[Confession] Hwarang: The Beginning
Before anything else, I would like to define my drama reviewing:
First, I won't be posting episode recaps for dramas because i don't trust my character - I tend to get lazy when I have routines to accomplish and
Second, sometimes when I decide to watch a drama, I depend my continuance on the first episode. So if ever I am interested in a drama, I will watch the first episode and I will review it just to see how it goes. If I liked it, I'll have a continuation review after I finished the whole thing.
Kke, let's go! :D
When I found out that the "Oh Boy" Franchise's new installment is Hwarang, I was so ecstatic that I admit I was going into this drama incredibly because I'm biased to like it. I am fond of every male cast injected in this drama - especially Park Seo Joon and Kim Tae Hyung (BTS' V) - so I had high hopes for Hwarang to not only serve me eye-candies but also get me flutter. wiiii~
Here is the synopsis of the drama:
Drama series depicts the story of Hwarang (literally "Flowering Knights") - an elite group of male youth in during the Kingdom of Silla.
Thankfully, I was delighted with the first few episodes of the drama. The first part gave me so much feels that I was already invested in the characters and their struggles, and look forward to learning more about them and watching them as they come together to form the Hwarang. The men were also intriguing, and I love that they each seem to have their own mystery. One thing the show seems to have done very right is the casting because everyone seems well-suited to their roles. The first part of the drama was entertaining, comic and shows the potential friendship these boys could have - and I'm fascinated with their Bromance more than any of their love stories combined.
On the other hand, the ladies in this drama were such a pain in the ass. The Queen, the Princess and Ah Ro were a pushover, conceited and a troublemaker, respectively. I liked Ah Ro in the beginning because she was independent with an aura of spunk especially when she tell tales. Unfortunately when the loveline bloomed, she served as little more than a very pretty prop to move the boys around, and seemed to be useful for no other reason than to make Sun Woo and Jinheung dislike each other. And honestly, I would've liked it if she ended up with Jinheung because I believe she had best chemistry with him than Sun Woo.
Sadly, Hwarang was a show that allowed most of its story — the part we actually wanted to see — to happen off-screen, most notably the Hwarang training, and the boys learning to be friends and be loyal to one another rather than towing their parents’ party lines. I remembered rooting for friendship and adventures in my first part of Hwarang review. And don’t even get me started on the many, many plot holes that the show had, and the list is a long one. Of course, the untold story I’ll miss the most is the bromance-that-wasn’t, collectively among the entire Hwarang, but specifically between Sun Woo and Jinheung. I could watch them tease each other endlessly in return of Ah Ro's flat and uninteresting love story with Sun Woo. My slightly pat on the back was that the drama wrapped up in a high note. It was a nice resolution to the whole thing.
That said, the actors did their best with what they were given, and the show was certainly beautiful to look at (my funny take on Seo Joon's inconsistent hairstyles haha) Though, if you can watch it without thinking too hard, it’s actually a pretty entertaining drama. It’s just that it gave us too much filler and not enough meat. Still, I want to end this review on a happy note: Hwarang definitely was stuffed with talented actors, particularly the male actors (*ehem* Park Hyung Shik *ehem*), and I wish them the best of luck and good, strong dramas in the future. For now, I'm congratulating myself for finishing my first-ever historal drama. Hooray!
My Rating:
Plot: 6.5/10
Acting: 7.5/10
Cinematography: 7.0/10
Characters: 8.6/10
Uniqueness: 5.6/10
OVERALL RATING: 7.0