What to say...this is literally the only manga/manhwa series that made my head hurt throughout. The drama was overkill, honestly. Unnecessary. It's not suspenseful like "what's going to happen next?" but rather more like "wow, all the drama is caused by these characters' stupidity and insanity." The premise was unique and interesting, but that's where it stops. I started reading Goong out of boredom because of its popularity, and god knows how I managed to skim 50 ish chapters, but wow. Never have I encountered (and if you've read any manga at all you'd know there are plenty of douchebag male leads out there) such a selfish, arrogant, obnoxious male lead. I mean, there are ones where they appear jerkish but are supposedly "sweet and misunderstood yada yada" perhaps. Those, though overused, I can handle if truly executed well. But Shin can't be accurately described with anything softer than a cuss word which I'm not allowed to write on here. It's as if the author purposefully though "What's the worst personality I could give this guy? Oh I know." And it's sad because I'm honestly a fan of well developed anti-heroes/villains ect but even after Shin's back story was given to us, and we're shown some of his insecurities/weaknesses, I still can't muster an ounce of respect for him, even though I wanted to. I'm just utterly amazed at that. Yes he's hot, is a prince, rich, ect whatever, but does that alone seriously make a guy attractive? Wiping his hand after the female lead touched him because he thought she was dirty? Purposefully dumping her over a balcony into water to humiliate her? I can't recall exactly what happened, but it was something at that level. Most people can't even think of such things to do to another person, but he actually does it as if it's the right thing to do. In a way, I'm ironically impressed.

And the girl, had she had an ounce more of self-respect, would not have accepted his blatant disrespect for her. Instead, she follows him like an obsessive fangirl, claiming she loved the first person she could because of her loneliness, or something ridiculous like that. Maybe you won't be as disgusted by their relationship as I am, but I stand by my opinion on this. And actually, I really think everyone should try reading it just for an eye opener.

And right. The 2 points I gave this manhwa come from the art and occasional humor. It's funnier than most series because of how ridiculous the girl can get, in a good way (for once). The art, it's not anatomically perfect, and it's extremely frilly shoujo, but it's pretty (minus the way she draws lips). The lead's hairstyles always change and are quite unique. The way hair is drawn is beautiful, not to mention the uniforms are gorgeous as well. Eyecandy. But I still need to take aspirin.

The pros:
-Art is amazing !! I love her outfits..but sometimes the characters look weird. There's obviously some lacking in facial expression as well because most of the time they look very stiff and emotionless..and the artist tries to cover it up by inverting the colors of the eyes or changing the background color or something...its too stiff! Otherwise, wow the clothes and detail are amazing.

The characters aren't very likeable....I mean, I didn't hate them but I don't feel any connection with any of them. Not that I'm supposed to (lol, yes i know, they are royalty of course) but when Chaekyung felt sad...I didn't really feel sad at all. I just felt annoyed half of the time. They lacked unique-ness..and I only liked them as a pair - not really as individuals. Shin, even though I felt bad for him sometimes, the feeling would be overshadowed by annoyance at his words.

TOO MUCH DRAMA. TOO MUCH DRAMA. NOt the good kind either..it's the kind that makes me want to throw a computer out the window..not the kind that makes me anxious for more. I got so annoyed at the dragging story that I stopped at volume 15...and that's pretty far. It had to be really bad for me to want to just stop all together. :\ I had a lot of hope because I loved the drama..but the manga was too much..

The only drive i had for reading up to that far was the fact that I loved the drama and everyone was saying how amazing the manhwa was. Meh..I still don't see it :\

I read this story but only at a time when shin said 'I don't want to let her go' (or something like that). It was sad and I give up on this.

e_e maybe I'll read it in other time (I don't know why the autors make a good story, but they make it too long!).It's not that I didn't like it, it was the fact that the guy was mean to the girl.

I mean the story is great! (:

<3 but just a few things I don't like.

With every page, every chapter - hell with every volume! - I fall more in love with the characters. I cry for them, laugh with them, rage and fill bitterness on their behalf... It's funny how with other manga, after the 3rd plot twist you begin to fill irritated... I felt more intrigued, and eagerness...
I went through vol 1 -15 in two days... Of course I didn't sleep one of those days...But that's besides the point...
To me this is the Nodame Cantabile of Manwha...
We just want someone (Shin Lee/Chiaki Shinichi) to take notice of that girl's effort and heart... I can hardly wait for the next chapter!!!

This is actually one of the funniest and silliest manga that i've ever read. the storyline is great, unlike other shoujo mangas that's just too typical. I have to say that the So Hee Park did a great job with the main character, Chae Gyung. She kows when to insert the funny and dramatic scenes and the expressions she used for the characters are seriously cute!

For those who haven't read the book, please do. It's great!

I hardly say this, but this Manhwa was really catchy and made me read it in almost one go. It is been a while since that happened, especially when it comes to settings with a historical feel and adjusted circumstances, like the royal palace still being filled with life. But - It was a surprise to see, how this one got me alsmost right away, because of the interesting characters and the humor. Honestly, sometimes I was laughing like crazy. Kkk.

As for the drawing style, it's matching. At the right points, for example the palace backgrounds or the historical elements (from clothing to vases), you can find many details, while there are also times with clear lines, when the focus lies on the characters and the emotions on their face. The SD formats are funny and not overwhelmingly often used, so the jokes usually go well with and without them. All in all, IMO the artwork was pretty well done and needs praise.

As for the storyline - There are moments praiseworthy and others that are not, but that's a given, since no storyline is able to match everyones tastes. Right? In my eyes the story was interesting and made me curious about the next steps, which is certainly a good job. Still - By times I was annoyed by the antagonists, the dragging dialogues repeating things all over again and the characters being unable to move forward, BUT that's life. It wasn't like those things made me stop reading and somehow they just fit the way the story is told, so the interesting and refreshing twists beat them.

The characters have been created well, too. You get a real hand full of different types, which makes it easy to find your personal favourite and see them overcoming their own troubles. They are distinctive and the behaviour is in most cases understandble, even though this can get on your nerves somtimes. It can make their actions predictable or simply a bit stupid, since there might be an easier way in sight to clear misunderstandings or resolve the issues they have. But, again that's an aspect making them seem realistic - and I liked that.

The ending was fine with me. To be honest ...


In conclusion - The drama adaption bored me after the first episode and so I didn't expect anything, when I was giving this Manhwa a try. In the end, I'm happy about trying it, because it was way better than I would have imagined and so funny, yet touching at some points. Therefore, you should give it a chance, too~ ^^

The beginning looked very promising and I was looking forward to how they'll adapt and get to know eachother. Instead, it became more and more messy, they got divorced, the allegiance of the main character became shaky, and the new little baby brother turned into an asshole. All of which would have been somewhat supportable if there was a decent conlcusion. But nooo, we get one of the shittiest cliffhangers ever, without anything to follow up on it (not like anything could, the way it was written is just too final). And it's not like the good kind of final cliffhanger that lets you imagine what might follow or alternatively that everything's allright, nope. It's the kind of ending where you sit speechless in front of the final page and cry out "Wait, that was it? Nothing's resolved yet! How can you end it like this? I feel soo cheated for reading through all of this!".
Seriously, good thing there are scanlators and this isn't licensed, otherwise I would be cursing myself for wasting all that money.
Mental note to self: Remember to read comments first next time you read a manhwa (because for some reason I've experienced that more with manhwa than with manhua or manga, even though I've read over 20 times more manga)

... Last updated on May 27th, 2012, 10:00am

If you want an insufferable twit as a heroine then this is the manwha for you. These characters have to be some of the most frustrating characters ever. Perhaps only second in all around dumbness to Romeo and Juliet. :/ The story starts okay but becomes so repetitive and you want to slap the collective bunch.
This manwha is helpful if you want to know how NOT to make a relationship/marriage work. Adding in 3rd parties, not listening to your spouse, being dumb overall and lack of communication.

You're much better off watching the drama. It's shorter and the portrayal of CG makes her more likable (though the likability is short lived.)

... Last updated on August 10th, 2010, 8:17am

This story was on course to end at around volume 10-13----a normal length title. It was moving right along. Character development, pacing everything were right. And then the author Park So Hee apparently got worried.

"What if I never have another popular title again? Oh, my!"

And so, in her quest for immortality, she ended up killing this series over and over again, each time dragging its bloody, decayed, headless, soulless corpse back from the grave so that she could do it all over again.

No, this is not hyperbole. If you are a writer yourself, I strongly advice you to read this one as an example of what not to do.

I stopped reading about ten volumes ago. Today, I took a peek at the latest installment. The conflict was exactly the same. No progress at all. None. Nada. The characters on the other hand are all completely different. And I don't mean they have grown up. I mean they are imposters that the author created so that she could have lots of random stuff happen in hopes of disguising the fact that this one is heading nowhere (except maybe down the same toilet time after time in some perverse existential hell).

To the author, here is something that will make your easier. Instead of the pictures and text, just draw dollar signs of every page. I like to think that your family is in debt to the Korean version of the yakuza and that they are holding a gun to your head forcing you to write this crap. Now that would be a good story.

... Last updated on October 10th, 2011, 7:19pm

This is so good that I'd rather see Shin and Chae-Gyung together than find my soulmate. I read all 103 chapters nonstop through the night. From 12 AM in the morning to 11:50 AM I couldn't stop reading. Call me obsessed, but holy crow, Goong makes you laugh all the way through the series, makes you smile and say "awww" and cry all at the right moments.
This is the best manga/manhwa I've read in a long time, and being the obsessive otaku I am (with the over 200 series I'm reading and finished), it's saying a whole lot. I want it to not end but end at the same time. It's so good it shouldn't end, but I want to find out if they end up together...<3
The heroine is funny, strong, and often weak at times, but I love her. Trust me, you'll never get tired of this. One of the best shoujos, EVER. It makes you feel like you never want to read another manga/manhwa series again until it's finished. <3

... Last updated on November 2nd, 2008, 12:01pm