It’s October which means the folks in the US is surrounded by all sorts of Halloween this and that. Ghost month in lunar new year celebrating Asian cultures is between July and August so the spate of supernatural dramas are over, except this cheeky goofing off picture between Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart: Ryeo leads Lee Jun Ki and IU could totally pass for a horror drama fiming still. She’s the wrongfully murdered peasant girl turned ghastly spectre and he the harbinger of death rocking the cloak of darkness.
I wish the two leads had better chemistry onscreen to capture their great offscreen camaraderie, but then again I think the way K-BBJX has penned the personality and relationship development between Hae Soo and 4, it doesn’t give them much opportunity to be mutually comfortable with each other in scenes. I hope Hae Soo fully accepts 4 soon because her deer in headlights coupled with resignation around him is seriously wearing thin now.
What a nice posting to wake up to. Thanks Ms.Koala. Lee Jun Ki is such a clown on set and I really love his goofiness, easy going and fun loving personality. He really treated his hoobae very nicely and can definitely feel that the casts getting along very well. Despite LJK playfulness, it amazed me that he could slip into character like his second skin and gave away standout performance, nailing each and every single scene. Big claps to my favourite K-actor. Agree that their chemistry not as great as IU-KHN but I am loving every single of LJK in Scarlet Heart and I can take him with or without the loveline.
Thanks for this post. I thk LJG is a great sunbae who makes all the cast younger than him go be able to be comfortable with him. Love his portrayal of Wang So.
Thank you for the post, Ms. Koala. While this scene is highly epic and they successfully pulled it off with the outflow of emotions in episode 11, I could not help but find it a bit funny due to LJK’s cape crusader outfit, a cross between Batman and Dracula. LOL. And I think LJK found it amusing too since I watched the BTS and could see him flapping the cape around the set and goofing with it. Always love the BTS of this drama and can I say that LJK has one of the sweetest laughs. I love him to pieces.
Lol funny you say that they look like siblings. I can see chemistry left and right whenever they are on screen together. I guess it depends more on whether you like them together or not.
yeah they definitely don’t look like siblings to me onscreen lol.
Unless they are the Goryeo kind of siblings who marry each other 😉
Lee Jun Ki is a great sunbae. Can see that all of his hoobae adore him. His camaraderie moment with IU off screen is more like brother-sister thing and may be that’s why not translated into their romantic chemistry on-screen. I find him having better chemistry with Kang Ha Na and therefore shipping So with Yeon Hwa. It’s great to see how LJK off-screen personality is so different than his portrayal of Wang So and I agree with @Alexa, not only his voice is sexy with that low register but his laugh is so infectious and sweet.
Awww. I love this post. I saw these BTS pics a while ago, but so glad they are getting shared. Basically I am just happy for any and all love LJG gets. He is my favorite actor and I think his work ethic, talent, and charming personality BTS make him deserving of all the praise and love we can shower on him.
Lee Jun Ki is my love. I wish Koala that IU and him could really transfer their off screen ease on-screen. And yes that O_O look needs to be banned from all dramas.
I actually think they had that ease onscreen in the episodes when they were friends before she freaked out about the Gwangjong thing. So and Soo were supposed to be friendly, and I think they brought that comfort level really well.
Agree. They are not there yet for romance to full blossom. But I definitely feel chemistry on screen, just not lovey-dovey kind.
I can see their amazing chemistry as sunbae/donseng or oppa/donseng. But definitely not lovers. I am watching this drama to watch how the story unfold. But their romance is just wearing thin. Wang So shows very clear love for Soo but she just sees him as a close oppa…
I actually think Lee Jun Ki and IU have chemistry, not the kind of intense sexual chemistry she has with Kang Ha Neul, but definitely more convincing than the lukewarm flat soda vibes of the stars of another much hyped but underwhelming pre produced drama this year. At this point in the drama I can buy that she sees him as a friend and trusts him, that kind of trust is definitely well put across.
Like someone pointed out on db, it’s definitely better than him and Nam Sang Mi in Joseon Gunman.
I agree about the chemistry and now that her feelings are gonna go his way, we’ll see about it being more intense. The odd thing about Nam Sang Mi is that her and LJG had plenty of chemistry in The Time Between Dog and Wolf imo. I think some of what went on in JG is they turned it more into a sweet rather than intense relationship. There was a little bit of “heroine fade” going on there.
I struggled so hard to root for the OTP in Joseon Gunman but the heroine was basically a Mary Sue (Nam Sang Mi playing her with mannerisms more suited to an actress 10 years younger, did not help) and the second female lead far more compelling both as a character and in terms of her chemistry with Jun Ki.
IU is imperfect but in a weird way, she matches better with Jun Ki, it’s more evident in scenes where she’s not going O_O. (to be fair to her, I think that is bad direction since she didn’t do that in Producers)
Agree, IU/LJK is a better OTP in terms of chemistry than him with his leading lady in Joseon Gunman.
I actually think IU has been doing a great job in SH, specifically the most recent episodes when Soo had to go through such extreme plights. The first half of the drama series didn’t appear to me well directed to show her charm on screen. But she got these opportunities in the 2nd half and she did step up to show her emotion range, specifically her scenes with her God-mother-like court lady. Based on her prior dramas such as You Are the Best Lee Soon Shin and the Producer, I feel that she’s a way better actress in melo than rom com. Just my personal opinions.
I finally marathoned through the latest eps and really enjoyed watching SH.
@Drama2016 – I definitely agree that IU is better at emotion/melo than at romcom, she doesn’t suit that kind of exaggerated comedy.
But I think she can be quite appealing even in comedy when she’s allowed to play it more understated and natural/dry (and looking back at UF, her drunk acting with Nam Joo Hyuk is better than anything Suzy could ever produce). Just that she is much better when her character is supposed to be going through major emotional upheavals.
Look at his jaw ? Omona,, so sexy ?
I still say that LJK is gorgeous but towards the second half of the drama, I find him too stick thin which makes him look older. I prefer the Wang So during the earlier episodes, just of the perfect size, not too thin and definitely not chubby. That’s what made Wang So sexier in the first half of this drama. Dear LJK, please gain some healthy weights and it’s no harm packing on at least 5kg to your small frame.
ljk oppa is forever my favourite korean actor?love his acting! really hopes he gets an award as hes amazing and deserves one.
am i really blocked here?
but i am not a spam.?
Oh sorry about my first comment.
I thought i was still restricted.
anyway, thanks.?
Just finished watching episode 14, the raw and the subbed version.
LJk is just awesome.
each episode is better than the last one. I am still waiting Wang so to become a bad ass king.
The 15yh episode is just driving me crazy literally
If Soo learns how to trust So whole heartly then Eun and his wife would hane not Died
I like IU but her character is just annoying me
Sorry but I don’t buy any romantic scenes that happened so abruptly and not convincing at all
Two years passed and boom she has feeling for the 4th
I think the point is that she’s been hanging with him and falling in love with him over time. Yes, it is sad to think of Wang So not getting his kiss for 2 years…6 to 9 months would have made a lot more sense, but they are trying to follow the history of the various reigns. I’ll put that issue on the production. I saw and loved the Chinese version and the political manipulation was done much better (well 6 or so hours longer to do all that) but the pivot to turning to 4th prince is actually done much better in this drama…just imo.
Sorry, I stopped watching because I strongly resisted IU, even though I adore LJK and he will always be my favorite K actor! In order to play the part, you need to first “look the part”, IU failed miserably in that regard.
I think the episode flopped has a lot to do with the fact that LJK and IU were cast as a couple. It would have made all the difference in the world if the male and female leads were compatible and had on-screen chemistry. Sadly, in this case, it did not happen.