By now a classic and well known, much loved story from China adapted to Korean history with brilliant cinematography, talented ensemble of actors, high production value in a preproduced drama. A must watch for historical fantasy/supernatural romance lovers! The director and executive producer for SHR is Kim Kyu Tae, who is well known for his cinematography where he works with close-ups to show the actors detailed facial expressions and then pulling out to show the settings and location views sparkling with colours and textures. His style is very present in this drama, delivering the atmosphere of each scene and handling transitions very well. The atmosphere becomes overwhelming when the soundtrack is added. This is the first drama I ever watched where I enjoyed every single piece of music used. The OST is a mix of modern songs (that works well because Soo is from the future) and more classical film compositions that gives of a more ancient feeling (even though we know orchestras weren’t a Goryeo thing). I will be crying for a long, long, long time every time I hear the song “Will Be Back” by Im Sun-hye. The story is a supernatural type of fantasy. It’s also portrayed in my favourite type of way; where there is a fantasy element/catalyst but it doesn’t take up the whole story and isn’t the biggest part of the main story. The fantasy element in this story is the time travel. It happens straight from the top in the first episode. What it brings with it is the struggle for our main female lead to adapt to her new surroundings and the choices she makes. I would also say it’s more of a supernatural time travel, since she isn’t physically moved, it’s only her soul that is transported. A drama full of flowerboys and idol actors, can be a scary thing to start watching if you’re not here for your favourite Oppa. However, the director has handled the juniors very well and made them all have their shining moments. And this drama is full of moments for each and every one in the ensemble. The veteran actors that support and lead this drama are all on fire and delivering perfectly. I would say it’s unnecessary to worry about the novice cast. The idols where more present in the story during the first part, but screen time was slowly phased out until the end where we were left with what I would like to call “the real” actors. This worked well since the atmosphere in this story slowly turns from feel good to tragic, where the real talent was needed. It never really bothered me, because I didn’t notice any lack of talent. I believe this was well handled by the director. I will give a quick shootout to my favourite characters in this drama. Park Ji-Young who played the 4th, 3rd and 14th princes mother, Queen Yoo is a true veteran and an excellent actor. Her role was incredibly hard and she pulled it off completely believable. I hated her to bits and constantly wanted to bitchslap her. She helped balance and portray the struggle of acceptance the 4th Prince constantly had, giving a good backstory to his character and his drive and motivations. Ji Soo playing 14th Prince, is an up and coming actor (should he now be called a veteran after portraying support characters in 7 dramas and two films?) and he truly shined. In the last part of the series his role became more crucial to the story and his screen time showed his potential to become something really big. I will for sure keep my eye out for more dramas with him in the future. Nam Joo-Hyuk playing 13th prince, is also an up and coming actor (soon to be the lead in his own drama, with 4 previous supporting roles on his resume list) who definitely nailed the role. It was as if this character was written just for him. He has never disappointed me and he is firmly on my list as a very talented actor. So how were the leads doing? Lee Joon Gi as 4th Prince, Kang Ha-Neul as 8th Prince and of course Lee Ji-Eun (IU) as Hae-Soo. I have high expectations of these leads and would say they delivered to my satisfaction. What was a bit confusing before I got used to it is the different acting styles, that the director didn’t really manage to meld into something complementary of each other. Lee Joon Gi (4th) is a historical/fantasy veteran, this is his element, this is where he is on fire and burns as the hottest star in Hallyu land. In his scenes he really pulls the show and I get the feeling not only the audience is swept away but also the actors he is acting with. What I love most about this actor is not only how he carries dialogue and can use minimal face gestures to deliver his emotions, but how he actually uses his whole body to convey and tell. It’s electric. I was fully enjoying LJG as an anti-hero in a dark and sometimes truly evil type of role for the first time in his career. Kang Ha Neul (8th) has sadly passed me by and I have not noticed him in previous dramas. However, he is wonderful and was well casted as the 8th Prince. I believe he did a good job and the difference between him and 4th was very obvious, as it should be since this is a big part of the story. Lee Ji Eun (Soo) should after this be considered not only an idol but also an actress. I will now stop calling her an “idol-actress” and I think she deserves to get recognition. She was good. She has some talent. I wasn’t really disappointed with the results. I am however hugely disappointed with the director who failed to melt her stiff porcelain doll face for more than a twitch. I am actually just going to guess that this has been so drilled into her during her idol career as a baby doll/Lolita, that she is having troubles moving on from the idol baby open lips constant surprise face. But apparently the Koreans love that kind of shit so… it didn’t bother me the first half of the show, but it did start to bother me the second. The leads chemistry… personally for me… well, not really. Still I was super invested in the love between Soo and 8 and Soo and 4. Really! I wanted it, I needed it, I was immersed and found it believable. The guys were super hot and I understand that I just don’t get the sex appeal of the type of innocent stiff as a rock thing that Soo brought to the table. You, however, might find this the hottest thing since Pompeii. There’s something there. I just need more response from the woman than what was shown. The main story is the romance, their lives the character development. This is well paced and well supported by the side plots who all tie in with the main story. How do these people come to know each other, why and how do they all fall in and out of love and friendships. They show that people are not completely black and white. Someone can be loveable but still have a dark side. Especially well written was the story about Wang So (4th Prince) who has a terrifying and tragic past, you can't dismiss it. Even though he changes for the better, going back to a monster is not out of character and never really far away. He is pushed and pulled from all sides. I’ve been struggling with how to write this review without drawing parallels and comparing to the Chinese drama, how to only describe my impressions of this series excluding my impressions and memory of the story portrayed in the Cdrama. Especially since I know this series was based on the book, which I haven’t read, and not the Cdrama which I have seen. But let’s be honest, I am heavily influenced in my opinion of this drama by my experiences, not only the Cversion but also other historical romantic dramas I have watched, which is how we all form our opinions. Above I have tried to write my review towards both those completely new to this story and those who have watched the Cversion or read the book. I will now get into the comparison with the Cversion. I am absolutely amazed of the excellent adaption they made with the script. This is not an easy remake to produce. The original book takes place in China and a lot of work has gone into rewriting the setting around the story to become Goryeo era, assigning roles to the historical people but still keeping the main story without destroying the very special core that is so emotional and wonderful. This is not a drama to watch if you want a history lesson, or a drama where you are entitled to become annoyed when it’s not historically correct. It’s a fantasy that borrows times, names and places from the real world and then warps them. But I think it's important for viewers to know, Goryeo era worked different from Joseon era, especially when it came to women rights, how their beauty standards was a real thing (scars are unacceptable in the royal court) and also that the 4th Prince was known to have been thrown away, shunned and he actually did have a scar on his face. There are more things accurate in this drama, but those are the main issues I have seen people question. I seriously wish the Kversion had 35 episodes as the Cversion! However, I am amazed at how they managed to produce it with 20 episodes. They skipped a third of the Chinese drama and lots of really nice side plots, but it turns out they weren't really needed. Some of the side stories were shuffled around and didn’t happen in the same order as the Cversion. I felt that worked well, but I can’t pretend I wasn’t worried until I realized they had been reordered. I enjoyed the relationship changes, they were much better portrayed in the Korean version. I do understand them, their changes, their frustration the issues they can't overcome and how Soo feels she needs to get away. But I am wondering if it's the Chinese version that is leaking into my understanding? Because I see fans complaining about different issues in the story development and I can't agree with them. For me, it has been clear as day. So why do I see what others don't see? I found it much clearer in this version how the love became corrupted and how new love blossomed. How love is different, how we can love people in different ways, even if it’s just as strong. My biggest pet peeve with the Cversion was when Royxy left 8 and moved on to 4. I just didn’t follow that transition and it took some time before I got invested with them. In the Kversion, there is a spark established very early on and the actual moment she moves on is clear as day and very believable. Some points of comparison I feel I want to mention are: Prince 13th story and friendship with Soo wasn't built up as well as in the Cdrama. This could be due to them moving his whole arch until the later parts. I also didn’t really follow Soo's friendship with all the girls. I realize this was a time issue. It happened, we just didn’t see it developing on screen in the Kversion. I also wish they had built and strengthened 14th relationship with Soo. In the Cversion he constantly nagged her to come out of the palace with him. But perhaps this was enough for people to understand how he was the one who was there for her in the end, how she could trust and chose him to be her safe haven at the very end. I am surprised of how much airtime they gave 10 without clearly managing to show how he truly came to love his wife. This part is much more clear in the Cversion with just as much airtime. Again I need to mention that the love changes from 8 to 4 was incredibly well done. And that by the atmosphere, acting, cinematography and cutting. Immensely satisfying. The 4th Prince had a much deeper and more tragic background than in the Cversion. This suited the story better. I never really thought 4th had the build up for becoming so cruel as he did in the Cversion. I do miss the kneeling scene from Chinese version. You know the one… the one we all want. Imagine having 8 royal Princes kneeling in the rain for you (well it was because of 13, but Rouxy was the trigger). It was my favourite scene. Though, they did keep the scene where 4 covering her from the rain with his cloak. The Kversion teased much more action than the Chinese... I was ready for it but it never executed. None the less, since I know the Cversion didn't have that type of all out war/action I am ok with it. My final conclusion is that Koreans really know how to produce dramas. This adaption is just as good as the Chinese version. I think it’s one of the best dramas I have ever watched and will recommend it. It is definitely on par with the Cversion, both having their own strong points and weak points. I would say this is a must watch for drama lovers who like historical fantasy, can do without really deep political issues and just want to get into the love, rivalry and friendship parts. As a finishing side note: Should you watch the Cversion before the Kversion? I really don’t think you have to. But I highly recommend the drama because it's also very good and because it's one of the Chinese classical must watch dramas. Perhaps you know… you can be wild and crazy and start with the Kversion and then go watch the Cversion, because they both hold up equally towards each other. Not to mention the Cversion will surely give you more, much, much more of what you will love about the Kversion. Let me know if that worked for you! I actually wish I still could watch the Cversion for the first time again after watching this. Thanks for reading I hope I helped make you decide. :)