Intensely riveting! This Korean Costume Drama is a WINNER! I just finished watching The Crowned Clown and was gripped through to the end. I had no idea this was a remake of the 2012 widely famous movie “Masquerade.” TCC’s dark and somewhat ominous opening had me wondering whether, where, and when this production would transition or evolve to a lighter storyline. Yet this historic palace drama was captivating and I knew it would simply get better with each episode. BTW the set, scenery, cinematography and even wardrobe were so well coordinated I consider this as a top-tier production.

Truth-be-told I could brag on EACH-AND-EVERY cast member, because they ALL executed their roles so believably and phenomenally well. BRAVO to YEO JIN-GOO who portrayed both Ha-seon (the clown) and Yi-heon (the king)! His performance delivery spanned from coy innocence, lovingly gentle, comical, pensive and insightful, wise and astute to even tyrannical. Quite impressive for this young actor! An actor portraying just one personality type could be challenged, however, Yeo Jin-Goo’s multi-character shifting is worth boasting about and applauding.

Although the final 10 minutes of episode #16 did not have quite the punch or dynamic pizazz I felt was due TCC…considering the string of continually compelling episodes…it was not disappointing enough to cause me to rate TCC any lower than 10 STARS. Don’t skip this Korean Costume Drama. As I’ve said from the start, this is a WINNER!