Chuno

[junny]

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Title: 추노 / Chuno
Also known as: Pursuing Servants / Slave Hunter
Genre: Historical, fusion
Episodes: 24
Broadcast Network: KBS2
Broadcast period: 2010-Jan-06 to TBA
Air time: Wednesday & Thursday 9:55 PM
Production Company: Chorokbaem Media
Director: Kwak Jung Hwan
Screenwriter: Chun Sung Il (천성일)
Official site: http://www.kbs.co.kr/drama/chuno/index.html


Synopsis from DramaWiki:
Chuno follows the story of Lee Dae Gil, a man of high birth whose family was ruined when Won Ki Yoon, a slave, burnt down his house and escaped with his sister, Un Nyun, who was in love with Dae Gil. Driven by his desire for revenge, he survived his harsh years on the street and made his name as a slave hunter, dedicated in his pursuit to find Un Nyun, his first and unique love. Song Tae Ha is a General of the Army who became a slave after being falsely accused of a crime he did not commit. He ran away from this unfair condition. Then, Dae Gil, as slave hunter, pursues Tae Ha across the Kingdom of Great Joseon (Korean empire), also under the yoke of the Qing dynasty. Both men become entangled in a love triangle with Un Nyun, the runaway slave who became a nobleman's daughter, and changed her name for Kim Hye Won.

http://wiki.d-addicts.com/Chuno

Cast:
Jang Hyuk as Lee Dae Gil
Oh Ji Ho as Song Tae Ha
Lee Da Hae as Un Nyun / Kim Hye Won
Lee Jong Hyuk as Hwang Chul Woong
Gong Hyung Jin as Eop Bok
Han Jung Soo as General Choi
Kim Ji Suk as Wang Son
Kim Ha Eun as Sul Hwa

~


Is anyone watching this? I've just started plodding along on KBS World, though I've read spoilers and know what's going on. The show is halfway through its 24 episodes in Korea this week.

I started watching because of Jang Hyuk. I like how layered he's made Daegil and the intensity he exudes. When the storyline shifts to someone else, I find myself getting bored, so I'm always waiting for Daegil, General Choi and Wangson to come back on. And I'm heartily sick of the slow-mo for every other fight scene. I just want to see them fight, damnit, not look pretty.

[Ren Ying Ying]

I'm not usually a fan of korean ancient dramas, but I decided to give it a try because of Jang Hyak (and abs )--and he is certainly keeping me engaged. The fighting isn't really anything new and I don't really pay that much attention to it anyways.

Overall it's not bad, but the story has really slowed down lately. The "chase" is pretty interesting but I really couldn't care less about the politics & slave rebellions.

And I admit, I'd like to see how the love triangle unfolds...

[Suet Seung]

Nice cast. I didn't recognize them when I first saw the cover because usually this cast play roles in modern dramas than period dramas. I'm waiting for more episodes to be available before I start watching it.

[junny]

Some pictures of the cast:

Daegil (one of my favourite pics, he just oozes intensity here)
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Taeha
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Unnyun/Hyewon
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Chulwoong
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I frankly still cannot get into Lee Dahae's acting or character. Unnyun is so uninteresting. She's acting like a frightened wallflower when she should have been stronger because of her slave background.

But watching Daegil makes up for it, I guess. He's cool!

[tuoimongmo2007]

Some pictures of the cast:


I frankly still cannot get into Lee Dahae's acting or character. Unnyun is so uninteresting. She's acting like a frightened wallflower when she should have been stronger because of her slave background.

But watching Daegil makes up for it, I guess. He's cool!

The series have alot of story to unfold.

But i have to disagree to that fact. Even though she's a slave. She's still a girl. Her hardships surely make her more adaptable to harsh conditions. But it does not mean she's strong enough to go against the enemies.
The fact that she's brave enough to run away on her own with no plans of tomorow, is big for her character.

Anyways, the focus on this series is more on Da Gil and Taeha. I enjoy their moments.

Being a chinese wuxia fan for awhile. I have not like any korean ancient series yet. Chuno is ok for me. Not that exciting.

[Ren Ying Ying]

The series have alot of story to unfold.

But i have to disagree to that fact. Even though she's a slave. She's still a girl. Her hardships surely make her more adaptable to harsh conditions. But it does not mean she's strong enough to go against the enemies.
The fact that she's brave enough to run away on her own with no plans of tomorow, is big for her character.

Anyways, the focus on this series is more on Da Gil and Taeha. I enjoy their moments.

Being a chinese wuxia fan for awhile. I have not like any korean ancient series yet. Chuno is ok for me. Not that exciting.

It is kind of strange though that her character started off as such a damsel who looked like she lacked common sense and didn't know how to take care of herself. You would think as an ex-slave, she'd be a bit more adept in the outside world. in any case, I guess the PD did mention that she was suppose to "grow" as a character.

And yea, as far as the overall plot goes, it's decent but nothing too exciting. though, one thing korean dramas do exceptionally well is leaving cliffhangers. I suppose that presents the plot to appear a lot more interesting and exciting than it actually is.

[junny]

The series have alot of story to unfold.

But i have to disagree to that fact. Even though she's a slave. She's still a girl. Her hardships surely make her more adaptable to harsh conditions. But it does not mean she's strong enough to go against the enemies.
The fact that she's brave enough to run away on her own with no plans of tomorow, is big for her character.

I'm going to have to agree with Ren Ying Ying that as an ex-slave, Unnyun is incredibly lacking in the ways of the world. She won't ever be as street-smart as Daegil or even Taeha, but let's face it, she was a slave for 15 years of her life and it wasn't easy back then even with her young master trying to look out for her. She should have developed some sort of backbone thanks to the hardship, but no, she's a shrinking violet every step of the way. The way she behaved when she first started escaping with Taeha... god, you'd think she'd been a sheltered lady ALL her life, right down to being spoonfed at meals. People grow tougher mentally in the face of adversity, but she's the complete opposite.

If she could run away, she should at least have a plan. Not having one is stupid. She's running from her husband, a fairly powerful man, and she should know that if she were caught, the consequences would be severe (given the times). So not having a backup plan and going off in her poor disguise is beyond belief.

And her gender is not an excuse. A contrast is Chobok, Eopbok's slave girlfriend. Now that one has learnt to adapt to the changing times, and for Unnyun to take 12 episodes, even with Taeha shielding her, is just... incredible. It makes me wonder what the hell Daegil saw in her.

The only saving grace is, as you said, that there are still 12 episodes for Unnyun to develop a spine and some character. And by god, I hope she does. For a female lead, she's incredibly weak.

And I'm not even touching on Lee Dahae's acting.

As for the fighting scenes, having grown up on wuxia, the action is nothing new. Slow-mo is overused. But I do enjoy seeing Daegil fight. And of course the scenery is lovely, and I adore the friendship between Daegil, General Choi and Wangson. They're hilarious.

[Ren Ying Ying]

Lee Dahae's acting is usually pretty decent, though. I think it's her character's blandness (so far) that has been making her seem dull.

Still, I would love to see how she will pull off the "fateful encounter" that should happen in god knows which episode (and hopefully not the last one)

[junny]

^ I hope so too, because she's seriously getting on my nerves. In that scene where she was on the skiff with Taeha blocking Daegil's arrows, the way she showed her panic at being targeted was completely laughable.

I hope the fateful encounter is good too. I'd be so disappointed if it turns into some lame anti-climax, and Unnyun had better not ruin it by being lame.


More pics of the cast:

General Choi
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Wangson
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Seolhwa
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Eopbok
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And a relational chart (love Daegil's smirk in the pic):
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[Ren Ying Ying]

^ I hope so too, because she's seriously getting on my nerves. In that scene where she was on the skiff with Taeha blocking Daegil's arrows, the way she showed her panic at being targeted was completely laughable.

I hope the fateful encounter is good too. I'd be so disappointed if it turns into some lame anti-climax, and Unnyun had better not ruin it by being lame.

I have the feeling that it's going to be disappointing though...
Not necessarily because of the actor/actress or even the scene itself, but rather the PD has been "hyping" it up since day one and constantly teasing and dragging it so much that expectations will be sky rocketing--making anything less of spetacular to be considered a failure.

[junny]

I have the feeling that it's going to be disappointing though...
Not necessarily because of the actor/actress or even the scene itself, but rather the PD has been "hyping" it up since day one and constantly teasing and dragging it so much that expectations will be sky rocketing--making anything less of spetacular to be considered a failure.

I'm also afraid to hope and am trying to keep my expectations down. I really hope they don't drag it on, 12 episodes and only Daegil is suffering. They'd better not cook up some ridiculous, flimsy reason to delay the meeting. At the very least, they should let Unnyun realise her young master is alive. About time she gets all angsty rather than lovey.

Which character(s) do you like so far?

[Ren Ying Ying]

I don't know about "favorite" character, but I have to say, Daegil is the one keeping the show interesting right now. Sul Hwa and Wang Son provides some comic relief, but doesn't move the plot. General Choi reeks of sexyness all over, but while i wouldn't mind staring at his abs all day long , he doesn't move the plot much either. I mean, most of their scenes (w/o Dae Gil) sort of just screams "filler" at you. Though, I am interested in what the details of Wang Son and General Choi's background stories are.

Taeha's character was pretty interesting for the first few episodes, but lately he's kind of drifted into blandness (I'm not sure if it's just the character, the plotline, or Oh Ji Ho's acting). He's not a bad character per say, but when contrasted to Daegil, he's coming across as a bit boring. Again, perhaps it's just because I'm not interested in his plotline.

The same goes for Hwang Chul Woong. Lee Jong Hyuk is a fantastic actor and Hwang is actually quite a complex character, but I'm just not really interested in his storyline with the minister and politics. (Though, from the ep. 13 preview, it looks like it might pick up a bit. ). Same goes for the slaves and their revolution.

btw, from the ep. 13 preview, it looks like Un Nyun might finally catch a glimpse of Dae Gil

[Suet Seung]

Where are you guys watching this drama?

[junny]

RYY,

I agree with you about the non-Daegil scenes being filler-ish, I get that feeling too. I'm kinda bored when he's not on screen, and just hope for the time to pass quickly until he's back on again. I do love the camaraderie between the slave-hunting trio though. Wangson and Seolhwa's banter cracks me up big time .

The court intrigue doesn't really interest me. I put this down to being unable to relate to the history of Korea (if this were good ol' wuxia, I'd have no problem). Also, Oh Jiho is a looker but he doesn't give off that military, authoritative air. I read somewhere that Go Soo was one of the original choices for Song Taeha, and I had this inkling he might have made Taeha less boring But it's just as well it wasn't Go Soo - I wouldn't have known whom to root for otherwise!

I still can't decide if Hwang Chulwoong is a good guy deep down. Maybe we'll find out he's working undercover all along? It would be nice if he started being more sympathetic to his wife!

Oh as for THE encounter... seems like it turned out pretty okay... she got to see him, but it's not clear if he saw her. Another 12-hour wait...

[Ren Ying Ying]

@ SMSS: I usually look for the chinese subs on baidu because they come out a lot faster (those chinese subbers work like elves!). If you want english subs, I think viiki tends to be pretty updated. Some people get the live Korean feeds, but since I don't understand korean, i don't look for those. and finally, you can always go old school with the bts if you want better quality.

@junny:
It would've been great to see Go Soo in the cast (I do like him more than Oh Ji Ho as an actor). Oh Ji Ho is a handsome guy and his looks are actually quite charismatic and he tends to be fairly likable on screen. However, he just doesn't have the screen presence that Jang Hyak (or Go Soo) does. Somehow, I don't find his character just arn't as engaging. But then again, to me, Go Soo doesn't quite come off as a military general type either.

I have to admit though, part of the reason I root for Dae Gil is because of Jang Hyak. Go Soo might have made the decision harder, but I think ultimately I'd probably still go with Dae Gil because I have sadistic likings for tortured characters and relationships . Not to say the character Tae ha's life wasn't miserable before, but as the plot flowed along, the writers writers really went away from it. Maybe we'll see him get his turn to drown in despair later .

As for the fateful encouter,

click to show/hide spoilers

I agree. It did turn out pretty well (though I highly doubt they would actually interact even if he did see her...especially judging from the previews). I do have to commend the writers that they chose a pretty fitting timing & circumstance for her to see him--the day after she got married and thought she had finally gotten rid of him from her heart for good. I wonder if she feels like kicking herself now. To top that off, he was laughing with Sul Hwa like he was living happily (it's like a taste of her own medicine...that she unknowingly gave him). In fact, I think she probably feels shittier than Dae Gil does, now. Poor Un Nyun though. It's not really her fault either.

On a side note, now that Dae Gil has "claimed" to give up slave hunting, I wonder how they're going to tie him into the plot again. I have doubts that he would blatantly go after Un Nyun even if he did see her looking at him. He doesn't really directly tie into the slaves or the court & revolution politics. Any thoughts? Or perhaps they'll get it going in the next episode.

[junny]

*hi-fives*

I just felt we deserved that, since we're fellow Daegil shippers and into tortured characters/relationship And it's true I wouldn't be rooting for him if it weren't for Jang Hyuk. The original choices were Lee Junki, Kang Jihwan and maybe even Jung Woosung (the last I like, but the first two would have been iffy). I think part of Daegil's charm is that knowing smirk that Jang Hyuk does so well, that cocky arrogance and disdain for rules that annoy those around him. I read that he even suggested that scar below Daegil's eye, that shows he's immersed in the character (unlike a certain youknowwho).

Yeah, Go Soo doesn't look much like a military general either, but at least he'd be able to bring out Taeha's inner grief at losing his family and being a man on a mission and all that. I felt Oh Jiho was good in that scene where he found out his wife and kid were dead, but after that really bland and sometimes stiff. There was no inner fire or conviction that he was doing the right thing despite the sacrifice of losing his family. I think this is his first sageuk, so he might have problems adjusting to the delivery of old Korean, he sounds stilted even to my non-Korean ears.

click to show/hide spoilers

After reading commentary for ep 14, it seems that Unnyun is taking this "Young Master is alive!" business in her stride! I expected shock and more shock, and of course happiness that he's alive, but also an overwhelming sense of loss of what could have been, and guilt over what had happened (which I hadn't seen a lot of, frankly). I haven't seen the episode, but have read that Lee Dahae did well in that scene - I gotta reserve judgment on that one. Like you said, a taste of her own medicine, since he was with Seolhwa, and if she weren't regretting this at all, then she's bloody saintly and unreal (and badly written).

As for getting Daegil back in the plot, well ep 14 showed the way, I guess, but in a sad manner - I'm still hoping against hope that General Choi and Wangson survive, there'd be no more fun and laughter if they're gone I think Daegil will go after Taeha thanks to Chulwoong's machinations, get caught up in the political intrigue, and maybe die a horrible death or something... And Chulwoong... needs an a$$-whupping! So mad at him

I think we'll probably end up with the leading trio (DG, UN, TH), slave-hunting gang and villains all dead, maybe just about everyone except Eopbok and his chick. That might be a first, eh?

[Ren Ying Ying]

Haha, yes, where is the drama without having the characters in a wreck? the charm of Jang Hyuk is that he really puts swagger into his characters (though he also tend to play energetic characters). The other actor choices seem too "angelic" somehow. Aside from Jung Woosung, the other two looks too "pretty" . Can't imagine them looking like the "low-life" role of Dae Gil.

For Oh Ji Ho's part, I was pretty impressed when he cried for his dead baby, but I think that was the only scene. Though sometimes, I wonder if the writers purposefully wrote his character to be more toned down and robotic so it could contrast Dae Gil's extremely passionate and intense character? Afterall, they keep mentioning how he's been a soldier his entire life and he only knows how to serve his master and take orders (maybe he was suppose to speak in a monotonous tone? j/k). But I do agree that Oh Ji Ho could still try to put more life into Tae Ha other than trying his "intense stare".

As for ep. 14

click to show/hide spoilers

I think Lee Da Hae did a fairly good job doing the whole devastated/guilty/regretful scenes (though that was pretty much all her scenes had this episode, along with endless flashbacks). It seems fate is really not on her side when it comes to Dae Gil. It won't let her be with him but also wouldn't let her forget him.

And yes, I am so sad that General Choi/Wang Son "dies". Though I think there is still a chance that General Choi might make it. But even if they survive, I think their screen time would be greatly reduced or all together skipped until much later, as it seems the series is going to focus more on Dae Gil going after Tae Ha by himself. Looks like the writers decided Dae Gil needs more torturing.

Speaking of Chulwoong though, he really is making a very good bad a$$ villian. Though I've always thought he had a lot more self-pride and would go after Song Taeha himself. I don't really understand why he would make Dae Gil go after Tae Ha instead. In fact, I still don't understand why he followed Wang Son in the first place...

As for who's going to die, I'm going to keep my expectations low. prepare for the worst to come!

click to show/hide spoilers

Though i personally think at least one of the 3 leads is going to survive.

[junny]

^ LOL, word has it that

click to show/hide spoilers

Daegil is going to die, Unnyun might die, and Taeha will survive since he's got a mission going.

Dunno how true is that but I'm not too fussed about that if they do it right. And anyway, didn't we already see that coming? We're prophetic, we are.

Frankly I've never been sold on the Daegil/Unnyun pairing, I dunno why. I keep thinking she's better off with Taeha - one's weak and simpering, the other's too perfect and stiff. What a great match

Chulwoong seems to have everyone fooled - didn't he start out more upright than most villains? The mommy love, the initial refusal to kill Im Youngho... then again, he did betray his general. Unless this was a case a la Constable Kwak... but once was a (welcome) surprise, twice is just running out of ideas.

But yes, it seems like it's

click to show/hide spoilers

really bye bye General Choi and Wangson .

I like them so much. Usually sidekicks are annoying, but sidekicks make the show in the case of Chuno, other than the shining star that is Jang Hyuk. I guess the drama will lose a bit of shine now (shine that's not self-induced, that is). Along with General Choi and Wangson, I like Seolhwa and Chobok too. Even the jumo ladies were funny.

[Ren Ying Ying]

I'm more sold on the Daegil/Unnyun pairing than the Taeha/Unnyun pairing though. I know a lot of people really like the later pairing, but for me, they're relationship sometimes seem as stiff as Oh Ji Oh's line delivery (maybe that's what makes it seem kind of stiff). In the begining, I can understand the over-politeness and stiffness and all because they were strangers and felt awkward with each other. But really, their interactions hasn't really improved that much since the begining and now I just want to go . And their relationship progression has been too easy thus far.

Okay oaky, I admit. I just want to see souls tortured, hence I find Daegil/Unnyun much more entertaining. Mwahahahaha!

click to show/hide spoilers

If Daegil does die, think there's a good chance the writers will throw in Un Nyun to be sacrificed and buried with him so they can torture each other in the afterlife

I suppose the writer is trying to Chulwoong go the "sympathizable" baddie route where he had a chance to be "good", but wrong decisions and emotions ultimately led him to the dark pits. At this point I don't see him turning back to being "good" anymore. He still makes one fine badass though . Much more intriguing than the minister or all those other political villians.

I agree, the side character are pretty entertaining. Though, sometimes I get a little annoyed when they take up too much filler space in the plot (like the artist and horsekeeper keep trying to hit on the jumos).

click to show/hide spoilers

I think Wang Son is gone... But I still have hopes that General Choi is still out there. From the previews, it seems that Daegil only found their head wear but didn't see their bodies. I don't think Wang Son could've survied Chulwoong's slash and dragging, but if they don't show General Choi being killed directly, I'll keep my fingers crossed . I'm glad the writer is trying to spice up the plot and all...but i really wish he didn't do it at the expense of our beloved hunter sidekicks

[junny]

The recent developments (15 & 16) have gone over my head a bit, still trying to digest everything. So what do you think of the turn that the drama has taken? I kinda... I dunno, I know we've been saying bring on the angst, but maybe I should have been careful what I asked for