Alchemy of Souls: Part 2 (2022)

Perfect Masterpiece

Finishing Season one is like there is no way the season 2 going to surpass it. But it is intense, it will give chill to every scenes. It is perfectly made and suits the casts as well. The finale is superb, your eyes will be filled with contentment. A lot of emotions overflown in this series that is why I liked it. This is included in my most favorite series of all time. I will miss this whole thing. Thrilling kaayou bayot.. gikapoy english oi.. kinahanglan jud daw pab handred ka works, wa kuyapi! pero was char achup kaayo guys. Lami kaau ug mga eksina, nag hilak jud kos last episode.. erset oi.. abi ko namatay tong tulo may gani buhi... nakahilak jud ko paghibaw nakog busi ang mga ongo.. unya naay kamabal ang mag tiaayon.. mapasalamaton kaau ko dai.. basta oi.. tan awa ninyo, ayaw pansina ni ako review. abot na ba nig 500 words? try daw nako.

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Not a single second I felt bored

Jan. 8, 2023

Alchemy of Souls 2 is one of the best decisions I have ever made to watch. It is the superior, S fking tier Kdrama. This series really raised the standard right away for the year of 2023. We really are setting the bar up high.

Major shoutout to the Hong Sisters for writing this epic masterpiece. They really ate up their works back to back to back.

Although this season was only 10 episodes long. I felt that they were able to conclude everything in such an amazing way. The pacing is just right and I never felt boredom or a waste of time. Alchemy of Souls hold such a special place in my heart that I will definitely be watching it over and over, again and again.

Jang-Uk, you are the best husband I could ever ask for. Like I am so tired of Jang-Uk slander for this season cause this man's delivered and slaughtered everyone (like literally) for his beautiful wife. As for Buyeon/Naksu, I do wish, she had more scenes showing her divine powers and her strength. But you know what, it is okay. The wedding was a little sad cause it was only with the celibacy guy (I forgot his name)... but they the ending was so satisfying.

My emotions was so high, I was ready to cry and I cried. I cried so damn motherfucking hard. I really thought... I really thought... so the relief that I had after finishing the series definitely compensated for my palpitating heart.

ALCHEMY OF SOULS, YOU WILL BE MISSED I CAN'T BELIEVE I AM SAYING GOODBYE. IT'S BEEN A JOURNEY FROM MUDEOK TO BUYEON/NAKSU & JANG-UK. MY LOVES I WILL MISS YALL SO MUCH. UNTIL I REWATCH THIS AGAIN...

So what are yalls waiting for. GO WATCH ALCHEMY OF SOULS BOTH SEASONS NOW 😤

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A true masterpiece

It's the first time I'm actually writing a review. I have watched over 150 kdramas so far, but I think it will remain as one of my most memorable watches of all time.
It is true Jung So Min's replacement in s2 came as a disappointment at first but after starting it I realised it was actually worth it. It does not exactly mean that I am against her appearance in s1. GYJ was absolutly mesmerising. I really fell hard for her.
The drama actually lacks nothing. The writing, cast, acting, the character development of each one of the leads were beyond perfect.
I am not the type who rewatches dramas. But I have to say, this drama is an exception. Even thouth it has not been long since the series ended and I clearly remember most of the scenes, I am contemplating whether to watch it again or not.
In all, whoever is hesistating whether to give this drama a chance or not, I would say definitely DON'T. Just watch it. I am sure you won't regret it.

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Valio la espera

He visto solo dos capítulos y estoy fascinada, me encanta esta serie, desde que termino la primera temporada, espere con ansias que empezara y ahora me verán ansiosa todas las semanas esperando mas nuevos capítulos, Se las recomiendo de corazón, vean la temporada uno, para poder seguir con esta, no vale la pena una sin la otra. Por ahora la historia sigue bien armada. Cero spoiler, véanla, todos los personajes son adorables.
Mi mayor miedo era no aceptar a la nueva actriz, pero no, esta chica lo esta haciendo muy bien. De verdad.
ACTUALIZACIÓN
Para no poner Spoilers, esta serie supero mis expectativas, fue genial, los 10 capítulos fueron intensos, y el final, fue mágico, grite, reí, llore, todas las emociones juntas, lo amo 100%, en un mes lo vuelvo a ver.

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run in the opposite direction, it's not worth it

Truly disappointed in the Hong sisters. While variety in a show is good, the new script has drained the show of its creative value. Though there wasn't a "good ending" in season 1, every episode, every subplot, every character brought something to the show. With shallow characters who lack even a morsel of purpose, season 2 reads as a completely different show altogether, and it is hard to believe that this is the same show as before. Bleaching Naksu's brows? The only job this new season has managed to accomplish is place Naksu into a subservient and docile role, detracting from her character as an empowered and unbeliavably traumatized woman. These "parallels" read as a futile attempt from the writers to mimic the hearty and full cinematic experience as portrayed in season 1. I had high hopes for the writers to do something good with the amnesia trope, and yet they have WILLINGLY chosen the worst path. The slow pace can be tolerated, but the backbone of this season is just too shit to recover in the last 4 episodes. Sometimes shows don't deserve a season 2, and the Hong sisters have proven this right.

The FL is not to be blamed, though, it's hard to act when given such a terrible script. At this point, the season is simply fanservice, played out fanservice.

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BEST DRAMA OF 2022.

AOS S1&2 were phenomenal and it was one of those dramas that I would like to re-watch in the future. It was a pack of everything, best of cast, visually and skills as well, best osts, interesting and fun plot and dialogues.
While watching this drama I laughed, cried and again laughed. I am not a fan of historical themed dramas. But this one was different, while keeping the historical essence, it was funny and modern. I loved the costumes and how their looks and costumes changes after the leap.
S1 was great, no doubt. So min gave it a kick start and set a mark of excellence for the drama. She was excellent in action, funny as hell and cried sm because of her.
However, I will say GYJ did an amazing job in S2 because her job was harder. She had to act while also keeping the essence of mudeok and somin while playing her role. People had high expectations from her and many were waiting to throw shade at her. However, she proved those haters wrong with her acting and was like a fluff cotton ball while acting as Buyeon, however her sassiness returned when she got naksu's memories.
This drama gave the most exposure to Jae Wook. He was still a rising star until a while ago, he got some main lead roles but I guess the scripts weren't as good as this. He got to show his high quality performance and was praised by everyone. I hope he will be casted in more.dramas and cannot wait for his next project.

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I *LOVE* Alchemy of Souls but Part 2 is not quite up to the hype

I eagerly awaited each week to watch Part 2 of Alchemy of Souls - seriously looked forward to it all the way back in August. But just because I like the concept of the story and world does not mean the show is free from flaws and holes. I view its current rating as being artificially high.

The Not-So-Good:

The pacing was much too slow for my liking. We spent 90% of the series with the amnesia plot and reveal dragging along. We only had 10 episodes - too few to drag for the majority. The actual reveal was underwhelming - too understated for the weeks of frustration we were subjected to. "Is she the same person?" No shit, man.

Our main villain, Jin Mu, basically became a cartoon character. You'll wonder in the back of your mind why has he been allowed to survive this whole time. Shifty eyes and interesting choice for facial hair - the whole gamut. The Queen - you'll wonder why she's just as bad as the imposter Queen from season 1 and why they had to save her. I thought the whole dried chicken relics plot was laughable.

Seo Yul's uncle looked shady when we first saw him, but his character development was non-existent and weak. Finally, he is totally eclipsed.

I know some were disappointed that we never got bad ass Naksu back. While I understand that they are trying to re-build and re-paint her in a non-assassin way, you'll realize there are no other bad ass female mages out there AT ALL besides Jin Hogyeong who takes a hit this season. So yeah, we missed gothic dark eyed makeup Naksu back in action.

Continuity and explanation of Jin Buyeon and Naksu's soul status seemed to shift as what Master Lee said in one episode wouldn't match what he says later in the series, with no clear explanation for what changed or why he explained it differently previously. So we the viewers were deliberately misled.

Soi - I didn't like her and she got too much screen time.

They also turned Lady Heo into a jealous, catty woman when she wasn't that way in the first part. However, her pettiness actually proves to be a big plot point in moving the dragging story forward.


The Neutral:

The turtle. I liked the turtle, but it got a lot of screen time in a limited 10 episode run and I'm not sure it needed that much. That being said, if they were going to go all the way, they should've given it a place in the ending LOL.


The Good:

I am glad they at least were able to use Jung So Min in the flashbacks and was happy to see her every time. I think Go Yoon Joung did a good job of portraying her character.

The tree finally gets climbed.

The tragedy that I thought would happen didn't end up sticking.

All in all, while I enjoyed the ride, I definitely felt frustrated with Naksu and Jang Uk's ignorance and questioned parts of the story. For something that I really looked forward to, the product for my waiting didn't quite match my level of excitement when watching. I think this season, with the material that was actually played out, could've been 6 episodes instead of being stretched to the already small 10.

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Magnificent, Excellent, Perfect and all synonyms as well.

Alchemy of Souls left us back in August 2022 promising it would come back with another season half the size of the original one in December 2022. Were there any high expectations? Of course! Were they met? I realise now that certainly my expectations were low compared to what the second part provided us with.

Part 1 did its thing. Introduced the story and characters to us, made us feel a lot of feelings we did not know we could feel, and left us with a cliffhanger (literally involving a cliff...) that lasted a couple months. The hype for Part 2 was gradually increasing as people started to watch Part 1 right before Part 2 dropped. Everyone, myself included, just wanted to see what happened after that finale.

Story-wise?
Yours truly fully enjoyed it. If I ever complained about it I can't remember anymore what that was about. Of course, sometimes it was a headache trying to understand what was happening, forming theories to keep ourselves busy till the next episode dropped. I am not going to lie and say I wasn't confused sometimes, but there's nothing that was left unexplained (in my opinion).

Character-wise?
I am a huge Jung Somin fan. I was kinda sad she wasn't going to appear in Part 2 but that didn't affect my expectations for the series. Go Younjung absolutely devoured her role. I wanted to see more of her Naksu in Part 1 and I'm so glad we got to see her even for a short 10 episodes. Her Jin Buyeon and her Naksu/Cho Yeong were two entirely different people with the same face, and she managed to convince me that I wasn't looking at the same person.

As for Jaewook, what can I say and where do I even start? He was fantastic. I just couldn't believe Part 2 Jang Uk was the same guy we met during Part 1. Jaewook's acting was just incredible and it played a pivotal role in me liking this part as much as its predecessor.

...

Alchemy of Souls is brilliant. If you haven't watched it, I really am judging you.

[I will continue to write this review later because I pulled an all nighter to watch the finale, definitely not a win for those in the west. But I would gladly do it again.]

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Disappointing Sequel, Poor Editing, but Great Leads Chemistry for a romance drama.

Subjective Gut Rating; 8.0
Objective Rating as a sequel: 5.0-7.0

Rating this drama is interesting because I can go either way. Did I have a good time watching it? Yes, I did because I enjoyed the romance in the first 8 episodes quite a lot. But is this a good sequel to an amazing season 1? Absolutely not. No more badass FL and poor editing and storytelling.

I reviewed in Season 1 that I find the chemistry between the leads a little lacking. I might be in the minority, as I don’t mind the lead actress changing to Go Young Jung and I find her beautiful and perfect as the amnesiac and inexperienced FL. Jang Uk (ML) has gone through a lot in the last three years, and his personality is totally different than in season 1. Meeting the sunny and optimistic Jin Bu Yeong (FL) is what he needs at that point in his life. I like how she’s the one to recognize him (unconsciously), chase after him and want to be there by his side protecting and supporting him. It’s like a role reversal from season 1. I enjoyed their interaction, their banter and the great kisses. It’s so nice to see two willing partners going at it and being passionate when the plot requires them to put a lot of emotions in those kisses. They look good together!

However, the romance-focused storylines took up a majority of the screen time, and thus not leaving enough time to develop the fantasy and mystery part of the plot. As a sequel to an amazing plot-driven season 1, this drama is actually very disappointing. If you are attracted to “Alchemy of Souls” because of a badass assassin FL, there’s not much badass-ness in this season. FL is reduced to a lovely Cinderella, waiting for prince charming to save her and love her. Her powers and memories were recovered too late to showcase her prowess as the priestess. There actually isn’t a whole lot of substance aside from romance in the first 8 episodes.

Episodes 9 & 10 seem to have a big tone shift back to what season 1 was like. All of a sudden, we’re talking about power, revenge, saving the world, different identities/souls in a very rushed manner. Without previous indication, all the baddies team up together. So much happened that I needed to concentrate hard so as not to miss anything. The editing was choppy and weird. What happened to Jang Uk’s love for Jin Bu Yeong in the first 8 episodes? Without going into spoilers, the romance doesn’t make sense anymore.

On a positive note, I think both Hwang Min Hyun (Seo Yul) and Shin Seung Ho (Crown Prince) improved their acting. I see a little more emotions in Hwang Min Hyun’s eyes. My favorites continue to be Leader Park Jin and Maidservant Kim. They are golden, but slightly more cringey than in season 1.

Overall, this is a disappointing sequel but if you watch it as a standalone romance-focused drama, you will have a better time.


Completed: 1/27/2023

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OMG, OMG, this was so good, I loved it and I will rewatch it very soon. The best fantasy I have viewed in a Korean Drama. Wow, I'm impressed! I didn't think I was going to like it because of the Season 1 Naksu but I do love the actress who is playing Naksu in Season 2. I have seen her in other dramas. Lee Jae Wook (Jang Uk), where did this actor come from, he is really awesome and I love his acting skills. I want to see more of him. Go Yoon Jung (Naksu) had 3 characters to play and of course, my favorite is Naksu. Hwang Min Hyun (Seo Yul), Shin Seung Ho (Go Won), Yoo Joon Sang (Park Jin), and Oh Na Ra (Kim Do Ju) who are part the main leads roles I mean they did their jobs so awesomely. Hwang Min Hyun was very believable in his character. Yoo In Soo (Park Dang Gu) and Im Chul Soo (Lee Cheol) were support actors who should have been part of the main lead team. That's how good they were. The costumes, the visuals, the animations, and the fantasy were undeniably awesome. I thank all the other supportive actors/actresses who had a part in this drama. The storyline of both Seasons 1&2 OMG, I never loved a Korean drama like this one.

Note: I was chewed out by a newcomer who said all I talk about is the actors and actresses and not the storyline. If I told you the storyline now would that be fair to those who watch it? That's like me telling you the ending. This drama is exceptionally good and for those who love fantasy dramas, this is for you.

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