Dramas to Watch

21. The Legend of the Blue Sea (2016)

The Legend of the Blue Sea

Country: South Korea

Type: Drama

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Romance

Episodes: 20

Aired: Nov 16, 2016 to Jan 25, 2017

Network: SBS

Duration: 60 min.

Plot:

How can a mermaid from the Joseon era survive in modern-day Seoul? Shim Cheong (Jun Ji Hyun) is a mermaid who finds herself transplanted to modern times. She is caught by Heo Joon Jae (Lee Min Ho), a charming but cold con artist who is the doppelgänger for Kim Dam Ryung, the son of a noble man from the Joseon Dynasty. But in the present time, Joon Jae works with Jo Nam Doo, a skilled conman who guides Joon Jae to become a genius scammer. But Joon Jae's friend, Cha Shi Ah, who works as a researcher at KAIST, may be Cheong's only hope for surviving in her strange new world.

Cast:

Jun Ji Hyun

Shim Cheong / Se Hwa

Lee Min Ho

Heo Joon Jae / Kim Dam Ryung

Lee Ji Hoon

Heo Chi Hyun

Review:

by kingsqueen of mydramalist

"I enjoyed Legend of the Blue Sea very much. I was prepared to give this a higher rating than I did, but there were a few things that kept this from being perfect. The story was very good, I enjoyed the reincarnation/past lives aspect and the flashback scenes to the Joseon counterparts. I wish those parts had been able to continue further into the story. The writer really set up her myth very well. I've heard some say that it was too reminiscent of My Love From Another Star, and I can see where the set up was very similar in style. I enjoyed all the characters, though, and the writer did put in some good twists to the story. There were a few inconsistencies, but nothing that distracted too much from my enjoyment. And although the ending was good, I felt like it still could have been better. They did a good job at wrapping up, but I didn't feel like they spent enough time with our main couple for the last episode.

This drama was actually my first experience watching Lee Min Ho. I thought I finally got why he was such a "big deal" a few years back. (No, I have never watched BOF and probably won't!) I liked him enough to find another drama of his to watch while waiting for new episodes. While he impressed me fairly well in the first part, I found that he lacked emotional punch in some scenes toward the end which lowered my acting score a bit. Jun Ji Hyun, though, has become one of the actresses that I enjoy very much. She has a great comedic sense and stands out from a lot of the Korean actresses I see. She did an excellent job in this show as well. I thought all the side characters were interesting and well-acted for their roles. Especially all the actors doing double duty as past and present characters.

The music was pretty good, but nothing that was extraordinary. The theme song was cheesy but still somewhat catchy. It's not something I would like or enjoy listening to outside of being the theme song for this show, though. So, it was good for its purpose.

I think this has good rewatch value, even if I myself may not rewatch it. (Unless I can convince my husband to give it a try!)

Overall, I gave this an 8.5. It was a very solid drama and I would recommend it to anyone that likes romance and fantasy elements. I think this show airing during the same time frame as Goblin may hurt its ratings a bit, but it was still a great show and I don't have any major criticisms for it."

Reviewer's Rating: 8.5

My Rating: 8.5

Mydramalist Rating: 8.3

Asianwiki Rating: 8.9

You can comment your own rating and justify why you gave that rating if you want :)

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