My.. I don't know what to say about this at all. I absolutely loved it, but the ending just made me lower to rating real quick. Before we get to that though, I'll of course tackle the things I liked.

As someone who loves the time travelling theme, I knew that this would be right up my alley so I was very excited to watch it. Overall, it definitely went beyond my expectations and had the right amount of not only romcom elements, all the steaminess of the boiling hot palace drama blended perfectly.

For starters, I won't lie, I honestly found Bong Hwan as So Yong so annoying. Like, seriously. If he learned about Korean History from his mom and had etiquette school and all, he should probably have an idea of how to act well. I didn't like how edgy he immediately was as So Yong, but I eventually warmed up because of his confidence and pride; which literallyyy shook the whole palace because it was unbecoming of someone, let alone the queen herself. Bong Hwan as So Yong's playful and carefree attitude definitely painted the palace in beautiful colors, but of course a child painting on a tattered wall won't be enough to cover how ruined it is.

This tattered wall of course being the palace itself, embroiled in many different acts of red tape and inhumanity brought on by the court ministers. In midst of this, a puppet king rules over, with not much left to say under the regency of the Grand Queen Dowager. Seeing the walls she and other key antagonists built crashing down through different circumstances was just so satisfying, making the dramatic elements feel like that perfect tinge of saltiness you detect when eating anything salted caramel-flavored.

As for the romcom aspect, I love Shin Hye Sun so much!! She absolutely NAILED her role here, especially with the clear distinction
between So Yong and Bong Hwan. I also loved Kim Jung Hyun's differing sides of his character. The comedic relief moments were splendid, and I like how Young Jae from B.A.P is such a wildcard character here and he showed his acting chops pretty well. All the side stories played out very well too, and I like how well-developed each character was, each leaving a lasting impression on me and played important roles to the intergral story.

Anyway, as I end this review, I'll say I can to compare it to a burnt lasagna. Lasagna, with all the delicious layers, but with a slightly bitter, crisp cheese topping.