First, I'll say I'm not a big fan of historical dramas. Though the costuming is beautiful, I sometimes find it distracting. So many of the men look alike, between the hats and the facial man-pubes, just not attractive. Then there's always the typical palace intrigue -the same plot line dropped into every historical drama. It's superficial, I know, but there it is.

This is a difficult review for me to write, because my likes and dislikes seem to be so intertwined, but I'll do my best.

LIKES:
-Ahn Chang Hwan as Poong's servant/companion/champion/friend - This was a wonderful character. Used mostly for comedy relief, my interest was piqued each time he was on the screen.
-Some beautiful filming - especially the women's festival with the fireworks and the swing. It was used as a hook toward the very beginning, and I kept hoping for more. I had to be satisfied with the beautiful landscaping.
-Kim Min Jae as Poong and Kim Hyang Gi as Seo Eun Woo. They were marvelous together. There was mutual respect there.
-The people of the medical community/village - found family. The bonding between the characters, how they had each other's backs, how they talked through crimes together. A lot of comedy, but the love shone through.
-The music was used effectively.
-Solving multiple cases. I liked how it wasn't JUST palace intrigue, but they solved a new case every couple of episodes.
-I liked that the main characters called each other by name (she may not have, I can't remember), but he did. I realize it's a cultural thing, but it always bothers me when two characters get romantically involved and she still calls him Mr./Director, etc.

COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER:
-I am NOT liking this trend of having multiple seasons. It makes the show seem draggy in a lot of ways, because they need to milk it for all it's worth just to continue in a new season.
-Hated the ending. Again, I know there's another season, but it was so lackluster.
-The show felt uneven to me. There were so many lighthearted moments, but then in the last three or four episodes it turned to full-on melodrama. I don't like melodrama, but that's just me. I fast forwarded though a lot of the last few episodes.
-Romance is listed way down on the tags, as it should be, but scenes that you see advertising the show focus on the romance, like they are trying to sell it as a romance. So, as a romance lover, I was disappointed in the storyline. I couldn't even call this a slow burn romance. Not only did romance take a backseat to all the intrigues, it wasn't even in the car!
-So many evil characters, and the main bad guy was so over-the-top he seemed like a caricature of a bad guy. I kept expecting him to twirl his moustache like cartoon bad guys do.
-An awful lot of abuse by parents to children. This is hard for me to watch.
-The name of this drama really bothered me for some reason. This was more like a CSI-type show. They did mention underlying reasons for what was going on with people (anger, despair, etc.), but then moved back into the acupuncture jargon.
-Overacting by the granny. I realize she was supposed to have dementia, but her constant yelling and dancing was very distracting.
-So, basically by working with Poong for a week or so, Eun Woo was a doctor?!?! I know that the standards were different back then, but sheesh!

So, I'd say give it a try, especially if you are a historical drama fan. It did have a lot going for it, but it definitely didn't leave me feeling satisfied, especially knowing now I have to watch the new season, just to see what happens.