This drama is seriously a roller coaster ride and definitely one of my favorite dramas! Binge-watched the whole drama in 2 days because it was seriously that good. Every episode had something new happening or a problem that needed to be resolved, nothing dragged but rather things started falling into place as I kept watching. I think the rating should be higher than 8.0 on here however it was the ending that was not it for me and I think everyone got disappointed which led to a lower rating. Going to list the pros and cons of the drama overall, the main cast and the ending:

Overall aspects of drama:
- Although classified as a "makjang" which I never knew what it was until I discovered this drama, I really enjoyed the uniqueness of the story/plot as it wasn't some cliché story like many dramas nowadays.
- Some plot holes here and there but I think at this point all k-dramas have plot holes.
- Considering the room walls in the palace are so damn thin that anyone could listen to the empress talking to Woo Bin while they were discussing their plans annoyed and stress me out. I think it would've been more realistic if they had a meetup spot or at least discussed somewhere not near the entrance of her room.
- Comedic/humorous parts were a advantage and disadvantage. I say that because it helped calm things down when there was so much drama and had a bit of cute scenes but it also led to a really bad ending. It made things seem not as serious as it was with the empress dowager's sins she'd committed. Idk but it just felt like because there was some humor to the drama it drifted a bit and I think that led to the unsatisfying ending for me.
- The island secret was underwhelming to me? I understand the human testing part was bad etc but I was expecting something really bad or extreme considering how much the empress dowager wanted to keep it a secret. I feel like if it involved a darker topic like human trafficking with drugs then it would've made more sense and made the plot better.

Sunny:
- I loved the transition of her from being a naïve person to have developed courage and becoming smarter in order to survive in the palace and take down the empress dowager
- I love Jang Nara's personality as she seems really kind and genuine but I personally don't like her acting too much. I found her happy naïve personality in the beginning somewhat annoying but really stayed for the drama overall. I feel like she has this childish vibe (when acting) that makes me not like her acting but I'm glad she's starting to get "boss lady" roles for her new dramas. I've imagined other actresses in her spot and think that would've been a better choice.
- I was so hooked with the drama that at first I thought that Sunny's chemistry with both Woo bin and Lee Hyeok were great but after finishing the drama I realized she didn't have much chemistry with both the male leads. For Woo Bin they definitely had something going on and started to fall in love but it was so weird with Woo Bin's death because it didn't show Sunny mourning his death, almost like she forgot about him. As for Lee Hyeok, he started to fall in love with Sunny through mostly jealousy and when he started to change which by then Sunny didn't have much feelings for him. Somehow after Lee Hyeok's death it shows Sunny mourning his death and flashback scenes of them together. It makes sense since he was her first love but disregarding Woo Bin ruined everything. With the way the writers planned the love relationships at the end didn't make any sense to me and was a big factor of why the ending fell through.

Woo Bin:
- Glad that he was able to see Yura's true self early on in the drama rather than him blindly still in love with her when he entered the palace. Also liked how he wasn't wavering when finding out that Yura had killed his mom
- Some say his character is dry but I didn't find it to be as it made sense with the plot since he was after revenge for his mothers death. If anything this drama made me see Jin Hyuk's charms. I like his character development and his love for his mother.
- I think if they were going to make him fall for Sunny, there should've been more scenes where they developed more chemistry as it was a bit lacking.

Lee Hyeok:
- This man has seriously made everyone that hated him to loving his character. His acting is phenomenal and I will definitely check out his other dramas.
- Liked seeing his character development of being a vicious and cold emperor to knowing how to love and empathize with others (especially Sunny).
- I felt his ending was rushed. Somehow he wanted to carry out the deed by disguising as Woo Bin and going to his mother's island was weird to me.
- The writers made it so that we pity him for how he was brought up by his mother, shaped him into a bad human being which led to his actions etc but seeing his change made everyone not hate him as much lmao

Yura:
- Lee Elijah is such a great actress that I preferred watching her more than Jang Nara even though she's the mistress lol she really portrayed her character so well to make us hate her and her expressions were well executed. Such a great actress I love her now haha
- We later learn how she was trying to avenge for her life being ripped apart by the imperial family which is why she became a secretary and used Lee Hyeok however, I find it weird that she went to the extent of killing Woo Bin's mother which is also her mother as she raised her and cared for her. Like if she was after the imperial family she should've just been honest and told Woo Bin and his mother about what happened to her fiancé. It wasn't necessary to kill her mother when she could've explained everything. In the beginning I didn't question much as I just thought she was a horrible person wanting to live the lavish life being with Lee Hyeok. Until her real intentions were revealed that's when things got confusing with her character because of what she did to WB's mother but it also helped develop the plot in why she was trying so hard to win Lee Hyeok's heart. So somewhat of a positive and negative with that.
- I can't justify how she didn't die but Woo Bin did after killing his mother and the other acts she committed. Near the end we were made to pity her for what she went through and not hate her as much as she allied with the empress but I still think her life should've been traded with Woo Bin.
- I'm assuming that after being struck on the head she somehow has amnesia or a mental illness as shown from her personality at the end but if they made Woo Bin die then it would've made more sense to have her dead as well, sorry but I still think its not right with what happened with Woo Bin.

Ending:
- Woo Bin's ending was horrible and I'm just speechless with how they didn't have closure for him. I find it weird how he was suddenly being chased by Head Pyo, tied up to be bombed at the celebratory event. Not even that but the way he flew out from the corner and then it just focused on Lee Hyeok and Sunny. I really thought that the burnt body was fake, that he somehow didn't die and would show up in the last episode but he didn't.
- Not sure if I missed it but at the end it just shows Team Leader Choi and the empress dowager's interactions in prison which made me confused because empress dowager was sentenced to a death penalty like Seo Kang Hee, so that part was unsatisfying.
- The scene where Woo Bin, Sunny and Yura go to the island to figure out the secret was not done right. It should've involved them finding the "lab building" that Lee Hyeok came across in the last episode. The 3 of them should've discovered that instead of Lee Hyeok disguising as Woo Bin and then later being killed by his mother. Imo the empress dowager should've died in place of Lee Hyeok, so he would redeem himself at the end for his sins and be a better person in the future.
Repeated this many times but Woo Bin really should've not died & ended up with Sunny at the end. PERIODT.