sunflower63

Watching this saeguk for me was like watching a live tale. It was all represented in a very realistic way, so much that the excessive violence sometimes disturbed me although I understand that these events probably truly happened in that time period. The lifetime of this hero was very well portrayed and by the end I grew really fond of the group of rebels. The costumes and OST here were also very good. It was not a relaxing watch but it was very fullfilling at the end.

I will be curious to see how the Japanese will adapt the Korean original which I absolutely loved. Usually their adaptations are good because they are drier and essential but in this case I really hope that Nagase (of whom I am a big fan) will be able to portray the angst in the same intense and exceptional way that So Ji Sub did in the original. It was a very moving story and I hope that this version will be the same.

This is truly the most poetic/artistic Korean drama I have seen up to now (the only one that gets a little close to this is Painter in the Wind) and one which I will not easily forget.
The most outstanding features here were definitely the sceneries, the OST and the amazing chemistry between the leads (in the part concerning the past).
The only flaw in this drama for me was the part in the present which wasn't as involving as the one in the past and was also a little frustrating at times.
I think on the whole this is a perfect representation of romance in its purest and most delicate form.

I am enjoying it a lot so far...it has clever comedy moments and not the typical romance...and I like the fact that the plot seems a sort of mixture between Bodyguard and 007. :)

I had fun reading your article...I have definitely been in the acceptance stage for quite a while now and I don't see myself quitting anytime soon. ;)

Great article thanks for writing it. There are many scenes in the over 320 dramas I have seen that have warmed my heart and which I would like to watch over and over...the first one that comes to mind is a very recent one in Saimdang about painting on a red painting (those who have seen the drama know what I mean). For what concerns my favourite best looking actor...well as my profile photo shows, of course Gong Yoo. ;)

I really like the cast in this drama!

He is an amazing actor, I agree. I also discovered him in Long Vacation and watched most of his past and present famous dramas. However for me in the past few years he has lost his shine and his dramas unfortunately haven't been as successful as his previous ones. I hope he will choose a good project and have a great comeback soon.

It took me a long time to finish this saeguk as I watched in between currently airing dramas.
I have to say that after a few doubts at the beginning of the drama on whether to carry on or not (as I was expecting too much makjang because of the bad sister) I was really glad I pulled through as it became more and more beautiful and involving as the story progressed.
I have to say that now I will have the opposite problem, i.e. to find a saeguk just as lovely to watch at this one was.
The story for me was really poetic from beginning to end...in particular some characters like Kuchon will be hard to forget, but I also really liked the King, The Marshall, Jinmu and the two main leads. Everything here was absolutely perfect and for me it was exactly like reading a really good historical novel. I will miss everyone here and I hope to see some of the actors of this cast in new projects soon.

Long time no see...have you been OK?

Thanks for writing this article. I actually discovered Arashi by chance by watching the drama called Kagi no Kakkatta Heya in which Ohno was starring. I was struck by the good acting and story but most of all by the theme song Face Down.
When I went to check it on Youtube I discovered Arashi and since then I have been listening to many of their albums and watching many of their live concerts. Although I haven't watched any of their other dramas I think they are all great fun and I enjoy their music a lot. :)

Thanks for writing this article. I also found that lately most of the best dramas were shown on tvN and I really hope this trend continues. Some of my all time favourites are on this list like Goblin, Reply 1988, Signal and Another Oh Hae Young.

I only watched Missing 9 (left incomplete), and The Good Wife out of all these and I definitely preferred the latter. I didn't see the American original but this Korean version was very well made and acted and I gave it top rating.

Admittedly this was a great drama. Almost everything was flawless, the acting, the writing, the settings etc. Of course Ji Sung's acting talent was what shone most here and I agree that Uhm Ki Joon was also very good (it was indeed very easy to hate him and his smirks). There was only one aspect that bothered me througout this story which is why my rating is not the highest: I found many situations to be too exaggerated.
Yes society certainly is corrupt all over the world but everything that happened here was rather unrealistic and blown out of proportion in one way or another. I would have considered it a masterpiece if they stuck to reality a bit more. However on the whole it was a great and addicting watch.

I enjoyed this drama a lot especially because it dealt with a female doctor, a rare character at those times in that part of the world. I also found the story beautiful, in particular the romance part.

My first thought when writing an opinion about this drama is definitely that the best feature was the main couple's acting and good chemistry. The worst feature was the actual plot, i.e. the writing.
Usually I really enjoy time travelling stories or where the past, present and future are connected. Unfortunately in this story the time travelling part didn't make much sense and in particular how the characters behaved in relation to what they knew. There were too many plot holes and parts where many incidents could have easily been avoided.
I also agree with those who wrote that the story dragged quite a lot in the middle. It's a pity as the cast was pretty good (except for the villain). I believe that this drama could have overall been much better with a more sensible plot.

Yeeeeahhh, great to have you back Amrita, and I have exactly the same opinion on this drama and almost the same rating too (7.5 for me). ;)

I totally agree with this article. In the past few years I have mostly watched currently airing dramas and for me it's fun to wait and guess what will happen next. I am never impatient or upset that I have to wait a week to know what will happen as there are so many airing dramas that I hardly have any spare time to realize that a week has gone between the episodes.
I also enjoy reading everyone else's comments whilst watching the drama as it's fun to read different opinions and guesses. I used to marathon older dramas in the past but now I have seen most of the best ones so I am mostly concentrating on the currently airing ones.

I don't think I have ever watched a drama this long before. The longest I have watched so far are Japanese asadoras with over 150 episodes which were only 15 minutes long...however much I like Korean historical dramas I doubt I could last through something so demanding. However never say never and I will keep it in mind since you gave it such a high rating. :)

As many others have said this drama didn't start out too well but it soon became really enjoyable and pleasant to watch. I have to say that I am now sorry that it ended as it was so relaxing and fun.
I can imagine that there are many people out there with the same kinds of problems so this story also gave an optimistic and positive outlook to the whole issue of being introverted.
The cast was amazing and in particular I appreciated Yeon Woo Jin who was flawless and very believable in his role. This drama turned out to be a very pleasant surprise and I definitely recommend it when looking for something light but clever.