Its finally here! The first Do Hwan drama in what felt like a century. Lets talk about it!
When I tell you I have missed Woo Do Hwan A LOT, you have no idea. Such an amazing charming actor whose presence on the screen was always a sight to see. And finally, he’s back, although not in what I had expected.
Note: this article is a first-impression review, it doesn’t mean this is the writer’s final thoughts on the drama. This is a spoiler review.
I was under the impression that his Netflix drama would air first since it was the one he began working on after his discharge but it so happens that this one got released first.
Truth be told, I am not the biggest historical dramas fan. I don’t watch them a lot in my native language or English or even Korean. This is a very subjective opinion as I know some kdrama fans prefer historical dramas above all else. But do you know who can make me watch a historical drama? Yes, it’s the cutie Do Hwan.
For a premiere, it was lots of fun. It was honestly better than I had expected. Mainly because this airs on MBC, and to be honest with you, their roll-out for the last couple of years in terms of shorter kdramas [16 episodes or less] has not been on the same level as their competition.
The script for this one is written by A screenwriter named Jin young who wrote “Queen for 7 days,” that drama did well in ratings and I heard it was very heartbreaking, so I am already preparing myself for this one.
“Joseon Attorney” is a classical revenge drama with a twist that its set in the Joseon era. It follows similar beats to what you’d expect from a revenge drama. The outstanding element is definitely that a kid who lost everything somehow managed to rise and become an attorney. I’d reckon this would have been very difficult to do back then, which makes his character all that more impressive.
He even has that classical portrait of the people he wants to take down on a wall- historical style, I found it funny and a nice touch.
The character building for Han Soo is great so far, he’s definitely the pillar of the story. The character itself appears larger than life in part due to Do Hwan’s stellar performance, he truly brings out the best elements of his character and makes it feel alive. He’s playful, smart and witty. He knows where he stands and charges towards his goal with confidence.
Its always been the case for me with Do Hwan, when he’s on screen, he’s captivating, he demands your attention. I found myself marveling at how he could make so many body movements not appear comical while retaining that cool vibe. I can feel the effort he put into his character.
Bona who plays the role of Yeon Joo was cute too. I have a feeling her character will become sort of the center of the story towards the 2nd half as Han Soo’s enemies catch on to his schemes. She’s bright, fearless and very smart. I liked her character a lot too.
On top of that, the two share such cute chemistry. The way Do Hwan smiles when he looks at her and how he just casually says he understands why she’d like him while hinting at his feelings too, honestly, the confidence.
I like how quickly she catches on to the fact that he’s someone who would make a great ally to the king.
Rising actor Lee Kyu-Sung also puts on a stunning performance. I have seen him many times in many kdramas that I liked, but here, he gets the chance to show off his amazing acting skills. He does a good job as a support for Do Hwan and does not fall behind. He added some good touches to many scenes, he definitely needs that project to make him a stand-out actor of 2023. I hope this could be it if this drama does well in ratings.
MBC’s weekend dramas have been struggling for some time now and Taxi Driver 2 is making it even more difficult than it already is, probably. The production staff even made a poster that took a jab at Taxi driver which is something I don’t often see in kdrama-land. I found it amusing.
This drama has a rough road ahead of it, immense competition, and its predecessor, Kokdu: Season of Deity, suffered from terrible ratings and is likely among the worst rated MBC dramas of 2023- thus far.
Lucky for us, for now, the premiere episodes have recorded better than the ending of the last drama.
I wish them nothing but the best and I am rooting for Do Hwan’s comeback project to be a success because I adore him, and honestly, the premiere episodes deserve somewhere between the 4-6% in ratings.
I hope I hear nice news about this tomorrow.
have you seen joseon attorney yet?
I haven’t watched it as yet but I’ve been hearing only good things about it so I’m gonna check it out now. Personally, I like historical dramas though the misogyny among other issues more prominent in the past does annoy me from time to time.