Possibly the most uninteresting sageuk I have ever watched. What could have been a most poignant, emotionally stirring story of forbidden love between the prince and princess of two enemy kingdoms, turns into a horribly messed up, half-hearted attempt at making a great historical drama! The plot progresses at a snail's pace and right after it advances 5 steps, it takes 10 steps back and this keeps on going till the last episode. Casting is shoddy and the acting is either over-the-top exaggerated or too mellow. Jo Hyun Jae as Seo Dong/Prince Mookang possibly features in his worst role ever. He doesn't act, emote, mouths dialogues like a robot and he has no chemistry at all with Lee Bo Young. Worst part is, right when you reach the happy resolution of all conflicts, they ruin the ending by trying to make it tragic and serious. Sheesh! I cannot believe the writer of this drama is the same person who wrote Queen Seon Deok, which is near flawless in every aspect. The saving grace of this drama are Lee Bo Young as Princess Seonhwa, Ryu Jin as Giroo and Heo Young Ran as Princess Wooyoung (she, specially, shows astonishing character growth and integrity towards the end and does a fine job) who instill some vigour into a lifeless drama with their nuanced performances. Otherwise this is simply a terrible drama. I hope the folksong 'Ballad of Seo Dong' is dramatized again by a better production house with more talented writers who shun mindless cliches and actors who can translate this extremely powerful story of forbidden love into a worthwhile onscreen adaptation.