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

Gye Baek Review

Title: Gye Baek

Genre: Period, Historical, Romance, Revenge, Melodrama

Episodes: 36

Broadcast period: 2011-Jul to 2011-Nov

Cast: Lee Seo Jin, Cho Jae Hyun, Oh Yeon Soo, Song Ji Hyo, Cha In Pyo, Hyo Min, Lee Hyun Woo and No Young Hak.

Due to the Queen being of Silla blood, an elite group of assassins try to kill her and the Crown Prince Ui Ja on a regular basis. This has prompted the King of Baekje to assign his most loyal and skilled swordsman Moo Jin (Cha In Pyo) to guard them.  But due to unforeseen events, the Queen dies to save her son, and Moo Jins wife dies while giving birth to a son, Gye Baek.

Several years later, Gye Baek (Lee Hyun Woo) now a youngster, works odd jobs, so he can take care of his drunk father. Here he meets merchant-in-training Eun Ko (Park Eun Bin), whom he immediately falls for. Moo Jin, who has lost his arm, has remarried, so the past is unknown, and Gye Baek believes his stepmother and stepbrother, are his real mother and brother. Though mourning, Moo Jin meets the Crown Prince Ui Ja (No Young Hak) again, now a regular Prince due to the new Queens (Oh Yeon Soo) son taking that title and sees right through his pretense, about not caring about the past.

While trying to uncover the truth, and helping Ui Ja, Moo Jin dies, while Gye Baek witnesses it. Filled with anger, Gye Baek blames Ui Ja for the murder of his father but ends up as a hostage of Silla. As years pass, Gye Baek (Lee Seo Jin) lives only for one sole purpose: to kill the man, who killed his father, unaware that there is more to the story than meets the eyes…

Yeah, I know this is very detailed, and yes, I did spoil a bit, but I tried to stay off the details, so if you decide to watch it, you will get several surprises and you will notice the details I left out.

Out of all the historical dramas out there, this one is the first one where I was in awe of the quality of the costumes - like the first 10 min seemed extremely well. I don’t now much about the uniforms of Baekje, but I know that the armor was iron, and it kind of looked like iron. In most dramas I can see that they are made of plastic (or whatever it is) but I didn’t in this one - at least not in the beginning. Also, it might be because I had the first episode in HD quality (I think 1080p), that might have something to do with it too. What I mean is, it was nice to see that there exist good costumes out there, like realistic ones anyways.

This is also one of my first dramas where the lead actors are over 30 years old, as they (directors, or whoever casts these actors) usually have young actors doing quality and popular dramas. And they were all ‘veteran’ actors, with skill, which was extremely nice to see. I have to admit, I was amazed by Song Ji Hyo. I never knew she could act mean or evil - she can officially do both. I liked her in this, and she is very good at acting. Though I noticed that she was tired (haha, blaming RM for that). The rest were good too.

The lacking thing in this one is both pace and extreme character development, which I couldn’t really comprehend. Though the fact that these developments are the reason the story end as it did.

But all in all, an alright drama that made me emotional, and confused at the same time.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥½ / 3½ out of 5 hearts

Jumong Review

Title: Jumong
AKA: Prince of the Legend
Genre: Period, Historical, Romance, Melodrama
Episodes: 81
Broadcast period: 2006-May to 2008-Mar
Cast: Song Il Kook, Han Hye Jin, Kim Seung Soo, Jeon Kwang Leol, Oh Yeon Su and Song Ji Hyo.

This is the story about the creation of Kogoryeo, and the people who started it.
While trying to fight the corrupt noblemen, Hae Mo Soo (Heo Jun Ho) and the crown prince Kum Wa (Jeon Kwang Leol) get caught up in political turmoil. The king saves the crown prince, but Hae Mo Soo is caught and tortured. Yoo Hwa (Oh Yeon Su), the only survivor of her clan had always admired Hae Mo Soo, thus the two had become lovers, but after Hae Mo Soo gets caught, the crown prince saves Yoo Hwa, by making her his concubine, while carrying the child of Hae Mo Soo.
Several years later, the son of Hae Mo Soo and Yoo Hwa, Ju Mong (Song Il Gook), now all grown up, was raised as the concubine’s son. Earning the utter contempt from his two older brothers, who believe that the now king prefers Ju Mong, rather than the two older sons. Though a brat, and quite useless, Ju Mong tries his best to be seen at “a piece of trash” so that he won’t get attention, but the jealous brothers try to kill him numerous times. After being thrown out of the royal house, Ju Mong ends up on the streets and meets So Seo No (Han Hye Jin), daughter of a merchant, again, where the first time she had saved him, after his brothers had attempted to kill him.
He starts working for the So family and becomes familiar with the world. At the same time the two princes desperately want Ju Mong dead, though fate has other plans for him…

This drama has been one of those that I watched the beginning of, with interest, but accidently read about the evolvement of the story, so I had it put on hold. As time had passed, I’d forgotten about the evolvement, and I decided to watch it again, so when the “thing” I wasn’t interested in seeing appeared, I remembered it, but had an easier time sitting through it. After watching the entire thing, I had mixed emotions, mostly frustration due to the love story, but as many of the “older” dramas, the romance is usually the subplot, so it isn’t given the same amount of “care” as the main story. That said, I didn’t care for the romance aspect, as it made me annoyed, and I ended up going: whoever, just save the wife please.
The main story is very interesting, and one of the better Korean period pieces, as it is action packed most of the way through - though it has moments where I was bored. But it tries to keep you invested.
It was funny seeing Song Il Kook so young, but honestly, I didn’t see much of a difference. The rest was alright, though there is something annoying about the female lead, even if she was the most bad-ass female lead I’ve seen in a long while, but I can’t really put my finger on it.
To sum up: a great and interesting drama with a frustrating love-triangle, but still decent storyline.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥½ / 3½ out of 5 hearts

The Immortal Admiral Yi Soon Shin Review

Title: The Immortal Admiral Yi Soon Shin

AKA: Immortal Admiral Yi Sun Shin

Genre: Period, Historical

Episodes: 104

Broadcast period: 2004-Sept to 20044-Aug

Cast: Kim Myung Min, Choi Jae Sung, Lee Jae Ryung, Choi Chul Ho and many others..

This drama is the biopic of the great admiral Yi Soon Shin, from his childhood till his death.

Yi Soon Shin (Kim Myung Min) was born as a poor noble, due to his grandfather being convicted as a traitor, which leads to his family being labelled for generations. Being book-smart and intelligent, Soon Shin has together with his two best friends Won Kyun (Choi Jae Sung) and Yoo Sung Ryung (Lee Jae Ryung) made a promise to apply for scholar positions at Sunkyungkwan, but due to the lack wealth and reputation, he decides to change paths, and becomes a soldier.

In the army Soon Shin goes through ups and downs, and while noticing the increase of Japanese pirates, he investigates, and discovers that the “pirates” aren’t pirates but actual militia, the Japanese Navy. Terrified of the possibilities and man power of the Japanese Navy, Soon Shin tries to get help from the ‘higher ups’ but is dismissed. This doesn’t stop Yi Soon Shin, and he decides to get help in order to become the admiral of the Joseon Navy, so that he can prepare for possible invasions. This doesn’t lie good with the higher ups, the king and even his best friend, as they see him as a man trying to get power. Soon enough the Japanese attack, and while rooting for a Joseon win, the public start to see Soon Shin in a better light than their own king - which doesn’t lie well with the shallow king…

This is another one of the most popular heroes of Korean history, and probably one of the most liked one too. The best part for me was that it almost fit the ‘real’ story perfectly (almost), but another good part is that it was very exciting to watch - there were things happening quite often. There was storytelling, but not in the boring kind of way. That said, 104 episodes is a lot! Even if you love every character and love the story, it seriously is long. Even if you binge it, it takes a lot of time. I remember when I was at the last episode and they showed the entire storyline, it seriously felt like it was years ago. And I do think it took me a week or so… and I was binging… The casting was perfect: Kim Myung Min is great as Yi Soon Shin, and his voice just fits like a glove.

The bad part is though the makeup and wigs/fake beards… It really looked fake. Also the ‘wars’ looked very cheap - I don’t know if it because its from 2004, but you could see that some scenes were used more than once, and the “turtle ship” was also filmed from different angles, so you would think there were more than one. Besides that (actually not something I spend much time thinking about), it was a really good watch.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥½ / 4½ out of 5 hearts

Jeong Do Jeon Review

Title: Jeong Do Jeon

Genre: Historical, Political, Drama

Episodes: 50

Broadcast period: 2014-Jan to 2014-Jun

Cast: Cho Jae Hyun, Yoo Dong Geun, Park Young Gyu and Lim Ho.

This story is about the man who changed the corrupt Goryeo by making laws to help the low class and poor, and helped establish Joseon, by installing a new king on the throne.

Jeong Do Jeon (Cho Jae Hyun) is a low-class noble working for the government as a scholar in Sungkyunkwan. When the king, who was betrayed by his most loyal servants repeatedly, trials Do Jeon, the two come to an agreement, and decide to work together to fix the crumbling Goryeo. Unfortunately, the king is assassinated, by his guards, and the prime minister, together with his allies, put a young prince on the throne, to manipulate him behind the curtain. In opposition of this, Do Jeon becomes labeled as a traitor, and is forced in exile.

Loosing all hope and desire for the future, he meets the peasants of Goryeo, the ill treatment they suffer, and decides to once again help the government, but soon notices how bad the political situation in Goryeo is, so he decides to do the unthinkable: if the problem is the government, we change the government…

As a history buff this idea made me all excited, since it’s one of “those” stories/highlights of Korean history. Even if this has a lot of storytelling and a lot of moments, I kind of don’t understand the necessity of 50 episodes - which was one of the things that made my brown frown, when I started it. But as I went along with episodes, I noticed the “change” in history, which made me annoyed. Even if it didn’t change the overall history part it kind of made it “sentimental” or “emotional” without it being it. Also, simply historically incorrect. I don’t want to spoil, so I’m just going to say, trying to make a man seem like he is “feeling” bad for the poor people when he doesn’t care for his own family in the same sense is plain weird. Though I must give the production credit for portraying Jeong Do Jeon as he is portrayed in history books, and not some hero, is what made me continue this drama (even though the above mentioned annoyed me A LOT). Plus: Cho Jae Hyun is perfect casting. The rest seem okay, but the acting just seems like how any actor would act in the given roles - I mean like it doesn’t give anything extra. Besides that, this drama can seem boring - there is sooo much political TALK. They keep talking and talking, and unless you can see the history part, you’ll be bored. So they didn’t really think about that while making this drama.

OKAY, summing up: a fine drama with mostly accurate storyline, but has some flaws that just aren’t acceptable as a history buff, and can be quite boring for those who aren’t.

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Hwarang: The Beginning Review

Title: Hwarang: The Beginning

AKA: Hwarang: The Poet Warrior Youth

Genre: Historical, Youth, romance, Comedy

Episodes: 20

Broadcast Period: Dec-2016 to Feb-2017

Cast: Park Seo Joon, Go Ah Ra, Park Hyung Shik, Choi Min  Ho, Do Ji Han, Kim Tae Hyung, Jo Yoon Woo, Kim Ji Soo,

Queen Jiso (Kim Ji Soo) has ruled the Kingdom of Silla as regent since King Beopheung passed away, keeping her young son Sammaekjong(Park Hyung Sik) hidden outside of the capital Seorabeol and safe from enemies and assassins. As Sammaekjong comes of age, nobles, citizens, officials and Sammaekjong himself have all grown impatient for the queen to cede power. However the powerful nobles that tried to usurp power in the Kingdom continue to eye the throne and Queen Jiso fears the consequences of her ceding it. In order to break the power of the nobles, who have grown accustomed to their privileges under the bone rank system, Queen Jiso plans to create a new elite, the Hwarang, that will cut across the existing power factions, and to bind them to Sammaekjong and the throne. As this new elite of male youths bond and grow they are unaware that within their number is their future king, Sammaekjong, and Kim Sun Woo (Park Seo Joon), a commoner with a secret even he is not aware of.

A really surprisingly good drama. I got hooked really fast and couldn’t let go. I can’t deny all the pretty actors didn’t have an effect but oh well. They knew how to get their fans hooked. The storyline progressed fast, however you figured out the ending pretty quickly. Which was a little turnoff, but nevertheless you continue for the sole purpose of just watching the pretty actors. Go Ah Ra is a good actress, but she’s not on a wow-level I think, or maybe this performance wasn’t her best. What I like the most is that Park Soo Joon managed to get over the fact that this is about pretty soldiers, after all it is called Hwarang; the flower knights. It was like he didn’t use that as his main goal, but more found depth in his character. Which is why I’ve started to like Park Seo Joon more as an actor, he managed to stand out without using his good looks to his advantage but rather excellence acting. I’m looking forward to more projects from him. All in all a good drama, that I do recommend to all period drama fans.

☆☆☆☆   / 4 out of 5 stars♥♥♥♥ / 4 out of 5 hearts

My Only Love Song Review

Title: My Only Love Song

Genre: Fantasy, historical, Romance, Comedy

Episodes: 20

Broadcast Period: Jun-2017

Cast: Lee Jong Hyun, Gong Seung Yun, Lee Jae Jin, Kim Yun Seo, Ahn Bo Hyun, Park Joo Hyung, Lee Chul Min,

Soo Jung (Gong Seung Yeon) is a conceited pop star who believes that status and money can get you anywhere. She accidentally falls into a time-slip portal and travels to the past, specifically to 6th-century Goguryeo, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, while it is under the reign of King Pyeongwon. There she meets On Dal (Lee Jong Hyun), a man who loves money and will do anything to earn it. However, he has a soft spot for the weak and helpless, and gives to them with a generous heart.

A little gem Netflix decided to release back in June. I watched it a few days after it was released (yes, I’m so behind with this review), and literally I watched it in one night. It just grabbed me and didn’t let go, and for so many reasons it’s still vivid in my memory, like it was yesterday. I love web dramas, that are invested in. Because there are some of them that are just pure failure, but this one had a quality as if it was a full broadcast network drama. Why I liked it? The sassy actress/princess, I can’t emphasize how much I loved watching her. Some actresses fail in being feisty and lively because there are just so many characters like that, but Gong Seung Yun did a splendid job by making the character unique. Lee Jong Hyun was also good, he has definitely put his idol image aside and turned into a real actor. I liked the story, it wasn’t a new concept, but overall it’s enjoyable, however one thing that bugged me is that I just couldn't figure out the connection between the title and the storyline. Maybe if some of you understood, please let me know.
Like I said in the beginning, since the quality of the production shined through, there are no major things that would bother you. So definitely a weekend watch, and it’s so easy if you have Netflix ;)

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥ (1/2) / 4 (1/2) out of 5 hearts

Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryou Review

Title: Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryou

Genre: Historical, Romance, Time-travel 

Episodes: 20

Broadcast Period: Aug-2016 to Nov-2016

Cast: Lee Jun Ki, IU, Kang Ha Neul, Hong Jong Hyun, Kim San Ho, Yoon Sun Woo, Byun Baek Hyun, Nam Joo Hyuk, Ji Soo, 

During a total eclipse of the sun, a 25-year-old 21st century woman, Go Ha Jin (IU), is transported back in time to Goryeo Dynasty. She wakes up in the year 941, in the body of 16-year-old Hae Soo and there, she encounters the many royal princes of the ruling family. She initially falls in love with the gentle and warm 8th Prince Wang Wook (Kang Ha Neul), and later Wang So (Lee Joon Gi), the fearsome 4th Prince who hides his face behind a mask and is given the derogatory label "wolf dog". Meanwhile, rivalry and politics ensue among the princes, in a fight for the throne, as Hae Soo finds herself unwittingly caught between it all.

Throughout the drama I had a lot of problems with the plot, like major problems. One of them is the total neglecting of Go Ha jin/Hae su is from the future. We can’t really categorize this as a time-travelling drama, since the only factor about it is in the first episode where she went back in time. After that… NOTHING. Some other problems came along too, but somehow when I finished the drama, and started thinking about it, I couldn’t have felt more satisfied and in love with it. There is something about it, that kept me watching till the end, and got me hooked week after week, just waiting for a new episode. So yes, those problems I had just vanished after a while, and Moon Lovers got a special place in my heart. The actors were all so good! I loved them all, I had some problems with one of them (Ehm-Baekhyun-Ehm), but he matured throughout the drama and some character growths. Lee Jun Ki and IU became one of my favorite drama-couple this year, they had a magical chemistry that’s rare to find, maybe it’s all the tragic, dark and bloodthirsty surroundings that enhanced it all. This drama is also another drama I would recommend to everyone, saeguk fan or not! 

☆☆☆☆☆ / 5 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥♥ / 5 out of 5 hearts

Moonlight Drawn By Clouds Review

Title: Moonlight Drawn by Clouds

AKA: Love in The Moonlight

Genre: Historical, Comedy, Romance

Episodes: 18

Broadcast Period: Aug-2016 to Oct-2016

Cast: Park Bo Gum, Kim Yoo Jung, Jin Young, Chae Soo Bin, Kwak Dong Yun, Kim Seung Soo, Jun Mi Sun, 

Hong Ra On (Kim Yoo Jung) is a young woman during the Joseon Dynasty who disguises herself as a man named Sam Nom to support herself by ghostwriting and giving relationship advice to lovelorn men. A love letter that Ra On writes for a client brings her in contact with Lee Yeong, who is the Crown Prince Hyo Myeong (Park Bo Gum), the first son of King Sunjo (Kim Seung Soo) and heir to the throne, as well as his trusted guard Kim Byung Yeon (Kwak Dong Yeon). Through a series of events, Ra On gets sold into the Royal Palace as a eunuch and is assigned to work for Royal Consort Soo Ki (Jun Mi Sun) and Princess Young Geun (Heo Jung Eun). Ra On becomes embroiled in a political power struggle with Queen Kim (Han Soo Yeon) and her father, Prime Minister Kim Hun (Chun Ho Jin), who somehow manage to keep King Sunjo in a perpetually weakened, hallucinogenic state. Prime Minister Kim is grooming his grandson, Kim Yoon Sung (Jinyoung), to take over the throne but that would put the young scholar in direct competition with his childhood friend, Lee Yeong, to become the next king. With Ra On and Byung Yeon by his side, can Lee Yeong fight the power-hungry ministers to claim his rightful place in history? 

This just became one of my favorite drama this year. 2016 has really brought alot of different kdramas, and i’m lovin’ it! And with those dramas, a lot of young, new and talented actors/actress’ are coming to the spotlight. The personal acting chemistry between Kim Yoo Jung as young, fearless and joyful Hong Ra On and Park Bo Gum as Crown Prince Lee Yeong is the heart of the drama. The youthfulness and impressive acting skills of Kim Yoo Jung ( who is only 17) interacting with equally talented Park Bo Gum (who is only 23) is a marvel that lingers in the mind long after we have turned off our computers. One thing this drama has teached me is that politics is a dirty dirty game, but our crown prince knew how to play it! I seriously loved everything about this drama, the acting, storyline, the directing and of course the OST! This is a drama I highly recommend, saeguk fan or not, this appeals to your every need ;)

☆☆☆☆☆ / 5 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥♥ / 5 out of 5 hearts

Jang Yeong Sil Review

Title: Jang Yeong Sil

AKA: The Great Scientist Jang Yeong Sil

Genre: Historical, Period

Episodes: 24

Broadcast period: 2016-Jan to 2016-Mar

Cast: Song Il Gook, Kim Sang Kyung, Kim Young Chul, Park Sun Yeong and Kim Do Hyun.

Born Eun Bok, Jang Yeong Sil (Song Il Gook) was the son of a noble man and a giseng. Living as a low-class servant, Yeong Sil meets his father Jang Sung Hwi (Kim Myung Soo) as a youngster. His father notices his intellect and brightness, and decides to introduce him to the world of astronomy. Unfortunately, due to the change to Joseon from Goryeo, the government (and king) is very strict about the newly made rules. Sung Hwi realizes that his son will never be able to utilize his potential in the world of class difference and decides to leave him for Yeong Sils own good. This leaves a heartbroken Yeong Sil, but doesn’t ruin his love for astronomy.

While being hated, and envied by his former master Jang Hee Je (Lee Jee Hoon), Yeong Sil decides to work as a smith, only to be patronized by the magistrate.

Everything changes when Lee Hyun (Kim Do Hyun) one day notices Yeong Sils abilities and takes it to the king: at first King Taejong (Kim Young Chul) refuses the idea, but soon enough his son, Crown Prince Se Jong (Kim Sang Kyung), decides to work with him. This sparks hatred and jealousy from the noblemen, making life much harder for Yeong Sil…

One of my favorite stories from the Joseon period; the story of the genius slave dreaming of the stars. It is also the story of King Se Jong, but in this case his rise to power and all involved was pushed a bit back. Though I was annoyed at the invented character, the princess (Se Jongs sister), I was able to watch all of it with a smile.

The overall storyline was good, and quite close to the real story, of course there were a few dramatizations and a few things left out – but all in all close.

Casting Song Il Gook as the lead was good, but I still can’t imagine Jang Yeong Sil looking like him… But then again, he kind of felt right. I watched the King Se Jong drama a few years back, and I was a bit nervous to see who they would cast as Se Jong since the cast was superb last time, and to my amazement both Se Jong and Tae Jong were the exactly same actor! I don’t know how they did it, but thank God, they did! Made me enjoy it more.

So, to sum it up: a good story with a nice hint of historical correctness.

☆☆☆☆ / 4 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥♥ / 4 out of 5 hearts

Gu Am Heo Joon Review

Title: Gu Am Heo Joon

AKA: Hur Jun, the original story

Genre: Period, Historical, Romance

Episodes: 135

Broadcast period: 2013-Mar to 2013-Sept

Cast: Kim Joo Hyuk, Park Jin Hee, Park Eun Bin, Namgung Min and Baek Yoon Sik.

Raised by a loving father, Heo Joon (Kim Joo Hyuk) does not see himself different than other children around, but is soon come to realize that being the son of a concubine is not as being like his half-brother. His father, a magistrate, is famous for catching barbarians at the border, but one day the barbarians decide to retaliate, they kidnap Heo Joon, the magistrate is left with a horrible choice to make – wait till there is an agreement with other people. This sparks a hate in Heo Joon, who believes he has been abandoned by his father.

Years later, Heo Joon now a grown up, has become a thug, infamous for his illegal trading. When he one day is arrested, his father the magistrate, is left with no choice but to have him and Heo Joons mom flee the city. Ridden with guilt, Heo Joon decides to keep his head down and find a job where he can earn money, so him and his mother can buy a house. And as fate has it, he meets Yoo Ui Tae (Baek Yoon Sik) a local and rather renowed doctor, who sees a potential in Heo Joon, and soon Heo Joon learns the art of medicine…

I started watching this after I finished Horse Doctor, since I heard it was the same director and script writer. Also it had Kim Joo Hyuk in it, acting the same character his father did, so I had to watch it. This drama is one of those morning period dramas I think, since each episode is approx. 35 minutes and you can almost not watch 10 episodes and you would sort of still know what’s going on. Though I did not feel it was draggy, I was a bit annoyed at the ability to cure the patients. I don’t completely remember the year which is acted in this drama, but it’s at least 200-300 years before our time, and for some reason they are able to almost cure everything – which historically seems incorrect. Besides that, there were very few ‘bad’ scenes – meaning badly acted – but honestly I really didn’t mind. I liked the storyline, the love story and the screenplay, also the interacting between everyone is quite well made. Then again it could have been made better – I mean it’s from 2013…

Anyways, enjoyable and a good watch.

☆☆☆½ / 3½ out of 5 stars

♥♥♥½ / 3½ out of 5 hearts

Scholar Who Walks The Night Review

Title: Scholar Who Walks The Night

AKA: Scholar of the Night

Genre: Fantasy, Historical, Romance

Episode: 20

Broadcast Period: Jul-2015 to Sep-2015

Cast: Lee Jun Ki, Lee Yoo Bi, Shim Chang Min, Lee Soo Hyuk, Kim So Eun, Jang Hee Jin, Lee Soon Jae, Son Jong Hak

Set in an alternate Joseon dynasty, Jo Yang Sun (Lee Yoo Bi) is the daughter of a nobleman whose family loses everything when her father were framed for treason. To make ends meet, Yang Sun begins cross-dressing as a male bookseller, and meets the handsome and mysterious scholar Kim Sung Yeol (Lee Joon Ki). Sung Yeol is a vampire, and he continues to be haunted by the long-ago death of his first love Lee Myung Hee (Kim So Eun) once he meets Myung Hee’s present-day doppelganger: Choi Hye Ryung (Kim So Eun), an aloof nobleman’s daughter. Meanwhile, the evil vampire Gwi (Lee Soo Hyuk) resides in the royal palace and uses his powers and political machinations to prevent the Crown Prince Lee Yun (Shim Chang Min) from ascending the throne.

What’s up with all the vampire stuff in dramaland lately?! Saeguk AND vampires jut the cup of tea I longed to watch… until I actually started watching it. The storyline was good, interesting. The idea about this evil despicable vampire living under the palace, playing with the king and his ministers like puppets were genius. Even the character were dreadful. However, the whole drama is about vampires, so why make them so weak?! I just couldn’t get excited about it at all! Then the nonsense about if they don’t drink blood at full moon, they will die… is this a vamp-werewolf fusion? I don’t like it, never, just stupid. Then Lee Jun Ki, why did you choose this drama, It totally made a black spot on your career, you need to pick a whole other project next time. I don’t want to give up on you yet. And now, Lee Yu Bi, she's a good actress but I just didn't like her character in this drama. No offence to her, but I hated her character so much I just wanted to skip all her scenes. Lee Soo Hyuk and Kim so Eun were brilliant together, I guess they were the most successful and magnificent choices made by the production. In conclusion, I was disappointed much, but I managed to finish it ;)

☆☆☆ / 3 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts

Bunji's Verdict

Compared to the last Lee Jun Ki drama this one was a bit better, though I am getting tired of his period dramas. I don’t understand why it has to be period dramas all the time, and I am kind of missing the “Two Weeks” Lee Jun Ki now. Anyways, I said better, not necessary good. This drama is too coincidental and is too much “Manhwa” - this is why I dislike Manga/Manhwa adaptions, they never work!  It has too many ‘cartoonish’ elements and as I say, everything and everyone is too coincidental. Even though every actor fits their character perfectly: Jun Ki looks like a handsome undead, so does Soo Hyuk. And they couldn’t find anyone looking more like prince Yi San than Chang Min. Unfortunately, everything else about this drama is a mess. I have to disagree with Kamji - the background story is dumb, I mean it takes them so long to figure anything out.  The characters have no consistency and have bad growth. And I also disagree with Kamji on the second couple. - they were SO boring. Everyone was to be honest. I also felt that the lead actress was an idiot, SPOILER ALERT: Jun Ki’s character changes sooooo many times in front of her, and what she doesn’t notice? What the…

Anyways... My rating is based on the actors and their constant fight to “fix” this drama, unfortunately they fail, but watching them is quite worth the watch - and also I have to give their seriousness some credit.

All in all, not something I would recommend, but the acting is alright and worth a shot in this drama

☆☆☆ / 3 out of 5 stars

♥♥♥ / 3 out of 5 hearts