This review may contain spoilers
Another show so close to perfect....if it wasn't for that ending
I generally don't write reviews when I genuinely enjoy a show, because the shows I generally really enjoy are always, somehow, ones that everyone else enjoys and rates highly and is there any point in me just adding to that?
In this case, as with The Untamed, this series is damn near perfect. The casting, the acting, the music and even the plot (for the most part) is all excellent.
Let's get it out the way first, though, shall we? The ending. Hoo, boy, the ending. It let this series down big time.
The basic premise of this is that in the modern day, a rather arrogant chef, Jang Bong-hwan working at the Blue House (the official residence of the President of the Republic of South Korea) is set up by his boss to embarrass the President at an official dinner and then further implicated in corruption in food purchases.
Whilst escaping from the police out of his apartment building window, he falls into the swimming pool and drowns. He wakes up to find himself in 1851 in the body of Kim So-Yong, the future Queen Cheorin of Joseon (as Korea was called then.) What follows is Jang's attempts to not only return to his own body and his own time, but also to survive the court intrigue of the Queen's relatives, the Kim family, and their rivals, the Jo family, using only his wits, his knowledge of the past and his cooking skills.
Along the way, King Cheoljong genuinely falls in love with Jang and even compiles a 'Queen's Dictionary' consisting of all the idioms and modern slang that Jang uses regularly to try to understand her better.
Of course, when Jang and Kim So-Yong switch back about three quarters of the way through the last episode, I expected it but I was still disappointed. Even though it's made clear that both Jang and So retain some vestiges of each other's souls, even the King can tell she isn't the person he fell in love with.
And that is the real shame of it. They genuinely came to love each other and now one of them isn't really the same person anymore. It just....makes no sense.
All the kudos go to Shin Hye-sun for her performance in this. She effortlessly switches between Jang and So and you can always tell which soul is inhabiting the body. Her voice, posture and language all change completely to distinguish between them. She's a damn good actress. Nothing more to be said.
I fast forwarded through a lot of the court intrigue scenes. Not fast enough that I'd lose sight of the plot, but the court intrigue and the Grand Queen Dowager's brother being an asshole didn't really interest me.
The music is wonderful. 'Here I Am' is a beautiful song and 'bong Hwan A' is a brilliant rock song. Both make me wish I could speak Korean just so I could sing along.
This is absolutely worth a watch because the first 19 and a half episodes are great. The acting is on point, the music is brilliant and so much of it is so rewatchable.
if it hadn't been for that ending, this would be a full 10 for me.
In this case, as with The Untamed, this series is damn near perfect. The casting, the acting, the music and even the plot (for the most part) is all excellent.
Let's get it out the way first, though, shall we? The ending. Hoo, boy, the ending. It let this series down big time.
The basic premise of this is that in the modern day, a rather arrogant chef, Jang Bong-hwan working at the Blue House (the official residence of the President of the Republic of South Korea) is set up by his boss to embarrass the President at an official dinner and then further implicated in corruption in food purchases.
Whilst escaping from the police out of his apartment building window, he falls into the swimming pool and drowns. He wakes up to find himself in 1851 in the body of Kim So-Yong, the future Queen Cheorin of Joseon (as Korea was called then.) What follows is Jang's attempts to not only return to his own body and his own time, but also to survive the court intrigue of the Queen's relatives, the Kim family, and their rivals, the Jo family, using only his wits, his knowledge of the past and his cooking skills.
Along the way, King Cheoljong genuinely falls in love with Jang and even compiles a 'Queen's Dictionary' consisting of all the idioms and modern slang that Jang uses regularly to try to understand her better.
Of course, when Jang and Kim So-Yong switch back about three quarters of the way through the last episode, I expected it but I was still disappointed. Even though it's made clear that both Jang and So retain some vestiges of each other's souls, even the King can tell she isn't the person he fell in love with.
And that is the real shame of it. They genuinely came to love each other and now one of them isn't really the same person anymore. It just....makes no sense.
All the kudos go to Shin Hye-sun for her performance in this. She effortlessly switches between Jang and So and you can always tell which soul is inhabiting the body. Her voice, posture and language all change completely to distinguish between them. She's a damn good actress. Nothing more to be said.
I fast forwarded through a lot of the court intrigue scenes. Not fast enough that I'd lose sight of the plot, but the court intrigue and the Grand Queen Dowager's brother being an asshole didn't really interest me.
The music is wonderful. 'Here I Am' is a beautiful song and 'bong Hwan A' is a brilliant rock song. Both make me wish I could speak Korean just so I could sing along.
This is absolutely worth a watch because the first 19 and a half episodes are great. The acting is on point, the music is brilliant and so much of it is so rewatchable.
if it hadn't been for that ending, this would be a full 10 for me.
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