#alchemy of souls : light and shadow

[wolha]

ALCHEMY OF SOULS: LIGHT AND SHADOW 환혼 : 빛과 그림자 2022—2023, dir. Park Joon-Hwa, Bae Hyun-Jin

[krystaljungs]

Wait there, I will go to you soon. I finally got to see you. I'm glad.

ALCHEMY OF SOULS 환혼 (2022) — 1.10 | 2.01 dir. Park Joon Hwa and Bae Hyun Jin

[candlewinds]

- Come to think of it, you have four names. You were born as Cho Yeong, but you grew up as the assassin Naksu. Then you lived as Mu Deok, and now you are Jin Bu Yeon. [...] Which name shall I call you by? - The name that my parents gave me when I was born. I would like to be called Cho Yeong.

JUNG SO MIN and GO YOON JUNG in Alchemy of Souls (2022-2023)

[gossamerorigins]

I too could produce a six hour sound file on the topic of “why do I like alchemy of souls so much.”

[huevokinder24]

I really can't get over this quote here because it is probably true (at least in S1). Hear me out:

Uk loved Naksu to death, quite literally. The last thing he did after she stabbed him was to sink her sword deeper into his chest so he could embrace her and protect her from the other mages with his own body. Then reached for her hand in a secret "I love you" gesture because he couldn't even talk anymore.

Naksu was the first person who ever saw him for himself, and he would burn the world for her.

But for Naksu Uk was everything even if she never explicitly said it.

He was also the first and only person to see her for herself. He was her safe place in a world that hated, hunted and hurt her. She had to rely on herself ever since she was a kid, had to be strong, the strongest, since no weakness was allowed. She was isolated, living in the middle of nowhere in dire conditions.

And then Uk came along and offered her a house where people took care of her. HE took care of her, protected her, showed her she could rely on him. And all of a sudden she was no longer alone, she didn't have to fend for herself, she didn't have to be strong, she no longer was just an assassin. She was just her, someone worthy of love, someone who deserved to be taken care of, someone who could be weak.

He destroyed the walls she'd built and gave her a safe space where she could let go instead of living in survival mode.

He showered her with love when all she'd ever known was violence.

For most of her life, her sense of identity revolved around her power. She was the most powerful mage in all of Daeho. And he was the person she gave up all of that for. She gave up everything for him and she didn't care.

He was her haven in a world that killed her twice and then killed her a third time.

[arishatistic]

The two sides of Naksu

[naksushadows]

Thinking about Cho Yeong's journey in Alchemy of Souls is a bittersweet feeling.

I like fantasy stories in general because they give me this feeling that after a long journey, nothing is the same again. But the wounds along the way are there and at some point the characters will have to deal with them.

And I like to see that although part of the audience doesn't recognize it, Yeong is a character who has been dehumanized so many times in life, and that finding someone to be her safe haven, showing her weaknesses, selfishness and anger is what makes her more human.(she was made for us girls).

She didn't stop being strong just because she chose to follow another path, a path that wasn't imposed by perversity and trauma.

Now she is free to finally live as she wants, without manipulation. The sweet girl, the assassin, the master, the servant, the lady of a traditional family, the priestess are all part of the character's totality.

I love this character in all her entirety ♡

[crookedfandomquill]

All the folks complaining that we didn’t get “badass Naksu” back really are showing that the only way they think a female character can be strong is if she kicks ass. Was Naksu awesome? Of course. But she was also the version of Cho Yeong that was abused, neglected, forced into becoming magically and physically powerful as a tool for Jin Mu. In the end, Cho Yeong made her own choice to reclaim her birth name, stick with the divine powers she received from Bu Yeon, and be happy and free alongside the person she loves. Also, would you want to go back to using the magic and the sword that you were forced to kill your lover with?! Yeong and Uk both spend the whole story chasing freedom, and they both got it in the end. They are both powerful, both free of others’ control, both happy with each other. I don’t see how that isn’t an ideal ending.

[drunkonluv]

Alchemy of souls

[captnswilson]

Uk and Naksu didn't recognize each other and yet they somehow got engaged a few days after their first meeting. Peak soulmates behaviour.

[my-drama-heart2406]

Jang Uk being jealous and angry because his wife is still in love with some guy after 3 yrs is the epitome of hypocrisy. Like dude, what were you doing till 2 days ago... 😂😭😅🤣

[unpeeel]

Alchemy of Souls: Light and Shadow (2022)

[tansu-bomb]

Crown Prince is a very grey, very interesting character but what he felt for MuDeok ain’t “love”. It was a weird combination of friendship + respect + possessiveness + competiton coz she is Uk’s woman + mild-attraction. He really wouldn’t have paid her much attention if she wasn’t with Uk.

To him it was more about “why do you love/choose/root for Uk so much?” than “why don’t you love/choose me?”.

[candlewinds]

- Why are you helping me? Why the change of heart? - Because we are guilty of the same crime. I am also guilty of existing when I should not.

ALCHEMY OF SOULS: LIGHT AND SHADOW (2022)

[gossamerorigins]

Light and dark mode Cho Yeong

[huevokinder24]

Jane Austen wishes she had written this