I have it (The Warring States) on a list elsewhere. Hulu and Netflix GUTTED their Asian drama except for anime mostly by the way. I thought it was a giant leap backward in the way the world should be.
Red Cliff is also outstanding. And then there’s all the Akira Kurosawa stuff from long ago - Japanese. Toshiro Mifune. He played Toranaga in Shogun.
I still appreciate the way Three Kingdoms (2010) helps me get what happens after things completely break down. Zhuge vs Sima…it’s really great. Lu Yi as Zhuge. I didn’t even know it was him…and he was amazing. So far from his role as Ge Nie in Legend of Qin. 95 episodes of really good. it’s not here, alas!
So many great historical/costume dramas and movies
Crouching Dieter, Hidden Donut
Linda, I found another one I really liked back then and Im thinking of rewatching it:
Kim Soo Ro, Kdrama/saguk. Viki has it up.
The movie Mongol is great too (with authentic mongolian music, russian production) I should watch the 3 kingdoms… (btw I can’t keep the historical events together which drama starts out first and leads into the next one, I would have to write this down, funny, there is too much info to remember, lol)
Tree with Deep Roots is fascinating since it’s also about the Hangul letters
Last but not least: The Great Merchant Kim Man Dok.
@simi11,
You should check out @lacruiser’s Sageuk channel that lists Sageuks in chronological order. It also has a lot of other useful info. I don’t have the link right now but just search for Sageuk in Viki and you will be able to find the channel.
@simi11 they have a Mandeok Museum in Jeju!
oh and I remembered today @ajumma2 that Korea is really really dry. So contact lens wearers need artificial tears. (of course cheaper in Korea sold everywhere)
one of the German subbers was just recently in Korea and Jeju and sent pics from statues on the beach of the diving women, cottages from dramas like Chuno and Tamra Island, Im so jealous
https://www.viki.com/tv/1058c-the-great-doctor - not gonna lie the first episode was pretty unrealistic (im not talking about the scifi lol) but it gets so much better. just stick with it.
https://www.viki.com/tv/2130c-the-moon-embracing-the-sun - i adore this drama. contains politics and family dynamics. it’s quite melo but also romantic. it leaves you frustrated to the point that you find yourself binging the epsiodes without even noticing.
https://www.viki.com/tv/26480c-six-flying-dragons - there is light romance in here but other than that, it’s such a phenomenal drama. the politics, the side characters, the plot just leaves you weeping (sometimes in joy and sometimes not).
https://www.viki.com/tv/30213c-jackpot - this had such beautiful cinematography. it doesn’t focus on romance but the politics and the main character are interesting enough. the king is such a badass here. this story is just one of a kind.
I’ve watched most of those ^^ and loved them. The others I didn’t watch because the first episode didn’t get me hooked. Dong Yi and TMETS are my absolute favorites. I’m also enjoying Moonlight Drawn by Clouds right now! Such a wonderful drama.
Three Kingdoms would be MORE than worth your time. Lu Yi is amazing playing the advisor…and it sure clears up a lot of mysteries in other dramas when you watch TK.
Tree is good - it’s a bridge between Six Flying Dragons and fits in a similar place as Jang Youngsil, then you get Queen Insoo - FINALLY almost complete! after that one…They say there will be a sequel, something about a deep spring coming soon.
I could not get into the Merchant show sadly - I really tried.
As a technical note, I wear contact lenses both in dry climate and high altitude - and the body mostly adjusts. As long as you are well hydrated throughout the rest of the body, your eyes usually adjust.
Relative humidity here gets down to 6%. I live in what is actually a high desert… :).
you should never be afraid to try
It might start up slow and then it picks up nicely, NIF is a food for the thought drama and you can’t jump ahead since you will miss important info that will help explain a lot, I can’t watch it at night because it needs more concentration than just plain easy entertainment, the dialog is also complex, but I can say it is extremely captivating, HU GE is just mesmerizing with his strategic thinking. I have to yet finish watching it, some have watched it like 5-8 times, lol. Im still trying to get the German subs finished!!!
Bonne chance
Goodness. I guess you might visit the page for Nirvana In Fire and read the reviews…and the comments. I’m on there several times. I’ve seen it 10 times.
Very few people leave there disappointed.
My soul is with that drama. I visit from time to time. (My heart has been over at Go Princess Go…because it enjoys the Peter Sheng effect. )
It is the masterpiece of a man who has lived the invalid pain, suffering, and has made the part perfection…and is utterly brilliant, surrounded by more brilliance in all the aspects of the show.
I still can’t find a flaw in that drama. It simply is the world’s best drama. And it stars Hu Ge in a role he arguably has prepared for more than any other actor. Sound of the Desert he played an invalid. Well…it was the warmup for this masterpiece.
Suggestion is to give NIF two full episodes. The first scene can be a bit daunting, realize the story is very complex and every moment has a purpose building to the end of this 54 episodes.
Six Flying Dragons has places you can fast forward through and not miss the main story. Not NIF. Six is also REALLY good…Yoo Ah In, sigh.
Anyway…Yes, I love NIF. But it’s because it IS that drama. I’m not alone.
What I do when I decide to watch a drama or not - I read what others say, then watch a couple of episodes and decide which list it falls onto.
NIF is the only 10 …and I’m like the Russian judge, I don’t give 10’s.