This is my first review so it may be lacking.
First, to start off, this drama is all about friendship, trust, betrayal and love. It is a very heartfelt drama and I feel like I have never cried so much. At the same time, the first few episodes is where the humour is. After a couple more episodes, everything starts to get serious and that's where the waterworks come in.
I'll admit that the ending was pretty sad but that doesn't mean that it wasn't good. It's one of those dramas that are very deep. I especially loved the character development but I won't spoil what happens so you'll have to watch to find out what happens.
I usually hate sad endings but this drama was so good that I couldn't help watching. Its full of twists and turns and it kept me hooked up until the very last second. Every episode ends with a surprise and it makes you want to see what happens next.
I would totally recommend you see this drama because you really won't regret it.

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Cute, but boring

There is no drama in this kdrama. Whatsoever. It’s very slice of life and more realistic than other kdramas and I see the appeal in that but it’s not for me. I wasn’t looking forward to the next episodes and I kind of kept it on as background noise.

The actors seem to be really good, my problem was with the characters. I find they’re very 2D, boring, expressionless characters. Shin Se Kyung has like no expression whatsoever when portraying her character (and I know she’s a good actress so that’s not a testament to her acting skills). She just talks with a straight face most of the time and smiles like occasionally. Same goes for Seon Gyeom, although I guess that’s the appeal in his character. The only character I really loved is Young Hwa. We also see a lot of character development for Dan Ah, which none of the other characters show.

I just find there’s not much to it, it’s very lighthearted, low key boring, realistic, and occasionally funny. I guess it’s a nice change from other dramas, but I wasn’t really into it

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SOOOOO GOOD

Before this drama, my favourite all-time drama was Kill Me, Heal Me, but somehow this drama topped that one.

---STORY---
The story was AMAZING. Sooo many plot twists that actually make sense and contribute to the story, and there are 0 filler episodes. Every single SECOND of the drama was important and meaningful. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I first started watching, but it turned out to be SO amazing. I cried so much throughout the drama, my eyes are like permanently puffy.

---ACTING/CAST---
I think we can all agree that EVERY single cast member was AMAZING. I first saw Moon Chae-won in Running Man, and BOYYY she is so talented. Lee joon-gi was really good in Scarlet Heart, but his acting in this drama was beyond amazing. He played both an unemotional, unfeeling psychopath, a loving dad and husband, and a crazed man. Kim Ji-hoon is new to me, but he was genuinely SO scary in the drama I nearly cried out of fear every time I saw him. That's how good he was. I loved Jang Hee-jin and Geo Hyun-woo as well (also new to me). Literally every secondary character no matter how small their role was really well casted and well done.

---MUSIC---
There were two distinct theme songs that I remember from this drama, but none left the same effect as Auditory Hallucination (KMHM). The creepy background music literally made me cry out of fear and it really made the scary moments so much scarier.

---OVERALL---
I can't even begin to explain how amazing this drama is. I seriously recommend you watch the first episode and you'l automatically be hooked. I would definitely rewatch this, 100 times over and never get sick of it. It's one of those.

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Great start, depressing middle, sad ending

This is my first review, but I felt like I had to give my two cents on this drama.
The story itself is very interesting and unlike anything I've ever seen before. It's a good story, and I would've thoroughly enjoyed it if it had stayed nice and cheery throughout the whole series. However, it took a dark and depressing turn when the brothers started fighting for the throne. That part was rushed, unpleasant, and not well-thought out, nor filmed, in my opinion. This is not for you if you want a drama like Rookie Historian Goo Hae-Ryung. THIS DRAMA IS LIKE ROOKIE HISTORIAN GOO HAE-RYUNG AT THE BEGINNING AND TURNS INTO KINGDOM HALFWAY THROUGH.
This drama is not for you if you like happy and satisfying endings (which I do). It was sad and not at all satisfying.
The music was really good though, one of my favourite things in this drama, I would totally download the OST.

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Not great, not awful either

As a Chinese person, I am not proud to say this is my first complete watch of a Cdrama. Needless to say, it pales in comparison to Kdramas. Like, a lot.

ACTING: The acting isn’t great. It FEELS like they’re acting, which is not a good sign. I think Shen Yue is the best one here. The interactions fall a bit short and seem choppy, and are a bit awkward at times. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel the “skip a heartbeat” moment when the two mains finally got together, like I usually do in Kdramas. Also the hitting/kicking/slapping scenes are so staged and unrealistic, they were hard to watch

STORY: I literally rewatched the first episode of Boys over Flowers so I could compare it to MG, and even though that one was filmed 10 years before this one, everything about it was better. The execution, the acting, the story. Cdramas have some rly corny and unnatural elements, like the scene of her kicking him in the face, or him suggesting they hide in the girls bathroom to scare her. It’s just plain extra and weird. Also all 6-7 episodes of Meizuo/Caina were skipped.

CHARACTERS: I’ll admit, I had no idea how much the characters grew throughout the series. Their growth was gradual and natural, which I really liked. The mother was too much, she became annoying, not as a character but as a plot element. They used her too much and repeated the situation too many times.

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I was originally upset that they changed the male lead and so I had put off watching the second season for the longest time. I also watched this drama like a year after watching the first season so I wasn't attached to captain Jang whatsoever (mainly because I didn't remember him or season 1). I recommend watching season 1 again if you didn't watch it recently.

I really like the chemistry between Ha Na and Jin Wook. I also love that Jin Wook has such a complex history, which gives his character a lot more depth.

The story flows very nicely and nothing seems like filler. Even the small everyday crimes have a link to the bigger overall plot of the story (which is SO impressive imo). The only negative thing I have to say is that sometimes they make connections between the MOST unlikely events, which seems a tad bit unrealistic, but is super easy to ignore. I also feel like they were a little too stoic when finding out a loved one or a teammate was in danger (although it can be explained by their police training to stay calm I guess?).

Really loved the drama, and it's really impressive that it has not one, not two, but THREE successful seasons when dramas typically will only have one. The plot for each season is super well done and thought out, completely unpredictable and shocking every time. I loved it!

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ALL-TIME FAVOURITE

I just finished watching the drama for a second time and I still have no bad things to say about it.
---STORY---
This was the first and is the only drama I have watched where the main character has DID, and I loved it so much! The story is really well-written, and everything develops perfectly. I didn't feel like the drama was dragging on whatsoever throughout the 20 episodes (which is already pretty long for a drama). With other dramas that have 12-16 episodes, sometimes I find myself wondering when it's going to end, or how far I've watched. I NEVER felt that way with this drama.

The drama never gets boring and they have a couple REALLY shocking plot-twists that I'm pretty sure no one could've predicted. And the plot twists aren't the ones some dramas use as filler, they're all crucial to the main plot of the story.

---CAST---
I think we can all agree that the casting and acting were 10/10. Ji-sung is SUCH an amazing actor and even though people may find Ri-jin's scream really annoying, it does die down throughout the drama. I fell in love with all the personalities and I REALLY felt like Ji-sung was spit into 6 different people and his transitions between the personalities was SO well done.
Seo-joon was really amazing throughout the drama as well. He made me fall in love with Ri-on and if he weren't her "brother", I would've had REALLY bad second lead syndrome. He adds laughter to the drama and yet he is not a shallow character. I really loved all the main characters, they were really well portrayed.

---MUSIC---
I don't think anyone can say they didn't like Auditory Hallucination. I downloaded the song like 5 years ago, when I first watched and fell in love with the drama, and I have been listening to it for 5 years without ever getting tired of it. It's just THAT good. I also really suits the drama and made me cry A LOT.

---OVERALL---
I would definitely rewatch this drama an unlimited number of times. Everything about it was really well done and it especially peaks my interest as a psychology student. If you don't love the drama already by episode 2, then who are you?

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It was good... but I have criticisms

---- STORY ----
The story seems very platonic and unappealing, but the execution was amazing. At first I started watching the drama without much expectation, but I was pleasantly surprised.
My criticism about the story is that I don't see the point in bringing in the man who spent 3 years with Gong-sil. Like why even appear towns the last 2 episodes? We could've done without him and his story.
By episode 10, I was checking to see how many episodes were left of the series, and not in a good way. I think this drama ran 2-3 episodes too long and by episode 16, I was debating just not finishing it at all.
I also found "Hee-Joo's" ghost SO annoying. She always just stood there and never said, like, ANYTHING. And yet the whole thing revolved around her ghost.

----ACTING----
Ji Sub was so charismatic and amazing in his acting. I loved his "get lost" and emotionless expressions, they were so hilarious!! Hyo Jin was also really amazing, and we all know she's just a good actress in general. She made talking to nobody seem so realistic, and she completely changed personalities when possessed by the piano player's wife.
The only person I have a problem with is Yi Ryung. I don't know if it's Yoo-ri or the character herself, but she was not only annoying, but not properly executed. All she did was yell and talk in a baby-ish way while being confident. I didn't see the appeal at all and I haven't watched enough of Yoo-ri's drama to know if it was a problem on her part.

----MUSIC----
Nothing AMAZING, but there was one song that I really liked.

----OVERALL----
I would suggest watching it even if you're put off by the synopsis, because it's so much more than it seems. There were a lot of heartache moments, and funny moments as well.

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Entertaining, but lacking

The story itself is pretty unique, I haven't watched a similar kdrama before. However, my only complaint is that there isn't much of a story, background or depth to it. The characters' backstories weren't well-developed enough. I didn't feel anything when something happened to people close to the main characters. Ga Mo Tak's situation felt like it was inserted into the story to give his character a little more depth, same goes for Ms. Chu and we never really get into Ha Na's story. I just feel like the story and the character's backgrounds could be developed more for me to actually feel something.

The episodes are kind of repetitive, with Mun getting beat up like over and over again over 4-5 episodes. I also would've liked to see more of his friends because their friendship was just goals. I also felt like the last and ultimate fight scene had no buildup or climax, it happened so quickly and I wasn't really satisfied when the mayor got arrested. I was just like meh, whatever.

Overall, I see this drama as more entertaining. I wouldn't really watch it for the plot, but more for the funny scenes

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One of my favourite dramas now

I didn't have high expectations going in to this drama, but BOY did I fall in love!!

First up, the story might be cliche, but I have yet to watch a drama with a similar story line. During the whole drama, there was a main plot that was maintained in all seriousness, without taking away from the comedic parts of the drama. The drama was both funny and serious at the same time. In the first episode alone, I found myself awing, crying, and gasping because of the story and the acting.

THE ACTING!!! First of all, the kid actors looked SO much alike to the adult ones it was fairly easy to tell who was who. Second of all, the children actors were absolutely amazing!! From their interactions to facial expressions to how well they acted out their characters, I was really shocked (and it was adorable) during the first episode. Kyung Soo, Ji Hyun and Seon Ho were brilliant, I loved them so much!! They had amazing chemistry (Won Deuk and Hong Shim) and their marriage was extremely realistic based on the circumstances.

I also really enjoyed the music, I wouldn't say it was particularly memorable like Kill Me, Heal Me's OST, but it definitely fit the drama. One of the songs got me crying every time it was played and it just fit so well with the time period and the drama/story itself.

I thoroughly enjoyed the drama from beginning to end. It wasn't boring at all during the 100 days away from the palace and there were touching, sad, serious, AND funny moments. It's more of a funny drama with a good plot so if you're looking for some serious historical and shocking dramas I suggest Kingdom instead. I also really liked how they ended the drama with everyone becoming so happy and relaxed, instead of being tense and plotting something. I really loved the drama and I highly suggest watching it!!!

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Rewatching and realizing it isn't that good

I may be biased because I just finished watching the ALL TIME best kdrama Kill Me, Heal Me. In short, this drama nowhere near compares to KMHM so this review may be slightly biased.

---STORY---
The story is pretty good if you think about it. A doctor goes oversees to a third world country, meets a soldier and falls in love with him. This story could have been spun in so many ways and it could have been made SO much more interesting (think Crash Landing on You). From the beginning, there is like no real obstacle to their relationship. Besides the misunderstanding in the first episode, everything is pretty much smooth sailing, except for a couple of uncertainties on Mo-yeon's part. This is what I don't like. I like when couples have to overcome so many obstacles and we're finally rewarded with like the ULTIMATE and romantic kiss scene. I just think the relationship was too easy and I don't like that.
A drama with a relationship made so easy should just be all laughs and fun, but the creators tried to make it serious with all the problems they encountered in Urk, and it doesn't really work.

There's a lot of hype about the drama and I don't really see why. I was kind of hesitant to drop the drama actually the second time I watched it because I felt compelled to finish it because everyone raves about it. To be honest, it would've been perfect if they had stopped the drama after 14-15 episodes (I stopped at 13 this time), right after they return from Urk.

---ACTING---
I remember a Song Joong Ki from Running Man and I was really shocked with his acting skills. He's so boyish and charismatic in this drama, no one can deny that. I had no idea he was such a good actor, because his personality is far from being cocky, for this I gave the casting 9/10.
I wouldn't say I felt a chemistry between Joong Ki and Hye Ko, maybe because of the lack of a struggle, idk.

---MUSIC---
Again, comparing this kdrama to KMHM, the music doesn't really do anything for the show. Usually the music moves me to tears or cheers me up, but this drama's music was so not memorable, I couldn't even sing it to you.

---OVERALL---
I liked the drama in Urk, although it would've been nice if they stayed in Urk and kept having to overcome obstacles. The earthquake, pandemic and kidnapping were a bit too sudden and rushed, occurring one RIGHT after another and seems slightly unrealistic. I stopped watching when they returned to Korea so I can't judge the rest of the show, but I think they should've ended the show there. I don't think I would rewatch this and I typically hate disagreeing with the general public, but I just didn't really enjoy this drama all that much. At times I was bored and would go on my phone and I felt no excitement between the two lead.

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