Finally, a crossdressing drama where the actress playing a man is actually believable as a man. I've seen quite the amount of crossdressing dramas and 99% of the time it's just a female in male style, but Park Eunbin is that 1%. From the stance, voice, expressions, down to the mannerisms, she perfectly embodies the role.

At the same time, the drama doesn't pretend like she's a perfect male. They acknowledge that the prince is feminine. They showed the fl naturally developed manly gestures but she can't help but be feminine. It fits to the narrative that no matter how hard she tries, she can't hide her feminine qualities that would eventually lead to suspicions. And Park Eunbin understood the assignment. She effortlessly shifts between two different identities while depicting the fear, pain and grief that both characters hold. She did great portraying the prince and princess both physically and emotionally. I have nothing but praise for her.

As a historical drama, fl is strong, smart and the hero that drives the plot. Most fl's are not as privileged as they are usually just the love interest that every male character likes or a damsel in distress that everyone has to save. Here the fl has the higher status and is in a position to be involved in political matters as a crown prince turned king. And this is also one of the rare sageuk where the king's children aren't scheming, fighting or killing each other for the crown.

As a romance drama, Park Eunbin and Rowoon as the leads have good chemistry and the reverse cliché was very entertaining. The ml being good with books, medicine and gardening, while the fl being great at hunting, fighting and swimming. The leads work so well both in romantic scenes and comedic ones. So the romantic and comedic scenes are actually sweet and funny, not cringey. The fl being the hero and the ml as the love interest was refreshing.

Lastly, I love the things they kept from the webtoon and the things they changed for the drama. The death of the real crown prince, someone everyone wanted to protect being the one who ended up dead, was ironic. The highlight of the drama, the reveal of the secret was tastefully done. And the ending, it was proper and clearer than the webtoon. It wrapped up well.

Overall, Park Eunbin's acting alone makes this drama worth watching. Her 25 years of experience was evident in this dual role, acknowledged by KBS Drama Awards, Baeksang Arts Awards and Korea Broadcasting Awards. It was good to have her back in a historical drama, and Yeonmo was definitely worth the wait. Long live the King!