El cuento de Nokdu (2019)

A surprise hit. Very strong show, from start to finish.

Had I relied too heavily on the reviews here on MyDramaList, I wouldn't have given this show a fair shot. I'm *so glad* I took a chance because I thought it was easily one of my favorite kdramas (and I've watched over 70 so far in the past 1.5 years). It wasn't perfect, but it was engaging, well-acted, well-choreographed, well-thought-out, and well-executed. I notice that I tend to agree with the reviewers over at Dramabeans in their assessments of shows and was pleasantly surprised to see that they rated it a 9.6/10 and with good reason. I breezed through the entire series without skipping any scenes and absolutely gobbled it all up. I'm sad it's over.

Acting:

ML & FL
I'd only seen the FL (Kim Sohyun) in Love Alarm and since her character frustrated me immensely with her romantic choices (I'm still so salty she didn't choose Song Kang in EITHER SEASON), I had a bad bias toward her and thought her acting felt a bit forced and wooden. She totally caught me by surprise with her acting in this show. She was wonderful, emotive, and had great physical acting as well. Her chemistry with the ML (Jang Dongyoon) was natural both during the show and especially in BTS. They're so cute together!

I've been meaning to watch Jang Dongyoon in something and I'm so glad this was my first experience watching him act. He did an incredible job as Widow Kim and as Nok Du. He had such subtle shifts in his body language and voice depending on whether he was near the other widows and in his female persona, or when he was around Dong-Joo. It was so fun to see his body language suddenly shift into a more masculine gait and posture, and hear his voice drop several octaves lower all while still dressed as a woman. He was able to easily come across as a beautiful woman, and also give me butterflies with his masculine physique.

Side Characters

Antagonist
TOTALLY UNEXPECTED. I had only seen Kang Tae-Oh in Run On as a sensitive, overly nice, overly aloof character who spent the majority of his time fawning over his CEO noona, so this was a complete 180 and I *loved* it. He first comes across as that same love-sick, funny friend then totally whips into the most unexpected and vicious villain who arrested my attention whenever he was on screen. He also looks *fantastic* in his black war regalia.

I also want to give points to his right hand, Dan-Ho. I'd never seen him before and he was a scene-stealer as well. His gaze was lethal as was his sword.

The King
I both empathized and hated him. This is one of the highlights of The Tale of Nokdu that I couldn't get enough of. Characters you're meant to hate still tugged at your heart and made you pity them. The story had so many layers and the King, at moments, made me feel like he could be redeemed.

The Queen
I *LOVED* the Queen. Oh my heart. She was a beautiful, strong, and heart rendering character. I'm so glad she was able to finally reunite with her son.

Dongyoon's Family
- Great chemistry. The relationship between Nok Du and his brother was heartbreaking and I rooted for them throughout the series to reconcile. I also really loved Aeng-du. She's a firecracker.

The Widow Village
I loved these women. I rooted for them and thought they were an admirable, brave bunch.

OST
Very pretty. Aided in painting the picture of every scene immensely.

Overall

I really, really, really loved this drama. I laughed, I cried, I laughed some more. The plot was well layered and well-executed. The plot never meandered long in one spot so it always felt like we were going somewhere. Nothing felt overly forced. The length of each episode and the overall length of the series gave each character and storyline plenty of room to breathe. I had minor issues with how long it took our ML and FL to FINALLY tell each other the truth. That part did feel like it ran in circles a little bit. I was also a little frustrated with the outcome of the show but was overall very happy that our main group of protagonists had their happy ending.

Leer más

Comedy and angst all around

I'm not kidding, I was sobbing for nearly the entirety of the last episode, it was so good. This drama was so not what I expected, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, since what I got was a more wholesome plot that didn't purely rely on the romance to keep it afloat. The comedy was really REALLY well done (I made a couple of collages with screenshots of my favorite moments. That's how good it was) and the romance was paced just perfectly (I would say even slower than your average drama) to instead add more substance to the leading storyline. Dong Joo was a bit of a brat for parts of the drama, but she made up for it with her badass bow skills in the end, so ain't even that mad. I'm not gonna lie, I was at first really confused about where the storyline was going cause EVERYONE LOOKED THE SAME, but once I got used to the characters' faces, I began to understand the plot and was totally on board with everything by the time the ending rolled around. THE ENDING. OH MY GOD THAT ENDING WAS SO DIFFERENT. The authors really took a risk with the ending that they wrote cause it deviates so much from what you would think would happen. But honestly, the bittersweetness of it just made the ending SO much better and so much more memorable than if they had stuck with the predictable storyline. And can we for a second just TALK ABOUT THAT OST? The OST is freaking gorgeous, the music alone probably contributed to half the tears I shed during this drama. Definitely would recommend it to anyone who appreciates a refreshing storyline, cute romance, and a plot with actual substance.

Leer más

Way better than expected

First of all, the poster of this drama is totally misleading in my eyes (it was one reason why I hadn't started this already earlier). The Tale of Nokdu is not as happy as you might think.

I admit that I was pretty much turned off after watching the first episode. A lot of scenes felt a bit overdone, they tried too hard in building up tension, the comedy was not to my liking either and they didn't succeed in stirring my curiosity at all. I wondered why the drama had such a high rating. Jang Dong Joon's well done cross dressing and an MDL's friend's advise to be a bit more patient made me continue. Well, I'm glad I did.

The first half of the drama was kinda spinning in circles and the story didn't move forward. But the comedy got alot better, while the story gained ground and became steadier, so they didn't have to try so hard anymore in convincing me. And then after the first half it felt like a tornado went through and turned everything upside down. Everything suddenly became 100 per cent more serious. By that time I already developed a certain attachment for one or two people other than Nokdu.

As the story went further I got seriously invested in the side characters and their circumstances. Whether it was the king, who was intimidated by his own status while being overwhelmed by the fear of losing it, or the Muwoldan group, who had an honorable reason to fight but got tangled up by the higher-ups power struggle. Or Cha Yoel Moo with his unrequited love, always helpful, always patient and almost becoming a fool for playing the second fiddle at some point. There's more to him than one might expect though.

I started to care for all of them, whether they were good or bad. The story managed to show more than one side and therefore made their decisions somewhat more reasonable. Sides shifted, re-groupings took place and made me utterly eager and anxious at the same time, for I couldn't foresee the next steps.

I think Nokdu was the most pitiable person among them all. His sole existence put everyone around him in uncomfortable positions. He had no say in who he was, yet people started to assume things and used him for their own selfish desires. But he never gave up, he never let himself get down. I was extremely satisfied with how well he managed to pull through all those obstacles and always stood true to himself.

Nokdu's sword fighting skills were a pleasure to the eye, it was beautiful and deadly at the same time. He was exceedingly well trained. He never sought the battles out himself, so I was glad that he could defend himself like that. Confrontations like that were unavoidable on his path. But he never looked invincible either. When he was hurt, he wasn't able to fight that well three days later. When a group outnumbered him, he was bound to get hurt badly.

Though the romance was nothing special to me, it still managed to stir my emotions at the end. Dong Ju is the girl who wanted to take revenge and who's rock solid decision got shaken up by Nokdu. Well, I've seen more captivating ill-fated couples than this one, but I was not bothered either. I was fine with it because they didn't add baseless tearjerkers. And they had some really nice moments as well.

Nokdu's brother was the weakest piece in my opinion. They tried to explain his motivation but it never touched me enough to actually care for him.

Certain details of the finale were... unexpected but I still liked it. If I had one regret though, it would be a certain realization of the king and with that maybe a different outcome. I had anticipated it so much, that I felt a somewhat unpleasant letdown regarding that. But maybe that's just my selfishness.

So, if you feel the same as me before about starting this, I advise you to try it out. It's better than what it might look like ;)

Leer más

Story of love and betrayal filled with twists

The drama starts very light and entertaining to watch, full of humorous scenes. However, it soon turns into a drama filled with betrayals and twists that will keep the viewer entertained throughout the episodes. The cast does a fantastic job portraying their characters.

Jung Joon Ho as the king makes you unsure whether to love him or hate him due to the few sympathetic moments he has on screen. Kang Tae Oh as Yul Mu does a great job portraying a man fueled by hatred and greed who is still partly under control by a woman he is in love with. Kim So Hyun as Dong Joo and Jang Dong Yoon as Nokdu both do phenomenal jobs portraying the FL and ML. Their chemistry is undoubtedly one of a kind and they will have the viewer rooting for them from start to finish.

The story itself is filled with multiple moments that will have you laugh, smile and cry. Usually, dramas start strong and slowly decline but it's not the case with this one. The plot is not that slow-paced nor fast-paced, somewhere in between. There were moments where the drama was kind of dragging, some scenes felt too prolonged (mostly characters staring at each other; moments of silence) but overall, the drama was really good. The gender-bending aspect of both FL and ML was watchable. Especially Jang Dong Yoon as both man (Nokdu) and woman (Lady Kim) looked and sounded believable as a woman.

It's a must-watch among Joseon/historical k-dramas.

Leer más

Crossdressing ajumma fusion sageuk The Tale of Nokdu...and the Crazy King (a more apt title), is a solid spiritual successor of my fave Moonlight Drawn by Clouds, this is a rare show where the intertwined plot threads paid off, and one of the more satisfying endings I've seen in awhile.

The world building itself is fascinating as there's a village of widows coexisting beside a gisaeng house, who are composed of all female assassins involved in a mysterious plot? Yes, count me in!

Jang Dong Yoon impresses as he transitions seamlessly from boyish Nokdu to widow Lady Kim. He has good comedic timing and has kind of baby Kim Soo Hyun vibe (from Producers) about him, I'm curious to see his continued growth as an actor. The OTP pairing might not have reached magical squee levels for me, but I thoroughly enjoyed their easygoing chemistry and relationship that slowly developed through solid friendship.

My breakout star of the drama is undoubtedly Kang Tae Oh, with his fascinating turn as Lord Yul Mu. From his head turns, to his smirk and strut, he wholly embraced the complicated facets of his character. I won't be surprised if I see him in a lead role soon.

This is a drama where the characters are well drawn out and multi faceted. Even those guys we love to despise, the drama took time to show their perspective and make us understand their human flaws. Not to mention all those beloved side characters, esp. the women, who are badass.

The first half of Nokdu about crossdressing and light moments, differed a lot from the second half which was more court politics and heartbreak as Nokdu searched for his identity. On the surface, the crossdressing might seem a gimmick for laughs, but through this, the show uplifts women with its portrayal of female empowerment, and uplifts the soul through its message of freeing oneself with thoughts of hatred and revenge, as it can consume and destroy you.

Leer más

Addictive, endearing and a bit dark . . .

The Tale of Nokdu starts as a typical drama: lots of misunderstandings, slapstick humour and cliffhangers at the end of every episode. But then, the plot moves FAST, sub plots that usually take a whole drama to resolve wrap up in two episodes. You are also kept in suspense on how the drama will end - making for an addictive, binge-watching series.

Despite the repeated romantic plot points (multiple rescues, multiple we should break up scenes), I never got tired of the romantic plots and found this couple very endearing.

The couple in this may be one of my all time faves - they have a young, Romeo+ Juliet (with a bit of silliness) type romance. They make such good use of their screen-time (lots of interaction and ease) that you feel like you lived with them for awhile. Their romance is naturalistic and explained by the trauma they both have experienced.

Most of the side characters are shallow. I did find the villains compelling as narcissists with flashes of charisma. A mark of a good show - I was sad to leave them all behind as the show ended.

The music soundtrack with the piano was great (reminded me a bit of Amelie crossed with Sia's Breathe Me). But the lyrical songs I don't want to revisit.

It has plenty of cute/tense/romantic moments that lend itself to watching parts of again.

I grade on other criteria as well:

Complex Themes: 7.5
More than one would expect! Family is who cares for you and wants the best for you, not simply your blood relations. Power corrupts. Once down an exploitative path - it can be difficult to turn around.

Character growth: 7.5
Both main characters have experienced a lot of trauma. Their 'growth' turns on and off - but there are moments in the last 5 episodes or so, where they are startling mature, grave, or complex to where they started at the beginning of the series.

Complex female characters: 6.0
Unfortunately not so much. While there are lots of powerful female characters, and a lot of female screen time, the female characters (even our main heroine!) have their narrow roles and stick to them.

Cinematography/Production Values: 8.0
High for this type of drama. No attempts at artistic/edgy shots, but lots of outdoor scenes not on a sound stage, a decent amount of variation in sets and costumes, a variety of close-ups and wide-angles. Sword/fight action scenes are decently well choreographed.

Leer más

THIS HAS A LOT OF SPOILERS, PLEASE DON'T READ IF U HAVEN'T WATCHED THIS. JUST COMEBACK IF U ALREADY FINISHED SO WE CAN WEEP TOGETHER

-----------------------------------

Prior to starting the Final Episode, I was trying to think of all the holes that should/could be resolved by the end of the story but I seem to not find anything anymore except the conflict with the king and Nokdu himself plus the Grand Prince's revolt. To say I'm disappointed with the ending is an understatement??? I was anxious when I'm nearing the end and was left with 20 mins left yet Nokdu hasn't faced the King yet to atleast settle their differences all at once.

I'm also frustrated because there wasn't an explanation/resolution about the "truth" the Queen Dowager said in the previous episode. WHAT THE HECK IS THE TRUTH THAT THEY WILL NEVER FIND OUT? Are we also supposed to not find out about it?? LOL I hope they at least made a resolution for that part because I think it's where everything started in the first place??? or is the "truth" the one Grand Prince told His Highness during their last encounter during the revolt? Can someone please enlighten me? I wanna sleep peacefully T___T

Also, how am I supposed to believe they are capable of living happily ever after if the Grand Prince... who has his eye set on Dong Joo since time immemorial and pent-up anger on (and could also have a fear of having the throne taken by) Nokdu took the throne??? Is that island a bubble devoid of the Prince's powers??? Nope. Unless he literally gave up on DJ already, then.........

I really think the King deserved better. They could've ended it with him finally knowing the truth and reconciling with Nokdu. After all, he has been just living in fear and what he is at present was just because of what his Father made him feel growing up... also could've been because of the lie beneath the truth the Queen Dowager hid. He looked like a good man who is just as conflicted as me JK I actually even thought him and the Queen would show up during the wedding because of the wind and all that. But I still like how he surrendered and owned his mistakes... he even made sure the Queen would be saved.

Over-all the drama is good, I can't even complain (except the ending). The romance is just a bit of everything... even childishness was added into the mix HAHAHAHA but it's cute. I will miss them so much! A lot has happened and it made me sad thinking about all of it... from the village, to Lady Kim, to him and DJ going to Hanyang and so forth...

PS: I like the reconciliation between Soo Yang and So Hyun hahahaha #School2015 feels

Leer más

Drama ini penuh aksi. Ini juga memberi Anda adegan komedi yang membuat Anda tertawa terbahak-bahak. Terkadang, Anda akan merasa bosan di tengah drama. Tapi, jangan menyerah. Ikuti saja arusnya dan Anda akan mendapatkan aksi yang intens.

Namun, saya pikir drama ini akan menjadi drama epik dengan aksi, pembunuhan, dan pengkhianatan. Saya pikir karakter utama akan menjadi sosok pahlawan nol. Semuanya begitu halus, tidak ada yang salah dengan plotnya. Ini menyenangkan yang membuat Anda tidak sabar untuk episode berikutnya. Tapi, inilah poin terburuk utama dari drama ini:

2 episode terakhir adalah MEH.

Sepertinya plotnya terlalu banyak dilewati. Semuanya melompat ke saat karakter utama kembali dari kematian untuk menyelamatkan gadis kesayangannya tanpa terluka atau diserang oleh tentara musuh. Kemudian konflik berakhir di sini. Dia dan semua orang yang dicintainya tinggal di pulau yang terpisah dengan damai, sementara konflik utama (barang takhta) ditinggalkan. Ketika musuh-musuhnya kehilangan dia dan para prajurit, mereka tidak mencoba mengejar mereka juga. Ceritanya memberitahu kita bahwa musuh memilih thone dan kerajaan sementara karakter utama dan protagonis memilih kehidupan yang damai di pulau yang terpisah.

Leer más

A escalação desse elenco me deixou muito feliz, mas confesso que não dei muita importância quando foi ao ar, apenas no começo desse ano que voltei minha atenção para ele após ouvir muitos pontos positivos sobre a trama.

Aprendi a gostar muito de dramas históricos – sageuks –, e esse não peca em nada; muito pelo contrário, acrescenta e me deu mais opiniões a respeito do gênero. Ele passeia pelas tretas palacianas bem comuns, mas sem deixar de ser divertido ou desviar do objetivo.

Nok Du é um garoto que vive numa pacata ilha com o pai e o irmão e não tem a mínima noção de que o pai esconde alguns segredos. Mas quando a família é atacada por assassinos sendo que nunca fizeram mal a ninguém, um instinto o move tomar uma atitude para descobrir o que está por detrás do acontecimento. E quando chega na cidade encontra Dong Jo, uma garota que tem a intenção de matar o rei com uma flechada.

O encontro característico do casal principal além de proposital, já deixa ás claras que ninguém na trama é privilegiado. Como uma ginsaeng em treinamento, Dong Jo está aprendendo a arte de agradar os homens, e vive num vilarejo para viúvas. E é assim que Nok Du tem a grandiosa ideia de se vestir de mulher, fazendo com que a trama vire um gender bender, que é quando um personagem veste roupas do sexo oposto.

Sou suspeita em falar desse gênero que é pouco utilizado e eu amo, mas que já teve seus momentos de glória no mundo asiático. Foi bom ver esse retorno e o vi com outros olhos. Meu primeiro drama da vida foi Coffee Prince, só que era uma menina sendo um garoto e a maioria dos gender bender são assim; então, ver a atuação excepcional do Dong Yoon foi uma lufada de ar fresco. Ele realmente entrou no personagem e era possível ver a modulação da voz, o treino físico para atuar como mulher dando vida a Lady Kim. Que talento!

Nosso protagonista entra em várias trapalhadas enquanto tenta manter o disfarce e ainda investigar o que tem de tão diferente na vila das viúvas, mas sem deixar que Dong Joo tenha um papel importante em muitas das cenas. Ela é uma personagem que não perde em nada, tem seu destaque na trama e um passado triste, por isso seus motivos em matar o rei.

Não posso esquecer de comentar que o poder feminino desse dorama é enorme. Ao criar uma vila de viúvas, a roteirista deu destaque a vida de mulheres que após a perda do marido são praticamente deixadas de lado pela família e precisam dar um jeito de ganhar o sustento. E mesmo não podendo me estender para não soltar nenhum spoiler, o que está por trás da vila também tem seu próprio empoderamento.

Quero também dar destaque ao Yool Mu por ter uma paixão pela Dong Joo e ser a outra ponto dentro do triângulo amoroso dessa história. Não gosto da temática, mas eu mudei de ideia, pois aqui ele é vital. Além dele se mostrar um personagem diferente. Kang Tae Oh protagonizou as duas temporadas de My First First Love na Netflix e gosto muito da atuação dele. E não só ele, tem muitos atores bons nesse dorama, é um dos pontos positivos de sageuk: conhecer vários atores. Outra fofura é a Aeng Do, uma menininha apaixonada pelo Nok Du, vocês vão concordar comigo se assistirem.

As tretas no palácio são excelente! Creio que The Tale of Nokdu tem um dos melhores plot twist em sageuk que já tive o prazer em assistir em um sageuk. Um bom modo de mostrar como a ambição tem seus meios equivocados.

Fico imensamente grata em dizer que o final desse dorama é maravilhoso. Um lindo felizes para sempre. E eu não pediria menos que isso, pois o romance do casal foi muito bem construído ao longo dos episódios e dá para sentir como eles se importam um com o outro. A química tava lá e veio recheada de demonstrações de afeto e beijinhos, para o alívio da nação dorameira.

Assistam!! Tenho certeza que quando começar você vai piscar e daqui a pouco acabar. É muito bom!

Até a próxima! ⤳

Leer más

so, i'd always been hesitant to watch historical dramas for fear that i would become bored of the typical "fight for the throne" story lines that i'd see for most, but this one caught my eye because of the cross-dressing element. now, i'm a sucker for some good gender-bending shenanigans so of course i was going to watch this drama even if it WAS historical! and wow am i glad that i did, because tale of nokdu was nothing like i'd thought it would be. of course, i did yawn a bit when the politics were on screen for a bit too long, but i loved the lighthearted comedy and lovable characters too much to stop watching. then, the second half of the drama got a bit darker and low and behold i was hooked ! i couldn't peel myself away from the screen for a minute for fear that i'd miss something crucial on screen! all in all, i'm glad i tried this show and am happy to say that it's opened me up to watching more sageuk dramas in the future

Leer más