lord_varvara

Might be but it isn't certain when. They announced another season but no movement yet and at least one key cast member is scheduled to film something else. IMO, nothing before 2022.

The most underrated K drama IMO is Arthdal Chronicles. It was the first (and currently only) drama set in a fantasy land like LOTR and GOT with original mythology and mythical creatures (read: no gumihos, hungry ghosts and other staples of 60% of dramas). It had an all-star cast, big budget (Netflix!) and most importantly BEEF (read: buff shirtless or semi-shirtless men everywhere for your hearts content) but it didn't do well in Korea though international audience fell in love with it (it was the 6th most watched drama on Netflix in 2019).

The following will contain spoilers so read only if you watched the drama or don't care to be spoiled.

I can see why it didn't do well in Korea. IMO, this drama is perfect for binging because when it inevitably slows down in order to build up to various payoffs, you can see the bigger picture if you binge. But it was originally released weekly and that kind of release can create impatience if you have to wait for yet another slow episode. Moreover, it apparently was split in 3 parts that aired months apart or something and that would kill any drama, IMO. Finally, it seems that the audience wasn't notified that they watched Season 1 as opposed to the full drama. So the finale left a lot to be desired in such circumtance. Since I knew about it, I though that the finale did what it was intedned to do - give payoff to 2 main buildups which were Tagon's coronation as the King and Eun Seom uniting the tribes under his leadership. I often hear complaint that there was no climax but there was a proper one. Just not what some people wanted.

Another reason may be that some audience expected the drama to focus on a breezy romance between hero Eun Seom and heroine Tanya but the lead turned out to be Tagon, a fantasy Genghis Khan, the anti-hero on a villain journey, and the main OTP were Tagon and Taealha, another anti-heroic/villanous character. I love their romance precisely because they are so toxic to each other yet you can understand why they will never stop loving one another.

I thought the drama did a bang-on job with universe building, mythology and characters. So many memorable ones (including small characters and silent one like Yangcha who is the drama's Boba Fett) and the cast acted the **** out of their roles or two (SJK appears in a dual role as twins
separated at birth and the complex, Elvish-pretty twin Saya in particular is the standout).

Another thing that this drama has, that many LOTR wannabes don't, is a sense of wonder and discovery. Early scenes where Paleolit-like hunter-gatherer Wahan clan discovers civilization, the awe at seeing architectural wonders, induces many goose-bumps. And that sense carries over in later episodes as characters discover more of the world around them. Also, fantastic payoffs to some build-ups. Tanya's dance lessons paying off in the most epic way. Tagon going full igutu on his enemies. Nun Byeol going full Neanthal on the raging bull and then on Arthdals. And so many more.

I also appreciated finer points of the drama. While critical of brutality that built civilizations, it's also critical of utopias that shackle inquiring minds in ignorant bliss. Wahan society assured physical safety but forbid progress. Which is why surviving members discovered that opportunities to learn and develop they got in the land of their captors were better alterantive to their old life no matter the suffering that came before.

Last and not the least, the incredible score. Tracks Arthdal Chronicles, Arth Prelude to All Legends,
Arthdal the Eternal Dream, But I Want You, Tagon's Song, A Child In a Tower, etc are epic beyind epic. I knew I was going to love this drama as soon as I've heard first accords in the opening credits.

if there's season 3 she'll absolutely be in it. This special episode is a prequel of sorts. that said, I'm very upset now since the writer says there's potential for S3 but nothing is confirmed yet. I thought S3 was a given.

no drama is perfect and listing what could be improved is a good thing for dramas that follow. and all your reasons are valid and criticism constructive.

Lmao! So well said! I couldn't get past first 3 episodes. It was boring beyond belief and stupid. And I like LMH mind you. Very easy on eyes.

typical drama problems never go away, sadly. everyone complains about them yet they stick as if complaints fall on deaf ears.

great points and sum up my general problems with dramas:

Forced comic relief characters - ugh, I hate those fillers. I don't mind levity (example, CLOY's NK ahjumas and Captain Ri's buddies) but I mind forced OTT comedy (example, FL's family in True Beauty).

The villains who always lose - this is what I call ML Malady when drama is too afraid to have its ML lose sometimes/fail to thwart the villain, that they make villains ineffective so that ML could always appear cool. Which, in return, kills the stakes and ML doesn't even look good if villain is always dumber than him (example, Tale of the Nine tailed's ML was always the smartest guy in the room which made one wonder why the drama had villains except to show off ML's smarts)

Could easily wrapped up in 12-16 episodes - I'd say less. All dramas go on for far too longer than they should and have too many characters and subplots that don't add up. That's why my favorite dramas are Netflix originals such as Kingdom and Sweet Home because they are steamlined in the way American shows are while keeping the drama flavor with all-Korean cast, language and setting.

speaking of Doom At Your Service, I see a huge discrepancy between Korean ratings ("bad souffle" - perfect!) and shilling on Soompi and Dramabeans where you would think it's the most watched drama ever. Perhaps it's a huge hit on Viki, like another drama with so-so ratings but massive English Speaking Koreaboo Sites shilling, True Beauty. As for Vincenzo, I found this:
https://www.kpopmap.com/update-vincenzo-currently-ranked-5th-most-popular-tv-show-on-netflix-worldwide/
so it looks like an overlap between Korea and global Koreaboos. Unlike KTEM (the worst drama I've ever started to watch), that was huge globally (why???) but disappointed in Korea.

I'm definitely against K drama's overlong running time format. TV episodes should not be over an hour let alone approach a movie length (I'm looking at you CLOY with almost 2 hour long last few episodes). It's the standard problem with dramas as that witty chart "...end of episode 1" shows. They put too much but 70% turns out irrelevant for the larger story.

Sweet Home S2 can't come soon enough and LDH better be in it.

I think it depends on a drama. Weekly is more for dramas that offer constant excitement. Binge, IMO, is better for slow build-up or at least drama that have some slower parts that build up to bigger things. For example, GOT. I don't have HBO so I binged GOT's 6 seasons on DVD and that was much better viewing than when I watched S7 and S8 weekly on non-HBO sites. The show had some slow episodes that were more character work and putting pieces in place for the future payoff which was frustrating on weekly watch (S7 and S8) but worked well on a binge cause I could see the bigger picture instantly.

it really depends. Netflix had astounding hits with binge release that eclipsed many popular weekly shows. It's really a toss up. This sounds like a binge cause only 8 episodes. We'll see.

I hope you are right and they show all at once. I binged Sweet Home. I find it that stories flow better in a binge especially if a drama has some slower parts while building up for big payoffs. That could be annoying week to week.

I hope Netflix entirely ditches Korean TV releases and just do the binge season drop for anything. I'm done with weekly watch. I prefer binge. Also, considering that K taste sometimes widely defers from international (they didn't like my beloved Arthdal Chronicles but internationals lapped it up cause we love epic fantasy), what's the point of showing a Netflix drama on K TV? Many Koreans have Netflix anyway. Just drop the full season.

Great to see Lee Do Hyun line up ML roles. He was the standout of Sweet Home which launched Song Kang but now Lee Do Hyun is picking up steam.

Dear shippers, let me save you the heartache. Tanya and Eunseom are the endgame. That's done and set in stone. Yes, Tanya and Saya are much more shippy and dynamic (well, they spend more time together and their relationship is angsty af which means shipper heaven). Yes, Tanya and Yangcha are an intriguing idea for...a fanfics. It's over. In dramaland, heroic characters who fell in love with each other as children are always the endgame. And that's Tanseom. And this is from someone who ships Sanya hardcore. But facts of life are facts of life. Saya is most likely going to sacrifice himself because he's that kind of a character. You can't beat tropes. We who prefer bad and badish characters to goody goodies know that very well. Being a fan of a bad boy/bad girl and shipping a baddie with a goodie always results is a heartache. I know that I will have to say goodbye to Tagon and Taehla (my favorite romance) and very likely Saya and Yangcha too. I'm crossing fingers I won't have to say goodbye to Ipsaeng and Nunbyeul. I know that I won't have to say goodbye to Eunseon and Tanya cause they are safe and very likely will leave Arthdal at the end like their predecessors Asa Shin and Risan who founded Wahan tribe.

But until Season 2 kicks off, ship risky ships to your hearts content! :)

I understand what you saying and I prefer limited series format (one and done). However, Arthdal Chronicals and Kingdom have an epic story that couldn't have been made into just 1 season. A season with 50 episodes is even bigger drag than waiting for another season. That's why I skip Chinese and Turkish dramas. When I click on Episodes&More and there are 50+ episodes all under Season 1 (out of 5 in case of Turkish dramas), I'm like no way.

it isn't nonsense. The season built up to Tagon's coronation and Eunseon uniting the tribes. That's how seasonal dramas work. Every season is about something else. So next season will be about war obviously. It ended exactly where it should have ended. Sure it sucks that Season 2 likely won't be out before 2022 but that's covid-19.

Amazing article and thanks for beautiful photos. I've been to Jamaica twice for winter holidays and it's a magical place with lots to do and see. If anyone is going, I highly recommend to do crocodile safari on Black River (just viewing no shooting don't worry fellow croc lovers!), swim in the Luminous lagoon at night (it's bio luminescence like in Avatar so completely magical experience), go on Bob Marley pilgrimage and do rafting at Martha Brae - all accessible from Montego Bay resorts. And take Blue Mountain hiking tour and swim in the Blue Lagoon from Port Antonio.

Saya is amazing. He looks like a K Legolas but with complex personality. SJK could easily play an Elf. I'd be totally down for K remake of LOTR. I'm not at all interested in Amazon's LOTR series which is a fanfic rather than adaptation of Tolkien's work. But K LOTR drama would be incredible.

it's funny how those really well built actors are mostly kept buttoned up. blasphemy IMO.