Lore In Stone Cities

Master’s Sun, the new Hong Sisters drama, premiered last week. Master’s Sun tells the story of Tae Gong Shil (Gong Hyo Jin), a woman who can see ghosts. Her visions keep her from sleeping and all around ruin her life. So when she meets the arrogant President of Kingdom Enterprises, Joo Joong Won (So Ji Sub), she is thrilled to discover that she is not bothered by ghosts as long as she is around him. Joong Won, however, is none too happy to have made Gong Shil’s acquaintance. Jung Woon is a greedy and prickly sort of person, with a past that includes being betrayed by his first love and kidnapped (and of course, his first love’s ghost is now lurking around him). Through a series of funny and scary circumstances the two find themselves running into each other time and time again.

To round out our story we have the mysterious Kang Woo (Seo In Guk) who is employed the chief of security at Kingdom Enterprises and Tae Yi Ryung (Kim Yoo Ri), a fashion model and former school rival of Gong Shil.

We are trying something new here at Stone Cities with the premier of Master’s Sun…drumroll please…discussion reviews (hereafter called super fun drama chat time, because I like to refer to things like they were a Japanese game show that has yet to be invented)! Each week Extrakun and I will ramble on about the latest Master’s Sun episodes in a chat format. This is a new review format for me, and I have to say that I have never had so much fun creating a post before. I hope you enjoy, let me know what you think (and, um, you are warned beforehand that the two of us together talking about Drama equals a whole lot of rambling and fan-girling). Cheers!

Super Fun Drama Chat Time with Extrakun and Lore: Master’s Sun Episodes 1&2

Lore: I love the opening scenes, there is something so creepy and Adam’s Family about it.

Extrakun: I am in LOVE with the first 2 episodes.

Lore: So am I. Love the gothic and creepy vibe of the show. I have to admit it- the ghosts kind of freak me out!

Extrakun: I asked myself why the ghosts are always so disgusting looking to Gong Shil. And if she has been seeing ghost for a while, why is she always scared?

Lore: I questioned this too- I mean, the first few times she saw a ghost I would understand her fright. But she has been seeing them for a while and still gets freaked out? But in retrospect I shouldn’t talk because I think the ghosts in this show will probably scare me right up until the finale. With their creepy faces, and blood, and eeeek!

Extrakun: I wonder why they decided to make them so creepy…

Lore: I don’t know, but they did a great job at it!

Extrakun: Yeah they did! You know who I am in love with at the first 2 seconds of seeing them?

Lore: Hmmmm…I bet I can guess. Is it So Ji Sub?

Extrakun: Exactly! I love Joo Joong Won!

Lore: Love him too. So should we take a step back and chat about the story a little bit? If we start talking about So Ji Sub I think I will only focus on that topic for the next hour

Extrakun: Sure. So how would you describe the premise in your own words?

Lore: I feel like my own words are going to sound a bit spazzy but…Master’s Sun is the story of a woman (Tae Gong Shil) who sees ghosts and the cold hearted CEO who may be able to help her get rid of her creepy visions.

Extrakun: Good start… Have you noticed how her name fits into the title? Taeyang= Sun and Joong Won= Master?

Lore: Yeah, I love the immediate pun.

Extrakun: Quite clever.

Lore: Little elements such as this clever pun have me firmly thinking that the Hong Sisters have done it again and are set to deliver a daebak drama. Of course their last one was not so great….I know you like it (braces self for a virtual shoe thrown at me)

Extrakun: Oh, I love shoes too much to throw them! But I did enjoy Big with Gong Yoo and Min Jung!

Lore: Ha. So what do you think of our other characters (Kang Woo and the peeps at Kingdom Enterprises)?

Extrakun: Can I just say how much I adore Seo In Geok? I am not sure about him playing Kang Woo though… He seem sketchy. Master’s aunt and Uncle are a bit of a mess.

Lore: Yeah, love Seo In Geok but think the character is going to turn out to be a bad guy. After all he seems to only have been hired by Kingdom Enterprises to spy on our CEO. Shady guy….Agreed, Aunt and Uncle are kind of out there and a mess. I think they are going to turn out to be less than nice characters as we progress through the story.

Lore: I have to say, I liked how in the first two episodes there were sub stories played out because ghosts sought out Ms. Sun’s help. I like this setup and its endless possibilities. The first story about the soccer player and his lost love had me in tears.

Extrakun: What had me in tears was when we discover why Master is so bitter in life. Betrayed by the love of his life! What was her name? Jin Joo? Joon Hee?

Lore: I am really bad with names…so Joon Hee it is! When his first love and their kidnapping was first mentioned I thought- How tragic! He must carry around his love for her to this day! But as it was revealed she helped orchestrate his kidnapping I agreed with his sentiments- She is a b!

Extrakun: Hee Joo!

Lore: Hee Joo it is! I wonder though when Ms. Sun will finally talk to her ghost. Thoughts? What will the ghost say? And what will Ms. Sun say back? Ohhhhhh I am so curious!

Extrakun: I find it peculiar that Hee Joo’s ghost is not always around Master, like the other ghosts trying to get things done. Perhaps she will try to vindicate herself from the crime he believes to be true.

Lore: I thought that this was odd too, which makes me think that this ghost is not looking for a favor like the other ones. I could see that she may eventually want vindication, but she certainly is not hovering over him looking for a favor. But, if she does want vindication I wonder how Master will react to Ms. Sun (supposing Ms. Sun helps ghost-first-love find closure). I have a feeling he will be mad at her intrusion. So many unknowns! So, back to the known! What do you think of the look of the show?

Extrakun: I love the eeriness and the dark tone. I like how it is reflecting the overall way we are supposed to look at the show

Lore: Agreed. The eerie feeling supports our creepy characters. Ms. Sun, particularly but I think Master is kind of a creepy character himself. So bitter and greedy, he has a bit of the Scrooge aura around him. And even our security guard spy, with all of his secrets, seems really kind of scary as well. Wow, I think all of the ghosts have me finding everything about this show creepy!

Extrakun: Oh Kang Woo is full of secrets! Why is he following Ms. Sun around? You think he was sent there purposefully?

Lore: I think he was sent purposely, but I wonder by whom. Given how the show builds up Master’s Kingdom Enterprises to be this behemoth business I feel like he was probably sent by a competitor. But that would be too boring…so he could have been sent by someone else. Like a ghost! Okay, now I think I just like imagining ghosts are behind everything

Extrakun: HA! That would be awesome if he was sent by Hee Joo.

Lore: Yeah, it was probably her. Maybe he can see ghosts too! Wow, my mind was just blown.

Extrakun: What if he was sent by the people who tried to abduct them years ago?

Lore: He could have been. That would have a nice continuity about it and pull the entire thing together. But now I want him to be sent by ghost Hee Joo! Now that we have figured out how the story should work (I think our ideas are awesome!) should we go back to dissecting our main characters? And by dissecting our main characters I mean fan girling over Master?

ExtraKun: Heck yea!

Lore: I love Master’s character because, even though he is a total jerk right now, I can see how he will grow as a character through his interactions with Ms. Sun. I also see how Ms. Sun is poised to grow as a person by being around Master. I think both characters are majorly flawed personalities that have nowhere to go but up, and I think they will both mature a whole bunch together. And as viewers I think we are extremely fortunate to see both characters grow while staring at So Ji Sub. Sighhhhhhh

Extrakun: I think that the Ms. Sun that we are seeing today is significantly different from the Gong Shil of the past. Why did the Soccer Star fiancée feel like she was over shadowed because she was called little sun? I am not saying she was a mean girl, but I find her fascinating.

Lore: Yes, it sounds like the accident that caused Ms. Sun to see ghosts probably completely changed her personality and life. It sounds like in the past she was a much different person.

Extrakun: I feel bad for her. Now Master…

Lore: My favorite topic!

Extrakun: I love his bastard ways- I would not date a guy like him, but we would most definitely be friends in life. His “believe what you see” attitude makes total sense after we find out about his past with Hee Joo. This is my second time seeing So Ji Sub in a anything and I am turning cartwheels every time he is on screen!

Lore: Yeah, his attitude does make sense given his past. I would be his friend too, because a bastard So Ji Sub is better than no So Ji Sub at all. This is my first time watching him in anything and I am an absolute convert!

Extrakun: Welcome to the club! You have become member #199999999999999999999

Lore: Yay! Do I get a membership card?!

Extrakun: Of course… It has a picture of him winking on it

Lore: This is like Christmas and my Birthday at once!!!!! I probably won’t put the card down for weeks, I will just walk around holding it up in front of me. I see a lot of accidents in my future…but accidents that are well worth having. Wow, I think I am starting to sound like an obsessed person. But he is just so….well….membership card!

Extrakun: The accidents will subside. So what are your overall first impressions?

Lore: This is a show with a unique premise and eccentric characters. The look and feel of the show is scary and creepy and absolutely perfect for the story it is trying to tell. I expect great things of Master’s Sun!

Extrakun: First impression: How in the world can we luck out with such a great pairing like So Ji Sub and Gong Hyo Jin? I am so excited that this show makes me thinks about so many things with just the first two episodes. It was a highlight of my week (besides seeing the love of my kdrama life Lee Jun Ki in Two Weeks).

Lore: So I think we unanimously agree, watch Master’s Sun. You will not be disappointed. Just prepare for some scary ghosts, and don’t even think about So Ji Sub. We called dibs, just check our membership cards (working feverishly to doctor card to say member #1). Till next week!