My Royal Nemesis (2026) 멋진 신세계
Directed by Han Tae-seob, starring Lim Ji-yeon as Shin Seo-ri / Kang Dan-shim and Heo Nam-jun as Cha Se-gye / Grand Prince Cheongheon.
Watched 21 May - 20 June 2026 — 14 episodes (NETFLIX)
(Beware of a major spoiler!)
*I had eagerly been waiting for the final two episodes of this popular series, just aired last Friday and yesterday. I watched both episodes yesterday and was a bit sad the show was over. Yes, I enjoyed it that much!
*The first episode was already a lot of fun, and the series hardly loses steam along the way or slackens in pace. The story premise of this romantic comedy fantasy centers on the relationship between a villainess from Joseon, whose soul is transported to the 21st century into the body of a struggling actress, and a calculating modern-day chaebol. The leads Lim Ji-yeon as Shin Seo-ri and Heo Nam-jun as Cha Se-gye have an amazing and irresistible chemistry! — To be honest, I didn't see the viciousness of Shin Seo-ri / Kang Dan-shim, nor the coldness of Cha Se-gye / Grand Prince Cheongheon. Cha Se-gye is overconfident and arrogant but I didn't see him as a cold businessman. So the blurb of two 'villains' finding romance is a bit exaggerated, in my opinion.
*I've seen Lim Ji-yeon in Welcome 2 Life, and Heo Nam-jun plays the second male lead in When the Phone Rings. I didn't really remember him, despite liking the 2nd couple in When the Phone Rings and wishing for more scenes between them. So I went back to this show to rewatch scenes of the 2nd couple.
*I just really love Heo Nam-jun whose popularity skyrocketed thanks to this series. He is so good in making us believe in Cha Se-gye's love for Shin Seo-ri. I love how he already early on falls for Shin Seo-ri and doesn't try to hide this. I love how he loves her and how he's not afraid to show his vulnerable side. He's really hurt when she initially rejects him. Heo Nam-jun plays a man in love with so much conviction that the romance becomes believable. I haven't loved a male lead this much since the Chinese drama Love Story in the 1970s. Heo Nam-jun is handsome, and it's a joy to see him act with all these micro-expressions displayed on his face. Yet his character also lacks credibility. He's presented as a ruthless businessman, but the moment his love for Seo-ri manifests itself, he doesn't seem to care about his business at all, even drops everything and chases after Seo-ri while his company is under scrutiny and on the verge of collapsing. Despite being of the jealous and possessive kind and saying things like 'you're mine' to Seo-ri, and being clingy and overprotective, I kept liking Cha Se-gye. Normally this would be a red flag for me, very off-putting, but I couldn't help myself and had totally fallen for Cha Se-gye myself. Or rather Heo Nam-jun. The way this man expresses his yearning for Seo-ri!
*Also kudos to Lim Ji-yeon for making her character Shin Seo-ri come to life in such a convincing way. Her mannered speech is at times really funny. The show has a lot of humour, especially in the early episodes, and overall I enjoyed the humour but the airplane scene was over the top. I love Seo-ri's feistiness, honesty and directness, and also her wardrobe. Incidentally, I like Lim Ji-yeon's looks less when she's smiling or laughing, and more when she looks sad. She truly convinces in these sad scenes. (My younger sister says Lim Ji-yeon has done plastic surgery. I hadn't even recognised it as such but maybe a nose job?)
*I love Cha Se-gye's right-hand man, Mr. Son, he's trustworthy and just very likeable. I like the interactions between him and Se-gye and how Se-gye confides in Mr. Son. I didn't like Cha Dal-su, Se-gye's grandfather, the Chairman of Chail Group (not too fond of the actor either), and the two daughters of the Chairman were seriously annoying. Initially, I thought the role of Mo Tae-hee, the daughter of Mo Chang Group and Se-gye's blind date, was superfluous. It was clear she didn't stand a chance of conquering a place in Se-gye's heart, so pursuing Se-gye was useless. She could have turned vindictive, though, so it's a credit to her character that she took her loss and instead partnered up with Se-gye in business. I liked Baek Gwang-nam, Seo-ri's next-door neighbour and road manager (I also like the actor Kim Min-seok). He is coupled with Yoon Ji-hyo, the actress who shares a past with Seo-ri. She's not very likeable for the most part of the series but I liked her together with Baek Gwang-nam, and although their relationship never gets confirmed officially, they seem to get a hopeful future together.
*The twist, where it is revealed that the fake Shin Seo-ri is the real Shin Seo-ri after all and not the Joseon character Kang Dan-shim, was huge and a big surprise. As a girl, Seo-ri is traumatised after the family suicide attempt of her parents where only she survives, and she transmigrates to Joseon, into the body of Kang Dan-shim. When she gets poisoned as Kang Dan-shim, she transmigrates back into her own body of Seo-ri and travels to the 21st century. Since memories are tied to the soul, and the 'fake' Seo-ri slowly recalls the memories of the real Seo-ri, she cannot be a fake. I thought it was a clever plot element.
*I love Seo-ri's grandma and the actress Kim Hae-sook who portrays her (seen her recently as Park Eun-bin's grandma in The WONDERfools). Episode 13 made me cry when grandma passes away and Seo-ri imagines them in a beautiful dream with grandma driving the bus to the beach.
*I was worried that the writers might ruin the last two episodes. Up till then, I loved the show. I knew the happy ending for our OTP was going to be a sure thing (K-drama can surprise with killing off key characters, but I was confident it wasn't going to happen here), yet I wasn't sure about a satisfying wrap-up of the plot elements. But I needn't have worried. It was a bit too convenient, though, that Seo-ri gets one more chance to choose where she wants to end up. In order to save Se-gye's life, she had to go back to Joseon and save Cheongheon's life, with no possibility of going back to the 21st century. So how was this possible then? But no complaints here. It was clear there was no way she was going to stay in Joseon.
*I was waiting for a proper conclusion with the villain, Jang Seung-jo as Choi Mun-do and his Joseon counterpart Anjong, King of Joseon. It came in the prison scene where Seo-ri points out to Mun-do that he blew his only chance. She of course knows about his wicked days in the Joseon timeline, and he could have turned things around in the present and get a second chance. He could have chosen the right path in order to be a good father to his son. But he chose otherwise and now he has to pay for it. He understands what Seo-ri is saying, without her mentioning his son, and it's kind of sad seeing him realise that his biggest punishment is not the prison itself but not being able to see his son grow up. I have to say that I would have liked more backstory for Mun-do and to see him being aware of his past counterpart, like Se-gye was aware of Cheongheon.
*I love the OTP as their Joseon characters and their romance, and was glad that the final episode showed them alive and together. Even though it made me wonder how that was possible.
*In the end, it doesn't matter whether the plot has holes and inconsistencies, as I'm sure it doesn't all add up. It's the romance that counts and overshadows everything else. Such a strong and convincing love, and it's great to see both Seo-ri and Se-gye confident in their feelings for each other. This drama can already claim to have the greatest romance of this K-drama year 2026!!! And with this swoony male lead, there are heart-flutters galore! Hope to see Heo Nam-jun in a lot more romantic leads from now on.
*Love the OST!!! Favourite song: Everyday Miracle by Seo Ja-yeong; second-fave: Losing My Heart by Gwyn Dorado.
*"Screw this damn world, and let your heart flutter with me." — Cha Se-gye, episode 8.
(Collage made by me.)