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Loved till 19th episode
Loved it so much (until 19th episode mostly, will get to that later) it had everything i like, costume drama, comedy, romance, transmigration done right. From day one jung bong hwan as soyong was hilarious and every drama he caused was just so entertaining. Jo hwa jin taking his flirting as threats was so amusing. But everything got more interesting when the romance started and sobong (jung bong hwan as soyong) starts taking everything seriously and really get involved in the palace intrigue. Him trying to resist falling for cheoljjong but eventually just falling in love was š«ā¤ļøthe kings brother was so annoying to me for entirety of the drama except for when he was shown having feelings for jo hwa jin then he became interesting.
i can't recall names but almost all the characters were serving some purposes and participated in plot development which i liked very much.
hongyeon and lady choi my loves, it saddens me them saying bye just before sobong went to the palace with cheoljjong was actually a goodbye goodbye but they've no idea ugh
Now to more of a rant... i just had to review publicly the ending annoyed me so much in my mind jung bong hwan stays idc he's the real love of cheoljjong's life... saw some comments say there were glimpses of soyong too when cj fell in love, ig they watched a different show than me cause WHERE? sobong got soyong's memory & maybe embroidery skills but he absolutely didn't have any of her personality or mannerism her memories helped him get clearer pictures about palace residents but not for one moment it was soyong which is why the ending is just meh to me. if they were going to try to sell us soyong and jung bong hwan were interchangeable maybe they should've been more similar or we should've seen more of soyong.
anyways kim byung in redemption was very meh and annoying too.
they could've at least given me cheoljjong reincarnating and jung bong meeting him at the end idk
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Had a lot of potential but ultimately a letdown
The drama started off strong, though I wasnāt a fan of the underlying message about suicide. The idea that āyou committed suicide when life wasnāt that hardā didnāt sit well with me. Still, part one was a banger, and I found myself hooked, especially as Yijaeās character evolved. I loved watching him become more radicalized with each tribulation he faced, as his growing anger and resolve felt authentic and gripping. One of my favorite arcs was when he reconnected with Jisu. The two lifetimes that followed, where he took revenge, were satisfying and really added depth to the story. There was a real intensity in how he pursued revenge.Even though I loved the progression, I couldnāt shake the sadness from Jisuās death. It was a heavy blow, and while I understood it was important for Yijaeās growth, it still left me feeling heartbroken. Despite this, I enjoyed almost every one of Yijaeās reincarnations, except maybe the last one. In that final life, I had really hoped that his mother would be able to live her own life, free from the burden of struggles. Instead, Yijae ended up living through her, which left me conflicted. It felt like she never got the chance to live for herself
Another issue that started creeping in for me was about the original hosts of the bodies Yijae was taking over. At first, I was caught up in Yijaeās tribulation and didnāt think much about it. But as the story progressed, I began to feel sad for these people, especially since they just disappeared without ever knowing how their lives would have ended. They were used as vessels for Yijaeās journey, but we never really got to see any closure for them (other than the psychopath i wish all of them had a closure). The fact that their lives were erased so abruptly started to bother me as the plot moved forward.
By the end, Yijae being given a second chance at life felt like it canceled out everything he had done in other peopleās bodies. It made all his previous actions seem futile, and I started to question the point of his journey. Deathās warning that Jisu would die regardless made me feel even more uneasy, as it implied that Yijae didnāt have much time left with her, which added a bittersweet tone to the ending.
Lastly, the fact that there were two psychopaths still on the loose by the end of the story left me feeling unsatisfied. It was hard to grasp how all of Yijaeās efforts could be undone so easily, and it left me wondering what the real message of the drama was. While I enjoyed many aspects of the show, the ending left me feeling frustrated and confused, as if everything Yijae had fought for ultimately didnāt matter.
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A solid drama
i was seated for this since the day they announced the cast. the first leak of the leads a month later made me even more excited. up until the release with every new trailer and teaser i was more and more excited. i always try my best to not get too hyped for any drama since that brings disappointment a lot of the time but i couldn't help myself with this one, i tuned in thinking i might get disappointed somewhere down the line.well, thankfully nothing of that sort happened and i am really happy and surprised. the story was pretty straightforward, the ml wasn't invincible needed help along the way, but didn't lose his focus on his revenge. i absolutely adored the fl i just wish she was more present there.
the acting was great specially xiao zhan, huang jue & the actor who played cao jingxian impressed me the most. zhang jingyi was excellent with whatever she was given which imo wasn't enough but still i am quite happy with her character.
every single character left impression on me. my absolute favorites are zanghai, antu, gaoming shifu, liu chu shifu, zhuang zhixing etc
i haven't written a long review in a while so it's all over the place but thank you to the cast and crew for this absolute masterpiece of a drama despite some small hiccups i loved it overall.
zanghai & antu i love you two so much. xiao zhan and jingyi hope you two reunite soon in a romance focused drama.
& lastly hope season 2 actually ends up happening.
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