A Lenda do Mar Azul (2016)

So I binge-watched this

I’m not a binge-watching type of person (usually) since I get bored extremely easily, but today I finished 8 episodes of this drama nonstop. It was that interesting to me. “Why the lower-than-expected rating, then?” you ask. I just felt there was a little too much bullshit there at the end. It’s been a while since I watched dramas over 2 years old (excluding Goblin. I’m on this weird “popular drama” kick where I’m trying to watch all the most popular Kdramas since I usually end up picking very unpopular ones to watch) and I kind of actually forgot how trope-y they used to be. To name a few, I saw the long time jump at the end, gunshot wounds, and family drama. I haven’t seen these in a while in a kdrama and boy, was I not excited to see them ever again. The drama itself was wonderful, and (but don’t judge) it was my first Lee Min Ho drama. I loved the whole cast (Ahhhh Shin Hye Seon! I loved you way before Mr. Queen!), and I have always been fascinated with fairy tales and mermaids since I was young, so this drama was totally my thing from the get-go. I laughed and cried so much, and it would be a huge lie to say I didn’t enjoy the experience. I mean, why the heck would I binge this drama in like three days if I didn’t like it? But some things, like Joon Jae trying to control what Cheong wears all the time (this was also a comment I made in 1% of Something), freaking out about her going to THE CLUB with HER FRIENDS, and kind of just blowing up on her all the time in general (I live around a very hotheaded person, so it’s a pretty sore subject), really pissed me off. I understand that the time jump in korean dramas is kind of a staple, but I thought it was entirely unnecessary and kind of killed the mood for me at the end. I mean, you watch these fellas defeat three goddamn villains, and instead of just living out the rest of their lives in peace, Sim Cheong just had to get her stupid heart disease and abandon everyone for three years. I felt like we never got a proper conclusion with her and all of the side characters. I was still left wondering whether or not they remembered her, and I couldn’t for the life of me understand why Joon Jae was being such a dick to her in front of the family when they reunited. All in all, I thought this drama was of very high quality, and while I do have some problems with it, I have to be honest about the fact that I still enjoyed the crap out of it and would recommend it to everyone I know.

Leia Mais

The Legend of the Blue Sea is my first kdrama so of course it will always be in my heart.

I started watching it only for Got7 's JinYoung but I fell in love with Lee MinHo ...!

I wasn't really into romantic / girly love stories or supernatural ones but this drama was very nice. I think it's all because of the main cast. I really liked the past / present mode. This way the story made more sense to me ? I don't know. It would have been too weird to show a mermaid living among humans on the 21st century. I know Koreans like fairytales with mermaids, goblins etc but some times I think it's too much.

Leia Mais

This is one drama that will make you laugh a lot. Like literally I couldn’t stop laughing in some of the scenes. I went back and played it again. This drama will also make you want to feel powerful too. Because this is a fantasy drama cuz it does include,use mermaids in here. The lead actress is a mermaid. You can tell that the director did spend a lot of money on this drama. This drama takes places in like really expensive areas and all that. The first time we meet our actors they are living in a huge house. Then in Korea they wear the best c,thing, have amazing cars and humongous houses. So you can definitely tell that they put a lot of money and effort in this to make it a great drama. Not only do I love the romance between the two lovebirds but I also love how the relationship the guys have. There are 3 other guys I think you will have to meet. I forgot if it was 2 or 3. But, literally I love how each one of them has their back for each other. And when the girl comes in to the picture they are even more caring. This drama will also get you confused because it does take some time to show you some of 5e past history. Which doesn’t make sense to me at all. But, it does play a crucial part in the story. So good luck and have fun and laugh while watching this.

Leia Mais

So.. after MONTHS of struggling to finish this drama, I finally did it las night (April 5th 2019)!! I've been watching this since October, I believe, and GOD WAS IT A RIDE.
This contains no spoilers (...I'll try my best) but if you don't feel like reading the whole thing I'll review this drama in one single sentence: I just wish it was shorter.

It's actually quite hard to say what went wrong with this show but... it... dragged... for... so... many... episodes...
The scenes were enjoyable and the story was good (despite the MANY plot holes I'll talk about in a minute) and the cast was really good but for some reason I just kept wishing I was already done with it? It was interesting but not THAT interesting, you know? It took me MONTHS to finish it even though I liked it. Hard to explain

Story: I love mermaids. They could have explored that so much more. I mean... the whole thing was literally about a mermaid. But the whole time regression and past lives thing just made it heavier. I'm not someone who usually pays a lot of attention to plot holes (specially if they're not noticeable and I'm enjoying the show) but I noticed a few in this story that kind of bothered me a little. For example, the mind controlling power that Heo Joonjae has in the beginning and isn't mentioned ever again. Oh well, some of the episodes were just repetitive and could have been done differently. I do feel like the rest of the drama didn't really fit the first three episodes (which were the best, in my opinion). On the other hand, some of the plot twists were good and surprised me.

Characters/Cast/Acting: So much potential in one single drama... ahhh kind of frustrating how this wasn't a 10 star drama for me hahaha. But all the actors did an amazing job so I'm not disappointed with the acting. I just wish they focused more in some of the characters, like Heo Chihyun. No spoilers but I think the way his character ended didn't match his initial... feeling? I dont know how to explain without spoiling any details of the story but I don't like how things ended for him. But Lee Jihoon did a phenomenal job!! His facial expressions were amazing. The main characters were a little annoying after a while but nothing too hard to handle. The side characters stole the show, in my opinion. I think Lee Minho simply isn't it for me... I try to love him but I just... like him. Like... he's okay. Doesn't blow my mind.

Music: Even though I did enjoy the OST, I don't think it's memorable enough for me to give it more than 9 stars. But it matched the concept really well!

Rewatch Value- ...just thinking about rewatching this show already makes me tired.

I actually have lots of things to say about it but my reviews are usually better when I'm emotionally drained (in a good way) but with this one I'm just like... I recognise it was good but it could have been so much better. It didn't touch my heart even if it had the potential to. I think the only time I cried was due to those final scenes with Heo Chihyun.
Oh well, I'm glad I watched it until the end because the three final episodes were really cool!

Leia Mais

Nothing overly original, but amusing on it's own way.

The Legend Of The Blue is that kind of drama you first watch and think: "I think I've seen something similar to that". After all this 'supernatural being meets everyday person' theme can be easily found anywhere, from eastern to western TV and movies. Also, it wasn't the first time the writer touched this subject, actually she did something similar with You Who Came From The Stars.

But even if not original, I liked it anyway. The Little Mermaid feels are strong on this one, and it's done on a very cute and emotional fashion. I also like the fact they basically told two stories at the same time and as the story progressed you could feel the links and similarities. The Joseon Era bits in the beginning gave a melodic, if not overtly fantastic feel for this show.

Ji Hyun once again amazes me with her acting. She's not afraid of being silly, not afraid of looking ugly or like a fool. The way she builds her character is genius. You can see that she's a naive, almost childlike mermaid who is totally new to everything, but being naive doesn't mean she's dumb, because she has her moments of quick thinking and overal awesomeness that gots you cheering and saying "you go girl". Also, it's funny to see her being the supernatural one this time, and starting to experience all kind of human emotions and feels.

Lee Min Ho is also really good here. I don't remember liking him this much in a drama since City Hunter. He makes a good character that is clearly sneaky and not trustworthy, that at the same time has a good heart and a cheery behaviour, he's not like those cold, emotionless peers we see left and right, which is refreshing. Other perfomances were also well done, I particularly liked Lee Hee Joon on this one, mostly because althought he looked perfectly normal and even cheerful on the outside, you never really knew what he was up to or which side he was really in.

Music is not really this drama strong point, but I liked it anyway.

I don't like to compare dramas at all, but I've noticed that the writer is not really good with handling villains. The one in The Legend of The Blue Sea and also the one from You Who Came From The Stars are...unidimmensional to say the least. They have no apparent reasons for being that, except for being "evil". And just being evil for the heck of it can be amusing, like in YWCFTS, but annoying like in TLOTBS.

Overall it's an interesting ride. Not as glorious as it tries to be, but still amusing on it's own right. Is it rewatchable? Yes, but not the kind you'll want to

Leia Mais

FIRST MERMAID DRAMA

THIS IS NOT A REVIEW, THIS IS FOR MY NOTES

( while writing this only 12 episodes in )In grades 9 and 10 wanted to watch it but never got the change or I watch a few seconds of it then gave up. After two years during the COVID 19 pandemic. I love this drama its been a day since I watch it and I only have 7 more episodes left. :(( Why didn't I watch it early because it is soooo cute and good. I didn't skip much maybe some like where it talks about the mother, father, evil, scary part but some. I have a feeling that I like the start away from home as well since I put it down for two years as well. This is my first mermaid drama I think. While watching this, I started to speak Random Korean which means that I love this drama. Only a few episodes in I already rate it as a dam 9.0 starts already and it has not gone up or down( might change when I finish or later ) I had to remind myself while watching this is only a fairy tale and yeah so I don't get too attached to it or else I would skip some scenes.

I just finished watching the extraordinary you three days ago and this drama is like the fucking same thing, where it talks about the past life and how everything in the past report again and now I starting to think did someone else had the same life as me. I think this show got me crazy. For the last half of the drama, the anticipate is killing me so I half so I had to skip because my heart feels so fucking tik. When they said all the evil characters are evil they are all evil. Finally, when he meets his mother, I guess I could watch it peaceful it is all because of the mother that what got me stress but the crime odes did not bother me much. ( watching 16 as writing this down )

Leia Mais

Splendid kdrama

It just took me 1 week to watch all 20 episodes of this drama... The basic concept might be similar to various mermaid fairy tales yet it has another side too which differentiate it as the mysterious relation between the memories of Dam Ryoung and heo jin jea and how almost every character exists in contemporary time as well to help the fate to be repeated....
The first thing which catches our eyes is definitely Lee min ho playing a conman...Gosh!!! He isn't just handsome folks but yes he know how to act...
The chemistry between Sim cheong and heo jin jea is cute yet strong ...every character has done justice with their roles...
This drama Also shows how our society has corrupted just to gain fame and money...it hurts yet its true...
I found the end a bit confusing honestly when Sim cheong erases the memories of some characters but how come others didn't remember her as well and what about the news coverage which took place when she was shot while saving her love heo jin jea? ...
Anyways if anyone searching a drama with good actors,fairytale concept and beautiful locations this is for you ... You won't get disappointed folks ... Let me know after watching weather you agree with my review or not !!!

Leia Mais

Brief: I enjoyed this one, but it's slow and quite predictable. That doesn't make it bad at all, but 16 more tightly produced episodes would have been better I think. Cha Shi Ah and Tae Oh however, I thought were brilliant :)

Detailed:
Picked this one up because of Jun Ji Hyun whom I first watched in You Who came from the Stars (by the same writer) and wanted to see her in something different. The mermaid tale is an interesting topic that i've not seen in a KDrama before so that made it more interesting too, and then seeing it had Shin Hye Sun - well, sold.

On the whole I enjoyed it and I didn't have any doubts about continuing to watch it to completion - but - I had some issues with it...

I'm still trying to work out how well the two leads chemistry worked... some times there were sparks, other times not, it just wasn't consistent.

I really liked the links back and forth between the past lives and the current ones, it provided some interesting insights and background and a variety of settings to see the characters in, both in terms of the parallels and differences.

I really wished that the FL had some kind of other goal in mind, but as it was, she comes to the surface and is completely naive and inexperienced which leads to some funny scenes - but sets the scene for the ML to refer to her as his "dummy" the entire story. Now, there are many things that happen in the show that could be seen as just "hey thats fine, it's cute" or not - so there's a lot of interpretation to be had on the "strength" of the FL but i'm gonna go and just say - I don't think she was very strong at all! - constantly chasing around after the guy working out what to do to get the guy - I dunno, didn't feel like the best message. It's a relatively minor itch for me on the overall show (which, as I said, I enjoyed) but an itch never the less.

Now... Shin Hye Sun's character Cha Shi Ah was really good - your understanding of Shi-Ah changes and develops through the story and her oddball relationship with Tae-Oh is brilliant I honestly was looking out for the scenes with these two more than anything else some times.

There's baddies too, in the shape of the "Wicked Stepmother" which I guess has to be there and was ok, but wasn't that exciting for me really.

Sound track was good, really liked some of the tracks that are now ear-worms.

It's a good story but I don't rate it up there with some of the other works by this screenwriter, which include Crash Landing on You and You Who Came from the Stars, two of my favourite dramas. It's just "normal" good :)

The little girl that she meets early on and meets up again with numerous times... wish they'd tied that one up in a nice bow at the end, felt it just needed a moment "more", just as she did with the fashion-lady.

FYI On Viki, this shows up as:
Episode 0 - which is the special, DONT watch this first even though its the first thing they dish up.
Episodes 1-20 - this is the drama, watch this.
Episodes 21 and 22 - these are directors cuts of episodes 1 and 2. Watch these after if you wish :)

Leia Mais

i personally feel like people that have reviews on this app had expected way too much out of an drama, and end up being disappointed so it’s usually bad. so, on this drama overall is amazing. it turns out extremely interesting, and mostly funny, and the i felt the love. the plot gets a little predictable but it doesn’t stop you from wanting to watch it, the comedy just spices. it’s soo funny, and refreshing. i literally die, and can’t stop rewatching it. it makes me feel relaxed. it’s simple, yet cute but funny on top. the fantasy makes it even better. i think anyone that loves more of relaxing calm funny dramas would enjoy this. everyone in the cast in wonderful, and the pieces add every time. overall the most funny show ever.

Leia Mais

The acting of the actors was very good

The acting of the actors was very good, both the main and supporting actors. Was there a very good chemistry between the two main actors? I was one of those who did not like Lee Min Ho's acting and I was just curious why he has so many fans and because of this curiosity I watched his series and became more fascinated by his partner's acting and continued them, of course after watching the Iman series to some extent I changed my opinion, but after seeing this series, my opinion changed completely, and in my opinion, this actor gave his best performance in this series, to the extent that I enjoyed his performance as much as his partner. About the acting of dear Jun Ji Hyun, who is the kind and honest mermaid, there is really nothing left to say, they were excellent. Both the first parts, which have more humor, and the last parts, which are more serious.The script is very good and meaningful and gives very good lessons, just with it

Spoiler
The part where Dam Ryung (Ho Joon Jae in the old days) came and warned his future self, I have a problem and I think it was very ridiculous and meaningless and he could have given this warning much better and more logically instead of them meeting in one place. and tell him
But overall, it had a good script and a satisfying ending, and like many other series, I have no problem with its ending.
He has a very good sense of humor, he tried not to lose his sense of humor until the end, although the first parts are much more humorous.I won't say more about the romance of this series, there was pure and pure love between them, and the mood of the series and their relationship was very sweet and warm, and they had pleasant romantic scenes, so that when I saw it, I would smile unconsciously and my eyes would become a heart??
In the end, I am not a 10-16-year-old teenager, but I really like this series and I am very happy to see it, so don't limit watching this series by age, everyone can enjoy watching this series at any age, it's just necessary. Let it be according to your taste, that's all:)

Leia Mais

As a fan of Lee Min Ho I can say all his charms were perfectly squeezed together into the character Heo Joon Jae.

The story was interesting but as it progressed it felt unnecessarily long and drawn out. The whole “I’m a conman” was used to pick up the story whenever it got a bit slow so it soon lost all credibility and potential. In all this drama does a lot... too much. There are so many elements from different genres it looses itself and becomes your typical crime drama.

It upset me how the fact she’s (sorry I forgot her name haha!) a mermaid just gets forgotten by the end. It’s never really explored after the first half despite being one of the main plot points. The only reason it’s there is to add even more tragedy to Joon Jaes life which at that point is old news.

The OST isn’t that memorable but does it’s job by setting the tone, but sometimes it’s a bit distracting.

Despite all of that however, i always come back! This makes it sound terrible but I always put this on when I’m going to sleep. The whole tone and atmosphere is addicting added with the direction and cinematography that gives it the mystical vibe. The story as a whole was trying to achieve too much but what came out as a result is a refreshing drama that is entertaining to watch purely for entertainment. If you want a drama that you can dissect I really wouldn’t recommend this to you but it’s definitly worth a watch nonetheless.

Leia Mais