Is Hotel de Luna worth watching?
Quick answer is YES. But why? This may be a biased opinion being a kdrama fan myself but this is also the reason why you need to watch the show because I can distinguish a good show from the bad ones.
Hotel de Luna tries to stand out starting with the trailer disguising itself as a horror story but it is actually romantic comedy. It piqued my interest as it has the same vibe as Korean Odyssey. Mythical beings have been a common theme in kdrama like Legend of the blue sea or My girlfriend is a Gumiho.
I am trying to avoid spoilers so I am only going to discuss the characters and my overall impression of the show’s pace and plot…
For this series, popular singer actress IU plays a spirit who runs a hotel that accommodates dead people. Not all dead people though. They are the ones who are not ready to go to heaven and it was her job to pamper them. IU plays the role of Jang Man-Wol, the spirit of an ancient warrior whose soul was trapped and bound to the magical tree for several decades. She was materialistic and indifferent to her peers. She is authoritative towards her employees and rarely shows empathy or remorse.
Yeo Jin Goo plays the role of Goo Chan Sung, a young hotel manager who was recruited forcibly to run Hotel de Luna. He is helpful and responsible. He is willing to risk his normal life to help dead people find their peace. He is a scared of ghosts and never really gets used to them but he musters the courage when he needs to. He is very affectionate towards Jang Man-Wol after a specific episode as he realized the reason why she acts the way she does. Goo Chan Sung was used by the deities to assist her bloom the tree she was tied to.
There are a lot of supporting characters and guest characters for each episode. Pyo Ji Hoon plays Ji Hyun Joong, the hotel receptionist. He develops a love interest with Kang Mi Na who plays Kim Yoo Na who is a dead girl in a live body. Yes, she is dead but please just watch the episode to find out why. Eventually, she worked as an manager in training for the hotel as well. Shin Jun Keung plays Kim Seon Bi, the bartender and Bae Hae Seon plays Choi Seo Hee, the room manager. There two are the henchmen of Hotel de Luna who assists Jang Man-Wol in making sure the hotel does well for their own agenda. Other notable supporting characters are the deity, Ma Go played by Seo Yi Sook and Sanchez played by Jo Hyun Chul. They were instrumental in helping Goo Chan Sung survive his stay at Hotel de Luna.
Just like Legend of the Blue Sea, Hotel de Luna shows you the present but constantly gives you a glimpse of their past lives. Goo Chan Sung learns about Jang Man-Wol’s past life and he becomes determined to help her out resolve her grudges and send her to heaven just like the rest of the guests. Some people from her past also appears in the present timeline as another character like Park Yoo Na who played the princess in the past and Goo Chan Sung’s friend in the present. Lee Tae Sun was one of her love interest and closest friend and became a detective in her current timeline. The show tries its best to interconnect the characters but unlike Legend of the Blue Sea where the character’s relationship in the past remains the same in the present, Hotel de Luna shows us that even if they are connected, they have a different life and role to play in the present.
The show is great compared to other shows because it does not revolve solely around a specific character. It comprises of many different plots for guest characters which the main characters get entangled and must resolve. It does well in incorporating those plots with character development as it slowly unravels each main character’s struggles and resolved them.
The pace is also great. I am almost done with the series and it never really felt boring at any point. I was always hooked with the occasional cliffhangers and I appreciate that even though each episode has a different story, it finds a smooth transition from one to the other. Other kdramas tend to start really funny then once they fall in love, they get to that serious part of the plot where it gets really boring. Hotel de Luna on the other hand balances out their love story and comedy so you will still laugh even midway the series.
Despite being a romantic comedy in nature, Hotel Luna is also a tear jerker. I found my crying over and over and over as both the plot of the guest characters and the main characters can be really sad. The plot was simple and relatable in real life so I found myself empathizing with their dilemma at times. Just get those tissues ready because you’ll need them.
Overall the show is awesome, you will experience a roller coaster of emotions from being scared to being happy or sad for the main characters. Hotel de Luna has some similarities to other great shows which is not bad but it offers a ton of different elements and twists. The pace is neither too fast or too slow so it is easy for us viewers to follow their lives despite showing both past and the present. The plot is the best part because it offers a lot of variety and is not predictable. I recommend you watch this show if you are looking for a good kdrama but I do not recommend watching this alone if you get easily scared like me. Watch it in the morning or while with friends. Enjoy!
I rate this show 9/10!
Poke Your Pie! 