It has taken this Western viewer three repeats of the series to finally get up to speed on the gist of the series and feel confident to comment on it. Maybe it's my advanced age.
First of all, I had no idea the Korean landscape is so varied and beautiful; the cinematography is breathtaking.
So many of the supporting actors are well fleshed out and add so much to the story. I'm thinking of the two slave catchers-turned-pawn brokers, the house servants, the Joseon king -- I could feel his pain. The interaction of the three male leads seemed so natural and realistic and I came to enjoy those sections, brief as they were. They play off each other nicely. I don't know enough about Korean culture overall to comment on the accuracy of its portrayal.
Now the nitpicking -- an American missionary would never be so dismissive of an orphaned child and the fact that Eugene is so fond of him in later episodes has no supporting logic. Portraying the missionary in a more sympathetic light would have gone a long way to explain Eugene's strong allegiance to the USA. Second, the American cavalry has always kept their horses groomed to a T as well as feeding and exercising them so they are glowing and well-muscled. This would have applied in foreign postings as well. The horse Eugene rides can only be described as a dispirited nag.
First of all, I had no idea the Korean landscape is so varied and beautiful; the cinematography is breathtaking.
So many of the supporting actors are well fleshed out and add so much to the story. I'm thinking of the two slave catchers-turned-pawn brokers, the house servants, the Joseon king -- I could feel his pain. The interaction of the three male leads seemed so natural and realistic and I came to enjoy those sections, brief as they were. They play off each other nicely. I don't know enough about Korean culture overall to comment on the accuracy of its portrayal.
Now the nitpicking -- an American missionary would never be so dismissive of an orphaned child and the fact that Eugene is so fond of him in later episodes has no supporting logic. Portraying the missionary in a more sympathetic light would have gone a long way to explain Eugene's strong allegiance to the USA. Second, the American cavalry has always kept their horses groomed to a T as well as feeding and exercising them so they are glowing and well-muscled. This would have applied in foreign postings as well. The horse Eugene rides can only be described as a dispirited nag.
