Mr. Sunshine (2018)

It feels like a movie. There's too much to take, given that it is only a drama series. I cried for the least expected scene I could think of, I cried for the last scenes when the patriotism of the characters was shown, it really striked my heart, and I was just surprised when I felt the tears in my face. I never thought I'll have that strong feeling for something that's way past behind my generation, especially not even in my own country, I never thought that flashbacks from my learnings about our own country's history would appear and I would reflect again that much. And with that I really want to thank the producers, directors, the whole team of this drama for showing it to the world, inferior countries like us( I'm from the Philippines which was conquered by Americans that time ) do have this kind of story that must be told again and again for generations to see. The only reason I didn't give it a perfect 10 is because I longed for the romantic scenes for the main characters and was disappointed until the end, I felt the love, yes, but not having even a single kiss scene, even in the cheeks makes me really sad.

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Amazing and Powerful show with a great way of delivering history

Have always wanted to know about the history of japan's invasion of korea, and this show gave me a glimpse and a bit of knowledge on that history.
Just makes me reflect on how our ancestors fought for our countries.
Loved the way the story was told, soo powerful!
Definitely one of my favorites and also very close to my heart! Hats off to the cast and crew for making such a great show possible and delivering it to us! Really grateful.
It's just great to see the history through a show, really shows us how it was back then.
Highly recommend it if you haven't watched it yet!

P.s: First review..lol..so sorry if I didn't do it right

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I just watched a masterpiece . The drama excels in every aspect from OSTs to Cinematography , this is one of the best, Definitely in my top 10. This is when we realise that responsible creators are most important in the industry. They didn't try to make a fool out of the viewers like most of the others do. They valued our time and work hard to bring the best out. It's all evident in this drama from start to end. The casts were amazing. I was amazed by the FL from Little forest and Handmaiden. She is subtle yet strong in the way of representing the character. LBH as always was superb and mostly, cool and stylish . Yoon Seok was admirable as well playing a bit of both good and bad shade. The actors done the role brilliantly and maturely without the regular dose of cliches that K-actors produce. Must watch!!!!!

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Deserving of its praise.

Mr Sunshine Review:
This review is from my perspective as an international viewer.

=== Production Value: ===
The production value is SUPERB. The Joseon set designs were really good that I was able to immerse myself in their period. The set looks new for something in their time.

Though, I have some criticisms for the New York scenes. Especially those on the bridge. While I understand that they did not put extras for the sake of dramatic effects, it took me out of the drama since it feels like New York is a desolate city.

=== Plot: ===
The plot was really slow at first (This is a personal problem and preference because I really have a short attention span) though, as I though over it a few times that I kinda prefer it for the characters, especially with the looming war in the horizon. How I wish for them that time could just pass by slowly so that we don’t have to see them suffer.

There were some elements of visual storytelling that I saw and seeing those small tidbits being set up before the war part coming together in the final act. Especially the EMOTIONAL SCENES. *Chef’s kiss*

I liked the creative liberties that they took in putting some internal conflict in the form of political intrigue in the drama.

== Characters: ===
I can see that diluting Ae-sin’s character to highlight others characters in the story was done deliberately. She’s not entirely a flatly written as her headstrong personality and a sense of duty of her country was what drew these three men to her and made them care for a country that abandoned them. (I’m not so sure for Dong Mae’s motivations but I am sure with Eugene’s and Huiseong’s though).

Eugene is a character who was already stable when the story started. He has a past then, he returned to Joseon after he became a soldier. He just goes with what America dictates to him before Ae-sin came into his life. After he met Ae-sin, his character was given depth as he was torn between his identity as a Joseon man serving as an American soldier. Even if the conclusion to his character arc was a sad one but it was satisfying. The dam of emotions I felt for this drama finally broke when his Lieutenant friend was reading what happened to him.

Dong Mae belongs to the character tropes that I really hate the most. He’s your average bad boy type who has a past and decided to join the Japanese gang, Black Dragon Society. He became a mercenary. He began to soften when he and Ae-sin interacted more. His interactions with Hina Kudo were also memorable to watch because their relationship seemed more of genuine and platonic friendship rather than lovers. (Heck, this was one of those platonic friendships done really well that I’ve seen in a drama.)

Huiseong also belongs to the type of men that I hate the most, PLAYBOYS. He’s one of those characters who bears the guilt of the sins of his clan and seems aimless with no motivations until he met Ae-sin and the other two men. With his character development, HE BECAME ONE OF MY FAVORITE CHARACTERS. While the other characters preferred to fight using bloodshed (guns and swords), he prefers to fight using intellect, his camera and pen. I also like that when he was taking photos of the atrocities committed by Imperial Japan, they used gunshots as if the camera shots dealt some kind of impact. The sad part of his character arc was despite him finding a purpose, no one would remember his name as he fought for Joseon. He died in prison alone with no one to mourn for him. Despite being tortured, the smiling mask that he wears never seems to come off of him.

Kudo Hina/ Lee Yang Hwa is my favorite characters in this drama as someone who exemplifies true feminism. I admire how strong her character is. Her father just sees her as a pawn to expand his influence but still, she managed to make herself independent. With her cunning wit and charisma, she’s able to use her position as someone who allows different forms of life to enter her hotel to help Joseon. She also knows when to be feminine while being a badass who holds the sword elegantly at the same time.

This was also one of the few dramas where the side characters had more impact to the stakes of the situation they were in. They do not feel like props but as characters who also had to struggle during that time. There are too many to mention so rather not.

=== Dialogue ===
The dialogue had more purpose aside from serving as padding for this very long drama. They serve as extra setups for the grand event that was going to come and the callbacks to those little scenes and dialogues made me cry a lot.

=== More than just romance ===
I went into this drama expecting a romance. Though, I wasn’t disappointed that it was purely romance since I like the other elements in this story.

=== OST/Music ===
As for the instrumentals in the background, they didn’t bother me that much but for once, I am glad that they used classical pieces in the Glory Hotel scenes to accentuate the time period it was in.
The OSTs in this drama is not so overpowering compared to other dramas. When they’re played in the credits, I don’t feel tired hearing them again and again and had some impact on how I perceive the events that transpired in each episode.
One of those OSTs that I kept replaying is The Day by Park Hyo Shin.

Extra thoughts:

Playing The Day at the end of the drama with the flag of Joseon waving made me more emotional and a bit patriotic (not for Korea but for my country whose citizens seems to idolize politicians more to the point of them not being able to take criticisms directed towards them).

The deaths really shocked me and I finally cried upon seeing the objects that represents the characters being sold in the pawnshop.

If I have the time, I am surely going to re-watch this drama 100% despite it being tragic.

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Just watched the last episode, and, goodness!!...I feel as if I have been put through the wringer! This gorgeous 24 episode series is full of wonderful acting, beautiful cinematography and heartfelt music. It is a historical fiction of a young man who is forced to flee Korea because his life is in danger. He comes back years later as an American soldier and ready to take revenge on those who hurt his family. The drama that surrounds him sets the course in the path he takes, whether it ends in happiness or tragedy.

I love films that make me care for the characters, even the not-so-good ones because the writers have taken the time to flesh them out and not make them one dimensional villains. The female characters are very strong. No Mary Janes here. The acting is out of this world, pleased that they were able to cast a very talented ensemble. This is a show that doesn't not leave you. The historical situations were fascinating. It has been a real pleasure waiting for new episodes to come out weekly. Watch this. You will not be disappointed

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Wow, after watching 24 episodes of Mr sunshine, I do not know how to feel exactly. At first, I found the show to be extremely slow-paced and boring but something about it kept me going. I felt it was too slow-paced especially with respect to the relationship between the two main leads, I would have thought that the lure in the forbidden affair between the yu jin the slave and Aeshin the noble would be capitalized but all we got were long stares and heartfelt goodbyes. I actually felt more chemistry between dong mae and aeshin even though it was a bit on the obsessive side on his part. However, the historical part of the drama held it together as it gave its audience a glimpse of what Joseon went through at that time. I loved the acting, I felt the cast really got into their roles and delivered their best, I loved that it did not end up with the typical revenge troupe, I thought the story would just be about Yujin coming back for revenge, but I liked how the drama pointed out that at the end of the day, there is a choice not to go down that path. I also loved how in the end there were no fixed heroes or villains, this can be illustrated by Hina and Hui seng who refused to follow their father's footsteps and chose to fight for their country.
The tragic, yet hopeful feel the drama gave off at the end was beautiful but I would have loved it if they did not kill off the whole cast leaving just Aeshin

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I NEVER watched any HISTORICAL drama but this one made me binge-watch it on NETFLIX!!
This series isn't even finish yet but I am currently rewatching it again for the 3rd time!
I love the cinematography in this TV Series. The staff/crew of the show really made an effort in making this historical drama.
It's amazing how the writer created this epic and unpredictable drama.
The love story is incredibly cute and makes me think of Eugene Choi and Ae-sin once in awhile(because it's that good!).
The actors are all superb; they all did a spectacular performance and delivered the lines pretty well.

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Truly beautifully written masterpiece

Let me start off by saying I do not watch historical dramas. This is a rare occurrence but I became curious due to the ratings and reviews. I am currently on episode 20 and can confirm this is worth every waking moment. This is a beautifully written story with several twists and turns that cover everything from romance, unrequited love, the struggle between the rich and the poor, the righteous vs the corrupt, power and war. The drama intensely takes you through the impact that war, betrayal, social status, love and corruption had on the lives of all the main characters. There is an excruciating amount of pain throughout each episode; at times overwhelming and heartbreaking.  Yet, there are also those perfect moments in the plot that are just breathtakingly beautiful, humorous and heartwarming.

The acting and character development is phenomenal. From the two main female leads, though beautiful and poised also mysterious in their own way. Their strength is not just in their beauty. They have learned to survive in a world where their freedom is dictated by men and/or their country. The fearless yet hopeless romantics that play the male leads, Dong Mae, Hui Sung and Eugene Choi and even those within the Righteous Army each have a story that plays out. Right off episode one you dive into bits and pieces of everyone's lives. Discovering the closer you get to the end that they are all interconnected in one way or another.

What is there not to love about the three male leads? Aside from the fact you could slice the tension between them with a knife. One scene I can still recall is when Eugene addressed Hui Sung , who was still unaware of the impact his family had in Eugene's life. "When there is a man in front of you whose heart has been torn out. You shouldn't say you're hurt.....That would be shameful." While I watched this, though a minor part. I felt the pain piercing through Eugene's stare as he addressed the son of the family that killed his parents. Also, the chemistry between Eugene and Lady Ae-Sin is spot on. One of my favorite scenes is when she drops out of nowhere and directs him to a meeting spot after she waited days for him to reply to her letter. In that space, she ends up getting the upper hand by grabbing his gun and while pointing it directly at his face proceeds to question him. Romantic huh? But, regardless of what they were doing their romance is captivating even without having to exchange words.

Everything so far has come together seamlessly. Yet, as beautiful as this drama truly is there is also a significant amount of loss. But, I do hope the writer pulls through towards the end and that they can save us (the viewers) from a sad ending.

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too slow pace drama and too long

Well, the first 10 episode is so slow paced that I almost dropped the drama. It was very boring but I sticked to it as it has really high rating. Then I got hooked and like the story but again from 17 episode I got bored and had to skip sceen to finish the drama. I have to say 24 ep is to much specially if its really slow pace.

It is really sad story of Joseon and the people that tried to change the faith of their country but sadly they had to suffer 40 years under Japans ocupation and after that their country was divided.

The last two episodes are really emotional as you know their deaths will not change anything.

Overall its nice drama but its too long.

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so slow

I watched this drama because it has so many good reviews, it was well watched and just known as one of the top dramas in the kdrama world (not to mention that literally everyone is in it in some way or another).

It started well, the historic background really gripped me and made me watch further. The main story as well as the sub plots were all very interesting and made me want to find out what would happen next.
But then the story started to slow down, like reaaaally slow down.

Before I get to the rest of the story, I just have to say the main love story just did not convince me at all. Their scenes were poorly written if you ask me because at some point they were just in love and for the life of me I couldn't figure out why it happened or when. And their scenes were unnecessarily dramatic. Their long gazes, the dramatic music... it would work if I had been convinced from the start but I wasn't so it was just boring and skippable. However, the last episodes changed a bit and from the moment they get fake married, I really like the couple. Their heart wrenching ending also made me bowl. But again these were the last episodes.

The rest of the story is kind of the same. Starts interesting, especially with Eugene assassinating that minister, the smuggling of that one patriot etc. but then the story sort of forgets it's potential for exciting moments. There were some funny moments, some interesting ones but they hardly kept my will to finish the show intact. I honestly only finished it because of the historic background which was really interesting, especially in those last episodes. And there we are again, those last episodes saved the show to me. They were exciting, the love story was finally interesting, things started moving along and I finished those episodes with no problem.
Also, someone here said the historic background doesn't feel as meaningful for a global audience but I fully disagree. The story about the rebels was my favourite and it was incredibly touching to see how many people from different life paths all came together to try and save their country. I feel like I learned a lot and was just moved by the resilience Korean people showed in the faces of their oppressors.

All in all, this drama was okay. The cinematography is amazing, the casting was obviously great and the OST has some gems. But it should've been shorter, 24 episodes all longer than an hour is just way too long to keep the audience gripped (although many would disagree i guess). But I still think if you have a good attention span that you should watch it.

Some other things that annoyed me:

- Hina finding out about her mother's death. I don't know why the minister had to use her only to tell her her mother passed away. I know he gave his reasoning but it felt dry and just lazy idk
- all the men being in love with one woman while not even properly knowing her and who she is. Very unnecessary.
- we get zero closure for Hotaru. Plus we don't really learn anything about her until the end and the story felt cliche when i feel like it could've been way more meaningful to the whole plot. Idk she's just there and then she's not and that's just lazy writing to me.
- Hina dying??? like I know she wanted to but then she didn't want to but then she did? It would've been a lot more meaningful to let her die in the hotel or let her live. The way it happened was only so that she could confess to Dongmae which at that point felt unnecessary. Why did they even start that love line?????
- Dongmae having 309403924 battles and dying several times until actually dying like ??????
- the French... girl

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My Roman Empire

This tale is a marathon. It's not for viewers who can't sit through a slow burn or prefer direct conversations. It is most definitely not for the lighthearted, either.

Buckle up; you're in for a fangirl review (read: this could've been finished within 3 lines if I held little affection for it).

I find sageuks enjoyable, but Lee Byung Hun isn't my style. Luckily, their ad ran on YT before, which was intriguing enough. So, first and foremost, cheers to the editing team for their stellar performance from start to finish.

It's 2024. About five years since this masterpiece floored my entire existence, yet Mr Sunshine remains my most beloved kdrama. As someone who lives in a nation that perennially suffers from the consequences of colonialism, this series brought me an overwhelming level of respect for my ancestors, who fought bravely and relentlessly despite the odds being stacked against them. Choosing to live for one's homeland every day is a daunting task. It requires selflessness and primacy. Only those who risk losing something genuinely precious to them can commit to a cause that keeps on taking without any assurance of giving recompense. To devote one's life to their country, they must love their family so fiercely as Eugene and Ae Sin did, enough to let love go and ultimately let love rest.

Mr. Sunshine is a well-rounded production. The cinematography was stunning. The soundtrack was epic. The costume department ate and left no crumbs. The character portrayal was magnificent. I could not think of a single actor or actress who fell short in their delivery. The humor? The banter? The flirting? Sure, kdrama was already popular when this aired. But imagine if it ran post-pandemic? When streaming's the new norm, sageuks are increasingly gaining more popularity, and kdrama has reached unparalleled heights. It would have effortlessly dominated trending searches.

This series remained faithful to its storyline. The plot was cohesive, the pacing was well-timed, the arrangement of symbolisms, forces, politics, and relationships was deliberate, the build-up was masterful, and the ending made sense. Every single moment was touching. The direction was devastatingly beautiful. My heart sings for every lingering gaze, touch, tone, and even the blockings. This was the best collaboration of Director Lee Eung Bok and Writer Kim Eun Sook (Descendants of the Sun & Goblin / Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, some supporting casts appeared in these projects too). This was also Kim Eun Sook at her peak. She has penned multiple bangers, but nothing hits quite like this period fiction.

I can never forget how there was not a single kissing scene. The first romantic kdrama I watched without one. The leads had an explosive chemistry — their impact was simply undeniable. There was no need for physical demonstrations of feelings. Their dialogue was already pure poetry. Their passionate, quiet confessions and mutual pining? It would take years before it can be outdone, let alone be comparable.

It's simply revolutionary.

Once in a while, I'll think about flames and pinwheels and trains and scraps of confessions in matryoshka dolls. I'll think about the man with no country to call his. I'll think about the woman who longs for Joseon's liberation, wearing a ring that honors a love long gone.

I'll forever be scarred by guns, glory, and sad endings. I'll be reminded of my people and how they helplessly came to terms with their unfavorable fates. May they reunite with their loved ones in the afterlife and be at peace knowing their sacrifices will be remembered, even if those who remember have to perpetually argue against their fellow countrymen who have forgotten.

To me, this story is comparable to the creation of the universe. So, whoever plans on writing a wartime romance should take notes because Mr. Sunshine shows how to do it properly.

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