Poong, the Joseon Psychiatrist Season 2
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Entertaining and enjoyable; watch back-to-back
May 2025 (S1&2 reviewed together)I really enjoyed both series, whizzing through S2 as quickly as I did S1.
Loved the cast, especially seeing Kim Min-jae in a leading role. His chemistry with Kim Hyan-gi (FL), was believable and sweet. It wasn't full-on or steamy, but I felt it was just right, given their backgrounds and being pretty naive in love. She was never weak, arrogant, nor a push-over for anyone, and very intelligent. I liked her.
In S1, both characters impact on one another at separate and critical times in their lives, and this connection then continues.
Yoo Se-Yeop, through a traumatic experience, that really was, leaves the Palace in which he served as the top Physician, skilled in acupuncture, with his trusty (but very 'familiar' servant), and ends up at a backwater clinic.
It's run by a grumpy Doctor, Kye Ji-han (so well played by Kim Sang-kyung), who is assisted by a mix of regular folk, of all ages, who have found refuge and a home there. They are a great bunch, and it's here he acquires the name Poong.
Though somewhat aloof and blunt, Poong's skills of diagnosing conditions, and recommending treatments, makes Kye Ji-han decide he can use him, so using debt as leverage, he gets him to stay, working full-time.
Once accepted into the 'family', they help the poor, the sick, and get involved in tackling various wrong-doings against good people.
S2 picks up where S1 leaves off, and various branches of the story from S1 come together.
We find out the back stories of central characters, most of which were far from happy. There are highs, lows, some very moving scenes, and plenty of light hearted, very amusing happenings and dialogue as well, throughout. Some horrible characters, as expected of the time, who look upon slaves and peasants as nothing more than vermin, and treat them accordingly. There are comeuppances, however!
It isn't historically accurate or true-to-life, but doesn't set out to be. It is, however, what it's meant to be, which is very entertaining!
I enjoyed S1 the most, but the story in it's entirety was a great watch.
Would happily do it all again.
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I enjoyed how this series, whilst a fantasy drama, still managed to show that human emotions should be evoked, even if the subject isn't human.
Our humanity is what should differentiate us, regardless of whether we are reacting to another human, another species, or a human-like AI.
Our natural responses should always be kind, considerate and caring.
The ending was very much left to our imagination, which somewhat disappointed me.
I liked the cast, and characters, a lot, especially Yeo Jin Goo, Bang Min Ah, Choi Sung Won, Ha Jae Sook, Kim Do Hoon and Hong Seok Cheon.
Very happy seeing Yoon Shi Yoon in a cameo role, in ep2 😊
I probably wouldn't watch this again.
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Easy on the eyes
March 2025Another C-drama that gripped me, but I did feel it dragged on at times, and could have been shorter, without the story suffering.
Wu Jin Yan was very good in the FL role of a woman betrayed, who takes on a new identity to seek revenge through justice. This actress is excellent in portraying strong female characters, rather than the childish and saccharine ones. I thought she was excellent in 'Kill Me Love Me', too.
Loved the ML, Wang Xing Yue. He had great presence and portrayed the brilliant, but cold and seemingly ruthless, Xiao Heng, perfectly.
There's actually an 11-year age gap between them (she is older), but I'd never have guessed it. Sometimes when the difference is that way around, their chemistry can be a bit strained or unnatural (K-drama 'Knight Flower' springs to mind, even though I loved it), but not in this.
The plot is straight forward, but the story twists and turns. It is a ruthless tale, with some vile characters, and some tragic moments, but has enough light humour and slower paced moments to balance that. There's some great banter between Jiang-lee/Fang-fei and Heng, too. It's an intelligent script overall.
The backstory of the most horrible character (and cause of Fang-fei's suffering), should have prompted sympathy for them, but they were too horrible for me to accept any of their behaviour. Just awful, and I was cross about the outcome for them, which I wanted to be worst!
There are the usual jealousies between siblings, family ('Clan') rivalry, with Royal shenanigans thrown in. It's a decent watch though, and didn't feel 'done before'.
I had favourites, liked the mix, and it made a change to have women that could outsmart men, and men who were as cunning and ambitious for status, as the women usually are.
I'll be hunting out more from both leads.
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Very watchable
Feb 2025Overall a pretty good watch; some laughs and some heart string plucking moments. Loved the cast, but not all the characters!
I found Hae-joo (WDH), to be pretty selfish really and aspects of the way WDH played him in certain situations, reminded me of his character Si-hyeon in Tempted/The Great Seducer.
He could be shockingly cold and hurtful, yet looking the way he does, with that bad-boy vibe, is incredibly alluring. He also instils great confidence at times. A dangerous combo.
FL character, Jae-mi, is quite sweet, and absolutely craves love, a family, and stability. Consequently she puts up with far more than most rational people ever would!
Both of them carry heavy baggage, which is their great dividing rift. I doubted Hae-joo would ever have approached Jae-mi again, if not for his diagnosis, and subsequent plan for his remaining days.
I felt for Eo Heung (OJS), who was the polar opposite of Hae-joo. However, he was far too naive and gullible. He lacked self-confidence for 90% of the drama, but then found amazing courage and confidence the rest of the time. I think I felt for him most.
Besides being amusing and quirky, it's also sometimes very violent, often OTT, but mostly incredibly watchable!
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Back at the sharp(er) end!
Feb 2025Taken me a while to get around to watching this, as I don't always subscribe to the channel. WHY on earth did Netflix miss out to Disney+ after screening S1 & 2?! 😠Anywho....
A new set of challenges, hierarchical politics, personal problems, and medical casualties, assault Doldam Hospital... and us!
It's ages since I watched S2, but slotting back into the story was easy. A lot is pretty far fetched (nothing new), and it can get cheesy, but overall it's as entertaining a watch as ever.
I find it easy to forgive its many shortcomings, because I like so many of the characters, and the actors portraying them. I feel Kim Sa-bu/Teacher Kim, has mellowed through each of the series and I loved him in this... Han Suk-kyu is just perfect.
Characters I found so easy to dislike... definitely intern Jang Dong-hwa (for some reason, every now and then, I got a Jin [BTS] vibe from his features... whom I definitely DON'T dislike 😆); Cha Eun-jae's mother (I really wanted to poke her in the eye); and awful Assemblywoman Oh Min-ae (well played by Ko Kyung-Sook), who I lost all sympathy and respect for, with each episode she showed up in. (Note: she's missing from MDL's casting.)
The drama does also attempt to touch on real issues facing health care (not just a problem in S.Korea), such as staffing, overwork and funding.
There is more action this time around, it was definitely more thrilling, with some interesting and different story lines. That meant slightly less time for emphasis on the intricacies of personal relationships; although that is still present, too. A very interesting insight into a favourite character of mine, Nurse Park Eun-tak (Kim Min-Jae).
For those who love the series, I really don't think you'll be disappointed! I was thrilled with the appearance of one character, too 😃
I'm not sure if a 4th series is planned, or if it's needed, but I'd doubtless watch.
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Bland
Dec/Jan 2025An "Oh dear" from me, I'm afraid. Whilst there were aspects I liked, they were far and few between, as I found the story hard to get into and stick with. So disappointed.
The 2 main themes of the plot were overly contrived and far fetched, with some laughable characters.
Over acting, although not by the main cast members, and a gay character arc that could have been so much more.
I just didn't get, or like it, and the character of Choi Sang-eun really irritated me for the most part. No amount of (hear violin accompaniment) sad background story could change that, unfortunately.
I found the multiple marriages angle ridiculous, especially considering the attitude towards divorce, which is depicted in other dramas and S.Korean culture itself... maybe they were attempting to make a serious point.
Hope others enjoy/ed it, but not one I'll remember or revisit. Bland best sums it up for me.
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A reflection on society today
First I rewatched S1, as it's been ages since that came out. Sailed through it and enjoyed the watch all over again, especially knowing I could go straight into S2.Yoo Ah-in was a tough act to follow, but I have to say, Kim Sung-cheol, picking up the character Jung Jin-su, was excellent.
There was a flashback to a pivotal scene from S1, which obviously couldn't just be edited in, due to YAI's sad departure. His acting in that scene was excellent and I would have doubted it could be replicated.
However, KSC was so good, and must have watched it umpteen times, to recreate YAI's part so faithfully, as well as accurately.
The dark and somewhat depressing society that emerged from S1, is by no means any better in S2.
As humans do, the supernatural events that unfolded in S1 have been manipulated by groups, with leaders determined to make money and/or rule over others. (It is exactly what some do with religion now; use it as an excuse to murder, control and wreac havoc.)
Their 'laws' are contrived and as seen in S1, often an excuse to abuse power, bully and use violence against others.
It is sickening how those groups, including the government, spout 💩 about sins and damnation, when they themselves are the most guilty.
The drama's Director has said he's used the drama as a vehicle to send a message about the state of today's society (he's not wrong, either, with how in S Korea for example, K-nutz judge, slander and even drive some to take their own lives).
The shocking 'Decree' given towards the end of S1, together with Jung Jin-su's revelation, and the new twist of resurrection, changes everything.
Groups fight for power as they also have different stances on what to do about resurrection.
Many characters are present from S1, but the dynamics have altered considerably.
It's a bumpy, sometimes confusing, and violent, frustrating ride.
A gripping watch!
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Rushed, but still highly entertaining
Sep 2024I love the Sweet Home trilogy and whilst S1 is still my favourite, the 3 combined make for gripping viewing.
As much blood and gore as in S1&2, but far fewer monsters, as this final instalment focuses on the main characters that survived S2, together with a slight twist to the story.
Song Kang is brilliant in this, to my mind. He doesn't overplay the part, but exudes a kind of power and always gave me the feeling there was something more to his monster side.
Further characters lost in S2 are swiftly replaced by the fast moving storyline... a little too fast at times.
There are several surprises, but a couple could get lost in clarity and importance, if not getting enough concentration.
Couple of totally bizarre storylines as well... one being the little boy from S1, which definitely had me scratching my head.
The final scenes were a bit weird and in one instance for me, slightly disappointing, but at the same time not without emotion.
I might give it a break and then watch the whole thing (S1-3) from start to finish.
I really hate these stupid season breaks Netflix and other Western production companies, inflict on us. Really spoils the flow and when the gap between is ridiculously long, the story definitely suffers. Cramming the story's conclusion into the final 2 episodes, doesn't help either.
Having said that, I loved the cast, the premise and with how my imagination carried the conclusion forward, what I perceive as the intention behind the ending too.
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Every instalment of Himura Kenshin's life is epic!
I watched, back-to-back, in this order:Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning, 2021
Rurouni Kenshin: Origins, 2012
Rurouni Kenshin 2: Kyoto Inferno, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin 3: The Legend Ends, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin: The Final, 2021
I watched the first 3 ages ago, but decided to watch all of them again, in story, not release, order, which I recommend doing.
I absolutely love these films to bits. The life of the main character is a mix of almost aimless at times, tragic, enlightenment and atonement.
The fact the film about Kenshin's origins, was made 9 years after the character first appeared on screen, is amazing. The main reason being, when watched in the order I did, it is a seamless story.
Many cast members appear throughout, pieces from the earlier, film 1, are blended in so when watching the next instalment, it makes complete sense. I was honestly blown away.
Satoh Takeru is brilliant in every film. The sword fights are incredible and they must have taken all the cast involved, a huge amount of work and energy.
The pace of each film is excellent, with a balance of action, everyday life, love, friendships, fighting for a cause (sometimes blindly) and defeating not only enemies, but those taking advantage of the powerless. Some sad elements too. There is also humour and a growing camaraderie between some characters that began as enemies.
I love Himura Kenshin and how he evolves. Supporting characters are varied, some villains are pretty OTT, strong female characters and the cast in all the films is great.
Films are rarely, if ever, perfect, but these just do it for me. Firm favourites.
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Every film in this epic saga is an amazing watch.
I watched, back-to-back, in this order:Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning, 2021
Rurouni Kenshin: Origins, 2012
Rurouni Kenshin 2: Kyoto Inferno, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin 3: The Legend Ends, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin: The Final, 2021
I watched the first 3 ages ago, but decided to watch all of them again, in story, not release, order, which I recommend doing.
I absolutely love these films to bits. The life of the main character is a mix of almost aimless at times, tragic, enlightenment and atonement.
The fact the film about Kenshin's origins, was made 9 years after the character first appeared on screen, is amazing. The main reason being, when watched in the order I did, it is a seamless story.
Many cast members appear throughout, pieces from the earlier, film 1, are blended in so when watching the next instalment, it makes complete sense. I was honestly blown away.
Satoh Takeru is brilliant in every film. The sword fights are incredible and they must have taken all the cast involved, a huge amount of work and energy.
The pace of each film is excellent, with a balance of action, everyday life, love, friendships, fighting for a cause (sometimes blindly) and defeating not only enemies, but those taking advantage of the powerless. Some sad elements too. There is also humour and a growing camaraderie between some characters that began as enemies.
I love Himura Kenshin and how he evolves. Supporting characters are varied, some villains are pretty OTT, strong female characters and the cast in all the films is great.
Films are rarely, if ever, perfect, but these just do it for me. Firm favourites.
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The complete saga is an amazing & gripping watch!
I watched, back-to-back, in this order:Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning, 2021
Rurouni Kenshin: Origins, 2012
Rurouni Kenshin 2: Kyoto Inferno, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin 3: The Legend Ends, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin: The Final, 2021
I watched the first 3 ages ago, but decided to watch all of them again, in story, not release, order, which I recommend doing.
I absolutely love these films to bits. The life of the main character is a mix of almost aimless at times, tragic, enlightenment and atonement.
The fact the film about Kenshin's origins, was made 9 years after the character first appeared on screen, is amazing. The main reason being, when watched in the order I did, it is a seamless story.
Many cast members appear throughout, pieces from the earlier, film 1, are blended in so when watching the next instalment, it makes complete sense. I was honestly blown away.
Satoh Takeru is brilliant in every film. The sword fights are incredible and they must have taken all the cast involved, a huge amount of work and energy.
The pace of each film is excellent, with a balance of action, everyday life, love, friendships, fighting for a cause (sometimes blindly) and defeating not only enemies, but those taking advantage of the powerless. Some sad elements too. There is also humour and a growing camaraderie between some characters that began as enemies.
I love Himura Kenshin and how he evolves. Supporting characters are varied, some villains are pretty OTT, strong female characters and the cast in all the films is great.
Films are rarely, if ever, perfect, but these just do it for me. Firm favourites.
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Gripping and SO watchable... all 5 films together!
July 2024I watched, back-to-back, in this order:
Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning, 2021
Rurouni Kenshin: Origins, 2012
Rurouni Kenshin 2: Kyoto Inferno, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin 3: The Legend Ends, 2014
Rurouni Kenshin: The Final, 2021
I watched the first 3 ages ago, but decided to watch all of them again, in story, not release, order, which I recommend doing.
I absolutely love these films to bits. The life of the main character is a mix of almost aimless at times, tragic, enlightenment and atonement.
The fact the film about Kenshin's origins, was made 9 years after the character first appeared on screen, is amazing. The main reason being, when watched in the order I did, it is a seamless story.
Many cast members appear throughout, pieces from the earlier, film 1, are blended in so when watching the next instalment, it makes complete sense. I was honestly blown away.
Satoh Takeru is brilliant in every film. The sword fights are incredible and they must have taken all the cast involved, a huge amount of work and energy.
The pace of each film is excellent, with a balance of action, everyday life, love, friendships, fighting for a cause (sometimes blindly) and defeating not only enemies, but those taking advantage of the powerless. Some sad elements too. There is also humour and a growing camaraderie between some characters that began as enemies.
I love Himura Kenshin and how he evolves. Supporting characters are varied, some villains are pretty OTT, strong female characters and the cast in all the films is great.
Films are rarely, if ever, perfect, but these just do it for me. Firm favourites.
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Enjoyable overall.
May, 2024.A time travel mystery rom-com, which has laughs, intrigue, threat, tragedy and romance.
Park Yun-woo (LSY), is not your typical Joseon woman and when she can no longer avoid getting married, her life takes an unimaginable turn. The emotions, characters and her life during this time, make for an entertaing watch, with the usual variety of characters from that period.
After finding herself in modern day Seoul, she becomes embroiled with a chaebol family, but holds her own. Faces are familiar, but out of time, and she has to adjust to modern life, whilst trying to find a way back to her past one.
This part of the story has the most intrigue and mystery, plus the most laughs. Her intelligence and tenacity help her adjust, but a big dollop of 'just accepting', is needed, in how well!
As the synopsis details, she meets a man who is the double of her deceased husband (BIH), with whom she enters into a marriage contract. There are times she feels like history is repeating and begins piecing things together, as so many links to her past begin to emerge. A strange but familiar character makes random appearances, guiding her, but rarely succinctly.
Her deceased husband was a lovely character, very different to his doppelganger; but they share a secret.
I really enjoyed this drama. It's classic romance, with many of the usual elements of the genre, plus some twists.
What I was disappointed with, and frankly didn't understand, was her attitude towards a key charscter, near the end of the story. It made no sense to me, given her feelings in the first part of the drama. I felt so bad and sorry for that person. It is possible to love 2 people, especially in this context.
Don't expect it to be logical throughout, and just embrace the fiction; then you might enjoy it, as I did.
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Gripping ~ needs S2 to continue monentum
May 2024Not a limited series, therefore a S2 expected, dependant on ratings I assume, so fingers crossed.
I loved the pace and the characters. At 6 episodes there is little room for depth, but to be honest, personally I don't think a series always needs it. If the aim is thrills and entertainment, that's not the point anyway.
There is enough background to understand main characters and the action starts fairly quickly.
Jung Soo-in (actress Jeon So-nee) is a somewhat tragic character; when her Parasyte, whom gets named Heidi, comes to the fore, Soo-in 'sleeps' and vice versa.
That's not a new concept and has been used in many dramas about multiple personality disorder (Hyde, Jeckyll, Me; Kill Me Heal Me). However, with an alien cohabiting Soo-in's brain that can't be psychoanalysed away, it gives things a totally different feel.
The SFX are pretty good and some scenes of confrontation are excellent.
There are sad aspects to the plot, but perhaps due to the lack of episodes, I didn't feel connected enough to characters to get emotional; I was more shocked on a couple of occasions.
I actually loved the character of Heidi (but I am sure we are supposed to) and Jeon So-nee effortlessly carries off switching between the two.
Seol Kang Woo (Koo Kyo Hwan) is a witty, cocky character on the wrong side of the law and self-serving. Circumstances bring him together with Soo-in and he slowly becomes more protective of her, although not always out of choice! KKH is perfect for this role (loved him in D.P.).
Choi Joon-kyung could be a pretty arrogant and annoying character, and whilst a part of me got why, her actions in relation to someone parasitised, I found unforgiveable, considering their identity. I found her very hard to like or empathise with.
A good supporting cast, with familiar faces and no obvious over acting.
I didn't find the look of the Aliens to be scary at all, in fact I found them pretty odd really. I'd love to know exactly where they came from. Their view of us humans is basically as food and a 'home'; fair enough ~ as the apex predator on our planet, we're actually no different in our behaviour towards pretty much all other species. I can only imagine what designs some would have on inferior life forms, if we ever found any from another world.
There are some twists in the story and it's pretty thrilling at times, but not strong on tension.
The close of S1 is actually pretty neat, so whilst it would be disappointing if no S2 was to follow, the story would still have been a decent viewing in itself.
Kept me glued and I wanted more; so, worth watching and I'm hoping for a S2, when hopefully more will be revealed.
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This review may contain spoilers
Not happy with assumptions around suicide
March 2024. Watched Parts 1 & 2 together on PrimeI thought the casting for this was incredible. So many actors I love, in one drama, was frankly too good to be true and the acting was, predictably, great.
I really enjoyed the ways in which events began to expose a troubling connection. It wasn't obvious what that was to be, however, and even when revealed, was still far from final.
There are shocks, tragedies, grief, unfairness, manipulation and the old favourite, money and power.
The struggles are real and I don't think anyone could blame Choi Yi-jae. Having said that, there were numerous times his character didn't speak up, or did some truly stupid things; where his mother was concerned, especially. It numbed my mind.
There were also moments of brilliance in the plot though, but it did vere sharply between that and "What?!", at times.
Apart from Seo In-guk, I absolutely loved Kim Jae-wook, Lee Jae-wook, Lee Do-hyun and Kim Mi-kyung in this. None of them overacted and given LJW's part, he could have. His scenes were the most visceral for me.
Nice seeing LJW and Yoo In-soo acting together again, although in vastly different roles to Alchemy of Souls.
I do wish the story had focussed less on Yi-jae as being cruelly punished and more on his realisations, growing determination and self-worth, through the trials, as being healing. Those are positive lessons to drive home.
However, I found myself getting incredibly angry at times, because instead, to me, it really felt like they were saying suicide is a selfish choice, made with no regard for those left behind and should be a punishable act.
Selfish? Perhaps that is true, but only to a point. The reason being, it is a decision very, very rarely made by someone in a normal state of mind. Suicide isn't something a happy, mentally stable, rational person, would commit.
If life has become painful, terrifying, utterly hopeless, everything else becomes irrelevant in that person's mind. Death is, indeed, no longer frightening, but an escape.
So why portray it as though it was (is) done as a normal, conscious decision, with no care for loved ones? In that frame of mind, rationality has long departed, together with being concerned about the impact on others.
Were they trying to send a message, due to the frighteningly high number of suicide cases in S.Korea? I sincerely hope not, because it's cruel (especially to those left behind) and it's wrong.
The ending was totally perplexing, to me, for one huge reason... for time to have been reversed so Yi-jae is back on the ledge before jumping, means everything that happened originally, to that point, still happened.
Therefore, without his influence and knowledge as the soul in all those bodies, the crimes committed by Park Tae-woo and Jeong Gyu-cheol would go unsolved and continue happening.
Whilst I enjoyed the many actors, characters and their stories, the plot, therefore, fell a little short and I wasn't happy, at all, with the unkind assumptions made around suicide.
I haven't seen the webtoon of the same name that this is based on and, therefore, don't know how close to it this drama is.
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