picture in my mind

Gaksital -- I should totally go and get this for keeps already, like I've been meaning to.

I've said before right, how this drama is so, so good.

(Eunice, this means I might force this on you, haha)

Reasons (in brief) why Gaksital is awesome:

(i) a complete bastard turns into a hero, and the process is waaay intriguing (my favourite kind of story!)

(ii) best friends on opposite sides of a war -- can you hear the heartbreak already?

(iii) hero is very very very flawed, and therefore made very real

(iv) hero is also a genius, or completely nuts, depending on how you look at it

(v) hero has a precarious disguise that makes you want to die of suspense almost every episode

(vi) there is a long historical back story involved

(vii) villains are nuanced! and 3-dimensional! that's not a common thing in k-drama

(viii) there is a strong heroine -- whoo! and she hates our hero almost to the very end!

(ix) intense, extreme, ?hate-love romance -- I don't even know if this is the appropriate term to label it with, because frak, it's so complicated?!

(x) this is essentially historical fiction
(xi) cinematography is gorgeous, and acting is top-notch