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This review may contain spoilers
Disappointing and Disastrous
For context, I've been waiting for this drama with high anticipation ever since it was first announced. When it was confirmed to be releasing this year, I was even more excited. I haven't watched any of ZN's previous dramas (except that one horror movie they did), but I was genuinely on my way to becoming a fan purely from the hype of The Next Prince. I was so sure this would be one of my top BLs of all time.
But unfortunately… this turned out to be such a disastrous and disappointing experience for me.
PROS
1. Gorgeous visuals - It was easy to tell this was a high-budget production with all the sets, costumes, and props. It was visually extremely appealing,
2. Unique trope with a royal-political story setup.
3. Interesting characterization and storyline for the second couple. Honestly, they were the only interesting part of this show and I wish we had gotten more background info about them.
CONS
1. Weak script with shallow writing - The writing just feels really undercooked, like they can't decide what they want the genre to be. The story seemed more focused on looking good than saying anything meaningful. There were so many gorgeous shots and dramatic moments that could’ve hit harder if the script actually had any real emotional weight behind it. But nope, we got nothing,
2. Emotionless Charan aka the stoic Seme - Charan is the definition of emotionless robot. He was literally just a cardboard cutout with a handsome face and 3 other expressions. I kept waiting to see emotions from that face, but all we got was the stoic seme look with an occasional half-smile. It’s really hard to invest in a relationship when one half of the couple acts like he’s allergic to human emotions.
3. Khanin - Khanin started off so promising! He was bold, sassy, grumpy, and confident. But then suddenly, out of nowhere, he turned into this desperate, lovesick puppy, hopelessly chasing after Charan with no self-respect. Like??? What happened to the London boy had a strong personality?? Once he fell for Charan, it’s like he forgot his whole life, including his adopted father, and just zeroed in on this emotionless guard as his entire personality.
4. Fast Romance, Lazy Plot - This is probably one of the biggest problems I had with this drama. The romance between Khanin and Charan moved way too fast. I just genuinely couldn't understand why or how they were even falling for each other. Meanwhile, the main storyline about the whole royal succession thing and all the palace politics was crawling at a snail’s pace. It was such a weird imbalance. I kept thinking, “Wait… we’re already here in the romance?? But still here in the plot??”
5. Styling Choices and the message it sends - This is also one that really rubbed me the wrong way. After Khanin moved into the palace and started romantically pursuing Charan, his wardrobe suddenly did a complete 180. He went from comfy, practical clothes to ultra-feminine, hyper-stylized outfits that none of the other princes were wearing. Don't get me wrong, I’m all for gender non-conforming fashion, and I know the actor enjoys that style IRL, which is great. But I’m talking about Khanin the character, not NN. The problem is that there was no reason for the change. It felt like they were trying to visually code him as the “pretty boy uke” now that he was paired with the stoic, manly seme. It felt tropey and lazy. It felt like the costume team went, “Oh, he’s in love now, better throw some pearls and ruffles on him.” If he had always dressed that way from the start, I wouldn’t have had a problem. But this sudden shift just made his character make less sense.
6. Chemistry - Before this drama started airing, I have watched ZNN in lots of different programs and interviews. That was how I became convinced that this show would have fantastic chemistry; however, this drama had none of it. I honestly couldn’t feel the love. I wanted to. I tried. But it just wasn’t there. There was no emotional depth between Khanin and Charan. They had a few intense eye contacts, some savior moments, some dramatic palace run-ins, and fell in love, but no real development. Their storyline felt hollow, and the romance felt unearned. I didn't even want to watch their NC scenes. I had to fast-forward them because those did nothing for me. I felt nothing other than the fact that the company added spicy scenes to get more views/watchers. I didn't feel their love or feelings. It just felt like a random soft-core porno.
7. Extremely underdeveloped 3rd couple - Oof, where do I even start? I don't understand why this drama even had a third couple. They barely had a storyline together. Like, we don't know when the started liking each other, why they started liking each other..We just see them having a few moments together in the drama, and then they suddenly confess. That's it. Honestly, I would've been okay just seeing these two characters separately than seeing them as a couple. That would have made more sense.
Overall, I went into The Next Prince ready to fall in love. The budget, the visuals, the setting.. Everything about this drama screamed potential. But what we got was a half-baked story with beautiful aesthetics and no emotional depth. The characters were inconsistent, the romance was rushed, the plot was dragging, and everything felt like a checklist of BL tropes without any real feelings. Disappointing and sad is all I have to say. I initially wanted to rate this lower, but the second couple were interesting enough that I gave it a higher score than what I had initially planned.
SIDE NOTE: This is just my perspective and opinion. If you're interested in watching this, then please go ahead and do so. Don't let my review bother you :) My score also has a lot to do with the high expectations I had for this drama, so the disappointment just hit me really hard.
But unfortunately… this turned out to be such a disastrous and disappointing experience for me.
PROS
1. Gorgeous visuals - It was easy to tell this was a high-budget production with all the sets, costumes, and props. It was visually extremely appealing,
2. Unique trope with a royal-political story setup.
3. Interesting characterization and storyline for the second couple. Honestly, they were the only interesting part of this show and I wish we had gotten more background info about them.
CONS
1. Weak script with shallow writing - The writing just feels really undercooked, like they can't decide what they want the genre to be. The story seemed more focused on looking good than saying anything meaningful. There were so many gorgeous shots and dramatic moments that could’ve hit harder if the script actually had any real emotional weight behind it. But nope, we got nothing,
2. Emotionless Charan aka the stoic Seme - Charan is the definition of emotionless robot. He was literally just a cardboard cutout with a handsome face and 3 other expressions. I kept waiting to see emotions from that face, but all we got was the stoic seme look with an occasional half-smile. It’s really hard to invest in a relationship when one half of the couple acts like he’s allergic to human emotions.
3. Khanin - Khanin started off so promising! He was bold, sassy, grumpy, and confident. But then suddenly, out of nowhere, he turned into this desperate, lovesick puppy, hopelessly chasing after Charan with no self-respect. Like??? What happened to the London boy had a strong personality?? Once he fell for Charan, it’s like he forgot his whole life, including his adopted father, and just zeroed in on this emotionless guard as his entire personality.
4. Fast Romance, Lazy Plot - This is probably one of the biggest problems I had with this drama. The romance between Khanin and Charan moved way too fast. I just genuinely couldn't understand why or how they were even falling for each other. Meanwhile, the main storyline about the whole royal succession thing and all the palace politics was crawling at a snail’s pace. It was such a weird imbalance. I kept thinking, “Wait… we’re already here in the romance?? But still here in the plot??”
5. Styling Choices and the message it sends - This is also one that really rubbed me the wrong way. After Khanin moved into the palace and started romantically pursuing Charan, his wardrobe suddenly did a complete 180. He went from comfy, practical clothes to ultra-feminine, hyper-stylized outfits that none of the other princes were wearing. Don't get me wrong, I’m all for gender non-conforming fashion, and I know the actor enjoys that style IRL, which is great. But I’m talking about Khanin the character, not NN. The problem is that there was no reason for the change. It felt like they were trying to visually code him as the “pretty boy uke” now that he was paired with the stoic, manly seme. It felt tropey and lazy. It felt like the costume team went, “Oh, he’s in love now, better throw some pearls and ruffles on him.” If he had always dressed that way from the start, I wouldn’t have had a problem. But this sudden shift just made his character make less sense.
6. Chemistry - Before this drama started airing, I have watched ZNN in lots of different programs and interviews. That was how I became convinced that this show would have fantastic chemistry; however, this drama had none of it. I honestly couldn’t feel the love. I wanted to. I tried. But it just wasn’t there. There was no emotional depth between Khanin and Charan. They had a few intense eye contacts, some savior moments, some dramatic palace run-ins, and fell in love, but no real development. Their storyline felt hollow, and the romance felt unearned. I didn't even want to watch their NC scenes. I had to fast-forward them because those did nothing for me. I felt nothing other than the fact that the company added spicy scenes to get more views/watchers. I didn't feel their love or feelings. It just felt like a random soft-core porno.
7. Extremely underdeveloped 3rd couple - Oof, where do I even start? I don't understand why this drama even had a third couple. They barely had a storyline together. Like, we don't know when the started liking each other, why they started liking each other..We just see them having a few moments together in the drama, and then they suddenly confess. That's it. Honestly, I would've been okay just seeing these two characters separately than seeing them as a couple. That would have made more sense.
Overall, I went into The Next Prince ready to fall in love. The budget, the visuals, the setting.. Everything about this drama screamed potential. But what we got was a half-baked story with beautiful aesthetics and no emotional depth. The characters were inconsistent, the romance was rushed, the plot was dragging, and everything felt like a checklist of BL tropes without any real feelings. Disappointing and sad is all I have to say. I initially wanted to rate this lower, but the second couple were interesting enough that I gave it a higher score than what I had initially planned.
SIDE NOTE: This is just my perspective and opinion. If you're interested in watching this, then please go ahead and do so. Don't let my review bother you :) My score also has a lot to do with the high expectations I had for this drama, so the disappointment just hit me really hard.
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