The Emperor: Owner of the Mask (2017)

I don't quite know where to begin with my review. Should I list all the good things or should I list all the bad things first? This is also the reason why my rating is probably not yet final. It might change one or two times, though it will definitely not go up any further.

So, to summon it up, this drama is flashy, cheesy, overly dramatic and sometimes seriously ridiculous. The synopsis for this show is quite scarce, so I'll try to describe some additional facts first.

The king rules over his country. That's how it should be. But in fact, he is only a puppet who is led by Pyunsoo Group, a large hidden organization that has its own trick to control the royal family quite well. The Crown Prince meanwhile has to wear a mask in order to hide his face because of an illness he got when he was born - at least that's what the people and the ministers believe. And because of Pyunsoo Group he is also forced to live outside the palace someday. There he meets Ga Eun who he will fall in love with.

The basic plot is actually quite interesting. That's why it's so sad that it doesn't live up to its potential in the end. It had a steady atmosphere what I liked about this drama, but every now and then it managed to drop one or two ridiculous bombs that were either created by some nonsensical decisions or resulted in some foolish actions.

There were alot of characters who had the potential to something big, but they never rose from their grounds. Same applies for the acting. Though I can't blame half of them because they got some crappy scripts for their roles, the other half of the cast was only average or worse.

As interesting as the beginning was, I never saw an actual improvement of the Crown Prince. He might have become a little smarter, that's all. Same goes for the female lead. At a certain point in the drama, she started to annoy me because so many bad things happened only because of her. It irritated me so much, that almost every decision centered around her. She was either bait or needed protection or whatever. I don't know where it went wrong but her role felt more like a burden than a blessing/support. I admit that I enjoyed some of her scenes with the Crown Prince though. But that's as far as it goes.

At some point I started to favor the second female lead more than the actual one. There was definitely growth in her character while she was one of the most conflicted persons in the story. And although I was skeptical regarding the actress at first, I'm glad that she pulled off her character so well that I even felt sad about her efforts being in vain - though on the other hand she did accomplish some of her wishes in the end.

There are only a few performances I truly enjoyed. The Queen Dowager, the second female lead's father, the female lead's father, Woo Bo (Lee Sun's teacher) and Dae Mok, the head of Pyunsoo Group. Their acting was shining compared to the rest. Yoo Seung Ho had his moments, too, and I enjoyed most of his scenes, but damn, he's one teary guy. His hair is beautiful though...

There is indeed an unhealthy amount of crying. Alot of it. And everyone seems to be a real crybaby, it spreads like a disease. Shedding tears during almost every serious moment.

Did I like something? The clothes, the cinematography, the MUSIC (that score was good~), impressive entrances (esp from Yoo Seung Ho, his royal demeanor was intriguing) and some really good fighting scenes.

Recommendation is debatable and this is definitely not a sageuk for everyone. It's quite predictable, with alot of stereotype characters and some questionable turn of events. Despite that I still felt entertained to a certain degree. There were many moments that kept my interest throughout the whole drama and I wanted to see the finale, even though I already knew how it would probably end~

And Yoo Seung Ho's hair was so beautiful... Did I already mentioned that? Damn, that dude is gorgeous.

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I WATCHED IT SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO
 If you have to prioritize, watch the first episode and judge for yourself, because some tricks and stretches are telling for the overall quality and worldbuilding. Are you OK with random commoners using Lee last name (and it somehow being an important factor for maliciously choosing a crown prince's substitute)? How about a poison that has to be re-taken every 15 days otherwise the afflicted person will die? Or a poison that makes the survivor immune to all the other poisons in the world? Do you buy the reasoning for hiding crown prince's face behind a mask? Unless you really can't stand prolonged misunderstandings and great love built on lack of communication (or even shared screentime), you'll be OK with the rest.
(And speaking of the setup, I have no idea what were they thinking using prince Sado's name, since it can't even be considered an alternative, rice box-free version of that story. Maybe the writer had something planned but she forgot about it in a meantime? Or wanted to troll us with a prospect of a tragic ending?)
Despite all the plotting, accumulating power and changing teams going on, there's not enough plot to last for 20 hours (and a 5 years long time skip during which 1st female lead regressed and everything interesting apparently just happened to the other three). Some matters, like finding a poppy field, could have been resolved around 1/3 of the show and don't even start me on that jar that no-one bothered to come and get until the very end. Really. There were two quests in total and they were both lying sidelined waiting for a person in charge to get to his or hers grand moment, because everyone else was too busy creating misunderstandings, being a noble idiot or passively looking from behind. Right, they needed to make an antidote too, but that just happened last minute.
To make matters worse, due to the episode getting split in half it wasn't 20 eps but 40 shorter ones. So double the cliffhanger / wet blanket combo and add general lack of fluidity here and there. With that being said, it's not a show to watch for the plot and the overall pacing fits what little character development we see. Except most of it is thrust upon the second leads.
Storytelling is mediocre at best and very predictable in a short term (still engaging on a longer run). You can have a drinking game for everything that happens on cue and every seam that shows through. Expect lots of convenient timing used for the sake of the dramatic effect and main characters doing nothing and getting away with it, because events resolve themselves without them. I'm not even talking about overused hijinks like the main girl coming back from her task all down and changing her mood midsentence, saying to the crowd's relief she suceeded, or that scene when the crown prince was being mourned only to show above someone's shoulder and ask who's dead. And let's ignore that General who fought Jurchens, because he's such a stock character I physically cringed every time he spoke. His lines were like something a kindergartner with a wooden sword would improvise, that kid that gets some episodic part because someone has to do it, and maybe doubles as a tree. Someone on kissasian commented it's like the writer was using a textbook on how to write a segeuk and I fully agree. It's a second rate fanfic writing in a high budget decorations. Easy on eyes and ears, engaging, but only until you take your eyes of it and start looking at the whole picture. With a different cast and lower production value, it'd be unwatchable.
The romance is bland and angsty. They meet, they instantly fall in love, some misunderstandings happen to them [enters 'came from the dead, pretends to be his own lookalike' trope sprawling over the better part of the middle], they separate, they're back and everything is all dandy. The end. The second leads meddle into it, but they never had a chance and weren't even looking for a different options, so there's no thrill. Fill the empty spaces with speeches on the common people suffering under Evil Corp, the legitimacy of power, qualities of a good leader and apologies towards villain who was clearly forced by a circumstances and badly run country to turn evil, poor thing. The show takes itself very seriously, but comes off silly and pompous despite some original concepts thrown at the beginning. I wish writers had a better idea of showing Ga Eun's independence than making her going blindly her way, without consulting people around her and making informative choices. I'm not saying asking for permission, but communicating with a person she supposedly loves that much. I suspect reasons for that are not exposing her trait as much as having her in one place with the second male lead and under his power, and giving the first male lead an opportunity for a dramatic run through a city stopped on crossed halberds. She could be much more than that -- and she was, but it derailed.

WHAT'S IT WORTH WATCHING FOR:
 Hm. Let me think. YSH was born to play royals. He's charismatic, commanding and has them dramatic gazes covered. And not forget his deep voice. But we didn't need a 20 episode drama to confirm that. Both he and KSH are wasted in their roles of a sheltered prince taking a responsibility and a trophy girl. A kind, caring, underinformed trophy girl fighting for a justice. With 15 minutes of a heavily reused footage her character had more impact on the story in Goblin than here. Wait, I meant to stay positive. Both leading actors managed to carry their characters thanks to their charisma and breathed some air into subpar writing. Both second leads showed improvement compared to some of their former works. Second female lead comes quite a way from a creep playing with her knife (or was a needle?) and inflicting on herself a wound to match with the one the crown prince got to an independent, succesful woman standing against her family and making great sacrifices. Second male lead shares 1st lead burden and tries to navigate in an unfamiliar environment until he can't take it anymore and breaks apart. Villain is entertaining to watch and not omnipotent (close, but not), but towards the end he's getting out of character (or was he always delusional?). The other villain has a motivation so murky and changable I won't risk a guess what was she actually plotting, but I doubt it was intentional anyway. At some point it looked like we've got a few more secret organisations to stir things up, but keep your hopes low. As soon as they were introduced, they got tossed away. [Looks like that's as far as my positive attitude can get me.]
Rating it anything below 7 is mean towards production team and actors, but the writing really brings it down. You can safely skip that one, but if you feel like watching something light, why not give it a shot and see for yourself. [But don't even a light show need a more convincing romance, if nothing else?]

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I saw too much negative comments about this show but I think actually this drama deserve more praises. It had great potential but sadly, it was not perfectly executed, and what make this worse is that it had good promotion as if it's going to be a masterpiece so the viewers had high expectation but turned out the show could not meet those expectation.

As I said before, this show has great potential, the storyline about royal family problems and all those conflict with pyunsoo group were quite believable for me at some point. I have no complain regarding the main plot about how the crown prince grows to be a good ruler for the country. But I found too much unnecessary love dilemma along the story and it becomes annoying at some point. I did not know that story of love actually can ruin the show to this extent. well I actually a sucker for romance but the romance here is not appealing for me. Ok, that was all the negatives I can mention about this drama. Now, let's talk about the good things.

First, we should not miss how the writer make a dynamic character for this story. Almost all of the characters showed nice development over time and they really grew, they showed various emotions, had both weak and strong side and made me pay attention and root for them (I love all four lead characters here). This drama is combination of well written characters and great actors, in this term I'm so thankful they cast these actors. I am a fan of Kim So Hyun and I knew she can do much more than what she showed here just like what everyone complained but at the end I kind of understand that she played a strong and steady character, not the one that stand out much and it was not something we can ignore. As for Yoo Seung Ho, through this drama I discovered that he is indeed charming and so lovable. I'll definitely going to check his future project. That also applied for L. I've known this guy ever since his debut with infinite and among all of his drama, his acting here was the best, I am truly impressed, he finally become real actor *tearsofjoy. Hwa Gun is my favorite here eventhough Yoon So Hee was a bit off in portraying her character. For me Hwa Gun's character was not about obsession since she still care for her father, not just her love interest. She shows how a daughter/granddaughter can also make decision and take action based on her judgement. She was the true definition of cool and influential second lead for me.

Second, the production team put a lot of effort in making this. Aside from the good cast, we can also tell from first glance that this is not a low budget drama. From the setting, properties, cinematography and everything about this drama were not done half hearted. It was beautifully made, including the soundtrack. From what I knew, they released 17 ost for 20 episodes drama and those 17 songs were delivered by talented musicians. Among all the good things bout this drama, the fact that it has 17 ost was my favorite, especially because my favorite singer Hwang Chi Yeul and Yoseob lent their voice.

Lastly, I will say that I really enjoyed this drama despite the plothole and partly unconvenience story line. To be honest, of all drama I watched at the same time, this is the one I am most looking forward to each week. (probably because I did not watch a lot of saeguk so this story is new and original for me)

overall, I still recommended this drama but don't set your expectation too high.

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Argh this drama is such a mess that I don't even know where to begin. First of all, the story is incredibly disappointing: predictable, filled with plot holes, conveniently lucky at times to save the protagonist, and overall filled with frustrating pacing.
The characters that began with promise quickly lost their luster, with probably only Hwa Gun becoming an actually well-written character by the end. Yoo Seung Ho is an outstanding actor with both talent and heart-melting looks, but his character is inconsistent, annoying, and stuck in a plot that doesn't seem to go anywhere until the end. Same with Kim So Hyun- I absolutely adore her in her previous works, but Ga Eun is written so blandly that I really could retain interest in her. As for L (Myung Soo), he actually exceeded all expectations in his performance, but again- his character had many inconsistencies in writing to be of interest.
THE SOLE REASON FOR WATCHING THIS would have to be Hwa Gun. Now, Yoon So Hee isn't the greatest actress out there- she does need some work on her annunciation and just more experience in general. However, she did a great job as Hwa Gun and certainly improved from her past roles. It seems that all of the character development that was supposed to happen to everyone else just poured into her instead. Solidly written and developed, Hwa Gun is a character balanced in virtues and flaws who becomes vital to both the story and the audiences attention. One of my all-time favorite characters.
Dae Mok began as an interesting villain, but quickly fell into the category of antagonists that I like to call "Fire Lord Ozais". [Note: If you've seen Avatar: The Last Airbender, you'd know that the overarching villain is Fire Lord Ozai. However, throughout most of the story, Princess Azula is the truer and much better antagonist with clear complexities and motivations, reducing Ozai to more of a figurehead.] Dae Mok does get some backstory, but it's vague and undeveloped, making him a simplified figure of evil that our boringly righteous protagonists may fight with.
There may be solid actors in this drama, but not even they can save poor writing. The music was amazing, but it's not particularly memorable nor surprising for a high budget sageuk.
If you enjoy overly dramatic sageuks with actors that are easy on the eyes, go for it if you have 20 hours to spare.

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Waste of good actors and story

Read this review before you decide whether you want to watch this title

Pros:
The cast - the actors are amazing and the acting done was quite well. The crown prince , master woo bin , the villain , second leads FL father , first FL father, both body gurads gona and seong un and the second lead did a good job .

The cinematography - the fight scenes well choreographed, the poppy fields or cherry blossom paths, the sunsets shining in the water, was wonderfully done. Its one of the best scenic beauty movie if you are into those things

Cons:
Waste of good actors: There were two good fighters who were under utilized and could have added more reality to the fight scenes. The crown prince is a good actor but mostly he was a cry baby or fake smiling. First FL was one of the weakest character in the history of drama movies (including the playful kiss and heirs .. adding examples to show how serious I am). Although she is a good actress but her potential was never used. The second lead did a great job (at least the script gave her some hope.. may be cause we give dying wishes a chance) .

The script: I could no longer remember the plot (in desperate hopes to keep myself sane) I lost count how many times the story went wayward. Although the story gist was superb but the execution was poor and the actors had no chance to do justice to the story.

Both ML and FL never looked as if in love with each other (Second FL looked much more in love than those two). That was the biggest down side of the drama. The romantic scenes look empty and their emotions lacking

OverAll Verdict: If you love the cast (if FL or ML is your bias), you love good fight scenes and have lots of time on your hands . go ahead and watch the title

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It's been awhile since I've watched such a ridiculous historical kdrama. I was completely fooled by the pretty poster and the good-looking cast, but ''The Emperor'' was nothing but a disappointment.

(NOTE: Lee Sun#1 - Yoo Seung Ho, Lee Sun#2 - L)

Actually, the main idea of the writer is quite fascinating. The first episodes were very fast paced and it seemed as if the plot was going nowhere. Then, an unexpected turn of the events made me quite curious which is the reason why I stayed till the end. I made quite a big mistake, didn't I? Even though the idea is very good, it was completely ruined by bad writing. The drama was full of plotholes and bullshit. I finished it but I still don't get why the Crown Prince had to wear a mask. So noone could kill him? As if they don't know that the person behind the mask is the prince. Yeah, bullshit. The plot was predictable, we knew who the villian is since the first episode which made the drama boring with zero mystery. The ending was ridiculous though, I couldn't help but laugh.
The romance was more or less useless, the love triangle too. And how exactly did Ga Eun and Lee Sun#1 fall in love with each other? Lee Sun#1 just looked at her face once and he was ready to die for her. Okay, nevermind. There was zero chemistry between the leads and I just didn't want them to be together.

Lee Sun#1 was quite a dumb main lead. He was there to be out hero, but he lacked charisma. He wasn't convincing. His actions were stupid most of the time. He just kept running after Ga Eun (who is no better than him at all) as if he didn't have more important things to do.
Our second lead - Lee Sun #2 was definitely my favourite character. I loved him from the beginning and I think if the drama focused more on his story I would have liked it more.
Hwa Gun was better than Ga Eun - she was stronger and smarter, but of course, she was just thrown away.
The side characters were more enjoyable to watch, especially Gon, Chung Woon and Woo Bo.

The acting was mediocre. Yoo Seung Ho, my dear, what happened to you? Did you find your character so uninteresting that you almost lost your acting skills? I hope you'll choose your roles more wisely in the future. Kim Myung Soo stoled the show for me.

Rewatching this? No, thanks. I'm sure that there are a lot of better dramas that are waiting for me.
Don't waste your time, trust me. Go and watch something else.

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I have high expectations. Even more so for historical dramas and I'm starting to hate myself for it.

Let's get one thing straight: I am all for love triangles/squares/whatever shape they come out to be, but one thing I cannot stand is when they objectify the women. The plot was also dragged out for way too long. I think at one point, I wasn't even sure what the actual plot was anymore. There were just so many twists and turns, I could barely keep up with it.

There were a few actors/actress that blew me away, Kim So Hyun being one of those people. It still amazes me to see how far she's come and how much she's accomplished at such a young age. Compared to her, I am nothing but a potato.

With historical dramas come ballads. I've noticed for quite a while now that ballads can sound pretty similar to one another. So much so, that they can feel a little boring at times. There were some original soundtracks that stood out to me, however, the majority didn't impress. But for those that did, extra points for them.

Overall, I think this is still a watchable drama. The ending will give you a satisfaction like no other. You might even let out a sigh of relief. Historical dramas hold a very special place in my heart because they take me back to a time that I never got the chance to experience. In addition to that, I also get to admire the costumes. So even though it lacked in some departments, I still had a good time. I don't regret finishing it but this drama definitely won't make it on my list of ones to rewatch.

With that said,
Llama out.

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This review is gonna be slightly different to my normal ones. This was a lengthy drama so to help against the pain I wrote 'mini reviews' at different points during the show to vent my frustrations. [so obviously spoilers ahead as I go]
So here goes

(wrote after watching ep 2)

A strong start to this show. We have our two main leads who are both strong in their own way. Crown Prince Lee Sun wants freedom and has a sense of justice, wanting to do right by his people. He reminds me of princess Jasmine from ‘Aladdin’. She doesn’t want to spend her life in the palace, and doesn’t want a betrothal either. She escapes from the palace, and sees a starving child (in our case; a thirsty one with our theme being the water supply) and feeds him an apple, not knowing it is something you must pay for. Sound familiar?

Meanwhile our female lead is already so likeable. She is intelligent, a student in medicine, kind, spunky, and beautiful. I love that there is already a connection between the two from the start.

I’m so excited to see what’s to come!

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Where do I stand now at ep 9?

Well…I think it’s safe to say the show peaked at episode 2. There are a lot of plot holes, with a lot of wasted potential. I’ve seen a lot of reviews by now and I do think they are being just a bit harsh. Yes, there are plot holes. Yes. the romance is rushed and filled with pointless melodrama. Yes, the female lead could have had a better character (*cough* like in the first two eps *cough*) instead of being so wishy-washy. But don't heaps of other dramas have these problems? At least the plot is interesting enough, despite all the tragedy and miscommunication. It’s so interesting to see this evil group who even though the king is in control, he is nothing but a puppet being controlled by the big bad. Even the politics are interesting, from the water supply, the currency, etc.

I suppose the letdown is that this show could be so much better and be considered a masterpiece, if it was simply better written. So many problems are such simple fixes. It isn’t the costumes, set, or actors that are letting the show down.

It truly aggravates me that Kim So Hyun’s character never changes. Like what the hell, is it in her contract that she must play the same lead with the same problems again and again? It’s so disappointing. She simply never communicates and it’s the most frustrating thing.

My main issue with the romance is that it happens so quickly, and before they can even really act on their feelings or do anything as a couple - BAM here’s the angst. Have fun with that for 5 episodes. But the thing is that, she says ‘he was my first love’ and the fact that they ‘love each other’ just comes out of nowhere? Did I miss something? Were there any scenes where they confessed their feelings before that time skip?

Like, did either of you ever explicitly say what your relationship was??? It was a few days!!! Why are you guys acting like you were in a long term relationship??? Don’t even get me started how after they reunite after all that time and begin their relationship (that never even started) saying they’ll never leave each other again (sure jan) and like, they haven’t even kissed yet??

Ugh, I’m tired. It really isn’t that hard to make a realistic romance. You can add all the melodrama and plot devices you want to still give the drama the ‘drama’, but you have to give the show some actual romance to begin with BEFORE you can add the angst. Otherwise it just doesn’t make any sense!!

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(from memory, this was about two thirds in?)

So here I am again and the show has made no improvements. I still can’t believe Ga-eun doesn’t recognise Yi-seon under that mask. For heaven's sake you have seen his face and heard his voice for YEARS. Does it really take the removing of his mask?? Oh whatever. I feel so sorry for Yi-seon. When he initially asked to be the prince’s substitute, he had no idea what that would involve and how long it would go on for. He was a poor baby but the world twisted him into the worst version of himself. I weep for the poor man.

Like, I get it. If you’re going to lose everything else and have your life threatened every 15 days, you can’t see your family, have no freedom, you’re a puppet king and people criticise him for it. If you think you’re going to die soon anyway and hate your life, the least he can get is the girl he’s had a crush on forever. I can understand the logic ‘I’ve already lost everything else, I may as well get the girl’. But YIKES, jealousy and anger made him try to throw his friend and the rightful heir to the throne under the bus.

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At last I have finally finished it. And thank goodness the show picked up momentum and I actually binged them. There was finally plot!! The episodes were actually good!!!

And it was a nice touch to have all those who died tragically step into the final scene in spirit. To have all the characters together and at peace. At peace like how I felt to have finally completed this drama. Far out.

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this drama started out so good.  the first few episodes were addictive. well to be exact the first four episodes, i was awed...  thought this was gonna be great,  the plot was also very interesting.   love the leads and the second lead cast.  the story is also good.  but then this drama  lost it's charm  by mid episodes, don't really know what happened to the writer,  went bad and and bad. and from then on i was just watching for the sake of finishing it.  not a bad drama but could have been better.
the soundtracks were really good though.

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You can skip all dialogues between Main Leads

The energy the actors put into the acting didn't match. Some are really passionate but look foolish in front of the actors who did not come across as genuine. Towards the end the love story was just annoying, where I could ( and I did) skip the dialogue between male and female leads beacause they didn't contribute to the plot in any way. Normally I'm a sucker for some cheesy stuff but I wasn't even cringing or had any other reaction.
I started the drama because the plot reminded me of the man in the iron mask and the actors were familiar to me and knew that they can peform well. But the chemistry in the leads were off, so much I was much more interested in the side characters.
I find this is not the fault of the actors but the story was not put together well. The scenes were stunning . Very beautiful visuals but the Plot became boring, so that while watching I was just waiting. I finished the drama to find out how it would end and give the benefit of doubt.
At least the Soundtrack didn't dissapoint.

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This drama will be included on my top 10 historical drama's of all time as the top 2 contender. Why? Simply because this drama gives you a very interesting story, I won't say anything detailed though because I don't want to give spoilers for those who didn't get to watch it yet.

However, as some said, especially Hancinema who described this drama as 'irredeemably stupid'. I'd still look back to watch it again. Why? Because I enjoyed the characters.

Yoo Seung-ho is the lovely prince who struggled to fight the corrupt subjects of his country, and was being helped by the people who trusted and loved him as much as he love and wanted to save his people.

Kim Myung-soo (L) gave out his best perfomance in here, I got to see that he became good on his craft unlike before. I cried my heart out for him, I felt his emotions and I felt the agony he had in his heart as he plays his role.

Kim So-hyun, at first I was kind of slow on picking up her craft because she was obsessed on what happened to her father and that she's willing to be fooled just to clear her father's name. But in the midst of the commotion, when she gave her best shot to help the King. I clapped for her with all my might.

Yoon So-hee/ Shin Hyun-soo/ Kim Seo-kyung/ Heo Joon-ho & Lee Chae-young: I can't stop admiring this actors/actresses. Especially Yoon So-hee(Hwa Gun) who gave her everything to protect & help the King. To Kim Seo-kyung (Gon), that cherishes Hwa-gun with all his heart and protected the man whom Hwa-gun loves, even though it will hurt him to see that her smiles only belongs to that person. And for the villain of this country Heo Joon-ho (Dae-mok), who's great on portraying his evil deeds. I admire his greed and power to make the King & his Crown Prince suffer.

Park Chul-min (Master Woo-bo) who's good at giving His Majesty advice when he's in trouble or depressed about something that will help resolve the matter at hand.

All in all, this drama gave everything they got and we, the viewer's who enjoyed it gave our own opinion and honest reaction for this wonderful drama. I salute everyone, the cast, the PD's, the Director, the writer's and the crew for their job well done.

We are entitled to our own opinion, as for me. I love this drama with all my heart and I'm giving it 9.9/10.
0.1% left because... you'll know when you watch this drama yourself, I would like to say that the 0.1% goes for the plot arrangement.

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