Arthdal Chronicles: The Sword of Aramun (2023)

Amazing!

The story ended on a very high note. The characters were well developed and the story made perfect sense. I just wish they had more episodes to flesh out more some of the side stories and characters in this great drama. If you want to watch a drama that doesn't insult your intelligence with stupid plots or characters, this is as good as it gets.

Jang Dong Gun (Tagon) and Kim Ok-Bin (Taealha) were simply amazing! Their charisma and acting were just incredible. Lee Joon Gi (Eunseom/Saya) was very good here too. He more than held his own as a replacement for Song Joong-ki. LJG and SJK were both good in these roles. Shin Sae Kyeong (Tanya) was not as good as Kim Ji-Won from the first season, whom she replaced for the role, but she was good enough and did a decent job. All in all the acting ranged from amazing to decent/good, and was definitely a big plus (+) for the show.

The writers of the Arthdal Chronicles are my favorite drama writers, and this is so whether it involves Korean dramas, Chinese dramas, or American dramas. And I have watched a lot of each set. These writers once again did not disappoint, and proved once again that they are among the best drama writers in the world, if not the best.

The director did a very good job too, even though he has not done much directing before.

So for those who have not seen either season of the Arthdal Chronicles, I highly recommend you watch both of them. Rarely will you find a drama season as good or better than them. If you have already seen the first season, don't wait and go see the second season ASAP. It will be time well spent!

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Lucky Lee has been cast

I’ll watch any series with Lee Joon-gi because I absolutely love him! He's one of my all-time favorite actors in the world of South Korean drama. For this drama, I can confidently say I’d recommend it not only because of Lee Joon-gi, but also because of the compelling storyline. Shin Se-kyung delivered a strong performance, and her role added a lot to the show. And, of course, Lee Joon-gi looks absolutely perfect in historical attire! And, Kim Ok Bin is a great actress, I just realized it more after watching the season 2 and I also have to say, apart from Lee, I liked Ta Gon (Jang Dong Gun).

This is season 2, so if you haven’t watched season 1 yet, you’ll need to start there; otherwise, some parts of this season may be hard to follow. It’s worth noting that Song Joong-ki did an excellent job as the younger version of Eun Seom/Sa Ya in season 1, and Lee Joon-gi is perfectly cast as the older version in season 2. There’s really no point in comparing the two—they both absolutely nailed their respective roles.

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A decent "finale"?

I'm not sure if they want to continue the story, it looks like it, based on the ending, and I'm not saying I'm not interested, but I feel, what happened in the finale makes no sense at all. Or more like the last 2 episodes.

I honestly don't understand why Kdrama writers always do this. They either finish the story fast in the finale, and it ruins the whole thing, or so many things happening, and they forget what was the original plan.

Overall, this is a good show, with great casting, acting, music and visuals, and even tho I wasn't a fan of recasting Eun Seom and Tan Ya, but both of them are great actors and I "forget" that they weren't the original actors. But I still think, the chemistry wasn't as good as with Song Joong Ki and Kim Ji Won. Ji Won was more charismatic in the role.

The biggest problem is the plot holes and plot armor. The characters made so many dumb mistakes, they should've been killed off already, but the plot holes always protected them.

I also think, the writers didn't do much with this story, even tho it was 30 episode overall!

To be honest, the show represents well how stupid people are, and most of them are like sheep.

What I HATE in the last 2 episode is what they did with Tan Ya. Thousands of people followed her, yet the minute their King is back, they forget her? How is that makes any sense?

Also, the irritating cycle between Ta Gon and Tae Alha is just ridiculous. Sure, they love each other, yet they want to kill each other, but she had a chance to live a normal life with her son, but no, she wants revenge and another war with her teen son?

Not to mention Saya. He's probably the one who suffered the most, BUT it's not an excuse for wanting the throne again. Why? His brother saved him, he knows Tan Ya loves Eun Seom and Arthdal is finally at peace or something like that. But no, let's do another war, because girlie doesn't love us, so let's kill everyone?

I thought his character developed, but they ruined it in the finale.

Anyway, this is a good show overall, but I'm not sure we really need another season, even tho I'd love to see how Eun Seom and Tan Ya ruling Arthdal.

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It really didnt disappoint

I went it with very low expectations so the fact that it exceed my expectations is not shocking.
I wasnt so bothered with the fact that the cast would be changed because i have always been a fan of Lee Joon gi, also i fell in love with Arthdal Chronicles because the story was very riveting.
The cast change was awkward initially but i think everyone found their footing
LJG was able to capture a warrior Eunseom perfectly but i think he had trouble being Saya and i believe it was because he tried to be SJK's Saya. He tried to be a saya that was similar to season 1 im guessing so people can relate but that is not LJG. He did a good job potraying Saya as someone looking for where to fit in.
The actress who played Tanya did a really great job, i was honestly wowed. She played the part of the high priest very well in my opinion, i say her as a leader.
Tagon and Tealha were beyond perfection, i was wowed.
Between episodes 5&8, i almost gave up watching but im glad i didnt, because the cast really shined from episodes 10-12
Keep an open mind when you watch it and enjoy the story of arthdal.

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Gripping

Feb 2024
Long awaited S2 picks up 8 years after the story of S1 closes. As well as cast changes, there are new characters and a shift in the dynamic of some main characters from S1.

I loved S1 and was really disappointed when it was revealed that Song Joong-ki and Kim Ji-won would not be reprising their roles in S2.

However, I have to say that Lee Joong-ki, who took on the dual roles of Eun-som/Sa-ya, was really good and easily filled SJK's sandals.

I like actress Shin Sae-kyong, but didn't think she portrayed Tan-ya quite as well as KJW did; the latter gave the role more depth and feeling, I thought.

The story is fast on action and there are some very emotional and violent scenes, just like in S1. A thirst for absolute power, built on a foundation of deceit, and madness fuelled by paranoia, make for a riveting watch.

I loved it almost as much as S1 and would happily sit through both, in one long binge, in the not too distant future!

I think the ending fits with the feudal times of the setting, but some might not agree.

My favourite race remained the Neanthals.

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Casts Switch Did Not Matter

Although I thoroughly enjoyed the first season, I wasn't overly anticipating for a sequel. It is like having a very satisfying meal but not wanting same menu right away.

This sequel was plastered a over, showing tVN's exemplary job in advertising. It piqued my curiosity since I have read of main casts being replaced. Disney, Hulu, and a lot of other major entertainment providers purchased rights to show this sequel that hyped up the interest of many internation viewers. Let us not forget that Netflix has the first one still available in their platform with high viewership.

The concerns of artists changes affecting the overall quality of this series was put to rest after the first episode for many viewers. Lee Joon-Gi replacing Song Joong-ki as Eun Seom did wonderfully if not better in portraying the character.

The location set and production didn't fail, but how can the beauty of Burma's landscaping be any disappointment? It was the perfect location for such a costume series.

I can say that this was a satisfying watch and highly recommended to watch the first kne before watching this sequel. I just wish that aside from tVN, other paid platform will have both available for viewers however, I am finding out that most will only have the first or this second one available and not both.

Enjoy watching!

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amazing both

I did not watch s1 hhhhhhhhhhhhh just jumped into s2 cuz of the ml and fl love them both and the amazing true acting just wooooooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww




loooooooooooooooovvvve and wish for more work for them together, the whole cast did an amazing job in every step


thank u allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Lee Joon Gi is certainly the master action actor

How interesting is this. The finale for me fails to fire. Too many rushed ideas all at once without the background information. Lee Joon Gi is still fabulous in his role of Eunseom/Saya. But somehow the ending doesn’t strike the right cord for me. Arthdal carries on with Eunseom as the King but for me this part of the plot seems weak.

I still really enjoyed Arthdal Chronicles and have watched it several times already. I'm glad Eunseom and Tanya get their happy ever after but I'm sad for Saya. He got a bad deal all the way.

I have grown to like Saya. He has never been loved. He is a complicated person with deep seated hurts. Even the King tried to kill him and failed. Without his help Eunseom would not have been able to save Tanya. He has a certain charisma but also a ruthlessness about him but I believe that this is his survival mode. He has inferiority complex and doesn’t know that his carriage and presence is stunning. Now I'm waiting for the background about his celestial item "the mirror". Bring on the next series where we can watch our favourite action actor Lee Joon Gi stun us with his scintillating and breath-taking stunts and knock us out with powerful, mesmerizing and hypnotic countenance.

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