"Deep Rooted Tree" is a 2011 South Korean TV series, starring Jang Hyuk, Shin Se-kyung, and Han Suk-kyu. Based on Lee Jeong-myeong's novel, it aired on SBS from October 5 to December 22, 2011, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 9:55 PM, spanning 24 episodes. The series, named after a line from Yongbieocheonga, follows a royal guard as he investigates the serial murders of Jiphyeonjeon scholars in Gyeongbok Palace, set against the backdrop of King Sejong's efforts to create the Korean written language.
Unfortunately, Jang Hyuk playing the same character he played in The Slave Hunters (2010) and that alone was problematic in that one. Unlike The Slave Hunters (2010), this one had a lot of interesting ideas and plot threads but they never reached their full potentials because it came at the cost of shoving flashy fantasy elements instead of keeping it grounded to reality, a case in point super-swordsmen flying and dashing. On the other hand, the "deep roots" plot was a massive clusterfuck of bullshit and was its weakest part. Not only that, the final battle/fight that we were anticipating for so long turned out to be quick, short and utterly disappointing. The ending isn't even surprising, it was obvious from the first episode that the ending will certainly flop. Add to the fact this type of ending was the dominant trend in 2000s/2010s, especially with project that managed to have a good viewership.
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