Although I'm not such a big fan of Korean dramas but I cannot deny Brilliant Legacy was one series that got me haunted. I remembered viewing this series under the title "Shining Inheritance" which for me, was a real charming series. It presents a very three dimensional view of characters especially for Hwan (who goes from the character you hate to a character you'll love midway) to the villains who aren't exactly villains either. So what made Brilliant Legacy fun to watch? I simply focused too much on Hwan who goes from "Heck you deserve not to get your inheritance." to "Man, he deserves it." in a steady pace you can easily accept he's changing for better.
What I liked about Brilliant Legacy was how Go Eunsung and Sun Woowhuan were acted by really great actors. For one, Sun Woohwan or simply "Hwan" is acted by Lee Seunggi (he looks like the Japanese actor Hidenori Iura who played as Prince/Shuichi in Bioman) who really can act the extremely complex Hwan. He starts off pretty arrogant to the point his grandmother gave up hope on him and seldom, I feel like I blame his mother than grandmother more. It's pretty much a trope breaker considering that stereotypically, grandmothers are the most prone to spoil their grandchildren but in this one, Hwan's mother ultimately shares much more blame. I mean, consider the scene when Grandma Jung scolds Hwan... it's Hwan's mom who always covers up. In a more expected real-life scenario, it would be the grandma to cover up the grandson. It was fun to see how some enemies at the start later patch up in the end
We see some people just don't change at all vs. Hwan.... or not. I mean, while Hwan starts to show changes because of his grandmother ain't kidding about not giving them the inheritance (because she felt like she will waste them), Hwan sees why Grandma Jung gave up on him. I thought that it was good that both his mom and sister (the biggest idiots in the family) even dared to attempt to disown their elder, while Hwan slowly regains Grandma Jung's trust. I mean, face it, Hwan later said to the factory workers, "Yes I was that scoundrel that's why gave up on me and chose you instead." Hwan matured faster than the two nitwits who I felt got the least development. But hey, the two nitwits showed different personalities!
The villains aren't all too evil either which makes a new twist. I know I want to kill the stepmother and stepsister Seungmi, but you cannot deny that they aren't that evil. While Tae Mira in Stairway to Heaven was more evil, the stepmother here doesn't go as far as to physically assault Eunsung nor did the stepsister attempt any murder. Sometimes I pity them, sometimes I don't. The stepmother does care about her stepdaughter or two, she still has a conscience that bothers her overall vs. Tae Mira. I mean, when your villains possess positive qualities, they aren't flat out although what made me mad is how Seungmi decides to later throw away every chance she could redeem herself. Then again, they are not that typical either.
What never failed to entertain me is how Hwan really got humble for the better that while Eun Sung is sweet from start to end, Hwan's transformation makes him the most interesting character in the story. Just think, Hwan was hateful and arrogant then later, we see him become more the humble guy. At first, he always pissed off the manager for his bad performance or that he punched the manager at the face (typical Korean problem), he thinks he deserves special treatment but later episodes? Wow, it was hard to believe how Hwan developed throughout the series. I always thought that having him contrasted against his mom and sister also showed how some people choose to be irredeemable vs. some who chose to become redeemable. He was the reason why I watched the show considering how he really shows he's not all that bad... and that he matures from his childish, hateful self to become a likable character halfway of the show.
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