Lynn Serafinn

As you watch the series, the 'red cuff' becomes a powerful social symbol, far transcending the original explanation offered in episode 1. It does not merely represent a social status/class, but it also comes to represent the choices, freedoms, restrictions, and sacrifices that come bundled within one's state of life. The combination of this symbology, along with the fact that it is a screenplay written by a woman, based on a novel written by a millennial woman, who based much of her research on the memoirs of an 18th century woman who surely would have felt the range of emotions we experience throughout 'The Red Sleeve', create a magnificent story that is rarely achieved. LEE JUN-HO (AKA Junho) as Crown Prince Yi San, later King Jeongjo. This young man's performance was absolutely stunning. You could FEEL this man's pain throughout this story, not just with his romantic frustrations with his beloved Seong Deok-im, but also with his life-long friend Hong Deok-ro, and especially with his grandfather, King Yeonjo. LEE SE-YOUNG as Court Lady Seong Deok-im, later Royal Noble Consort Ui-bin did a brilliant job of portraying this character from a carefree teen, to a mature woman who had experienced pain and loss. A complex character, Deok-im is NOT your typical Korean female heroine, as this story is actually very much a post-modern feminist tale, but in an 18th century setting. KANG HOON as Hong Deok-ro was also an interesting and complex character, as you honestly don't know what you 'should' think about him as he is a seeming contradiction. LEE DEOK-HWA as King Yeongjo, grandfather of Crown Prince Yi San, was A-MA-ZING, playing this unpredictable, terrifying, gentle, senile, dangerous, generous, tyrannical, loving, 80-year-old patriarch to PERFECTION. There were MANY scenes where his captivating performance had me holding my breath, as I simply had no idea where he was going to go. I found the production of 'The Red Sleeve' to be just so beautiful, from visuals, to camera work, to soundtrack. It lacks the dazzling 'glitziness' of many other Korean historical dramas (The Empress Ki springs to mind) and is much visually 'softer' and muted than others I have seen recently, but it is still quite visually beautiful. The soundtrack is used to perfection, without being overwhelming. There is one 'dark' theme used in some of the heavier scenes (such as the court scene between the King and Deok-ro), which was truly dramatic. There are many scenes that are immensely still, in a very Buddhist-like way. Overall, the production felt elegant, tasteful, and mature. Overall, there is nothing I can fault about this beautiful, engaging, and poignant series. It's not just a history, but an interesting social commentary. It's not just a love story, but a challenging exploration of love, loyalty, and self-sacrifice. The characters felt real, the emotions hit me in the gut. I cried a LOT. The historical elements are, apparently, pretty accurate. Of course, the dialogue, the intimacy, the thoughts, and motives of the characters are from the mind of the novelist. But the fact the series was taken from a novel, rather than just whittled together on the fly, REALLY shows. The story has integrity, continuity, and progression. And, frankly, the last scene in episode 17 had me sobbing, when I understood what it was really showing me. I hate giving numerical ratings to series, so I will simply say that I adored everything about this series from beginning to end. Among straight historical K-dramas (i.e., not those that are period fiction, and not those who contain fantasy), it is currently my favourite.