Drama Digest
The story is about a root fairy who has achieved her ultimate goal of immortality through self-cultivation. To her ill-luck the princess decides to eat her. She seeks help from an herbal medicine doctor by asking him to marry her as she would be able to absorb his energy. Will she be able to convince him with the help of her herbal plant friends? Dear Herbal Lord is adapted from the popular web novel- Imperial Uncle, Please Take Your Medicine.
The Feel-Good Part
The drama has a strong fantasy element that compliments the romantic setting really well, which will draw viewers in almost immediately. The leads have good chemistry so the audience may find it easy to get invested in the story. The soundtrack was well executed and fit the romantic narrative perfectly. The show is easy to watch and light-hearted.
The Disappointing Factor
There are numerous things that are disappointing about the execution of the drama. The female protagonist is childish and naïve, which can get frustrating to watch as the story progresses because of the way she handles situations as well as the way she interacts with characters. It isn’t engaging to watch her personal journey to fulfil her goal. This may cause the audience to lose interest before the romance has a chance to begin. Most of the side characters don’t add much to the story so their presence feels pointless in most cases. The story is packed with clichés and tropes that commonly come in this genre making it predictable, and at times boring. The show is not visually appealing. To provide an immersive experience, a show like this must think of visual effects and cinematography but it doesn’t. There are some subplots that serve no purpose, which drags the show. The plot is spread too thin to justify the twenty-four episode run period. The characters feel one dimensional in certain places because the writing lacks consistency.
In-Depth Analysis
The drama would have benefited greatly if the characters were well-written. As individuals the characters feel odd and out of place but when put together, their chemistry is decent enough to keep the audience invested. They could have made the show shorter and stuck to the romantic elements of the story rather than bringing in too much of fantasy.
Star Power
The performances weren’t the best. The male lead lacked expression in scenes that were meant to be explosive, which makes it hard to make the audience care about the conflict. The female lead gave a decent performance. For actors that didn’t have a lot to work with, their performances were decent enough.
Overall Opinion
Dear Herbal Lord has a lot of shortcomings but it delivers ion the romantic element of the story. The fantasy aspects had an interesting enough story that have the ability to keep the viewers hooked. The drama can be skipped as there are many similar ones that are executed better out there but if you are in need of some sweet moments in a fantasy setting, this might be worth a shot.
