It's an exciting ride!
The cast was the best part of this space romp.The kids were adorable, and the story was entertaining.
There was no time to get bored since everything was happening all at once.
If anything, it was a little too fast paced for me, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
Great cast, well acted, good story.
Recommended!
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Odd perspective: Seo Yi Sook showed some fine acting, and seemed to be having fun with this role.
I never liked Seo Yi Sook (Chairwoman) ever since Empress Ki. But in this show, I thought she was fabulous. Her hysterical ourbursts were so over the top that it made me laugh, and it seemed like the actress was really having fun playing this character.I liked her in this role enough that I looked her up on YouTube, and she seems to be quite a likeable, soft-spoken person, who loves to sing - aside from being a talented actress.
Because of her, the drama was fun. I know this is a weird take on the drama, but this is how it struck me.
I also liked the actor who played the main character's husband, and will be looking forward to seeing him in more dramas. I thought he created a very sympathetic character in this role.
It wasn't an amazing drama, in retrospect, but at the time, it kept me riveted, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Going forward, when I see Seo Yi Sook, being evil, in future dramas, I won't be able to hate her any more.
I'll just admire her skill, and ability to get me invested in the story! 🙂
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Toxic Male Gets Ultimate Reward ... for being a bullying.
The amount of demeaning, bullying, and nasty behavior Hwang Tae Kyung gets away is not cute, or funny. He's a really hurtful person. I don't think it makes sense for Mi Nye to fall for the guy who is the most cruel to her. What is this saying about women? "Treat 'em mean, keep 'em keen" ?In order to have earned her love, he should at least have undergone some MAJOR changes, which he didn't. He barely got over his own ego enough to go after her in the end ... and only because everyone else told him to do it. He learned nothing. She was a sap, from beginning to end.
And when she found out Yoo He Yi was now bullying and threatening her brother, as well, Mi Nye should have finally found her courage and slapped the troublesome snake-lady. But no, she was a sap right to the end.
My third complaint is that they should have cast the brother properly, using an actor, as also slight-framed, for credibility's sake. Using a buff male body, with Shin Hye's head, was stupid, and obviously - could not be mistaken for the same person. It's not believable that the two were not just siblings, but TWINS - who had gone through a horrific ordeal together ... and yet, Mi Nye barely ever mentioned her brother, worried about him, missed him, and barely showed any interest in seeing him again.
The acting was fine - Lee Hong Ki was fantastic (as always).
The music was good.
The script? Very shallow, and disappointing.
Still, it was a good romp, and was worth it just for Lee Hong Ki's character, Manager Ma, and Kang Shin Woo, who (although the character made poor choices), was played well by the actor.
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The writers didn't take time to develop the characters, and relied on the story to keep the viewer interested, and to be fair, the story was good enough to succeed. But the actors mentioned above were, nonetheless, able to take their roles, and really bring them to life.
Personally, I thought the main character was a weak sap, the princess was a selfish brat, and the king was ... well, young Bojang.
Choi Min Soo, however, never fails to deliver, and Noh Min Woo puts in a spectacular performance. The most likeable character was the ever-lovable Lee Won Jong.
It was worth watching just for the three of them, and I have to admit, Uhm Tae Woong was pretty cool at the beginning of the show.
There is one scene, when the son (Uhm Tae Woong) finally understands his father, and that moment was very well written, nicely set up, and well acted.
It was poignant for me, as a viewer.
Perhaps surprisingly, I cheerfully recommend it. It's a good story worth watching.
I was very happy with the ending.
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Up until the last 10 minutes this show is fantastic.
BRILLIANT cast, great music, and very warm and genuine interpersonal relationships. I loved the old men bros. Sword Saint was awesome, as this actor always is, and Ji Chang Wook made you forget every other role you might have seen him in. He really embodied the character of Baek Dong Su.I really wanted to give this drama 5 stars in everything but … (spoilers)
All the demerits from the full 5 star rating is to punish the writers for the way they treated Un at the end.
Cho Rip suddenly (and inexplicably) becomes faithless and murderous, but he gets the girl? Really?
First of all - it was not even within Cho Rip’s character profile to, suddenly, act so rashly on his own, and willfully put his friend’s life on the line. It was totally fabricated nonsense, just to kill off Un. It reminded me of Queen Seondeok’s poor, tragic Bidam - but at least with that show, the writers had history as an excuse. This was an absolutely uncalled for ending, and I felt betrayed by it.
Cho Rip should have died instead of Un.
Really ticked off.
All that aside, I still I recommend this drama 95%.
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Overall, highly recommended.
First, about the music: 86 Episodes and only great two songs to take away from it? Not good enough. Admittedly, the two songs are wonderful - just wish there had been more of the same quality; suitable for replay.That said, I can't understate how important this story is to watch - regardless its execution. The story is well executed overall, but it's unfortunate that its focus was almost exclusively on weapons and agricultural inventions that caused conflict with the great Ming. I would also have liked to see Sejong writing the books he wrote; writing (and/or collaborating on) the songs he wrote; or at least a few nods toward his other achievements that combined to make him truly Great. It's a shame the creation-of -hangeul part of the story was left until nearly the end, but I don't think the importance of its creation was glossed over as a result. It was clearly the crowning achievement.
Personally, I think it was a good call to leave interactions with concubines out of the story, since there was so much more substantive historical content to represent.
True to character issues: A bright and brilliant as Sejong clearly was - how did it take him until 3 episodes before the end of the story to figure out that Choi Manli - and his minions - were mostly just acting on petty greed by the prospect of ordinary people having skills they wanted to own for themselves. We all knew that very soon after the idea of a new writing system was introduced. Surely, Sejong would have discussed this with Manli and discovered that sooner. Poetic license, I guess.
The Choi Manli objection storyline was overplayed, and could have been kept to 3 episodes; time which could have gone to filling out Sejong's character to include the writing and music composition.
Still - it's an important watch for anyone who is interested in Korean History - and I still highly recommend it to everyone!
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Absolutely delightful watch.
I loved getting to know all the characters, and the show was brilliantly cast.Jung Kyung Ho is uniquely endearing, as always, and I enjoyed all the character development.
Many laugh out loud moments. My very favourite part was finally getting to see Jung Woong In (Lieutenant Paeng) do some real acting - because he gets to play a real person - and not just a generic jerk.
That was the most fun of all, because it really made me like the actor, which I hadn't before.
Well worth anyone's time. There were quite a few emotional bits toward the end, and the writers really knew how to get me invested in each and every character. I was ... dare I say it? ... reformed ❗️😅
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Crown Prince is like a bull in a china shop ... zero emotional control.
My only complaint is that I find the Crown Prince very bossy, selfish and demanding as a boyfriend. I could not put up with him whether he was the prince or the king.It's not really a criticism of the show, but I'm very independent and would never stand for a man telling me what to do, and making rules for me to follow. It would get on my last nerve. I think a different actor might have pulled it off better (less heavy-handedly?), but this guy set off my toxicity alarms pretty early on. I preferred both the Kimun king, and the King's real son to the Crown Prince. Just an opinion.
I wonder if anyone else got that 'distastefully clingy' vibe from him ... or is it just me?
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Female Lead is shallow and vapid.
The female lead character has just about got me wanting me to give up the show at Episode 10.Her facial expressions are so bitchy, spiteful, and tiresome. She takes herself way too seriously, and is a drain on an otherwise good story. Perhaps a better actress could have portrayed this character better, but every time she opens her nasty mouth I want to tell her to shut up.
She's a bigger liar and manipulator than any ghost agent, and just not a nice person.
I can't stand her. She's not funny, or cute, or whatever else the director was going for.
She's just irritating AF.
If I'd known in Episode 3 what I know now, of how her character declines, I would have given this one a miss. I will never watch another movie with this actress in it - and that stupid hairstyle is obnoxious, too.
The funniest thing in this show is Namkoong Min. He was hilarious! Kinda worth watching just for him - although, fair play to the two male leads, I also find no faults with either of their work in this show.
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WTH is the whole comedy skit storyline for?
The most annoying thing, for me, is the stupid 'comedy' club and its stupid skits and yuk-yuks of absolutely no value. Why did this drama need this? So bad and cringe. Already started skipping those idiotic scenes from about episode 4.Actually, the fact that the main lead thought that was a good thing ... just made me think less of her.
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This review may contain spoilers
It's a great story, and very easy to watch ... SPOILER ALERT
I absolutely LOVED the 30 minute episode format. No huge time commitment, and plenty of time to stop and get things done, while still bingeing. I would like to see more 30-45 minute per-episode dramas.I gave if 9.5 rather than 10 stars, partially because a lot of plot lines were never resolved or explained, but mainly because after we supported them through 32 episodes, the director stole the final moment from us by hiding his face at the end.
What the hell was that all about? BOOOO.
Otherwise, a great story, mostly well told, and the acting was superb. Pretty good OST as well.
Amazing how Lee Je Hoon can be so blank faced, and yet convey so much emotion and inner turmoil at the same time.
Stellar performance by the ML.
Well worth your time. I watched it all in 2 days and never got bored.
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You will be happy with this ending, and glad you watched it!
I thought this was just a filler show while I had nothing exciting to watch. Watched it for Bae Su Bin, and he played a great role! Don't understand why he doesn't get more leading roles!!Casting was really good - main actress supremely talented.
For forty hours, I was riveted to the screen, and watched the whole series within two days!!
Did not see that coming ❤️
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Still having flashbacks to this show.
First, Namkoong Min is superb.His partner does an excellent job of growing into her character;
naive and timid at the start, but a real colleague to the end.
The plot is riveting, dark, and twisty.
The main bad guy lingers with me, in a wistful kind of way.
I will be following that actor, going forward.
If a show's ability to stay in one's mind after it's watched is anything to judge by, then this show is 100% Recommended.
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A joy to watch - a real "CheerMeUp" story!
What a delightful romp! It was sweet, and made me smile with my heart, made me cry, and just bowled me over, with how impossibly cute, but also uplifting and obviousluy kind, Lee Hong Ki obviously really is ... you can't fake that. He brings it all to this story.The show gets better and better as it goes on ... with some major twists at the end - all of which are done well, and suit the story perfectly. They don't feel like some cheap last minute stunts, but properly complete the story to everyone's satisfaction. Especially the satisfaction of the viewer.
All the actors did well, and I even took a second look at one actor I previously hadn't liked.
The main actress is as sweet and cute as LHK is and, by the end, I had completely come to love her, too.
It was a really beautiful story. I will carry its warmth around with me for a long while .,. and then definitely watch it again, especially when I need something to cheer me up.
HIGHLY recommended!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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It's not uplifting. Just stress, worry, and disappointment, all the way through.
By episode 30 I was already getting sick of the constant barrage of enemies trying to take down this one poor guy. He never gets a break. All the best cast members die early - Kim Myeong Su,for example, played a great role, and I think I should have checked out when he did.The whole balance of the thing is lopsided. It's not a bit of adversity, and then a bit of victory here and there, It's just a slog through vileness, grimness, and the sheer onslaught of unsurmountable tragedies.
Drama is supposed to provide a break from the slings and rigors of real life, not a celebration of them.
It's just depressing to watch.
Yuk. I feel dirty. 싫어.
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