All_In
One of the aspects I particularly liked is that there are two love-lines. I had no idea the love triangle was such a big deal in Asian dramas when I watched this, and I am not a fan of it. I found both love stories to be well done. I thought the supporting cast was very good with a favorite being Court Lady Choi. I also managed to learn an amazing amount of history as the writer weaves this story together through actual history.
Complaints I've seen about this drama usually involve Kim Hee Sun being whiny as the doc. I think she gets a raw deal and if you stick with it you see how she grows as a person. I think she maintains her modern mindset more than any other time travel drama I've seen, and I like her level of feisty. Also, the time travel element....it never makes sense in any drama I've ever seen and gives me a headache. I just go with it.
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It's on the shorter side for T-Dramas (13 episodes) so for the nice chemistry I would give it a go with some judicious use of the fast forward button.
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Another Pro to this drama is the bad guy is done very well and is given a good story arc throughout the drama.
I judiciously used my fast forward as regards to the side story. Sometimes I found it very involving and other times a bit to over the top for my taste. Nothing against the excellent actors, but I was mainly in it for our lead couple.
My main reason for the downgrade to an 8 is I can't overlook that the writer basically made the lead gal a candy. Also, due to I assume a lack of creativity, the story takes a wacky turn toward the end and goes sideways. In my opinion, the writers threw the actress under the bus with a ridiculous story arc. It gets back on track thankfully, but I was very disappointed.
One last issue is the editing. There are a few scenes which literally look like they were thrown together at the last minute and give you whiplash as you try to figure out what the heck just happened. However, I generally watch dramas for the story and this one overall I enjoyed.
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Having said that, I mentioned things that went sideways and here are the cons:
Tone: Probably this could have stayed a total comedy of Hyun Jae trying to figure out how he ended up in modern day Seoul and all the fun that entails if it had been a 12 or 13 hour k-drama (instead of 16 hours @ 32 episodes). The drama didn't stay true to it's comedy roots and went into too much romance and some angst though I have to admit that didn't last as long as I thought it would.
Filler: Around the mid-twenty episodes (again the new 30 minute format), it seemed obvious that there was quite a bit of filler going on and this is the only skipping around a bit that I did in this drama. This was especially frustrating because I thought that a lot could have been done regarding Kim Min Jae's story. It didn't really last that long but still...
Time Travel: Some might be critical of does this make sense or work....it never does. When I'm dealing with time travel, I don't question I just watch and enjoy whether it's Faith, Queen InHyun's Man, Splash Splash Love....and the list goes on. You kinda just have to go with it because they don't seem to be taking it too seriously in this drama especially given how it works.
Pros:
It's Funny: What people think is funny is an individual thing and this just worked for me. The music video, the teddy bear head that I kept seeing throughout the drama, the hair style etc. It worked for me and when watching a bunch of angsty dramas, it's nice to have a bit of relief.
Story: I was a bit tough on the move to romance, but I will admit that it was not instalove (my pet peeve) and I liked the characters together. I thought they were sweet, and I liked how the second male lead scenario played out over the course of the drama. I think the writers, especially over the first half, really gave us a fun filled drama, but they also put in the foundation of a solid story with quite a few characters. They also didn't let their characters stagnate. People evolved, grew, changed just like it is supposed to happen in life.
Actors: All the actors were great and love that Lee Se Young plays a pretty strong gal but this is really Yoon Si Yoon's chance to show his comedy talent and he does quite well. He's solid in both the funny, the romantic, the angst. While some people weren't happy with where the story went in the second half, I really didn't hear many complaints about acting.
Characters: So, yes, this is YSY's for sure, but I credit the writer that all the side characters from the little girl, to Bo Hee, to the music partner from back in the day, to MJ, to Drill etc all were well executed. The diva singer got a little short thrift but was a pretty minor character. At the end of the drama, I felt I knew who these people were and that's a win for a writer who could have put it all on the lead actor.
Final Thoughts: So if you can be a bit forgiving about a tonal shift, make judicious use of the fast forward on some later episodes (or spend the time folding laundry...whatever works), this really is a rare drama that had me laughing out loud repeated throughout its run. It's the perfect drama to turn to after the melo that just broke your heart.
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General and I is an overall enjoyable romance & political/military intrigue drama. Your level of enjoyment will probably depend on your expectations (so true of so many dramas) and whether you read the book. So - full disclosure - I am a viewer who only read the first 6 very short chapters to kind of get the style of the writer. If you are a fan of romance with a large dose of intrigue, I would give it a go but it isn't perfect so here goes:Story Flaws:
- The foundation of the story is the epic love between the General and Bai Ping Ting, but the drama chose to give short thrift to the falling in love aspect of the story using an overused trope. I would understand this but, you know, 62 episodes so no time constraints to use as an excuse. Many people dumped the drama early on because they weren't feeling it so go in knowing you have to eventually kind of buy into these two.
- Past the middle point of the drama it spins its wheels and many found it dragging. I actually enjoyed many of these episodes but eventually I also got a little frustrated. They could have taken 5 of those episodes and put them in the first part of the drama to build the love story.
-At this same middle point, writers decided to go a certain route which was also in the book but the reasoning in the book (because commenters commented) made both leads flawed people. To me the drama threw the female character under the bus. To be fair, commenters also did indicate some aspects as relates to the General's character during this same time frame were better in the drama. I don't want spoilers so I'll leave it at that.
Production Issues:
Use of Slow Motion: Almost every single moment of emotional impact utilizes slow motion. I swear you could cut 4 hours of drama time just in using regular speed. This to me, actually lessened the impact and, oddly, the sensuality of some of the intimate scenes between the two leads. I mean there is one scene in particular that could have been so much more impactful but the use of not only slow motion but a wind machine made it super cheesy. I think they were going for super romantic and maybe it worked for some.
Angelababy's make up: I'm over expecting reality when it comes to make up in C-Dramas. You could go through heck and back and still have perfect hair and make up. But the makeup artist who decided to use a little lip stain making BPT look like she'd been sucking on a cherry lollypop or had bloody lips....well, it took me out of the drama.
Pros:
-I'm a sucker for romance, but that always means a lot of politics and such with the dramas, and often it is repetitive and simplistic. I dinged the production on the foundation of the romance, but they did a great job in handling a lot of characters and setting up the political intrigue. Also the characters weren't cookie cutter. They were flawed individuals who at times made good decisions and often bad decisions. I wish they'd actually given more nuance to the leads because I thought they were a bit too perfect. All the co-stars did a stellar job.
-The Smexy. I don't need explicit, but if we have an epic love story, I want some real looking kisses and such and show delivers. No deer in the headlights going on here.
-I have watched a lot of historicals, and this drama actually surprised me with some of the twist and turns. I love that because in so many dramas, we viewers can be steps ahead of the characters. Good job drama.
-I thought the costumes - both the armor and the dresses - were well done. Also loved the OST.
-Overall, I thought the chemistry between Wallace Chung and AB was solid. I've seen better but generally thought that around episode 15 Angelababy got comfortable. Since this was pre-produced and they might not have filmed in order, this could be because I think the material actually got better. Basically she's only as good as the material given to her. Wallace Chung certainly brings the sexy, and I think he did a good job but not outstanding which brings me to...
Misc:
....the dubbing. Maybe because I've actually heard WC's real voice, but around the halfway point, I began to really dislike the tone of the voice actor doing the dubbing. It was too soft and just not powerful enough and that really does hinder how I viewed WC's performance. I don't know why it took so long to bug me. I'm used to dubbing and this is the first time it really hindered how I viewed a performance. And, truly, I really do like Wallace Chung.
Issues Others Had:
I had no trouble with any of this but here goes: Flying action scenes...I'm used to them. Heavy use of green screen; bothered me in beginning but again, it kind of goes with the territory. Only so much $$ to spend on production.
So depending on my mood, this could be a 7.5 to 8 and since I was left with a satisfied feeling after watching the last episode, I'm going with the 8.
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I was actually surprised to find that this only has a 7.1 on MDL because of all the buzz about this drama when it was airing. To me it was the break-out T-Drama of the last few years. I will admit when all the buzz was going on, I tried to watch it and didn't get through the first episode. I saw it on Netflix recently and was more in the mood for a T-Drama and gave it a go and generally liked it.I actually am a fan of the gender bender genre though I know it is ridiculous. It works better in historical setting because there can actually be a legitimate reason for a woman to pretend to be a man re: safety or economic necessity. Bromance goes all in T-drama style on the silly and just says, shyster shaman/silly parents, deal with it. Basically you have to suspend reality or this drama will not work for you. Like I said, it took me two attempts. Having said that, I had trouble with how Coffee Prince handled this because at a certain point, there was no reason for someone not to tell so the writers contrived something silly. It really bugged me. I'd rather just know it is all silly from the get go.
Cons: The secondary story line didn't do much for me and the actor (who I think is a singer) was just ok.
Writers knew what buttered their bread and gave us a lot of the leads, but it would be nice to have some kind of coherent story other than constantly throwing them in compromising situations. They threw in some mafia stuff, but it was all pretty silly at the end of the day. I've watched idol dramas, and I just think the writers need to get better because they just rely on their stars to see them through.
It was too long, as are most of the modern T-Dramas (MARS this is not.). I really liked the lead characters, but after a while with both the mafia stuff and the romance, it got repetitive. This could have been done better at 15 episodes.
Pros: Megan Lai is fantastic and easily takes on Yoon Eun Hye as the most realistic woman playing a guy in a gender bender. Baron Chen is also great. They have great chemistry and are the basis for this drama being so popular imo.
I liked that the 2nd male lead character (the vet) story line was different without all the usual posturing. I also liked the hotdog guy and the sister as well as the cousin. She was a true friend.
So I notice some of the negativity is that this show didn't have the angst as, say, Coffee Prince. However, I liked that because this is lighthearted fare and it is a pet peeve of mine when I start watching a light romance (I mean, again, a shaman is involved), and it turns into a melo. This drama keeps to its roots and while it doesn't mine the anguish of a sexual identity crisis like Gong Yoo in CP, it does tell of acceptance of oneself, who one loves and what goes into that. I can't really get into it without spoilers. I do think the writers were trying to stay away from Coffee Prince territory because it's been done and time has gone on and this is Taiwan not Korea. I think they did well making sure neither lead character was knowingly causing the other angst. I really appreciated that.
So I'll admit to some fast forwarding through mafia business and secondary stories, but Megan and BC shined in this. I also appreciated some sizzling scenes as well. I took off one point for being over long and one point for the lackluster secondary love story and mafia business stuff.
Other Opinions:
I did not downgrade for the contrivances, the cheese factor or the cliches in the story. Also, the godawful background music. I just take them as part and parcel of Taiwanese dramas these days, but I notice this bothered many people.
There is a bit of a surprise at one point that irked some viewers. And as before, I think many viewers wanted the intensity of Coffee Prince....this isn't CP and it never acts like it want to be.
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The Prince of Lan Ling is an excellent historical drama about a real life beautiful military man who ended up a legend because of his military acumen...and a dance that actually ended up being adapted by the Japanese (or so Wikipedia told me). The female character is entirely fictional I believe.Pros:
The story is fast moving and solid with well developed secondary characters.
The actors are solid; every single one. There is no weak link.
The second male lead is one of my favorites of all time. Love how that story evolved.
Girl is spunky and doesn't take a lot of grief from anyone through most of the drama.
Chemistry is great with the two leads. I still think this is one of my favorite performances by Feng Shao Feng and the hair...love the hair.
Cons:
They did spend time developing the character of the standard psycho woman that we see in these dramas, which I appreciated. However, I think too much focus on that character slowed down the story and truthfully, I'm kind of over the crazy crazy women in these dramas.
A lot happens in this drama, and occasionally the story is a bit contrived/silly but I think for the episode count, it is still better than most.
Trope-wise, there is some noble idiocy...more than once.
It's not really a pro or con, but I thought the ending could have come together a little better.
Overall, I highly recommend this drama, and I do think it is a cut above a lot of the historicals. I think that this perhaps was produced by a Taiwanese company...not really sure, but it doesn't appear to be dubbed so I also think this is a plus. Generally, I don't re-watch some of these longer dramas, but I've actually checked this one out again.
One final note: for anyone experienced, you will know that spoilers abound in the beginning and ending music of these dramas. Watch the beginning if you must, but there are spoilers to end ALL spoilers in the ending music. It's a great song, but I promise you, you will regret watching it because there are HUGE HUGE spoilers in it. I mean, I can't believe they did it and still don't know what they were thinking.
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I liked the initial episodes of this story and watched it all faithfully, but the drama rushes through some of the relationship between Li and her senior so that the audience can't totally buy into her strong romantic emotions toward him...at least I couldn't. I get what they were doing because drama does have King in the title after all. Unfortunately, because time wasn't spent on this early relationship, I never really bought that she passionately loved senior.
I could nitpick a lot of the drama, but my main issues were that I was totally uninterested in the secondary story and quickly started to fast forward through these parts. The three characters I cared most about were the king, Li and Han . Also, a lot of the drama is spent on the political shenanigans, and I was totally uninterested. To compare, I found The General and I flawed, but the political maneuvering was actually done quite well.
My other main complaint is that several times Li does things in what I would say was "for his own good" i.e. the king/a prince/senior. Sitting down and having an honest conversation might have actually worked better. They make her a bit of a too perfect martyr and in one case have her do something that makes no sense and puts people in danger. We are let to believe that's something she would care about but she doesn't give it a second thought.
The end is pretty much how I thought it would go and, though overly convoluted, I appreciated some late twists and turns. I also appreciate that the relationship between the leads was quite complex, and the drama writers did not sugarcoat the reality of the king being a tyrant. The mixture of the writing and the actor's talent really makes for a nuanced performance which I liked.
The first half of this drama, I would rate a solid 7.5 to 8 so it is the second half which brings me down to 6 or 6.5 range. I can't honestly say full steam ahead when I felt the need to fast forward through a lot of the drama; however, for the story about the king and Li and with some judicious fast forwarding I found it a compelling watch.
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