Set during the reign of King Sukjong in the Joseon dynasty, the story focuses on Dong Yi, a water maid who gains the trust of Queen Inhyeon and later the favour of the king when he is moved by her prayers for the health of the Queen during the court disputes caused by Jang Hee Bin. Dong Yi becomes a concubine with the rank of sook-bin and bears a son who will later become the 21st king of Joseon, Yeongjo.
The drama is BAD. Dong Yi was an absolute letdown, and I can't sugarcoat my disappointment with it. This series was a torturous ordeal to endure. The pacing was an agonizing exercise in watching paint dry, and it felt like they were stretching a thin plot to the breaking point. The character development, particularly for the supposedly central character, Dong Yi, was so shallow that it bordered on insulting. This show wallowed in the worst of K-drama clichés, relying on contrived plot twists and over-the-top melodrama that made it cringe-worthy to watch. Dong Yi wasn't just bad; it was a masterclass in how not to make a historical drama, leaving me longing for something, anything, more innovative and less painful to endure. Can't recommend!
It's a watered down tale with low tension and disappointing baddies which all made the insane runtime just a tad bit more unbearable. The entire story is confined to in-palace drama where the king likes a commoner while another woman grows to be super duper extra jealous. You may imagine how the story will pan out for 60 episodes. Its length turned out to be its biggest weakness, this is further emphasized with its first and last 5 episodes of which they were dull and redundant. It would've been significantly better with a short runtime since the main leads were likable. Speaking of which, the main leads scenes were generally enjoyable, they had a good chemistry but only when it's NOT romantic. Their romance sucked! Making the king physically a weakling was a nice touch. Although the drama is named after the historical character and we were shown and told about her having ambitious ideologies but we rarely got to see that side of her character in the drama, just a few scenes in the middle and around the end. Instead, we got a typical melodrama in a historical setting while borrowing small bits and pieces from the real historical character for world building. The main leads were doing a lot of heavy lifting to keep the drama afloat. The drama is okay but it doesn't have much to offer and the long runtime is really hard to justify.
One of the BEST tv shows i have ever seen. I rank it with "Jewel in the Palace" and "Yi San, and "Queen Seondeok" I have seen this drama at least 3 times and watch till i drop then resume when i wake up. I give this drama a 10! This type of TV show does not exist in the USA. closest thing to this format is 24 the series. I highly recommend this TV show (called a Korean Drama). I even own it in boxed set. There are a few things different about watching Korean Dramas. For one thing they have subtitles. this can be good or bad.. good because you have to focus on the show.. bad because if you are distracted you miss things. A few hours in i don't even notice the subtitles anymore. i read them without qualms. Another pretty unique kind of thing is this drama is ~ 60x 1hour episodes. It is like a 60 hour movie. the story spends HOURS building the foundation .. more time than typical western movies are in full duration. the immersion is incomparable. pay detailed attention for an hour and your likely hooked for a wild 60 hour ride. Finding Korean TV shows opened up a whole new universe of high quality content right when i had thought i had seen it all. In Dong Yi you meet the characters as children..and you grow with them, their entire life! This was a GREAT watch! This drama is a fictional story based on a real person in korean history. How a water maid came to be a queen.. and the mother of one of the greatest kings in Korean history.
