Tale of the Nine-Tailed 1938 (2023)

A romp!

I honestly feel this can be watched independently of S1, which had a very different feel. It was far more fairytale like and romantic.
The character of Lee Yeon was subtly different too, being more serious and detached (not that there wasn't humour).

In S2, we find Lee Yeon sent on an urgent mission, back to 1938, where the story sees him reunited with other Mountain Gods he's known since childhood and his brother, Lee Rang.
We are introduced to lots of new and diverse characters; his strained, but witty (in this series very much so) relationship with his brother; and a rather sweet romance (which didn't spoil the action).
The action is far more a feature this time and a lot more explosive.
It's a real romp, often very tongue-in-cheek and LDW looked like he was having lots fun, as did the entire, and very large, cast.
There's edge of your seat moments, some sad/tragic scenes and a fair bit of bloody violence.
There are some truly silly parts to it, but this is entertainment and fantasy, so that didn't bother me at all, even though I acknowledge the fact.
The ending is left very obviously open for a S3.
A lovely touch, is the brief guest appearance of Jo Bo Ah, reprising her role as Nam Ji-ah. She apparently did it for nothing! Me thinks this must have been a great drama to work on, with the cast getting on really well together and it shows.
I loved it.

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I didn't know S2 could be this chaotic ? This season is so hilarious and yet emotional too. Honestly I watch s1 after seeing s2 and was really wondering why I couldn't see moo young and hong joo in 2020 (s1). I am looking forward to see what happens to them in 1938. Besides, I glad that rang got his lover in this season (they are such a lovely couple, though I got a bad feeling of the mermaid could be killed. I hope she will be reincarnated in the future. Like lee yeon and ji-ah story).


By the way, I love everything about this drama, the castings, humor, the storyline and the acting are on point.

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Tale of the Nine Tailed Fox 1938; An Action-Packed Sequel...

Tale of the Nine-Tailed Fox 1938 is the long-awaited and highly anticipated sequel to the 2020 series, Tale of the Nine-Tailed Fox. Following the adventures of gumiho, or nine-tailed fox, Lee Yeon ( Lee Dong Wook), the series uproots the modern setting to a time-travelling experience during the Japanese occupation. Lee Yeon and Koo Shin-joo (Hwang Hee) chase after a mysterious masked being that has stolen the Samdocheon Guardian Stone, a gem that maintains the barrier between the living and the dead. Stuck in 1938 until they can recover the stone, they encounter old friends, the former mountain deity and wealthy socialite Ryu Hong Joo ( Kim So Yeon), a hostile former friend and guardian spirit, Cheon Moo Young ( Ryu Kyung Soo) and Lee Yeon's younger brother, Lee Rang ( Kim Bum). Can Lee Yeon travel back to the future while saving the past from malicious entities, or will history be doomed to repeat itself?


The same screenwriter wrote The Tale of the Nine-Tailed Fox, the first series, Han Woo Ri, and the series is s directed by
Kang Shin-hyo and Jo Nam-hyung. By far, the sequel takes a more whimsical approach than the first season regarding the fantasy element. The decision for Jo Bo Ah to not return ( aside from a brief cameo) in the second series, probably caused a major rut in the works of the original direction of writing for the drama and led Woo Ri to try and come up with a plot that could work. In some ways, this did grant the series some golden opportunities to venture out from the heavy romance for Lee Yeon in season one to a more dynamic explanation of his character and platonic relationships and the action at heart.


This gave the series a lot of advantages to being revamped from a fantasy romance into a fantasy action-comedy. The comic relief is certainly a lot more present in the series. Refreshingly rather than relying on cheap gags for comic relief, the series offers more witty jabs and self-awareness towards its previous shortcomings ( with Lee Yeon's encounters with his lovesick past self and, of course, Lee Rang's violent tendencies being primary sources for some laughs). There are certainly some darker moments in the storyline, including the subplots revolving around the Japanese Army and the intentions of Moo Young. However, rather than being heavily dominated by this theme, the sequel is a lot more easygoing in some regards.



The acting in the series was good. Lee Dong Wook and Kim Bum did not disappoint as the main leads and offered fairly stellar performances. However, a surprising performance came through Kim So Yeon's performance as Ryu Hong Joo. So Yeon showed a fairly flirty yet complex edge to the character, which truly helped bring the character to life. There were admittedly a few corny performances in the series, yet, they could sometimes be ignored with the direction of the writing.


With this in mind, viewers should be surprised that one driving element of season two ( similar to its predecessor) came through the bromance and fraternal bond between Lee Rang and Lee Yeon. After the bittersweet conclusion for the brothers in season one, the return of Rang and Yeon's tragicomic bond was a gold mine for writing opportunities, and the series took it to its full advantage. Lee Rang is still caught up in his hatred and secret admiration for his brother; while armed with the knowledge of the future, Lee Yeon tries to spend more time with him and play a brotherly role in his life.


With this being said, there does come a more decisive issue with Lee Rang's romance with half-mermaid Jang Yeo Hee (Woo Hyun Jin). On the one hand, seeing an antihero character such as Lee Rang fall in love was quite sweet. On the other hand, while fairly well-paced, the romantic element show did feel somewhat contrived, with Yeo Hee falling nearly head over heels with Lee Rang at first sight to give the season its '' romantic couple''. The show's focus on this relationship was fairly driven, though it did not entirely overshadow the main plot either.


New character introductions helped the show to go a long way. Ryu Hong Joo was a new main character for the series, which offered a starkly different personality from Lee Rang and Lee Yeon. Headstrong, playful and surprisingly more complex than her first appearance would suggest, Hong Joo's past with Lee Yeon helps to drive a major part of the series. She is a very morally ambiguous character, neither truly playing the role of hero nor villain, instead being more driven by her personal goals and motives. Similarly, Moo Young acts as a frenemy character in the series. He goes way back with Hong Joo and Lee Yeon, though as viewers find out, his grudge against Lee Yeon is very personal. When trying to tie up loose ends with Moo Young's storyline, the series felt rushed, but it was still fairly entertaining.


Other subplot characters include nefarious Kato Ryuhei ( Ha Do Gwon), a man determined to bring down the local Korean deities and gain power and status, and Seon Woo Eun Ho ( Kim Yong Ji). Kim Yong Ji, the actress of Yu-Ri from season one, returns to play the reporter under Sunwoo Ilbo, Seon Woo Eun Ho. The character's striking resemblance to Yu-Ri is noted even by Lee Yeon ( ironically commenting they are lazy with faces in the birth cycle). It would have been interesting ( irony or not) to have touched upon the reincarnation cycle lore from season one a little more, but Eun Ho was still a fairly interesting character. Perhaps the only major weakness of her character came from needing more screen time, meaning some of her more interesting plot moments were cut short.


The execution was good for the most part. The storyline played more episodic than season one, often giving more opportunities to focus on specific areas or characters than a jetstream narrative. My one complaint came through this often, feeling as though the series lacked a greater sense of direction until the final part of the series. As a result, some story elements ( including the ending) needed to be more timely.


The cinematography was fairly nice. The sets were impressive, and the costume design was a major highlight of the series. The OST included some good tracks, such as "Kiss The Rain" by Thama and "Wind Song" (바람의 노래) by Kei.




Tale of the Nine-Tailed 1938 offered a great sequel to the original series and exceeded expectations. Learning from some of the previous season's past mistakes, the drama provided a more entertaining watch than season one, with an intriguing storyline, a good balance of themes, beautiful costumes and sets, and characters. With news of a season three on its way, it will be interesting to see where the series is taken, and what adventure Lee Yeon will be on next. Overall a good and entertaining watch.

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You don't need to watch the other season to understand

So overall, the show was pretty good, glad to see the female lead isn't here even if some people didn't really like that bit (but as someone who doesn't really watch heterosexual shows as much anymore, I can't say anything, the Shinju and Yoori was great though). Anyway, the humor was so SOOOOO !!!!!! The way you don't have to watch the first season to understand. But it's definitely a bit good to watch the first one for a little more understanding with the two brothers.

Anyway, amazing cast (obviously, let's be real, I'm not getting over Jaeyoo). I don't think I'll ever forget about Kim Beom and Dongwook. Like.. Ever.

But that thing with the mermaid and Rang. Maybe it's because they needed him to understand love, but let's be real, he could've been better off by himself. I guess it's just my opinion. Rang's oblivion was really cute to watch, though. I enjoyed that bit because of course he'd be the type to be completely clueless. I just didn't really feel it too much, but I guess it's not the worst compared to many other things I've seen (You could tell if you've watched HIStory)

Also, Kiss The Rain by THAMA was so good like I actually wow. I really liked that song and I don't know why, it really fits and I just like the song in general. That's literally all I have to say for it.

I'd definitely watch again (already did like four times).

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Strong start, Powerful finish

I binged season 1 in preparation of season 2 but if you don't want to, story-wise you won't miss much as this was a completely new plot. But you will not feel the full effect of the backstory. Why is Lee Yeon depressed in season 2? Why does Lee Rang hate his brother. To get the full gist of it, you need season 1. But they have made it possible to watch Tale of the Nine-Tailed 1938 as a stand-alone show by highlighting some moments from season 1.

Even though the plot involves time travel, most of the story is set in 1938 (as suggested by the title) so it covers a little bit of Joseon history. There is a lot happening in the series with loads of new characters and threats. Most of the stories are interesting although shortly past the halfway mark, the story dragged a bit. But the ending fully redeemed itself. Every hero was at their best and, though, I don't know about re-watching the entire show but the finale is worth watching multiple times!

Every actor did an outstanding job! I especially loved the continuation of the relationship between Lee Yeon and Lee Rang. Plus Lee Yeon's friendships with Ryu Hong Joo and Cheon Moo Young was explored well. The secondary characters also add their own lovely flavour to this season.

As for lovers of the first season, there is a bit of that romance too. :)

The finale was epic and it's what gives season 2 an edge over season 1. We are also teased with a possibility of season 3.

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Good Enough

Korean Drama " The Tale of The Nine-Tailed Season 2 1938 " is the continuation of the story of the 2020 fantasy drama.

This time, the story goes back in time, focusing on the family bonds, rather than the romance, which, in this case, was limited as a subplot, which really aided the drama.

The drama, in addition, blended smoothly the action scenes with mythological and historical elements, as well as with more emotional plotlines along with enjoyable comedy.

The costumes were, moreover, spot on and pleasing. The performances were great as well.

So, overall, 8.5 out of 10.

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Didn't watch first season? NO PROBLEM!!

BETTER THAN SEASON ONE!

Although this does have romance, the main focus isn't about it!

From the beginning of the first episode, it is filled with action, amazing humor, and amazing cast of characters!!

Really goes into details about the brotherly bond, friendships, and overall integrity of the whole theme!!

Great storyline as well, really could watch this season on its own~ But really makes you fall more in love with the mains from the last season. All the sides stories were heart wrenching and even the villians were entertaining and really played their part!

Also the music + songs were top tier !! Really got you in the moments of justice, sadness, and excitement!

A very enjoyable drama - whether you watched the first season or NOT! Recommend!

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It's comedy hours with gumihos!

An unexpected error leads Lee Yeon to time travel to 1938, where he reunites not only with his brother but also his past nemesis. Can Lee Yeon return to the present and his love before it’s too late?

Tale of the Nine-tailed 1938 is the first kdrama I watched as it aired, and LOL! It was the highlight of my weeks. The characters don’t take themselves too seriously, they’re always bickering, doing hijinks while being so stylish. The story is clear and entertaining, with a mission. There is slightly creepy demons, time-travel and rich retro-fantasy universe. I feel it’s a very light-heart watch, like watching anime.

I felt the pacing and the plot are significantly more tighter than the prequel, without compromising the characters set. I love the unbreakable brotherhood of Lee Yeon and Lee Rang. Despite their issues, they’re always there for each other, in good times and in crisis. Also, it was cute to see Lee Rang, who is manly and clueless about love, falls for the mermaid lady.

The finale part felt a little too chaotic with the climax involving so many battles in different places, but it does not take away the overall fun. If you're in for light, pure entertainment with very good styling and crisp cinematography, I highly recommend this!

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