It's so very different. The MC is not deluded, he's very aware of his position, more than that, he can understand everyone else's and his feelings too, he's not your stupid bullied kid falling for his bully because he's naive and dumb, what he enjoys is the person itself, not the person in relation to him, and I can understand that kind of feeling. Because the king is selfish and powerful and beautiful and truly mesmerizing, is someone you want to watch, someone whose life you wanna be part of. Oh, this is very very good. I like it better than the drama. The use of blank space here creates a solem atmosphere, the exaggerated actions from the MC towards the prince feels more centered while also they feel more believable. Also the progress in Kiyoi's reactions towards the MC is way clearer here. Finally, the clean cuts of the shadowing also helps in creating the right atmosphere. I guess the series should've been filmed more like a cult movie than a common drama, the artistic pace of the Manga doesn't translate very well to the screen both because of scenery, acting and directing. That being said, the series is still good, so you can see I hold this version with high value
Utsukushii Kare