This show isn’t for everyone – is, I think, the most accurate and important thing I could say about this drama. 😅
Characters and relationships tend to develop in ways that can lean messy &/or perplexing, and that is kind of reflective of real life, in a manner of speaking.
How well you take to that, will largely determine whether or not this show is for you, I think.
Additionally, Show works out to be a slow burn, but there’s ultimately a reward of warmth and contentment, for the patient.
When my sister came home to visit in early October, she picked this show for us to watch together, and since we hardly ever get to watch shows together, with her living in a whole different country and all, this was a rare treat.
..Which means, fair warning, that I might be more biased than usual, in my estimation of Show’s enjoyability. 😁
Full disclosure: we watched episodes 1 through 3 together, because that’s what was available, and then, after Sis left, I completed episodes 4 through 6 on my own.
You guys. I am completely blown away by this Dream Drama that j3ffc has written, with the help of his lovely editor, Ele!
They’ve both poured a whole lotta time, effort, passion, dedication and love into this project, over a really long time, and the end product is nothing short of brilliant. 🤩
If you like kdramas; if you like Buffy; if you like a well-told story – if you answered ‘yes’ to even just one of those things, I think you’d like this.
Do look out for all the fun references and cameos; our dynamic duo has made sure that there are a good number, for kdrama fans, and for Buffy fans. And of course, there’s twice the fun to be had, if you’re both. 😉
Also! Do look out for the music, with some tracks performed by j3ffc himself! (Yes, he went and made sure this Dream Drama has a soundtrack! 😱)
Show starts out strong, with a winsome heroine, the sweet beginnings of a potentially charming, dorky love story, as well as a compelling narrative conflict. I was immediately hooked, honestly.
Unfortunately, Show doesn’t quite return to these initial levels of awesome, once it takes its story to the present day.
The OTP Cute is serviceable enough, but, in my opinion, this OTP loveline isn’t sufficiently built up, for the kind of epic fated love that Show ultimately wants it to be.
Lee Se Young is great though, and is the heart and soul of this drama, from start to finish.
Your mileage may vary, of course, but I was, unfortunately, rather underwhelmed by this one, in the end. 😅
As promised, here I am with my Reaction Post to Part 2 of the Radio Star special episode on The Red Sleeve. (Spoiler: I liked it as much as I liked Part 1. 😉)
If you haven’t checked out my Reaction Post to Part 1 of the special, you can find that here!
PS: Link to watch is at the end of the post!
PPS: I also have a Reaction Post to The Red Sleeve Talk Show Special, which you can check out here. And if you haven’t yet checked out my monster review of The Red Sleeve, you can find that here.
I’m back with my second Reaction Post, and yes, it’s still about The Red Sleeve, because, well, I really, really loved that show (monster review is here!), and I’m just really happy to finally be able to watch all the spoilery specials in the drama’s honor.
It really turned out to be a very special drama, and if you haven’t seen it yet, I do recommend it! 🤩
So I’m trying something new today, you guys (yay..?).
Now that I’ve finally finished watching The Red Sleeve, and have written an appropriately hearts-in-eyes monstrous review for it, I am finally in a position to watch the various spoilery specials that are out there, in its honor.
I mean, I’ve seen lots of snippets floating about, to be sure (you just can’t avoid them completely, can you?), but it just makes me happy that I’m now able to watch the special in full.
And I thought, why not make a post out of it – just because I can? 😁
The biggest compliment I can give Show, is that it knows what it wants to be, and accomplishes its core purpose with finesse and aplomb.
Sure, there are some narrative decisions I didn’t prefer, but Show demonstrates such a profound understanding of its key characters, and teases out the finer points of each of these characters so very well, that I’m more than willing to look past any dissatisfaction I might have with these other details.
Lee Junho and Lee Se Young are wonderful in this, both individually and together. It’s no exaggeration to say that these two had my heart, unequivocally.
A well-plotted, solid story from start to finish, The Crowned Clown is a show that has quite a bit to offer.
The palace intrigue isn’t always the most compelling, but on the upside, there’s a real king, a fake king, a forbidden romance, all the complications that arise from it all, a touch of levity to lighten things from time to time, and a stirring OST to score it all.
Our main cast is excellent all-around, but it’s Yeo Jin Goo who knocks it out of the ballpark and then some, playing both king and clown.
I’ve always considered Yeo Jin Goo an excellent actor, but Yeo Jin Goo has never been more amazing to my eyes, than in this show. Some minor lens adjustments are necessary, but once you’ve got that down, Show is such a good ride.
Meaty enough to chew on, yet affecting enough to deeply engage the heart.
On top of that, 2012 was also the year I decided to try my hand at the whole drama blogging thing – and hey, look at where we are now, eh?
But. There is one thing that I kinda hold against 2012.. coz 2012 is the year that time travel took over the dramaverse.
Suddenly, it felt like time travel was everywhere.Queen In-hyun’s Man, Rooftop Prince, Faith, Dr. Jin, and even Operation Proposal all got in on the time travel action in 2012, with varying degrees of success.
Let me just say that there’s nothing inherently wrong with using time travel as a concept, but honestly, it now kinda feels like time travel has become the Trend That Will Not Die.
For the record, I’m not hating on The Best Hit. In fact, I even rather enjoyed this show.
It’s just that the whole time travel thing here feels particularly gratuitous – almost pointless, even. I personally feel that this show didn’t need the time travel conceit, to tell the slice-of-life, found-family story it wanted to tell.
In fact, Show might’ve been better off just picking one time period and staying there. A pretty novel concept these days, I know. 😉
