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Moonshine / When Flowers Bloom, Think of the Moon [2021-22]


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When Flowers Bloom, Think of the Moon
꽃 피면 달 생각하고
 
jNljb_4f.jpg
 
 
Director: Hwang In Hyuk
Writer: Kim Joo Hee
 
Episodes: 16
First Air Date: December 20th, 2021
 
Cast:
Yoo Seung Ho - Nam Young
Hyeri - Kang Ro Seo
Byeon Woo Seok - Lee Pyo
Kang Mi Na - Han Ye Jin
 
Summary:
Drama is set in the late Joseon period when a strict prohibition of alcohol has been enacted.
 
Nam Young works as a government officer who tracks down people who break the alcohol prohibition. He is originally from the countryside, but came to Hanyang (the capital) to find success. He is a man of principles. Then he meets Kang Ro Seo who causes him to question himself.
 
Kang Ro Seo is the daughter of a noble family who has fallen onto hard times. Despite being the daughter, she is actually the breadwinner of her family, and doesn't mind doing even manual labor for money. In order to pay off her family debts, she starts brewing alcohol despite the strict prohibition.
 
cr: AsianWiki.com, MyDramaList.com
 
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Just realized that this is going to be a fusion sageuk. I already know that YSH will be amazing, but I think that this will be Hyeri's first sageuk? I'm being cautiously hopeful that it will be entertaining.

 

Haven't seen Byeon Woo Seok since Record of Youth where I thought he was pretty decent. Kang Mi Na is completely unfamiliar to me though.

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On 12/5/2021 at 4:20 PM, Tofu said:

They changed the English name to Moonshine. I don't know, I think I like the overly long name better.

 

The name "Moonshine" kind of makes sense since it's about selling alcohol, homemade or otherwise, during a time of prohibition.

I caught the first episode of this, and I'm not sure how much I'm grooving to the story. It's trying for a very comedic tone which unfortunately falls flat a number of times.

 

Yoo Seung Ho's character Nam Young is very smart and very principled, and despite not having the backing of anyone in power, he manages to be the only one to pass the royal government exam. He does so by pointing out the discrepancy between having the country be in prohibition and yet being served a drink of alcohol by the king upon finishing the exam, and thus he assumed that it was yet another test of the candidates steadfastness to the king's edicts and thus worthiness. While that had not been the reason for the drink, the king is pleased with the answer and appoints NY to be a government official. However, this clearly displeases everyone else at the palace. NY is thus charged with arresting and bringing in the biggest alcohol sellers if he is to receive acknowledgement as being worthy of his appointment.

 

Hyeri's character Kang Ro Seo is the daughter of a noble family who has fallen on hard times, and even harder times since they invested everything including what they didn't have into the son of the family, trying to make him a government official. Unfortunately, he failed the same exam that NY passed. KRS has turned to doing anything for money, and finally ends up providing illegal alcohol as a means of making money.

 

Through various coincidences, however, NY ends up renting lodgings at KRS' house, and thus the OTP start interacting.

 

As with all sageuks, there is a lot of political machinations going on for power and control. Comedy and political intrigue during the Joseon era isn't something that hasn't been done, and perhaps this drama series will grow on me if I keep watching it? However, both parts are a bit weak. The comedy isn't the funniest and the politics isn't the most intriguing.

 

However, Yoo Seung Ho looks darn good in this drama and I just wish the drama was better to allow him to flex his acting chops. As it is, it feels as if YSH has done this role many times since he's returned from the military since it keeps insisting on trying to be a lightweight rom-com.

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