Review: Queen In Hyun's Man

Okay, I'll admit: I did NOT expect Queen In Hyun's Man to be this amazing. It was REALLY surprising to me. I first picked it up because I saw that Yoo In Na was starring in this drama, and I remember liking her adorable role in Secret Garden a while back, so I thought I'd give it a try. Besides, the poster (shown below) was catchy and interesting. I was reluctant to start it at first because of my encounter with another drama called Faith (starring Lee Min Ho and Kim Hee Sun). Faith started out really good and interesting, but at some point I just stopped watching.......... but I'm considering picking it up again because I don't remember why I stopped (lack of free time I think was the main problem). There is an intense amount of drama, action, and heart-wrenching moments!
When I watched the first two episodes, I thought to myself that this was going to be a romantic comedy because Yoo In Na and Kim Jin Woo's character, Han Dong Min, were going at it. But then BAM -- along came Kim Boong Do (played by Ji Hyun Woo), this super badass Joseon scholar who time-travels into the 21st century on a quest to protect his beloved Queen In Hyun, the Joseon queen in his time era. Yeah, all this happens in the first two episodes...

Episodes: 16
Genres: romance, action, melodrama, historical, time-travel, supernatural
Rating: 8.7 / 10

Plot: This is a tale of two people, traversing time in order to reach each other. Kim Boong Do, a scholar and a loyal servant of Queen In Hyun, plotted to reinstate his queen after she was wrongly accused of crimes. He was given a special talisman meant to protect him from danger by his former family slave, Yoon Wol. With the help of this talisman, he escaped death in a sword fight and traveled into modern day Korea, where he meets Choi Hee Jin, an aspiring actress starring as Queen In Hyun in her new drama. Hee Jin gradually teaches Boong Do the ways of the contemporary world, as he begins to learn the true secrets of his talisman and fights to protect those he holds dear in both time eras.

Main Cast:

Choi Hee Jin -- Yoo In Na

Kim Boong Do -- Ji Hyun Woo

Han Dong Min -- Kim Jin Woo

Yoon Wol -- Jin Ye Sol

King Sookjong -- Seo Woo Jin

Queen In Hyun -- Kim Hae In

The Likes:

• Special time-travel: great job to the screenwriter who was able to come up with such a unique approach to the classic time-traveling drama! I especially love the way the talisman was meant to work in order to time travel. The time-travel was also a nice transition away from the typical romantic comedy to a melodramatic masterpiece filled with suspense. 

So jealous of Yoo In Na...

• On-screen chemistry: Yoo In Na and Ji Hyun Woo should just date in real life... OH WAIT... they are dating in real life! I guess it's not totally faking it, but it sure would be super believable if it was just acting. In the drama, Yoo In Na's character is a simple-minded, yet very determined and stubborn girl and Ji Hyun Woo's character is a very mature, focused person. Their chemistry is so good together it's even better than Na + Cl (sorry if you don't get the chem joke.... lol...).

Lady and the Tramp moment: they're so cute together!

• Plot twists: THERE ARE SO MANY plot twists that at times it made me want to cry from frustration and anticipation !!! But this is a good thing - trust me! They brought so much excitement to the story and so much heartbreak at other times :'( -- still a good thing! The plot twists made this drama super memorable and very worthwhile! I can honestly say I could not see the plot twists coming at all, but they came like a tsunami wave and I was a poor little blade of grass with eyes like these: O_O

Their first encounter...

The Dislikes:

• Loose ends: there were a few knots that were not tied at the end - rather, I felt like the main plot was done, but some side plots were unfinished. For example, Choi Hee Jin (Yoo In Na) played Queen In Hyun as her breakthrough acting role in this drama, but her role in this drama just kind of died..... Choi Hee Jin and an already-established actress were catty in the beginning, but the already-established actress and Choi Hee Jin's role in the drama never got resolved -- you don't see how Choi Hee Jin's role as Queen In Hyun was influenced by Kim Boong Do's appearance (Boong Do is the real Queen In Hyun's servant). I felt that Boong Do should have played a larger role in Hee Jin's life in the present. There are scenes when they go on dates, and Boong Do does have a few encounters with Han Dong Min (Hee Jin's co-star in the drama), but there needed to be more conflict in the future!

The talisman that transported Kim Boong Do to the future

• Length of drama: TOO SHORT. At only 16 episodes, the drama's ending was a bit quick for my liking. I consider Queen In Hyun's Man to be one of the better dramas I've seen, but it's too damn short! Sure, there was plenty of drama, romance, action, etc., but I'd like to see the drama expanded a couple of episodes -- maybe include a scenario in which Hee Jin was transported back to the Joseon Era with Boong Do? Even though the drama was only 16 episodes, it did not feel rushed at all - just that I wanted MORE. RAWR.

Two people -- Two worlds -- Endless love between them