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CONTEST HERE TO WIN a
complete set of PALACE on DVD!
Palace is
YA-Entertainment's first television drama inspired by a
Korean manhwa – and a girl's comic at that - and it's an
oddball, to say the least. The protagonist, Shin Chae-kyung
takes the notion of "self-involved" teenager and runs away
with – for touchdown after touchdown. Chae-kyung is a
self-described airhead and klutz and, except for the
requisite love and respect for her immediate family and a
few loyal friends, she is clearly someone I would want to
know only at a safe distance. This is why God gave us
television.
In keeping with the comic book origins, though not its
style, exactly, of Palace, the producers cast vivacious 22
year old Yoon Eun Hye, a member of the successful girl group
"Baby V.O.X" since 1999 in the lead. Even though the cast
for Palace is considerable, the show pretty much rises or
falls with its lead actress and the chemistry she has with
her co-stars. Since Palace (or "Goong" as it is known in
Korea), Eun Hye has continued with TV dramas with critical
success.
I have to admit that, more than any Korean TV drama until
this, I found both the show and its lead tough going for the
first two or three episodes. That's probably because Eun Hye
nailed her character right from the start as whiney, noisy
and unforgiving. O.K. I sympathized with her that she was
asked, even expected, to alter her life's course, the likes
of which no teenager could possibly anticipate. But it's not
like she had a life to start with. Well, that's not really
fair of me. What bugged me was Chae-kyung's utter
unwillingness to explore anything new, at least for the
first half of the series. I guess this is what bothers me
about many adolescents I know. (The "No-Nothing Generation"
as some parents disparagingly refer to them.) Like I say,
Eun Hye really nails her character, so it was up to me to
embrace, not just tolerate, something new, just as I
expected her to do.
By the way, Palace was an incredibly successful series in
2006, second only in popularity to Jumong.
Notes on the DVD:
Image : 6.5
Palace is one of the few widescreen presentations that
didn't make it to the U.S. in an anamorphic presentation.
Just such an edition exists (from Premier), but it comes
without English subtitles. Curiously, unlike the case with
Jumong, where the YA edition is to preferred, Premier's
version of Palace is subtly, though perceptibly better,
especially noticeable in the less well lit palace interiors
where the YAE tends to block up the black levels. The
Premier is a little sharper, even compared to the
letterboxed, unzoomed YAE, and of course is helped by the
fact that it is anamorphic. In either case, color saturation
is quite deep, especially within the palace where it is
drenched in golds and reds. I found things were clearer if I
backed off on color and contrast a point on the YAE. (The
Premier edition begs for no such adjustment.) I have
included two pairs of images for comparison, and chose to
retain the letterboxed format for the YAE so that the
differences will be more apparent. These images are
photographed from front projection, the remainder of the
captures are all taken via the computer.
Since there is no royal palace as such, a certain amount of
CGI, tastefully executed, is added to some of the exteriors
of the present buildings to give the illusion of a certain
existence in the main city. CGI was also employed here and
there when a royal jet or throngs of dignitaries were not to
be had. But for the most part, what we see is what is there,
or recreated on sets. Except for the interiors of the palace
where things tend to get a little saturated and the blacks
lack for some shadow detail, the image is quite good, though
a touch noisy.
Make no mistake, with few moments of exception, Palace is
relentless beautiful to look at, with the bonus of a closet
full of luscious royal costumes that would be the envy of
Joan Crawford. Frames are elegantly composed, even in
motion. Focus is always deliberate,
with backgrounds carefully considered as contextual frames.
It's a picture that, unlike most Korean dramas in
contemporary settings, cries out for a high definition video
transfer.
Audio & Music : 8/10
The audio mix, if we can rightly call it that, is stereo,
but not surround. As a result, atmospherics are missed, but
that would be all. The dialogue and ambient sounds are clear
and are balanced well with the music. The music score for
Palace is one of the best Korean drama soundtracks I've
heard and is fully worth the expense of a separate purchase.
It is colorful, engaging and inventive.
Translation & Subtitles : 8
I found this a pretty good translation into idiomatic
English, with very few grammatical or spelling errors.
Subtitles are clear enough, though too large I thought:
white with a thin black border.
Operations & Box Design : 8
I may have an earlier box deign which entails a sturdy,
compact outer sleeve with an open end for two standard DVD
cases that each house four discs (12 episodes). Between them
is a separate, slender case for the Extra Features disc. The
art work is appropriately suggestive of the series: rich
with reds and ornate costumes.
Extras : 6
For content, I score this a 9; but the image is pretty
awful. Much of the disc, titled "Palace 1.5", is comprised
of a a 75 minute live audience TV show filmed just as the
series wrapped up – this is a common ploy for MBC to
generate even more fan interest even while the series is in
progress. The show is a gas, with two hosts falling over
themselves to get the audience to giggle and applaud at real
and imagined events on and off the set. Behind he hosts is
the cast of the show, who chime in with embarrassed
reactions and the occasional enlightened response. I find
these shows – and I've seen several by this time, to be
delightful, charming, funny, and informative in their way.
In this case, they trace the 280 days of filming, starting
in the summer of 2005 with the introduction of the new stars
as they go through their first 8 hour read-through of the
script and continuing with all sorts of backstage trivia and
making-of bits.
For some reason, the image for Palace 1.5 is anamorphic, but
way overexposed with washed out colors. Curiously, the
Premier edition, which has almost twice the Extra Features -
none of which are subtitled, remember, but all of which are
in much, much better image quality - does not include this
most delightful TV spot, though it does include most or all
of the making-of material in 4:3 framing. As you can see,
the YAE frames this sections with borders to make the change
in aspect ratios less jarring.
The remainder of the disc contains 45 minutes of interviews
with the stars as they discuss their characters. Most
interesting is Yoon Eun Hye's comments about how her
performance did or did not correspond to expectations by
fans of the popular manhwa (graphic novels). I thought I had
the advantage of having no such concerns, and came to think
about her characterization in the same way as I think of
Jimmy Stewart as Jefferson Smith. Who else could possibly
have brought Chae-Kyung to life?
Recommendation: 8
It took two or three episodes to get my bearings in what
soon evolved as a most delicious goulash of comedy, romance,
politics, culture (Korean and Thai) and thriller. The only
reason why this series does not score higher is because of
it not being anamorphic; all the same, it is highly
recommended.
Palace is a little longer than most Korean TV dramas (24
hour long episodes as compared to the more frequent 16-20),
but never felt liked it dragged. At the end of each episode,
which often concluded with a mini-cliffhanger, I was eager
to see where things would go next. My one complaint, besides
the letterboxing of the image, is the ending, which not only
is unrealistic on its own terms, but cries out for a sequel.
That wish was granted briefly for a few episodes with a
different cast. I gather it was not much liked and got what
it deserved. I am not holding my breath for a course
correction.
-
Leonard Norwitz
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