Though I like the cast very much, I had put this one off for years because it is so long. Sigh. It could have been superb if cut by half, but it is not, and the result for me is excruciating bloat and repetition under-scored by the screeching mother meme and increasingly mediocre acting by exhausted secondary actors. I ended up skimming much of the second half of the series to the predictable, overdone closure. The best of the cast deserved so much better.
5 Reviews
Excellent, but with faults.
martin-fennell19 January 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I found this to be a compelling drama. The acting varies from okay to good, and above. Nobody gives an embarrassing performance, although there are sequences which the writers should have been embarrassed by. It also features more kidnapping sequences than I have seen in any other drama or movies. One character gets kidnapped at least three times. But It had some powerful moments too. The characters are well done, and the story even allows some minor ones to have a little bit of spotlight. One character, who I found to be the most interesting of the young people in the drama leaves about 3/3rd's of the way through.( Note. According to Wikipedia, she left because her storyline was reduced). But then they bring in another character, who is quickly forgotten about.
There are 2 standout performances in this drama for me.
Lee Mi Sook. and Yoo Dong Geun.
Brilliant casting - worth the effort
phd_travel29 March 2022
Warning: Spoilers
The excellent cast and acting make this big budget grand saga worth the big commitment. 56 episodes may seem daunting but quite a lot of it was exciting as the story covers a sweep of history in Korea. This uses the basic premise of 2 boys switched at birth from the Steinbeck novel but most of the saga is it's own story. Gangsters and casinos and corrupt politicians are actually not far fetched. When things reach a stale point the story jumps a few years and the characters do evolve.
The beginning in the mining town with the young characters was strong and emotional with great performances from Kim Bum as the younger main character Dong Chul. Lee Mi Sook also acted superbly as the mother but her character go irritating for a lot of the show even more so than the main villain. During the second part when things move to Macau its is quite exciting and Lee Yeon Hee is quite charming and lovely. Song Seung Heon takes over as the main character and acts quite well but he has a terrible hair style at first and moustache but later it gets better. Because of it's length the story there is room for lots of characters to take front stage. The other outstanding actors are Han Ji Hye who gives a very good performance as the conflicted and damaged Ji Hyun and Park Hae Jin as the flawed Myung Hoon who shows the most character growth. Usually long dramas lag in the last third but here it doesn't. When the revelations about the switch at birth start coming to light there is quite a roller coaster of angst and emotion as each person discovers the truth and reacts in their own way. Then alliances change and the painful conflict starts between the brothers. Makes you think about what blood relationships mean.
One of the best things about this show is the casting of the switched brothers looking like their biological parents. Park Hae Jin really looks like Lee Mi Sook and Yeon Jung Hoon looks like Jo Min Ki.
There are some faults. It would have been better if some of the kidnappings beatings and frustrating things had been cut out. About 10% could have been shaved off. And it keeps strong at the end. But in the end I didn't regret the time spent watching this. They don't make epic sagas like this nowadays.
The beginning in the mining town with the young characters was strong and emotional with great performances from Kim Bum as the younger main character Dong Chul. Lee Mi Sook also acted superbly as the mother but her character go irritating for a lot of the show even more so than the main villain. During the second part when things move to Macau its is quite exciting and Lee Yeon Hee is quite charming and lovely. Song Seung Heon takes over as the main character and acts quite well but he has a terrible hair style at first and moustache but later it gets better. Because of it's length the story there is room for lots of characters to take front stage. The other outstanding actors are Han Ji Hye who gives a very good performance as the conflicted and damaged Ji Hyun and Park Hae Jin as the flawed Myung Hoon who shows the most character growth. Usually long dramas lag in the last third but here it doesn't. When the revelations about the switch at birth start coming to light there is quite a roller coaster of angst and emotion as each person discovers the truth and reacts in their own way. Then alliances change and the painful conflict starts between the brothers. Makes you think about what blood relationships mean.
One of the best things about this show is the casting of the switched brothers looking like their biological parents. Park Hae Jin really looks like Lee Mi Sook and Yeon Jung Hoon looks like Jo Min Ki.
There are some faults. It would have been better if some of the kidnappings beatings and frustrating things had been cut out. About 10% could have been shaved off. And it keeps strong at the end. But in the end I didn't regret the time spent watching this. They don't make epic sagas like this nowadays.
One of the best TV series ever!!!
janenguyen62025 August 2023
Just finished the series. The story is well created and the casts are amazing at doing their job. Through this series, I've learned a lot about true love and the things it stands for: trust, loyalty, righteousness and above all sacrifice. The main character, Lee Dong Chul (by Song Seung-heon), is truly a man of honor. There are so many conflicts in the series and Lee Dong Chul, who has both a sound mind and a big heart, deals with them with great wisdom. This series is great not just for entertaining only but also for educational purposes. Never give up on the ones you love, always trust, always hope and always forgive. And cherish every moment you have with your beloved ones.
Bad...
Park_Min5 April 2023
To say I'm disappointed is an understatement. I came into this expecting something similar to "Giant (2010)" but ended up getting a flashy action and a lousy over-dramatic fuss. This the type of drama were you get 20 quick flashy shaky camera edits before an action is taken. Lackluster action despite having a massive budget. It seems the number of episodes was predetermined before finalizing the story/writing, this is why we got a handful of nothingness. What do you expect from the writing department when they had internal issues midway through. Even the lead actress dropped out halfway through. Even the other female lead had a significant screen time reduction.
The drama had one of the cringest last scene epilogue out there. The awkwardness as they were sitting around the table, I could feel it piercing through my bones. Can't help but feel this was a waste of big cast. Classic Korean society normalizing rape with no consequences, even more favorable for the rapist. My expectations and interest were nullified when that happened. All the relationships sucked, romantic and non-romantic ones. By the end, I couldn't care less what happens to who. One finale remark, if they want to commit to the route they choose, then there should've been more deaths!
The drama had one of the cringest last scene epilogue out there. The awkwardness as they were sitting around the table, I could feel it piercing through my bones. Can't help but feel this was a waste of big cast. Classic Korean society normalizing rape with no consequences, even more favorable for the rapist. My expectations and interest were nullified when that happened. All the relationships sucked, romantic and non-romantic ones. By the end, I couldn't care less what happens to who. One finale remark, if they want to commit to the route they choose, then there should've been more deaths!
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