Goblin (2016)

just 8 years late...

After 8 years, I finally sat down to watch Goblin, one of the most popular k-dramas ever. Did it live up to the hype? did it fall flat? Down below I break down what I liked about the show and what I liked less.

What I liked
- Lee Dong Wook with his slutty trenchcoat and funny hat 10/10.
- The show probably has the most recognizable soundtrack around. Hits different.
- All of the friendships in the show, probably the best part of the show tbh. Specially the dynamic between the goblin & grim reaper.
- I loved the character of Sunny, kinda obsessed.
- Loved the themes of death, god, immortality etc. Genuinely interesting
- The overall pacing is slow, but at least it's even which is the most important thing for me.

What I couldn't wrap my head around
- Ok, let's just get it over with and talk about the main romantic couple...it just didn't work for me at all. I normally don't mind age gapes that much, however, the main female lead acts more like a 12 year old than a 19 year old. I like Kim Go eun as an actor and she does a good job here as well, but it's more about how the character is written. I don't get why they didn't just age her up? Go Eun was like 24-25 during filming, there was no reason for her to be 19. They could just have made her a university student and written her in a more mature way and the plot would still make sense. Because of this, the main couple just have 0 chemistry, they act more like very fond siblings.
- Some of the editing and camerawork was a bit iffy at times, not a huge issue for me though.
- The ending seemed a bit rushed.

To be honest, this was a pretty difficult show for me to score, so I settled for an 8/10, even though I was planning on giving it a 7.5/10 first. Goblin for me is a show with a lot of great aspects that do a lot of heavy lifting for the show, but also some critical downsides. I did enjoy this show overall and felt emotionally invested in the characters. Do I get why this is one of the most popular k-dramas ever? yeah I can see it. Is it one of the best k-dramas in terms of entertainment and quality? No, absolutely not. Does it live up to the hype for me? Unfortunately, I can't say that it does, but it's still a steller k-drama.

Lire davantage

Not for me …

Goblin is a classic and it’s easy to see why it has gained popularity but this one wasn’t for me.
Strengths
Acting was strong and thought Yoo Na and Kim Dong Wook were absolute delights.
Kim Eun Sook really capitulated audiences
The romance chemistry was sweet
The filming settings were magical also but struggled to get away with the concept and age difference.

Loved the Korean mythology elements

Weaknesses
Slow paced
Age difference too great between leads - understandable after time skip but creepy beforehand
Too many tropes imao

Lire davantage

Just great!

Stay with me was the best song or OST in this drama. I loved it so much and I go back to watch the first episode to listen to that part.

The female lead was great and pure. I loved every moment with her in the screen. The male lead was great as well. The story was spot on. I loved every aspect of it. Even though, it doesn't align with my beliefs, I find it very appealing and smooth. I think this is the first drama where I couldn't hate any character. The cliffhangers and how episodes ends in this drama were out of this world. Especially with the catchy songs.

Lire davantage

Watch this if you want a drama unlike any other ones out there. Totally different and interesting premise and plots, makes you wonder how anyone can even come up with such unique concepts. Wonderful OST and visual effects. The whole drama is a visual treat. Both male leads have such classy, mysterious, cute characters to play and the bromance between them is so adorable. I liked their bromance chemistry better than the chemistry between both romantic pairs. The FL is a bit too young to accept as a match for the 939 year old goblin, thankfully there were no cringey romantic scenes and they show a decent emotional connect between them with no vulgarity. The drama has so many unexpected turns and twists, many joyful and many very sad as well. Nevertheless it kept me engaged and curious to know how it all turned out in the end. I would like to rewatch it down the line but will certainly be skipping all the sad parts, at times it felt like there were too many of them. 10 points for the drama and -1 for so all those crying moments that made it heavy watching every now and them. It would have a high rewatch value if they had made it lighter and more fun overall.

Lire davantage

A bit overrated

The problem was plot longing , and eventually going downfall the more episode you watch , there was exceptionally excessive dramatic moments and also the whole plot was like bamboozled ,and how it started from the first few episodes they couldn't maintain the comedy or the whole story perfectly ,its worth watching ,but i expected better , needed more agendas or subjects , honestly















































so i think its ofcourse a peak drama from dramas of 2016 , but can't be on top 3 in my opinion

Lire davantage

Originale, straziante ma pieno di speranza.

In un mare di drama dove il motore che spinge e arresta le relazioni è la gelosia fra gli attori principali e secondari, Goblin (Guardian: the lonely and great god) spicca per la sua originalità nella trama e nella gestione delle relazioni. La gelosia farà capolino solo di striscio, e sarà men che secondaria.
Soprattutto, è la trama ad essere molto originale, decisamente diversa da qualsiasi cosa abbia mai visto.
Un invincibile generale della dinastia Goryeo viene falsamente accusato di tradimento e assassinato assieme a tutta la sua famiglia da un re geloso e sobillato. La spada che gli piantano in petto lo condanna ad essere un goblin immortale, fino a quando non incontrerà la sua sposa, l’unica che potrà estrarre la spada e liberarlo dal peso dell’immortalità. Nel frattempo, il nostro generale/goblin fa conoscenza anche di un dio della morte e di varie altre persone…
Diciamolo subito: a parte le prime scene, di un’energia pazzesca, l’azione non è il comparto principale di questa serie. Ma Gong Yoo, nei panni del generale Kim Shin, è quanto di più vigorosamente maschio si possa immaginare, senza sconfinare nei palestrati. Anche in abiti civili, Gong Yoo è un attore coi controfiocchi: espressivo il giusto, maturo e coinvolgente senza essere eccessivo.
Mai sopra le righe, sembra essere il mantra di questa produzione. Diktat a cui si uniforma anche Lee Dong Wook, nei panni del grim reaper, un tipo piuttosto impacciato e chiaramente a disagio nei rapporti interpersonali. Il suo personaggio è per certi versi un po’ tonto, e si è calato benissimo nella parte.
La giovanissima Kim Go Eun, che ha magistralmente interpretato la sposa del goblin, ha saputo mantenere alla grande il suo ruolo di collante centrale a quasi tutte le vicende.
Un nutrito stuolo di spalle è riuscito a reggere alla grande il passo di questo magnifico trio. Tutti gli attori, fino alle comparse, hanno fatto un lavoro egregio, una vera gioia per gli occhi, e spesso un colpo al cuore.
Se, specialmente all’inizio, non sono mancate situazioni divertenti, che hanno alleggerito l’atmosfera, verso la fine a prevalere è la tragedia, anche se non così definitiva come si potrebbe pensare. (Eppure, io ancora mi domando quale sarà il destino del solitario goblin.)
Ma non solo di tragedie e amori difficili o impossibili si nutre questo drama. Inserite qua e là, come perle nascoste, ci sono frasi che fanno pensare, che ci parlano per esempio di come il destino a volte ci dia una spinta, se abbiamo fortuna, ma avvisandoci che il resto della strada dobbiamo farla da soli. Ci sono momenti di altissima poesia, lettere e citazioni che rimarranno impresse per molto tempo.
Il regalo di un orologio sarà accompagnato da questo biglietto: “Per tutti i sentieri su cui cammineremo insieme, per tutti i paesaggi che vedremo insieme, con cuore timido ed emozionato, con tutte le domande e le risposte. In tutti quei momenti, ti amo.”
La storia si dipana senza eccessive vicende secondarie, forse a volte rallentando un po' troppo ma, ad essere sinceri, non saprei neppure io cosa tagliare per snellire. Alla fine, tutto è necessario e, soprattutto, originale nel concetto e nello svolgimento. Le relazioni fra gli avvenimenti di 900 anni prima e dopo sono perfettamente spiegate e bilanciate, i personaggi convergono sul palcoscenico come attirati dal magnete del destino. E se in principio Kim Shin sembrava un bambino capriccioso e la sposa una ragazzina troppo vivace, le peculiarità delle loro vite possono spiegare molte cose. Il tempo e le interazioni portano crescite caratteriali importanti.
Ora, so che da più parti si sono alzate voci di dissenso all’idea di una storia d’amore fra una ragazzina di 19 anni e un uomo di 39 (più 900). Sarei stata anch’io fra quelle voci ma, in realtà, finché la sposa era giovanissima la relazione fra i due è rimasta molto delicata, praticamente platonica. Solo più avanti, quando lei è cresciuta, è evoluto anche il loro rapporto.
E' molto ben riuscita la bromance (senza alcuna connotazione BL) fra i due protagonisti principali. La loro amicizia ha aggiunto sale e pepe alla storia.
Giustizia vuole che si parli dell’ottima cinematografia, delle ambientazioni, dei costumi, tutto molto curato e piacevole. Un discorso a parte merita la colonna sonora, impreziosita da alcune canzoni, specialmente l’opening, che non dimenticherò facilmente. Ma anche le musiche di sottofondo vantano alcune tracce molto belle, che ben sottolineano l’azione.
Questa serie mi ha stregato, sono rimasta incollata alla sedia per tre giorni di fila, imprecando quando dovevo staccarmi per fare altro. Insomma, un drama che consiglio caldamente, a meno che non si sia allergici alle lacrime, perché in questo caso le cose si metterebbero male. Come dice il saggio, prima di poter migliorare le cose devono peggiorare.
So che altri la ritengono una noiosissima fiera del cliché. Provare è l'unica strada. A me è piaciuto.

Lire davantage

Answers

I spent hours watching for the ending, but the story lost me. Can someone please help!
1. Why was the goblin still not dead once the sword was removed. Was he not supposed to become extinct after 900 years. ( thats what we were told many times during the episodes)
2. Why was he wondering the desert for 9 years. I thought the almighty has wiped his slate clean and he was finally dead or he can be reborn .
3. The goblin bride comes back again as a school girl, the story starts all over again. No issues about the age difference, but the character really irritated me, i wish she talked less.
I wish the story line ended after she went to the other world and left the rest to our imagination. Definately not the best.

Lire davantage

Beautiful and heartbreaking story

This show was amazingly beautiful to watch especially for the first time. It has a great storyline and great actors.

I really loved the second lead couple. I think they 100% outshined the main couple. I did not really enjoy the main couple in this show. I thought that the female lead being a highschool student was kind of weird. The ending was also unsatisfying to me as a person who cannot stand bad endings and usually tries to avoid them. The ending was not the worst possible as it is seen that the second lead couple do meet in their next life.

The drama was visually very satisfying and the music was amazing. I love all the soundtracks in this series. Also I enjoyed the comedy in this drama especially scenes between Deokhwa and the two male leads were absolutely hilarious. Overall its a very beautiful classic Korean drama.

Lire davantage

One of the best romance kdramas I've watched

Once of the best dramas I've ever watched hands down. The plot was very intricate and the characters were complex. The two main characters had amazing chemistry romantically and all the other main characters had amazing platonic chemistry with each other and the main couple also. Every single episode was very beautifully done and had me looking forward to the next one. Be prepared to laugh a lot but also cry. The soundtrack was also beautiful and added very well to the scenes it was used in. This drama will tug on your heartstrings a lot but is definitely worth the watch. I highly recommend this drama. You will not regret it.

Lire davantage