Daleui Ddeuneun Gang

Kim So-hyun plays Princess Pyeonggang whose mother, the Queen was killed when she was a child and whilst trying to escape she is assisted by the son of a General called On Dal played by Na In-woo. They become separated and the princess has an accident and loses her memory and she is adopted by a secret society and is trained to become a very efficient assassin. Many years later they meet by accident and this begins to unravel a chain of events going to the top of the Royal household and the events from their childhoods. It is an entertaining story and the pace of the first two thirds of the series is engaging and the momentum retains your interest. Sadly the final third is where to me the pacing is off and it would have benefitted from fewer episodes.

RIVER WHERE THE MOON RISES (2021) was a really great show. Going into this, I was reluctant, given some of the controversy and outrage of changing the male lead cast member mid-show. I won't get into that topic, but was worried that presumably significant change might have caused the show to suffer and feel disjointed somehow, whether in story, character chemistry or even by editing flaws. I was concerned something might not feel right. Still, I reluctantly gave it a chance.

That was not the case, thankfully. The cast, Kim So Hyun as the Assassin / Warrior named Princess Pyeonggang, and Na In Woo as the charming, peaceful On Dal had such adorable chemistry and many of the side cast was likable or relatable as well, such as the other Ghost Village members, but especially On Dal's Mother / nanny. I adored On Dal and his mother's sweet, unique relationship. That was probably one of the most absolute sweetest things I've seen in a K-Drama in a while. The little orphan girl was so adorable as well. The side cast did a really good job honestly and truly helped make this show so memorable.

While the show used a few old drama tropes that I'm not a huge fan of, such as convenient amnesia, unrequited love from childhood friend (to the point of silliness imo), and random breakups of serious couples, it still managed to keep me engaged.

All that aside, this series was really touching, great writing and direction, great acting/casting, great character development, great story arcs and scene settings, and wonderful aesthetic design, such as costumes and cinematographic visuals. The music was really memorable as well. Overall, this was a show that has it all; adventure, action, romance, mystery, comedy, and tragedy. I highly recommend giving this one a fair chance (with the reshot episodes/scenes with Na In Woo), despite the critics, naysayers and casting controversy concerns.

STORY: 8/10 CINEMATOGRAPHY: 10/10 ART/DESIGN/VISUALS: 10/10 MUSIC: 9/10 OVERALL RATING: 8.5.

I have not watched the series yet but I surely will once its completed (can't wait every week). But I wanted to talk about the replacement of the male lead actor Ji Soo. It looks as if people awoken from a deep sleep and decided now after he stared in numerus series for the past 8 years to talk of their hurt from him bulling them at school. Why now? Why not before? Does he have more money now? I understand what he did is wrong and he should pay for it in one way or another, but preventing bulling starts from home, and school. And from what I see, The school and society is much to blame as well.

The lead actor change part way through (in the original, although by now they may have re-shot all those earlier episodes) did create unevenness. Na In Woo hoo had no time for any character prep, so the first couple of episodes where he had to dive straight in had him seeming a bit wooden after JiSoo. Na In Woo quickly made up for that though and developed On Dal as his own intrinsic character, with excellent chemistry between the leads. The second leads' story was also very well done. Compelling writing and an epic tale.

Korean Drama "River where the moon rises" was not a great romance story, but the strong female lead saved the day. Her story, the performance, and her presentation were all not only entertaining but also intriguing. That is not to say that the rest of the actors and actresses of the cast did not do a great job. But the leading lady's performance and dynamic appeal stole the scene every time. Her story was overall interesting, as well, and it was refreshing to have a period drama focusing on a female character. The clothes and settings were a nice touch too, as they were different, detailed and looked real.

However, at least for me, the drama was greatly affected by the switch of the male lead. They did not handle it well, and the character disappeared for a few episodes and had a few chopped scenes edited here and there. So, I do recommend watching it with the second actor right from the start, as it feels a bit awkward with the switch.

As for the romance, it was okay, but not as strong and impactful as it presented it, or hoped for it to be. That is because it was often overshadowed by the politics and, sometimes, the second lead. The ending was a bit off too and too unrealistic.

So, overall, six and a half out of ten.