This is the first Korean TV series I have watched, after hearing many praise them, and I must say they were right because this film is mind-blowing. I don't know whether to start with the costumes, the music, the plot or the acting, but the truth is all of these make for an emotional story of fate, love, war and friendship, strewn with bits of history and culture that no viewer can deny. I mean considering the conventions of a TV series such as this.
The frenmity between what should have been the best friends of the story is the catalyst of the all the happenings, good or bad, it is what makes the viewers hope, cry and rage, and then forgive and understand, but it is heartbreaking. Then the different pieces of the soundtrack fall like a bomb over the impossible loves, over the doomed-never-quite-accomplished friendship, shattering your horizon of expectations.
While many characters are very well-developed and carefully wrought, we recognize of course that the men are powerful and expert in Martial Arts, and the ladies are so delicate and dreamy, but somehow always present in the most dangerous contexts. I was surprised both by the beauty and by the cunningness of Madam Jami, I enjoyed the couples of funny men (whose names I can never remember) who accompany the lead characters as helpers and trusty subjects throughout the story, I simply loved Goong-Bok/ Jang Bogo for the genius that he is, for his kindness, his ambition and his endurance, for the way he loves and for the way he trusts, I admired the two ladies that revolved around him, for their patience and their wisdom, but the one that truly convinced me is Yeom Moon (Song Il-Kook). This Moon that shines all through the film, misunderstood and lonely and longing for companions, this fate-born pirate turned treacherous friend and protector, this silent lover whose look and tears just devastate you.
I think anyone should try and watch a Korean drama series in this life, and since this is so, why not try Emperor of the Sea? The powerful tension and incredible feelings of empathy you will get from the excellent acting are something worth all the while.
