love in spite of ourselves
I loved the couple. I loved the premise. I loved watching them slowly fall in love. But the pacing, unnecessary characters, and dragged-out middle made this feel like a chore at times.
If you like contract marriage, forced cohabitation, modern royalty, and watching two people slowly fall in love while living together, then you will like this drama — but only if you keep your remote very close and are not afraid to skip. A lot.
This is one of those dramas where the idea is better than the execution. The premise is amazing, the couple is worth it, and when it focuses on them, it’s genuinely beautiful. Unfortunately, it also wastes an unbelievable amount of time on unnecessary characters and side plots that add nothing. I truly believe if this drama were edited down to only the main couple, it would be incredible — and about 8 episodes long.
👍 LIKES
-The premise is so good — modern Korea with a monarchy? I was hooked immediately
-I’m a sucker for contract marriage / forced cohabitation, so I was already invested
-Feels like Boys Over Flowers but better, calmer, and more intentional
-I loved how they start liking each other earlier than expected — it’s subtle but there
-The modernized palace styling and hanbok looks are still beautiful almost 20 years later
-The FL’s cheerful, resilient attitude made her easy to root for at first
-When the drama focuses on just them, watching them fall in love is genuinely satisfying
-The real first kiss(though pretty much towards the end) was amazing — great chemistry, real payoff. wished we'd seen more.
-Episodes 15–22 complete mess, so annoying.
-I enjoyed the journey of them falling in love despite everything
👎 DISLIKES
-One of the slowest paces I’ve ever experienced, and not in a good slow-burn way
-Too much time wasted on high school nonsense when they’re already married
-Immature, annoying side characters that added nothing and were painful to watch
-Episode 9 flirting while married felt like cheating, not cute
-Political plotlines kept coming and going with no clear purpose
-The FL becomes extremely frustrating toward the end — childish, whiny, and illogical
-The overseas separation trope was completely unnecessary and infuriating
-Decisions near the end made no sense, especially who took the blame and who didn’t
-The mom deserved consequences — and it barely felt addressed
-We got way too little time of them actually being together after everything they endured
The ending needed more couple time — even something small would’ve helped
I started skipping early — and by episode 15, I skipped everything that wasn’t the main couple. Honestly? That’s the only reason I finished it happily.
If someone ever edits this drama down to just the couple, I would rewatch it immediately — and probably rate it much higher.
Final rating: 7.5/10
Could’ve been a 9.
Should’ve been shorter.
If you like contract marriage, forced cohabitation, modern royalty, and watching two people slowly fall in love while living together, then you will like this drama — but only if you keep your remote very close and are not afraid to skip. A lot.
This is one of those dramas where the idea is better than the execution. The premise is amazing, the couple is worth it, and when it focuses on them, it’s genuinely beautiful. Unfortunately, it also wastes an unbelievable amount of time on unnecessary characters and side plots that add nothing. I truly believe if this drama were edited down to only the main couple, it would be incredible — and about 8 episodes long.
👍 LIKES
-The premise is so good — modern Korea with a monarchy? I was hooked immediately
-I’m a sucker for contract marriage / forced cohabitation, so I was already invested
-Feels like Boys Over Flowers but better, calmer, and more intentional
-I loved how they start liking each other earlier than expected — it’s subtle but there
-The modernized palace styling and hanbok looks are still beautiful almost 20 years later
-The FL’s cheerful, resilient attitude made her easy to root for at first
-When the drama focuses on just them, watching them fall in love is genuinely satisfying
-The real first kiss(though pretty much towards the end) was amazing — great chemistry, real payoff. wished we'd seen more.
-Episodes 15–22 complete mess, so annoying.
-I enjoyed the journey of them falling in love despite everything
👎 DISLIKES
-One of the slowest paces I’ve ever experienced, and not in a good slow-burn way
-Too much time wasted on high school nonsense when they’re already married
-Immature, annoying side characters that added nothing and were painful to watch
-Episode 9 flirting while married felt like cheating, not cute
-Political plotlines kept coming and going with no clear purpose
-The FL becomes extremely frustrating toward the end — childish, whiny, and illogical
-The overseas separation trope was completely unnecessary and infuriating
-Decisions near the end made no sense, especially who took the blame and who didn’t
-The mom deserved consequences — and it barely felt addressed
-We got way too little time of them actually being together after everything they endured
The ending needed more couple time — even something small would’ve helped
I started skipping early — and by episode 15, I skipped everything that wasn’t the main couple. Honestly? That’s the only reason I finished it happily.
If someone ever edits this drama down to just the couple, I would rewatch it immediately — and probably rate it much higher.
Final rating: 7.5/10
Could’ve been a 9.
Should’ve been shorter.
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