Klio

"Survival is both an exalted privilege and a painful burden."

Begins Youth is a drama inspired by BU (BTS universe), a fictional storyline that spans through one webtoon and several music videos, short films and books created by BTS. To watch it you don’t have to be familiar with BU, though. The drama version can stand on its own.

STORY – 9.5/10

It’s a compelling story of 7 boys who live miserable lives, but find comfort in each other after becoming friends. It’s a story full of pain, pain and more pain. Saying their lives are hard would be an understatement. They all suffer either because of their abusive/controlling/uncaring families, harsh living conditions or past traumas and mental health issues caused by those traumas. They’re victims of adults who control their lives and their struggle to survive in that bleak environment is painful to watch. When they get together, however, they can forget about their worries and act like teenagers that they are. Those moments of beautiful friendship in between constant suffering and pain are what makes watching this drama worth it. The conflicts they get into with each other are also gripping because nothing about the bond they share is ever bland. If you’re a sucker for angst, found family tropes and plots centered on strong friendships without unnecessary romantic interferences, there’s a good chance that you’ll love this. One of the important aspects of this story is also time travelling. It doesn’t happen in the beginning, but certain elements of the story, and the last two episodes in particular, cannot be understood without the knowledge of it. The ending leaves space for another season, but we don’t know if there are any official plans for it.

ACTING – 10/10

Aside from Seo Ji Hoon, whom I watched in several other dramas, I wouldn’t say any of these actors are famous. They certainly are underrated though, because they can ACT! This story is challenging and playing characters who have so many issues and who carry so much emotional baggage can’t be easy. Despite that, all 7 of them shine. They did justice to every emotion and their portrayal of emotional breakdowns was painfully realistic. It felt like watching veteran actors in action! Their comedic timing and delivery were also impeccable.
ALSO, there is another aspect of their acting that makes people like me, who are ARMYs, so enthusiastic about the drama. Their portrayal of BTS members’ mannerisms were flawless. It’s actually quite creepy (in a good way) how much Haru, Cein and Hosu (in particular) remind me of Jimin, Yoongi and Hoseok. They really did their homework!

MUSIC – 10/10

Most of the music used in this drama is by BTS. Two other OST songs are also good. “Take it all” by JEMMA is beautifully haunting and it’s probably one of the most beautiful OSTs I’ve ever listened to.

REWATCH VALUE – 10/10
Considering the source material (BU) famous for its fan theories, this drama blends in perfectly. I see myself watching it multiple times in an effort to find more clues about the time travelling. Also, I can never get tired of the bond these 7 share.

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Painfully underrated!

So, it's a story with three main characters who are the driving force behind the plot.

Park Gye Won
- is a powerful prime minister who overthrew one king, installed another, and is currently trying to make the newest king his puppet

Lee Tae
- is a young king
- after realizing how powerless kings are compared to the ministers, he's trying to strengthen royal authority and solidify his own power
- is in love with Yoo Jung

Yoo Jung
- is a daughter of a scholar
- as a teenager she was selected to be the crown princess but her family got accused of treason and annihilated
- she, however, was saved by Lee Tae (then crown prince) and they continued seeing each other for years without her being aware of his real identity
-years later she involuntarily got involved with Park Gye Won and came to court where she became one of Lee Tae's concubines

What this drama has:

1. Impeccable cinematography.
2. Beautiful soundtrack & gorgeous costumes.
3. Good story that combines politics and romance and nicely incorporates romance into the political plot which adds to its significance even though it's not the main focus of the drama.
4. Interesting and well-developed characters that can't be painted as good or evil. They all have their own ambitions and ideologies that are justified and completely reasonable when you look at things from their perspective. It's one of the things I love the most about this drama. In the power struggle between the young and powerless king who just inherited throne from his father, who was basically a puppet king, and the experienced and influential minister who controls the court, the king is cunning and the minister is not power-hungry for the sake of his own ambition. Add a strong and smart female lead, who has connections to both male characters and who is not overbearing but acts within her social confines, and you'll get a really interesting story. Characters who are enemies but can form compromises, change their allegiances and go against their loved ones to achieve higher goals.
6. Amazing acting from all leads. Jang Hyuk who plays the minister was expectedly good, but Lee Joon who plays the king was a revelation for me. The way he balanced between the cunning, ice cold/ruthless king and the king who is worried about his loved one was really good. His often teary eyes were a nice bonus and they showed how constantly anxious, worried and angry he was. Kang Han Na who plays the concubine also managed to successfully portray all the complexities of this character. She exuded such dignity!
7. Good pacing. Every episode is gripping and keeps you wondering about what's going to happen next and how are characters going to react in given situations.
8. Satisfying ending.

What it doesn't have:

1. Action/fighting scenes. I guess it's one thing that people who love historical dramas may find lacking. There are some fighting scenes but they are few and far between. This drama is heavily focused on court politics so it's not something unexpected.
2. The political plot gets a bit convoluted towards the ending and some thing don't make much sense (to me) but I don't know much about the real historical context (what was possible and what wasn't possible at Joseon court) so I tried not to let it affect my overall score.

I honestly don't understand the reason for the relatively low MDL rating. I would recommend this to everyone who loves sageuks, especially more serious ones.

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Beyond the Blood River awaits the Other Shore.

"Why can't the light of this world make room for Blood River? No one is born a killer. We deserve another chance to choose. Why do you block us again and again?"

Blood River is a drama about a group of young assassins who want to seize control of their own lives and break free from the system that forced them into killing. The Blood River organization, run by Su, Mu, and Xie families, operates under a single Patriarch, though even he is quietly manipulated by shadowy figures lurking behind the scenes. When the current Patriarch is poisoned, the precarious balance between the families shatters, and a ruthless battle erupts to claim the symbolic sword of leadership.

Within this large power struggle, there is also a smaller faction of young assassins led by Su Changhe (code name: The Undertaker). Their goal is to overthrow the entire Blood River leadership. His closest friend, Su Muyu (code name: The Umbrella Ghost), is a Kui, basically the Patriarch’s personal bodyguard, which places them on two opposite sides of the conflict. That’s where the drama begins: one sworn to kill the Patriarch, the other sworn to protect him.

Despite their opposing positions, their bond remains unmistakably strong. As the story progresses, the drama shifts from rebellion to themes of friendship, loyalty, politics and defying fate, i.e. breaking the chains meant to restrain and control you. It also becomes a tale of revenge and righteousness, of searching for light in the darkest of times, and of crossing the “blood river” in pursuit of a new future.

The aspect that resonated with me the most was the unshakeable bond between Su Changhe and Su Muyu. Their friendship remained steadfast from beginning to end, marked by a quiet, instinctive understanding. Even when their views diverged, they never failed to support each other, protect each other, and find ways to bridge every divide. Their connection gave the whole drama a strong emotional core.

Besides the interesting story, the drama has very good special effects and fight scenes. The action is nicely spread throughout the episodes, so there’s always something exciting to watch. The music was also good. For me, none of the songs stuck in my mind, but all of them fit the scenes well and supported the atmosphere.

The acting was impressive too. I watched Gong Jun before in Word of Honor, and while he was good, I didn’t finish that drama especially impressed. But here, that definitely changed. He played Su Muyu, a character who is calm, almost cold on the outside, but with deep kindness and a strong sense of righteousness. I was especially impressed by one of his crying scenes in the last episode.
Chang Hua Sen was also great as Su Changhe. I’ve seen him in other dramas, and his acting always stood out. Here he played a very charming, deadly assassin, and he fit the role perfectly. When it comes to his acting, the scene that impressed me the most was in episode 2 - a flashback showing Su Changhe and Su Muyu’s past, where Su Changhe tries to sacrifice himself to save his best friend's life.

Even the side characters were interesting and had their own unique charms. Whenever something bad happened to them, I honestly felt bad and rooted for them.

Now, for the things that weren’t as strong. Su Muyu has a love interest in this drama, and while I do think the story behind it had its own logic and showed his desire for a simple, ordinary life away from the dark world of Blood River, I personally found his brotherhood with Su Changhe far more compelling and wished we’d seen more of it. Also, some parts of the plot were left hanging rather abruptly and never addressed again. ALSO, I wish we got more of Su Changhe's backstory.

The ending leans bittersweet, but it fits the story’s tone. It's a realistic conclusion for a world built on shadows and blood, yet it still carries enough warmth to be considered happy, at least by assassin-story standards.

All in all, I would recommend it & wish we get more of these darker-themed dramas in the future. 9/10

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