This review may contain spoilers
A Royal Disappointment
I must admit, I was REALLY excited for this show. The storyline sounded really unique, and IU has never disappointed me thus far. In the beginning, I was hooked, but the story wasn't as good throughout.
Story: 6/10
A big part of the reason I was excited for the show was a unique storyline. A commoner woman and a prince is overdone, but a contract marriage between them, politics, and business seemed interesting. Although this show was good, I had two big issues with the storyline: character depth and pacing.
The characters in this show are honestly rather shallow. In particular, the 2nd male lead is very flat, and his scenes throughout honestly just portray him as a sort-of servant to the crown, never truly showing him in his own power (nor his own greed) as a Prime Minister. He wants the FL from the beginning (despite her never having any interest) and never changes his mind despite knowing the odds are against him. The Queen Mother is also relatively shallow, something that disappointed me as she is meant to be one of the main villains. Her character was set up to be evil but she's really just someone that argues with the leads and doesn't make very many decisions. She's not as ruthless as you would expect her character to be. Even the leads' backgrounds are poorly written. For the FL, we know her mother was a mistress. But WHO was her mother? Why did her father hate the royals so much --- was her mother possibly a noblewoman/someone with ties to the royal family? For the ML, it's implied both of his parents were killed. But by who specifically --- nobility, or fights within the royal family itself?
The show seems to hint at many things in the first half, making you think there will be a big twist and the pieces will all fall into place. But then, the show seems to forget about all of the things I discussed above, and then sort of...moves on like those points weren't important. Then why tell us?
The pacing is another key issue. About 75% of the show is almost too leisurely, and the last quarter feels very rushed. There are many scenes that feel repetitive (conflict between people where they just imply things rather than actually do anything). In my opinion, the royal wedding should've happened by ep 6 and then they should've build the tension of unwinding secrets from then. Either that, or the show should've been extended to 16 episodes.
Acting: 10/10
I LOVE IU and all of her dramas, and this one is no exception. She's sassy, she's cute, she's comedic. But she's also angry, heartbroken, and betrayed. Her acting is lighthearted to match the genre, but still fun to watch. I do agree with others that her and the ML's chemistry was a little lacking in some scenes, but it didn't bother me as I still felt they looked good together in their roles. For the ML, I haven't watched any of his dramas before, but I enjoyed his acting as well, particularly in his blushing, cutesy scenes with the FL. The other couples are also very cute in this show and I enjoyed their acting as well. In particular, though, I LOVED the acting of the Queen Mother. It was subtle but really catches your attention, and her elegance really brings the character to life. I'll definitely be watching more of her works as well.
Music: 8/10
As I always say, I'm not a big OST person but it was okay.
Rewatch Value: 6/10
I don't usually rewatch dramas, but I'd rate this as a 6/10 rewatch value because it's lighthearted and cute, as long as you ignore all the glaring plot points. But if I'd be rewatching it in the future, chances are I probably wouldn't care about those points the second time around.
As always, no hate to any of the actors or the writer. It was a great drama otherwise :)
Story: 6/10
A big part of the reason I was excited for the show was a unique storyline. A commoner woman and a prince is overdone, but a contract marriage between them, politics, and business seemed interesting. Although this show was good, I had two big issues with the storyline: character depth and pacing.
The characters in this show are honestly rather shallow. In particular, the 2nd male lead is very flat, and his scenes throughout honestly just portray him as a sort-of servant to the crown, never truly showing him in his own power (nor his own greed) as a Prime Minister. He wants the FL from the beginning (despite her never having any interest) and never changes his mind despite knowing the odds are against him. The Queen Mother is also relatively shallow, something that disappointed me as she is meant to be one of the main villains. Her character was set up to be evil but she's really just someone that argues with the leads and doesn't make very many decisions. She's not as ruthless as you would expect her character to be. Even the leads' backgrounds are poorly written. For the FL, we know her mother was a mistress. But WHO was her mother? Why did her father hate the royals so much --- was her mother possibly a noblewoman/someone with ties to the royal family? For the ML, it's implied both of his parents were killed. But by who specifically --- nobility, or fights within the royal family itself?
The show seems to hint at many things in the first half, making you think there will be a big twist and the pieces will all fall into place. But then, the show seems to forget about all of the things I discussed above, and then sort of...moves on like those points weren't important. Then why tell us?
The pacing is another key issue. About 75% of the show is almost too leisurely, and the last quarter feels very rushed. There are many scenes that feel repetitive (conflict between people where they just imply things rather than actually do anything). In my opinion, the royal wedding should've happened by ep 6 and then they should've build the tension of unwinding secrets from then. Either that, or the show should've been extended to 16 episodes.
Acting: 10/10
I LOVE IU and all of her dramas, and this one is no exception. She's sassy, she's cute, she's comedic. But she's also angry, heartbroken, and betrayed. Her acting is lighthearted to match the genre, but still fun to watch. I do agree with others that her and the ML's chemistry was a little lacking in some scenes, but it didn't bother me as I still felt they looked good together in their roles. For the ML, I haven't watched any of his dramas before, but I enjoyed his acting as well, particularly in his blushing, cutesy scenes with the FL. The other couples are also very cute in this show and I enjoyed their acting as well. In particular, though, I LOVED the acting of the Queen Mother. It was subtle but really catches your attention, and her elegance really brings the character to life. I'll definitely be watching more of her works as well.
Music: 8/10
As I always say, I'm not a big OST person but it was okay.
Rewatch Value: 6/10
I don't usually rewatch dramas, but I'd rate this as a 6/10 rewatch value because it's lighthearted and cute, as long as you ignore all the glaring plot points. But if I'd be rewatching it in the future, chances are I probably wouldn't care about those points the second time around.
As always, no hate to any of the actors or the writer. It was a great drama otherwise :)
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