As a Korean Japanese (my grandparents moved to Japan), this show was super interesting and I really wanted to love it, but... I don't know what it is, but I feel like something is missing.
Maybe I was just put off by Solomon's Japanese...
Actually I do think his pronunciation is great for a person who doesn't speak the language, but not good enough to play a person who was born and raised in Japan...

also, i want to point out that these valid criticisms about the production (others have said they are speaking weird japanese) should not mire the story's importance.

it is about the korean diaspora in japan and america. it is still a global reality - like what is happening in ukraine, they are fleeing their country under duress. are they received well? is there discrimination? will there be discrimination?

please stay for the story, it is relevant even today.

I'm always curious about what fans think of the drama because adaptations never live up to your imagination. As someone who didn't read the book, I had no clue what was going on, so these are rhetorical questions that I'm sure will be answered by the end of the series unless I accidentally spoil myself online.

The biggest mystery is Hana. Since Solomon's mother died when he was young, his father remarried Etsuko, so is Hana his step-sister? Were they lovers? Did she run away to be a prostitute and has a terminal illness?

Kim Min-ha's acting is very impressive. Koh Hansu was charming. He may have been a cheater, but he genuinely loved Sunja. I liked their chemistry talking about their dreams and his poor childhood. She has big dreams to take down Japan. Why did he never take off any of his clothes but was always undressing her?

Was Baek Isak staying at their boarding house contagious with tuberculosis? I liked him since he was nice. I can see that he'll marry Sunja and be the father of her child. Their relationship moved fast since he already liked her after a day.

It was sudden how Sunja's father died. Who reported the fisherman ajae? I adored him and was afraid the Japanese soldiers would shoot him in front of the market people and Sunja. The soldier who complimented her mother's cooking was nice, but I thought the mean one would cause trouble for their family.

Naomi and Solomon's commiserating over Americans guessing "Which Asian am I?" was so relatable. I loved when Sunja and the landowner halmeoni reminisced about food from Korea. The opening pachinko dancing sequence feels out of place with the tone of drama, but "Let's Live for Today" song is an earworm.

I'm not convinced by the the actress playing the young adult Sunja. Her scenes should be the heart of the story, but they are the ones I'm less interested in. I can't see the connection between the 2 Sunja neither.

I haven't read the book, so I don't know what unpleasantness they will encounter, but for an example of how bad things could get read up on the Kanto Massacre.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kant%C5%8D_Massacre

FWIW, I knew a bit about that from my college days (class in Japanese history among other Asia-related subjects)

After 3 eps, i am not hooked. Cinematography and acting were top notch. I liked the book. But i just felt bored while watching the drama. Maybe the pacing was the problem. Plot moves on so quickly before the audience digest what just happened. I am guessing same thing will happen in remaining eps too. It`s just missing that emotion moving factor. Also for someone who didn`t read the book, shifting between two eras constantly might feel confusing and serve as spoiler too

Could it be true a stuntman played LEE MIN HO romance with sunja. Was just curious though 🤔