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"The winner's desire becomes The Great Cause"
After waiting for years for Six Flying Dragons to be available to watch legally in my region, I was finally able to see this highly recommended drama. Like its characters, I found it to be entertaining, if flawed. Because the story follows historical characters, a few of my comments may be spoilerish for some, though I don’t spoil who makes it out alive and who doesn’t or other pertinent spoilers.
What worked for me: The acting was strong with a few exceptions. The music, sets, costumes, fight choreography, and scenery were on point. The characters, even the heroic ones, were flawed and showed the conflicts of the time. Unlike some historicals, the writers incorporated women into the story.
What didn’t work for me: There was a lot of repetition and way too many Very Important Speeches. A VIS is when the character’s eyes become dewy, the camera moves in, the dramatic music is cued, and the spittle flies. Used judiciously, they are rousing. Using them several times an episode is exhausting and diminishes their impact. One scene had not one, not two, but three VISs back-to-back! Massive exposition dumps were often incorporated in these or speeches were largely repeated. Lastly, by the halfway point I was already suffering from political intrigue fatigue. Some of the adversaries were just not compelling enough all while Yi Seong Gye was dragging his feet through mud trying to avoid his destiny. Make up your mind, man!
Six Flying Dragons was stretching things. There were two dragons and several geckos. (I posted the original poem Six Flying Dragons at the end of this review referring to Bang Won and his familial predecessors. My dragon/gecko critiques are in reference to the movie poster and inferences. )
Dragon One-Yi Bang Won is one of those controversial characters from history. He made improvements to the country but will leave you wondering if the ends justified the means. Women also lost out when they were forced into Confucian roles in the new Joseon society. Yoo Ah In gave a solid performance as the emotionally complex Bang Won, the man ever struggling with the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. I wasn’t invested in the romance and was disappointed they didn’t explore his marriage more. He had 12 children with his intelligent and politically savvy wife which was never touched on.
Dragon Two-Kim Myung Min was given free reign to chew the scenery as the revolutionary leader Sam Bong Jung Do Jeon. I actually came to despise him as much as the “bad” guys because many of his methods were the same. Does the person being tortured or murdered care if the leader giving the orders has idealistic plans for the country? He had no problem winding Bang Won up and pointing him like a loaded crossbow at people that needed to be dealt with while ostensibly keeping his hands clean and leaving BW to suffer the consequences. His "idealistic" country completely left out human nature and was bound for failure, even from his own actions. He didn’t want a powerful royal family but yet took all the relevant power for himself, altruistically, of course.
Cute Gecko Who Reads-I wasn’t crazy about the female lead but she was the avatar for the “common” people or peasants. Not the slaves mind you, because the peasants looked down on the slaves whom they had much more in common with than the nobles they were aligning themselves with. Boon Yi was a magical female lead who managed to look stunning while eking out a living as a peasant farmer and had time to teach herself how to read and write in a non-phonetic language. (Lee Bang Won’s son would make it much easier for people to read in the future.) Boon Yi was also financially and physically protected by numerous men, dimming our window into the commoners’ precarious world. But at least we could see how their hopes and dreams were alternately raised and dashed by both the bad guys and the “good” guys.
Cute Geckos with Swords- Lee Bang Ji and Mu Hyul. Both suffered from moral conflict about what they were doing but still managed to flash their swords when necessary. Byun Yo Han lifted his narrowly drawn Bang Ji off the page heroically through an emotional performance. Yoon Kyun Sang was saddled with the dim, sweet, if lethal, Mu Hyul. I’m not casting shade on our bodyguards, if there is a class of characters I have a special affinity for, it’s the ponytailed, loyal, sword wielding guards.
Tired, Wishy-Washy Gecko---Yi Seong Gye. The first king of Joseon was usually portrayed in reaction shots looking shocked and was continually reluctant to do anything. Sam Bong must have chosen him not only because he had an army but he knew he could lead him around.
Honorable mention gecko—the ever loyal bodyguard Jo Young Gyu.
Honorable mention enigmatic characters—Yoon Rang, and the twins Gil Tae Mi and Gil Seon Mi. Park Hyuk Kwon gave two powerful and very different performances, somehow managing to elicit a measure of sympathy for both.
Overall, Six Flying Dragons was an entertaining drama and well made. I would have rated it higher if I hadn’t found myself checking out emotionally and mentally as it went on. The repetition and slow crawl to the finish line had me wishing for someone to find the strength and ability to burn it all to the ground. Aside from the syrupy epilogue, I largely got my wish. Though my review is written over 10 years after the drama’s debut SFD holds up well, I could easily recommend it for people who enjoy historicals and like me, are just now finding it available to watch in their region.
This drama was the epitome of a problem that continues to plague us:
"The reason poverty exists is not that we can't feed the poor, it's that the rich cannot be satisfied." -Anonymous
13 January 2026
The original poem written in 1447 in Hangul:
Six Flying Dragons in Haedong (* the east of the Sea = Korea)
Everything they did was blessed by Heaven
Their pasts coincide with ancient sages.
A tree with deep roots,
Because the wind sways it not,
Blossoms Abundantly
And bears fruit.
The water from a deep spring,
Because a drought dries it not,
Becomes a stream
And flows to the sea.
What worked for me: The acting was strong with a few exceptions. The music, sets, costumes, fight choreography, and scenery were on point. The characters, even the heroic ones, were flawed and showed the conflicts of the time. Unlike some historicals, the writers incorporated women into the story.
What didn’t work for me: There was a lot of repetition and way too many Very Important Speeches. A VIS is when the character’s eyes become dewy, the camera moves in, the dramatic music is cued, and the spittle flies. Used judiciously, they are rousing. Using them several times an episode is exhausting and diminishes their impact. One scene had not one, not two, but three VISs back-to-back! Massive exposition dumps were often incorporated in these or speeches were largely repeated. Lastly, by the halfway point I was already suffering from political intrigue fatigue. Some of the adversaries were just not compelling enough all while Yi Seong Gye was dragging his feet through mud trying to avoid his destiny. Make up your mind, man!
Six Flying Dragons was stretching things. There were two dragons and several geckos. (I posted the original poem Six Flying Dragons at the end of this review referring to Bang Won and his familial predecessors. My dragon/gecko critiques are in reference to the movie poster and inferences. )
Dragon One-Yi Bang Won is one of those controversial characters from history. He made improvements to the country but will leave you wondering if the ends justified the means. Women also lost out when they were forced into Confucian roles in the new Joseon society. Yoo Ah In gave a solid performance as the emotionally complex Bang Won, the man ever struggling with the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. I wasn’t invested in the romance and was disappointed they didn’t explore his marriage more. He had 12 children with his intelligent and politically savvy wife which was never touched on.
Dragon Two-Kim Myung Min was given free reign to chew the scenery as the revolutionary leader Sam Bong Jung Do Jeon. I actually came to despise him as much as the “bad” guys because many of his methods were the same. Does the person being tortured or murdered care if the leader giving the orders has idealistic plans for the country? He had no problem winding Bang Won up and pointing him like a loaded crossbow at people that needed to be dealt with while ostensibly keeping his hands clean and leaving BW to suffer the consequences. His "idealistic" country completely left out human nature and was bound for failure, even from his own actions. He didn’t want a powerful royal family but yet took all the relevant power for himself, altruistically, of course.
Cute Gecko Who Reads-I wasn’t crazy about the female lead but she was the avatar for the “common” people or peasants. Not the slaves mind you, because the peasants looked down on the slaves whom they had much more in common with than the nobles they were aligning themselves with. Boon Yi was a magical female lead who managed to look stunning while eking out a living as a peasant farmer and had time to teach herself how to read and write in a non-phonetic language. (Lee Bang Won’s son would make it much easier for people to read in the future.) Boon Yi was also financially and physically protected by numerous men, dimming our window into the commoners’ precarious world. But at least we could see how their hopes and dreams were alternately raised and dashed by both the bad guys and the “good” guys.
Cute Geckos with Swords- Lee Bang Ji and Mu Hyul. Both suffered from moral conflict about what they were doing but still managed to flash their swords when necessary. Byun Yo Han lifted his narrowly drawn Bang Ji off the page heroically through an emotional performance. Yoon Kyun Sang was saddled with the dim, sweet, if lethal, Mu Hyul. I’m not casting shade on our bodyguards, if there is a class of characters I have a special affinity for, it’s the ponytailed, loyal, sword wielding guards.
Tired, Wishy-Washy Gecko---Yi Seong Gye. The first king of Joseon was usually portrayed in reaction shots looking shocked and was continually reluctant to do anything. Sam Bong must have chosen him not only because he had an army but he knew he could lead him around.
Honorable mention gecko—the ever loyal bodyguard Jo Young Gyu.
Honorable mention enigmatic characters—Yoon Rang, and the twins Gil Tae Mi and Gil Seon Mi. Park Hyuk Kwon gave two powerful and very different performances, somehow managing to elicit a measure of sympathy for both.
Overall, Six Flying Dragons was an entertaining drama and well made. I would have rated it higher if I hadn’t found myself checking out emotionally and mentally as it went on. The repetition and slow crawl to the finish line had me wishing for someone to find the strength and ability to burn it all to the ground. Aside from the syrupy epilogue, I largely got my wish. Though my review is written over 10 years after the drama’s debut SFD holds up well, I could easily recommend it for people who enjoy historicals and like me, are just now finding it available to watch in their region.
This drama was the epitome of a problem that continues to plague us:
"The reason poverty exists is not that we can't feed the poor, it's that the rich cannot be satisfied." -Anonymous
13 January 2026
The original poem written in 1447 in Hangul:
Six Flying Dragons in Haedong (* the east of the Sea = Korea)
Everything they did was blessed by Heaven
Their pasts coincide with ancient sages.
A tree with deep roots,
Because the wind sways it not,
Blossoms Abundantly
And bears fruit.
The water from a deep spring,
Because a drought dries it not,
Becomes a stream
And flows to the sea.
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