1This review may contain spoilers
It’s a “fusion sageuk” and I loved it. [Major Spoilers]
As I understand the term, “fusion” sageuk is not based on actual history (which was cruel, bloody and terrifying for just about everyone) so the writers can incorporate more humor and more true romance (as opposed to arranged marriages). It’s my 1st time watching any sageuk beyond the first 2 episodes for the following reasons [spoilers!]1. The main reason I continued to watch beyond Ep. 3 was the Character of Shi-yeol. I have never seen the actor Kang Hoon before, but I am now watching many of his prior dramas: Little Women, etc. He carried the show forward.
2. For the first 10 episodes, there was a continuing mystery as to which of the scholars was the real lost prince, which one was the “Watchman” and if there were any other assorted “royals” who might have a claim to the throne. The Watchman “reveal” was one of the best written, directed and choreographed scenes I have ever watched – and re-watched. Truly Epic (and bloody).
3. Much of the drama was full of many side characters with conspiracies, betrayals, spies/counter-spies but at about the 12 episode mark, the puzzle pieces began to align and the viewer understood who was friend or foe and (except for one minor character in Ep 18 – a truly wasted 4 minutes) there were no major surprises. In other words, the writers carefully wove the various storylines together and there were no “WTF” moments where a character totally forgot about a prior conversation or new facts were suddenly inserted to move the story forward.
4. Happy Ending for the entire Ilwahon family: Dan-oh, Kang San, Yu-ha, Shi-yeol, Naju, Yook Ho and Hong-joo
5. I hate star-crossed lover stories usually, but the slow-burn romance between Shi-yeol and Hong-joo was beautifully written and because of their backstory/history, it was easy to see how their connection grew and evolved. In my view, they outshone the supposed Main Couple whose primary claim to romance was a childhood connection. Anyway, very happy ending for both couples, so good job writers.
6. The sword fights (and there were many) were well choreographed – outstanding stunt work. The production team did not spare expense in filming the final outdoor scenes both within and outside the palace.
7. All of the bad guys died ?
A few negatives:
As w/most k-dramas, the ending (last ½ hour of Ep. 18) was rushed as everyone’s story was wrapped up with a neat bow in a two-year time skip. However, the reconciliation between Shi-yeol and Hong-joo was a series of small scenes – I was frankly surprised at the writers/directors because they shared short “sketch” scenes which may have been in the novel, but as I said – rushed. Not even a kiss or hug when they reunited. ☹☹
Lots of blood spilled but the most graphic scenes involved the bad guys, so easier to handle.
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Not what I expected in the best way!
"The Secret Romantic Guesthouse" is nothing like what I expected it to be. It has a lot of elements that are in some of my favorite sageuks but has a unique balance between being seriously dramatic and comedically lighthearted. The story does take a few emotional turns without ever becoming too heavy. The title definitely doesn't do this drama any justice. Yes, romance is a big part of the story but there are also revenge plots, a tyrant king, a secret rebellion, and some truly great characters. This drama is definitely more about the whole ensemble than one particular couple, and I loved the chemistry between all of the characters as chance and fate brought them all together to become a makeshift family in a random Inn for aspiring scholars.The owner of Ihwawon Inn is Dan Oh played by Shin Ye Eun. I loved that she is a brave, independent, and outspoken character even though sometimes her antics were frustrating to watch. I also love that the plot wasn't just the usual one girl choosing between 3 suitors trope, as the poster suggests. She really has a unique relationship with each male lead and they have the same unique relationships with each other as well. Ryeoun plays the aloof fighter Kang San who doesn't warm to people too easily, but I loved his smile whenever he did. Jung Gun Joo plays the thoughtful and scholarly Jung Yoo Ha, the most straight-laced of the bunch without being boring. And Kang Hoon plays the silly Kim Shi Yeol who never seems to take anything too seriously, and definitely became my favorite. It was easy for me to really start to care about each of the leads from the beginning, but what I loved most is that none of them were exactly as they seemed and always kept me guessing. With each episode, we learn more about each character's past and motivations, which kept every episode interesting till the very end.
The entire supporting cast is just as great as the leads, although I won't go into too much detail to avoid spoilers. The King and Chief Administer, however, were so irredeemably evil that I loved to root against them, yet even their single-minded goals made me empathize with them during some of their evilest moments. I think that's because the characters were really well written even if they all weren't necessarily complex. None of the characters felt like filler, and no scene felt useless either. There may have been a few minor moments that made me roll my eyes but it all came together and made sense in the end.
Would I watch this again? Definitely. Mostly I would want to watch knowing what I learned about the characters from the beginning. I already rewatched the first episode and certain scenes hit differently once you know how the story will evolve. Maybe some moments will drag watching it for the second time, but I liked the characters so much I would still be entertained.
My only real complaint is that the kiss moments were so disappointing. All the chemistry in the world just feels ruined by dead fish emotionless lip touch where a passionate kiss should be. Ryeoun tried his best to make it sexy, but Shin Ye Eun... just yuck.
Overall, this drama tells a great story and I think it will appeal to people who don't want a historical drama that is too depressing or a romcom that is too silly. This is directed by the director of The Princess's Man, one of my favorite sageuks of all time, so the action scenes are great too... especially the Watchman battles. If you like dramas that will keep you guessing. this one does a great job of always introducing a new and unexpected element even when you think you have it all figured out. I say this as a person who is easily bored by fighting for the crown plots but the pace was great so I didn't have a chance to be bored.
I was sad at the end of 18 episodes to say goodbye to these characters, and that's more than enough for me to recommend this drama. I didn't cry, I don't have any new favorite couples to add to my list, but by the end, I felt like I went on a journey with these characters with them finally living the lives they were meant to and that's the best kind of ending for me.
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Boring Mess
It was a boring mess. I never warmed up to the ML and I preferred Si Yeol much over him. The mystery part was way over the top in the first half of the drama. It was obvious what the writers wanted you to believe - so many obvious (and weird) red herrings. The FL was bland with no other characteristics than being kind.For the first half, it felt like the writers added the romance as an afterthought while in the second half, they completely threw any mystery out of the window. Even with the mystery it was bland but without it, there was nothing to it anymore.
While it was very mid and hollow throughout, I was hoping that at least the ending would be satisfying but it was disappointing. Important motives were changed, characters blamed other characters for stuff that doesn't make sense and in the end, I had the feeling they could've just completely left ML out of the story and it would've had the same outcome.
I'm really disappointed in the story writing but the soundtrack, colours and production quality was really good. Wish they would've casted actors with more chemistry and hired better scriptwriters. Missed opportunity because the idea has potential.
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Without ShiYeol this drama wouldn't have kept me interested for 18 episodes.
Surprisingly, the drama keeps u guessing all throughout the episodes. And there are new twists and turns every episode even though major ones are a bit predictable. There were some filler episodes in the middle but still the plot didn't falter. I loved how the story developed.Now the characters:
So far every main character is likable. I know some people hated the fl's guts in the beginning for being willing to sell out Ok Jin but honestly I understand her. and Shin Ye Eun plays her role really well. Not her best role by far but still she is likable and does her role justice. But it is the boys who absolutely stole the show. Each of them have different personalities. and Honestly Kang San and Shi yeol dynamic is to die for. I love all their interactions with one another. Kang San's stoic personality but cute little smiles whenever Dan Oh's is near is amazing. Yoo Hwa and Dan Oh's interactions are pretty fun. But seriosuly my man Shi Yeol absolutely shine bright. His comic timing is amazing. and His personality is so cute. He is also one of the most layered and interesting character in this drama. I honestly started watching for him after the little women and I am glad I did. I don;t want to spoil anymore but yes he is amazing and the most interesting out of all. I would go on about him but Idk what to say without spoilers.
The supporting cast did commendable jobs too.
Music didn't stand out a lot.
I wouldn't probably rewatch it. But I might just go there from time to time to watch some of Shi Yeol's scenes.
What I dislike so far:
Some filler episodes
The first few episodes. Like I get that we are introducing the characters and the plot but it was still boring. I almost dropped the drama in the middle.
Later episodes also faltered a bit. Stupid choices.
I hoped that we would be able to get more background for all main characters and how they grew up and how they adapted to their role since childhood. Esp Shi Yeol. This would have made the drama more interesting and the plot would have been better. THis would be better than adding lots of filler scenes.
Last episode. It was rushed. EVen with 18 episodes I can't believe they didn't give a proper thoughtout and sensible ending.
I liked the action pieces for the most part but sometimes they are not good. Only some scenes stand out. For a drama that is esp focused a lot on sword fight scenes and stuff I expected variety. This one is just a minor gripe.
So far, I like the drama. This is one of the few dramas I am watching right now and honestly it is worth watching if you like mystery with light comedy elements.
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This review may contain spoilers
The secret Shi Yeol's Guesthouse.
I will be quick 'cause I wanted mostly to write a Review with a Shi Yeol Reference.A really solid drama. First 1-12 eps were really good, while 12-16 were pretty okay. I pretty liked 17-8, they were pretty interesting but not great. Anyway super mega ultra cute ending.
THE BEST OF THIS DRAMA:
Shi Yeol - if you need a 360° character then he is the main of your dreams. Amazing acting, sad past, beautiful personality: the classic "He is smiling outside, but crying inside". Most interesting love story.
Acting: The acting was pretty solid. I didn't find any chemistry between main couple and also (even if I liked both in different dramas) I didn't see a good acting from then. Many said she was the problem, but I failed to gasp the revenge need, sorrow and personality of Kang San.
While about Yoon Dan Oh it's her character the problem... she is presented as smart, courageous and quickminded, but she then just became a love interest and nothing more. A really bland character. In that way also her actress (that was amazing in The Glory and Revenge of Others) looks like bland in her acting. But the problem was her character.
Shi Yeol actor instead was brilling and outstanding. He literally carried the drama on his shoulder.
About the Ending:
Tbh I was happy Kang San didn't became king--- tbh since day 1 he never had any trait of a good King. He is yes a good prince, but not king wise. I disagree that he gave up on becaming a King because of Love. Since day 1 he was just blinded by Revenge and protecting who he loved, but he has no interest in Politics, People and what to do as a King.
Yoo-Ha instead is King material, even if agree that they should have make his character kind of better. But I think he was not that bad. He always put others before him and loves to work for others and have ideas about how to improve the country. Yeah he could have been also a good minister near the King, but I really can't see Kang San as a King at all.
I agree that lying is bad-- but I will consider it in this case as a white lie. Maybe was too late to clean all the steal identity?
What I was sad is the fact Kang San felt that he should have stayed away for Political reasons--- but well.
Anyway Shi Yeol getting his happy ending is the best thing ever <3 I will maybe came back later to adjust my review.
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This review may contain spoilers
Not the ending I wanted but still a good watch
WHAT I LIKED:- The main romance. How they met and made a promise and it led them to become a couple years later and nothing and nobody would come between them. Cliché but cute.
- The love triangle: Not too annoying. SML was nice because he could have forced a final twist...
- The story and narrative arc of the Third ML. It was clearly the most interesting part with everything enjoyable: sad fate, duty, destiny, revenge, swordfights, romance, forbidden love...
- The "Who is who?" game in the first part of the story. The mystery was well made.
- The young gisaeng
- Jang Tae Hwa: His action are bad and he justifies them with his obsession and need for revenge. He was a proper bad guy.
- The pace of the story was good. No draggy part.
- OST was ok.
WHAT I DID NOT LIKE:
- ML characterization was a bit erratic and ultimately disappointing. He first appears to be a soldier then he leads a rebellion he did not instigate and in the end, he goes live an idle nobleman life. Too bad because he had nothing less than the other guy to become King. He just renounced his duty and responsibilities in the name of Love. It undermined his character for me.
- SML: not an interesting character for me. Not a charismatic leader. He won the race because his opponent quit. In the end the royals lied to the people.
- The King : grotesque character until the very end. Should have been more evil and less crazy.
OVERALL: The story is interesting with each one of the leads having their own trajectory that combines well with the others. 8.5/10. A good historical kdrama to watch.
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Keep me guessing the secret identities in the beginning but the main romance lets me down.
Subjective Gut Rating - 7.75The romance in “The Secret Romantic Guesthouse” isn’t that romantic. I think the title is giving me false hopes.
Let’s do a quick fire bullet-point review;
1. Supposedly smart leads making dumb decisions - Is that really a good idea to send a secret message by throwing it over the wall into the pond, when anyone can pick it up?? Why would you leave an ornament by the grave for others to find and know that you are alive?
2. The secret identity was kept for 8 years and all of a sudden, everyone found out. People can't keep their mouths shut.
3. The main romance is not working for me. I don't feel the chemistry and am not moved by their challenges. Ryeoun is cute and has boyish charms, but his acting is not as good as the other two male leads. He also lacks charisma.
4. I much prefer the sister's story and romance.
5. Kang Hoon as Kim Shi Yeol is probably my favorite character. I think his acting is the best out of the 3 male leads.
6. First half of the story is interesting and kept me guessing their identities. The bromance/brotherhood is fun and interesting. I love the family feel.
7. Then the pace becomes slower when the secret is revealed. It continues to be moderately slow through all the politics.
8. Well, at least there is no annoying character and the overall acting is quite good, esp the veterans.
9. Does this drama need to be 18-episode long? At least you don’t have a rushed ending.
10. The crazy king is entertaining and the actor did a pretty good job.
11. No fish kisses!
Do I recommend this? Only if you are a fan of the actors and you have time to kill. It’s not bad, but also not as good as I thought it would be.
Completed: 5/24/2023 - Review #310
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To polish a turd
They tried to sprinkle in some fake scripted bland romance in the beginning but they forgot to add the chemistry to the mix and develop it gradually, so it ended up being too delayed to care about. The same thing can be said about the mystery once it dwindled, like it lost its mojo in a heartbeat. The trend continued until the end without ever recovering. To put it simply, the story was dead on arrival from all angles and salvaging it was near impossible. As if that wasn't enough, we had to endure it for 18 episodes. Which leaves us with the saddest part, the cast, specifically the leads. What a fine collection of disappointing soulless performances. I guess FL was kinda passable to a certain degree but the other trio boys were a lost cause.Was this review helpful to you?
With Ryeoun, what’s not to love?
Ryeoun is one of the best actors out there. He can do comedy and drama flawlessly. He puts everything into his roles like play the guitar and sword fighting. Everything just seems so natural with him. Plus he’s gorgeous.This was a great story with a mystery and several twists and turns. You just had to fall in love with all the main characters. But, for me, Kang Hoon was the unexpected star of the show. He was superb with all of the emotions he had to portray in this role. He made me laugh and cry.
Watch this! It may start a little slow but it will be worth it for the second half. So good!
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Sword fights, love, friendship, and a mystery of whom shall claim the throne
First, the cinematography and sword fighting choreography are amazing. The story itself doesn't involved much emotions but it does hit the right beat. It kept me guessing without dragging plot points out.Secret Romantic Guesthouse’s highlight is its’ tight pacing, consistent writing, great characters, and plenty of lovable tropes! All leads and support characters have equal footing, so you can root for whoever you want to emotionally invest in. Palace politics are not dull; No overdose of ministers discussions!
Although I had bumps on the 2nd half and felt bored for the lukewarmth vibe doesn’t moved me emotionally; Overall, everything is wrapped up neatly at the end. I'd highly recommend it for something that's not too deep but not too superficial either.
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This review may contain spoilers
A little dull but overall good
The first few episodes I found a little slow. Some parts were meant to be funny but i didn’t find it humorous.What I liked was that all 4 main leads had a distinct history and character. They all came together by staying at the same guesthouse. I also liked the history between Dan O and Kang San, how they met as kids, and how he remembered her but she didn’t until later.
I liked the character of Si Yeol- a carefree scholar by day and a dark watchman sworn to protect the deposed / future heir to the throne by night. I would have preferred more of his “dark side” with more sword fights scenes.
The King was annoyingly spoiled. If he had been wiser, I think he could have killed all those who opposed him much sooner lol.
The romance was not too bad. One kiss scene only, and we didn’t even get a wedding scene of the main couple, but of the 2nd couple. It’s like a PG-13 historical drama, so nothing too gory or raunchy haha.
A pleasant watch. I did ff here and there but overall it was good.
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Great blend of rom-com, mystery and action!
Ah, how sad I am to have finished the show now??. This had the perfect mix of mystery, rom-com and action for me! I like how Dan Oh had a great relationship with Shi Yeol, Yoon Ho and Kang San individually as well as with all of them as a group! I also enjoyed the mystery behind the identities of the Prince and Watchman! They gave us clues and (misleading) hints here and there and yet it made sense once the identity of those two was revealed??♀️. Sometimes, the episodes had some segments that felt like filler, but every episode had an AMAZING cliffhanger and would be succeeded by a banger start of the next episode??The OST also had some really nice instrumentals that I enjoyed a lot! I am satisfied with the ending as everything wrapped up nicely: the bad guys got their deserved ending, the good ones created their happy end and we, the viewer, were able to finish the show happily and positively???. The second-lead story with Shi Yeol and Hong Joo was heartbreaking, but so beautiful; for once, I really enjoyed a secondary love story as much as the main. The overall love-lines in this show were really sweet and so cute, I had great time!Was this review helpful to you?
