There are many aspects to this drama but what struck me most are the many faces of love portrayed here. There is the mother who wills her son to run away and live, the mother who chases her son away because she doesn't want hom to suffer a life like hers, an aristocratic grandfather who allows his beloved granddaughter to learn gunnery and attend a western school so that she will be better equipped to face the new world, a slave soldier who loves a noblewoman with a love so warm and protective though he knows he can never have her, a Japanese samurai heading a violent gang, obsessed with a love for her born out of a single act of kindness and an aristocrat, born to wealth, having known no hardship at all, frivolous, lighthearted, till he learns of the terrible things his family did.
Everyone of the five main characters touched my heart in different ways. The acting was on point. The humour was delightful especially as the relationship of the three men moved to a different level of empathy and understanding. The scenes in which Ae Shin learns English and Eugene learns Korean were delicious!
And most beautiful of all was the love story of the American Joseon soldier who didn't belong anywhere and the plucky young Go Ae Shin who fought to protect her motherland. He loved her but he hated Joseon and yet he helped her in every way he could. This is the best love story I have ever watched in a kdrama and I find myself going back to their scenes together again and again.