Everything is good and all that, but I still think that Yoon Kye Sang doesn't fit for main role in dramas.…
"something just feels 'off"! Well everyone is entitled to their opinion but may I ask have you seen Yoon Kye Sang in other dramas or movies? I'm intrigued by your comment that he doesn't fit for the main role in dramas. I have watched tons of dramas from different countries and for me he is a fantastic versatile, handsome actor, very charismatic with a certain "je ne sais quoi" which makes him perfect for main roles. Other directors and producers are sold on him as a main lead if you note in his bio he has starred as a main lead in a number of movies as well, which is not the case for many other popular actors in drama land. I thought him a great lead in Poongsan, and I particularly liked him in Road No. 1, Last and The Good Wife. What I like is he makes me believe what he is feeling which makes him one of the top actors out there. So that is why I though to recommend watching him in other movies/dramas if you haven't, in hopes of winning you over to seeing him as a top rate lead male actor. :-)
I must say, this was one of the BEST dramas I have watched. I can't say enough about Ji Sung's brilliant performance; to pull of 7 very different personalities flawlessly is a major feat. He deserved all the awards he got from this show.
Ever since South Korea allowed US Military to place a missile defence system on their territory as a defensive measure against North Korea (THADD). As a result China, who were not in agreement of this, has place an embargo on practically all things from South Korea as they believe the system can also be used to monitor Chinese military activity. This has resulted in no trade in goods, tourists from South Korea and no popular culture from Korea to be used in China. So you can see how a Korea/China co-production would not go forward in China, hence no release. I hope the rumors about the soon to be release is true. :-( I love Park Shi Hoo!!
After seeing a few comments comparing this drama to the movie 'Tunnel' I decided to look up the latter to see if it was something I would enjoy watching. Well was I surprised to see that Tunnel is a story about surviving a disaster and the human emotions related to that crisis that would perhaps challenge our humanity. So tell me why would one make a comparison of that story with this drama? Just how do you make that leap? This story is about a man accused of murdering his family and he has amnesia to boot. Other than the fact that they are both thrillers there is no reason to compare them. But to each his own, I just thought it was strange.
This drama was an agony to watch for many different reasons: excessive use of cliches, too many obstacles for the endearing main couple, too many frustrating situations that could have been easily resolved...etc. etc. I wanted to quit so many times but only because I really really liked the main couple I struggled on, and still struggling at episode 32...8 more crappy episodes to go!
I'm surprised I'm haven't dropped this drama yet, at episode 41. Tian Ming is the most annoying main lead ever and his character shows NO growh. His love interest Yu er, is just as dull as he is. I must admit, like a lot of other people, I skipped a lot of the scenes with Tian Ming and Yu er.
For me this drama was just okay because all the main characters except for Ning Zhi Yuan, Le Yan and Pei Shan, were despicable, full of either greed, hatred and revenge or a combination thereof; even those that appeared to be neutral like the First Madam and Second Madam. There is very little accountability on the part of all those that carried out vile plots and schemes; wrong doing was merely shrugged off as mistakes and 2nd, 3rd and 4th chances given to protect families and wealth. The lies and over use of the forget memories drugs is tiresome as well as the constant lack of sincerity. I had really enjoyed this drama at the beginning but after the evil doers and deeds constantly succeeded with little relief I got irritated and somewhat bored. By episodo 39 I was running out of hope that the drama would end well. That's when
things got worse as it seemed there was a rush to resolve things so I could not appreciate any real sincerity in the turn of events to have it all end well. Sadly disappointing drama for me. Great eye candy and good acting but not enough to appease my disappointment.
I'm on episode 51, and I'm irritated that this drama is forcing itself to get to 62 episodes, when it is a 40 episode drama at most. This started out with so much promise and I really enjoyed it up to mid point. Loved the chemistry between Angela and Wallace and loved the two main characters. BUT this drama drags after midway and smart characters start acting selfish and stupid, making bad judgements and decisions which are not in keeping with their character; too many assumptions and misunderstandings, dialogue becomes lame and non-sensical, too many frustrating scenes and too many scenes that don't add to the story or action. With few exceptions, the hero and heroine are often surrounded by idiots who are no help in a crisis and actually get them into trouble. ***SPOILER*** Her best friend Yang Feng is one such example. I got so sick of her that when she was attempting to commit suicide I prayed for her to be successful and hoped that Ping Ting would not return in time to stop her, because then we would not have to hear her sniveling and crying and complaining.
Then there is Bai Ping Ting's fondness for acting the 'suffering noble idiot' which is boring and inconsistent with her character! The hero and heroine are portrayed as being so smart and yet they don't clue into the people that use and abuse them .....I could go on but I won't. In short what started out to be sweet is now a sour taste in my mouth. I'm disappointed because I love Chung Wallace, and even though his acting is the usual superb, the rest of the drama has too many flaws. I'm going to try and read the book to assuage my deep dissatisfaction!
I am struggling to get through this wretched drama....on ep. 10 and thinking it's a miracle I stayed with it so far. Aum's acting leaves a lot to be desired (event hough I like him) and the character of Soraya is so unbelievably dumb and 'roll my eyes' stupid, on top of being a noble idiot. I continue to watch being optimistic that it will improve even if common sense says if it hasn't done that yet it is not going to happen! My punishment for not stopping after ep 2.
I have also noticed the absence of servants in the so called millionaire's home, the absence of house accents and embellishments in the rooms of most scenes, they all look very stark and sparse, and the very few characters. It really has a low budget feel.
I must agree with several viewers POV that this drama basically could have ended at ep. 23. I found the wrap up in ep. 24 disappointing and a colossal waste of my time and really not worthy of everything that preceded it. Did they go on strike after ep. 23??? However despite the end I enjoyed this drama especially for the characters, in particular the main male and female leads. Interestingly I disliked the character Liu Qian Ren from start to finish. I felt he was always very selfish but hid it under the guise of a benevolent 'brother/wanna be lover' when all the while he was helping Lili he was really hoping that Lili would forget who she really loved and come to him. Honestly that just smacked of selfishness. Should he have tried to persuade Lili to change her mind and tell Pei Shang Xuan so that she could spend her remaining time with the love of her life? Did he really think that he was the only man who could sacrifice and share Lili's burden? He never spared a thought during those 7 long years that perhaps having the love of Lili's life support her during this time, may have helped her more to fight her illness. Pei Shang Xuan loved Lili deeply and was a strong character who would have made Lili forget her worries about him. I know that in reality life can be unfair and no bed of roses which is why I like dramas that have happy endings and give hope because it has a 'feel good' factor which we need from time to time. Unfortunately the writer was more inclined to a realistic portrayal of the suffering of this young couple culminating in ambiguity. To each his own. I ended up giving this drama a 7.5.
So far I am enjoying this drama very much, but the actress playing the role of the Manegeress, Jin Jing, is creeping me out. Her mannerisms and facial expression, dropping her mouth and squinting her eyes while she shouts, always makes me feel she has some disability and a tick. I really hope she is not like this in reality. She really comes off as very unattractive physically with an un appealing personality. Sorry but it is a poorly depicted role.
things got worse as it seemed there was a rush to resolve things so I could not appreciate any real sincerity in the turn of events to have it all end well. Sadly disappointing drama for me. Great eye candy and good acting but not enough to appease my disappointment.
Then there is Bai Ping Ting's fondness for acting the 'suffering noble idiot' which is boring and inconsistent with her character! The hero and heroine are portrayed as being so smart and yet they don't clue into the people that use and abuse them .....I could go on but I won't. In short what started out to be sweet is now a sour taste in my mouth. I'm disappointed because I love Chung Wallace, and even though his acting is the usual superb, the rest of the drama has too many flaws. I'm going to try and read the book to assuage my deep dissatisfaction!
I have also noticed the absence of servants in the so called millionaire's home, the absence of house accents and embellishments in the rooms of most scenes, they all look very stark and sparse, and the very few characters. It really has a low budget feel.