily-ever-after? Loved the last four episodes. The speeches were so heartfelt.
Dang there's something in my eye. Must be the onions.
After that ending we definitely need another season. While I prefer Ryan's styling in this, I missed the icy, ruthless Jing Qing of the first season. Regardless, the leads are good. Lots of nice fan servicing.
It's always great watching C dramas on Netflix. The quality of the video does enhance the viewing experience. Just started on this (5 episodes) and am enjoying this drama so far. Love the pacing and storytelling especially.
This is NOT a rom-com guys. Don't get fooled from the 1rst episode. It involves a lot of palace politics , betrayals,…
I beg to differ. This is 95% a rom com. Everything that happens in this show is in service of the romance. The plotting and scheming in this show is about giving the leads hoops to jump through and obstacles to happiness.
This is not necessarily a net negative but I don't think we should give viewers the wrong idea that this is any kind of sophisticated complex palace drama with any claims to any historical accuracy. Yes, people die and terrible things happen but the romance not the politics is at the centre of this.
In all honesty I wasn't expecting much from this but I saw some cuts on YT and thought this might be worth a look. Surprisingly I'm enjoying this. It's by no means any kind of heavyweight contender despite giving the appearance of being a historical drama but the sparks between the leads are pretty good. It's so unbelievably anachronistic but the female lead does live up to the title. It's an entertaining trashy rom com with some good fight scenes in between. The leads are both pretty good in their roles but I don't mind saying that I'm partial to Shen Yan. He's really hot stuff.
I really do like how the leads communicate and banter here.
I don't mind vanilla ice cream in general although it tends to work better when there's other things on offer. I wanted to like A Business Proposal a lot more but somehow it ended up being a series of misadventures with no real stakes. It affords some entertainment at the time but ultimately it's forgettable escapism. It billed itself as a contract relationship but that was such a small part of the whole story. This show had more lies than a heist or a con. On some level the show does feel like a con especially considering what comes in the final act with a rather bizarre capitulation to the very same makjang tropes that were being parodied all throughout. Rather than funny, it was annoying. Especially when Grandpa turns into a caricature and a plot device. Just like anyone who is not the main couples. It was as if the show had an attack of conscience about all the deception and put a stern message to the youngsters. "Kids, don't ever do this at home. Lying is bad."
More than that (or less), was how crammed and unsatisfying the final episode felt. Despite that I'm surprised that this still has such a high rating. A C drama would be completely and soundly thrashed for doing the same thing.
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What's also really interesting is the antagonist Park Gye-won -- who isn't as villainous as I had imagined. (I should have more confidence in Jang Hyuk who almost never picks cookie cutter roles) He is undoubtedly a king maker but one who believes that he has a righteous cause. In some ways it is a matter of perspective. Of course it makes sense that our sympathies are primarily with Lee Tae but Park Gye-won, the left minister represents a viewpoint about the office of the king. He evidently objects to the notion of the king as despot but as a figure who is subject to the oversight of the royal court. I think he feels it is his job to keep whoever is king on their toes. On the other hand, it seems to me too that Park Gye-won has got the blinders on. By accumulating that much power and trying to control who becomes the next queen, he is perhaps becoming something of the monster that he fears will emerge from the throne.
I am also enjoying Lee Joon's performance as Lee Tae. He genuinely has that ability to convey the duality of what the king must be to regain the power that's been taken from his family. He can be sweet and he certainly has no compunction being ruthless when he needs to. He also has a vocal delivery of a Shakespearean actor which is always a plus. The pairing of Kang Ha-na and Lee Joon is a casting coup. And really, it's almost criminal that it's taken this long for Kang Ha-na to be the lead female.
Loved the last four episodes. The speeches were so heartfelt.
Dang there's something in my eye. Must be the onions.
While I prefer Ryan's styling in this, I missed the icy, ruthless Jing Qing of the first season.
Regardless, the leads are good. Lots of nice fan servicing.
Just started on this (5 episodes) and am enjoying this drama so far. Love the pacing and storytelling especially.
This is not necessarily a net negative but I don't think we should give viewers the wrong idea that this is any kind of sophisticated complex palace drama with any claims to any historical accuracy. Yes, people die and terrible things happen but the romance not the politics is at the centre of this.
I really do like how the leads communicate and banter here.
Nice to see Merxat with his own romance.
More than that (or less), was how crammed and unsatisfying the final episode felt. Despite that I'm surprised that this still has such a high rating. A C drama would be completely and soundly thrashed for doing the same thing.