Intriguing, Sensual, Fascinating, Flawed: VERY Worth A Watch

The intensity of the chemistry between the leads is scorching. Kim Young Kwang as Seong Yun-O is scorching and whether he is alone on-screen or in a scene with someone else, his understated but forceful performance is shiver-inducing. Kang Hae Lim portrays one of the most complex characters we’ve had in kdrama for a while, and part of that complexity comes from the fact that she is sophisticated enough to present different sides of herself to different people, even though people assume she is too innocent and pure to be manipulative.

This drama is definitely flawed. There are some plot holes that never get properly filled or explained. The worst flaw, in my opinion, is the clumsy over-reliance on the main character’s supposed Asperger’s diagnosis as a way of signaling different moral and cognitive dimensions of her thinking.

That said, when I was trying to think of how to rate and review this drama, I tried to consider how I experienced it ~overall~, not piecemeal. And overall, it was a fascinating experience that made me want to keep pursuing every drop, every moment, to the very end.

Kim Yong Ji as Im Mok Won and Kim Soo Yeon as Yeong Gi Eun also deserve special mention as Sum’s friends. KYJ’s performance is especially electric—her final scene with KYK (Yun-O) is blisteringly intense.

This is not a standard romance drama. Up to the very end, you may well be wondering what the leads really think and feel for and about each other. I suggest thinking of it instead as a thriller and not trying to view it as a romance.

As a thriller, you’re taken on a fairly wild ride, and one of my favorite kinds of ride: what happens when the dangerous killer gets a little too close to someone vulnerable, someone ill-equipped to fight back properly, and to her friends? What will he do to defend himself in that situation? It’s a really delicious scenario—for a thriller. Not so much for a romance. Or is it?? Only you can decide that for yourself.

I highly recommend this drama and I hope it gets all the attention it deserves, despite its serious flaws.

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An entertaining xianxia

This drama is not perfect by any means, but it is an entertaining xianxia with some elements that make it stand out from some of the more bland offerings in the genre, so despite its flaws, for me it’s worthwhile. However, I’m speaking as someone who read the novel and has been looking forward to this drama, so that may make me somewhat biased in favor of the drama.

Unfortunately the biggest flaw may be the writing of the female lead. In about 40% of her scenes, she’s either pathetic or annoying. The actress playing her doesn’t help by making some truly bad choices—lots of flouncing, pouting, etc.—but these things are in line with the way the character is written, so I’m not sure I can blame the actress.

The male lead is better but the actor playing him is rather limited in his abilities. He does well when the male lead is being fearsome and majestic. He becomes bland and boring in most scenes when the male lead is interacting with the female lead.

The costumes for the drama are puzzling. The male lead’s costumery is fantastic. The female lead’s gowns are frumpy, baggy, dumpy, and ill-fitting. Headpieces for many male characters are ornate and interesting, going far beyond the usual bun holder crown style. You get the sense that the costume designer cared a lot about what the male characters were wearing, and then maybe wanted to keep the female characters well covered up? I don’t know, I’m hoping the costumes improve.

Production values are VERY HIGH, to rival any other big budget xianxia you have seen when it comes to effects and sets. If you can watch this drama in 1080p on a very large screen, DO SO.

In terms of plot…I don’t want to say much b/c I want to avoid spoilers. So I’ll put it this way: it seems like the drama may have cut out some of the best parts of the novel, or maybe is saving them for later, it’s hard to tell. It has certainly diverged from the novel, and not, in my opinion, in great ways. BUT the writing is very cohesive and the storytelling is highly competent.

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