I became addicted to this fine Korean drama series in the late spring of 2007, when I got sick of paying my cable company over $50 a month for premium service and switched back to the Limited Basic package for less than $20/month. As a result I was forced to look through some of the foreign-language-network offerings, and lo and behold, found this gem of a quasi-historical Korean epic costume drama on AZN.
Now admittedly, there is a fair bit of pretty silly stuff going on in this series (see the Minuses section below), but the good far outweighs the bad. I especially like the humorous character vignettes, for instance the Iron Chamber master Mo Palmo always cracks me up. :)
**Pluses:**
- Good acting, especially from the actors who play the following characters:
* Emperor Kumwa - The MacBeth of Jumong; carries much of the first 50 episodes of the show. Watching the actor who plays him, I can't help being reminded a little bit of Toshiro Mifune.
* Prime Minister Unavoidable - with a name like that, how can you not like this guy?
* Sorceress Yeo Mieul (I admit she took a while to grow on me)
* Sosuhno - Love those take-charge gals who can do it without being nasty
* Prince Taeso - Every great drama needs a quality bad guy, and the conflicted Taeso is a worthy foil to Jumong.
* Prince Youngpo - The feckless prince #2. I love it when he does his "evil scheming" face. :D
* Keru Troop Chief Yuntabal - Like the name says, this guy has major, um, guts, I love it when he (literally) laughs in the face of the bad guys. Also just plain a fine dramatic actor.
* Oi, Mari, Hyoppo: Jumong's 3 Musketeers. Especially like the "forbidden love" subplot involving tough-guy Hyoppo and someone from Sosuhno's Keru troop. The later addition of the reformed bandits as their 3 counterparts and oft-times rivals makes for a great ongoing source of tension and humor.
* Mo Palmo and his friend, the chief of the Guards - absolutely hilarious pair, they're like the Laurel and Hardy of Korean Costume drama.
- Gorgeous Women (I'm a guy, so I admit I was looking more at the ladies ;): Sosuhno, Ye Soya, Buyong and Lady Yuhwa are all major hotties. Even the bad girls have their moments. :) And did I mention the costumes?
**Minuses:**
- Jumong: I know I'm probably going to catch a lot of flak for his, but Song Il-Guk's portrayal just lacks something. Perhaps this is partly the fault of the series writers, but it's just not as convincing as it should be.
- Too many royal people sitting at fancy carved tables doing nothing at the start of scenes - I mean, don't these people read, or do needlework, or paint, or play board games? A missed opportunity for adding depth and texture to the series.
- Fight scenes way too unrealistic (at least for my taste) - OK, I realize you probably can't have severed heads, limbs and guts flying around without alienating a large part of the audience, but could we maybe occasionally have a little *blood*? (And not just a dab on the tip of some guy's sword). And, all these good guys fighting brutal battles and coming out without a scratch? (except for "designated manly upper arm wound guy".) Or even breaking a sweat...
But as I said, the negatives are far outweighed by the good stuff - unless you're the kind of person who insists on "realism" (whatever that means) in all aspects of a show.
All in all, excellent entertainment for the whole family - highly recommended. 8/10
