Finally! Another epic drama after Queen Seon Deok, that is.
Yes, I just finished this 2007 series last month. I remember watching it occasionally on GMA before but all I remembered was mainly about Suzini (Sujini). My younger sister and I like her. In fact, Sujini completes the group of our favorite boyish female leads, the JAMS (other members are Joey from Hana-Kimi Taiwan, Andy from Coffee Prince, and Mizuki from Hana-Kimi Japan). I remember her character was cool but I can barely recall the drama itself. I started watching some scenes in YouTube and ended up watching the whole series!
All I can say is DAEBAK! It’s great, indeed. Really one of the best sageuk ever!
The drama is loosely based on the story of Gwanggaeto, the Great of Goguryeo. The main catch is they added a fantasy twist by mixing in the legendary myth about the Four Sacred Symbols depicted as the Four Guardians who serve the King of Jyushin to the plot. This probably reminds you of the anime Fushigi Yuugi. And yes, it is something like that but instead of Miaka’s Seven Celestial Warriors who were all marked by a special character somewhere in their bodies, The Legend got Dam Deok’s Four Guardians who take care of the four sacred symbols. You know that fantasy, magical feeling brought to you by these kinds of anime, try to imagine that in live action with real people! Now, you got The Legend!
And did I forgot to mention that I really love Damini, also known as Dasu (Damdeok + Sujini)? This pairing is so love! It is some sort of a BiDeok (Queen Seon Deok), SamMi (Dream High) love story where the guy isn’t the girl’s first love interest. Although in Dasu, it is Sujini who is not Damdeok’s first love (yes, technically, she is not Damdeok‘s but Hwanoong’s). I really love how the protagonists learn to know their hearts and who really they beat for as the story develops. I found the jealousy and the pain of the other one in the pairing really interesting, too. They’re cute when they are jealous but they break my heart when they’re in pain. Sometimes our heroes/heroines are really jerk or just slow. It will took them several episodes (usually about 3/4 of the entire series!) just to realize who they really love is. And maybe something is wrong with me because I like it that way! I found it boring to support a love team that is already solid from the start. Haha ?
Although I’m very much fond of this love team, like most of sageuk dramas before, the story doesn’t focus much on the romance. If you love action, historical dramas, The Legend still lives up to this genre. In fact, Bae Yong Joon got injured several times during taping. He attended the 2007 MBC Drama Awards in clutches!
The series has a lot of funny scenes as well, thanks a lot to Sujini. This girl really drives the viewers crazy. And Jimuchi, too! Other characters can be funny at times as well.
Another thing is the OST. As what I already mentioned on a previous post, when a series is Korean, it follows that its soundtrack is good. But still, I can’t prevent myself to write that The Legend’s OST is so good! A thumbs up to TVXQ. They really sang the songs nicely. Here’s my favorite. This video is a very good trailer as well.
Here’s the not so good thing that ruined the almost perfect drama – the ending. The production decided not to stick with the original ending mainly because of the Bae Yong Joon’s injuries. As a result, sadly, like QSD, The Legend failed to give justice to the love team. At the very least, fans were able to read the original script after one of the writers posted it on her blog. So thankful to that writer. After reading that script, I always tell myself that “this is the ending”, “this IS the ending’, “this MUST be the ending”. Haha. ? But please don’t judge the series by its confusing ending though.
Like those series that really captured my heart, it will take several months for me to get over this addiction. I still remember crying over those heart breaking scenes from the drama. Even until now, I get back to my favorite episodes from time to time. I even made an MV featuring Damini. The hype is still in me.
I highly recommend The Legend for your next sageuk fix so do check it out!
