Book joy and Iljimae rant

[dangermousie]

Kill that baby!

Any book that starts that way can't be all bad :) SMeyer should have paid attention.

Yes, as you can tell, I got my hands on Acheron. There better be loads of angst, is all I am sayin'. Cursed at birth is a good start, so let's hope Kenyon keeps this up.

In other news, I completely lost any interest in finishing Iljimae, even beyond my mini-hiatus from dramas. It's not a bad piece of work, but if that's the most I can say, it's not going to hold me. Someone once compared it to a live action version of a cartoon comic book and it's true. Not much room for nuance or character study there. Lee Junki could do this in his sleep. My basic problem is the script: just like character development, it doesn't go anywhere. It's the opposite of tighly written or arced and it does not evoke any genuine emotions from me. There so many ways the basic story could be made interesting, gripping even, but it has these moments of brilliance and then fades away into nothingness again. I mean, this thing has 24 episodes! The Legend managed to tell a Lord of the Rings type epic fantasy in that much!

So far, Hong Gil Dong is the only take on Robin Hood I liked in kdramas. Not only is the script tight-tight-tight, it actually has a resolution as opposed to Iljimae's supposedly open, most nothing is resolved ending (when you set certain 'goals' in a storyline, they must be resolved, dammit). But most importantly, it manages to have character growth, a mix of humor and angst both successful, and characters I fall madly for (or love to hate). It's tightly written, narratively and character-driven, and makes me feel deeply. Iljimae does none of the above. Oh, and HGD actually also has interesting things to say.

It's amazing what difference a good script makes. A script that knows where it's going. Kang Ji Hwan who plays HGD is amazing, true, but Lee Jun Ki can be equally good, I've seen him. But the script gives him (and others) nothing to work with. It reminds me of Powerful Opponents, another interesting premise that went nowhere.

Comments

[autumn-yaar.livejournal.com]

Good to know I wasn't the only one who thought so of Iljimae. I might keep watching it for LJK [He was the reason I started watching it, these type of stories aren't my thing, HGD being the only exception.], but I've already watched half of the drama and its really boring me! Nothing happens and I was kind of annoyed by the character of Iljimae in the first place. o_o

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yay, I am not alone. And agree on the annoyingness.

[alexandral.livejournal.com]

I stopped watching "Iljimae" , but I am waiting for subtitles. I still like it very much at the end of the episode 11, it is not "The Legend" but it is a very enjoyable period story.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

I agree it's enjoyable, I guess it just doesn't strike me as more: I don't know, I have no emotional connection to it.

[salimbol.livejournal.com]

This makes me sad to hear, as we have just started Powerful Opponents, and Iljimae is on its way to us :-(. I guess I was hoping for another HGD from it.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

No, it's not HGD :(

PO was awesome until last half of last ep and then it just lost me.

[salimbol.livejournal.com]

Dang! Still, I would have said it had a fairly good run for you 95% of the way - but I know that sometimes an ending that doesn't work (or doesn't resolve anything) can really leave a bad taste in your mouth and affect your opinion of the whole thing.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I need to like the ending to like the whole thing, unless the ending is severable.

It did have one of my all time fave male characters though (male bodyguard).

[salimbol.livejournal.com]

I like him too; he kind of reminds me of Mr Spock :-). BTW, did you notice that the actor playing lead lady's little brother was the young Dam Deok from Legend? Man, has he ever sprouted!

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Really, that's him? Wow!

[timescout.livejournal.com]

So it's another one that fizzles out without resolving anything? I knew from the spoilers already that it was not really my thing so I never started. Just as well if the ending kinda sucks too. I still haven't watched the last epis of PO as I got so pissed about how it ended.

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yup. At least PO had a strong story until it went off the rails. Iljimae never did.

[lenabean.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I had high hopes for Iljimae myself and slathering over the idea of it with LJK when it first came out, but it never held my interest (even with LJK--wha???). I couldn't even make it past episode 2, I think...SADNESS.

And I don't remember if I got past episode 1 of Powerful Opponents.

Seriously, where has all the good kdrama GONE?

[dangermousie.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Iljimae had potential but blah.

Gourmet is supposed to be really good but I haven't seen it.