Love Song for Illusion (2024)

An Acquired Taste

I am usually a read the synopsis then decide if I am going to watch a show and I must say I actually ignore this first but the I run out of shows to watch and decided to start this drama.

So far, I am really liking this title and was looking forward for new episodes. I must say that characters need more development though. Also, this gives me the “Moon in the day” vibe with the revenge plot but then again as I say an acquired taste. It is not bad as what they say. I have been into Chinese (Wuxia/Xanxia) drama because of the fight scenes and so far this show has good stunts and fighting scenes.

I am really loving Park Ji Hoon here, the way he potrays his dualities in character is on point. The ML and FL chemistry are good as well.

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A strange story

Sajo Hyun (Park Jihoon) suffers from his father's tyranny and due to this upbringing, he develops another personality, who goes by the name Ak Hee. Yeon Wol (Hong Ye Ji) comes from a supportive family and she’s trained to be a fighter since young. Sajo and Yeon Wol shortly-met when Sajo's father did something evil to Yeon Wol's family, which led Yeon Wol to run for her life. 10 years later, Yeon Wol returns and ready to take a revenge.
The first episodes were good. Until they grew up and these double personalities they developed even started to fight with each other, and the series lost credibility. The players became strange. I don't know who it is, the inexperience of the actress or the inexperience of the director. Wrong things. the male lead who cannot adapt to them. and a king who always laughs with his mouth open pretends to forget that it was the same from the beginning. It was very terrible. It didn't suit such an experienced player at all. Is this how an actor shows his every attitude? It is different. Or it could be the director's faulty instructions. Look, this may be due to the director's inability to reflect the series. It's a shame for the series. I did not like at all. It's like a conflict between two people, with no one knowing what they're doing, but it's the same person, the jokes are weird. So you are surprised while watching it. You say, what's going on? It's been a weird series. More precisely, it didn't happen. I do not like. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

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A hidden gem of 2024!

The story is so fast-paced and the moment you anticipate it to follow a certain trajectory that most sageuk dramas would, it defies your expectations. The acting is so precise, especially from the ML who has a very expressive face and portrays multiple emotions and two personalities distinctively. The fight scenes are quite well-executed too, love the FL's parkour!

The entire ordeal of the ML having two identities approaches very close to discussions around dissociative identity disorder. Although portraying it as an evil spirit entails misrepresenting a stigmatized mental health disorder, I think in the historical context it is still very accurate since medical research had not expanded on it back then and many disorders were confused with spiritual possessions. I like that the drama could express this type of narrative so well.

Watch this drama, if you like:
- Main leads defying gender roles
- Good fight scenes
- Witty dialogues and communication between characters
- Fast-paced stories with cliffhangers in every episode

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It's good.

(This review contains slight spoilers from episodes 1)

I've watched the first 6 episodes, and I'm really enjoying it so far. The beginning wasn't the best; it was a bit confusing and even made me angry at some points. Ak Hee (the evil spirit) erasing FL's memories didn't sit well with me, but I warmed up to the character later on. I hope there's an apology for his past behavior.

Distinguishing between the Crown Prince and the evil spirit can be challenging, but I'm slowly getting the hang of it and can now tell who is currently in control. The female lead is amazing and strong on her own. I love her character. The Crown Prince also has my appreciation; there was a brief moment in episodes 5 and 6 where he was a bit unlikable, but the issue was swiftly resolved, and I understood his actions.

The acting is outstanding! The male lead portrays both characters uniquely, making them similar yet distinct—it's truly amazing. The female lead's performance, especially in her fighting scenes, is impressive. Some might criticize the wigs, and while I agree that in some scenes, they aren't perfect, it's not something that bothers me.

The chemistry between the male and female leads is definitely there. So, I wholeheartedly recommend this drama. Give it a shot at least until episode 4, it significantly improves from there if the first 3 episodes didn't fully grab you. Personally, episode 5 stood out as my favorite. It showcased the charm of both Ak Hee and the Crown Prince, as well as the female lead's strong independence.


Edit: I dropped it because I got second lead Syndrom SO bad. Fl fell for original ml but I started liking Ak Hee more. They have more chemistry and more cuter scenes in the beginning. I’m sorry, I couldn’t continue watching after seeing him in pain.

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Good Drama!, But..

Good concept but the plot makes me unsatisfied. In this drama Ak Hee's personality or character is very dominant, while Sajo Hyun is too weak.

I mean it's like Sajo Hyun didn't do anything, but Ak Hee did everything for Yeon Wol even to make Yeon Wol happy even though him self was suffering. Sajo Hyun's personality thinks too much, he is busy with him emotional thoughts, while Ak Hee immediately takes action even if it hurts him. It was difficult for me to see Yeon Wol love Sajo Hyun's personality more than Ak Hee.

Ak Hee always has a way to save Yeon Wol and also helps Sajo Hyun, Sajo Hyun's personality really depends on Ak Hee

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So far good

I've been eagerly waiting for this show to be released since it was first announced, and I must say, it was worth the wait. The show's beginning was quite surprising, especially how the younger versions of the main lead and female lead looked exactly like their older selves. However, it wasn't surprising to learn that the main lead, Park Jihoon, had a traumatic past since he always had tragic backstories in all the shows he has starred in. When the present timeline began, it was quite intriguing, and the acting was amazing. The fight scenes were especially impressive, and the way the main lead portrayed two distinct personalities was commendable. Overall, I think the show was pretty cool. The only downside was the song selection, which wasn't particularly good. Also, I wish someone would smack some sense into ML's father because why would you scold your child for something that he enjoys doing? Despite these minor issues, I would rate the show 10/10. I hope I'm not revealing too much about the plot.
A couple of weeks as passed and my opinions kind of changed about this series. It's still interesting to watch but I'm not that kind of person to watch shows with sad ending like Weak Hero Class 1, so I'm hoping it a happy ending. So far, this series has made me cried a lot than the other series I've watched because of episode 9 and I never expected me to cry that quick after hearing the ML cry for 1 second. And omgosh Jihoon's acting is so good, you can just feel the emotion just by looking at his eyes and his voice omgggg and Yeji role suits her so well!!! Well, I'm hoping it isn't a sad ending or I'm showing up at the director place loll

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Better than I expected in the first half

When I read the summary I wasn't sure if I was going to watch this, the reviews and comments were mixed too but I decided I was going to watch the first episode and decide from there. I have seen the ML in Weak Hero Class and Flower Crew. He is a very talented actor and an unconventional one that doesn't fit into the standard KDrama actor mold. While they are both good looking, I find both the ML and FL don't fit into the conventional mold with their looks in standard Kdrama romance. I appreciate that because its more immersive for me as a viewer because I bought into their love story and felt it more so than if cookie cutter actors and actresses were in those roles.

Is it a perfect story and perfectly executed? Nope. However, I appreciate the uniqueness it bought to the table in Asian dramas that tend to be littered with recycled themes. It was a big risk taken to tell a fantasy story of traumatized individuals in extraordinary circumstances where mental health issues and concepts of split personalities and PTSD are told in a fantasy setting with symbolism of the "evil spirit" representing the darkness in the human condition that resulted from trauma and abuse.

In the first half of the arc of the story, the Ak Hee evil spirit added a complex dimension in the story that showed his greed, seductive manipulation, impulsiveness, and ruthlessness of what he was willing to do because of the intensity of his feelings for the FL whether it be lust or a twisted version of love. The ML did a wonderful job portraying the light and dark sides with the push and pull within himself.

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A Familiar Revenge Story BUT with a ML Character has split personality disorder

From Enemies to Empathy/understanding to Lovers, this story still has interesting enough, there's a lot of kdrama/cdrama similar but this one quite lacks the acting ability, and another problem is the film's camera angles and shots, why does the camera shake and waggle in many scenes make the experience very uncomfortable.

The plot is quite predictable, and the chemistry is 'uhhh', it's hard to say, maybe because the acting of FL makes me so frustrated and bored. Her eyes are so bland and flat, she plays an assassin character but with naive and sleepy eyes????, also her line is so bad...

The ML's story is quite interesting to me, his acting is good and he used to be an idol before, I think he is trying hard and putting effort into this, so he can capture and embody the character so well.

In conclusion, this drama is worth watching because of ML's story.
=> I dropped this after watching ep 3, I find it hard to watch, the acting, the camera works, and the way they portray the story are all so boring to me.

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