ninchenbienchen

Well, what can I say: This series had so much potential to separate itself from the hundreds of other historical k-dramas out there:

• a phenomenal cast
• the Grand Princes with their extraordinary personalities and their strong bond
• and a great soundtrack.

In the end, the Grand Princes took pretty much a backseat, barely to be seen towards the second half of the show. Instead, they focused way too much on the typical schemes and betrayal happening within the palast walls, just as all the other historical dramas out there. If it hadn't been for the Queen, who is definitely a legendary character, partially thanks to Kim Hyesoo's perfect portrayal, I would've rated it even lower than that.

...a devastating, heartbreaking series that will break your heart a thousand times more after realizing that most of those things actually happened in real life, then this show is for you.

But seriously though: This is one of those stories where you're constantly sad and frustrated because you don't want to accept that someone can be this unlucky, that this truly happened to these poor souls, and yet you can't stop watching because you're hooked. And the cast's outstanding performance is one the reasons why.

Judging by this only, you will not be disappointed.

But be ready to shed a few tears if you're gonna watch this.

...and some adorable side characters. But the overall story is quite flat, chliché and foreseeable. I feel like the producers felt the same way, which is why they included some court cases in the story that were disregarded in the middle of the show just to be put back on screen at the end of it to keep the viewers interested...? I don't know, but they seemed quite random at that point.

So yeah, it wasn't bad, but it wasn't overly good either.