Queen And I Kdrama

[Consuelo Dular]

And the relationship is actually quite interesting, since Jun-su is a total beta male with no dreams and goals, and little talent to get him anywhere. Tae-hee, on the other hand, has been the alpha dog her whole life, and worked her way up with her whip-smart business sense. But their marriage is her first major left turn that takes her off the fast-track.

All of this story took a while, mind you, and the angsty divorce was no picnic in the park. I almost dropped the series a few times in this middle stretch when the marriage and divorce took center stage.

And it actually is a case of hero-swapping, not just in the romantic sense, but storywise. Gu Yong-shik was a day-player in the first half of the drama, showing up for the occasional moments, but in the latter half of the drama, he becomes the full-time hero, complete with tragic backstory and cutthroat battle to the top.

And what happened in the latter half of the series was just unabashed adorableness at every turn, because Gu Yong-shik went all-out professing his love, and because Park Shi-hoo is just inexplicably magnetic.

I loved that while the characters struggled with their feelings, there was enough cuteness and levity to keep me rooting for them despite their reservations. This drama actually does a great job of turning mundane objects and little interactions into running gags, that eventually become emotionally fraught with meaning.

gah - interesting that you didn't mention what happened to jun soo. guess he remains a loser? if so, i feel bad for jung joon ho - i thought his character in IRIS was a bit loser-y too since he let himself get pulled around...

sooo glad to have read this recap....coz am so curious about the ending....for the first time I want to know the ending first before continuing on with QOR, I also started late in this one coz don't want PSH to be the 2nd lead and not get the girl but alas, can't help my self knowing that PSH has a new drama and not be able to take a peek, so here I am slowly taking a peek and am now at ep24, still crossing my fingers that PSH will win in the end and how am glad to know that my prayers were answered!....lol...am really glad, now will start marathoning this till the end knowing that my lovely PSH wins in the end!

Overall, this drama was simple. But it was fun to watch a person grow in a different way then what we've seen in most dramas. The unrealistic maknae elements were down to half, and when someone did die, it left a bigger, realistic impression and impact.

I forgot to mention, but I think another great pull is the fact that Yong-shik starts off as the second lead. And that's the problem. He has so much chemistry with the lead female and he's not even the lead!

So you have second-lead-syndrome at it's highest, but the fact that it looks like he's overtaken the lead but you don't know gives you that crack addiction to see how the ending will turn out. I seriously believed we'd get a "In the end, we can't be together and must follow our own paths." type of stuff, and the Tae-hee would reunite with her husband.

I KNOW!!!!! How wonderful it would have been to have Yoon Sang Hyun/Heo Tae Joon end up with Kim Nam Joo/Chun Ji Ae. I love me some Oh Ji Ho hotness, but the chemistry between the first two was just so cracktastic. And I fell in love wiht Yoon Sang Hyun, thanks to his wonderfully immature/mature/thoughtful but you wouldn't know it Heo Tae Joon.

Thank you, Girlfriday! This is awesome! I've been curious about The Queen of Reversals since I found out that Park Shi-hoo wins out in the end. Which makes it the second time he was cast as the secondary lead and still managed to walk away with the girl! (That has to be unprecedented!)

I'm currently watching How To Meet A Perfect Neighbor and I totally get why they rewrote his character to get the girl in the end. By Episode 5, the official lead was still annoying me and Park Shi-hoo was making me swoon with the way he would start to smile every time he looked at or even thought of the heroine. And he was supposed to be playing an icy Darcy-like character! Yeah, it didn't take him long.

Queen of Reversals sounds a lot more adorable than I was expecting. (If I can manage to get through all the angst and divorce.) The toothbrush thing made me laugh... especially since my two brothers managed to do something similar when they were in middle school. Their expressions of disgust were so funny when they figured it out!

Thanks for the summary. While they aren't remotely alike, this reminded me of the drama That Woman with Shim Hye Jin - have either you or Javabeans seen it? It was about a woman losing her husband to an affair, then after divorcing, falling in love with the other woman's husband, and I recall it being well done.

i have three more episodes to go, but i'm so happy, yong shik got the girl! what's with park shi hoon that his character always manages to steal the girl from what you thought was the male lead [like in Prosecutor Princess].

So does Gu Yong Shik end up with Hwang Taehee? Sorry. Didn't watch the end. Got too caught up with Dream High.
Btw totally agree on the whole Song Seung Hyun and Park Shi Woo comparison. And it's really sad that Song Seung Hyun is much more popular when Park Shi Woo far surpasses him in acting

omg! so the second lead gets the girl!??!?!
i might have to start watching it again.
i stopped watching it cuz it was one of those dramas... where honestly the second lead is so much better for the girl and you just want to slap her and tell her to wake up!
*beethoven virus -.-;;;*

i think this is the year for second leads. Or it could even be a new rising trend. In the Taiwanese drama, Summer's Desire, the nice guy/second lead, Ou Chen gets the girl instead of the first lead. Of course, the circumstances were somewhat different in that drama, since there were nice-guy and first-lead characteristics to some degree in both male leads, but still....I wonder if switching the male lead was the reason that Queen of Reversals decided to extend their drama? If the drama had ended earlier, then Tae-hee and her ex-husband would have probably gotten together again, but because the drama was extended, Tae-hee's and Yong-shik's relationship got to develop enough for them to be together at the end.

idk why but the fact that the second lead got the girl here totally made me LMAO like no tomorrow when i found out......i wonder if it would have been the same had it been someone else or if this hadn't been extended

I absolutely adored this drama. I had watched Perfect Neighbors (drama) and fell in love with Park Shi Hoo. He is very engaging as an actor. When I found out he was going to be in QOR I decided I would put this on my To Watch List...which was a great decision on my part lol. This was a lovely drama with a wonderful cast of characters. The story might not have been new but it was well told...and the acting and chemistry between the actors was enjoyable to watch. Park Shi Hoo totally stole the show (at least for me lol) but I also loved everyone else in this as well and that is rare. I definitely recommend this drama to everyone who wants to watch a really well made and acted drama!

I have loved watching this show. It has also been frustrating because as a non-Korean speaking viewer the subs have taken FOREVER. In fact, I watched the final two episodes raw and though I only caught about 20% of what was being said I understood it all.

I love that the "second lead" male and female both win in the end. There are so many wonderful characters and relationships in this series. I was never bored no matter who was on screen (and I find in work place dramas I am often tempted to fast forward through a lot of the business stuff). In QoR they gave you a little business but the heart of the piece is in all of the many relationships between the employees. I am also a sucker for underdog stories and the planning team had me rooting for them like a cheerleader.

I felt that the story line with Mok Young-chul "played by the delightful Kim Chang-wan of Coffee Prince and every drama ever" (Brilliant!) was beautifully done and when the inevitable happens I sobbed like a baby.

31 episodes is the longest that I have ever committed to a Kdrama (although I guess if you consider that I have watched MNIKSS three times through and that is well over 31 - err but repeat viewing shouldn't count!) and I don't regret a minute of it.

I mean, I knew they were going to divorce, but I was hoping eventually that they would get back together. I'm a little dissappointed but I'll finish watching it. I like the characters but not as much as Park Shi Woo just yet. Something about his character that irritates me!

I thought the same thing. I felt the story would've been more real if she'd ended up with her husband. Also, it would've been more satisfying to see them overcome their pride, their weakness and work things out, slowly but surely.

and despite KNJ's ajummah helmet hair (it was pretty distracting in the first half of the drama), i found myself rooting for her all the way. in fact, i couldn't help but root for the entire underdog special "loser" team...all the characters had such spunk and heart, especially mok bujangnim! and the sassy secretary was awesome!

I'd never thought you pick this drama and make review on it ^^ I'm halfway to finish watching this ... and really really surprise reading your review. What you wrote is so so similar with what I felt for this drama. Such a long time for me seeing again "classical" kdrama that's very close to reality.

I want to drop it when the strory gets frustrating, but i find it so addictive and I couldn't stop and stick with it. Yupppp, Park Shi Ho is the bigger reason why I keep watching this ... he's so damnnnn hawtttttttttttttt :D

Thanks Girlfriday for the recap. I really enjoyed this drama as there are plenty of cute and funny moments. I watched it straightly because of PSH but I found that overall the cast were great. It was a bit slow in the middle but once PSH - KNJ storyline started it was very addicting.

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