Money Flower

Great cast in an intricate plot, led by Jang Hyuk giving a master class in acting. This is one of SK's greatest actors and one of the best in the world in complete control of every scene he's in.

Thank you Netflix. The Hallyu came as a tidal wave with this show. As an American living in India with no knowledge of Korean or it's culture I have become addicted to K-dramas. Money Flower is not the typical Korean romcom that I have been watching recently. The initial episodes lull you into a hopeful snuggle and slowly drops you into an abyss of a power struggle that rivals Hamlet, schemes within schemes.

I had recently watched "You Are My Destiny", and was amazed with the breadth of emotions that Jang Hyuk displayed and caused to resonate within me. While his character went big with his emotions. In Money Flower Jang Hyuk pulls the emotions in tight, while flashing all with clench of the jaw, a purse of his lips, an icy stare or desperate longing. Park Se-young and Jang Seung-jo compliment Jang Hyuk's minimalism with the ability to depict their characters' evolutions from light hearted lovers to abused puppets.

Unlike many other shows where the minor character become caricatures, Money Flower, kept the supporting characters from being flat, allowing each to be multi-faceted. Lee Soon-jae could easily have been a typical autocratic patriarch, someone who needed to be defeated. Yet there were moments of tenderness, love and even doubt in his megalomania.

Normally, I would discuss the story in much more detail, but because the writing, acting, music all came together to create an epic I wanted to praise the craftsmanship that all brought to the table.

The story itself is one told over and over. An illegitimate son trying to get revenge for his mother being thrown away and to take his rightful place at the table. Yes, there is so much more to the tale that is so artfully woven with threads being added to make a rich and vibrant story. In order to take nothing from the experience, I will not say more about the story.

I highly recommend Money Flower.

Absolutely fantastic. Edge of your seat excitement. Jang Hyuk is a phenomenal actor. All of the actors were great. There are 24 episodes, but the tale is so compelling, the acting so superb, that bingeing was required. I won't give away the plot, except to state that the hero was never really a villain and in my opinion, should have been able to lead a fantastic life and be happy. There are so many interesting villains, good people turning into villains, plots and counter plots. I'm certain that you will LOVE this series.

Besides the lead, played by Jang Hyuk A+++++, the wife of his father, was perfectly acted by Lee MiSuk, who also acted with him in Wok of Love, Jang Seung Jo gave his character pathos, confusion, longing, ... a great performance.

You will be enthralled, enraged, emboldened to learn more, and mostly, gloriously entertained. I did weep a number of times. Life often doesn't work put.

...Well worth watching. Jang Hyuk is magnificent in this Machiavellian series ;he carried the show with the support of a very capable cast. I highly recommend this series,

This morose revenge drama shows greed and murder in a wealthy family full of one dimensionally evil or good people. The direction is somewhat monotonous. Every one speaks slowly. There isn't that much story to fill 24 Episodes. 16 would have been enough. Many scenes looked like a repeat of earlier scenes. In some episodes nothing much happens till the last 5 minutes just to get you to tune in to the next episode. The slowness means the plot is easy to understand. At least it isn't convoluted or confusing. The problem is there isn't that much story. They tried to murder him and killed his brother. He assumes another identity and becomes a trusted advisor / fixer. It's fairly diverting to see him in control. Also how the secrets are revealed one by one. You know what will happen but it's just about how he takes them down eventually. One sad thing is there is no romance - there can't be because of the situation he created. Other revenge dramas in the past are more exciting. Like Shark or Green Rose or even the first half of an Innocent Man. Rather excessive repetitive use of the score themes. Very loud for no reason. The acting is adequate. Jang Hyuk looks the part but has the same expression through most of the show. At least Jang Seung Jo looks tortured enough. The ending is okay if not a fairytale happy one but clear and right for what happened before. Not worth the time investment.