Kokdu: Season of Deity

Wow was this a huge disappointment! The potential for an amazing drama was there and the horrible writing completely destroyed an otherwise really interesting plot.

The premise and actual plot were very good (although not particularly original) but the way they got from point to point was awful, often nonsensical, and confusing. The story felt disjointed, and at times I felt completely lost while watching. The first episode was horrible, and the second was only slightly better, but then the next few episodes gave me hope. But by the halfway point I knew this show was going to be a mess, but I wanted to finish it anyway because the ML and FL gave such great performances and their characters were so interesting.

That being said, even the great acting couldn't save the show. Sad moments were written so poorly that they failed to make me feel any emotion. Instead of feeling immersed in the story and characters, I felt like an outsider watching, not connected to any character or story line.

This was truly a shame, the cinematography was beautiful, and as I said the performances were well done. The writing completely ruined a show that had great potential to be an amazing fantasy kdrama.

I think I would recommend skipping this one! Watch Goblin instead for a similar story line that is done perfectly.

Kokdu played by Kim Jung-Hyun is a God in the afterlife and carries out vengeance against people who evade justice in this world. He crosses paths with Han Gye-Jeol, a doctor who is played by Lim Soo-Hyang a reincarnation of someone from his past with links to why he is being punished. Over time they grow fond of each other but will it all come crashing down when she finds out he is a monster ? A reasonable plot idea and well acted with some interesting side characters but stalls a little after the first few episodes and moves slow until everything is tidied up at the end making it seem a little forced. Also even though the people he punishes are the lowest of the low it is not justice but revenge so it is difficult to like the character.

I watched up to episode 8 and could no longer go on. The story is not actually a bad one, but the female lead really annoys me - a combination of her wierd looking face (plastic surgery), her acting and the design of her character. The acting cute and supposed cheeky arguments between the male & female leads are just as annoying, noisy and pointless. It got to a point where i had to just skip through the whole dialog to scenes where it might have looked like part of the plot. To be fair, the other actors and characters are ok, with some funny parts, but overall, story dragged on way too long with too much of the female lead acting dumb and annoying.

It seems to be the writing that's the problem. Among Kokdu and nine tailed and goblin and sht of this vein, I've found Kokdu to be the best.

Actors are very good. The stuff they have said about the FL is utter venom, in my opinion. Too much aegyo and disgustingly childish mannerisms that just don't suit the character? That's goblin's baby lover.

This show suffers from amateurish dialogues, sometimes they are too long or dragged out. But considering the uniqueness of the way a concept is discussed along the show, and the way actors act it out, such shortcomings become invisible.

The uniqueness has to do with the concept of conditioning: fate and freewill are discussed but alongside that, something even more important is examined: traces of things that are long gone. Things that you know mattered a lot to you once and you cannot even remember what. The trace itself becomes what matters. And in this specific case, that trace is the painful experience of yearning... Turning all existence into grudge for the one that has yearned since time immemorial. There's a valuable observation there and the epically poetic way with which how conditioning and what it means to a mortal, sapient being were conveyed... That alone was breathtaking.

This show has kind of grown on me after I finished it.

I think Kim Jung Hyun is an outstandingly talented actor (he sings a song BTW for the OST, he is great at it, he certainly puts his heart into it). There were moments where I'd thought his acting was a bit exaggerated, but then I tried to think about how else someone could act those lines and descriptions out and it was then that I realized there was a problem with the written material. They should have let the actors free and make suggestions for a more natural flow and expression. I feel the director might have been a bit strict too. Im So Hyang was a nice discovery for me and KJH, aka the king of adlibs, would have the whole show soar along with Cha Chung Hwa and Kim In Kwon, if a Mr Queen kind of chemistry could get built among all the main actors. I must say though, this show doesn't have issues with character development the way its ilk has.

Creative writing from a writer who has a long way to go when it comes to adapting things to the screen, especially for a romcom, seems to have been hindered in this one due to what I'm guessing was a lack of healthy back and forth with the director and the cast. Unfortunately, only such communication would create the environment best conducive to a wholesome show with all the parts fitting and in harmony.

Telling it like it really is... with the pharmaceutical companies and all... And a brief yet honest evaluation of capitalism in passing... That's what got this show low ratings from all these hypocrites.

There's no universe where this show could get a 6 something and yet the previously mentioned ones could score a lot more, except one where people are hypocrites.

A good story from beginning to end. Great comic relief. The supporting cast excellent. Lively scenery . The past life story is revealed well.

The end was a great save and i really liked the charachters . Its different from most other kdrama so some might not get what they expect. Its a very good love story. And it is mystical. And long range karma themes. I will be thinking about this series for a long time. The care between all the charachters was moving.

It is intersting worldview that the creator has chosen angels of justice. And the karmic lessons are for all involved . And we see eaches self created prison of belief.