A marvelous mini series (if that's the correct term)which enthralls right from the start and never lets go. In it's 36 or so hours, it seldom puts a foot wrong. The performances from some of the actors including female are hard to gauge in particular the two leading men, and the leading actresses ie Oh Yoon Ah as Hye Ap, who i nominate as the sexiest female character I've seen in a long time, and we never even get to see her legs. Then there is Choi Jung Won as Princess Yeon, who is full of grace and serenity. But I have no doubt that the best performance comes from Jung Jin Young as king Yuri. Plaudits also to among others Kim Hye Ri as as Lady Mi Yoo (Yeo Jin's mother), and Han Jin Hee as King Daeso. Yes, there are faults. There is plenty of fighting, but very little blood. At one stage, i thought a character who was being executed had survived. It looked like the executioners blade had missed him. But no, he had been killed. When one of the main characters is killed in a rather inhumane way, and his friend has the opportunity to treat the instigator in like manner, he doesn't. Perhaps it's to do with Korean TV restrictions. The two leading male and female characters are not without fault. At one stage, she poisons someone, and he has a tendency at times to kill people who are no threat to him. Perhaps it was just one person, i can't remember. I see those as positive aspects of the series. When one of the lead characters dies, my heart broke. And i cried like anything. That is one of the great strengths of Korean movies and TV dramas; the emotion they can get from you, and also how they involve you in the stories. Highly recommended without reservations.
