If you are interested in Korean classic art and you enjoy slow-paced dramas, with just a hint of romance, this series is perfect for you. What was good: - The male lead (Kim Hong Do) suprised me... he looks kind of like any old "ahjussi", but in the end he was very charismatic and he depicted the character's ambivalent feelings well. - There are many female-pretends-to-be-a-man instances in Korean dramas that are quite ridiculous, but this time the female lead (Moon Geun Young) could be mistaken for a young boy. It brought additional realism to the series. - The romantic story arch is very slow and mostly only hinted at. Although I love dramas bursting with romance it was refreshing to still understand the characters feelings without much even going on between them (almost none of the old drama clichés). - It was interesting to see Korean art. The series was very similar to "Goddess of fire" in that there was much attention to detail and you actually felt that the characters were painting these pictures right before your eyes. What was not so good: - The female lead (Moon Geun Young) is a very good actress, but I had just watched "Goddess of fire" before watching this and I was struck by the similarities of the female characters she depicted. Of course similarities in storyline would also make you feel that, but still I felt she could've have done more with her character. Still keep in mind she is one of the better drama actors, so I have higher standards for her. - Besides the romantic story arch I was not very interested in the story. A lot of scenes were boring (although necessary) backroom discussions among nobles trying to one-up each other. This is most likely why I didn't give the series a 9.