My Dearest Part 2 (2023)

"Do you hear it? this sound, the flowers sound"

This is not a proper review just my first thought now that I finished it and without spoilers.
Just finished it, it didn't take me long to finish this wonderful drama considering how I had to pause it many times for a short moments to heal of the much sadness and furstrating it gave me(especial in part2). I was struggling to find a TOP K-drama recently, to add to my TOP K-dramas list, but I found what I was looking for here.
I always knew how great diverse actor NGM is, he conviced me in a psycho, evil, comedy, romance, melodrama and action roles. But seeing him in melo romance will always be my favorite, because his eyes say a lot that many other actors can't say with their mouths. He deliver his lines to us through his eyes before openning his mouth. His character here will be one of the most perfect ML we ever had.
AEJ, first saw her on HP she was great, but seeing her as a FL here gave her more space to show her talent, very proud of her performance, it's not easy to show that you're a good actress in front of NGM but she did it. YGC character is one of the best well written characters, she wasn't perfect she had many flows especially her actions at the beginning but she had great character developpement and she is a survivor, strong FL that makes hard decisions and bears the consequences.
The plot wasn't perfect, but it was the closest to perfection that I saw for a while now. It made me care, feel furstrated, angry, sad, happy... and that's more than enough. 10/10 For me.

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If you should one history drama only one what would you recommend? I would say My Dearest!

If you should watch only one history drama then this one! I can’t, this drama got me involved in it so much! First I wasn’t sure if I should watch it and I doubt it if it’s fits my shoe. I didn’t watch a really good history drama till now with everything involved but mostly romance and love trying to overcome all obstacles. I can’t believe I found this one! Can I ever go back watch it for the first time. The cinematography incredible, the actors omg so great and the storyline the plot it’s amazing and I still try to figure out how to overcome it! This Drama deserves more than xxxx plus and a 10 rating and I hope and wish it gets so many great things … it’s epic! This here is only my little view on things without trying to give any spoiler! The one time I felt so about a drama was as I did watch Goblin. This is the second time in my Drama life when I feel like this and I know one day I will watch it again … I need to rest now and overcome this depression to not see this two again on screen. I really wish u could do that for the first time again. <3 much love to all the involved 🥹

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Constant state of pain and agony, washed with the holy waves of never-ending angst…

and yet, somehow… Part two made me feel far less than part one did. By the end of the drama I felt like the writer loved their story and all the characters too much to give some aspects up. Too many things were not set up and developed enough, too many plotlines felt rushed, luckily the closure was solid.

Don’t get me wrong though, I still enjoyed the show a lot, but the progression of the story and the lack of focus just lost me a bit. The politics and war were mostly the context in which the characters operated and explored their beliefs, personalities, morality and relationships in part one. It was great. We had many powerful scenes showing the contract between the royal family and the common people. Not knowing any real details was not an issue, because these royal idiots were never main characters in the first place.

Sadly, this whole royal drama gets more attention in part 2. It takes away precious time from the main characters. Where even was Eun Ae? Why did most of Yeon Jun's character development happen between the scenes? He took a couple of 180 in terms of his morality, but we never got enough reason for it to even happen. And it's not like the screen time they took away from these characters was even enough to truly develop and explore the palace storyline. It felt like I needed to do a lot of work myself to fill the gaps of the plot in my mind based on vague ideas and shallow set ups. It's like they tried to turn a character driven show into a plot driven one half way through...

All that said, the drama is still dear to my heart and even if I enjoyed part two less, I still enjoyed it a lot. We've got more of the exploration of different themes relating to morality, justice, duty, honor. Many scenes connecting to events in part one in a smooth and eye opening manner - adding to already intriguing commentary on social standards and gender roles.

Undoubtedly, the best gem, the true treasure of My Dearest was Gil Chae. Easily my favorite female character in 2023, probably top 3 from all the dramas I have ever seen. The masterfully crafted character development, the realistic flaws, the strength that was inspiring. The depth of emotional performance given by Ahn Eun Jin. There are no words that can truly describe how much I adore this character. The drama shows, you can have a female lead that is feminine, compassionate and good, without making her a stupid pushover. Gil Chae was smart, cunning, witty, and resourceful, but also stubborn. At times shortsighted and blind by her perception and understanding of the situation. Her character was beautifully complex and for her existence I am grateful.

Did I love Jang Hyun while watching? Of course I did. Do I want one in my life? Yes. Did I think he was not as developed as Gil Chae and I wished they explored his character more? Also yes. Since the past story did not really lead to anything significant and it felt more like a cheat and easy fix for some plot developments, I could not stop myself from feeling disappointed. The set up for the mystery of his background was perfect, the conclusion answered all the questions, but the overall picture created by that opening and ending felt a bit lacking. With little to no background for the character in part one, I thought they would explore him more in part two, but this did not really happen. From start to finish he was badass, smart, driven, caring (even if he kept denying it) and madly in love with Gil Chae.

What’s more to love? A strong set of diverse supporting characters that felt so real and humane with their, at times questionable ideas and actions. Ryang Eum with whom I went from friends, to lovers, to enemies to lovers trope, with how my feelings changed towards him. Jong Jong who was a loyal friend and support for Gil Chae, even if on the surface it felt like it was mostly Gil Chae protecting her. Gu Jam who always provided a solid dose of entertainment with his sharp comments and badass actions. Yang Chun, who truly shows that good people can have backwards ideas. Even Prince So Hyun and Crown Princess Kang’s scenes had many meaningful and touching moments.

Still adore the production and the attention to details in terms of how the characters are presented. You know how in many historical shows, as long as the female character is part of the main cast, they will have make up worthy of the royal family, looking like Crown Princesses themselves? Not here. From episode 1 till the end of episode 21 of the whole series, there was a lot of care put into making the looks realistic and fitting the context and hardships the characters went through.

Overall, I loved it, but maybe I loved it a bit too much, so it made me expect more. I wish the whole story was more simple, with less side characters and plot lines. Wished the plot focused on the common people more and kept the palace drama and the war as the context and background the story is happening in, rather than the focus of the plot. From the start, I loved this drama for its characters and countless social commentaries and powerful scenes, and it was never truly about the plot for me. While the conclusion was amazing, giving proper closure to it all, I wished the journey itself was either more detailed, or more simple…

That said, once you sell your soul to this drama, there is no coming back, so while I might have had some complaints, they were delivered through tears of both sadness and happiness, and complete devotion I had to the main characters and their journey.

Review for pt1: https://mydramalist.com/profile/Shini/review/300809

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Very powerful love story!

I became addicted to these dramas during Covid, and I’ve seen several hundred of them. For the mature people, the love story is the best I’ve ever seen, my favorite show was Empress Ki, but now it’s my second favorite. The music was exceptional. The story lines were perfect. I just wish it would have been more episodes! The ML, I will be looking out for him in more of these period pieces. His acting is believable, he’s very captivating. The leading actress is also phenomenal, she’s definitely not a weak woman. The Qing princesses acting was so good, she was a horrible wretched princess, but if the writers could add more episodes, maybe we could find out why she was so pitiful. It takes a real good show to entertain me, I’m a black woman, born in the USA, and I don’t even watch regular shows anymore because of my addiction to these period pieces, it’s definitely worth watching over again!

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It's just a cinematic masterpiece

Everything was perfect from start to finish. I was never bored while watching every episode, and the actors were perfect in portraying their emotions.

The moral of the story is that those who are meant to be together will always find a way to each other. People have to live their lives and make their decisions, but in the end, they will end up where they're supposed to belong. Moreover, a relationship only works if the man loves the woman more than she loves him.

I just know that I will come back to watch this masterpiece; this TV series has become my comfort show.

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One of the best Korean dramas I've seen in a long time!

The best thing about part 2 is that the pace is much faster than in part 1 which makes total sense in a way because there had to be a character buildup. In this second part there is no time to breathe, you have so many things happening that I cannot actually write about since I would spoil the drama so I'm going to leave it at that. But I will say one more thing, the cinematography is absolutely gorgeous!

The acting is excellent and of course, Nam Goong Min nailed it. Proof that he won the Daesang award. The acting overall was so good, great job to all the cast!

Beautiful OST, especially the song sang by Kai.

It's totally worth to watch this, the ending was one of the most beautiful endings ever!

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Amazing acting undercut by a stumbling storyline

I had a lot of hopes pinned on this drama, and for the most part, it paid off. Particularly for Part 1, I felt the raging angst of Gil Chae and Jang Hyun's separation. In Part 2, those feelings were severely dampened, and I felt the romance took a sharp backseat to the rest of the plot--something I surprisingly found myself OK with because the rest of the cast and subplots were quite compelling.

There will be spoilers throughout this (admittedly long) review. I'm trying to keep it brief, I swear. This is my first review on this website, and I think that's a testament to this drama in and of itself. I binged the whole show (Parts 1 and 2) over 3-4 days, and while it didn't pan out how I hoped for, it's been a journey that I enjoyed. This review focuses on Part 2 for the most part, although I make allusions to Part 1 as I didn't review it.

THE GOOD
- The pacing of the drama in general was excellent. There were rarely plot points that lingered for more than an episode, which made the frustration of their existence (e.g., the amnesia storyline, miscommunications, the repeated separations and reunions of our main couple) easier to bear. I found myself appreciating it because the story moved briskly forward. However, there was the related drawback of timeline issues.
- The scenes that were built up to be emotional more than delivered. I can't get Namgoong Min's eyes out of my head--they are SO expressive and tender and carry every emotion. Just his gaze alone! Scenes like the one where he sees her 'for sale', or whenever he and Gil Chae are saying goodbye. The whole scene where she's pretending to be pregnant and you can feel the mixed feelings of 'this is all I ever wanted for you, but this could have been our life for real'. It was achingly beautiful. Ahn Eun Jin more than held her own (ugh, the way she looked at Jang Hyun towards the end!), but I think Namgoon Min stole the show. The emotional acting, yes, but also the fighting choreos, as well as the way he emotes through his words. Actually scratch that--gotta call out him and Ahn Eun Jin for that one scene in Part 1, when they meet, and you hear the audio overlay of them looking back on that moment from the future. The sad happiness in their voices captures the heartbreak of their romance so very clearly, so early on in the drama. Beautiful.
- The cinematography was utterly gorgeous at parts. Cinematic, but also artistic. So many times did I want to pause and paint a whole scene. Coupled with the costuming, and the way the characters (esp. Gil Chae) are gradually and gracefully aged as the show went on...excellent.
- I loved how they treated the SA storyline for Gil Chae. For everyone, but particularly Gil Chae. By keeping it subtle and purposely vague, the writers solidified the theme of 'not losing value' because of it. Gil Chae is never defined by what happened to her, and her confessing it to Jang Hyun and Jang Hyun alone--and we, as an audience, don't ever see a moment of her thinking about it alone--then becomes a powerful scene where she's trusting him with the knowledge, knowing he won't see her differently. It's a sensitive topic that was handled very well imo.

THE BAD
- Timeline--I had no sense of it. I couldn't tell at all. Was Ryang Eum meant to be in jail for 20 years? Neither Gil Chae ages, nor Jang Hyun, nor Ryang Eum (even though his hair turns grey). Yet the dialogue (and the scholar who finds him) suggests that it's been many years, possibly enough years for the scholar to have grown from a boy to a man. I assumed that it was 3-ish years, because that makes most sense all things considered, but I'm still confused. The timeline issue was exacerbated in the final episode, but it was ever-present throughout the show, a by-product of the brisk pacing. The costuming and side cast (babies) did a lot to help contextualise, and I liked how subtle that was. However, because Jang Hyun never changes and only Gil Chae begins to look more mature, it's hard to gauge how much time has passed from the start of the show to the end. My guess is ten years.
- Ryang Eum???? There is no closure to his character. Does he wander the earth thinking Jang Hyun is dead? That's so sad! And who captured him? What did he say that they called him insane? Also, the actor is 22 but the character is supposed to be, what, 8 years younger than Jang Hyun, max? Maybe 10-12, at a stretch? Again, timeline issues. It made it a little hard to follow.

THE UGLY
- The story and plotting was a mess. I found that the main pattern in this drama was for Gil Chae and Jang Hyun to reunite and then separate, reunite and separate, over and over again. It got tiring after a while, and it didn't make sense after a certain point because truly? I missed the selfish Gil Chae and Jang Hyun. I wanted them both to dig their heels in a little and fight to stay together (like Gil Chae tried to stay by his side in Shimsang. But then, what? He called her shameless and chased her away? OUCH.)
- Related to the above, the last half of the final episode was stretched out, repetitive, and made me impatient. Although the emotional climax was a beautiful note to end the drama on, it was somewhat ruined by the panned out shot of Gil Chae and Jang Hyun hugging, and you can hear him sobbing but the shot they chose features a blank-faced Jang Hyun. What????? I blame the editing but it made me laugh out loud. And this is coming from someone who hugely enjoyed the way the show was directed, and the slow-paced shots between Gil Chae and Jang Hyun where it felt as if the episode was paused, but it was the characters who were that still, not the video. It didn't work as the final shot, however, because it completely broke the emotional bubble for me.

OVERALL
All I wanted from this show was to sob over a relationship that appeared to be tender, heart-breaking, and romantic. That was it. That didn't happen. While I didn't feel let down by the ending, exactly, I wanted something MORE that the writers just weren't able to deliver.

Part 1 set-up the angst and the heartbreaking ache of their separation beautifully, but the plot was a lot more coerced in Part 2. For example, Gil Chae being kidnapped to the Qing was so mindlessly illogical, even if it provided an excuse for the leads to reunite. I wanted to see more of Gil Chae's spunk, too, as well as her innocent happiness. For a large part of the drama, Gil Chae and Jang Hyun only loved each other when they were apart. I know it was intentional to show Gil Chae's immaturity ("I will stop teasing you when you grow a little more"), but I wished we'd have seen some more light-hearted flirting between them before the first kiss.

That said, the acting not only makes up for most of my cons here, it surpasses them. Namgoong Min and Ahn Eun Jin carried oceans in their eyes, and I'll be thinking about them for a while. Even if the plotting didn't carry it across, the acting was every bit as tender, as heart-breaking, and as romantic as I could have wished for, and this drama is one that I'll remember for a long long while.

(Oh, and while I was already an Ahn Eun Jin fan from The Good Bad Mother...Namgoong Min has earned another admirer of his works. I didn't like him at all in The Undateables, and now I can't fathom why. He is a masterclass in emotion.)

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