mali
I am not saying this drama was perfect...but it was good! It did its job. I was caught off guard, captivated, intrigued, I laughed, cried and most important did not lose interest.
I ask myself why?? does this drama have little or no recognition. My personal opinion only but I think sometimes cast, latest technologies to create beautiful scenery etc., and mood and trends of that particular time dictate popularity over substance. Popularity lessens as the drama gets older for most. This drama seemed even older than when it was released in 2008. I believe more people would rather not watch simply because its considered to old to relate to. All dramas have the same goal to keep people watching no matter what reason. If your reason to watch dramas is simply to watch your kpop idol or the latest styles and outfits without care of substance than just skip this drama.
I recommend this simply because it was good.
OST was a definite plus!
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This drama isn't the newest or latest, it is an older drama so some may feel it is dated with the style etc...but what makes a drama anyways because it has the latest fashions or hottest actors. If this is what your looking for than you can just skip this drama.
This drama had so much depth not only in cuisine but also emotional depth.
If for no other reason i would recommend this for the food aspect. I mean everything you could imagine from sea to land. Everything from snow crabs, to croaker bladders to mountain pheasants and yes even the art of korean butchery.
I personally would recommend this for any Kim Rae Won fans, which I never was but I am now!
as for OST, great intro! and some memorable tunes as well.
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ultimate love triangle: check
intense love story: check
explicit love scenes: check
historical setting with more blood and gore than usual: check
For those not willing to bear with the last two....I suggest its not for you, but for those that can overlook the bottom two and are looking for something different but intense, definitely one to watch or you may like all of the above. You won't really know until you watch it. :)
Acting- Superb acting from some of the best actors out of korea! This alone got me curious and I definitely have no regrets.
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****Highly recommend for food drama lovers and people that appreciate foods for thought :)
***Obviously not recommended for those looking for thrillers, suspense rom-coms, melodramas :(
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My thoughts on why. I think in this particular drama. It seemed that like this was a poorly put together drama. The directors got this in reverse. It felt that they got well known actors first and just threw together a story and plot. It felt like the names was all that mattered and we will figure out a plot later...Just what I felt as I a watched this. lol. It did work for the most part because I did watch it through because of Joo Sang Wook and I did like the finished product, It wasnt a total waste of time. But I usually finish dramas that I start no matter how I might dislike them.
Acting - of course Joo Sang Wook is great and Kim Sun Ah fans may love
I also always like dramas that Jun Kwang Ryul plays the villain. He makes a compelling villain!
Music - i actually dont really remember only the jazzy introductions :(
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Hobo gangsters!!!!! who even knew they existed. Might sound far fetched and too ridiculous for a good story but quite the opposite. Yes of course it has it's flaws but what drama doesn't. I mean homeless guys driving cars and living in a penthouse and maybe there wasn't any homeless women hanging around either that I saw. The story and acting far out weighed any shortcomings this drama had. I mean as for a gangster type feel. You better believe you felt it....no guns allowed, straight brawling oh and of course the occasional baseball bat and plywood. Really great movie directions, angles shots, everything was in its place. I honestly felt no dragging parts. Every scene had a purpose.
OST- totally loved it!!!! I know it's great when i look for it to put as my ring tone :)
actors who were at their best:
Yoon Kye Sang
Lee Bum So
Park Won Sang
oh and honorable mention definitely as preying mantis Kim Hyung Kyu
actually the whole cast was just great!
LAST is definitely first in my book to watch!
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Question? Why do we love dramas soooo much? Is it to escape into some fantasy world where the rich guy gets the poor girl or you fall in love with a alien. hmmmm or something more serious and melodramatic where a main character seems doomed from the beginning.
I ask only because this drama twisted my emotions but not out of fantasy, time travel, or outrageous plots. This drama gave me an escape into LIFE, Living life as we do day to day, what is important to you???? This drama tells of one family's up's and down so there starts the journey. I honestly did not know what to expect because the synopsis was too revealing and the first half of the drama I wasn't seeing anything but I just kept an open mind and watched all the characters develop and that was the point. You got to know and understand each character, granted you may love some more than others and some did annoy me more than others, but isn't that life. We are ALL only human..
Lastly, its amazing how this drama made me want to shout with glee to my parents and siblings and tell them how much they mean to me.....now isnt that a good enough recommendation to watch this!
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It's visually appealing, to include the male and female characters if that's your thing as well. The sceneries were breathtaking as well. Some negativity about being corny, childish and maybe costumes not good as some wanted but that's being too critical. It's a fantasy drama just ENJOY!
If your hesitant because of the 62 episodes. This is the fastest 62 episode drama I have watched.
HINT: long intros and exits that take up sooo much time. Just skip through those and the episodes felt less than 30 minutes....the episodes were ending quicker than I wanted and I couldn't wait to get to the next one! PURE FUN AND ENJOYMENT GUYS!
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cast- just amazing, Kim Seung Woo plays the poor male lead, he is what made this drama so believable and his acting is incredible in this one. You feel his desire, emotions its written all over his face. the female lead Choi Ji Woo is somewhat more subdued but you still root for them. The rest of the cast was just superb. I like how they had a little bromance going on and the character developments throughout the drama, you really end up loving every character, What I also like is how the realism of the poor guy's day to day life and people in his shoes was portrayed. It's REALITY.
Music- definitely one of my favorite osts....even tried to find one particular song. not even in print and cannot find it on you tube. :(
overall just a fun, escape kinda fairytale, but in fact very realistic, believable especially the beginnings of falling in love with someone, just an enjoyable, feel good all around drama.
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But I am glad I did. If this is your genre, this maybe one to add to your list. It packed punch. Although halfway through I started cringing at some scenes and realized omg this was a horror movie. I didn't drop it. This movie was well made and had such an eerie, creepy feel to it that I couldn't stop watching it. The acting was on point and some familiar faces that I normally don't see doing a thriller like this so that was a plus for me. So if you want a 2 hr Korean historical thriller. I highly recommend this one!
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I just said what the heck....let me see how bad this is. There is a quote from this drama, "I am a doctor nothing more nothing less";. So my analysis is this. Guys!!! this a kdrama nothing more nothing less!
If you are debating on watching this just go for it. It isn't horrible. and I am sure everyone has had their share of why did i watch that? I know I have, but you don't know unless you try.
Why I personally would recommend this drama:
Lee Jong Suk- I personally never thought much about his acting, not much in Secret Garden and I just saw I Hear Your Voice, which quite honestly didn't move me as far as his character development maybe because I only thought of him as a high school kid. How much development could you have. Sooo if for no reason at all check him out in this one.
Lastly, Just watch and let it the ride take you wherever, it's not so predictable, but assuming and having high expectations from this one, than you probably might just get disappointed.
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This review may contain spoilers
So here goes another review, and only because some of my fellow drama lovers may have had this on their to plan watch list for months(like me) and just never got that push to click START. Indeed, with all the great reviews just another one to arouse your curiousity maybe to actually watch this.Watching dramas for years now, it was rare to find ones that made me laugh and cry literally at the same time like this movie did and it's not even a drama, usually dramas take time for the development of the characters soooo we literally love them to death and cry and laugh along with them by the end. This is a movie so it won't last weeks or months like when we start a drama.
No spoilers you can read the synopsis, but I must say Kal So Won who is the child actress in the movie was the true gem of this movie. I have never been more mesmerized and captivated by such talent. Nothing taken away from the other cast members, they were just as brilliant and they couldn't have picked better actors for any of the supporting roles. This a gem of a movie and a must see for any korean/asian drama/movie lover or at least you must have it on your list if you are a true fan :) regardless if you agree with my review or not.
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How I came to that conclusion: Do you like kimchee, would you like to learn more, or at least more than you knew before, than maybe it's a passing grade for this drama. I summarized it in my head as okay the first episode or the first 10 minutes got me with the beautiful array of korean food displayed. hmmm interesting, but than the story began to unfold and it was okay, because I kept thinking wow the kimchee and all the other foods look great....so here was my rational on how I got through this drama.
The kimchee was definitely the star, and as for the story and plots, I thought of them as the side dishes. I mean there was even the 10 commandments of kimchee who knew. So if you have no other drama on your on hold list or plan to watch list than get on the kimchee bus!
on and btw cute catchy tune if you watch you will hear it. :)
cast: maybe they should have used actors more fitting for the age. I mean the wise kimchee teacher, was the same actress from her 30's to her 70's. I mean in her 30's she obviously didn't look 30.(older actress portraying younger)
Also Han Jae Suk, plays the male lead, still handsome, maybe the Lee Min Ho of the 90's kdrama era, correct me if I am wrong, only saw one drama with him(Glass Slippers) which he played in and that was excellent.
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So.."What is a King", words that spoke to me after this. Do they just roll the dice or whoever in their entourage yells the loudest or gets the ear of the King. So many different scenarios and outcomes must be deliberated. I found myself on edge wondering what will he do.
P.S. I might have given a higher score if not for some animal scenes, maybe caution for animal lovers. It's a little brutal.
I would just like to assume no animals were injured in this movie.
I still highly recommend this movie for any historical lovers out there.
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