Perfection
I started watching because everybody was ranting about Park Bo Gum... At this time I was very new to the world of KDrama. Love in the Moonlight was my second! So I started watching and OH MY GOD!!I've discovered the Joseon era! The costumes! The intrigue! the plots! And I finally understood why they call Park Bo Gum Korea's Prince Consort! He embodies royalty and I discovered a great actor (shame he's doing his military service and we won't be able to see him for a while).
After Moonlight I watched another of his title, Encounter with the Queen Song Hye Kyo and he nailed it again.
This actor is a national treasure and this drama is a must watch and rewatch!!
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Story: 10/10 - This is easily one of the easiest criterias to evaluate in regards to this drama. Being one of my first korean dramas (first I watched as it came out), the thing that captivated me to actively watch this drama was definitely its story. It was very creative and original considering woman and girls in Korea are elevated and pressured in standards that our lead actress clearly run from. The fact that people believed she was a man was always entertaining to watch, and her comical interactions with the other workers at the palace was just delightful. It was beyond enjoyable to watch the friendship between the prince, his guard and Sam Nom (Ra On), and it easily surpassed the romance between the lead in my personal opinion.
Acting/Cast: 8.5/10 - I was very tempted to give the acting/cast a 9 but I need to admit that while I loved the main lead (Kim Yoo Jung), I did find her acting a tad bit cringy at times, and that was one of the bases for the 8.5. Park Bo Gum, the charmer himself, stole my heart with this drama. He caught my eye from the very first episode, and though a little dramatic, he always made it work on his advantage. It was also a joy to see Jin Young on the screen, giving us everything we needed from a second possible love interest. I don't even want to mention how much I actually loved Kwak Do Yeon's character and his friendship with the main lead. It goes by unsaid that this friendship was one of the highlights of this show.
Music: 10/10 - This OST is one of the most beautiful out there. It had just the right amount of romance and sadness (maybe more sadness than needed).
Rewatch Value: 9/10 - This criteria is a bit hard to judge for me, seeing as I am a person that doesn't enjoy rewatching things that much, so I have decided to judge this based on how much I predict I would enjoy it in case I did rewatch this drama. I think I did score this one quite high (in comparison with my usual 8s and 7s), but it is in my opinion one of those exceptions that will always be justifiable. Besides its beautiful colors, characters, relationships, music, ect... This drama represents, for me, a lot and different emotions that I would like to relive.
Overall: 10/10 - I feel like I have said a lot already and it goes unsaid that this is one of my all time favourite dramas and that I would recommend this to 10/10 people.
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Toward the end of the drama series, I bawled for 1 specific character, but I absolutely love how the writers redeemed themselves for my heartbreak. The ending was very neat and tied up well.
This was the first drama I have seen with Park Bo Gum and I found his acting to be very nice to watch. He isn't my favorite actor, but he is a really good actor. The way he smiled at the female lead would just melt my heart. The chemistry between both MC's was absolutely there and the way they could "speak" to each other with their eyes was sweet and believable.
Kim Byung Yeon was my absolute favorite character - he was the dark, mysterious, brooding character and I simply couldn't get enough of him!
I know some reviewers found Love in the Moonlight to be an amateur historical drama for beginning K-drama watchers, but please don't let those reviews deter or dissuade you from picking up this drama. It was well-paced with sweet romantic elements as well as the political side of things without being too serious or cruel.
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There's too much flashbacks and scenes where the characters just looking at each other, they could have shortened those parts.
However i like the comedy part of the story and the funny side characters, that's what makes me keep on watching
FL's acting were good. But she doesn't look convincing enough in the part where she supposed to be a male.
Music used was good.
The cinematography was okay.
Overall it's a decent drama.
Some aspects of the drama are bad, but if you watch it without thinking much, you probably would enjoy it.
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Others have already reviewed far better than I can, will only say I am with the lovers of this drama. Just finished watching after putting it off and off because I did not want it to end, For me everything about this drama was peak, including the ending. It is one of very few I could watch again in due course. (*•??•?*)? ??
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And so what is my take on the drama.
Can't help to compare it with METS which is the last seaguk I have seen before watching Love in the moonlight. I did not appreciate the historical/wit/political/technical aspects of METS as a seaguk which they tried to show because I can't help but compare it with Ballad Of Seo Dong in which I saw huge difference on how both are written and so I can't like it on the technical side. And on the romantic side - I did not appreciate the love story because I did not like the main female lead appearance, acting and voice in the drama, and so I was not moved by the scenes, did not flutter nor cried. The only thing I enjoyed is watching KSH and his superb acting.
While in Love in the Moonlight - although it is a seaguk - it was not trying hard to be technically good and the drama made it clear even from the first few episodes, and so my mind was not focused on the technical side which exempts the drama in being compared to the greatly written seaguk, rather the first few episodes are humorous, clearly stated a less heavy less technical historical drama - with a touch of modernity and comedy. And I liked it. While on the romantic side, the story is straightforward, sweet and fluttering. Despite of the age gap of the main leads in real life they did have chemistry. And so Love in the moonlight won my heart as compare to METS. If KSH had a different partner in METS -I might have a different choice. (I'm happy to see the young main lead of METS played the main lead of LIML.)
Story:
Even though the set up - Boy pretends to be a woman- Three childhood friends -two liking the same woman - was same with Sungkyuwan Scandal, as the story progresses you'd learn to like the characters and the story that you won't mind them being common. There is actually not a single boring episode, first few episodes would make you laugh - next would make you flutter - then would make you cry and would make you thrilled. Overall, my emotional expectations were met, my heart was filled. the biggest factor of this is Park Bo Gum's appearance and acting,
Overall, it is a RomCom/Melo-drama in a Seaguk Setting - which turned out great for me. I loved it! Will definitely watch it again!
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You may also like this if you're really into historical/epic type of drama.
In my opinion, it has better ending than Scarlet heart.
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Marshmallow-Chocoholic
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Beautiful Costumes And A Wonderful Cast, But Overrated For What Its Worth...
Since its original airing in 2016, ” Love In the Moonlight ” ( based upon the successful books Moonlight Drawn by Clouds, which was serialized online in 2013 and then published as five separate books in 2015), was a phenomenal success in both South-Korea and amongst the international drama watcher community, drawing particular focus upon the talents of its cast ( particularly Park Bo Gum being critically-acclaimed by netizens for his acting quality) and South-Korean culture. Yet whilst the series is undeniably still popular, there’s something which honestly must be addressed forthright about screenwriters Im Ye Jin and Kim Min Jung’s adapted premise; it is a fairly predictable storyline, anticlimactic in parts and certainly cliche-ridden.
The premise of the drama is set during the 19th century, Joseon era, where female lead Hong Ra-on (played by Kim Yoo-jung), crossdresses as a man in order to support herself. She has multiple jobs but is still struggling with debt. Due to both romantic and comical circumstances, Ra-on comes to meet kind-hearted nobleman Kim Yoon-sung (played by Jung Jin-young) and the seemingly childish and spoilt Crown Prince (played by Park Go-bum).
Due to being sharp-witted, Yoon -sung immediately figures out that she is a woman. The prince is fairly oblivious to Ra-on being a woman , however, after Ra-on is sold to the eunuch’s training academy, she befriends the Prince and his close confidant and personal bodyguard Kim Byung-yeon (Kwak Dong-yeon). As events begin to lead to another, Ra-on finds herself conflicted between Ra-On and the Prince, whilst the Prince begins to feel uncertainty for his growing feelings for the seeming eunuch.
Against all odds of its surreal premise, ” Love In The Moonlight” did follow the typical cliches that you can expect with a cross-dressing scenario, however, it did not prevent the series from being oddly entertaining with a setup mirroring ”Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night ” in a fairly lighthearted way. Ra-on is brazen in her attempts to escape the palace and get back to the city outside by imitating and joking like her male associates in an often over-the-top manner.
Whilst it easy to dismiss the acting of Kim Yoo-Jung, Park Bo-Gum , Jung Jin-Young and Kwak Dong-yeon as an ” ensemble of good-looking people” rather than by their acting alone, the quartet certainly did give an all-around good performance , alongside main stylist and designer Lee Jin-hee’s exquisite artisanship ( especially within the styling of hanboks) perfectly reflecting the time setting, characters and moods of certain scenes.
The second-half of the drama notably shifts towards the political setup behind closed doors. Whilst undeniably intriguing, the biggest problem of this shifted focal point in the series boiled down to pacing and a shift away from developing the characters and their relationships (by regressing in some cases).The heroine Ra-on quickly goes from an intrepid, outgoing heroine to being a demure, angst-ridden soul who is nearly always subject to needing a saviour from a situation.
Then of course there’s the biggest issue with the drama’s long-held and complicated friendship between of the crown prince, his bodyguard, and the prime minister’s grandson ( to clarify Yoo Jung). It is important to add this is a fictionalised romance drama where enmity between male leads is not uncommon and is used to add fuel to the fire of drama and tension. However ( without spoilers), considering the intimacy of the trio during childhood as well as the potential at times towards the characters being able to set aside their differences or at least develop respectful mutuality , was often upturned in favour of enmity at times between both male leads over Ra-on as well as widely forgotten about in the second-half.
The romantic setup becomes overly predictable with forced marriage for the would-be crown princess Ha Yeon (Chae Soo Bin), tormented puppy dog glances and chaste kisses or pecks on lips out of seeming modesty( despite the characters often not batting an eyelid towards the entering private and more intimate spheres of their chambers as well as the more sexualised jokes in the beginning ) which does slowly begin to grow irksome in parts. In addition to this, flashbacks become an incessant feature in later episodes, leading to a formulaic and repetitive structure ( which soon grows a little tiresome). Sadly, not even the soundtrack is entirely spared as the eclectic OST from earlier episodes, begins to shift to pretty the same couple of K-Pop ballads during every pivotal moment or heartbreaking scene.
The ending undeniably will always have mixed reactions among watchers. Some will appreciate the sweet ending as well as denying the cliches of Ha Yeon being unlikeable or vilified as the second female lead whilst others may rise eyebrows at the anticlimactic finale ( and to some extent logical incoherency).
Ultimately it is wrong to suggest that " Love In The Moonlight” is by any means a dire or unwatchable drama, however, inherently it was not entirely common in K-drama’s either; a sweet and intriguing story, but peppered with cliches, and slow-pacing near the final part of the second hand which sometimes felt a little out of place. Nevertheless, it was a fairly enjoyable drama with interesting characters, a phenomenal cast and an oddly heartfelt romance. Entertaining for the most part," Love In The Moonlight" is worth watching if you’re fan of romantic dramas, or simply looking for something to binge-watch and pass the time.
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Story: 8
The story wasn't really great, in Historical Dramas they are more complicated, but this one was was like read a Fairy tail, or a Japanese manga. It was magical, and made me dream like a baby. The couple story was totally my style: a secret "impossible" love. Totally my style. The story wasn't so complicated, there was just a few of questions, but they give a response to all them, so I'm happy that there wasn't holes.
Acting/Cast: 10. Amazing cast and amazing characters. I think that rarely I end up a drama loving everyone, second lead girl too. Everyone was really fit for its own character.
- Park Bo Gum was charming, and his facial expression was pure gold... he can tell so many things with only the eyes. He reminds me so much Song Joong Ki, another actor that I love. His character is one of the best of all time, expecially since he never become weak, he's always ready to fight with his smart brain.
- Kim Yoo Jung has always been an amazing actress, but in this one she totally sparkled. Her first true main role in a k-drama, and she did an amazing job. Her character wasn't annoying like usual main girls, she was just a cute puppy
- Jung Jin Young: even if I loved him in his previous dramas, I wasn't sure to see him in this drama. I mean, it's an historical drama, why put an Idol, but he proved that Kim Yoon Sung role was perfect only for him, doing an amazing job. I loved his character.
- Chae Soo Bin, I'm a little sad to see just so few of scenes with her, she was so sweet, I thought I would hated her, but she was so kind a weak, not an evil girl, but just a girl in love who wanna be a support for her love ones. If she was the main girl in another show I surely rooted for her.
- Kwak Dong Yeon, the Guard that stoled everyone's hearts. Even if he's really cute, in this drama he was really mature and reliable, with his mysterious aurea. I really loved him.
Music: 10
This drama's music was really beautiful, from its instrumental ones to Misty roads, Because I miss you, My dearest, Fondly Goodbye, Love is over, Love that shines like a star and more...
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First for our crown prince Lee Young. I'd like to start by saying that I thought Park Bo Gum did a fairly good job with the material and character he had been given. His performance was solid and he breathed much-needed life into the show. However, not even Bo Gum could save this snoozefest of a character. Lee Young is above all else boring. He has fun with his friends and chases after girls and behaves just like a Disney prince. But that's the problem. Disney princes, at least the more classic ones, are dull. They lack personality or depth of character. This is fine for Disney for many reasons, not the least of which that the characters are cartoons and the movies made for children, but I don't think Love in the Moonlight had the same target demographic as the average Disney movie. Lee Young is not a fleshed-out real person. He is a caricature of a prince meant to appeal widely but shallowly to as many women as possible. Another trait that Lee Young shares with many a Disney prince is, shall we say nicely, his less than impressive intelligence. The boy is dumb as a rock and if you think I'm being harsh why don't you try to defend how this man could possibly think Ra On was a man for as long as he did if he was even slightly smarter than a rock.
That point brings me to Ra On. Unfortunately, I have even fewer positive things to say about her than I did about Lee Young. Ra On is incredibly immature. She speaks, acts, and thinks like a child. She too was not particularly well fleshed out and felt like a child's idea of a fairytale girl. Every time she was given the opportunity to think things through, to grow, and make a wise decision she instead chose to simply not think. It's not so much that she was impulsive but that her actions mimicked those of a child. After all, we do not say a 6-year-old is impulsive. They simply lack reasoning skills and intelligence. She also had almost no chemistry with our male lead. They were stiff as boards every time they interacted. And I really thought we left statue kisses back in 2012 but I guess I was mistaken. Where I felt much of Lee Young's character defects came from bad writing I must say that I felt much of Ra On's faults stemmed from bad acting. Kim Yoo Jung failed in every way as an actress and was simply poorly cast. This drama is first and foremost a gender bender. Yoo Jung looks about as manly as a nine-year-old girl in pigtails. Her soft feminine features and high girlish voice made the entire premise unbelievable from the very start. Admittedly this is not Yoo Jung's fault and instead, the blame lays with the casting director on this count, but still. How was anyone supposed to believe this girl was a man? And again it made the other characters, particularly Lee Young, seem stupid for not seeing what was so clearly in front of their faces. Yoo Jung also just did a poor job of acting like a man. She had no manly mannerisms or gestures. Nothing to say to her fellow male characters that she was one of them. She stuck out like a sore thumb the whole time.
This drama was more like a children's movie than a kdrama. I am its target audience and yet I felt the whole time that I should go find a child to justify watching something so silly and immature. I wouldn't recommend this drama and am sad it blighted 2016.
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