King Gwanggaeto the Great Review

Title: King Gwanggaeto the Great

AKA: Gwanggaeto, The Great Conqueror

Genre: Historical

Episodes: 92

Broadcast period: 2011-Jun to 2012-Apr

Cast: Lee Tae Gon, Kim Seung Soo, Im Ho, Park Jung Chul, Oh Ji Eun and Lee In Hye.

This story is about King Gwanggaeto, who conquered much land, and made his kingdom Gogouryo spread and occupied most of the peninsula, making it the biggest kingdom, of the Three Kingdoms of Korea.

Go Damdeok (Lee Tae Gon) is the second son of the royal family, but this has not strained the relationship with his brother, Crown prince Dammang (Jung Tae Woo), however Damdeok has the same qualities, if not better. Though the royal household is loving and caring, the politics of the court act otherwise. Since Damdeok has been in battles, and on the front line for many victories, the court start seeing Damdeok as a possible threat, especially the prime minister Gae Yeon Su (Choi Dong Joon). Unsatisfied with the royal house, Gae Yeon Su has been working behind the curtains, to remove the king from his post, and make himself that title, but Damdeok, compared to the others, defies both strategies and advances made by Yeon Su. Though not completely aware of Yeon Su’s intentions, Damdeok doesn’t trust him, and soon enough Yeon Su plans an assassination on Damdeoks life. This attempt forces Damdeok into hiding, and soon enough he experiences the real Gogoryeo; away from the royal lifestyle, and military life…

So, this is another historical day drama, which spans over 92 episodes. It caught my attention due to the lead character, which is a very famous hero of Korean history. And though I expected it to be a bit draggy, the last 15-10 episodes were fillers of you ask me. I guess it was quite popular, and they decided to drag it on, which is very annoying when you’ve been watching a decent story for the past 60 episodes. I’ve now watched my fair share, so I can say with certainty that this drama has the most action I’ve seen in a day drama, for a very long time. I mean I was stuck to my screen for the first 20 episodes, and it just got better while it went on. Of course, as the usual historical dramas, the female leads were left out a bit - the love stories were halfhearted, sort of - and they didn’t show much progress, or at least I felt the typical ‘vibe’. That said, the drama is good, and has good side characters. I was pleasantly surprised by their depth, and this is more than just the ‘right hand man’. This goes for almost all the supporting cast!

To sum up: a good historical drama with a good plot, decent actions scenes, and great character storylines.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥½ / 3½ out of 5 hearts

One Well-Raised Daughter Review

Title: One Well-raised Daghter
AKA: Well Brought up Daughter Ha Na
Genre: Romance, Human, Family, Revenge
Episodes: 122
Broadcast Period: 2013-Dec to 2014-May
Cast: Park Han Byul, Lee Tae Gon, Jung Eun Woo, Yoon Se In, Jo Min Ah, Yoon Yoo Sun, Ha Jae Suk, Kim Min Young,

Joo Hyo Sun (Yoon Yoo Sun) has 3 girls, but she is pressured from her father in law to get a son, so he can inherit the 400 year Soy-Sauce business, that has been in that family since Joseon times. Due to a miscarriage, she can’t have any more children, so the husband decides to have a child outside the marriage. Jang Pan Ro (Park In Hwan) ends up having a son and therefore has secured them an heir. The husband dies soon after and leaves his household in a war, now Joo Hyo Sun gets kicked out, and her father-in-law takes in Jang Pan Ro and her family alongside her newborn son. Furious as she is, Joo Hyo Sun miraculously was pregnant before her husband dies. She takes the risk and give a birth to a healthy baby girl. She raise the girl as a boy, and returns to her old household after 10 years. The father in law takes in the ‘boy’ to let his 2 grandsons to battle it out for successor position. Will Jang Ha Na (Park Han Byul) be able to inherit the business as a boy, and revenge her mother and sisters for being kicked out wrongfully?

So the idea about having a one night stand and BAM the outsider woman gets a son, and BAM the original and rightfully Madame of the house has to leave, was too damn ridiculous for me. It made the whole 400-years business concept too stupid. Are their traditions so damn stupid and weak? I don’t think so, I think the writers had to start the whole story too quickly so they made the beginning too rushly. I applaud the writer's ability to write some infuriating plot that made me curse them the whole time but they still managed to make me continue, bravo.
There were a few things I didn’t like about this drama, first thing: Not knowing who the male lead is?! Seriously, nothing frustrate me as much as this, although I liked the Lee Tae Gon's character so much, I was stringed along for 122 episodes. Two: Almost ALL of the side characters are annoying. Three: The villains are just hateful and annoying without really much depth.  Last but not least: Can I just highlight again how much I detest not knowing who the male lead is? And this show almost dragged that question to the bitter end. To make it fair for the drama there were one thing I love in the drama, (drumbeat) Lee Tae Gon's character.  Why did they make such a wonderful character and let him cool his heel at the sidelines for most of the show???  I am sure it was all a conspiracy to make me watch 122 episodes just to catch a glimpse of him. Here's a man who can fight like a pro, who makes the 2nd lead look like a little boy every time they stand together and who is brave enough to confess his feelings but considerate enough to love the heroine from afar.  Oh, did I mention he also has a tragic background so he looks like a lost puppy at times?  Would I recommend this drama? Sort of.  I would recommend the show so you can see how awesome Lee Tae Gon's character is, but a finger on the first forward button is a must.

☆☆/ 2 out of 5 stars
                                                 
♥♥ / 2 out of 5 hearts