We just finished watching the 77-episode HD TV miniseries YI SAN, which was produced by the MBC Korean TV network and aired in Korea over a 9-month period that ended in June 2008. (We watched/streamed all 77 hours courtesy of the mysoju.com website.) This is an absolutely FABULOUS series that will grab your heart, tear your emotions, and never let go. We often found ourselves compelled to watch three or four episodes in one sitting. (We watched the whole series in less than one month!) The actors, the magnificent sets, the wardrobes, the music, the cinematography, and the incredible humanity of all the main characters made this series very addictive. The English subbing translation is also very well done.

Although the series is based on the life of Yi San, it is really about the relationship between he and the love of his life, Seong Song Yeon, a "commoner" who he meets and falls in love with when they are both children. There are lots of plots and sub-plots in the series, but their life-long relationship is what really makes this historical series so gripping. I heartily recommend it.

Here is a YesAsia's editorial description of the series:

A phenomenal wave of fusion "sageuk" (or periodic drama) continues to raid the small screens in Korea. While Jumong, Four Gods, Dae Jo Young and Yeon Gae Somun all channeled their focus on the earlier part of Korean history, the latest influx of sageuk sees a trend of returning to the Joseon era. In particular, two historical dramas, namely KBS's Hansungbulgok and cable channel CGV's Eight Days, recently offered their take on the reigning era of King Jeong Jo (1776-1800), the 22nd monarch of Joseon Dynasty. MBC now joins the bandwagon, offering their unique take on the legacy of a popular king remembered as one of the greatest leaders in Korean history.

Adopting King Jeong Jo's pre-imperial name of Yi San, director Lee Byung Hoon (Dae Jang Geum, Hur Jun) presents Yi San. This fusion drama chronicles the life of King Jeong Jo, who fought for commoners' rights and bureaucratic reformation. Far exceeding the ratings of its competitors like The King And I and Kwon Sang Woo's Bad Love, Yi San spiced up its plot by introducing a Da Vinci Code-style mystery in which the young King Jeong Jo tries to decipher the codes in a painting.

Lee Seo Jin (Lovers, Damo) dives into the role of King Jeong Jo with majestic flair alongside veteran actor Lee Soon Jae (Sangdo, Hur Jun) who plays the hot-tempered King Yeong Jo, Jeong Jo's grandfather. Han Ji Min (Capital Scandal) plays Seong Song Yeon, who captivates King Jeong Jo's heart, and later becomes his concubine. Interestingly, almost half of the main cast are from director Lee's 2003 mega hit Dae Jang Geum including Park Eun Hye, Gyeun Mi Ri, Lee Jong Soo, raising the bar of expectations for viewers and critics alike.

I'm watching this right now and am enjoying it very much!! I'm up to episode 44 and am finding myself watching 3 to 4 episodes at a time too! I'm loving all the characters in this. I recognized the music at the end of every episode as being from Dae Jang Geum and then I read here that the director here is the same as from DJG. Although he's not in this series that much I'm so happy to see my #1 LCH. Doesn't he look so handsome!!
 

nolmac5 wrote:

I'm watching this right now and am enjoying it very much!! I'm up to episode 44 and am finding myself watching 3 to 4 episodes at a time too! I'm loving all the characters in this. I recognized the music at the end of every episode as being from Dae Jang Geum and then I read here that the director here is the same as from DJG. Although he's not in this series that much I'm so happy to see my #1 LCH. Doesn't he look so handsome!!

Yea, great isn't it? We couldn't stop watching 3 hours each day. While 77 hours IS a long time, I think the fact that it was so long made the half-dozen or more truly incredible heart-wrenching scenes all the more powerful. Glad to hear someone is enjoying it as much as we did.

http://img24.imageshack.us/img24/4693/1516r.jpg

i am trying to appload some image
i am new i think that i made some mistake

anyway i would like to thank you 

No worries--welcome to the forum!

So yOU KNOW Atlas Shrugged..............John Galt ...MY JOHN GALT

It is amazing .....................g

What else my Dear .....................

Wish you good luck and hapiness

shopenj wrote:

So yOU KNOW Atlas Shrugged..............John Galt ...MY JOHN GALT It is amazing .....................g What else my Dear ..................... Wish you good luck and hapiness

My quote is from the Scottish John Galt, born right as America was also being born.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Galt_(novelist)



But they're both pretty cool--even though Atlas Shruggged is fictional!

I've just completed episode 18, but I have to say this is a great series thus far. (I didn't hit that Episode 15 angst!)

Already there are so many evil characters that I'm going to enjoy watching getting what's coming to them.
And to see my favorite evil-role actress, Kyeon Mi-ri, in a good person role takes some getting used to! Of course, I'm only through episode 18 - perhaps she's got more in store here!

I have to give props to the actress playing the queen here (and I know I've seen her before, but typically have no idea who she is!) She is really excellent here - she really sells both sides of her two-faced persona!

I loved this drama. It was one where I couldn't wait to see the next episode!! Everyone in it was excellent and the special bond between the kids and then adults was wonderful.

I'm into episode 30 now on mysoju, and it's completely absorbing.

aepm wrote:

I'm into episode 30 now on mysoju, and it's completely absorbing.

Yea... this series really pulls you in. We did a lot of marathon sessions watching one episode right after another. Our favorite Kdrama of all time!

You are downloading and watching all the episodes via mysoju?? Not only is mysoju tiresome (6 sloooow downloads per episode), but the video image quality is mediocre at best. You might want to try one of these two far superior sources: dramafever or aja-aja

http://pool.dramafever.com/accounts/login/?next=/home/
An entire episode sent in a single fast streaming request, and superb video image quality. You gotta be a member though (it's free); if you need an invite "priority code", send me a PM with your e-mail address and I'll send you one of my invite codes. Unfortunately, dramafever has only up through episode 26 so far, but more episodes get added every week.

http://aja-aja.com/regular/yi-san
This site involves downloading separate video and subtitle files for each episode, and then watching them in Windows Media Player. A little tricky at first, but actually quite simple to do. You get truly superb image quality. If try it and have got any questions, I'd be glad to try to answer them.
(One added bonus of this method: If your computer has an HDMI port and you have a large-screen HD TV, you can watch it on that large TV. Woopii!!!)

I'm really not having issues with mysoju. Each episode is divided into 4-6 segments, but I'm finding that to be a good thing as it gives me a natural stopping point if I don't have time to watch a whole episode. And the subs on most of the series I've seen there are fine.

Now last night I was really looking forward to

Spoiler (Click here to reveal) :

watching the Queen get what's coming to her, when her plot to kill the prince was exposed. What in the world is the King thinking, leaving her and all her fellow schemers not just alive but in power? Has he not yet seen the light that these are the same people who convinced him to kill his son? While the Queen is supposed to be "confined' to her chambers and live like a "ghost" I can't believe that's going to happen.

That frustrated me too aepm. She's like a cat!!

Well, holy cow. I had to stop watching tonight.

Spoiler (Click here to reveal) :

Song Yeong DIES???!!!??!!! And that's not the end of the series?!?!?! It's completely impossible to care what the heck happens after that at this moment. I'm going to need a break for a day or so to get past this.

I'm pretty hard-boiled, but this one has had me choked up a couple of times.

I agree!! I was the same way at that point, but you have to keep watching although it's just not the same.

aepm wrote:

Well, holy cow. I had to stop watching tonight. Spoiler (Click here to reveal) : I'm pretty hard-boiled, but this one has had me choked up a couple of times.

Yea... that was pretty hard to take for me too. Trust me, there are some really great moments still to come. You will not be disappointed!

This is my all-time favorite Kdrama.... and I've watched A LOT of Kdrama series! I finished watching Yi San the better part of a year ago, yet I still constantly listen to the OST (original soundtrack) music at the imeemdotcom website, particularly tracks 3, 6, and 16. That music is both so haunting and glorious. When you've finished the series, you may want to add the following URL to your "Favorites" web bookmarks: http://www.imeem.com/babygangster/playlist/RYFP_Csd/yi-san-ost-music-playlist/

Also, there is a REALLY, REALLY GREAT tribute video to Yi San located on youtube. It's runs about 5-minutes and is quite marvelous, BUT.... do NOT watch it until after you have finished watching the series. Here's the URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvvkpVOrw6o&feature=related

.

Karma for the encouragement. I'll probably pick it up again tomorrow.

Happy 4th!