Review Detail

 

Serious political mixed with comedy and romance

BOGCHI Reviewed by BOGCHI
October 03, 2009

Overall rating: 
 
7.0
Story:
 
7.0
Acting:
 
8.0
Music:
 
7.0
Satisfaction:
 
6.0
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Do you recommend it? No

STORY - Set in the 1930's, Capital Scandal is about a group of freedom fighters trying to.. well... free Korea from the Japanese government. That is the main theme of the drama, but in contrast, there's also a fun romantic-comedy between the two main characters, a comedic situation in each episode, and characters that tries to be funny.

Watching the first few episodes, I could not understand where the drama was going. Was it going to be a love story? If so, a romantic-comedy or a melodrama? A mystery? Action? It was a lot later that I found out that it was a political drama, mixed with all the other genres.

The setting (Seoul, in the 1930's) was quite dull to be honest. It looked good and it was very interesting to watch, but the mood made it really feel like it was the 30's, which is a good thing (artistic-wise), but it felt boring. What's crazy is that this is partly a comedy drama. (So it's a romance/political/mystery and comedy drama.) A dull setting and a comedic script doesn't really mix well. The comedy felt kind of.. out of place. The drama shines the most in serious scenes, which are very intense and captivating.
The love story was quite fun to watch, but all throughout they pretty much just argued and yelled at each other. It was funny at times, but it was also annoying at times.. mostly fun though.
In the end, when the secrets and mysteries were finally revealed, it was actually shocking because it was actually unpredictable. The bad thing is.. up until the end it tried to be too unpredictable, which ruined it for me.

Acting - Kang Ji Hwan was really good. A little overacting at times, but he played the part very well. Han Ji Min was also good. The two supporting actors, Han Go Eun and Ryu Jin, were commendable. At times, they outshine the leading actors. All the actors had a great chemistry.

Music - I didn't think it was fitting at first, but I got used to it.

Overall, It's a good drama, but there was too much things going on. It got too confusing at times, which led to the drama getting too boring. The comedic part didn't really work; it was funny at times but nothing hilarious. The love story was interesting enough, but it wasn't the focus. The political/mystery kept me watching, but not anticipating.

Watch it if you want to learn a thing or two about the 1930's when Korea was still occupied by the Japanese or if you're just curious. It's not a complete waste of time, and it has something new to offer, so there's a chance that you might really enjoy it.