grapejuice

I read the book years ago ... and watched the film when it came out ... years ago. So, call me whatever you like. I really don't care. I was only making one point and it was for only one person; you and nobody else. The point is that, if you want to watch sex scenes so badly, watch sex movies, not kdramas or cdramas that are not going to have them. Asking for kdramas to have sex scenes, is silly. They are made, primarily, by artists who create television programs for Asian family viewing.at home. Believe me, I'm not dictating anything to anybody. Son Ye Jin and Ji Chang Wook aren't going to show skin doing sex scenes for a kdrama. Believing that they will is just going to disappoint you. The source material ... didn't have sex scenes in it so there is absolutely no reason for them to go there. Your initial comment was deluded thirst.

ep3. Why am I feeling so frustrated with the ML? He's supposed to be brilliant. But he's only smart in a technical logical way that doesn't quite overcome the fact that he is also smug, over-confident and just naive. I mean I get that his training hasn't taken place in the real world but omg he's in such a rush to vengeance that his common sense flies out the window at every turn. I've never had this level of second hand embarrassment for a MC ... and such exasperation at the same time. Not sure I'm going to get through this drama unless he changes significantly and soon. Please let me know if I should keep trying because he'll learn and change ... or I should quit because this is just his ultimate personality.

Sweet darling. You are the one who is reading poorly. I did not say that the films were porn. You wont find real sex scenes in kdramas so if sex scenes are what you are looking for, if you think the drama would be useless without them, you will be disappointed. If you need sex scenes you would be better off watching porn where you will inevitably find them. I keep reading comments like yours, wanting sex scenes from kdramas and cdramas and frankly ... they are unicorns. Also ... when someone says "source material" that is the origin of the story so it usually means the novel that a 'film' comes from. Also ... I said film rather than movie because the most recent one, at least, was a quality production as well as being a visual remaking of a classic novel; a bit high brow, almost an art house kind of thing ...you know? I don't usually write this kind of cutting comment but you should probably be careful about accusing people of not being able to read. You can be really wrong and, if you are right, you will just needlessly hurt someone's feelings.

Why should she do nudity when she isn't a porn star?

The source material was controversial because its' characters talked about sex. There were no explicit sex scenes. The two films that were made had more nudity and sexual content but still only a very little, so why should a kdrama have sex scenes even if it's on Netflix? You'll have better luck if you seek out what you really want ... porn.

The summary sounds terrible. One woman sets up another to create a devastating scandal? Widows had no room for error in those days. She'll be hanged. So why would another woman create this situation? How could she hope to empower herself by doing so? And what kind of man would take such a bet? I mean I don't need to have all the MC's in a drama be exemplary, perfect people but I'm only seeing evil people in this drama if that description is accurate. And I'm not keen to watch anything as horrible as that? So, can anyone put some flesh on that summary that would redeem it? Or is it accurate?

Wow. I really appreciate this !!! I'd like to go back to that episode and watch it again to see what you're saying cuz, to be honest, I was/am just remembering the gist of what was in it. Can we continue tomorrow? I don't have express so I'll be trying to stay away until all the spoilers die down and I can catch up.

same :-) can't wait for season 3

It's ZL's ... nightmare? omg. I should hope so ...

I think very few people who are on the outside looking in would be able to see how important the Salt Reform actually is. It's a redistribution of wealth and power that will take down a lot of the corrupt officials who have been using it to gain wealth and power at the expense of commoners (regular people, merchants and soldiers who have starved because these power players have been skimming off the top).

The Emperor has no choice but to get rid of the biggest of these players for the sake of his entire realm and his own power to save it. To achieve that end, he has chosen ZL to be his blade. He hasn't chosen to play nice about it either. ZL is not in any position to waffle around in his allegiance and as of now it's abundantly clear that he has to get this done somehow or a lot of shit is going to hit the fan for everyone.

ZL didn't even fully realize this until now but now he knows it beyond a shadow of a doubt so, if he dares, he can now lay the stakes out to TY so that she can now fully understand it too. Because she hasn't had that chance either. She has been living without the comprehension she needs in order to put things into their proper perspective. She hasn't fully known that ZL is between a rock and a hard place.

She hasn't known that, until this is over, they have to abandon their better selves, their morals, their friends and the nice clean life she had hoped for. So, we can't blame her for thinking and acting as she has been. Those are the parameters they have to accept until the reform goes through, the king gets some money in his treasury and is able to run his realm the way that he wants ... without the Yu family manipulating everything to keep themselves in roses. People will starve. Soldiers will starve ... until these things get settled.

So, it's an ends justify the means situation until it's over and then everyone can afford to live that clean life they wanted. They don't have to become the Yu family. They don't have to retire and go grow vegetables in order to avoid the pitfalls or the pull of power. They just have to survive these shifting times and go back to being themselves.

Spoiler tags please. A commenter below has just rightly complained and is now thinking to drop the drama because of them all.

A Sen desperately wants to marry the Wang daughter and everyone knew it at a glance. It was almost funny how much the two of them like one another. So ZL would have been taking gifts to propose marriage (as A Sen's defacto dad or brother) sooner or later. He just chose to do it a bit earlier so that he had an excuse to go and conference with his buddies in the Northwest. I'm sure that A Sen and the Wang daughter wouldn't have minded. Though it might be awkward, now, for ZL to attend their wedding. Sad.

haha. I think they're genius fast learners but, at the moment, this is sounding and looking about right.

oh please don't listen to the complaints. And Im so sorry youve seen so many spoilers. this is an excellent drama from ep1 all the way thru to now with countless moments worth watching. the characters are imperfect and they're having a rough time on their way to the moment of winning. it would be ridiculous for anything to be otherwise ... so I seriously see no need for all the discontent. people are just being pissy and ungrateful in my view. The story writing. The developments. The characters and acting. The design and cinematography are all excellent and nothing is flagging. If you are enjoying Blossoms of Power you will enjoy this too. So go and come back to binge the rest of this one. The writer and director are known for good endings that don't go south. You'll want to see them after this. Anyway, please don't stop watching. that would be a real shame.

You know, if you like this one ... and you haven't already seen it ... I think you will like Joy of Life as well. It has all the scheming but it's understandably plus a little more humor and a wee little bit of the fantastical as well. I was just looking at it deciding to watch it again for the x number of times while I wait for the next installment of this one.

I think they still do have respect for each other and they realize that they aren't on the same page even though they are still communicating and planning together to the degree that they can. TY isn't working directly for the Emperor while ZL definitely is stuck in a role that he can't really share with her, a role that's dirty enough and dangerous enough that he doesn't really want to share it with her. And, so far, there have only been times when he shouldn't.

I mean, he killed her dad and we all interpreted that as something that he willingly chose to do. But with her father consistently causing massive scenes that could get ZL kicked out of court and derail the salt reform ... do you think that ZL really had a choice? No, the Yu's were using daddy dearest too easily and too well. So, he had to be removed somehow.

But could TY have been involved in that? No.

And the Mo incident. Did ZL have a choice? Could/should he have involved TY in that? She doesn't work directly for the King and she didn't share her plan with ZL. He's not the only one failing to communicate and work together. And the Emperor needed a monumental show of total devotion anyway. He wanted total obedience and rapid action to shut down a disastrous situation. So, even if she had communicated with her husband ... and he had communicated with her ... well ... and her book of evidence was too little too late anyway.

I think the thing for us all to do now is to realize that this couple can't be what it was ... at least for a while. They need a miraculous level plan at this point ...

Come now. You're too smart for this very dramatic question ... :-)
Maybe wait till it's over ... before rating it?

It's kind of funny when people (other characters and audience members too) claim that ZL has power or power has kind of gone to his head.

Because he really doesn't have any power of his own. He absolutely cannot say no to the King. The only power he has belongs to the King. And it can be taken back in a nanosecond possibly taken along with one clean swing of the heavy blade that removes his head. The Emperor has made him into an extention of himself but one that can be worn or removed as needs be. ZL and TY have no alliances because the King needs total devotion and can't allow them too have what Yu has (wealth, alliances and many ways out).

It's actually more accurate to say that ZL and TY have absolutely no power of their own. They can't say no and adhere to their own values, morals, wants, needs ... And they can't walk away when they want to either. They're too valuable to a King who has invested maybe too much in them.

I mean does the King have any real choices either? It seems not. Why? Because the Yus (and others too maybe) have become way too powerful over many many years.

At the time, she asked him to choose between an honest life and a dishonest one where the now Emperor's offer clearly represented the honest road. Neither of them had any idea that the Emperor had this kind of plan for them; one where they would have to be totally devoted, totally obedient and just as cut-throat as the villains.

To be fair. Both of them were naive and really had no idea what they were signing up for or who and what they would be up against.