1
Zogitt
Australia
Need a few more special herbs in this guggling brew
I have high hopes for this drama (why do I feel like I just cursed the show? ;) ). It has a good cast and I like the ML when he stars in other shows. The FL is quite good at playing a sassy girl as well. It should be a sure fire hit, right?
The answer is a bit more complicated. The Show starts strongly. The opening scenes are impactful with some quite confronting. We have two leads who are hurt and damaged by the machinations of others. Both lives are derailed, and their future seems to be full of uncertainties and trials.
The Show is patently a healing drama with a strong dose of romance. The chemistry between the leads is unmistakeable from the start. The show largely delivers on its premise, but it is not without caveats.
Part of the problem is that the Show drifts from one motif to another without fully committing to any of them. There is palace intrigue which is full-on at the beginning but faded mid show. Comedic elements pop up from time to time but you can hardly call it a comedy. Medical dramas run right down the centre. Some cases are interesting but most are just fillers.
The whole Joseon psychiatrist thing is a bit of a deception. The ML still based his diagnosis on checking the parent's pulse and countenance. Treatments are centred on acupuncture and herbal tonics. He does think more about the circumstances of his patients, but I'd call him mindful, insightful rather than a neophyte psychiatrist.
The love line is oddly nebulous as well. Not that the leads are confused about their feelings. If anything, they knew exactly how they feel about each other, but the show just won’t let them take the leap.
I don't want to use the word draggy to describe this show and it is not, at least not in the classical sense. It feels more like a lack of resolve. It is as if the show is buying time, rather than wasting time. This might well be because the show is renewed for a second season before the first season is even over so the writer-nims might be under pressure to keep a few tricks up their collective sleeves for S2.
Characterisation is a mixed bag. The leads have clear identities, and their portrayals are largely on point. The support cast is more one dimensional with most of them employed as comedic relieves. The antagonists are a tropey mix of local pompous bully and power-hungry grand vizier type. They brought forth death and destruction, but the intrigue is more pedestrian than Byzantine.
Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the Show. All the ingredients are in the pot, but it just simmers and guggles. Never quite come to a boil. It is good but not great. To be fair, the Show concluded satisfactorily at the end of S1 with retribution and redemption dished out appropriately. It didn’t quite end in a cliff-hanger but more like a ridge-hanger.
Bring on season 2! Hwaiting!
The answer is a bit more complicated. The Show starts strongly. The opening scenes are impactful with some quite confronting. We have two leads who are hurt and damaged by the machinations of others. Both lives are derailed, and their future seems to be full of uncertainties and trials.
The Show is patently a healing drama with a strong dose of romance. The chemistry between the leads is unmistakeable from the start. The show largely delivers on its premise, but it is not without caveats.
Part of the problem is that the Show drifts from one motif to another without fully committing to any of them. There is palace intrigue which is full-on at the beginning but faded mid show. Comedic elements pop up from time to time but you can hardly call it a comedy. Medical dramas run right down the centre. Some cases are interesting but most are just fillers.
The whole Joseon psychiatrist thing is a bit of a deception. The ML still based his diagnosis on checking the parent's pulse and countenance. Treatments are centred on acupuncture and herbal tonics. He does think more about the circumstances of his patients, but I'd call him mindful, insightful rather than a neophyte psychiatrist.
The love line is oddly nebulous as well. Not that the leads are confused about their feelings. If anything, they knew exactly how they feel about each other, but the show just won’t let them take the leap.
I don't want to use the word draggy to describe this show and it is not, at least not in the classical sense. It feels more like a lack of resolve. It is as if the show is buying time, rather than wasting time. This might well be because the show is renewed for a second season before the first season is even over so the writer-nims might be under pressure to keep a few tricks up their collective sleeves for S2.
Characterisation is a mixed bag. The leads have clear identities, and their portrayals are largely on point. The support cast is more one dimensional with most of them employed as comedic relieves. The antagonists are a tropey mix of local pompous bully and power-hungry grand vizier type. They brought forth death and destruction, but the intrigue is more pedestrian than Byzantine.
Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the Show. All the ingredients are in the pot, but it just simmers and guggles. Never quite come to a boil. It is good but not great. To be fair, the Show concluded satisfactorily at the end of S1 with retribution and redemption dished out appropriately. It didn’t quite end in a cliff-hanger but more like a ridge-hanger.
Bring on season 2! Hwaiting!
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