The Master's Sun (2013)

A bit all over the place, but really hit the spot on occasion

We all know the romcom/romantic drama plot beforehand, but just have to be willing to forget that episode 7 means that they will hug, episode 10 means they will kiss, episode 14 means they will be breaking up etc etc and "The Master’s Sun" is no different. Perhaps it is worth remembering, as I write this in 2022, that it is 9 years old and still watchable, which is worth a great deal and should therefore be forgiven if some of it seems hackneyed. It was probably not so when it first came out.

The towering strength of this drama is So Ji Sub as The Master, Joo Joong Won. Yes he plays the standard rich, cold, arrogant ML, but he does it with a believeability rating of 10+ which outshone the Sun (Gong Hyo Jin as Tae Gong Shil) and all the other little moons and asteroids circling around it. For once, the writers gave the character a credible reason for his attitude and So Ji Sub revealed it in every scene. For the first half of the drama he was the compelling watch. Not to say that Gong Hyo Jin and other cast members gave a bad performance, but it was standard fare.

The plot was a bit all over the place. It introduced short story lines for individual episodes, particularly at the start, but that eventually became annoying as it fragmented the main thrust of the story. There were also other threads and backstory to fill out the time. Joo Joong Won’s was the best of them. The backstory for Tae Gong Shil was very badly handled.

Although the Hong sisters wrote some really enjoyable interactions, especially around the love triangle, they really did scrape the barrel regarding reasons why the leads shouldn’t really be together. Some of them were understandable, but at other times, they seemed convoluted to the point of complete confusion and I had no idea what motives the writers wanted me to pick up on. The whole of episode 16 was an annoying waste of time as we went around that loop yet again.

I wanted to give this a better rating than I eventually did because it really tried to get there, but just kept not quite reaching it. I don’t think the writing was sufficiently tight to get the dynamics right over seventeen episodes. It would have worked better with the modern tendency on platforms to commission a shorter length of 12 episodes. I will say that this drama was a far superior watch to the other offering of theirs that I have ventured into—"Alchemy of Souls," which was so badly written and directed that I dropped it!

What my rating means: 7+ A watchable drama, but nothing exceptional. Good enough to qualify for the race, but finished with the pack. The sort of thing that promises more than it delivers.

Leggi di Più

I love this show very much. As a rom-com, this show is nearly perfect for me. The cast to acting everything is lovely. So Ji Sub is amzing and now I know why Gong Hyo jin is the queen of romantic comedies. Even Seo In Guk is cute here. I loved the music. specially Yoo Mi Rae's "Touch Love". What I loved about the show were not only the main characters but also the secondary and tertiary characters. I hardly cry in any drama, but the episode with the dog really made me cry.

Each episode brings a different type of challenge. The show does a good job of having a balance with the episodic stories and the main conflict. While all the episodic stories matures our characters, these stories help our leads in to wrap up the main conflict of the show in a neat manner.

The only drawback is the amnesia cliché and the drag around episode 13-15. Even then it is highly recommended to everyone.

Leggi di Più

Been there...seen that

This is a recipe repeat of the Greatest Love minus some ingredients. Same FL...same story ark ....same arrogant CEO Big wig type ML......same past jealous friend 2FL that undeservingly gets 2nd ML without any justice for her bad behavior.....same screenwriter that may have gotten lazy and just pulled out her overused template. I really liked the story concept of ghost whisperer with multiple storylines; it is what kept me watching. Acting was somewhat ok for what was given but I have seen these actor's do better with more quality material. The producers are throwing us regurgitated work which may just be easy money....so more power to them.

Leggi di Più

First of all, I wanna say that this is my second time watching this drama and I don't think it will be the last because I definitely want to watch this over again.

When I first watch the teaser of this drama, it already captured my eyes and got me so intrigued. I really want to watch this and when I finally did, I told me self that it was a right decision because everything in this drama is so beautiful. The first thing I like in this drama is the plot itself, the story got me wonder and make me curious about a lot of things and I don't think there's an episode that got me so bored and wanted to give up in this drama. The second thing I really love are the characters or the actors/actress of this drama. I love how they act or portray their character and I just felt that each one of them is truly fit in their character. Also this is the first drama that I never felt angry or annoyed by some character, I think there's no one to hate in this drama because every character is just so lovely and admiring in their own way. And I guess I truly fall for Joo Joong Won, how can I resist him when he's a total package. But seriously, he's someone that was hard to handle. He says things that was different for what he truly feels, he always look for his advantage before he decides on something and he's someone who doesn't let you into his world easily. But once you get to know him, he's amazing and can make your heart flutters in everything he does and say. As for Tae Gong sil, I admire her. She's someone with a pure and strong heart. For me, it isn't easy to live her life and I admire her for enduring to see those scary ghost everyday. Even though she tried to ignore them because it was bothersome and made her look crazy but still she chose to help them. And I think trying to help someone in her own way is awesome.  I would say that the chemistry between Gong Hyo Jin and So Ji sub is outstanding that they matched so well because they acted so good and their lovely to watch. In this drama made me also admire Seo in guk, he was so handsome that I just want to have a bodyguard like him. He really portrayed as Kang woo so well that at some point I felt hurt whenever he's hurting in that drama. And I love how the characters developed themselves and change into a better individual as I watch them in the earlier episodes I was amazed how they progress and became a wonderful person. Just like I said earlier, I love everyone in this drama. The ost in this drama are the best, when I heard those song, I fell in love with it. Especially "Touch Love by Yoon mi rae" it was so beautiful and when I looked for its lyrics and I really downloaded that song. Because that song truly fit the drama and conveys the true feelings of those characters. But the most important thing why this drama is amazing, it is because of the values or lessons I learned through this drama. It taught me lesson such as no matter what situation or your life is you must continue in living, never dwell in your past, always acknowledge your own ability and  love yourself. This drama is worth it to be recognized and watch by a lot a viewers because eye opener and can change on your perspective in life. I couldn't mention those scenes in this drama that made me change on how I view things because that would be a spoiler. And the last thing that I love in this drama is how it ends. The ending was perfect. When I first watched this drama i never understand the decision Gong sil and Joong won did and I remember saying to myself, it doesn't change anything so why did they chose to apart? but after watching this again I now fully understand it. You can never be in a relationship when you doesn't love yourself and loving yourself  means accepting your own ability or your flaws. And if you truly love someone, you just let her discover herself, understand her and accept her for who she is. And so I absolutely love how the story ends. Big round of applause for Hong sister for writing this wonderful drama.

I truly love this drama. I may not shed a tear, cry a river in this drama but it left a mark in my heart that I can never forget about this beautiful drama is.

Leggi di Più

This drama was great ... until it wasn't! As far as light, cute romance dramas go, this one was a 9 for me ... until around ep. 14, where it became a 5. I'll be honest - I'm not really into stories about ghosts or other supernaturals so I went into this drama expecting not to like it. However, less than one episode in, it was clear that the ghosts were a tool for relationship development between the leads and I warmed up to that subtext, alot :). All of a sudden though, at around ep. 14, the script writers threw in an excessive distancing between the main leads and a drastic change in the female lead's character - none of which we weren't gently led up to. I'm conflicted about how to write this review, because it started out well and maintained that tempo for the better part of the drama, and I wouldn't want to downplay that. So I'll say - It was light and funny, but took a downward spiral towards the end.

Leggi di Più

It was good... but I have criticisms

---- STORY ----
The story seems very platonic and unappealing, but the execution was amazing. At first I started watching the drama without much expectation, but I was pleasantly surprised.
My criticism about the story is that I don't see the point in bringing in the man who spent 3 years with Gong-sil. Like why even appear towns the last 2 episodes? We could've done without him and his story.
By episode 10, I was checking to see how many episodes were left of the series, and not in a good way. I think this drama ran 2-3 episodes too long and by episode 16, I was debating just not finishing it at all.
I also found "Hee-Joo's" ghost SO annoying. She always just stood there and never said, like, ANYTHING. And yet the whole thing revolved around her ghost.

----ACTING----
Ji Sub was so charismatic and amazing in his acting. I loved his "get lost" and emotionless expressions, they were so hilarious!! Hyo Jin was also really amazing, and we all know she's just a good actress in general. She made talking to nobody seem so realistic, and she completely changed personalities when possessed by the piano player's wife.
The only person I have a problem with is Yi Ryung. I don't know if it's Yoo-ri or the character herself, but she was not only annoying, but not properly executed. All she did was yell and talk in a baby-ish way while being confident. I didn't see the appeal at all and I haven't watched enough of Yoo-ri's drama to know if it was a problem on her part.

----MUSIC----
Nothing AMAZING, but there was one song that I really liked.

----OVERALL----
I would suggest watching it even if you're put off by the synopsis, because it's so much more than it seems. There were a lot of heartache moments, and funny moments as well.

Leggi di Più

I binge new dramas, go back to this gem, watch it completely and go to sleep.

Story: Each episode has its own story and the main story develops gradually, little in each episode. This is the standard kdrama framework and this drama makes use of it really well. We can see the character development of the male lead with each short story really well. They don't feel like fillers. Don't let the "I can see ghosts" overused theme bother you, because if you ignore that, the story is really good. It is certainly not scary. Maybe a little in the first few episodes and one of the later episodes, but overall not scary. It did drag a bit in the end though.
Acting/cast: Pretty good! They just fit in their roles. I like all of the leads in their roles. Love when the main leads smile.
Music: I don't know much about music, but it definitely added to the feel of the drama. I liked it
Rewatch value: I binge watch Kdramas. I watch a couple of new ones and when I still don't feel satisfied, I go back to this gem, smile like an idiot and go to sleep after finishing it.
Overall: Pretty sure you will like it if you're not too scared of ghosts, and don't mind a tiiiiny bit of dragging at the end.

Leggi di Più

Again a drama of which I wasn't sure what to expect when I started it, but because of the rating and review I saw, I gave it a try. Was it an enjoyable watch? Yes, it was. I don't regret watching this. But the ending was a bit of a let down for me. The last episodes felt a bit dragged out to me and I could have done without the last two.

Story:
Every episode has a small side story which supports the main story as it develops. When I learned this through reviews, I was a bit hesitant because I didn't like the idea of small short stories. But I was pleasantly surprised when each story managed to touch me in a certain way. Some more than others, but the stories were all very well thought out so that it didn't become a drag.

The main story kept me interested as well, though it started to lose its grip on me along the final episodes. More background was being pushed into the last episodes that felt a bit redundant to me. And the push-and-pull between the two main leads became annoying at this point. There is a lot of push-and-pull going on throughout the whole series, but other than the last episodes, I really liked how it worked on their chemistry. I was often very amused by the 'Go/Leave!' scenes.

Acting/Cast:
A job well done. Even the smaller roles felt very real to me. I love how the male lead spoke and acted, often making me laugh or smirk. The female lead was a bit annoying for my personal tastes at first, but she soon enough became likeable. Though at the end it wore down a bit. But that's mostly the plot's fault. I also really enjoyed Seo In Guk! I felt along with him every time again. He made me root for him on many occasions.

Music:
Enjoyable for sure. I still have some songs stuck in my head even as I write now. The only thing I didn't quite like was how they tended to cut the music off when a scene changed to the next. I would have much rather had it fade out than the abrupt silences. But at least they were consistent on this part, so after a few episodes I felt it was more characteristic than annoying.

Rewatch Value:
I'm not sure if I'll ever rewatch this one again. personally. Probably not. But would I be able to enjoy it again if I did? Sure, though I probably would be less excited about events than I've been this round. So for me it is a no, but I could definitely understand why someone else would watch this again. There's enough humor to make you laugh again and again and the acting alone is a joy to watch.

Overall score:
I was really doubting about giving this drama a 7,5 but I felt it was unfair with how well executed it was. I think it's mostly my disappointment in the last two or three episodes that make me feel this way, cause when I think back to the first half, I'd definitely score it an 8/8.5

Leggi di Più

A Supernatural Romance That Casts a Spell

Master's Sun is a spellbinding supernatural romance that earns its place among the top Korean dramas with its unique concept, exceptional performances, and heartfelt storytelling. Gong Hyo-jin delivers a captivating performance as Tae Gong-shil, a woman plagued by the ability to see ghosts, while So Ji-sub brings a brooding allure to the enigmatic CEO Joo Joong-won. The chemistry between the leads is palpable, and their tender love story unfolds amidst a perfect blend of mystery, comedy, and heartfelt moments. With impeccable writing and a balance between humor and emotional depth, Master's Sun keeps viewers engaged while exploring themes of loneliness, healing, and human connection. The visually stunning production design, atmospheric cinematography, and impressive special effects enhance the supernatural ambiance. While some subplots could have been further developed, the series remains a must-watch for its enchanting storytelling and unforgettable characters, earning a well-deserved rating of 9/10.

Leggi di Più

A well made horror drama with amazing cast !!

Yassss !!! Finally, I finished it. It was such an amazing drama. The saying of "Regret didn't watch it soon, was this drama for me".
Things I liked:
? First of all, for the time, it's set in. The CGI of the effect is pretty appreciable. Even though it wasn't scary to me as people say but yeah it was praiseworthy !!
? Loved the whole cast, actually not much find of a clingy fl but Gong Hyo Jin's portrayal made me love the character, really have to check her works more and So Ji Sub was sooo funny and fine. And Seo In Guk was the best for me, he was soo hot.
?Actually, the plot was well-written and interesting hooked me up till the end. The pacing was good and the osts were fine too.

Things I didn't like
?The only one which was a letdown, some parts were draggy for me, like I've to convince myself to go ahead !!, a little bit of editing like decreasing the time would've made it perfect for me.
For a drama set in 2013, it so impressed me. I was laughing so much especially "Kang Candy" and "Get Lost" lol. So 9/10 for me !!
Do check it, drama guys !!

Leggi di Più