This review may contain spoilers
Closure
Alchemy of Souls 2 was basically a Jang Uk runway show. I won't complain about that part, he's good at it.
I missed the fantastic sword fights, he didn't even need those anymore, since he was the most powerful person around.
I believe the drama gave us some sort of closure, even if it felt like a totally different drama most times. There are still many things that don't make sense. The lack of the main actress does make it harder for it to make sense. They showed a loving FL, something the FL from the first season didn't manage to be. It gave closure to the love story but it felt unnatural to the character and the previous story.
The storytelling got worse, since this is a much shorter drama. All the flashbacks and going back in the story were frustrating. It were 10 episodes, yet it felt like the story was rushed because they kept going back and sometimes even letting the characters tell what had happened this season, instead of showing it.
The telling rather than the showing is a problem in more ways than just this one. The whole show they showed us Jang Uk didn't recognise Naksu, yet in the last episodes he says he recognised her from the start, just like he did the first time. NO, HE DIDN'T!!! One of my main issues with this drama is that almost no one recognised Naksu. Most mages from Songrim saw Naksu while she was held there and a whole lot of them fought her. How could they not recognise her? Expecting her to be dead isn't enough of an excuse and only three years had passed, it's not a lot of time. They made up a lot of excuses as plot devices and that's a part of why the story doesn't hold up. In fact, every time Naksu showed herself in Jin Bu Yeon, he doubted her and couldn't even find the hints he was given. He appears to fall in love with this fourth person who isn't Mu Deok, Jin Bu Yeon or even Naksu. Maybe that's why she ends the show with yet another name.
I don't believe one season is better than the other, I believe they're on par with each other. I had some fun watching this one as well, despite the shortcomings and the sexism, nothing different from the first season.
I missed the fantastic sword fights, he didn't even need those anymore, since he was the most powerful person around.
I believe the drama gave us some sort of closure, even if it felt like a totally different drama most times. There are still many things that don't make sense. The lack of the main actress does make it harder for it to make sense. They showed a loving FL, something the FL from the first season didn't manage to be. It gave closure to the love story but it felt unnatural to the character and the previous story.
The storytelling got worse, since this is a much shorter drama. All the flashbacks and going back in the story were frustrating. It were 10 episodes, yet it felt like the story was rushed because they kept going back and sometimes even letting the characters tell what had happened this season, instead of showing it.
The telling rather than the showing is a problem in more ways than just this one. The whole show they showed us Jang Uk didn't recognise Naksu, yet in the last episodes he says he recognised her from the start, just like he did the first time. NO, HE DIDN'T!!! One of my main issues with this drama is that almost no one recognised Naksu. Most mages from Songrim saw Naksu while she was held there and a whole lot of them fought her. How could they not recognise her? Expecting her to be dead isn't enough of an excuse and only three years had passed, it's not a lot of time. They made up a lot of excuses as plot devices and that's a part of why the story doesn't hold up. In fact, every time Naksu showed herself in Jin Bu Yeon, he doubted her and couldn't even find the hints he was given. He appears to fall in love with this fourth person who isn't Mu Deok, Jin Bu Yeon or even Naksu. Maybe that's why she ends the show with yet another name.
I don't believe one season is better than the other, I believe they're on par with each other. I had some fun watching this one as well, despite the shortcomings and the sexism, nothing different from the first season.
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