My Dearest Part 2 (2023)

Not as good as part 1

While I absolutely loved part 1, part 2 felt disjointed. ML and FL had a lot more interactions but before they did, but the story had way too many useless characters and frustrating plotlines.

There were a lot of scenes where ML and FL almost met but missed each other by a hair. At first, it was ok, but later became very frustrating because the writers overdid it. Some characters and storylines were pointless. What was the deal with the Chinese princess and her unrequited love for Jang Hyun? It didn't move the plot forward, but created unnecessary conflict that was more frustrating than meaningful. The princess got no character development and her arc ended in a very underwhelming way. She was cruel and selfish, and I expected Jang Hyun to deal with her in a smart way. But he told her he was leaving and she accepted it, the end. Gil Chae getting abducted to Qing also felt off. It was a tool for her to meet Jan Hyun, but the plotline felt like a forced cop out, rather than a natural story progression.

It also felt like the writers changed their mind with the direction of the story. They made a big deal about women being abused in one household because of a jealous wife. But Gil Chae spent very little time there, then left, and that was it. The arc with Gil Chae marrying the sergeant was also completely pointless. It was another tool to keep ML and FL apart for a bit longer without serving any other purpose.

The entire part 2 felt like a forced attempt to continue with the story post war, except there was not as much conflict and action. A lot of story arcs felt uninspired and forced. I wish the war plotline wouldn't have ended in part 1. This was when the story was at its best.

Leia Mais

A review of both part 1 and 2

What both stunned and impressed me the most about the kdrama My Dearest, right at the very start, was how focused it was on the ordinary people and how they deal with war. And what the war does to them. It makes it less of a war epic and more of a human tale of self-preservation and hope at a trying time. which I found to be quite a fresh approach to this kind of historical drama, although many will no doubt find it rather slow and dry in its execution and style.

The story is ruthless in its realism and harshness with how it seems to paint the world. The narrative is very willing to comment on several aspects within society that it tells it’s tale, the nobility and their uselessness, the lack of care that a certain position within society seems to push into you for the people that live around them, as well as society’s attitude towards women in wartimes and just their position in society both outside of that as well. The way it uses these elements to shape itself, the details it shares throughout the story is very tangible, interesting but also poignant. It is incredibly well thought out and effective within the narrative to stir up further emotions both with the characters and the viewers.

These are not the heroes that poems are sung about, but seem to be more everyday heroes of the common folk. Most of their influence is not great within the grand scheme of things, but it is the people who knew them who will always remember them with kindness and love. They are the ones who will tell the stories about them until they disappear from human memory and are forgotten.

At some point, despite their intelligence and strength, as the war and the hardships seem to tighten more and more around them, the characters seem to wear down a bit. But they never lose who they are, their will to fight but how they go about fighting, how they deal with situations changes a little. All that happens very slowly and works very realistically within the story. It’s a really well-handled look at character, as well as how normal people deal with such situations.

The characters do feel sharp and manage to be both a fresh take on the traditional characters that we get in a Korean historical dramas, but at the same time they have quite a bit of the characteristics that we are used to seeing; Jang-hyun may come across as smug and aloof, and Gil-chae may come across as snobbish and somewhat self-interested. But there’s a lot more to them and their flaws are very presant within the story. Overall there are plenty of multi-layered characters that make My Dearest a rather worthwhile and heart-wrenching watch. Everyone has something to say in their own way and all have some point to emphasize within the story. The story touches your heart from beginning to end if people just allow themselves to enter this cruel, realistic world with these characters as a guiding light.

The plot itself goes through its ups and downs, and it does hit a bit of a lull within the second half where the story tends to repeat itself quite often. Characters almost miss each other a few times over the course of few episodes in order to create tension and longing within the viewers, and since the story is already slow by nature it might make some people really struggle. It makes it seem like the story has lost steam and doesn’t really pick up fully until right near the end. But if the characters manage to grab you and make you completely fall for them in the first half of the story, it’s perfectly tolerable.

The story never seems to fall into being too epic or too grandiose in its approach to the narrative, as some costume dramas tend to do to make their heroes seem bigger. Much rather My Dearest seems so focused on being realistic and grounded in reality like it has a bit of an obsession with the human spirit and the lengths to which people will go to survive. It run through the very heart of the series. And the love story, which is really successful on its own, reflects that. It’s very slow and down to earth and it’s quite unusual for a kdrama in lots of ways.

The story takes its time, sometimes excessively so, and repeats itself a bit too often, but even if it takes the story a good while it manages to underline every point that the drama set out to make really well. The story always seemed to know what it wanted to say. And the humanity that this series carries with it and manages to reflect within the narrative does make you cry many times. It’s gorgeous, it’s heartwarming and filled with hope for brighter days that is always enveloped by a little bit of sadness.

Leia Mais

Lost steam from Part 1, but still a worthy watch

After a heart-breaking finish to Season 1, the story turns once again to the Qing invasion and the atrocities committed in the aftermath on a chaotic, fractured, and helpless Joseon. Only the efforts of officials and people on the ground like Jang Hyun, working with the hostage Crown Prince, are tenuously holding the country together. Despite the horrific suffering of Joseon prisoners of war, Gil Chae manages to rebuild some of the comfortable lifestyle she was accustomed to but is shockingly reminded that class is meaningless in an oppressed state. There are also stark reminders of how women are truly expendible victims. I was waiting to see what choices the characters made when pushed to extremes and this season had some of the most riveting scenes. The tone was lightened at times with romantic tropes (pretending to be sick to get attention) which seemed out of place in a drama of this caliber.

At around Ep15 I suddenly remembered the opening scene of Ep1 which takes place more than 20 years after the 1637 invasion. It was worth a re-watch to find hints at a very tragic conclusion for our heroes. The announcement of an extension came after Ep8 aired and I wondered if there would be a hopeful epilogue. Unfortuately, after Ep20 the Ep1 opening sequence was not yet reached in the story and I was left wondering if the extension had already been inserted. There was no added value to Eps 19&20 and they could easily have been combined into one. Ep1 is recapped in the finale, Ep21.

At times throughout the drama I kept feeling a disconnect between Gil Chae and Jang Hyun's relationship and their surroundings, like I was watching 2 separate shows. Political events deeply affected each of them separately and this was infused into how they dealt with each other during Part 1. However, that influence seemed less evident in Part 2 even though the political pressures never went away. They lived and worked separately for so long that there wasn't much that they actually did for/with each other. It was as if Eps19/20 were there just to make up for their separation, more couple less story, and I felt the show lost momentum at this point as all the other characters got moved to the sidelines. However, the finale felt right once more as loose ends got tied up.

All in all, the acting was among the strongest I've seen in any show (I still think The Red Sleeve's demented king was an acting masterclass). Although Part 2 seemed to run out of steam in the 2nd half, the strong production, story telling, and deep dives into the human psyche makes this show worth watching.

Leia Mais

When It’s Fate..its Fate

Part 1 of "My Dearest" was undeniably a masterpiece, setting a high standard that Part 2 had to live up to. While I was glad to see the continuation, my expectations were naturally elevated.

Throughout the episodes of Part 2, I remained optimistic. Despite any shortcomings in the storyline, witnessing the journey of our main characters, the ML and FL, reminded me to cherish the moments of joy they shared. It's a valuable lesson—to focus on the positives amidst the challenges.

Admittedly, there were moments in the drama that seemed far-fetched, where our leads couldn't catch a break. However, I choose to interpret it as the writer's portrayal of fate prevailing against all odds.

Namkoong Min's exceptional acting, worthy of the Baeksang Award, undoubtedly salvaged some of the shortcomings of Part 2. While some may dismiss this drama as a waste of time, it still had its fair share of heart-fluttering moments and comedic scenes, making it a worthwhile watch in my eyes.

Leia Mais

Lacking compared to part1

My review is for the second half of the drama rather than the entire drama. I quite loved the first half (part 1) but this second half (part 2) was so much more weaker.

The first 3 episodes are decent, there are light moments (when you compare to the tragedies of the first part) and hope. But episodes 4 - 9 were such a drag to watch. You get brief moments of happiness and then problems. To the point that it seemed like a never-ending mess. I was prepared for a tragic ending. Apart from that, the story was really moving slowly with not much happening. You can easily watch these episodes on 2x because everyone talks so slowly.

Some of the characters really annoyed me. One being the king. He was so hell bent on retaining power and his position that he lost trust in everyone including his ministers, his son, and his people. To target his own people who already faced so much was simply unforgiveable according to me. What does loyalty mean if the other party unreasonably wants to sentence you to death in order to feel "peace"?

The other character was the scholar who acted all noble and could see that the king's fears are driving him to cruelty and he made the same exact choices by giving into his unreasonable fears. Though it just proved that he was always a cruel man and he never regretted his part mistakes. He would repeat them again without much hesitation.

Finally, it was Officer Gu, who we all knew was not worthy of marrying Gil Chae.

It's easy to blame the "barbarians" for the sufferings of the people of Joseon but this part highlighted that the people of Joseon were far more cruel to their own. They abandoned their own family and wives and sisters and daughters if they deemed them to be "tainted" and were obsessed with keeping Joseon "clean". They were willing to kill their own by labelling them as traitors without proof. They forced women to kill themselves. They humiliated anyone who survived. They truly disgusted me because instead of easing each others suffering and giving each other comfort after all the hardships and sorrows, they rejected and ridiculed them instead. They didn't allow their own people to heal. So the real traitors were the ones who escaped "unscathed". Problem is, I don't know if majority of the audience will understand this because of the way it was presented. Unless you can relate to being "othered" in your own country, it's unlikely that most of the audience will understand this aspect of the story because of the way it is presented. It will probably get sidelined as an aspect of war.

The last two episodes were the best compared to the rest of this part. Though there are again unnecessary hurdles and part of me wanted to know what happened to all the politics that we were forced to suffer through, I am glad we were not forced to suffer more on the leads' story front. If not for the last 2 episodes, I would have certainly scored this part lower just for those middle episodes. The male lead also said and did all the right things and he truly was a blessing for everyone. The growth of the female lead was also nice to see and a good contrast between part 1 and 2.

One aspect they glossed over is what exactly happened to Ryang Eum.

The OST of this show continues to be enjoyable.

Leia Mais

master class in emotive story telling

Very much like my review of the first season you will find yourself emotionally invested in this second half of the story. The characters have survived the invasion but that does not mean the war is over. The remnants and all the things that follow are equally as brutal and painful to watch but so beautifully done and acted to perfection. I hated the King and is paranoia and cruelty. I sympathized with the Crown Prince and his struggle to survive a foreign land to finally make it home and find himself having to struggle to survive again. His want to keep promises and fear of what that would mean. I hated the Princess and her selfishness but empathized with her want to be loved. Every character, no matter how big or small was written and portrayed in a realness that will take your heart and pull it in a hundred directions.

Cons:
-the timeline: I found the timeline on this hard to follow and still do not completely understand how long things happened and how one character had his hair turn white but everyone else looked exactly the same
-the constant push and pull of their relationship
-for me there was too much focus on the political aspect with no real follow through conclusion
-the ending did not give me closure, I felt like I needed more. Jang Hyun's past was almost glossed over, you don't get answers about Ryang Eum and why he ended up where he did, for how long, or what happened after, and while they tied the first and last episodes together by making the show as if it was the story being told from the character in the beginning I would have liked to understand the why a bit more
-amnesia used not once but twice on the same person

Pros:
-character development from start to end for all the characters was phenomenal from the main characters down to the side characters. Everyone went through change in whichever direction and it made sense according to their characters
-beautifully shot with appropriate camera angles
-the aesthetic for the post war world and the gradual change in colors that shows the maturity and aging of the characters was done well
-music was beautiful and accompanied their scenes very well without ever feeling repetitive or too much
-Jang Hyun is a major reason I watched this show because I am a sucker for a man that will do literally everything for his person

I can not say that this is a favorite of mine but it is a powerful work that will stick with me for a while.

Leia Mais

"그 무엇이든, 난 길채면 돼."

Of course, romance is what the drama primarily is, but it is not a sweet one. Just as equal of a part is the political rivalries inside and outside of the country that only bring tragedy and destruction to the lives of regular people. Another the themes played, another one is the loyalty to the state VS the loyalty to the people.

?️The main character is the person of free thought and nonconformity to the traditional society structure. He doesn't believe in sacredness of marriage, "purity", he doesn't evaluate someone's worth based only on their social status. And why would he? He experienced the highs and lows. But don't be tricked by this character because he is not an ideological hermit, and asceticism is the last thing he would ever want. He plays by the rules to improve his wealth and help those in need. Lee Jang Hyeon, although he is indeed great in business, doesn't lack empathy and courage despite his unwillingness to give up on his image of an unapproachable privileged weirdo. He is devoted to helping the lower class citizens wronged by their own government that had to protect them. Jang Hyeon will and does go out of his way if somebody relies on him desperately, even if that will cause issues with the aristocracy and the King himself.


The drama doesn't aim to appeal to the modern viewer through Lee Jang Hyeon. Rather, on the contrast with him, it shows the traditional old and prejudiced society where the life of a woman was expected to end in shame if she was sexually harassed or raped. This narrative of women suffering from the old customs is present throughout the whole drama, and it plays a significant role in the story. Gil Chae and almost all the female characters suffer from this ostracism, as if invasion of Qing, enslavement and food scarcity is not enough. Seemingly, the shared struggle should unite the people, but in this case almost everyone faced humiliation from the invaders, and probably sought out to blame someone else to feel better for themselves.



?️I appreciate the drama for not reserving to only bleak or only bright colors and for allowing heartwarming and hilarious moments among the violence, blood, and uncertainty of mid-Joseon. Although, in my opinion, the drama suffers from the repetitiveness in relationships between Gil Chae and Jang Hyeon that made me grow tired by the final. 12-16 episodes would be just fine with no need to divide the release in 2 parts, which also made me feel like the buzz around it gets lower despite the ratings doubling ×2.4 from the first to the last episode.

Leia Mais