Memories of the Alhambra

Episodes: 16 

Synopsis: 

Yoo Jin Woo, the CEO of an investment company that specializes in optical devices, travels to Granada, Spain to meet the developer of this supposed new AR game that many companies are trying to obtain. When he begins to play this game, he realizes that the game makes him feel as though he is completely immersed in the real world. He is able to feel the sword in his hand and the cuts given to him as he is slain by virtual warriors. However, as he continues to play the game, he soon realizes that it is becoming harder and harder to separate game from reality -- and it may only end with the death of it's players. 

Review:

I enjoyed the premise of this drama. It reminded me a lot of the artificial reality version of the drama "W." In fact, it was pretty entertaining to see the actor Kim Ui Seong playing in this drama as well as "W"--especially since it gave off similar vibes: when something that was supposed to remain in the fictional world comes and affects real life. The artificial reality shown through video games definitely was an interesting touch, and I can see the appeal it can have to many audiences who watch this drama. There is a lot of action made in a video game style, mystery, thrill, and so forth. I really enjoyed this drama especially as things began to pick up and be explained better. The beginning was a bit slow and the ending was really anticlimactic for my taste. However, the process of watching this was very intriguing and it definitely kept me engaged. 

     I have seen many posts online comparing the chemistry between Hyun Bin and Park Shin Hye with Hyun Bin and Son Ye Jin. Everyone was acting as though Hyun Bin was more interested and had more chemistry with Son Ye Jin. However, to put things into perspective, "Crash Landing On You" is a more romance-based melodrama. This is more geared toward action-filled thriller. The romance is not one in which you really can invest in as they never truly dive into the relationship as much as I wish they did. It is very easy to not be engaged with this couple considering they spent most of their time away from each other, and we often just watch our male lead fight off video game characters and fulfill quests through most of the drama. The romance is a subplot--which is refreshing to watch after something more cliche like "Crash Landing on You" or "Boys Over Flowers." Likewise, I definitely have some qualms about Park Shin Hye's acting. I find I have a hard time resonating with her acting in every drama I have watched her in, and I do not know why. I just don't vibe with it as much as I would like to, because I really like her as a person (at least from what I've seen of her). But the acting really isn't my cup of tea. However, I do have to say she's really good at crying very watery tears (if that even makes sense lol). 

        As mentioned in the first paragraph, I wish the ending was a bit better. I think it had a lot of potential to be continued further and expanded on. I think the ending could have been filled with more resolution to the entire story rather than on this cliffhanger (almost). I even think they could have had Seju explain how his game works, how he managed to come back from his game, and how he will be able to bring Yoo Jin Woo back. I wish they expanded on it more. I think if the ending was more fleshed out, this would definitely be more enjoyable.