But then I saw episodes 19 and 20, and in those two episodes everything changed and became clear. The true heart of the show was revealed: FAMILY, specifically the Jang family, and what it is to be family and why we need them. The rest of the drama intimated at the theme, but never made it clear enough or important enough for me to care. The drama was billed as one about infidelity and I was viewing it through that lens. But the drama did itself no service being billed that way. By the end I remembered (and realized) that the main character was Jang Hee Tae (with the 2nd most important character possibly being Kim Joon) and not Il Ri. So hating her character wasn’t relevant – she was just a means to an end, someone to keep the plot going. I didn’t have to like her, to love what this drama did right.
And what it did right, it did beautifully. I should not be surprised by the quality of anything the cable channels do anymore because they really are where the best and most cutting edge Kdramas are broadcast. The networks are frequently all flash and no substance. But TvN and jTBC in particular bring us such wonderful and fresh dramas – often challenging too. Valid Love was challenging. If you think infidelity is inexcusable when you start watching this drama, it probably won’t change your mind. But if you can be open-minded, you will get so much more out of it.
The acting is absolutely superb – from top to bottom. The characters feel so real and flawed and the world feels gritty and lived in. It is a lovely slice of life drama. The directing and cinematography is absolutely fantastic and adds so much to the story that even when Il Ri was driving me nuts, I could have watched it with the sound off and been happy. But then I would have missed the soundtrack, which was perfect because it always set the mood but was so subtle you often missed it. Instead of over-bearing ballads or screeching pop music, they just used ambient background music to convey the mood and add to the rich, languid scenes.
I wasn’t going to give this drama a score as high as 8. I hated the Il Ri character most of the drama (although she did seem to grow a little at the end), and there were long stretches of the drama that just annoyed the crap out of me, or even bored me. But the ending is so good. The acting is so fantastic and the directing is just gorgeous that qualitatively I had to give this drama an 8. I give it an 8 in spite of an awful female lead character (not a knock on Lee Si Young, who was good and whom I like quite a lot) and some writing between the early episodes and end that really started to meander and make me go WTF. So many Kdramas start good and then end badly – most of them really. Valid Love did the opposite. It started meh. It got pretty crappy in the middle, and then it soared at the end. The writer, despite the WTF moments, clearly knew what she was doing.
I came for Lee Soo Hyuk (heh). I stayed for Lee Soo Huk. I took away so very much more.
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The main attraction of this drama is definitely the satires. The writers are commendable for being able to continue the bold use of candid humor throughout the drama without making it revolting or tiring at any point. This drama takes in many typical elements like-naive main girl, arrogant main guy, evil opponents, traumatic past etc. - smites them with absurd derision and serves as a great amusement to the person savoring it!
Another good point is the attention paid to the legal details. Although the principle selling point was to be the humor, the writers did not forget to focus just as much on legalism as to be expected in a legal drama.
The characters are simply outstanding. The lead character Komikado is whacky, cynical, wasteful and indulgent. He is not only the center source of interest and excitement but also of contempt and resentment. The preposterous remarks delivered by him are unbelievable and unforgettable.Mayuzumi as an upright, honest lawyer has nothing surprising to offer but her existence is certainly indispensable in emphasizing the contrast with Komikado and maintaining the balance of craziness with rationality. The supporting characters are equally capricious and funny and enhance the pleasing power of the series.
The cast is exquisite. Sakai Masato has done a splendid job in the role of Komikado which is entirely different form his past images. He is so magnificently convincing in this drama that it’s impossible to imagine anyone else to be more fitting for this role. I liked the acting of Aragaki Yui here more than in any other dramas I’ve seen so far. Satomi Kotaro, Koike Eiko, Namase Katsuhisa, Taguchi Junnosuke -all are impressive and persuasive in their respective roles.
Overall it an excellent drama and if you are in the mood to watch something that will make you laugh out loud in every episode then Legal High is a must for you.
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The simultaneous narratives were really interesting as Thai Lakorns can be somewhat typical and standardized in terms of storylines and Khun Mae Suam Roy was anything but. Saying that I wouldn’t recommend it as a first Lakorn to watch for Thai drama beginners as it will build unrealistic expectations about them. This Lakorn is like an old Port wine, one has to wait to drink it in order to fully maximize the experience of tasting the wine.
The mysteries about who shot Siriya, who caused her lover’s death, who messed up with the car breaks to cause Sina (pretending to be Siriya) accident, who shot her, and the Cluedo guessing game kept raising an array of questions about the possible suspects and sending viewers on mental wild goose chases nearly until the end. For those that like mystery games, this drama is brilliant. For those that like lovey dovey enemies to lovers kiss and slap stories, they’re not is as large a supply. The relationship between Thi and Sina is intriguing and really captivating from the beginning but it’s a bit like climbing a mountain except that when you think you reached the top and the view can’t get better, you haven’t reached the top yet and the view will get tons better.
Khun Thi, the male lead has always suffered from abandoned child syndrome both physically and emotionally by his mother which have caused him a severe emotional trauma and scarred him deep inside his heart. It was a tough issue for a young child to deal with and one that has strongly impacted on him. He’s very loyal to his father’s family who have raised him but he’s still the son of a mistress and that knowledge has always waved itself invisibly over his head, hidden away in an emotional inferiority complex. His leading lady, Sina (pretending to be her twin sister Siriya to discover who shot her, making her wheelchair bound), on the other hand is rather normal; a hardworking stunt double who kicks ass and protects her sister. Their love story is cliché and the way their emotions and their struggles play are a like an elastic band constantly expanding and shrinking, standard but at the same time so real life and both Pop and Bua have a strong chemistry onscreen. I found Darika’s obsession with Khun Thi too paranoid but that’s Lakorn stereotypical.
The writers have done a brilliant job writing the Nat and Siriya/Sina and both Khem Rujira Chuaykua and Bua Ongumpai have done a great job bringing them to life. Nat is the scorned woman who feels that her infertility caused her husband to fall for Siriya, who bore him a child and as a consequence had made her live in agony for years. Wanting to be a mother and being unable to, wanting her husband’s love but being scorned by him is something that many women can empathise with and can understand too well. As a result of those issues Nat battled depression, low self-esteem and extreme stress. Siriya is the eldest twin and the weakest one. She’s so meek and calm all the time making her look way too insipid and pitiful as she always comes across like a damsel in distress who needs to be rescued by her knight in shining armour. This makes her annoying as a character. Sina on the other hand is completely the opposite and that’s what makes her interesting, her Spice Girls, girl power attitude. The twins are so utterly simple, so devoided of complexity which is interesting as the story doesn’t need them to be multi-layered. The writers did such a great job in keeping viewers guessing, double guessing and questioning things all the time that when the Lakorn ended there the Suttarak family has finally got a sense of understanding about what happened, why it happened and was finally able to move on from that.
I liked that Khun Mae Suam Roy as a Lakorn is very well written and that the story is organic, flowing without a lot of dull or unnecessary moments. The storylines have purpose and are intrinsically connected; in one way or another they add substance to the development of main story arch which in itself is an achievement. The actors played a huge role in that but it’s easy to perform well with a great script that deals with contemporary issues relevant to current society.
I loved the romance, how the love story developed and how the drama production team gave viewers an entire episode dedicated to it. It was amazing, particularly how Thi played with the cards that were dealt to him and how, despite the denials and his own internal battles, he has overcome them and gave himself the chance to be happy with the woman he loves, freely and without reservations; but for me despite loving the romance, Khun mae suam roy was not about it, it was about the fight for justice and for a chance at happiness, underlined by a revenge plot, emphasized by a beautiful soundtrack. Roses have thorns.
For all of the above I am giving this Lakorn 10 points out of 10.
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I didn't like the first few episodes, it seemed like the directing was off. During the introductory phase of the drama, the audience has to learn who these characters are and a bit of context to the background and circumstances our characters face. Instead, it felt like a nosedive into the first episode. No joke, I thought I was playing the incorrect episode when I first started this drama. Thankfully, this wasn't an issue that was so bad I had to stop watching.
At times, the editing can get pretty choppy and weird. I remember shots jumping from one clip to another really oddly. It's not a huge problem, it just pulls you out of being into the atmosphere of the drama.
The last gripe I have are the last few episodes. It really fell from grace; they made some pretty poor choices and it made me skip around the last 3ish episodes til we got to the end. I've heard that this was cut from originally being even more episodes. I'm glad they cut it but they honestly needed to cut it some more to eliminate some of the BS that they included during the last episodes.
Even though this drama clearly has some faults, it excels wonderfully in some areas!
The characters are really, REALLY good (especially Zhao Xiao Tang, I absolutely adored her!!!). Each one of the supporting characters has a distinct personality and various problems they face, and you'll actually be invested in them! A lot of the time I don't really care about subplots, but everything happening to the side characters felt just as important as the plot with the main character. This drama also did a really good job creating a super cute friendship between the roommates.
Mu Cheng He and Xue Tong's relationship is truly SO cute! It's rare to actually find a depiction of a relationship that is so healthy in dramas. Initially, you might expect a teacher-student relationship to be toxic but I'll assure you this one wasn't. The only thing I'm upset with is how Mu Cheng He's character developed. It seemed like we were so close to seeing how he grew as a person but we ended up not getting any of it. The audience wants to see "show" not "tell", but his character development ended up being completely "tell" which was unfortunate.
I also really like the atmosphere this drama created. It really felt realistic and a slice of life. A lot of dramas nowadays are over the top and fall into situations that are completely implausible. Here, our characters face real problems that the audience really might relate to. The drama also touches on important themes like family, friendship, grief, addiction, etc.
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Mediocre but sweet and awkward in a good way
This drama has this odd charm, with awkwardness, slight suspense (very slight), a decent palette of current issues facing women and the LGBTQ+ community in todays society... However they only scratch the surface and it is delivered in a pretty mediocre way...The acting- Mediocre
The dialog. Mediocre
The cinematography- Mediocre
The sound- Pretty decent and sweet
The chemistry- Mediocre but sweet/awkwerd/dead fish... type of thing
The side characters-Range between sweet to meeh
The Friendships- lovely!
However it is very short so I would not say it is a waste of time in any way as it was pretty fluffy, easy to watch and entertaining.. Just do not expect a masterpiece... or anything ground breaking, breathtaking or to be swept of your feet...
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His: I Didn't Think I Would Fall in Love
39 people found this review helpful
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Coming to the cast. I am not particularly fond of Chae Soo Bin, but this drama definitely changed that. She was perfect both as the robot Ah Ji and the street smart Ji Ah. Yoo Seung Ho was ADORABLE! He was the best thing about the show! I've seen plenty of his works and I think by far, this is my favorite character portrayed by him. This character really suited him so much. The supporting cast was really good. Loved Ji Ah's friend and her brother as well as his family. They were all great. Sun Hye's little love triangle was awesome. lol.
The music was great. Perfect amount of chirp and serious.
I would definitely come back and watch it for the adorable character of Kim Min Kyu as well as certain hilarious scenes. Also, someone needs to invent those things Ji Ah made in the show, but sounds a little difficult from science's POV, lol.
Anyways, if you are in a mood for an easy-watch, this is definitely your show!
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EDITED 4/20/19: Everything in this review still holds true! The second half and ending are fantastic. Give this show a chance!
Story: 10/10
I like the story. It's the typical "there's an injustice, someone dies, a cabal of corrupt higher officials from the police/prosecution/rich people cover it up" storyline that seems super common among Korean crime dramas (and for good reason.. funnily enough this drama is airing as the burning sun scandal is being exposed in Korea). The execution is less serious for the most part (it lives up to its comedy tag), and sometimes bridges into being a little campy, but they always bring it back so that the more emotional scenes never feel forced or out of place. The emotional scenes (character backstories) are engaging and genuine. I'm hard to sell on edgy, tragic character backstories, because they're a) super common and b) often used as an excuse for why [this character] is now a douchebag in the present, but the backstories in this show (especially Father Kim and Detective Dae Young's) are less of that and more of a glimpse of what their characters are suffering with alone.
It's not extremely suspenseful or mysterious, and there's no doubt who the bad guys are from, like, the first few episodes, but it's a solid plot and the writers throw in enough important events to keep it moving along. It's not boring, and it provides plenty of scenarios for the characters to shine.
Acting/Cast: 10/10
This is definitely the star of the show for me. I tend to be a character-focused watcher, with a good plot being an added bonus, but this drama really blows my expectations out of the park for character writing and acting. Usually there's at least one (usually multiple, if I'm being honest) actor/character I think is unrealistic or wooden, and it puts me off, but all the actors are absolutely fantastic.
I've never seen any of the main actors before, but I've been especially appreciating Kim Nam Gil and Kim Sung Kyun's acting. Kim Nam Gil is the obvious star of the show, with perfect execution in the comedy scenes and a heart-wrenching look in his eyes in the more emotional ones. Even Lee Na Hui, whose character is my least favorite out of the three (and, honestly, kind of annoyed the hell out of me for at least the first 15 episodes, but that's just personal taste), acts well enough that I only disliked her character just because her personality wasn't my type, not because her acting was poor or the character was poorly written. She's growing on me. Even the weakest actor IMO (I won't say who) isn't anywhere near the level of annoying over-acting that I dislike in dramas. The cast is a solid A, with even side characters' actors delivering a convincing and engaging performance that adds value to the scenes they're in and makes the characters likable in their own right, instead of being treated like convenient props to further the main characters.
Every interaction feels genuine, and every scene runs fast enough that you're never left thinking, god, this dialogue is dragging and the characters won't stop staring silently/dramatically at each other. (Plus, I'm not an eye-candy watcher, but Kim Nam Gil is almost ridiculously cute in every scene he's in. Watch out for the scenes when he fights and his bangs fall into his eyes. Cute, right?)
The fight scenes are also an absolute delight to watch, even if you're not a fan of gritty action (the show has a martial arts director on set, so the choreo and execution are great.) Filming technique, cinematography, the occasional unique lighting choice, and other visual cues are used well in each scene.
Music: 10/10
OST usually isn't a huge factor in how much I like a drama, but a good one is always a plus. This drama's OST is great: the emotional scenes are paired with delicate orchestral pieces, and the fast-paced and fight scenes aren't afraid to use rock, rap, and raunchy songs with an exciting beat. I downloaded the ending song to my phone.
Rewatch Value: 10/10
...I've been rewatching each episode probably at least twice each after they air, and the whole series when I feel like it, so there's not much else I can say about rewatch value. They're just funny as hell, and I'm a sucker for humor. The scenes don't feel like they get old, and even rewatching a stupid joke for the 4th time is at least 50% as entertaining as the first time. As long as the writers don't drop the ball by a huge amount in the second half (and, honestly, even if they do) this is probably going to be one of my comfort rewatch series and one of my all-time faves.
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This review may contain spoilers
For real, my PREJUDICE is showing
I am going to be biased in this review, whether i like it or not. If youre a big KPop fan, who doesnt fantasize about the scenarios in this drama. Its a fanboy/fangirl dream come to life.Kim Kang Min played Choi Si Yeol perfectly as a member of an ageing idol group and Kevin as the almost geeky and perfectly relatable teacher Na Ae Jun. The moment the show started i am immediately transported into the shoes of Ae Jun - the slowmo moments and the cute fangirling - my heart would have exploded and i wouldnt have his self control when faced in similar situation.
Im glad that the episodes were a little bit longer than the usual KBLs and isntead of 8 we got 10 episodes. It was the perfect length to tell the story without rushing things.
The show, however, isnt perfect - first, it felt like there was a little bit of budget constraints especially when acquiring songs because this is a show about a KPop idol but there wasnt really any great song for the soundtrack. I also felt like there was a lot of missed opportunity to tell a deeper story as they glossed over the difficulties faced by idols (and their partners) especially when it comes to their personal lives.
This series also amped up my anxiety to the max. When it was revealed that Si Yeol is only using Ae Jun to exact revenge on Ji Kyusong i felt afraid for him and imagined how devastated it would be if he found out that his bias has been deceiving him. I sincerely felt that the show didnt handle that situation very well because that was some weird dark sh^t and it was downplayed as something to be forgiven easily just because "i like you first for a really long time".
What could have been an impactful romance drama became a cute, fluffy and light fantasy (yes i consider it a fantasy since i think everything is just a fantasy happening in the mind of Ae Jun) series that lacked real depth.
Dont get me wrong, Its not a bad drama but its definitely not on the level as some of the best KBLs like Semantic Error, To My Star, Bleuming and Love for Love's Sake.
Would I recommend? Yes, definitely.
Would I rewatch? Probably not.
Giving it a high 8 just because i love all of the 4 main cast. I told you im going to be biased.
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Before watching the anime for the first time, I made sure to read everything about Oda Nobunaga one could find online because I'm just a not the type of person who's ready for surprises and would rather get myself spoiled to the very end. The story of Oda Nobunaga is a unique one but it still remained the same as any other story about war and peace I learned from my History textbooks. However, this drama made me re-open my eyes and realise that you can't understand the whole story just by reading a little paragraph from your textbook.
The characters were fully developed in my opinion and all of them had an important role at one point of the story. I like the fact that every character had their time to shine and a chance to get their own little story developed. I also liked the way Kichou was portrayed in the drama because she had a way better personality than the Kichou we could see in the anime, who could only say "My Lord!" in an irritating tone, but that may just be me.
The actors were simply amazing and were one of the main reasons I started watching this drama. Oguri Shun as Oda Nobunaga/Saburo did a magnificent job and I couldn't take my eyes off Mukai Osamu and Takahashi Issei because they totally blew my mind in some scenes.
I loved the ending song song, it fit almost every episode and just gave me that warm feeling as well as the soundtrack, which gave me chills every time it started playing.
The only thing I didn't like is the open ending the drama has. I'd prefer it being either the death of Nobunaga/Saburo (because, nobody's immortal) or his time-travelling back to modern age. And if the producers planned to make a sequel to this drama, it would make no sense because there wouldn't be much time for important happenings in Nobunaga's life, considering this drama ended with Mitsuhide and Nobunaga being at Honno-ji.
I won't say this drama is highly rewatchable, but I do plan to rewatch it someday myself.
I'd recommend this drama to everyone, regardless of what type of drama you prefer.
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"Wayla Kammathep” which also can be called “ The Love Proposal” is a incredibly thrilling, romantic, sexy and angsty drama from 2022 starring Fern Nopjira as the hardworking and golden-hearted heroine Treenuch Thaweewong “Nuch” and then we have Tre Porapat portraying the very clever, passionate and badass hero Time Metheephatthana. I love lakhorns that are written and developed in a right way without adding any unnecessary scenes. This lakhorn is right up the alley with dramatic lakhorns like "Hua Jai Sila", "Bad Romeo" and "Fah Mee Tawan" where it comes to intensity of the plot and the characters. "The Love Proposal" has the recurring concept of Time in every episode where we can see Time Glassess in many scenes where Time is running out for the characters. Nuch & Time are our beloved main-leads and their love-story starts at a moment where time was not nice to either of them. While Time needed more time to establish a romantic relationship with Nuch (because of his failure in the past) Nuch could not afford to give him that time.
So she breaks up with him and accepts her parents proposal in her marrying a wealthy man who needs a heir. She never imagined that man would be Time`s older brother, Touch Metheephatthana portrayed by Toy Pathompong who is a much more gentle and calm person in comparison to Time`s stubborn fire. Time is heartbroken over the news and silently suffers while he watches his brother marry the love of his life. We also have family intrigue in the form of a jealous cousin who will do everything to steal the role of the CEO from Touch.
So many things happens and it is so well blended together. The actress portraying Nuch is a fine looking woman, love her acting and how versatile she actually is. I could see how torn she was and conflicted and the way she truly comes to care for her husband. Touch in my opinion was a very tragic character somehow. Having this duty in producing a heir and being unable to because of his sexuality. He tries to stay strong throughout the story and i give him credit for that. Time is one of the best main heroes ever in Lakhornland! He is very impulsive, hot-headed and oh soooo smokily charming but is the guy who get all the dirty jobs done already from the start when he jumps into the fire to save that kid.
He is so badass and has this warrior vibe to him. He protects his family with all his soul- and he is as passionate when it comes to love. Being unable to walk away from Nuch even when she married his brother and still also unable to stay away from her. He kept throwing his misery and fury at her, feeding his love-sick heart. I just LOVE his chemistry with Nuch and how he would not let anyone insult her! Time and Nuch reaches a point where they are unable to live without each other. The passion, the longing and the selfless lover they got for each other, ahhh it made my heart weak! This lakhorn is AMAZING! And i recommend it to anyone who wants a romantic,sometimes crazy..but well done trainwreck!
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Curiosity Kills The Cat
“Curiosity kills the cat” refers to Zhang Ping (Song Weilong), the Ramen Detective who, time and time again, places himself in great danger in determining to find the truth. Together with the elegant gentleman Lan Jue (Jing Boran), who initially seems like a “fu hei” (black belly) because he crosses the line which Zhang Ping tenaciously upholds, their fate intertwines and they solve cases after cases which provides them with more clues and leads them to unravel a greater conspiracy. The whole drama is intense and fast-paced, sinister with danger lurking in every corner, spurred on by the background music.Acting:
The drama is adapted from the novel "The Case of Zhang Gong" 《张公案》written by Da Feng Gua Guo, on the encounters of the naïve, honest and upstanding Zhang Ping, and the diplomatic and graceful Lan Jue. I love both portrayals. Jing Boran has a natural air of elegance and grace. His Lan Jue is brilliant and convincing. At times of his torment and uncertainty, viewers feel for him and his sorrow. Song Weilong has a boyish demeanor and fits the character of the naïve Zhang Ping. His acting here is very believable and lovable. The other cast members are equally good, especially Wang Duo''s Gu Qingzhang who is mysterious and evil-ish, Guo Cheng's Chen Chou who is a true friend, and Hong Yao's Wang Yan character which unfortunately is only one dimensional.
Plot:
The plot is layered with plot within plot and plot twists. Here we have a power-hungry Empress Dowager, a seemingly useless Emperor, a perverted royal blood who would do anything to get his revenge, an upstanding official who is forced to compromise his integrity due to the rot of the system, and a scholar who is obsessed in solving unsolvable cases. What seem like unrelated cases all lead to a big conspiracy. The attention to detail is laudable, with spectacular crime scenes leaving clues for the discerning eyes. The lavish use of hallucination, hypnotism, illusion and deception further enhances suspense and mysteries. There is also a hint of BL for Lan Jue and Gu Qingzhang which further fools the viewers with Zhang Ping’s reaction. It’s only revealed at the end that Lan Jue is a widower with a son. I’m grateful that there is no infuriating Mary Sue characters.
Music:
The opening music, “Red Bloody Fog”, is interesting, mono acoustic drum beats add on the mystery and suspense. I am actually very impressed by all the OSTs and the background music. Some tunes are upbeat with hope, most are sinister and dark, depicting imminent danger, evil and death. The OST “The World is Blessed” gives viewers an image of the common scenes on the street of the ancient time in the ancient city. The vocals accompanied by piano depict the simple life of the commoners, upbeat, and filled of hope for better tomorrows. I even love the tune sung by Zhang Ping’s shifu, “The Cow Wakes up to Eat the Grass”; I find myself humming to the tune repeatedly. There is an extended use of drums to give the feel of something ominous coming. The drop of each beat signifies a find of a jig-saw piece for the puzzle. The music can be mesmerizing, like the tune “Demon of the Heart”, sending listeners into a trance. In darkness and despair, there is hope because there is a person like Zhang Ping who insists on finding the truth as depicted with his tune on “The Ramen Detective's Noodles”.
My Verdict
A great watch for almost everyone. Don’t miss this wonderful drama.
Bravo!
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Although ´makjang´ was taking it almost over the edge of the bearable, I had to stick with it
A classic among KDramas. The dramaturgical moves may sometimes be predictable - the evil stepmother and such... However, there is this passionate play of truly dedicated actors . ...and a groovy interpretation of Ave Maria, that burns mercilessly into your heart and ear. Although makjang (Mean! Bitchy! Malicicious!) was taking it almost over the edge of the bearable, I had to stick with it. Some scenes still have an impact on me years later.Human abysses are presented in abundance. In addition, dealing with different facets of true love. An unforgettable piece of KDrama, for those who can never get enough drama. Here you can emotionally let off steam on the backs of the protagonists. For everyone else it might be a bit too much in some places.
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"Il Mare" gently sprays its quiet magic as if through an atomizer.
"Il Mare" is the ´international´ title of this KMovie. However, the original title (rather being translated as "Across Time") does not refer to the place - a picturesque house by the sea - but to what actually happens there: a time-transcending correspondence. Strictly speaking, the letters are sent back and forth in a mailbox over the distance of 2 years. What an unprecendeted plot for a love story to be told in a truly unique way! This story became famous in America and Europe in the 2006 US film adaptation starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock.Actually you shouldn't compare the two movies side by side, but most people do, so...
The South Korean original was made in 2000 and starred Lee Jung-jae, who was in high demand in South Korea at the time, and Jun Ji-hyun, who was just beginning her career. (Actually you can sense the difference in her acting back then and in her more recent productions. In the meantime she definitely has matured from a ´mere´ beauty into a spirited actress.) While the original shares the same plot as does the US remake later on, the South Korean version places more emphasis on the mood of the protagonists, stressed by using imagery, color and atmosphere. Accordingly, the South Korean original is characterized by less color saturation and less light than the US remake, as both protagonists - Eun-ju and Sung-hyun - are rather disappointed in life, taciturn, withdrawn. The loneliness and emptiness in the protagonists´ lifes is one aspect. The remote house by the sea something completely different. It might perfectly fit into the protagonists´ mood, but in addition it actually has quite some magic to offer: Besides framing and emphasizing the beauty of nature there is the dog as a harbinger of relationship and the mailbox as a bridge between hearts. Thus the overall sensitively told story slowly but surely fills with joy, smiles, laughter and increasingly radiating light.
The KMovie "Il Mare" gently sprays its quiet magic as if through an atomizer.
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Lots of Actions, Frustrating Relationships
Recently, there have been multiple historical dramas set during the reign of Emperor Tang Taizong (626 – 649): “The Long Ballad” is set when Li Shimin (Emperor Tang Taizong) came to power whereas “Weaving a Tale of Love” is set at the end of Li Shimin’s reign and the beginning reign of his son, Li Zhi (Emperor Tang Gaozong). This drama is set in between those two periods with events that lead to the abdication of the first crown prince and the coronation of Li Zhi as the crown prince.Fu Rou (Li Yi Tong) is the daughter of a wealthy businessman. She is intelligent, well-bred and strategic with a mind that can instantly come up with win-win solutions. When Sheng Chu Mu (Xu Kai) meets her, he falls head over toes in love with her. Sheng Chu Mu’s father is a general serving the Emperor, and Sheng Chu Mu is pampered and spoilt by his mother and older sister who is married to Prince Han, making him a good-for-nothing flamboyant playboy. To get Fu Rou’s love, he vows to better himself, both academically and martially (military). What takes normally years to accomplish, Sheng Chu Mu turbocharges his accomplishments in weeks, if not days, for Sheng Chu Mu is not a normal person - he’s a genius. How he accomplishes his academic and martial prowess is similar to Gump in “Forest Gump”; it is really hilarious, cute and cartoonish. By the middle of the drama, he loses his youthful tomfoorlery and the drama turns rather serious and dark with outrageous actions and events.
Both Fu Rou and Sheng Chu Mu love their families and siblings, especially the latter. He has adorable relationships with his parents and his siblings. Their dynamics are really funny and enjoyable to watch. As Sheng Chu Mu, Xu Kai brings out his adorable charisma. He is egoistic and at the same time, self-deprecates. He is playful, shameless and babyish, but when the situation is dire, he instantly becomes the fearsome and formidable general; he’s the hero who saves the day. Though unrealistic, his scenes are hilarious and I really enjoy watching them.
Li Yi Tong is a natural beauty. Her Fu Rou character is stoic and calm, and she always sticks to the book. I can’t say I like the Fu Rou character very much because I find her too inflexible though this is necessary to maintain law and order in the palace, and to safeguard herself and those she cares. At times, I find it stressful watching Fu Rou for her saintly endurance of mistreatment. Multiple times Sheng Chu Mu and Fu Rou break up and then make up, only to break up again. It is really frustrating for the viewers.
Overall acting by the whole cast is fabulous. Each actor has totally immersed himself/herself into his/her character and it shows in their acting. Every minute emotion and expression is captured. Most characters are black and white except perhaps one or two who are greyish and the actors have brought all the personalities out on the screen.
Everyone seems to be in love. Apart from our main couple, we have Han Wang or Prince of Han (Liu En Shang) and his wife (Sheng Chu Mu’s sister), Princess Xin Nan and Sheng Chu Ling (Kris Fan), the Crown Prince and his wife, the Emperor and the Empress, and so on (you get what I mean). And quite a few lose their virginity before marriage. My favorite female character is perhaps Lu Ying Ying (He Rui Xian). She comes from a powerful and corrupt family with murderous father and brother, and yet she is kind, strong and truthful. Her only fault is for being born to a power-crazy father who has no mercy for others. Multiple times she is thrown into disarray yet she takes it in stride with dignity. Her ending, including the endings for some very well loved characters, is sad and undeserving. Most other characters end either with rewards for their good deeds or retribution for their misdeeds. Having said that, despite all the misdeeds by our antagonists, their punishments are not shown explicitly to satisfy the viewers, and are just skimmed over with.
My Verdict
This is a historical fantasy with a superman who saves the kingdom and the world. A lot of the actions by the leads are over exaggerated. It is intriguing and funny, and the pace is fast. Apart from the Emperor and his princes, most of the characters are fictional and the events are not based on historical records. The writing for the endings of many supporting cast is quite lazy, with many being dropped off like flies – they are dead, and some don’t even have endings, leaving viewers wondering what has happened to these characters. The editing of some episodes are also choppy and incoherent.
Despite these short-comings, this drama is still very entertaining, and I have really enjoyed the Sheng Chu Mu character as he reminds me of "Forrest Gump" which is one of my favorite movies. As long as viewers do not take this drama seriously, it is rather a fun watch.
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