Possibly wrong title for this show...
Summary: This is one of the strangest romances I’ve watched. The movie poster and Netflix description don’t quite capture the essence of this thriller/mystery romance(?), which I thought would be like a cheesy ghost story comedy based on Episode 1’s preview of Lee Hong-jo’s encounter with Jang Shin-yu in the elevator. I almost think a different movie title like "Curse You, Curse Me" would have been more appropriate. lol. Warning that there’s dark elements of death, murder, and supernatural circumstances that can throw you off if you’re not prepared (and only sought to watch an actual romcom).
Though the show was still good with moments of sweetness and comedy and an ending with closure for the main characters, there were still some loose ends that remained untied as far as storyline and character backstories, and left me a bit disappointed. Also, the last episode dragged on a bit and ended with a location that had nothing to do with the rest of show. The not-so-subtle advertising for sponsors was also a bit awkward for me, like frequently visiting Goobne (which is not even near my area) and saying, “Mmmmm, this chicken is so good every time I come here…” Ugh.
Details: At the beginning of the movie, I felt annoyed by the male lead’s stoic manner and conceited attitude towards the female lead, saying some pretty mean things to her. The female lead’s aggressive and impolite attitude towards the male lead was also unattractive. They also didn’t look like they went together (was hoping for the second male lead) but made more sense when the storyline unraveled in the past (hint: involves period references), in which they look better together as a couple. However, the sudden change of behavior in one of the main characters was off-putting and didn’t draw me into the supposed love story between the two. I’m not a big fan of heavy color-processed hair on Asian folks (preferred the female lead with her darker, more natural looking hair) but I get if it was meant as a visual divider between different time periods.
Eventually, a lot of the characters evolved and became more thoughtful people. All the actors were great and the leads portrayed the characters’ pain so well. Towards the end, I was annoyed by the female lead’s ignorance by going into scary places alone and not telling the key people in her life about it, after they kept telling her to communicate with them. But it’s also classic dumb hero/heroine behavior in many movies/shows.
Some unanswered questions I had were:
- whether the ‘ceremonies’ conducted by the main characters really worked or not (there’s no further explanation later in the series), which makes me question their supposed ‘destiny’; the answer to that situation is KEY to what caused the sudden behavioral changes in the main characters that led to “love”
- what the significance of the supporting characters in the past was (otherwise, what’s the point of showing them other than more screen time?)
- how child Lee Hong-jo (past period) got sick and what brought her to the temple in the first place, as well as where the heck her parents were in all of that
- why the shaman lady (past period) got punished by the noble in charge (no further explanation later in the series), as it seemed like a pointless part of the storyline
- WHO really put the curse on the noble (past period); I think it was the villain but it was never explained later in the show
- why the villain had similar powers to one of the main characters, which was also never explained later in the show
For the gaping holes in this storyline, I probably would not recommend this drama to others. The acting is good but the show is better as a rainy-day, bored-out-of-mind watch, in my opinion.
Though the show was still good with moments of sweetness and comedy and an ending with closure for the main characters, there were still some loose ends that remained untied as far as storyline and character backstories, and left me a bit disappointed. Also, the last episode dragged on a bit and ended with a location that had nothing to do with the rest of show. The not-so-subtle advertising for sponsors was also a bit awkward for me, like frequently visiting Goobne (which is not even near my area) and saying, “Mmmmm, this chicken is so good every time I come here…” Ugh.
Details: At the beginning of the movie, I felt annoyed by the male lead’s stoic manner and conceited attitude towards the female lead, saying some pretty mean things to her. The female lead’s aggressive and impolite attitude towards the male lead was also unattractive. They also didn’t look like they went together (was hoping for the second male lead) but made more sense when the storyline unraveled in the past (hint: involves period references), in which they look better together as a couple. However, the sudden change of behavior in one of the main characters was off-putting and didn’t draw me into the supposed love story between the two. I’m not a big fan of heavy color-processed hair on Asian folks (preferred the female lead with her darker, more natural looking hair) but I get if it was meant as a visual divider between different time periods.
Eventually, a lot of the characters evolved and became more thoughtful people. All the actors were great and the leads portrayed the characters’ pain so well. Towards the end, I was annoyed by the female lead’s ignorance by going into scary places alone and not telling the key people in her life about it, after they kept telling her to communicate with them. But it’s also classic dumb hero/heroine behavior in many movies/shows.
Some unanswered questions I had were:
- whether the ‘ceremonies’ conducted by the main characters really worked or not (there’s no further explanation later in the series), which makes me question their supposed ‘destiny’; the answer to that situation is KEY to what caused the sudden behavioral changes in the main characters that led to “love”
- what the significance of the supporting characters in the past was (otherwise, what’s the point of showing them other than more screen time?)
- how child Lee Hong-jo (past period) got sick and what brought her to the temple in the first place, as well as where the heck her parents were in all of that
- why the shaman lady (past period) got punished by the noble in charge (no further explanation later in the series), as it seemed like a pointless part of the storyline
- WHO really put the curse on the noble (past period); I think it was the villain but it was never explained later in the show
- why the villain had similar powers to one of the main characters, which was also never explained later in the show
For the gaping holes in this storyline, I probably would not recommend this drama to others. The acting is good but the show is better as a rainy-day, bored-out-of-mind watch, in my opinion.
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