In Dream High, I thought Kim Soo Hyun's acting was so good and had so much potential(considering he won the Newcomer Actor Award for the KBS Drama Awards 2011) that I was looking forward watching another one of his series. I came across 'The Moon that Embraces the Sun'. As I researched, it had high ratings and a high popularity too; a series recommended by others and is said to be worthy drama to watch. So I downloaded the series overnight and got my couch ready to watch it.
The Moon that Embraces the Sun is the
story of the secret love between Lee Hwon, a fictional king of Joseon, and Wol, a female shaman. Wol was born as Heo Yeon Woo, the daughter of a noble family who won the love of the crown prince, Hwon. Her enemies, jealous of her family's position in court, schemed against her and wrestled away her rightful place as crown princess and nearly takes her life. Years later, an embittered Hwon meets Wol, now a female shaman who has no recollection of her past. [http://wiki.d-addicts.com/The_Moon_That_Embraces_the_Sun]
Cast:
Han Ga In as Heo Yeon Woo/Shaman Wol
Kim Soo Hyun as King Lee Hwon
Jung Il Woo as Prince Yang Myeong
Kim Min Seo as Queen Bo Kyung
Song Jae Hee as Scholar Heo Yeom
Song Jae Rim as Guard Woon
Kim Young Ae as the Great Queen Dowager
Kim Eung Soo as Prime Minister Dae Hyung
Jeon Mi Seon as Head Shaman Jang Nok Young
and
Nam Bo Ra as Princess Min Hwa.
I just finished watching the series, I definitely had mixed feelings; especially towards the last few episodes. While watching, I kept making mental assessments and trying to analyze the whole drama. The drama has a lot of good elements in it, but I had my reservations too. I'll try my best to make a review of this drama, based on my own personal assessment. It's up to you what you think of this.
The Moon that Embraces the Sun as a popular drama series. The Moon that Embraces the Sun was indeed a drama worth-watching for me. It has a very excellent storyline and a well-written plot. The series was a good twenty(20) episodes, but every episode keeps you glued to your seat and makes you want to watch more for what's to come until the very end. The 'moving' plot keeps the series going forward, so you're never bored with insignificant scenes. I very well understand why it has very popular ratings, as each episodes really makes you look forward and anticipate the next one, but leaves you feeling satisfied with the current one. The impact the whole story had on me left me breathless.
The Moon that Embraces the Sun as a drama worth-watching. It was a series worth-watching for me because I found myself wanting to finish it until the very end. Following the progress of the story was really interesting for me, and there was few cliches. The drama series had such a great cast, and I was so drawn to them as they portrayed their characters. Kim Soo Hyun was again at his element, but I thought he still lacked some things. Nevertheless, I thought he was a good choice for Lee Hwon's character. Han Ga In was a tad bit old(and married in real life) to be Kim Soo Hyun's leading lady, but she did justice to her role. The rest of the characters was well played(from crying Princess Min Hwa to the simply evil Prime Minister), and I really enjoyed this drama till the end. It had the power to make viewers sympathize with the characters, and evoke strong feelings from them. This is a drama I would definitely recommend to others.
The Moon that Embraces the Sun and its downsides. And so I wasn't really a fan of the ending, as far as I'm concerned. There were still questions hanging, and I thought most of the characters weren't given justice. Some scenes seemed a bit appalling, and makes you want to jump into the TV screen and do something. I am so into the story, but it kind of lacked its depth when it came to the characters.
I really have a lot to rant about underdeveloped characters as well as questions I had after the series ended. This is my opinion on where the story lacked so much in.
I wrote it all in my next article: http://thediaryofina.blogspot.com/2012/06/moon-that-embraces-sun-underdeveloped.html
And also, its also note-worthy to look through other viewer's opinions in the Dramabeans Website, just after the recap of episode 20:
http://www.dramabeans.com/2012/03/the-moon-that-embraces-the-sun-episode-20-final/
Essentially, the story had missing parts. This was a story with a whole lot of potential, but somehow failed to make the best use of it. The main characters overshadowed so much of the
other significant characters and left them with little time for development. I had such high hopes for the characters, and I was definitely looking for more of them throughout the entire series. I usually appreciate a drama because I can learn some things, most especially from downright serious dramas like this one. But the only wisdom I can mostly see is those for a King; and there are so few lessons that we can actually relate to.
BUT, despite my very long ramblings, I was still content with this drama. I love the story as it is, and I wouldn't replace anything. It just needs some more elements to be added. Same goes for the characters. The overall storyline, plotline and characters were still very good and very engaging. It wasn't a boring series, and I was so surprised that I lasted through this series within three(3) days, always anticipating for the next episode. The music was heart-wrenching for sad moments, and so fun and playful at funny moments. The mix of drama, humor, action and horror(yes, horror) turned out well. This is one of the good dramas I've seen. I can say for sure that this drama series is worth the keep in my files.
Though, I really can't hide some of my disappointment for this series.
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