Goblins aren't Pretty

I recently finished Guardian: the Lonely & Great God (which I rate as a very solid 9 or maybe a bit more). I want to mention two translation issues. The first is the word Goblin; they use it in the subtitles, and in English it has a negative connotation. Interestingly the title "Guardian..." is a better fit for English speakers. Guardian implies someone who watches out for you; Goblin implies a bad person. Per a Korean Gmama follower, a goblin in Korea is a 'humane and humorous character that changes his appearance and helps people.'  This Kdrama is also known as Goblin: the Lonely and Great God which adds to the confusion. Go with Guardian.

The second one is simply a bad translation. Throughout the series it talks about getting the leading man to be 'pretty.' Luckily, yours truly follows a guy on Instagram (Kenjikendesu) who recently talked about the use of the word 'pretty.' In English it applies only to physical appearance.... and the show isn't talking about that. Instead a better translation would be the word 'perfect.' If the leading man did 'xyz' he would be PERFECT; not pretty. Definitely keep this in mind when you watch this show as it will make a lot more sense to you! (Don't you learn great stuff from the Gmamas?) ~ Judy

Pat here. I also just finished Guardian: The Lonely and Great God. I’d give it a solid 10, and I agree with Judy about both the use of the word goblin and the awkward translation of several words including pretty, knave, and wench. Words matter, don’t they? (As one of my relatives says, ‘Say what you mean, and mean what you say’.) It would help for English speakers if the words used in translation didn't cause so much head scratching.

Last word on this. Goblins aren’t pretty, but Gong Yoo sure is!

Kim Go-eun and Gong-yoo from Guardian: the Lonely and Great God. They're both fabulous!