My Journey to…Nowhere?

Let me start with the positive marks. This drama is seriously gorgeous when it comes to visuals, with the attention to cinematographic detail you see in movies more than TV shows. You could even put the drama on mute and still enjoy it just for how gorgeous so many shots are. This is clearly where the director’s talents lie and was my favorite part of the experience.

The second thing I can applaud is the cast, who all performed their roles to the best they could as the characters are written. I have to give special mention to Ryan Cheng who was so perfect in his role as Gong Shang Jue that unfortunately the others, even though they were good, were eclipsed by his performance. But really it is on a scale of “pretty good” to “excellent” with no major weak points in acting.

The story starts off exciting in its first episodes with a great focus on Yun Wei Shan being sent on her mission amongst the potential brides, but is soon dragged down to an extremely slow pace it suffers from until the end of the drama. Most episodes follow the same formula of going around in circles, with too much exposition and endless conversations (that were so whispered it was sometimes hard to hear over the background tracks) only to finish up on a cliffhanger to keep you hooked in, and then do the same the next episode. The show often gets lost in flashbacks and forgets to move forward in the present timeline leading to a feeling of “is anything actually happening?” throughout the middle of the drama.

As for the characters, some arcs are better than others. Many have complained about the frustrating arc of the ML character Gong Ziyu who takes a very long time to catch up to speed with the plot, appearing not just trusting and naive but oblivious to a degree that strains belief, only to develop very abruptly in a way that wasn’t convincing. But even worse is the characterization of the FL as Yun Wei Shan, who gets overshadowed by the Gong men family drama and rarely feels like the lead of the show she is supposed to be. For many episodes she plays the role of sidekick to accompany ML on his three trials, so he can grow into his position as Sword Wielder. By the end it feels her character and the Wufeng side of the story got a background seat to the story of uniting the Gong men against a common enemy. Despite being lead it feels as though Yu Shu Xin is not given her time to shine.

As for the plot, instead of presenting a focused mystery that builds with suspense and ends on a satisfactory note, the story gets tangled in its own web of its too many suspects and possibilities, leaving the audience to overcompensate and come up with theories that had way more depth than the show provided, such as the theory that Zi Yu was playing a big long con, or that Gong Zi Shang had more sinister involvement beyond her over-the-top comic relief role. The writer relies too hard on cliffhangers for his own good, so much so that he can’t stop himself from including one even at the last minute. An open ending works for some dramas but here it leaves a bad taste. Aside from the Gong men coming together and Ziyu becoming sword wielder, nothing has really changed and it seems implied the terrible cycles we started with will only continue…YWS’s potential sacrifices didn’t amount to much and in the end the writer lets her fate become another unsatisfying mystery.

To sum it up, this is a beautiful but slow watching experience that lacked focus and didn't end up having the depth I hoped. I doubt a Season 2 would happen but if it did I can't say for sure I'd be interested in watching.

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The Smart, Heartbreaking Historical Epic I’ve Been Craving

For some time I have been waiting for a serious Sageuk to hit the Kdrama scene again and My Dearest came in like a wrecking ball. The fainthearted who cannot handle a mature drama filled with flawed people trying to love through hard times will want to turn away. It is a drama that excels from the directing, acting, characters, and writing, filmed on location in beautiful settings, taking you from villages to battlegrounds to mountains to Kisaeng houses.

In just ten episodes the journey the drama has taken is nothing short of epic. The character arc of Yoo Gil Chae, the female lead, is especially amazing to watch, as she grows from a vapid cheerful young woman to someone mature and brave, a leader for those she cares for. But all characters are interesting and worth exploring, and played so well by a great cast. Lee Da In and new actor Kim Yoon Woo play their emotional scenes perfectly.

The romance can be playful one moment and heartbreaking the next and actors Nam Koong Min and Ahn Eun Jin play all those layers perfectly, making you smile and kick your feet before making you cry desperately. The romance is also a realistic one for its time…This love story is not easy. It is a tale of two people who are torn apart by larger forces and who tear away from each other due to their own flaws. An adult romance for adults who recognize that love is not enough to make a relationship work in the best of times, let alone a tumultuous time in history.

A special note needs to be made about the drama’s OST and the gorgeous instrumental music that perfectly accompanies every scene, tugging at the heartstrings instantly.

Despite my love for the drama I can admit it was not perfect. The biggest flaw is some messy editing and confusing timeline jumps, though some episodes were more imperfect than others. Not the worst offense for a drama but it would have been nice if the editing were more polished. Episode 10 in particular felt jumbled together.

The journey is still far from over. I am waiting with held breath for Part 2!

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