Do you want a short drama that keeps you on your toes the whole time? What if I told you that it had a strong female character and a trinity of hot guys vying for her attention? Ok, you are now prepped and ready to watch The Ghost Bride. Come see what we thought of it!

Synopsis:

Set in 1890, a young woman was forced to marry a dead man as a ghost bride in exchange to have her family’s financial debt forgiven. Her attempt to escape the obligation was complicated by her discovery of a conspiracy that was much bigger and more mysterious than she ever thought she would be in. –MyDramaList

Our Fearless Heroine

Li Lan is the beloved daughter of the Pan family. She’s headstrong and capable and willing to take on any obstacle presented to her, including investigating mysteries — supernatural or mundane.

Karie the Maknae: Li Lan was my favorite kind of strong female character — she carved out her own path in the traditional society she lived in. She never cowered and never backed down from a challenge. I was rooting for her from beginning to end.

Arranged Marriage

Now if you have watched enough dramas, you’ve seen this ghost bride situation before. The family doesn’t want their child to be alone, so they seek out a bride (or groom). How does Li Lan get into this situation? Her father has acquired significant debt and his business isn’t doing well. The matriarch of the Lim family offers a solution. She will pay off the family’s debts if Li Lan will become the ghost bride for Tian Ching, the eldest son.

Karie the Maknae: In the beginning, I was hoping that Tian Ching was misunderstood and that somehow Li Lan would be able to have a good, but weird, marriage with him. Yeah, not so much.

Tangled Relationships

The twist here is that Li Lan is already in love with one of the sons of the family. She’s always had googly eyes for Tian Bai, the new heir. So when they say they want her to marry into the family, it sounds fantastic, well, until she finds out it’s not the man she really likes. The eldest son, Tian Ching died from poison, and no one but his mama really misses him. While she ponders if she should accept or not, she discovers that Tian Bai is already engaged to a super sweet girl who really likes him.

Karie the Maknae: Tian Bai was such a good guy. I liked that he was from a wealthy family but treated everyone with respect. He was definitely Tian Ching’s opposite in just about every way.

Heavenly Help

Meet Hottie Number 3, the Heavenly Guardian Er Lang. He’s funny, he’s hot, he’s got superpowers! As Li Lan tries to save her father and her own fate, Er Lang is the supportive force behind her. It’s very easy to fall in love with his character.

Karie the Maknae: Er Lang was SO MUCH FUN to watch! He hit all the points I like — cocky but with the skills to back it up, open to growing (with some grumbling thrown in), and funny. Honestly, there was a little bit of Han Solo in his character, but he had a stronger moral fiber, which made him really enjoyable.

Visually Stunning

The cinematography for this drama is amazing. We go from lush palatial homes to what feels like the pit of Hell. The costumes are also amazing. Since the setting is right around the turn of the century, we have a mix of modern and traditional clothing.

Karie the Maknae: The details in this drama were AMAZING. The costuming, the sets, the lighting — NOTHING was neglected. The Ghost Bride had a good budget and made good use of it.

Would We Recommend This Drama?

I would say yes. It was only 6 episodes, and it’s on Netflix, so they may have a season two. Even though it wasn’t very long and some of the storylines weren’t fully addressed, I enjoyed this drama.

Karie the Maknae: I absolutely recommend it. It’s horror lite, so keep that in mind if you’re watching with small children. The characters are strong and loyal and delightful. There were some foreshortened storylines, but overall, it was very much worth the watch.

Until the next time,

Clkytta & Karie the Maknae

Dramas with a Side of Kimchi