Why “Arthdal Chronicles” Failed To Live Up To Expectations And Score Good Ratings
It’s not an underestimate to say that “Arthdal Chronicles” was THE most anticipated 2019 kdrama. Ever since the news was confirmed back in late 2018, fans have been anxiously waiting to see the final product including me.
The drama was seriously hyped as one of the biggest Korean productions ever having cost approx. $50 million to make, expectations were high but the drama failed to capture the Korean public attention and failed to score good ratings as anticipated.
In a rough comparison to another high budget tvN drama, we have “Mr. Sunshine” Which cost about $36 million to make. “Mr. Sunshine” started off with high ratings and continued to get better ratings as time went by. It is now one of the highest rated cable channel dramas of ALL TIME.
Another high-budget drama “Memories of the Alhambra” which cost about $17 million to make also scored better. The drama wavered around 8-10% which is also still great considering the amount of backlash it had gotten for having a sloppy script.
This is why I and many others thought tvN knew this would be a hit, hence investing so much money into a drama about a period in time that no other kdrama had ever attempted to explore.
“Arthdal Chronicles” wavered between 5%-7% in ratings for season one and two. For a drama with a budget of $50 million, that’s bad. Not to say its downright awful but bad nonetheless.
How come this happened? And why did the drama fail to capture the public’s attention?
Today I shall talk about the reasons why I believe “Arthdal Chronicles” failed to become the hit everyone had thought it would.
Note: this article is about my own thoughts on why it got these ratings. I am not stating facts but speculating on the reasons that led to these numbers. also, this is not to say the drama is awful, bad or to discredit everyone who worked hard on it. Its an analysis of why I believe it didn’t get the amount of attention it deserved. I am a fan of this drama.
Note: beware of slight spoilers of part 1 and 2.
Overlyhyped?
“Arthdal Chronicles” was overhyped the moment the casting news came out. Fans miss both Kim Ji Won and Song Joong Ki, the two have been away from the spotlight for a while and everyone was looking forward to seeing them on the small screen again and together.
The drama was then named one of the most expensive kdrama productions ever which set the bar way too high already. A lot of people expected the drama to be out of this world because it cost almost $50 million to make.
When the drama started rolling out teasers they looked super cool. The theme was unfamiliar but fans were super excited, everything looked cool and fresh. This was the first kdrama that talked about this period of time.
The drama premiered to such high expectations, the first couples of episodes were hard to understand according to netizens. Naturally, the higher your expectations are the more you’ll be disappointed if things don’t turn out the way you expect them to be, and that was certainly the case with many people.
Unfamiliarity
Everybody talks about uniqueness and how little there is of that in recent kdramas but there is comfort in familiarity. Human beings naturally gravitate toward familiar things.
This is why often kdramas with cliché plots that are beyond overused still do well with both the international and national community. The more weird and unfamiliar a concept is, the harder it becomes to comprehend.
I have read many Korean netizens comments and one of the main complaints of viewers in the first episodes was just how confusing and unfamiliar everything was.
There were dialects, many people of different breeds and nations, and the show had an hour and 20 minutes to try and impress you and at the same time help you understand what was happening.
Personally speaking, I had the asianwiki tab right next to the drama tab whilst watching the first couple of episodes on my computer because there were too much information and so many characters. I struggled to keep up.
What made it worse was that many of these characters were unbeknownst to us and we had to figure out who was who (mainly rapper ONE whom I struggled to understand what character he was playing at first). There is only so much attention you can give a drama that’s almost one hour and a half.
People watch to be entertained and generally speaking don’t like investing too much time trying to figure out what they’re watching in order to start enjoying it. Such a behavior is something you expect from a drama that has already familiarized itself with its audience.
The issue with “Arthdal Chronicles” is that it was difficult to understand in the first episodes and became so much of a chore; you need patience to continue watching to get to the meat of the story. Not everybody has time and energy to waste so much time to start enjoying something they’re supposed to enjoy in the first episodes.
A Boring Introduction
I talked about familiarity before but I wanted to take this section to address an issue I found with part 1 plot, it’s boring!
That’s not to say that EVERY part of the drama is boring but the first couple of episodes are very difficult to get through. Add to that the length of each episode; it’s almost one hour and a half consistently.
It feels like it’s not going anywhere from episode two to episode four. All the meat for part one happens in the first episode and episode 2, 3, and 4 are just characters marveling at the civilization of another, crying, talking stuff no one understands and people getting killed.
There are events in each episode that are important throughout part 1 but a lot of scene fillers that if extracted wouldn’t have affected the drama much.
I believe that since the first part was rather boring and difficult to understand many had given up already.
In any series or drama anywhere around the world if interest subsides within the first couple of episodes it takes a miracle to garner people’s attention again. Interest for many kdramas is at its peak at first, and if it’s interesting and captivating in the first episodes then interest only increases with time.
A good example is the biggest cable kdrama of all time, “SKY Castle.” In case you’re unaware, this drama started out with less than %2 in ratings and through word of mouth got more attention. It finished at 20% in ratings with its final episode and became the highest rated cable kdrama of all time.
Generally speaking, many kdrama fans will watch anything if it has their fav actor or actress and we’re generally more forgiving and patient unlike Koreans who can pick and choose and are rather more forward with their thoughts on certain kdramas.
Comparison To “Game Of Thrones”
Getting compared to one of the BIGGEST series of all time is rather burdensome and can take a toll on any good production.
Prior to “Arthdal Chronicles” premiere, tvN released various teasers and fans noticed just how similar the setting and outfits of the main characters are to the famous series “Game Of Thrones.”
Here are the photos that circulated online:
As you can see it’s far too similar to just call it bluffing. While the actual story has nothing to do with “Game Of Thrones”, “Arthdal Chronicles” was up to a bad start being compared to “Game Of Thrones.”
I saw a handful of online comments by netizens who were embarrassed to see a drama that had 50$ million budget had so many similarities to one of the biggest series of all time. Many called that ‘embarrassing.’
I admit, at first, I was embarrassed. I laughed when I saw the photos but was also sad to see that they couldn’t come up with their own ideas. However, having watched “Arthdal Chronicles” I can tell you that they’re nothing alike.
There is also a very good explanation for why they chose these outfits. They might’ve been inspired by “Game Of Thrones” a bit but there is nothing more to that.
Since ratings for part 1 and 2 were rather lackluster I wonder how tvN plans on handling part 3. From my own experience, if no one is paying attention to a series enough to garner profit, the studios usually end it. I highly doubt tvN would do that, but at the same time I am curious to see how they plan on
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Now its your turn, tell me why you think “Arthdal Chronicles” failed to live up to expectations and why it failed to get good ratings. Do you like the drama or not?
I think koreans just have to be more
Open minded. It has a good and unique plot and the actors are all good and famous.
Whatever it is, i still find this series very interesting and exciting. I never been so excited watching and waitinf for its new episode.
Exactly. International fans are not complaining it’s only Koreans
Arthdal chronicles is beyond kdrama and people watching kdrama are not ready for such an epic show so for them it’s a failure
I agree! I’m from the Philippines, we love the drama. It has a very interesting story, the characters we’re strong. It’s exciting to watch! Really. It’s not boring like what they say.
Very impressive analysis
You have done a good job on your part, no doubt the drama was difficult to comprehend at the beginning but I was super excited at the end of 12th episode n I m anxious to watch the next season. I think I wanted to watch more of jiwon n song jong ki coz I’m a big fan of them ,moreover, the tone of drama is very serious n ominous, little bit of romance would have done miracles. I wish the drama to be a great success.
Actually the drama is great ,when you watch more episodes the more you’ll understand the story.
Not ever having ever seen a single episode of GOT, I was surprised to see the pics. It is funny! I’ve been watching for the very storyline you didn’t understand, impressive cinematography and the great acting of all the cast. I’m not impaired in understanding the story by looking for a particular actor, rapper, etc. either. I suppose that’s how I e been able to enjoy it for what it is.
Thank you for the review. I really have to agree with most of what you said. I’m not a fan of Song Joon Ki but I am a long time fan of Jang Dong Gun and Kim Ji Won. However, just because I am their fan doesn’t mean I’m going to get defensive about their tv drama. Unfortunately, all actors have miss and hit dramas, some good and some not so good. Sometimes not necessarily their fault. I really wanted to be supportive and keep watching the drama, but I’m pretty simple and unbiased when it comes to watching TV series. It’s either interesting enough to keep me watching or it’s not. And that’s coming from someone who’s seen many different types of American, British, Chinese, and Korean TV shows in all genres like action, comedy, scary, thriller, fantasty, romance, cop, medical, etc. This one just didn’t do for me. SMH. Now before all of you start coming at me with pitchforks saying how wrong I am and to give it a chance with an open mind. I’m here to tell you I did come in with an open mind and gave it a chance. I usually am open to new ideas and was ready to embrace the risk that TVN took with a new genre. Still got bored at times and finally gave up. People can blame the very tiny GOTr “inspirations” or the fact that it was too different or confusing outside of kdrama comfort zone formulas. But IMHO it’s just the execution of the script. Good looking characters and wow cinematography isn’t enough for me. It’s the combination of good acting, story plots, and, well thought out script writing. That’s why many lower budget productions had higher ratings. Miss one of those last 3, and it’s hard to continue a series for me. Also I’m going to have to argue with the “prehistoric” notion, cause for a “prehistoric” series, some of the costumes and architecture looked way more medieval (and that’s a huge difference in time). But sure, if many of you out there enjoy the series. Good for you. Keep watching it, don’t mind people like me. Just know that some of the negativity about this show may have been harsh and unfair, but some criticisms were pretty valid. But that’s any show, so don’t take it so hard. Hopefully TVn can learn a lesson or two from this on their next mega budget production.
i want to give my opinions, so if you dont agree, you can just skip it, dont even bother to reply with your opinions. For me, I love the drama, I think the plot is really making me so curious. None of the episodes were boring to me for now but that is just my personal opinion. ☺️☺️
For me!! I like the drama!! Its great!! Not because of the great cast, may be because I love such drama’s.
But jasmine that was a great analysis.
And everybody else just see it as a drama and enjoy it instead of finding reasons not to.
Thank you!
I agree with “A boring introduction”. I like that its unconventional kdrama, plus the graphics are really great. But the story is just too slow, it’s like reading a book. Also, I wanted Tanya to have a strong personality. Instead, she was too cute and was always crying.
I beg to differ…initially it was a bit boring & confusing but it does get better and better. Viewers have to be open minded and go with the flow..
I agree that the first few episodes were boring and there were too many scenes where the characters just cry a lot.
I’m not sure how it was marketed in Korea, but there wasn’t much hype internationally. In fact, I only knew about the series when they said they would cast Kim Jisoo.
Personally, I love this drama, it’s fresh and very different from all the kdramas I’ve watched. I liked the story line and each character is presented and are evolving. I can’t wait for part 3 this coming September!
I can’t agree with you more. Agreed the hype that surrounded the drama was probably way too much but I love love love it cos it’s totally DIFFERENT from an average k-drama. They went all the way to bring elements of a period drama- the differing tribes, way of life, the dialects, the gods, almost everything worked for me so yeah, I’m impatiently waiting for season 3
I guess I’m surprised. Personally I was a little confused in the VERY beginning. But it didn’t take long in episode 1 to understand the concept. I LOVE this series. I make my boyfriend watch it with me whenever it comes out. I don’t have a lot of spare time. But it wasn’t difficult to understand. So that just tells me they’re being to critical of the show.
I really enjoyed this drama. I hope that it did not just ended with episode 12. I want it to keep going till the end. It’s not confusing if you watch from beginning.
For me…every ep is amazing..their exeed my expectations..cant wait to the next ep…
I love the drama.. Each character plays important role and started to feel thrills… At the very beginning it’s hard to capture all the characters now I am familiar with every character…… Very different zone in kdrama…..
Great article. The GOT comparisons are funny. I watched GOT, and laughed when I saw those. I hope more people realize Arthdal Chronicles is so very different, and give it a chance. I too am a fan of this drama. While I never found it slow. I found myself happier that it was different. I love dramas, but I’m not going to lie. Sometimes I leave them on for background noise while I clean. Why? Because alot of the storylines have been play out over, and over during the years. They are very predictable to me. Not saying I still don’t enjoy them. I just don’t feel like I’ll miss much, if I do a dish or two. As for the length of each episode. After work, or a busy day, if I’m too tired to watch. I’ll watch a different day. No different than watching two or three episodes at once, of a shorter drama. I do have my favorite actors/actresses. I find that’s not a big sale for me anymore. I find myself looking for that different storyline now. More so than my favorite actors/actresses. So I will be one of the ones waiting for September to finish Arthdal Chronicles. Thanks for your article. I enjoyed it.
I highly commend every portion of this drama. They did a hell of a job establishing another universe which is both fascinating yet familiar. I guess it’s not the type of drama for lazy viewers but if you like to think and be curious be fascinated, then this drama is for you. The plot, the caracter development, acting, score, everything is of superb level. For those who find it boring or uninteresting, there are hundreds of kdramas of the same kind to choose from but Arthdal Chronicles will always be a rare gem in the kdrama universe.
the beginning was somewhat confusing, not enough background detail; however, it is becoming mire interesting and I am beginning to understand the plot. Story telling is an art, not just costuming and dancing.
I agree that first few episodes were boring but I think it was necessary to give the foundation to the story they are trying to tell.I personally loved the concept, it has uniqueness.I found the direction and screenplay quite amusing. The story slowly unfolds itself giving us the chance to speculate what will happen next.I like the fact that its not too obvious to guess the next.As far the characters are concerned they all quite powerful each had certain powerful role.
This drama is great! Definitely not for the simeminded.
It’s disappointing that so few people have the patience to watch good character development. Those first episodes really set the foundations for the “why” things happen the way they happened later. I love this drama and it is truly one of the most interesting and uncliched dramas I’ve ever seen, Korean or non. The acting and the story are well done. What some call “filler scenes” others would call “setting development “. This story has been unpredictable and who cares if the costumes remind you of other shows…Hollywood did that for every movie about ancient, biblical or Roman times for years and no one cared. So now viewers are basing whether to watch something on how similar it may look to another show? Then why make remakes of movies or shows? I wish people would just watch the shows or movies before casting a judgment or prejudgment which equals prejudice…which only hurts a really good show. I love Arthdal Chronicles and can’t wait for September to watch part 3. Why do we who want to see it have to wait so long?
I loved everyone of these show so much so, that I have watched them twice.
Keep up the work. Waiting on the next episode of Anthradal Chronicles.
I had an issue with the English translation. I hope that the Korean dialect is consistent with the time period of this drama. “The boy I had a crush on”. I literally cringed when I heard that, and many other examples where the English subtitles were too modern to feel real.
I also had an issue with the editing of some of the scenes. It kept jumping from one character to the next without a natural Flow. I just watched episode 11 last night and was bothered that they plot was too repetitive. Two guys fighting, keep framing each other, back and forth. It lost the effect and I was losing interest.
Also everything feels like it’s being fed to the viewers. There’s some mystery of what’s going on and two seconds later the characters figure out who’s behind it. They’re not allowing for natural suspense to build up.
Personality, too much violence for no reason. I’m not a big fan of violence but that’s just me
I haven’t watched GOT and not planning to anytime soon so I’m not comparing the two
Tbh, i can only think 2 reasons why this drama is in a bad spot..
1. It’s not interesting enough to the common Kdrama markets…
2. It’s not good enough to appeal to people who enjoys this kind of setting..
I love the movie, I’m American.
I like it, but I felt they spent to much time on the politics, on grinding down Eunsoem, and too much time on the supposed love triangle between Eunsoem/Says/Tanya. Frankly, those were the spots I fast forwarded thru.
Obviously korean netizens always appreciated romantic, comedy , heavy drama. What’s new! They are not seing the essence of how the plot of stories will go. They are not interested to drama with heavy historical origin. How? can’t find the uniqueness and twist each episode. You can see on episode 1 how the stories will run. Each episode might be boring for some reason but no its more interesting and feeling of eagerness to watch it. And the next day hey what will happen, you will felt excitement to watch the next episode again.
Sorry to say, but I don’t think you should blame korean viewers. I’m an international viewer and I personally could not continue. Every drama has it’s hook to keep viewers going. I couldn’t find that hook for me so I stopped.
I think the storyline is good, the main problem is the screenplay, it’s very slow, that’s why it’s boring
I agree that the first episodes were really boring! The 2nd part of the series got me really hooked up! It’s nothing alike GoT and I myself never ever compared it. I commend the writers imaginative and brave writing. They’re introducing something new to the viewers. And a new change is good but very to hard to accept in the beginning. I’m actually waiting very patiently to the 3rd part of the series coz man that cliffhanger was just so good.. I’ll finish watching this series no matter what.
The drama is BORING!
You’re wrong. The drama isn’t boring. Your LIFE is boring!!
I like the drama.. Its exciting..
I think it’s the most exciting kdrama I’ve ever watched and I’ve been watching kdramas for six years
So Arthdal doesn’t meet the taste of Koreans… and it’s a big problem for the producers and tvN… Because they need good rating to gain profit.
Same case with Moonlovers, failed in Korea, but loved by millions of international viewers.
That is so true many international fans loved that drama.
Arthdal Chronicles is boring, I don’t see any interesting with this KDrama it is useless. There’s no chemistry. No creativity.
Me and my hubby are enjoying AC and we are looking forward every week for the next episode!
Do really watch it?? Dont make me laugh Nicole. They spent $50 million and yet you see no creativity?? Some people are just lazy to watch every scene of the series just like you. If you dont want to watch it, the producers, director, cast etc. doesn’t force you to watch because you are not a lost. So dont speak any negative complaints/comments, shut you mouth and get lost. Thank you!!
@hey beach : dont bother it, some people just really really small minded.. people like this, They just watch Kdrama to see 1 man and 1 woman who fall in love, face many problems, and at the end they are together.. And when they watch kdrama like arthdal, their minds cant catch up with the storyline and they will say “the story is so boring”. What a shame…
It’s true that the first part of the drama was kinda boring. But now, I really like it because of the plot twists.
It is so sad that this KDrama is not getting the atention that it deserve. I find AC so interesting and engaging. I hope viewers will give it a chance. Korea should be proud of this master piece. I am a busy Mom but me and my kids always make time to watch every episode. We discussed about the characters and the events for each episode. Looking forward to next season.
it’s actually a pretty good drama and the introductory ep is quite fast, especially when compared to something like ‘the rebel’ with a buildup that was hideously slow.
AC is definitely refreshing and engaging with its unique tale, visuals and cinematography. It is laudable of SK to undertake this daring venture of new genre.
What I didn’t like:-
1. Unfamiliarity – So many mythological and tribal figures such as Asa Sin, Aramun Haesulla, blue blooded Neanthal, Saram, Igutu, Saenyeok, Hae, Asa clan, Wahan, etc, which they should have done a proper introductory prelude instead of overwhelming information dumping in the first episode, which simply confused the viewers. Like Jazmine, I often had to refer to Wikipedia and rewatch ep 1. We mostly grew up with Greek and Chinese mythology but they shouldn’t dump names of the Arthdal gods as if we know.
2. Slow development of key characters – Tanya was chained up and dragged around in rags for 4 whole episodes in S1 while Eunseom was tortured for 6 episodes in all of S2.
3. Unnecessary prolonged scenes – The brutal battle, torturing of slaves and politicking scenes amongst Sanung, Tagon, Mihol, Asa Ron and Taealha were excessive, resulting in compromised screen time for many other key supporting characters.
4. Costumes – My pet peeves of Taealha and Asa women with their modern tailored gowns, cloaks and jewelry.
I support this show purely for SJK and KJW so I certainly look forward to how the 3 characters will overcome obstacles and challenges to revolutionize Arth in the final S3, just 6 episodes to do so much!? Too few to depict well so hope they won’t rush through. Believe the writers had thought they could expand to more seasons but the lackluster ratings must had disappointed them and Director Kim, thus, I empathized with the entire crew and cast for their under-appreciated hard work.
I LOVE the drama, but not so many ppl are hyped for it because the feedbacks were quite not as fabulous as they expected it to be. The reason why this drama was the most anticipated one is because KIM JIWON and SONG JOONGKI starred in the drama who has a large fanbase all throughout the world.
And because immature fans are not satisfied with just the plot which is very beautiful as for those who keeps understanding and watch the drama, the ratings dropped. These immature fans wanted to see Joongki and Jiwon together so badly they happen to miss out the most important scenes that contributes to the biggest plot. The plot is beautiful, but these fans seriously need s to stop. Watch the drama because of its quality, please.
I liked it and I can’t wait for the next season… anxiously awaiting!
I don’t understand all the hates when arthdal chronicle is such a good drama.. I have been enjoying it till now (ep11)…Kdrama fans with soft heart or frightening nature will drop out from watching the 1st ep I know cuz arthdal chronicle have spooky, Bloodshed war scenes, courage gathering scenes which many k dramas female youngster are not very preferable. But once u reached ep 4,5 it’s getting so goddamn interesting.. I tell u it’s one of the best drama ever… I guarantee u it will give a very lasting impression.. Enjoy n thank me in your heart .
—Manipur, India
Sometimes people are not the same in taste. Watching AC Is not just eat your food. U should chew your food before eating, mean to say, if you have patience u can understand the moves. For me i appreciated the hardship of the director the cast specially the writer who solicit tales. Rate this for 10.
i dont understand why many of you are disappointed with this drama. you probably dont enjoy quality and intellectual dramas bcs i enjoy so much always look forward to the next episode omg you have no idea its such a wonderful drama with actual plot, character development and excellent acting skills
Well for me it’s very interesting! I don’t know why other people find it boring? Maybe there are some part that are not interesting but overall I love the story. It’s fresh and unique from tje typical kdrama.
I really like AC looking 4ward for the next ep.so excited
I personally love the Arthdal Chronicles. The plot, the cast and the scenes were good.. I dont know why they cant see its uniqueness. And i’ll wait for its season 3 to be aired.
I don’t really like to hear this kind of negative things. Because it can create pre judgment for the viewers specially those who haven’t watched it and are trying to give it a shot for the first time. Because of this review, opinion or whatever, many people will not be interested to try it. And they can only remember this as flop. Which is not, because the story is really nice, very unpredictable, so you will need to watch over it. It never fails to surprise it’s viewers, we even wish that they make it much longer. 18 episodes is too short for this wonderful drama. I highly recommend this. To everyone who hadn’t watched it yet.
maybe it’s cause i love this genre, but im really enjoying arthdal chronicles. altho the first episodes were kind of boring. it became interesting when saya came. support!
In think the story itself is too slow they drag it. People in Korea is not ready to have this kind of story plot. Does the divorce of of Song Jong Ki might affect it? I think they need to switch it into a more action love story with more of suspense thriller
I am enjoying Arthdal Chronicles very much. However, I think the drama would have been better if they had spent more time scene building and character building. It would have been better if they spent more time introducing the tribes, their beliefs, and the key players. This is nothing like GOT. What do you think people wore in that age? Not very many choices. I don’t think this is the reason for the low ratings though. They just threw too much into each episode while not fully exploring each development.
For me, I like this kdrama very much. I am very interested to watch more. my only negative comment is at the beginning there was a snake, I am phobic to snake so I skipped it.
Next bad comment is it wasted a long time for the slavers people to really be brutal and supercruel to Eunseom and all the Wahan tribe….only 5 people left of them? for hundreds of years that the great mother disappeared from arthdal and went to Lark, are those the only people in Wahan? very very few only? just a small tribe?
But all in all, I love this kdrama and looking forward to the next season.
More power to the makers of this.
Bobo lang. Di ko gets bat kailangan mo pa mag sulat ng negative thoughts tungkol sa AC. Well siguro depende na lang sa mga nanonood, masyado kasing malaki expectations niyo na dapat ganto ganyan kaya ayan disappointed kayo. Bobo lang diba? Tsk. Mag Sulat kasi kayo ng postive parang tanga e kaya di umaasenso mga tao puro critic ng critic ng mali. Basta ako. MAGANDA ANG ARTHDAL CHRONICLES. panuorin niyo ulet. Para maintindihan niyo. Di niyo kasi iniintindi yung kwento.
I don’t really understand why people don’t like drama, I personally enjoyed it. I’m tired of cliche and overused plots, but this drama was overall very original, something I’ve never seen before in dramas. The plots and the characters were all well-written. In comparison to Goblin (Another fantasy/fictional drama), Arthdal Chronical has far better plots and even better character developments. I guess most people just don’t have the patience to see that. What a shame.
I find this drama very interesting because Im so tired watching Cliche and Cringe KDRAMA’S.This one is very refreshing you have to focus on episode 1 to understand…I don’t really feel excited to wait for kdrama’s episode but this one make me wide awake thinking whats gonna happen on the next episode especially ep.7 to 12.
i Love the concept and I agree that the first few episodes were really hard to watch coz of the constant dragging, torture, and gosh that Konmareu horseback chase was almost 10minutes. And I myself grew tired of watching it! But… I still got hooked coz there’s always something in each episode that’s like an Easter egg for you to fill in for the next episode. I like Easter eggs so that’s why I’ve been following closely to each and every scene. And that’s total hard work. And as each episode pass by you’ll totally get enlightened to why all this prolonged politics talk is relevant. Then, You’ll realize that you’ll be wanting more specially after that episode11 only to find out that episodes 13-18 will be shown this SEPTEMBER! Dayum the torture you gave to your viewers who are already hooked and is wanting more of your great fantasy series! I was kind of upset that it will return this September! That’s two months.. but oh well, I think it’s a great move for the producers coz they’re extending the “hype” of AC and not the “hype” of its actors. I sincerely agree that it’s perfectly casts. It took two parts I guess for its viewers to understand the world of AC and it’s characters. And I think the people behind this production are giving the viewers a time to catch up for the 3rd part! So please watch and support. Give it a chance coz it’s storyline is unique and the world of Arthdal is just so beautiful to share.
I agree it was quite a slow start and I honestly almost gave up. However, I preserved through the first 4 episodes and things started to pick up. By the time I got to episode 7 I was hooked and wanting more. I like the different and unique storyline. So I’m still rooting for it.
Am I the only one who loved the idea of not knowing everything from the beginning, and slowly revealing the mysteries.
Yea, I was confused at the beginning but was amused when I got the pieces together later.
I absolutely love this drama, and I love every single detail in it. I keep thinking while watching about the differences between “Wahan” people and Arthdals and how the human being can be so greed and has no mercy just to have power, money or both.
I really like it when Tanya keeps asking about what is the meaning of a maid, a master, to own a land, a power ..etc, and most importantly why this is happening to her people!
The drama is so good and has really deep ideas and thoughts about human nature. It is so exciting too ! I am sad I will have to wait 2 months to see part 3
Btw I watch kdrama for more than 11 years. and I love the uniqueness of this drama.
I also really like it and what I love the most is how Wahan people do not understand meaning behind acts of people in Arthdal. People there care about power, they want more things. Like us… I think it has really deep meaning and it’s complicated but… everything it’s like that and to be true I’m tired of easy-peasy romantic dramas. I loved this one too
The first two episodes of Arthdal Chronicles was indeed boring I continued watching just because of Song Jong Ki and I was disappointed when the Younger Tagon (Kid from Korean Odyssey) played only a few minutes role in the drama. I had really high expectations but it was not at all satisfying untill Tanya met Saya, that was when it started getting interesting.
Now with the delay in airing episode 13 lol I will surely lose interest, I’ll end up watching Untamed or Hotel Deluna. Anyway I’ll give this drama a 5 out of 10.
I fail to understand why this good korean drama has such low ratings in Korea(just heard from my friend). It is unique. The politics is good and immerses you to think about the next possible move, though it’s kinda predictable at times, but that’s what gives direction and gives the viewers a clear view to the direction of the story. The character development is not that bad. I like it when Saya got his revenge against Taelha. Yeah I love it.
It’s refreshing to see a K-drama that touches on political and sociological issues using metaphor. But not everyone has the patience to spare to understand the concepts being presented. But once you get to break into that understanding, you get to appreciate the beauty of how they are presenting the timely humanity issues we are facing now.
What I don’t understand is, if it was the most anticipated drama of 2019, then why was ep 1 so low on ratings? I think many people didn’t want to watch it because of the pictures that came out comparing it to thrones. It was a turnoff, but that is sad because it is a great show!
I love the series. I just think the main character stayed too long in the slave prison.
I still love it though
I love Queen Seondeok, Empress Ki, those kinds of political sageuk drama, and now I like Archdal Chronicles. I dont get why it has low ratings in Korea, what are it’s competition? Anyway, I’ll look them up later, I’ll focus on Archdal first. It was funny though, when they copied Jesus Christ, crazy Korean drama, but great plot and interestingly new to me.
I love this drama because of its uniqueness, and i cant understand why Korean people does not like it. The cinematography is perfect. The cast wow they were all good and great, tanya, saya, eunseom, tagon, taellhea, mubaek, and the girl named chaeun (love this sweet and pretty girl). Longing for the forthcoming episodes to be shown. Fr Philippines here
I love this drama! I honesty wish there are more K-dramas like this.. I loved the setting of the story, as well as the characters. I cant understand why it has such low ratings.
I cannot comment about the over-hype or the ‘Game of Thrones’ comparison because I’ve never had any expectations and didn’t hear about it since I picked up the drama by luck … and it is the drama that brought me back to enjoy K-dramas as I had gotten uninterested with all the cliche settings.
I guess K-viewer preferences are different, I personally don’t understand why the ghost ‘Hotel Del Luna’ is doing so well?
Please bring back to screen arthdal Chronicle, whatever they would say, I don’t give a damn if they slow, for me I LIKE THIS DRAMA PLEASE BRING THIS BACK SOON
I just loveee every bit of this draama… tanya & song jong ki are my fav.. absolutely loved this unique storyline.. love from pakistan
I just watched the last episode available and man I was wowed. The first episode was confusing but with time I understood everything, sometimes I even predicted what will happen and it happened naturally as it will happen in reality.
I always love Korean dramas because they show what we humans feel in reality. The tragedy, the emotional state, the political state and the others.
Sincerely Arthdal Chronicles is a must watch.
When I saw the OST I was reminded of Game of Thrones but they did it well than Game of Thrones.
Game of thrones was filled with all nudity that wasn’t necessary, but Arthdal Chronicles had nothing like that, it’s action packed.
I would love to see the new episodes.
For the first 2 episodes, characters and story are hard to understand, i even watched it twice for better undertanding.. and, from episode 3 and above i am super hooked, the story is very unique… soong joong ki and other actors are very very good.. i like it and can’t wait for the episode 13, and above.
i loved it and so did a lot of my friends who have seen it.
i think sadly it was received better outside of Korea for some reason, but i cant wait to see what the third season will bring
I loved it!. I was fascinated by the way the pieces fit together, estoy súper emocionada por ver qué pasará en la temporada siguiente!
at first i was confused ….now,i cant wait for sept…love tz
Maybe it’s because I wasn’t aware of the hype but It caught my attention from episode one. I think it was put together beautifully and wasn’t confusing at all. I think it got more interest outside of Korea because of how different it is from the “normal”.
I loved the show and cannot wait for another episode
Maybe it was not the fault of the show, maybe it is that humans no longer read. When you read a book, it does not shoot out of the gate, it builds….slowly. A really good story takes its time to grow the story and the characters. It pulls you in gently. Yes, much tragedy happened, but they made it clear this was not the way it had been up to this time. As for me, I was drawn in and never wavered in my interest. Even though there are many characters, I was never lost (As I have been now and then in GOT), and I followed the story easily. I look forward to the rest, and I have been telling friends and family to watch.
This show is the best. Just finished episode 13! I’m so happy this is back up and running with Season 3. This is my favorite show this year! -love from America
I feel the show is living up to its expectations. The best korean show I’ve watched so far!
I like this drama a lot . It’s not like stupid other k dramas which cover love stories.
This is one of the best series I have watched ever. The storyline and the concept remain relevant to the present world. The very thought of an attempt to explore human life that existed back then seemed astonishing to me. I have enjoyed each and every sequence, dialogue, expressions and every bit of it. looking forward to more. I don’t think any other Korean series stand a chance of being compared with Arthdal Chronicles.
This is the best kdrama i’ve ever watch. It’s kinda boring to watch romance in kdrama over and over again. This one is so refreshing. Just don’t understand why it’s flopped. The rating really didn’t do the justice. So sad..
I just watched this drama, and yes you have to see it for your self to appreciate it. Love i did So proud of the people who came up with this story. I loved everything about it…see it for your self you won’t be dissapointed
I absolutely love this drama. True, 1st season was confusing as they introduced the various tribes and the background story. Definitely not the normal format of most kdramas. But because of the background story, this drama has a lot of potential to be lengthy multi season and not just 18 episodes. Even well loved western offerings like Vikings or GOT garnered new followings as time went by , until gaining cult status. This drama has that potential if kdrama or Netflix is thinking of exploring kdrama offerings in that direction. Frankly kdramas that have shallow story lines and cookie cutter become forgettable and blur into each other eventually. I think kdramaland and Korean writers should be braver. So hopefully Netflix is willing to sponsor more on this drama. Views from Malaysia.
This drama is so unique, it’s story line, the theme. And that’s what makes it such a good drama. If you watch a few episodes you start to understand what is happening, and the plot obviously slowly unfolds so…
More episodes please. I simply can’t wait what will happen next. I am curious about the bell, sword and mirror, etc. Anyway, I just finished watching episode 18.
I don’t know why it got a low rating. But arthdal series is one of the great unforgettable kdrama for me. Im cheering for the staffs.
I hope others will realize how good this drama is.
I hope this is not the end and there is more to this kdrama. I have been trying to search about the next but can’t find it anywhere. This a really amazing kdrama series where every character connects to its viewers.
i don’t know why the ratings are low. for me, it’s the best kdrama i’ve watched.
The best k drama of 2019. Wish for more seasons.
The more I watch it , more I am addicted to it
Fantastic drama ever only because it is very different from other typical dramas.
Just finished watching episode 18. This is one of the best kdramas I have watched so far! I don’t understand why the ratings are so low! The actors and plots are fantastic! Please have a sequel, the ending doesn’t do justice to the story at all!
this isn’t a show for dumb people. PERIOD. okay fine maybe not dumb… just lazy. Still, my point is, it takes effort and some brain cells working to like it. I appreciate every detail of this drama. I highly recommend this to people who’s waiting for Mr. Right / Chaebol to save them from their miserable life. Goodnight.
honestly koreans enjoy watching typical, overdramatic, and lowkey cringy shows. and they dont enjoy things that are unfamiliar. however i believe arthdal chronicles is really good compared to its ratings and stuff. its just that its not what the korean public would enjoy, rather international fans enjoy this more due to it being fresh and exciting for a korean drama. another thing i would like to say is that some of the GOT comparisons were so unrelated like scarf comparison..? seriously? even the one on a horse the clothes are nothing alike. and the freaking THRONE!!! are you telling me a leader would sit on a normal chair lmao. many other shows have a more similar throne to the one in GOT yet no one said nothing. but omg if youve seen the dress tanya wore in the latest episodes its obviously stolen idea from GOT its the exact SAME!!!! and i agree it was just boring and repetitive in the first episodes that i felt frustrated at how slow the development was especially of tanya. u expect something to happen but she ends up doing nothing special, but im so satisfied now that shes finally doing stuff and its so goooooood.
I Have been watching KDRAMAS from 2011 and have watched numerous dramas and movies. but recently i was really upset with the drams because of lack off new plot. same repetitive plot and same romance, I was kind off bored but thanks to Arthdal chronicles i enjoyed something new. I don’t know why it received such low rating , it deserved much better.
I just hope they come with a second season, to explain all the loose parts.
please
I think the complexity comes with quality. I liked that this deviated from the usual Kdramas. Kudos to the writers. Credits for – the maturing of the main and even supporting characters, the many little details from the dialects (foreign but interesting) to the face paintings of Eunsom and Tanya, the balance between entertainment and human awareness (and more). It brought us to the times (thru the Wahan’s way of living) when before all the complexity in this world, humans were able to live simply without greed. It was a well though of drama and for me, was thoughful for bringing the viewers to the world of Arthdal. I hope they won’t disappoint by ending it too soon.
I enjoy this drama
I am loving on this series. I didn’t watch Game of Thrones and I want to say I appreciate the Korean sensibility to not put nudity and sex in a Television show/movie, etc. I don’t want to see it. But getting back to Arth – I dig on it and am able to keep up. Thanks Kdrama and it makes me want to come to your country and take a look around. Keep Arthdal Chronicles going!
I’m so in love with this kdrama. It’s refreshing, new and definitely brought me back to kdramas. Ofc the cast is amazing and yes it is confusing at first but if you keep watching its easy to understand.
This drama can be mind boggling but thats actually the beauty of it. And as a game of thrones fan, I dont think theres something wrong about the outfits being too similar. Its actually quite appropriate to the show. I respect your insights about it. I guess it still depends on the audience watching it. No one that I know had actually said its not a good series. They all loved it.
I really loved the drama, although I started to watch it too late. I don’t know, why there seems to be so much critic…and I really hope they are able to continue, to bring out a season 2… because I was looking to much forward to the meetings of the mirror and the sword…
NO COMPRENDO COMO DICEN QUE NO FUE BUENO, YO LO ESTOY VIENDO CON MI MAMA Y HASTA ELLA LE ENCANTA LA HISTORIA Y ESO QUE ELLA SE PIERDE RÁ
PIDO CON EL ORDEN DE LAS HISTORIAS PERO AQUÍ NO FUE ASÍ, EL PUBLICO COREANO ESTA MUY SUMERGIDO EN SUS ESTÁNDARES EN LOS DORAMAS QUE NO SUPIERON APRECIAR ESTA INCREÍBLE HISTORIA. A MI ME ENCANTA <3
It was completely beautiful to watch. I couldn’t stop once I started. It has to be my best kdrama of all time. The movie was exciting, suspenseful, thrilling and mysterious all at once.
Seriously, this was the best k-drama i have ever watched. This drama was so underrated but the story and characters that they made up is really awesome.
You say because many characters is involved in this drama and it make difficult people to understand, but for me i was enjoying to know lots of characters in this drama. Game of Thrones also has many characters and people enjoy it.
People love a drama because of the story. and I believe in Arthdal Chronicles, their story will be a great story later on.
I can’t believe this review.
I wondered at begging that this drama was amazing, it brought to us many different things, many actors, It is like Got, many plots happening at the same time, the mistake of this plot, in my opinion, is the twins fall in love for the same woman, but I can understand that, but when this woman began to use the faith of people to get power, I really became sad, she was a hostage but she had the chance to escape a lot of time, but because of her power, she can let it go anymore. So I don’t think she should be considered a protagonist since she has deceived all the people who trust in her, many have been dying under her orders. It is my idea about this drama, sorry for the bad English.
I m not a k-drama fan but I started watching some since the corona pandemic and i really like the series and made me very excited well cant wait for new episodes to come.
I was so sad to found out that this drama has low ratings.. it’s my top 1 kdrama.. im sad that mostly could not appreciate this genre of kdrama. it’s something fresh and new.. but maybe it’s because im not the type to enjoy kdrama right on the first episode, because as for me, i’d like dramas that have complicated plot. I’d like to get curious whenever i watch a drama and this dram is beyond my expectation its so good.. i wish Koreans could appreciate this more. btw the ratings are low because they only calculated it in Korea right?
However the ending is just… i dont know what to say.. there’s no ending… they said that it will be continue in season 2 but i am afraid if they decided to not continue the drama as it has low ratings but they can’t just leave us with tha kind of ending.. it doesn’t conclude anything.. and there’s so much questions remain unanswered in fact, eunseom and tanya didnt even reunited yet and im curious who will tanya choose at the end i hope they back with season 2 and have a perfect ending, it doesnt matter if it’s sad ending or happy ending as long as it concludes everything and nothing left unanswered
Korean dramas has become my fav since the pandemic, and I happened to watch this particular one. To me, it was something different compared to the ones that I normally watch which I found them as “simple” This drama has all the ingredients which could be categorized as “Grade A”. I hope there will be a Season 2 coming.
It didn’t fail, it was excellent.
If you want to see failure there is plenty around, this was a great show. Seldom have i seen such weighty themes treated so intelligently with subtlety and style.