The Moon That Rises in the Day (2023)

You'll get sucked into this story...

Why do I - a rational human being - keep getting sucked into these implausable stories of time travel, ghosts, demons?
"My Demon" "Live Up to Your Name" "Miraculous Brothers" etc
A good script helps, but I guess it's because one can get lost in the story, away from the 'everyday' .
I am enjoying this programme for the script, the delivery (of the actors), and filmography.
I find the Silla costumes so much better-suited to gender - ie. the men look like men - and the costuming in this show is really well done.
The battle scene, in the beginning , was very realistic - even the extraordinary feats of Do Ha.

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Need a happy ending.. ㅠㅠ

I've loved this show from the start....I'm soooooooooooo into stories like this, but I fear sad/tragic endings....YoungDae did an amazing job whilst playing Han JunO...I do agree that this drama didn't have the greatest chemistry but it wasn't THAT bad....I hope the last two episodes show us more passionate side of our FL....
Overall, it was a very well written story, the present to past ratio of the scenes was also good....
Do I highly recommend watching it? Well, I can only answer that after watching the last two episodes....Hahahahahahhahahahahaha..


Loads of love for the cast...♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

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As of 6 episodes

I genuinely want this drama to end on good note .It's not that i'm loving this drama to the core but there 's something about that backstory that's making me root for this drama .I am looking forward to the historic tale in the elisode thaat's gonna release today .I hope it'll make it up . I'm repeating I just want this drama to have a satisfactory end please 😭.
Note: The modern story is so uninteresting btw .but it's forgivable as it's a setup for the upcoming episodes . and also want to appreciate the leading lady who is elevating the drama with her acting so well

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Not completely horrible but not great either

Even good actors and an interesting plot idea couldn't save the drama. It had all the right tools but no oomph.

Han Ri Ta and Do Ha were the most boring two characters. I get that Do Ha was supposed to be a sad person who just wanted to die, but in the very least the writers could've given him a personality and more facial expressions. Han Ri Ta wasn't any better. They were one depressed person falling in love with another depressed person resulting in slow and longwinded conversations about what sad lives they had, which got old very fast.

The most mindbogglingly stupid thing in the whole story was Han Ri Ta's reasons for killing Do Ha. She created a bad situation by killing his father forcing both of them to become fugitives. But, instead of having faith in him to deal with it and moving forward together, she just decided to kill him to end it all because she didn't want to deal with it anymore. Were we supposed to believe this was love? They were portrayed as star crossed lovers, but her motivations were shallow and self-serving .

The villain was one of the most terribly written villains I've seen in a long time. Firstly, the evil dad wanted to kill Do Ha for "disobeying" him, why? Because he brought a girl home and fell in love with her. That's it. Furthermore, the evil dad's ghost spend 1500 years chasing after Han Ri Ta's reincarnations just to kill them as revenge for killing him because he was a terrible father. This was basically a giant recurring temper tantrum, being evil for evil's sake, not for anything substantial or meaningful.

Some plotlines randomly disappeared. Firstly, making FL a firefighter and ML a celebrity was never going to work. There was no situation where they could consistently be together to move the story forward. As a result, nobody ever worked because they needed to spend time together for the story's sake. She was a firefighter for a total of two episodes and he quit being a celebrity altogether except occasional fangirls chasing him when it was convenient, although he was supposed to shoot a super special historical drama at the beginning of the show, which went nowhere.

The finale wasn't well thought out either. There was no point bringing Jun Oh back, unless he and Young Hwa were going to end up together. The giant plot hole why Jun Oh and Do Ha looked identical was never explained. The writers left it as pure coincidence, which was some very lazy writing, especially because Do Ha and Young Hwa future reincarnated selves looked the same. This was a waste of a great story idea, because Jun Oh looking like Do Ha could've been a plot device to give Young Hwa a happy-ish ending too. But Young Hwa did not get her happy ending, neither did Do Ha. Yes, their souls were reincarnated at the end, but they were reincarnated as different people who probably did not remember their past lives. Young Hwa was unique because she was the closest version of Han Ri Ta and because there was still Do Ha's unfinished business. After the curse was lifted, there was no more unfinished business. Do Ha's soul left and Young Hwa continued on with her life without her true love. I thought this ending was rather tragic.

Overall, the drama started out with an epic bang and fell completely flat with shallow characters and villains acting like cartoon bad guys. There were moments where it tugged at my heart strings, but the badly written plot and characters' stupid decisions made the drama a chore to watch. This was definitely not Kim Young Dae's best work.

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Not interesting drama

This storyline isn't that great. With a great actor who had really fantastic act especially in The Forbidden Marriage and with an actress who dosen't fit to be main actress. She is good as a servant in historical drama. This drama dosent suit her at all, and I think wrong choice as she wont be a good main actress now and the future . it spoilt the whole drama when you had a great actor . Sometimes if an actor/actress who are not that great in acting they will spoil the whole drama. Not every actor/actress are good. Hoping they select better actor/ actress for all dramas. It may spoil the whole story if they do not choose the correct one

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The initial quest for revenge by the main lead adds an intriguing layer, but as the story unfolds, it beautifully transforms into a tale of love and protection. All the artists have played their roles brilliantly, and the story is truly amazing but not that good because its a average kdrama story which we seen in many kdramas. You know whats got wrong in a romance fantasy drama? It’s just that most of the time endings are disappointing ,same with this too at some point but they do correct that with like fast forward the life and then they give happy endings to cast in another life. I mean yeah it’s a problem when choosing this type of plots for drama but they should consider good endings too at the end. Well anyway, Kim young Day ,I mean how can he act so good in that way. Well before this I watched shooting stars and I know the drama also took and nurture that acting but still he does evolve with every drama.

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Not Impressed

When Moon in the Day started, it had potential to be really interesting. The whole past life connected to the present life could have been done well but the let down was the story itself.

The major problems I had with the plot was that they really kept dragging what actually happened in the past. Everything was mysterious but not in a good way. Rather in a very slow and boring way. The reveal will only come in the last 3 episodes and you feel like, "is that it?". Also one thing I noticed is the FL in the past had struck the ML on the neck. But in the present, his scar is on his upper chest/shoulder. A very bizarre mistake when you keep repeating that scene and highlighting where the sword struck him. It simply does not match. They just wanted to be able to hide the scar without making the actor wear a turtle neck.

Another thing I disliked is the FL was a strong character. Both physically and mentally. She was capable of taking care of herself but shortly afterwards, she ends up being made to portray a helpless character. I wish they would have kept her character as a firefighter. She shouldn't have had to give up her job. Rather if the writers allowed us opportunity to see how much the ML actually cares for her even when he thinks he doesn't when he sees her endangering her life to save others. For the first half of the show, ML was trying to kill her and that suddenly changes without explaining how or why his anger subsided or why he thought he could move on if he was the one to kill her to begin with when he didn't do that in any of the previous lives. It also begs the question that if he was with her for 1500 years, how was he unable to protect her other times she dies but this time/life it was possible like saving her from drowning to the point that she believed she had a guardian angel.

There really isn't much happening in the first half. The historical scenes were good. They should have shown more moments in the present. This also needed more romance. The ML and FL were serious for the most part. Wish we could have seen their chemistry throughout even if was funny moments.

The brother's character was decent. The bad guy was okay. The other characters were mostly just there without much effect. The monk also spoke in unnecessary riddles so it was mostly a waste.

The ending is okay but I didn't really feel super delighted. Wish they had shown more. I guess you can call it a realistic ending. It's not a terrible show but nothing fantastic.

I thought the theme song and the design of it was beautiful. One of the few things that really stood out.

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Unsatisfying execution of an interesting plot; Lacking romantic chemistry

Subjective Gut Rating: 7.75

I am sure I am not the only one who read the synopsis of “Moon in the Day” and liked it, especially for fantasy romance lovers. The plot looks interesting and the male lead is the handsome Kim Young Dae, so I gave it a shot despite mixed reviews. Although the drama is not horrible, the execution and storytelling could have been better. It is wasted potential.

I quite enjoyed the first half of the drama, and dare I say, I liked the dynamics of the leads in the present-day storyline more than the past. Their encounter, the unfolding of the events, and how the leads get to know each other, are all fun to me. It was decently paced as well. But as we entered the second half of the drama, the pacing slowed down and I started to lose a little interest in the present-day timeline. There’s a whole lot of talking (repetitive themes) but not a lot of action. This is when I become more invested in their past lives. The leads’ story and romance slowly unfolded, and though with controlled and conservative emotions, I believed in their tragic love and felt their feelings for each other.

Unfortunately, I do not feel the chemistry between the leads in the present timeline. The romance is too slow burn and there isn't enough shown or conveyed to make me feel that they have fallen in love with each other again. But the time they outwardly expressed their feelings, it was too late and too superficial. Their romance did not move me. The only time I was sad and cried was in the last episode.

The pace is slower in the second half and people seem to talk a lot slower (in both timelines). It also doesn’t help that the formerly miraculous firefighting heroine slowly becomes a damsel in distress. How many times is she going to trip, fall, get into an accident and need someone to help her out. Where was her fire fighting training? Isn’t she an athlete that could fight and protect herself? On the other hand, the villain can do no wrong. No one could ever catch him, and he has all these resources to pull the strings behind the scene. The cops are as useless as ever.

The acting is not bad. But I’ve seen Kim Young Dae acted better in “The Forbidden Marriage” and had much better chemistry with his co-star. Apparently I’ve seen Pyo Ye Jin in several of her past dramas but I had no recollection of her. Her character allows her to convey more emotions than Kim Young Dae, thus, it seems like her acting is better. . The rest of the cast did fine. The veterans definitely shine more than the younger main cast. Lee Kyung Young as ML’s father is awesome and Jung Woong In never disappoints when he plays a villain.

Overall, this is not a must-watch but do so if you are a fan of the leads, or if you are a really big fan of fantasy romance. I am OK with the ending and feel that it’s quite reasonable. I might not have guessed the result of the end of the present-day timeline perfectly, but I definitely anticipated how the whole drama ended in the last couple minutes. It’s actually quite typical for this genre.


Completed: 1/15/2024 - Review #396

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Pleasantly Surprised

I liked this drama much more than I expected to. The acting was very good and I appreciated the efforts of the actors and writers in bringing a good production to television.

A pretty firefighter gets tangled with a famous celebrity when she saves him during a car accident. Unfortunately, he isn't all that he seems. Our FL is suffering from dreams of having lived a past life which have been troubling her, only to intensify when she meets the young celebrity.

The writers set this drama in the present but it also has backstories dating back to hundreds of years. Those costume scenes are some of the most sizzling and intense portions of the drama and it almost overtakes the storyline in the present. In the past, the young handsome nobleman must show a dangerous and unyielding personality to his household. But underneath, he is gentle and passionate, particularly when a young woman catches his eye. He exudes an intensity that took my breath away. Kudos to our ML for the great work in bringing his character to life. The young woman has a tragic secret and has sworn to take revenge on those who have destroyed her happiness. She becomes both a blessing and a bane to our young nobleman.

Fast forward to the present and the unfinished business of the past comes to light between the two present day leads. Revenge is at the top of their list, but will it give way to the other intense feelings carried with them over the centuries? Will anger threaten to destroy them, or will it give way to love?

I was very impressed with this drama and will look out for more dramas by the same writers. It has a nice soundtrack, too.

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It's not as bad as what others seem to project based on my preferences

I stayed away from the drama because of the first cover photo but I did start watching the drama about 4 or 6 episodes already out. The story is pretty good in my opinion. It has the fantasy genre but I liked it more than I thought I would because I already had quite low expectations to the drama in the first place. I really felt the emotions, and the love between the leads.

The actors and actresses in the drama are great. I love them all, my favorite would be Pyo Ye Jin as Young Hwa the female lead. She is really great and she delivered her role so well. Kim Young Dae on the other hand, is quite familiar or I guess he always chose the same roles but it's fine with me.

I did understand the ending, so I liked it but I was hoping for something different but I'm fine with it. I did cry in the last episode. My journey watching this drama ongoing is great.

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