Please post your first impressions, spoilers, criticisms, analyses, rants and raves for Episodes 1 and 2 here.
Also, if you’re a lurker and want to join, there’s a list of banned words for newcomers you should know. The King: Banned Words for BoD’s Newbies 3/12/20
While waiting for the episode to be uploaded on Netflix, please enjoy yourselves at the Launch Party.
artwork credit: @Phoenix
Schedule of Fun Activities
8 am. Surfing lessons taught by Lee MinHo/Kim Tan and Woo Do Hwan at Shirtless Bay
Venue: Shirtless Bay
11 am. Lunch with Chef Lee MinHo/Go Joon Pyo
Venue: Blue Pavilion, Forest of the Lurking Fan-Ahjummas
2 pm. Back hug special activities. There’s a choice of three activities designed to give you a back-hug moment.
• Zip-lining adventure with your special date
Venue: Entrance of Forest of Sarcasm
You get a free heckle, courtesy of packmule3, at the end of the line.
• Fan-sign event with free hugs, hosted by Lee MinHo/Heo Joon Jae
Venue: Diamond Gazebo, Waterfall of Shallowness
• Horseback riding lessons with Lee MinHo/Lee Gon on his white horse
Venue: Equestrian Center behind the Bitter Regrets Bar
You get a free drink after lesson. You must be 21 years old or older to drink alcohol.
Alcoholic:
Besame, Lee MinHo (tequila)
Tall, Dark and Dirty (martini)
Naked Margarita (margarita, lol)
Non-alcoholic:
Eye Candy (tastes like butterscotch)
Imperial Tuxedo (club soda)
Liquid Lust (apple juice with mint)
Steamy Desire (passion fruit juice, pineapple juice and orange juice)
4 pm. Lazy boat ride around the islands with Lee MinHo/General Choi.
Meeting place: Dock at Eye Candy Bay
6 pm. Luau with special guest, Lee Min Ho/Lee Gon and Woo Do Hwan
Venue: Eternal Monarch Bridge
7:30 pm. Water Lantern to pray for a HAPPY ENDING for the OTP
Venue: Bay of Bitchiness
Our lanterns are made of rice-paper and wood. They’re eco-friendly. A team will collect remnants afterwards.
8 pm. Fireworks
Venue: Bay of Bitchiness
Free doomsday palm-reading from packmule3 while waiting for the fireworks to begin.
9 pm. Massage under the stars with Lee MinHo/Jeon Jin Ho and Woo Do Hwan. By appointment only
Venue: Secluded Cabanas, His Hotness Bay
A pink force field will enclose the islands, so viruses won’t infect the islanders. But as a safety precaution, anti-Coronavirus magic pill will be distributed at the ports of entry to allow islanders to interact for 16 weeks without fear of catching the disease.
If you have any questions, please contact @Phoenix or @agdr03.
Have fun!
credit: jsutaphase’s tumblr
Have fun everyone! I will join on Sunday.
Can’t wait to get started! Those floating lanterns are amazing @packmule3🤩🤩
I’m praying for a happy ending dor our OTP too..maybe the writer will take a different route this time!.🖖🤞🤞
Hear! Hear! To a happy ending for this series! 🙌🏻😉
I’ll watch it tomorrow! Enjoy to those who gets to watch it early. ☺️
See you tomorrow Yoda and WDH! 🥰
LMH may have aged like fine wine, but the tropes like randomly hugging women certainly have. It felt so cringey. Dude, I get it. She saved your life and then disappeared. So when you meet her again after soooo many years, wouldn’t you rather ask her questions instead of just hugging and scaring the life out of her. What…what made you think that she wanted to be hugged in any sort of way? The way she took out her id card? The way she firmly asked you who the hell you where? I can’t 🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
And can someone address the fact that the episode just lagged like hell. Develop on the storyline. I get how you want ratings and therefore will gladly display LMH being King-ly for all the thirsty fan girls. But where is the villain now? Why is LMH trying to find KGE now? Atleast drop some hints in the first episode for the viewers to be intrigued to watch the next episodes. Today’s episode was 10% storyline and 90% ‘meet your old favourites repackaged and swoon over them”
While the storyline lacked impact, the landscape and backdrop didn’t. In fact, it looked so appealing.(Especially that scene where lil prince was being coronated and the camera just descended to the ground was so beautiful, hats off to the camera crew and cgi crew).
Side note: I know this part was for comic relief, but if any of my “chic city friends” did that shitty of color blocking outfits, I’d rather shoot them with WDH’s gun.
Tbh the first episode felt like work to watch. This show has no sense of humor. We know who the bad guy is. So it’s not moving my ass to the edge of my seat. I’m hoping it gets better tomorrow.
I like LMHs acting and like him generally. He is playing a more serious character in this drama. Less smart ass and wise cracks than usual. Good enough so far.
I adore Kim Go Eun (one of the best actresses ever – and who on earth said she wasn’t pretty?? She is very attractive. And she has really good comic timing). The characters she is playing in this drama seems to be going to demand a lot from her.
Having watched episode 1 I have a feeling that this drama will not be breaking new ground. I have a sense that I’ve seen it before. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing because I like that kind of drama. I’m off to read Alice in wonderland now because that obvs had an influence on the storyline.
😈 Okay, I guess I don’t need to wear a big “Welcome” sign for you. I can easily tell you’re one of my neighbors on 🌴 Cynical Island. 🌴
Aloha!
Or if you want to speak in the Aruban language, Bom bini!
Doesn’t it feel like “Goblin” to you? I just finished the intro, and I thought the flute had that darn-sword-is-stuck-in-my-ribs feel to it.
It’s interesting how the writer approached this. She tells us right away that there’s a curse on Lee Gon in the form of ambition, in the shape of his uncle, in the manner of death.
Let’s see how he gets out of this curse.
In “Goblin,” his bride had to pull the plug…err… the sword.
In the Eternal Monarch, what? Do you know already what TaEul (that’s Kim GoEun’s name?) has to do?
@packmule3 I don’t think it’s limited to the flute. They seem to be focusing on the sword too. Plus it’s inscribed🤷🏻♀️
I’m pretty sure there’s gonna be a scene very similar to the terrace scene in Goblin where Kim Shin dissolves into dust, but instead of KGE it’s gonna be LMH who’s the one crying.
Also, reflecting back on today’s episode don’t you feel the little prince aka Little LMH was particularly dumb. I mean you’re going to a room where your dad is dead, his guards are killed and you’re demanding his father’s murderers to arrest the uncle. I-🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️ I know it’s to emphasize that the boy’s brave but omg that was absolutely stupid. Someone please go back in time and teach the kid commonsense.
I dont have anything to say yet lol. Too early to judge..
I love to watch everything about lmh, no matter what.. he is just insanely handsome and always look chic and stylish in his dramas..
but honestly.. in deepest of my heart i have big expectation for WDH😂 esp i just finish tempted last month..and i love it..
All i know, wdh has secret admirer in here..
Lmh searching for KGE.. and KGE quiet funny police officer..
And last.. the second girl here just got another scandal right bfr the king release.. like wth.. can her ex From 10year ago, who obviously got dumped by her shut his mouth 🤣
Its quiet distrub me 🤐
*esp i have big expectation for second couple in all kes dramas
*drinking copious quantities of all alcoholic beverages available at the islands after being very late to the launch party*
I second @cloud
The television industry needs to stop propagating the idea that women are okay with being hugged/kissed without consent by strange men they don’t know/remember. It’s creepy. For me it really lowers the desirability quotient of the said man.
@Cloud a scene where the heroine is given enough importance to disappear and make the great monarch grieve would be a welcome change from the usual.
When watching pay attention to dates. In the opening scene, the interrogation of the uncle, he says he will be 70 “this year”. He was born in 1951 so that’s 2021..the future. Go-eun’s badge issued on 11/11/2019 yet Lmh is looking at it on 10/9/2019. The badge GoEun is wearing in the final scene has a different picture (hair down) than the one LMH has been minding since 1994. So it’s a bit “twelve monkeys”ish in that his past is her future. Time loops. Fun.
How did he get the portal to open without the flute? Did the uncles blood fuse with it and somehow flow into the little prince giving him some of its power?
I didn’t mind Lmh hugging go eun at the end. It was only a hug and she has amazing self defense skills if she’d chosen to use them. Unnecessary though (the hug was not needed to complete the scene) imho. But I don’t object.
😂 looks like we’re in fine form here ladies. Will join you later. The trek up Manly Peaks took a while and I stayed there contemplating life for a bit.
My khot takes:
Do you feel the kromance b/n Lee Gon and Jo Young? I felt like they had a lot of kemistry. This is my first series watching Lee Min-Ho and I would kove to call him koppa any day.
I enjoyed the opening scene where they were on their way to retrieve the flute. I found the scene to be an kexplosive kepic kisual and the kinematography was really good.
Koo Seo-Ryeong klay’d in that red dress. I found it interesting when she told Lee Gon she was interested in horse riding. Lee Gon’s response was “If you train honestly every time, your horse will take you to the edge of the world … Prime Minister, are you honest?” Sounds like the PM is probably dirty. Funny thing is that horse does take him to the edge of the world.
My first keargasm was the song at the end of the first episode.
I am enjoying it so far.
Haha, @John, I was anticipating that the PM’s mention of horse riding was an innuendo, and perhaps Lee Gon would go with it, but no. It seems that he has no interest in producing an heir but is willing to pose in a way that suggests closeness with the PM. Just to keep his subjects hoping?
I agree with @cloud that the camera work is very appealing.
I hate the hug. This writer loves these non consenting “wrist grab, hug grab” scenes which I absolutely detest. Trust me you will see enough wrist grabs soon. It also doesn’t make sense with the character, i mean isn’t he supposed to hate people touching him? But he had normal physical contact with his row boats buddies and is now forcing a hug *face palm* I get loop holes but it isn’t boding well if I can spot one so early in a drama
I have a love hate relationships with her dramas and this pilot episode remains with her signature. Dramatic scenes like white horse in busy Seoul *check, I like Lee min Ho as I have said before, have a soft spot for him. But as of ep1 he is just doing his usual thing. Looking good 11/10, acting breakthrough 1/10. 1 for being great on the horse riding, it must have taken some practice. It’s still ep1 so I’m hopeful as he has it , just we need to know if he is phoning in again or are we getting the entire package. Looks and acting chops.
Kim Go Eun character looks interesting. And I’m liking her sidekick cop, he’s awfully familiar, where have we seen this guy?
What I don’t like: villain reveal is too transparent, too much too fast. I get he is cruel and really bad. But if we know so much so quick, where’s the fun? Or is there more that meets The Eye (I hope so. Otherwise one dimensional villains bore the hell out of me)
Overall pilot nothing groundbreaking, a little underwhelming if you ask me. But it usually takes me up to ep3-4 to really feel the flutters for a drama that I love so we have time.
I guess at the moment, I’m on Cynical Island, but I have high powered binoculars. Didn’t the director really drag out the reveal of LMH’s face? (Scoff.)
Ref, the hug – I’m surprised that she didn’t pull an Ik Sun move. I’ll keep watching for now. Because of the lush scenery and all.
@Smarie
The uncle’s Korean age would make it the year 2020.
Lee Gon has half of the flute (probably his riding crop).
The flute’s full powers won’t be realized until the two halves come together.
I saw what kyou did there, Kjohn. 😈🤦♀️
I was intrigued by the giver of the gift of the flute, since the giver of something so powerful would likely be more powerful than the gift. The Dragon King of the East Sea is a deity in Chinese folklore. One of four Dragon Kings, the other three being South, West, and North, he is the most powerful of the four. The Dragon King of the East Sea (East China Sea) is associated with the color azure (blue-green) and spring. His name is Ao Guang (or Ao Kuang). He brought chaos to the world–droughts, storms, and other disasters–and amassed many treasures when mortals would present offerings to try and placate him. So it is interesting that TK:EM starts with the Dragon King of the East Sea being the giver–rather than receiver–of a gift which allows whoever uses it to reverse the mayhem Ao Guang, himself, is creating: a divinity override, if you will.
The gift is of humble material: bamboo, which is commonly available, rather than precious metals or jewels. The value of the gift lies in its use rather than the object itself. When it is played, the power of the bamboo flute is activated, and:
-Enemies would retreat
-Diseases would be cured
-Rain would fall during drought
-The rainy season would end
-The wind would stop
-And strong waves would subside
Another effect of the flute was discovered by Evil Prince Lee Lim: being in possession of a portion of the flute slowed time for him, keeping him from aging. Being in possession of the other portion of the flute does not appear to have the same effect on Lee Gon, who has grown from a child to a man at a normal pace.
We don’t yet know if the powers of the flute are involved in the appearance of the portal in the bamboo forest. Both Evil Prince and Lee Gon hear music being played by a flute, then thunder, before the portal appears. Neither of them took a specific action using their parts of the magic flute; we don’t even know if Lee Gon was carrying his part of the flute while riding his horse in the bamboo forest.
It may be significant that Lee Gon is the one who sliced the flute in half with the Four Tiger Sword. As a small child he could barely lift the sword, yet he was able to wield it to hurt his murderous uncle in the worst possible way short of killing Evil Prince, by destroying or damaging what motivated Uncle to become a traitor. The sword cut through the bamboo flute and sliced Evil Prince’s hand (already bloody from stabbing the king); half of the flute stayed in Evil Prince’s hand and the other half fell to the ground. Evil Prince picked it up before trying to strangle the Crown Prince. One of the pieces of the flute, now with a sharpened end where the sword had sliced it, cut Lee Gon’s neck as he was being strangled. The cut wasn’t deep enough to reach the jugular vein, and Lee Gon’s savior intervened before the strangulation became fatal, so Lee Gon survived. Lee Gon recovered, but was left with a scar on his neck: marked for life by the flute.
I believe Evil Prince left the palace, escaped to the bamboo forest, and journeyed through the portal without knowing the Crown Prince had survived, since Lee Gon had fallen unconscious during the strangulation. Evil Prince was distracted by the first gunshot of the mystery savior, then went down during the gun battle, dropping one piece of the bamboo flute. Once he was back on his feet, he looked around for it, but I don’t think he realized Lee Gon had regained consciousness (barely), reached out, and picked up the other half of the flute.
Lee Gon has the half of the flute with the finger holes, recognizable because it ends with a widening of the bamboo; Evil Prince must have the half with the mouthpiece. We must wait and learn how being sliced in half damaged the flute’s power, as it reportedly needs to be played to repel enemies and mitigate environmental disasters. Does Lee Gon being marked by the magic bamboo flute, the scar on his neck almost to his throat, give him some power as a voice of the flute? Can the flute itself be repaired if the two halves are reunited? Will the change in resonance after being divided, then joined together with another substance, change the operation of the magic? It is apparent there is still some kind of power in even half of the flute if it is keeping Evil Prince from aging. However, it looks like the time-slowing effect stops when Lee Gon arrives in the same world as Evil Prince.
I am intrigued by one difference between the two parallel worlds. The seat of national government in the Republic of Korea is in Seoul, in the northwest corner of South Korea, inland. The seat of government in the Kingdom of Corea is in Busan, on the southeast coast, by the East Sea. (Remember, the giver of the magic bamboo flute was the Dragon King of the East Sea.) The scenes showing the Kingdom of Corea palace grounds have the Gwangandaegyo Bridge in the background, confirming it as Busan. When Evil Prince and Lee Gon travel through the portal, which is in a bamboo forest near Busan, they end up in Seoul. Despite the two cities being in different locations, they encounter people in Seoul ROK who are parallel to people in Busan KOC. So there must be something other than geography that makes parallel Seoul ROK and Busan KOC.
For future reference, I think I should document the translation of the hanja engraving on one side of the blade of the Four Tiger Sword. “The sky and the ground help the earth balance. Defeat the bad and make things just.” The other side of the blade had engraving that almost looks like star constellation maps.
I suspect Evil Prince earned seriously bad mojo not only by committing regicide and fratricide, but by striking the killing blow with a sword that advocates justice.
I think I may have answered my own question about how Busan KOC and Seoul ROK relate in the parallel worlds. If you look upside down at a map of South Korea, they change positions (if you include the greater metropolitan area of Seoul). The two worlds are shown as upside down of each other in the drama’s opening theme imagery.
Hello ladies! I just arrived with my date at the Snarky Lake. We are still contemplating whether to take a dip before going to the bar. He’s a bit cranky today, doesn’t wanna wet his new kimono and probably more willing to slice some flesh 🤣🤣🤣
@welmaris Bravo. I am hugely tempted to just read your take on the drama and not even watch it. So vivid is your description complete with relevant background info to tease it out even more. My date Mo TaeGoo was not particularly enthused about @John’s comment (he’s a tad sensitive like that – couldn’t see the humor in it). I had to convince him to get rid of that murderous glint in his eye and cool off in Shirtless Bay. You’re welcome ladies. 😂
Howdy ladies and gents/warriors/serial killer? 😂
I just finished watching and I’ll need to do a rewatch to understand a few things like did Evil Uncle send his disabled carbon copy body to KOC? Just so they think he’s dead there?
Anyway, did it grab me? Yeah in a way, not overly though. I don’t know but there’s nothing exciting so far. I love the scenery yes. I love Halmoni from Goong. ☺️ I have to side with the ‘what’s with the hug’ bit.
My eye candy was WDH. I want more of him.
I thought the Royal Guards were more harder to kill than was was shown. I mean, they heard a gun shot then one by one they just died? The saviour during that scene looked like City Hunter LMH. 😂 But it’s supposed to be KGE’s character.
I think I’ve had enough of Manly Peaks, I’m going now to Bitter Regrets Bar with Yoda. He said to me ‘is that it?. 😂
“ I think I’ve had enough of Manly Peaks, I’m going now to Bitter Regrets Bar with Yoda. He said to me ‘is that it?. 😂”
Perfect I will join you in a tick! Master Yoda can entertain us by levitating random things sunken in Snarky Lake. You never know, there could an x-wing fighter lurking in those depths. Party tricks. And you and I can figure out which of us has the Force. Yoda can also do mind control on my date Mo TaeGoo, along with his quip, “away put your weapon, for I mean you no harm”.
Looks like everyone enjoyed the launch party here🎉🎉 ..I’ve just finished reading all the comments here 🤩 I was too distracted by the dates everyone brought (and having a ‘lessons on life’ session with Yoda) on Shallow Island to actually catch the premiere. Might have had a tad too many shots of that awesome Besame, Lee MinHo of which there was an endless supply of (thanks to @packmule3)😛. All set to watch the episode today🤞🤞
After a recheck, I realize I made a mistake about who has which half of the magic bamboo flute. Evil Prince Lee Lim arrives at what looks like a sea salt farm to meet one of his co-conspirators, and he’s carrying an umbrella that has his half of the flute as the handle. It is the bottom part of the flute where the end is wider and has a simple carved decoration. The part Lee Gon has must be the top half with the mouthpiece. @Scout may be correct in Lee Gon having turned his half of the flute into his riding crop, because he looked at his riding crop before entering the portal.
A few observations about the Kingdom of Corea: it doesn’t seem to be a long-lived dynasty. Lee Gong is crowned as its third king. His murdered father would have been the second king, and the first king would have been his grandfather, who also sired traitorous uncle Lee Lim out of wedlock. The rowing team that won the competition, of which Lee Gon was a member, was the 88th class of the Navy Academy. As a point of comparison, the Republic of Korea Naval Academy, a four-year college, was founded in 1946, which is 74 years before 2020.
Another Easter egg we got from the rowing competition is the cheer the 88th Class of the Navy Academy team did to celebrate their win. They proudly proclaimed themselves the descendants of Admiral Yi Sun Sin (April 28, 1545 – December 16, 1598), who lived during the Joseon Dynasty. When Lee Gon arrives in Seoul ROK, riding Maximus into Gwanghwamun Square, his eye is caught by the statue on a tall pedestal. Even though he’s seeing it from the back, he recognizes it because it is the statue–the pose is exactly the same–that stands on the hill above the KOC Busan Main Palace. Both statues are of Admiral Yi Sun Sin.
The controversial hug: Why did Tae Eul just stand there and take it instead of using some of her martial arts skills to put Lee Gon in his place? I think it was because she was taken totally by surprise, and not by his physical demonstration of affection.
Tae Eul witnesses the odd sight of a man riding a white horse in the center of Seoul during rush hour gridlock. She decides to intervene for the public good. She confronts Lee Gon, takes her ID from her pocket and hangs it around her neck, and verbally identifies herself as a police officer. Lee Gon dismounts, strides over to her, and looks at the picture side of her ID, which says, “Police (in English), 공무원증 = Official Identification, 정태을 = Jeong Tae Eul (her name), 경찰청 = Police” The English subtitles have her ID card translation as Jeong Tae Eul, National Police Agency. Lee Gon doesn’t turn the ID over to look at the back, but stares at her.
JTE: What the hell do you think you’re doing right now?
LG: I’ve…finally met you…Lieutenant Jeong Tae Eul.
He addressed her by rank. That information wasn’t on the front of her ID card. He knew her rank from the back of the ID card he had taken from her pocket when he was a child.
“Master Yoda can entertain us by levitating random things sunken in Snarky Lake. You never know, there could an x-wing fighter lurking in those depths. Party tricks. And you and I can figure out which of us has the Force.”
Sounds Iike a lot of fun! Who has the Force? 😂
Thanks for the Easter eggs and information on KOC and ROK @Welmaris. Really appreciate it. 😊
I’m about to do a rewatch after washing the dishes.
@agdr03, I wondered the same thing, about the body that washed up on the shore, all bones broken. If it was his alternate from the RoK, how did he manage that transfer? The doctor/coroner said he would record it as suicide, but that he must have been shot by the guards. Wouldn’t there be traces of a bullet wound if that were the case? And even so, why keep it secret and cover up the cause of death?
I also agree with you that the Royal Guards were defeated too easily. Hmmm.
Hoping that you are yours are well.
Agree @Fern, why hide it when he’s a wanted Prince who killed his King brother and tried to kill his nephew. The people of KOC would like to know about his death for sure.
I think the Evil Uncle made the wife get his counter part’s body after all. We know she wanted to give the body to the government and they will cremate him. I’m not sure but it’s either that or he asked his assistant. I’m not sure the sequence whether the meeting with the assistant was first or the identifying of the dead body.
I feel there’s something more with the Elder Prince who arrived by plane.
All is ok here at my end so far. I’m praying just another month of lockdown? 🙏 Dont know. I hope all you’re lor is good too. ☺️
@agdr03, I thought the elder prince seemed to be a sympathetic character, but he must have been living abroad. Exiled? He said something about people would be watching him closely anyway, after he asked after the crown prince.
I’m confused about the bodies. Must re-watch. There was the body in the car, whom I thought was the wife’s husband possibly. Although didn’t they say he died in a car wreck and that he was involved in some illegal activities? Then there was the disabled man in the wheelchair who looked like the 2nd King. I don’t even know why the evil uncle bothered to kill him. Maybe he didn’t need a reason. Are we also assuming that the evil uncle killed the young boy or kept him alive to influence the woman? Definitely must re-watch.
I’m getting confused too @Fern. Let’s rewatch 😄 I forgot about the body in the car but then why would evil uncle be in that woman’s house?
Isn’t that boy Lee Gon’s counterpart in ROK? So many questions. I’ll watch it slowly this time. 😁
I got intrigued by the name Manpasikjeok which King Sinmun gave the bamboo flute and here’s what I found. @Welmari touched on it already.
http://folkency.nfm.go.kr/en/topic/detail/5500
“ If it was his alternate from the RoK, how did he manage that transfer? ”
Yeah that was a bit weird. I put it down to him carrying the body back through the portal, putting his clothes on him and the ring in his finger, then tossing it into the ocean? He brought one of his bodyguards (?) back with him. I am finding it hard to navigate the 2 Universes. As for why doctor/coroner (who looks suspiciously like the older prince?? Or did I get him wrong?) decided to put the death down as shot by Royal Guards as opposed to suicide, I think it was to convey semblance of control? That they have things under control, they hunted him down and took him down? Rather than him just committing suicide which would mean the lost him (it’s a face thing?).
I agree that it’s a visual feast. I am afraid my opinion of LMH remains unchanged. I don’t get how he can hug her if he “doesn’t like being touched”. He only protested when his valet got close to his neck. So no skin contact? Gonna be a problem with kissing scenes then? 😂
Pluses
– dishy WDH in matrix outfit. He can be my wingman any day. (Mo TaeGoo just snorted his protest. Thankfully Master Yoda did his mind control thing and simmered him down)
– a horse called Maximus (or Mahk-see-moose as His highness (May his name endure forever) – actually there are bits of Chinese blended in the Royal address? Do they normally go “man se, man se, man man se” to the King in Korea? They always say that in the Chinese Royal Court. Literally means 10,000 years (repeated many times). It’s a wish for longevity. Akin to Long Live the King. But as @welmaris intimated, there’s a blend of Korean/Chinese folklore and history in Corea. Maybe that’s why the “C”.
Minuses
– I am not blown away by the story. Or the characters so far.
– the relationships seem rather contrived. Not feeling it.
– did we really need a slow mo of Lee Gon running barefoot? Fan service I guess.
– PD/writer must LOVE LMH…so many close up lingering shots with him just…looking…like…LMH.
– Are we sure Alice in Wonderland is his favourite book? When he read it out loud? Once more with feeling please Lee Gon.
– the White Rabbit…hmm…no surprises there.
Definitely on Cynical Island for the moment. TaeGoo (yes we’re on first name basis) agrees wholeheartedly with me. He tells me the opening killing scenes were technically inaccurate. And he scoffed when the little boy walked in with his feet soaked in blood. The improbability of the boy wading through pools of blood as he walked into the chamber was highlighted to me. And he near nigh died laughing when the Evil Prince killed his wheelchair doppelgänger by a mere twist of his head with so little effort. Although I must say the amount of blood 🩸 on screen did make him somewhat twitchy (thanks be to Master Yoda for another calming session). I need to send him off for another dip in Snarky Lake to cool down. 😂. I hope there’s far less blood on screen in the next episode.
I’m curious about the story. How it works.
For the characters, the King just reminded me Heirs’s character but older and smarter. I hope he will show more character depth.
I think Mr Sunshine and Goblin’s first episode were better as introduction of the show.
“As for why doctor/coroner (who looks suspiciously like the older prince?? Or did I get him wrong?)”
Yes I thought it was the older prince too.
“Are we sure Alice in Wonderland is his favourite book? When he read it out loud? Once more with feeling please Lee Gon.”
I thought his laugh was so fake at that reading to children scene 😂
“the White Rabbit…hmm…no surprises there.”
But he/she was wearing black. 😂
“dishy WDH in matrix outfit”
😍😍😍
“Although I must say the amount of blood 🩸 on screen did make him somewhat twitchy”
I’m so glad I’ve brought Master Yoda 😂
Haha. Just looked up Maximus the horse. Found another in ‘Tangled’ Disney animation. Also white and feisty. Disney also made an Alice in Wonderland animation. Dear oh dear. I’m edging closer to Cynical Island.
Oh while watching the scene where evil uncle was piercing the flute on Lee Gon’s neck, he was piercing it on his left side but his scar was on his right side later on.
I wondered about the placement of that scar. Anyway moving on. 😄
Hmm hopefully we won’t have to cut Shallow Island completely off on our map 😂
On the rewatch it looks like the saviour is Lee Gon himself, he goes back to that time to save himself. He must have gotten/borrowed Tae Eul’s ID in ROK.
@agdr03, I thought that the saviour was a man when I first saw the scene. Seemed too tall to be a woman. I will have to re-watch but have spent way too much time on this this morning. Oh, it’s after noon. Bad Fern. Lol.
Sleep well.
@Welmaris thank you ! I thoroughly enjoyed reading your comments! Please continue giving such insights further on into the drama !.
I have no date at the launch party. I am locked down with a Human male (identifies himself as my lawfully wedded husband 😝) since time immemorial now. Time to party alone with girls for a bit 👯👯
Yeah he’s tall and they even showed his hands holding the gun, it didn’t look like a woman’s hand. Also you can see his eyes when younger version of him took the ID from him. You can see it clearly there.
😄 Have a nice afternoon. I’ll be off to bed after watching it. I’ve been trying to sleep earlier these days.
@agdr3 and @Fern I might be wrong, but I think the shot of side silhouette made it pretty clear that it’s a woman ?
Okay cross that. I’ll go see again 😁 maybe I’m wrong.
I want it to be a woman. What’s with this TK:EM being so great that he goes saves himself now ? And doesn’t need anyone ?
@Arihsi, look it up from 13:05 onwards, you can see Lee Gon. 😊
But if I’m wrong then just put it down to my eyeglasses being very bad. 🤪
Thank you @Scout! So I’d be a year older if I went to Korea?!
Watched opening altercation again. It was Lee Min Ho in the black mask I think. Interesting. Why was he late??? He could have saved his father…..
Did anyone catch JTE’s keen sense of smell? After sometime has passed when she backed into that car she specified “Wait, there’s a weird smell.” The trunk of the black vehicle was obviously ajar, but it was still closed and nobody could see the body. Is it possible that she is not a mere chic city girl mortal?
^^Also, forgot about JTE seeing a ghost in her backseat before she eventually meets LG.
I’m on the Eternal Monarch Bridge here as I watch Ep. 1-2. Just finished Ep.1 but I think I will need to do a rewatch as there were some confusing elements to me about the set up and the magic flute powers.
Question: Why is evil uncle prince called a bastard (as it not legitimate)? According to the promo materials, his mother was a concubine. I’m not very familiar with the palace rules of seguk, but I thought that children born of concubines were considered to be legitimate children of the king, although “second class” as compared to children born of the queen. I think there were several actual kings of Korea whose mothers were concubines. Evil Uncle prince has an official title, and the public know him, so I’m thinking that he was seen as a legitimate son of the king with full royal status.
Anyway, I know that Evil Uncle Prince was angry that the father chose the younger brother to be the successor because his mother was the queen and not a concubine, so higher ranking, I think.
Once evil Uncle Prince travelled to ROK world, he met his ROK brother version (the Emperor) on the street, and asked to meet the ROK version of himself.
@agdr03 and @ Fern- My understanding on what happened to the ROK versions of the Evil Prince and the King is that ROK Evil Prince version was disabled and in a wheelchair. Evil Uncle Prince killed him (ROK version of himself) and then afterward disposed of the body by travelling back to EOC, dressing the body in his clothes and his royal ring and throwing it into the ocean. He may have also broken all the bones in the body to hide the fact that he murdered him by breaking his neck as well as to help disguise the fact he’s using a doppleganger. He put his ring on the ROK version so that the authorities would identify the body as him. I’m thinking he doesn’t want any DNA testing done cause it might show that the dead man isn’t him.
The man that performed the autopsy looks like the Older Prince to me too. The Grandma/Court Lady says she had to call him to do the autopsy because everything has to be kept secret because the Royal Guards who found the body think it was suicide. Older Prince says there can’t be a verdict of suicide- it has to be that he was shot by the Royal Guards. Older Prince says he is going to fake the autopsy results to say the cause of death was a gunshot wound, and make a false statement.
As to why suicide verdict would be a problem, I am not sure.
As for ROK version of the Emperor, the police call the wife and say that he was drunk and was killed by a hit and run driver. She asks for the police to take care of cremating the body. She then returns home and says how glad she is that her husband is dead, only to be shocked by the sight of her “brother in law” standing in the kitchen and not in the wheelchair. We see Evil Uncle Prince walk toward her but we don’t know what happens to her. I’m thinking that Evil Uncle Prince must have been the hit and run driver and killed the ROK version of the Emperor. Now he can just take over the identity of the ROK version of himself, I guess and live freely in both worlds since everyone thinks he is dead in the EOC world.
@Table122000, thank you very much for this clarification. So the evil uncle has been travelling back and forth between RoK and EoC. I hadn’t thought of that. So what about the ghost/alt Tae Eul in the car? Did she come in on Lee Gon’s coat tails, or another one who can travel back and forth between worlds?
I think that the elder prince might be an academic, having seen him in ep. 2. Could he be like an M.D., Ph.D.? I like the Court Lady. Haha. When Tae Eul finds the talisman amongst Lee Gon’s belongings and read it. Pffft.
Lounging here at Cynical Island bar, disappointed. I knock over my drink, which suspends in the air for a second while someone goes through the Two-Worlds Portal. Yeah, it’s a Bloody Mary. And portal navigating makes no sense so far—which isn’t intriguing, it’s bad scriptwriting. Or perhaps “holes” in time loops…which are a new trope to me. Pls explain them, @agdr03. And, anyone: did Lee Lim kill is own other-world self, or was that his other-world brother/uncle? It’s implied he also killed that guy’s wife and son, right? So is it later, or before that, the serial killer starts dyeing cloths (which are…??). Agree with @Stardust that the villain is too obvious; maybe it’s a set up.
Thanks, @John, for your komic kleverness. Appreciated @Welmaris giving the mythical context to how (the northwest) Seoul ROK flipped to (the southeast) of Busan KOC. Agree, @nrllee, on how artificial and rote the relationships feel. LMH just keeps… looking. Yah! I ain’t your mirror, you stupid hug-ger, you! Also, I think you went back to save yourself, because the sneakers the camera followed seemed too big for a woman,and more like your sneakers after the crew race.
To skip over to Shallow Island, why make my Woo Do Hwan a goofy popsicle-eater and a dour robot-man? Did you have to cut his long, sexy, My Country hair?
Thanks @Table122000, that made sense that the evil uncle killed off his brother (he’s the king in KOC) again in ROK.
But it seems that in that world he’s not a good husband.
@Fern, white rabbit is Tae-Eul’s version in KOC and she’s supposed to be a criminal /bad girl. She’s the one who was running at the rowing competition and the one Lee Gon was running after when he got to the bamboo forest and the gate of the parallel world opened.
@JohnL yeah I noted that too. Her sense of smell was good and maybe her other senses are in the works too as she did see white rabbit in her car.
I watched episode 2. Oh dear. It got worse. The story isn’t being told well. There’s probably a gripping storyline in there somewhere but it’s muddled. Character motivations aren’t clear. The music is telling me I should feel something I’m not feeling. There were steps in the story left out or something. I could care less at this point. The king (Lmh)’s character is absolutely ridiculous. He keeps talking about beheadings with a straight face, and food tasters etc. He lives in a country with a Prime Minster and a parliament fgs. And he is abroad. He should have some sense. It’s not the dark ages and he is not a king in Korea. And the swooning over his looks and the horse frankly are sickening. Go eun is doing all the acting. She is trying but it’s a sorry sad mess imo.I’m not sure I’ll watch ep3. Even with Lmh I’d say ratings will be low in Korea. Probly be ok elsewhere due to lockdown boredom. My friends here feel the same. It’s a dud.
@Smarie, I know, the Royal behaviour seems extreme and cliche’d. It’s like his ego gets in the way of his common sense of how to behave in a strange land. Sort of Princess Diaries in reverse, if that makes sense and nothing innovative. I agree that Go Eun is doing the acting along with WDH doing really well with both Jo Young and the Eun-seob characters.
@agdr03, I get that Luna (rabbit/moon makes sense) is Tae Eul’s counterpart. I didn’t understand why she showed up in Tae Eul’s car unless she can transverse the portal between worlds as well. Maybe why she has no identity in KoC.
I’m in the Bitter Regrets bar as well. Korg was over the weight limit to take a commercial flight, so he’s hanging out in ChCh. I’m sitting with Hyun Bin whose filming was postponed. He is very polite about this drama which we’re clocking on the big screen. We’ve had some beers and shots and every now and then he looks down into his glass and his lips twitch and his dimples appear. But he keeps it to himself. True professional.
“ The king (Lmh)’s character is absolutely ridiculous. He keeps talking about beheadings with a straight face”
Maybe he’s trying to embody the Queen of Hearts (ala Alice in Wonderland)? Actually maybe that’s where the writer is getting her inspiration from. White/Black rabbit…running through portals…into Wonderland. I never fully understood the Carrollian world. I read it as a child and frankly it horrified me. It made little sense and the characters were so bizarre and unpredictable (especially the Queen and Mad Hatter) it didn’t sit well with my Asian regimental sensibilities.
Did anyone spy one of the bodyguards (looks to be female) in Ep1 who looked suspiciously like KGE? If so, were there 3 versions of the parallel universes? My mind boggles. I need to catch up on Ep2 and see if it does any better. It looks like the child Lee Gon in ROK died by Evil Prince’s hand? Just like his father, mom and quadriplegic uncle did? Yeah that would make more sense. 3 universes?
ROK – dead LG, dead father, dead mother, dead uncle. Living KGE (TaeEul)
ROC – Eternal Monarch LG, bodyguard WDH, bodyguard KGE
Third Universe – Ninja LG (who saves himself in ROC), White Rabbit KGE (leaping between universes – how come she gets a free ride when she has no flute?). Because she’s a white rabbit?
Wait…so if Ninja LG rescues child Crown Prince LG who inadvertently falls in love with his Savior (who he thinks is TaeEul)…in reality he has fallen in love with…wait for it…himself?? 😂 That would explain all the long lingering camera shots of LMH…narcissism.
Just as well I am having drinks at the Bitter Regrets Bar. One of them is thinking that bringing a serial killer as a date could possibly be titillating. I may have to pop a pill or 2 in his drink to knock him out so I can watch in peace. Living in constant fear of him losing it anymore as the drama proceeds is taking living on the edge a bit too far. 😂
@nrllee, if there are 3 or more worlds, I give up. Also, why would Ninja LG have Tae Eul’s id card?
Is LG trying to embody Carroll’s Queen of Hearts? Not the best role model. Lol. Is that his mathematician sense of humor? Save me.
“I’m in the Bitter Regrets bar as well. Korg was over the weight limit to take a commercial flight, so he’s hanging out in ChCh. I’m sitting with Hyun Bin whose filming was postponed. He is very polite about this drama which we’re clocking on the big screen. We’ve had some beers and shots and every now and then he looks down into his glass and his lips twitch and his dimples appear. But he keeps it to himself. True professional.“
Aigoo! You’ve got it going for you then @Fern 😂 Enjoy the dimples. 😉
Maybe @nrllee is right that Luna can leap between universes. But if there’s 3 universes then I’m not sure my brain can handles that. 🤦🏻♀️😂
I haven’t watched episode 2. I have to agree that the use of ‘beheading’ with a straight face only works once. After that no reaction anymore.
It’s not really funny too so far. I’m just enjoying Halmoni (Court Lady) and WDH’s bodyguard character.
Dong mae has finally taken a dip. Hurray! I am enjoying the view, the backstroke, butterfly stroke, free style. We will head to the bar once he’s done cooling off. I need Yoda’s help to get him on the wedding altar asap.🤭🤭
“ Is LG trying to embody Carroll’s Queen of Hearts? Not the best role model. Lol. Is that his mathematician sense of humor? Save me.”
Lewis Carroll was also a reknowned Mathematician. So the parallels are apparent for this drama. It is his favourite book so I think he’s trying to be clever (?) but he’s failing miserably in the execution.
Yeah the 3 universes is a bit much…but I don’t know how to just limit it to the 2…if Evil Prince did away with child LG in ROK Universe (we’re not shown this but it looked like he did?), then where did Ninja LG come from?
I was so sure I was going to hang out on Shallow Island for the entire duration of the drama run but found myself scurrying over the bridge towards Cynical Island like a rat abandoning a sinking ship after watching both episodes. And LMH was my first ever Korean Oppa.. sigh…
To sum up: It was draggy and draggier. To be fair, there were little pockets of witty dialogue (in the second one) but I found it so hard waiting for each episode to end.I hope the writer has fully thought out the entire plot. Otherwise this may turn to a Melting Me Softly case for our LMH.
Plus points aka why I will still tune in next week – WDH, KGE and the fabulous cinematography.
My bad. I went to check on the female bodyguard that was there at the skulls race and she’s not KGE. So probably just 2 universes. But where did Ninja LG come from then? If his doppelgänger child form in ROK was presumably killed by Evil Prince? Or did he escape? And learnt Ninja skills?
Maybe he didn’t get killed @nrllee but they just showed to look like he got killed. The evil uncle is very evil, that’s a given 😁
Let’s wait for @pm3 as she’s watching now, maybe she can enlighten us on it.
Enlighten us and do a full parade on Rant Riad while she’s at it. 😂
Rant Road 🤪
I am halfway through Ep2 and I am ready to bail. It’s so draggy…and the humor just isn’t hitting home for me. LMH just doesn’t do humor well. And WDH as dorky EunSeob isn’t doing much for me either? Sigh. I need to push to the end of Ep2. But I need to take a break and walk off my frustrations on Rant Rd right now. 😂
I dosed off watching ep 2. If that doesn’t say volumes about this drama, I don’t know what will. Oh holy lord, the episode was slower than a koala trying to climb a tree. And equally as frustrating. There are so many filler scenes that the whole episode feels like a filler episode.
I agree with @nrllee about the three universe thing. If we were to compare this to Goblin (which the show has done for us already, I mean when the ost started at the ~19 min mark, I thought it was “Stay with me” 😂😂), there was purgatory between heaven and earth. Similarly a landing place would not be out of the question.
Also the King has no idea how to manage his finances, how is Corea not is debt already???!!!
And the beheading shtick is overused. Everyone knows the irony dude, there’s no need to emphasize it.
Also, guys I’m here at the Bay of Disdain, so if anyone is headed this way could be please grab some drinks for me? Thanks.
Why are you on Rant Road? 😂
I think I understand what’s going on. 🌴 Hang in there.
I came from Manly Peaks but nothing’s happening except my bodyguard Jo Yeong 🤪 so Master Yoda and I are having a walk now along Rant Road.
I thought we might see you here too since you’ve seen it. 😆
@S.moureen, let’s wait for @pm3 to explain about the time loop tropes that you said. I’m never good at explaining things especially with time travelling 🤦🏻♀️ Sorry ☺️
“There are so many filler scenes that the whole episode feels like a filler episode.”
Exactly? And we’re not even close to the end yet. I am already bored to tears. LMH doesn’t do out-of-place-King-become-commoner well at all. Give me WonDeuk from 100DMP any day. 🙂
“@Table122000, thank you very much for this clarification. So the evil uncle has been travelling back and forth between RoK and EoC. I hadn’t thought of that. So what about the ghost/alt Tae Eul in the car? Did she come in on Lee Gon’s coat tails, or another one who can travel back and forth between worlds?”
@Fern- Yes, Evil Uncle Prince has been travelling back and forth between the 2 worlds. We have a scene in Ep. 1 where he appears to his ex Royal Guard helper who is now a salt farmer and recruits him to come back with him to the parallel world.
I’m not sure what to make of Luna (EOC version of Tae El) and her brief appearance in Tae El’s car. It felt more like Tae El was seeing a vision since if Luna was actually in the car I would think it would take her more than half a second to exit the vehicle and for sure Tae El would hear the car door open and close. But perhaps somehow Luna can also travel between the worlds even though she doesn’t have the magic flute. Maybe she can even make herself invisible? I guess we will see as the drama continues.
“Thanks @Table122000, that made sense that the evil uncle killed off his brother (he’s the king in KOC) again in ROK.
But it seems that in that world he’s not a good husband.”
@agdr03- Yes. the Evil Uncle Prince killed all of the ROK versions of the royal family. He killed himself (disabled wheelchair guy), his brother and nephew. We know the Mother lives as we saw her in Ep. 2 I guess he let the Mom live so she could take the blame for the deaths of the brother and the child, and possibly the death of his doppleganger. Not sure.
Yes, from what we saw in Ep. 1, My impression was the ROK version of the King was an alcoholic who couldn’t hold down a job. Although he seemed sober when he met Evil Prince. My guess is that the Mom was the sole breadwinner for the family and her husband was out spending her $$ on booze and cigarettes. He might have possibly been a gambler as well, perhaps taking the money and losing it gambling.
I have finished Ep. 1-2 and I have to say I’m a little disappointed in the drama. I’m not a huge fan of sci-fi to begin with, and the mixture of both concepts of parallel worlds and time manipulation/possible time travel isn’t grabbing my interest. I wish we could have just had parallel worlds without the time bending stuff. After a rewatch, I think the magic flute opens the portal between the worlds and since both Evil Uncle and King Lee Gon have half of the flute, they can travel between worlds. They also have the power to bring others with them back and forth between the worlds since Evil Uncle brought back his supporter/henchman from the EOC to the ROK. I guess later we’ll see King lee Gon bringing Tae El to his world. The flute can also manipulate time since we see time stop when Lee Gon enters the parallel world and Evil Uncle has stopped aging while living in the parallel ROK.
I’m not sure what the driving force of the plot will be since Evil Uncle seems content to stay in ROK world and “Play God” with the help of the magic flute powers. The power of life and death.Why go back to EOC? He already made the decision to fake his death there and he’s got all the power he wants in ROK with the added benefit of possible immortality since he is not aging in the parallel world. King lee Gon isn’t concerned about him since he believes the Uncle is dead.
The drama is already feeling a bit slow as of ep. 2. there were a few glimpses of witty banter exchange, but then Tae El was avoiding the King for most of the second half of the episode. The romance development is rushing for me since the King has already declared his love at the end of Ep. 2. Where is the fun in that?Things I like: Kim Go Eun performance and her character. WDH performance and his dual roles. I also like that WDH will have a possible loveline with the girl from the Royal Public Affairs Office. She was pretty cute with her crush on him. Things I don’t like: LMH performance and his character. The King is being annoying and where is the charisma of LMH? I feel like he’s just standing around being boring. I’m not feeling his emotions as the king, he’s not engaging me with his character. Where’s the spark I felt with his performance as Goo Jun Pyo in BOF? It’s gone from here. The lackluster storyline. I’m losing interest, even though we have mysteries to solve about who was the savior 25 years ago and how did Tae El’s ID get into Lee Gon’s hands. Overall, this drama is meh. I’m hoping it will improve next week.
I am incredibly confused by EP 2. I didn’t understand much of what was happening at all 🙊 Maybe I’m a darama land bozo but this is happening to such an extent for the first time. I will read all comments carefully for better insight.
@agdr3, yup! Definitely a man to save the price. If it’s LMH himself, I’ll just have to roll my eyes. I mean what the heck? The last time a hero saved his past self was Harry Potter in the Prince of Azakaban. Did this writer get the idea from there ? If that’s the case, the execution is truly terrible.
Question is – If the flute is the means whereby they port between universes (Evil Prince and LG each have half), how does Luna port between the worlds? She definitely can do that because she shows up in both universes?
Honestly I am hanging by a thread with this drama but I will give it 2 more episodes before I bail for good.
@nrllee, Perhaps Luna is Tae Eul somehow stuck in the KoC and having to resort to her cunning and reflexes to survive. Maybe Lee Gon was trying to bring her magic police i.d. back to her as well as trying to stop the assassination. I am feeling rather silly this morning. Too much to drink at the Bitter Regrets last night. Woke up back home with my lovely husband and no sign of Hyun Bin (a hallyucination).
“ Woke up back home with my lovely husband and no sign of Hyun Bin (a hallyucination).”
😂😂 I saw what you did there Fern! Good one!
@agdr03. “Oh while watching the scene where evil uncle was piercing the flute on Lee Gon’s neck, he was piercing it on his left side but his scar was on his right side later on. I wondered about the placement of that scar. Anyway moving on. 😄”
I just checked ep. 2, when Lee Gon comes down from the hotel suite in the stylishly giant pink cardigan and fairly loose t-shirt. His scar seems to be gone altogether. 😂 Maybe at some point in one of the time/dimension travels he manages to prevent his young self from getting scarred altogether. 😜
“ @nrllee, Perhaps Luna is Tae Eul somehow stuck in the KoC and having to resort to her cunning and reflexes to survive”
@Fern didn’t she appear in ROK in the back of TaeEul’s car for a moment? That was weird. Or was that one of those portal moments (like when the bowl of paint? suspended mid air – like @ S.moureen’s Bloody Mary🍹). So there were 2 of them. Just like ES (his name reminds me of When The Weather is Fine 😂) and his doppelgänger dishy matrix bodyguard JY? LG should just save himself travel time (and doofus embarrassment) by just catching the rabbit Luna and he’ll have his woman in the same universe. Unless he wants to clock up frequent travel points. Maybe next time he can leave poor Mahk-see-moose in Corea. At least he’d be in a decent stable environment munching on top quality Lucerne as fit for royalty.
@nrllee, yes, an apparition or a quick visit?
I’m not so impressed by LG’s athleticism despite his bragging. Tae Eul/Luna gets the better of him in several scenes. The problem I’m having with all of this is LG. He’s just not cool at this point. He seems a dork with a nerdy sense of humour and I have that at home with my (lovely of course) scientist husband. Maybe it’s okay in the end, because without the vanity, it can become its own type of charming.
Haha, frequent space/time travel points. And that horse is simply too white and tidy to be real. Also, what’s with the cafe owner girl’s very expensive cars? Curious minds want to know.
Sigh I finally plowed my way to the end of Ep2…and he proposes to her? The dialogue is corny beyond belief? I am cringing so much. How can this possibly be an epic in the making? I am flabbergasted. Does the writer think just because she snared LMH it’ll be okay to just write whatever? Ugh…and if that little Shetland Pony was supposed to be baby Mahk-see-moose…Just no…it’s a travesty. The plot is so thin I don’t know if I can continue for another 2 episodes. I need another stiff drink in the Bitter Regrets Bar. Make that 2.
@Fern, maybe consistency is not a priority in this drama if the scar goes away in between the parallel universe. I don’t know 🤣
I’m about to watch episode 2, if it makes me fall asleep (given I am pretty tired today) then I’m renouncing my citizenship from Shallow island. 🤪
Lol..I’ve not yet started watching..am sitting on the fence..err Eternal Monarch Bridge on this one, swinging between which Island to inhabit🤔🤔🤔
Now I’m kind of scared to watch if it’s too much of a brain scrambling story..this was a bad week at work, can’t take it this weekend, I think 😞😞
While Yoda persists in saying “Watch or don’t watch. There’s no try.”😤😤
Think I’ll wait for @packmule3’s insights and defer watching till next weekend.
@Fern I’ve always thought that horse was suspiciously white🙄🙄
..and I have a confession to make – Sorry I’m the one who stole away Hyun Bin for some strolling along Eye Candy Bay, while you were out like a light at Bitter Regrets Bar. I adore HB’s style and maturity (and deadly dimples)..exactly my type😍😍
Oh, the fat little short-legged pony is supposed to be Maximus as a foal? Save me again! 😜 I was thinking he simply had a series of white horses, getting larger as LG grew up. Perhaps ponies grow up to be horses in the KoC. As @agdr03 says, ‘maybe consistency is not a priority in this drama’
Off topic: about scars, I have to admit that in CLOY, Capt. Ri was shot in the back but had his operation and scar on his front. If he had been shot where it seemed, either the bullet was spent and didn’t even make it to his scapula, so no front scar; or it would have had to go through the scapula to merit a front scar. Am I right or have I missed some basic human anatomy?
@Phoenix, it’s fine. You have good taste. 😎
“ Oh, the fat little short-legged pony is supposed to be Maximus as a foal?”
I assumed it was? 😂 Could be wrong. Unless he just like white horses and has an assortment and that was just one of them to suit him as a child? 😂. He is the King after all. He can have a whole stable full of white horses.
@Phoenix! Stay in the Eternal Monarch Bridge and watch when you’re calm and relax and ready to dive into different worlds. ☺️ Waiting for @pm3’s review might be good though so at least you’ve got a guide and won’t get you confused. 😊
I still haven’t started on episode 2, I had to take a family call.
I’m giving you the 3 alcoholic drinks ok. Besame, Lee MinHo (tequila), Tall, Dark and Dirty (martini) and Naked Margarita (margarita, lol)
Relax and Enjoy it with Hyun Bin! 😉😘
About the scar, I thought Captain Ri was showing off his different scars and not particularly the one where he got shot while saving Seri. But I didn’t do any rewatch on CLoY though. 😁
Just saw an Instagram on the proposal at the end of episode 2. Did LG asked Tae-Eul because he saw that the Prime Minister did become Queen in ROK? Was it the Prime Minister though? I wasn’t sure if it was her on the billboard. She was certainly eyeing the throne when she first visited LG in episode 1.
@adr03 Thank you for cocktails, girlfriend 🙌 Shared them with Hyun Bin too🍸🍹 We are having a heart-to-heart on MOA, that old favorite of mine 😍😍. Yoda too was passing by as we strolled on the bridge and told me: “Patience you must have, my young padawan”. So I’ll wait for @packmule3’s explanation 🤞🤞🤞
@Phoenix, please give Hyun Bin my regards. We’re all waiting for the explanation that will enlighten us. Please, @packmule, save us from our self-exile on Cynical Island! Speaking personally, I sincerely want to enjoy this but my brain’s not yet having it.
I’m at the equestrian center behind Bitter Regrets Bar, getting kisses from Maximus. I ditched my date, Gu Jun Pyo, who got drunk and is now muttering into his cups, “Off with her head! Off with his head! Why didn’t I think of saying that?” So much for my hoping an older, more mature Lee Gon would be a good influence on Jun Pyo.
Maximus is happy to be in a real horse facility instead of a tiny canopy-bed-masquerading-as-a-stall. He had to use all his will to not chew those silly drapes.
I’m hanging out with Maximus’s trainer/wrangler and failing miserably at not fangirling. I can’t help it, because I’m so impressed by how calmly Maximus stood in Gwanghwamun Square. I’m no less impressed that he acted part of that scene in front of a green screen in a studio. Maximus’s patience with LMH bouncing on his back like a sack of potatoes is also commendable. I bet he would have preferred to buck off a rider with such a bad seat, but his good manners prevailed.
I’m also amused watching the white mini cavort in the arena. What a cutie! He’s miffed that some viewers may have thought he was portraying a young Maximus, as he is and will always be his own wonderful self. A casting agent wouldn’t be so dense as to hire Peter Dinklage to play Brad Pitt as a child, would they? Besides, if Maximus was born when Lee Gon was a child, he’d be geriatric by 2019.
Oof! I was texting instead of paying him attention, so Maximus threatened to nibble my cell phone. He thinks my fingers would be better employed scratching his ears. He’s right, you know…
@all
hee hee hee hee… I love this blog. It’s past midnight in my world on a worrisome day of the COVid hit universe. But reading all of you makes me feel warm and fuzzy. 🥰
@Phoenix your artwork of the islands is so cute!
Having multiple people with Hyun Bin as a date makes me very happy. I’m in good company inspite of having no date myself ! Watching TK:EM is making me appreciate HB more 🙈
Also, after a careful read of the comments, I’m not alone. Many of us are confused or just plain perplexed. Awaiting @pm3 on the subject.
@Welmaris
“A casting agent wouldn’t be so dense as to hire Peter Dinklage to play Brad Pitt as a child, would they?”
Ooo… So aptly described! I’m an illiterate at anything equestrian (and thus one of the viewers who thought it was a young Maximus) but thank you for some new learning.
Now that you’ve mentioned it, I can’t look past the tiny tent like arrangement for the horse. It looks like one of those things a little girl would play with in a Polly Pocket type of toy. Not something a real horse would be comfortable in !
Having watched the first episode, I am staying on the bridge for now. Not much was going on on Shirtless Bay…On the other hand, my date Commander Hwang (aka The Purple Assassin) is having a great time. I just saw him engaged in a lively conversation with Gu Dong Mae about the pros and cons of vertical vs. horizontal slicing. He is also learning about the Way of the Force from Master Yoda along with new sword technique. Master Yoda seems equally impressed by Korean soju and swordsmanship.
Will finish up my First Impression post soon. Just have to order dinner and pick it up. 😀
See you in a bit.
HAPPY EASTER!!!🐰🐇
Thank you, pm3! Happy Easter to everyone who celebrates today.
It is good to be back in dramaland. The Launch Party alone is giving me plenty of ideas for fan fiction. I plan to binge watch the first 6 episodes of Hospital Playlist and join that party too!
I am not sure if the ROK version of Lee Gon is really dead. We never saw the little boy’s body. I expect another version of LMH to make a dramatic appearance in a twisty reveal. We’ll see…
This blog is so MUCH more entertaining than this show.
I looked up Mozart’s opera, The Magic Flute. The mother character is called Queen of the Night. Close enough to Luna (moon), which in Korea represented by rabbit. So, packmule, if this is a Magic Flute interpretation, what themes should we expect? Make sense of this mess, please! Help me make it to and through episode 2, because I’ve been in pandemic lock-down for FIVE freakin’ boring loooooong weeks!
“ I am not sure if the ROK version of Lee Gon is really dead”
We see his mom (she was spared by Evil Prince) visit his tombstone in Ep2 so I assume he was killed by Evil Prince. There was some discussion about LG from Corea dialing back time and rescuing his child self in the same universe. So we have parallel universes AND time travel. Wrap your mind around that one. Although he is the “Eternal Monarch” which seems to imply he’s like Dr Who (Time Lord) and he transcends time and space? Guess he much preferred his LMH self to halt time at (as opposed to his weak child self – gutsy but couldn’t exactly execute Ninja moves like adult LMH can). There can be only one (highlander) Eternal Monarch though? Just like how Evil Prince did away with his doppelgänger. So there will be the one big fight between the one good and one evil in the end. 😂
@welmaris much better company Maximus. I like an Equine with acquired tastes. And he didn’t take the carrot either. He has standards. 😂. I am currently trying to decide if I should send Mo TaeGoo on an errand to take LG (and Evil Prince) down. Off with his (their) head(s). Wouldn’t need much to tip him over the edge. He’s already got bloodlust in his eyes after Ep1…and then the red paint in Ep2 only fed his fervor. 🩸 Calming zen sessions with Master Yoda can only help so much you know?
I’m having Tall, Dark and Dirty now while watching episode 2. I like Eun-sup. What’s with the way he speaks? 😁
Master Yoda is having a blast though, he’s still calm and cool. 😎
I forgive Woo Do Hwan for not being tall. He is so cool in a dual role.
Did LG’s eyes flickered when he heard Tae-eul say Lee Sang-Do’s name? The wife of the murdered man in the boot of the car. But the suspect for his murder was killed too. They were both killed by the one weapon.
Oooppps! No more scar as you said @Fern, when he came down to meet with Tae-eul at the hotel lobby. 🧐
Oh geez, does evil uncle grants evil wishes now? 😱
Hola, @Snow Flower! Well met on the Eternal Monarch Bridge! I’m still there, watching the waves below (just waved at some suspiciously white dolphins frolicking in the Sea of Eternity). Hyin Bin earlier left in a canoe towards the mainland as he still had to appear for a photo shoot, it seems.
From my vantage point on the bridge, looking towards Cynical Island, there seem to be quite a number of people strolling on Rant Road and heading towards Bitter Regrets Bar.
@Arihsi I’m happy everyone can find their way on the islands by using the map😊🙌 I had so much fun creating the map too 😛
The posts here seem to be much, much more entertaining than the actual drama itself🤣🤣
@packmule3 Take your time 😊 We have enough supplies left of Tall, Dark and Dirty at Bitter Regrets Bar to drink in the meantime (good we had got extra stocks before the party)!!
High five 🙌🏻 @Snow Flower! If ever I’ll stay for him, Tae-Eul and Court Lady 😂
I’m no longer on either Shallow or Cynical. Even though the two islands are close together, there’s a oceanic trench between them. I’m below Eternal Monarch Bridge, in a submarine because I’m going to take a deep dive.
I’m not sure how much the writer will relate her story to her source material, but I’ve been interested to look into the references we’re given in the drama. The first words as the series starts: This story begins during King Sinmun’s reign in the Silla Dynasty This is recorded in ‘Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms’. “In the spring of the year 682, King Sinmun received a bamboo flute from the Dragon King of the East Sea…” (I’ve already written in the comments above about the Dragon King of the East Sea.)
Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms, Samguk Yusa, is a collection of legends, folktales and historical accounts relating to the Three Kingdoms of Korea, as well as to other periods and states before, during and after the Three Kingdoms period. (Wikipedia).
Sinmun of Silla ruled 681-692, and was the 31st king of the Silla dynasty. His father, King Munmu of Silla, unified most of the peninsula. In 681, shortly after he came into power (the official mourning period for King Munmu was still in effect), King Sinmun had to put down a revolt led by his father-in-law. King Sinmun had to quell another rebellion in 684. His reign could be be characterized by his attempts to consolidate royal authority following unification, and to reorganize and systematize the governing apparatus of the newly enlarged Silla state. (Info cherry picked from Wikipedia entry on Sinmun of Silla)
Part of the Wikipedia entry on Sinmun’s father, King Munmu of Silla, connects with our drama:
Munmu ruled over unified Silla for twenty years, until he fell ill in 681. On his deathbed, he left his last will and testament, and abdicated to his son, Prince Sinmun. Before he died he said: “A country should not be without a king at any time. Let the Prince have my crown before he has my coffin. Cremate my remains and scatter the ashes in the sea where the whales live. I will become a dragon and thwart foreign invasion.” King Sinmun did as his father asked, and scattered his ashes over Daewangam (the Rock of the Great King), a small rocky islet a hundred metres or so off the Korean coast. Moreover, King Sinmun built the Gomun Temple (the Temple of Appreciated Blessing) and dedicated it to his father, he built a waterway for the sea dragon to come to and from the sea and land, and he built a pavilion, Eegun, overlooking the islet so that future kings could pay their respects to the great King Munmu.
In a dream, King Munmu and the famous general Kim Yu-shin appeared to King Sinmun and said to him: “Blowing on a bamboo flute will calm the heavens and the earth.” King Sinmun awoke from the dream, rode out to the sea and received the bamboo flute Monposikjuk. It was said that the blowing of the bamboo flute invoked the spirits of King Munmu and General Kim Yu-shin and would push back enemy troops, cure illnesses, bring rain during drought and halt the rains in floods.
Back to our drama. Evil Prince, standing in a bedroom and looking at Four Tiger Sword, is told by a co-conspirator that the king is in Cheonjongo. Evil Prince replies, “Let’s go. What I need is over there.”
Here’s what I found about Cheonjongo in a PDF cached on http://www.gn.go.kr: “In Korea, there were also storage house-like institutions that stored rare objects since the ancient Three Kingdom period. The Cheonjongo built in Shilla to house the Manpasikjeok was this kind of place. Each period had different facilities but none of them were open to the public.”
And the bedroom where we see Evil Prince perusing the sword? Later we see halmoni Court Lady hiding talismans in Lee Gon’s bedroom; it is the same bedroom that had been his father’s before the assassination.
In Episode 2 while Lee Gon is in ROK, he camps out at a library to research Korean history. He tells Tae Eul, “The history of this country separated since Prince Sohyeon. In your world, he passed away early, while in my world, he remained in history as King Yeongjong. He stopped the Qing invasion. The history of the two worlds started to go separate ways since and ended up here now.”
Here is some information culled from the Wikipedia entry for Crown Prince Sohyeon, (5 February 1612 – 21 May 1645). Sohyeon was selected as the crown prince of the Joseon Dynasty in 1625. He was the first son of King Injo, who had taken the throne through insurrection in 1623. During the Second Manchu invasion of Korea in 1636, Sohyeon fled to the Namhan Mountain Fortress with his father, King Injo. When Ganghwa Island was captured by the Manchus, King Injo surrendered to Hong Taiji. Sohyeon voluntarily gave himself up to be a hostage and was held at Shenyang, the capital of the Qing Dynasty. During his time as a hostage, Prince Sohyeon tirelessly worked as a mediator between Joseon Korea and Qing China. He put much effort into ensuring that Qing would not engage in hostilities against Korea. In 1644 Prince Sohyeon stayed 70 days in Beijing; there he met Jesuit missionaries, and through them was introduced to Roman Catholicism and Western culture. Sohyeon’s father, King Injo, condemned Sohyeon’s conduct as pro-Qing. When Prince Sohyun returned to Korea in 1645, King Injo persecuted him for attempting to modernize Korea by bringing in Catholicism and Western science. Prince Sohyeon died suddenly, not long after his return to Korea, found dead in the King’s room, bleeding from the head. Rumors were that Injo killed his own son with an ink slab that the Crown Prince brought from China; however, some historians suggest he was poisoned because black spots developed on his body after death, and his body decomposed rapidly. Many tried to uncover what happened to the Crown Prince, but Injo ordered immediate burial with limited ceremony. King Injo never visited his son’s tomb. King Injo appointed Grand Prince Bongrim as the new Crown Prince (who later became King Hyojong) rather than Prince Sohyon’s oldest son. Soon after, Injo ordered the exile of Prince Sohyun’s three sons to Jeju Island, from which only the youngest son returned alive. King Injo also ordered the execution of Sohyeon’s wife, Crown Princess Minhoe, for treason.
Well, dang! That’s cold.
Back in our drama, Lee Gon goes into a museum to see “Exhibition from King Taejo to the Last King Sunjong.” Taejo was the founder and first king of the Joseon Dynasty. He seized the Goryeo throne in 1392 and declared a new dynasty under the name Joseon. King Sunjong was the second and last Emperor of Korea, of the Yi Dynasty, ruling from 1907 to 1910. Sunjong was forced by Japan to yield his throne and his country. The time span of this exhibition, 1392-1910, encompasses the period of Prince Sohyeon’s life (1612-1645), when one world split into two parallel worlds. The camera pans two portraits as Lee Gon walks past them in the exhibit, which recalls the camera panning two portraits in a hallway of Cheonjongo as Evil Prince walks past them on his way to assassinate the king. [A third portrait the camera focuses on in Cheonjongo, of a king in a light silver gonryongpo (dragon robe), is splattered with the blood of a Royal Guard as he is shot; then we see the king, himself, standing in the inner chamber of Cheonjongo dressed in that very gonryongpo.] In the exhibition hall, Lee Gon stops in front of the portrait of Sunjong, the last monarch of Korea. Does he recognize a parallel to one of his ancestors? As he stands and looks, there’s an interesting double reflection of Lee Gon superimposed on the portrait.
Something had to have happened in the history of KOC for a new dynasty to be established. There was a break in the numbering of monarchs, and now Lee Gon is the third king. We’ve been given one clue about when the founding of the Kingdom of Corea was founded. Lee Gon is a member of the 88th class of the Navy Academy rowing team. A starting date for the kingdom might be narrowed down with answers to the following questions: What year did the 88th class graduate? (Recent, since they’re still competing together in 2019?) Was the Navy Academy founded around the same time as the Kingdom of Corea? (I’d think it a good idea for a peninsular kingdom to have well-trained leaders for its navy.) A fan’s sign at the 2019 competition urged 88th Class of Navy Academy to win again, implying they competed in 2018. So let’s say the 88th Class graduated from the Navy Academy in 2018. The ROK Naval Academy is a four-year college, so let’s say in parallel world KOC the Navy Academy is also a four-year institution. Subtract 88 from 2018, then four more years for schooling, and the 1st Class would have started around 1926. What happened in Korea (not Corea) in 1926? Emperor Sunjong died. He had no children.
And now a few thoughts about parallel worlds. Lee Gon tells Tae Eul, “Quantum mechanics that Albert Einstein discovered led to the parallel universe theory. The theory where our universe consists of particles and can exist in two places if particles that form substances can be waves as well, just like light can be both waves and particles at the same time, and therefore suggest the possibility of the existence of parallel universes.” In this drama parallel worlds have existed since Prince Sohyeon, so parallel particles/waves have existed in two places. If a person (a set of particles) is in one world, their parallel is in the other, although the life of the two parallel people may be very different. For all the people particle/waves to be parallel, parallel sperm have to meet parallel eggs to make parallel babies at parallel times. Parallel worlds, by definition, move along at the same time. I’m not sure how to explain why ROK Lee Gon’s mom and dad were both alive after KOC Lee Gon’s were dead. I don’t know why KOC Lee Gon continued to live and grow into an adult after ROK Lee Gon was killed. Maybe creation is parallel and destruction isn’t; if so, does this mean KOC Lee Gon can’t procreate because there isn’t a parallel ROK Lee Gon doing the same? (My brain is starting to hurt, and I haven’t even addressed how the theory of parallel universes affects the concept of free will.) But when Evil Prince went through the portal, the two worlds were no longer parallel: two of the same set of particles were in one world, none in the other. The butterfly effect from this may be incalculable and irreversible. But remember the engraving on the Four Tiger Sword: “The sky and the ground help the earth balance. Defeat the bad and make things just.” It could be that the Four Tigers Sword, used with justice, will bring balance back to the parallel worlds.
@welmaris I hereby decree that you shall be Royal Historian and Custodian of Antiquities. I need to reread your dissertation. But it’s fascinating. More so than Alice in Wonderland narrated by His Highness (May his name endure forever). I hope they put all your research into good use in the drama to add richness and depth to it. I am sure her Majesty Queen Packmule the Third will reward you richly for your efforts.
@Welmaris, thank you for so much research. 👏💐🍪
@Welmaris, my date Commander Hwang told me a lot about Prince Sohyeon. He was there when the prince went to Qing as a hostage. He even has a theory about who poisoned the prince upon his return to Joseon. Commander Hwang is very eager to meet His Majesty LG (may his name endure forever!) and share all juicy details. LG will surely appreciate an eyewitness’ account of the Second Manchurian Invasion of 1636 and Prince Sohyeon’s mysterious death in 1645. Also, Commander Hwang was directly involved in the fate of Prince Sohyeon’ s youngest son, but he never talks about it. My guess is that he is too ashamed of his own evil deeds.
Commander Hwang’s voice can be heard at the beginning and at the end of Chuno (The Slave Hunters). He is the one telling the story, so I think it is very providential that I invited him to the Launch Party. Tell King LG that he can find Commander Hwang at the Bar of Bitter Regrets where Master Yoda is helping him rethink his life.
I’m late to the party but had a lot of fun reading all the comments so far.
I imagine John planning his klever comment here the moment packmule announced the banned words :))
Just one thing to add. When TaeEul sees Luna in the car, that happens, I think, because at the moment the king is crossing from one universe to another, the worlds get briefly unstable and/or are mixing. Physics laws not working as usual. Like time briefly stopping for the evil prince.
I’m not sure which island I’m at yet, maybe still on the bridge. Though while watching the episode I was full shallow island whenever Jo Young was on screen
As I expected to be inevitably disappointed by “the eternal king”, I was pleasantly surprised! It looks like KES is writing quality stories again, like in the days of “Secret Garden” or before.
Beyond the profusion of various symbols and details, which contribute to the meaning and atmosphere, the plot is interesting. And above all, there is a plot! The facts are treated logically, it reminds me of “Queen In Hyun Man” in the way the prince reacts once he arrives in the other world.
The rendering is sober, no cheesy excesses, no excess regarding the music and songs in the background. And of course, the direction is sumptuous, worthy of what we see in movies.
It’s an honest story treated in a SF way rather than fantasy, I like that. I prefer it not only to CLOY, but also to Hotel del Luna. For the moment!!! Because I’m afraid that it will get bogged down on an even slower and soporific rhythm for the rest. The first two episodes were captivating, but not hectic. Some scenes are unnecessarily lengthened, creating a certain torpor. So I’m very afraid of the “Goblin Syndrome”… Good start, then dragging until the last episode.
I didn’t find any confusion in the story, it’s not only about a journey in a parallel world, coupled with a time loop. What made me confused is rather a more basic event: the story of the woman who is happy to have lost her husband (murdered by the ugly prince). I was having trouble relating this to the rest, and it took me a long time to understand that this woman was the mother of the good Prince in the real world. There is a scene with a mother and a handicapped child, which adds confusion to this (handicapped, like the alter-ego of the bad prince, which I therefore confused with the other woman’s husband…).
Who saved the prince when he was 5 years old? It could have been the prince himself, but I’d rather focus on his faithful bodyguard. It was a warrior, expert with firearms.
I don’t have the patience to do detailed analysis on the background of the story, as you do, but I bring you something that might interest you.
You refer a lot to the obvious “Alice in Wonderland” element. I think the drama could also have something to do with “The Magic Flute”, an opera composed by Mozart telling an old German tale, which has some similarities.
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Fl%C3%BBte_enchant%C3%A9e
“Lost on a trip to an unknown country, Prince Tamino is attacked by a snake (in German “Schlange”). As he faints, sure of dying, he is saved by the three ladies-in-waiting of the Queen of the Night (…) The prince wakes up and sees the lifeless body of the monster. Wondering if he’s been dreaming or if someone has saved his life, he suddenly hears a panpipes tune (Faunenflötchen, or Waldflötchen: little flute of the forest).”
There’s a big mistake (unless it’s deliberate): The Prince quotes Albert Einstein as the quantum physicist who explained the parallel universes. Not at all, in fact, it’s quite the opposite. Einstein was resolutely opposed to the principles of quantum physics, he did not tolerate the principle of chance. It would have been better to quote Bohr, as a precursor. Then parallel universes are considered by various theorists in macro physics, it is a way to remove God from the equation. Moreover, the prince makes a good repartee on this subject “God never created men, it is the weak who created God”. In quantum physics, there is the principle of “several simultaneous states”, until an observer breaks this simultaneous state and the particle becomes real. So one could theorize as many simultaneous worlds as there are choices. This is said in a really quick way because I haven’t reread any articles on this subject. But one of the greatest theorists of current quantum physics says it himself: nobody understands anything about the phenomena of this physics, the physicists themselves, and this is perfectly normal. ^^