For this week’s K-drama review we’re featuring the highly anticipated, extremely expensive, and fan favourite ‘Moon Lovers’. Starring Lee Joon-gi and IU, this epic fantasy/ historical/ political romance drama messed with our heads and crapped on our hearts.
The story was based on a Chinese web-novel called ‘BuBu JingXin’, and this is an important detail. You see, the biggest reason why this drama was so huge before it even happened, was because the novel had a massive fan-base, both in China and around East Asia. In 2011, a Chinese drama based on the same novel came out, which was both a commercial and a critical hit. It even got a sequel in 2014 although, considering the plot, that doesn’t seem to quite make sense. Anyway…
The basics of the plot
The story is about Ha-Jin (IU), a 21st century woman who gets transported to medieval Korea after she almost drowns. Yeah, her life is going great. She suddenly finds herself in the body of Hae-Soo, a noblewoman living in 941, during the Goryeo Dynasty of Korea.
It’s the reign of King Taejo, an otherwise great king who among other things achieved the unification of the three kingdoms. But greatness for him apparently also meant reproducing like a bunny with multiple women, which is just about the only actually historically accurate thing in this drama. He had at least 34 children and 30 consorts. How he even found the time to rule a country is truly a mystery. In the drama, Hae Soo attends to the ailing wife of the 8th Price Wang Wook (Kang Ha-neul), which is how she ends up becoming close to many of the princes.
Although she is initially attracted to the seemingly kind 8th Prince, soon she finds herself falling in love with Wang So, the 4th Prince (Lee Joon-gi). When he first appears, he seems cold and cruel, and the fact that he has a massive scar on his face that he covers with a mask doesn’t help his brand. The common folk are superstitious, and a prince with a scar on his face is bad luck. Ha-jin was clearly not a star student, considering she knows next to nothing about the historical period she’s landed in, but she does have a singular talent with make-up. Once she employs her skills to help the 4th Prince, he slowly begins to change thanks to her kindness.
Our heroine
You know how in some dramas you feel like not much has happened after 5 or 6 episodes? Yeah, not this one. So much happens so fast, and our girl Hae-Soo is caught into palace politics and court drama, and –I cannot stress this enough- she’s not equipped to deal with any of it. She’s fierce and kind and optimistic, but she’s also naive and clueless, and her pursuit of justice is often misguided.
IU was criticized for not having the emotional depth to do sageuk, but let’s consider who is ‘Hae-Soo’ first. She’s young and inexperienced but perky and fierce – in my opinion, IU’s casting and performance was right on the money here. Plus, we cannot understate the electric chemistry she had with Joon-gi as Wang So, which is what ultimately made us watch this drama to the end.
The Princes
All that Ha-jin seems to remember about Wang So from history class is that his reign was bloody. Not that he was the first king to abolish slavery (another brought it back later) and take power away from the nobles. You’d think that would have been memorable to such a righteous soul as her, but no. She remembers that he killed some of his brothers. Ok, so he did that too.
That hazy recollection is the driving force behind a lot of Hae-Soo’s actions, so you can imagine why at times her reactions didn’t make a ton of sense. Wang So’s character was obviously embellished with a lot of dramatic license, but that doesn’t mean he’s not well-written. Lee Joon-gi did a great job portraying this deep and complex character and had us falling in love with him at every step.
While we have subplots for at least 14 princes, the main focus is on the 4th and 8th. Wang Wook is the type who seems kind-hearted and sweet until he turns into a massive scheming tool. I’m never big on these characters, but I have to hand it to Kang Ha-neul for his excellent performance here.
The rest of the princes, their scheming mothers, and the incestuous sister (also historically accurate) round out the massive pit of snakes and scorpions Hae-Soo finds herself in. In this aspect it’s certainly a true sageuk – there’s the good and there’s the bad, but they’re so mixed up that you can barely keep up with the changing tides.
A special shout-out to Prince Jung (Ji Soo), that precious flower, bless his heart. He loves and supports Hae-Soo through all the crap she goes through, and he’s just a ray of pure sunshine.
The verdict
Overall I’d say if dramas about star-crossed lovers float your boat, watch this yesterday. For the rest of us who need something more to go on, here’s the verdict:
“Moon Lovers” is neither a great show nor is it a bad show. It’s an overly hyped show for sure, which raised the expectations sky high. The acting is solid, and the romance is just heart-wrenchingly amazing. With a cast like this, it would be a shock if it’s wasn’t a main pull.
Not forgetting the excellent soundtrack – I had ‘Forgetting You‘ by DAVICHI stuck in my head for weeks after I finished this. The subplots about the other princes and the palace drama are honestly well-rounded and a big part of why this drama hits you straight in the feels. Hae-Soo’s friendship with each of the princes is beautiful and I loved that aspect of the drama.
However, I will admit I did not love Hae-Soo all the time. At times, I thought she was annoying and I couldn’t fathom her actions other than “the writer wanted to put more tension here”. So there are moments that in my opinion don’t make a ton of sense- and I don’t mean the time travel. Also the idea that you can “make Joon-gi ugly by adding scars” is like saying you can make cheesecake bad by adding strawberry jam. Simply hilarious.
It’s a show that has its flaws, but it makes up for it in heart. ‘Moon Lovers’ has an inexplicable ability to pull you in and keep you glued to the screen despite repeatedly breaking your heart.
Watch the trailer below and see:
