Other title: Bridal MaskKorean title: 각시탈
Aired on KBS2
2012 May 30 to Sept 06
28 episodes
Main cast:
- Joo Won: Lee Kang To
- Jin Se Yun: Oh Mok Dan
- Park Ki Woong: Kimura Shunji
- Han Chae Ah: Ueno Rie
- Chun Ho Jin: Kimura Taro
- Kim Eung Soo: Konno Goji
- Jun Noh Min: Dam Sa Ri
- Ahn Hyung Joon: Jun Katsuyama
- Song Min Hyung: Governor Wada Ryo
- Son Byung Ho: Jo Dong Joo
Note: Apparently it's based on a famous manhwa.
Review: + (from memory)
Title: Appropriate since it's about a hero who fights injustice and protects the Korean people during the Japanese occupation, wearing a traditional mask representing the bride. I don't remember why he chose this mask.
Boy: Ha! You're handsome, smart and passionate. You also have lots of resentment in you and it makes you cruel on occasions. In real life, you would be way too intense but you are interesting. Unfortunately you become a little bland in scenes when you act sweet.
Other boy: I don't know how to treat him. The fact that it's really hard for me to describe his personality here is, I think, a problem. I can just say that he's loyal, obstinate and passionate too.
Girl: so. So. SO brave. And kind. If I were to be cynical, I would say that she is too perfect. Anyway, I just have to admire her.
Other girl: She acts like a psychopath. She disgusted me at some points. But other times, I felt for her because she sold her soul and she's paying the price for that.
Plot: It was good, the stakes were high and you didn't know what was going to happen. But maybe fewer episodes would have been better because it was dark and heavy and I need some "light" from times to times in my series. But the bigger problem was...
the Relationships. Fortunately, the plot didn't need the characters to be dumb but it sometimes relied on the relationships in a way that isn't very credible. My other issue is that most romantic relationships started in the past which makes them pretty static. I can understand that developing the romantic relationships is not the most important in a drama in which life-threatening situations happen at every turn but these relationships are accomodated to serve the plot so they are not as powerful as they should be. They feel like plot devices which undermines the characters.
Other characters: There are mAAAny characters. The big bads are really interesting and chilling which makes up for one or two annoying cartoonish villains. I'll also say that while it's pretty much good against bad, there are more nuanced characterizations.
Funny factor: Nope.
Music: I don't remember it.
Other points: Period! Action! Elaborate fights!
Bottom line: It's a plus because: Good plots. Interesting characters. Heroism. Extreme backdrop. It's not a Fab because of other boy and the love relationships (both issues are linked).
A discussion of what happens after the jump so stop here if you haven't watched it yet.
