A Foxy Dramedy

In my ever growing passion for K-RomComs, I discovered a new gem. I recently finished this series on Rakuten Viki – ​Tale of the Nine-Tailed. It stars Lee Dong Wook as a thousand year old fox god called Lee Yeon, Jo Bo Ah as his reincarnated love Nam Ji-Ah, Kim Bum, as the half fox-demon Lee Rang, Lee Yeon's younger brother and Kim Yong Ji as the goddess Talupia who oversees the balance between life and death.

The plot is simple, Lee Yeon has been searching for his long lost love after she died suddenly. Nam Ji-Ah who found herself orphaned as a young child through supernatural experiences is a producer of a ghost hunting show of sorts. Her goal is to try and find her parents by examining mysterious instances.

The typical love trope is wonderfully interwoven with complex characters, who each have their own desires – love not being one of the top concerns. What makes this show particularly wonderful is that there are several villains, some who come full circle to become heroes in the end. The writers never take the easy way out, either. Love comes at a great cost, be it true love, the love of family, or love for the order of the world. 

​But what I really loved about this one is that it was genuinely funny. Lee Dong Wook and Jo Bo Ah play off each other so well. Their performances are smooth and very natural. They pull you into the story without any effort. Kim Bum plays his devious role amazingly well. He's very easy to hate at first, but as with each of the characters, his own complex nature is slowly revealed. He became one of the most memorable characters. 

The only critic, and this is from an objective perspective, it's 17 episodes, which means the story can feel drawn out. But from my perspective, I was lapping it up. I couldn't wait for the next episode!

If you're not sure if K-dramas or K-RomComs are your thing, I can recommend this one as a good starter series. 

Kaely's Rating: B+

Critiqued by Kaely Monahan