Queenmaker

Too cartoonish for my liking but the actors are good, the production value is good and enjoyed the story. I love political intrigue but as usual the activistic leftwing party is the good guy (like in almost 100% of the political dramas, it's so predictabe) and the endless virute signalling (woman are good, men are bad, employer bad, employee victim) have been done a trillion times before.

When I write cartoonish I mean especially the villains, no redeeming qualities whatsoever. So you get the gist early on.

Although I would have loved a series with more depth, more (believable) twists and originality (played by the same crew because -again- the actors can act and the director can direct) and perhaps a bit less emotioning so common in many Korean productions, a better, possibly more neutral and/or clever storywriter could have taken this series to another level.

6,5 (first part is definitely better and deserves perhaps an eight)

Simply amazing roles by the two main female characters. A fixer for a conglomerate family who is affected after a young aide is suspected of suicide after allegations of sexual assault by the son in law of the wealthy, powerful Eunsung group. She joins hands with the unglamorous but strong willed labor rights lawyer and defender of the people to get her running for Mayor of Seoul.

Plot twists and turns, roller coaster rides throughout this political drama reveals the heights of corruption which large conglomerates embroiled in. Their greed for power, control & greater wealth with no consideration nor gratitude to their staff who contribute to their status.

The two female protagonists are superb in their rules, pouring out their emotions during intense moments of anger, terror, disbelief, as they deal with the arrogant Eunsung Head of the family.

I am not much of a women power drama supporter, but decided to try and watch this one and got carried away by their performance of the whole cast in this series. 11 episodes in 2 amd a half days ! Perfect weekend!

Queenmaker is an exception to Netflix Originals. It is a great series with a clean ending; you don't have to wait for season 2. It has no foul language, no f words, no drugs, no explicit sex of any kind. House of Cards, Money heist, Delhi Crime, Queen's Gambit, and Marcella are good examples of what Netflix should focus on. It also licensed excellent tv series like Revenge so that we could watch them without commercials. That was the biggest value proposition for us. Many of the Netflix originals are pretty bad, full of explicit sex, drugs, and f words. The Night Agent is another exception, excellent story, well produced and directed. Many of the originals have actors who do not belong in the script but are there to satisfy diversity. We love the Korean, Northern European, some other foreign shows.

I liked the sound of the plot and the series had some very good reviews so I decided to give it a go. After a slowish start, with the scene being set, the drama, skulduggery, Intrigue, mayhem and more began. The story depicts a rich and powerful Korean corporation and the lengths they would go to to broker deals and gain power. To help them with this, they employ a Fixer. Hang Do Hee, who is adept at manipulating anything to the corporation's advantage. She has been a loyal servant for ten years. Something happens to make her question her loyalty and the story begins in earnest. The acting is excellent throughout, with really nasty baddies and really good goodies. The plot has more twists and turns than the Nurburgring! It depicts a world of politics where trickery, corruption and bribery are rife, with the media and the police all in the pocket of the wealthy corporation - nothing like real politics then! 😁.

My wife and I enjoyed it enormously and 11 episodes was just the right length. There is some talk of a second season and there are certainly more avenues that could be explored. Well worth a watch if not a binge watch! A 9 from me.

I have to admit: after watching episode one I thought this would be one more on my list of Korean turn-offs. How wrong I was. The second episode really grabbed me and it did not disappoint. What a great, well executed drama on corruption, human evil and the struggle to have honesty, righteousness and justice prevail. It has some weak moments, but overall this series is outstanding and approaches for instance House of Cards. Acting and dialogues are generally top notch. This series will keep you on the edge of your seat while the storyline develops with an absurd mix of strikes and counterstrikes between political opponents. The good should prevail of course, but right into the last episode it is unclear if it will. Can't spoil yet, as I'm currently watching the last (11th) episode. See for yourself.

So far Korean cinema has not been able to make me a fan because of overacting, hysteria and poor storylines in many series and movies. Queenmaker however is a true gem. Definitely recommended and hoping for more of this in the future.