Rewatch of “Guardian: The Lonely and Great God” is for this Saturday, Oct 23rd.
Usual time: 13:00 UTC
09:00am EST*
06:00am PST*
09:00pm Singapore, Philippines
08:00pm Indonesia
03:00pm Greece
*Daylight savings time ends on Nov 7.
@Growing_Beautifully, @Cleopatra, @Janey, @Fern, @FGB4877, and I are doing the rewatch.
Gifs from ohseccilia’s tumblr:
Hope you can join us!
Yay! Right on schedule. Thanks for setting the auto opening of this thread @pkml3!!! We hope to have many more BODers coming along to join us.
🥳 🥳 🥳
What’s a party without decorations and games?
🎏 🎊 🎉 🪅 🪅 🎉 🎊 🎏
🎈 🎈As I always like to do … here’s my countdown – 9 hours and counting to our party!!!🎈 🎈
Virtual non-fattening snacks are always a favourite!! (I’d add music, but we might end up over crowded)
🍻 🍻 🍻 🥳 🥳 🥳 🍕 🍡 🌭 🍨 🥙 🧁 🍟 🍭 🍻 🍻 🍻
Very excited for our rewatch! See you early and bright (on my side of the world) tomorrow BoD! Cheers!
Gosh Janey Doensaeng! You’ll have to be up in 7 hours time!!! Sleep tight!
Kalimera!
See you all in 2 hours!
Kalimera my Agapimeni Cleo! So happy to see that you dropped by. Yes see you in 1 hour and 15 minutes time!!!
@Janey, you’re right about it being early in our time zone, but not about the bright. It’s dark outside. I still have to wait more than an hour before the sun will peek over the horizon.
I’ll be back after I get my cup of tea.
Hi @pkml3 and Everyone, I’m here! Just popping in to let you all know we’ll start our party in 13 minutes time!!
@GB Unnie,
I am here!
Gong Yoo is looking at me and I am happy! 😀
I’m here! I’ve to turn on my laptop though.
Kalimera @Packmule3!
I am here, too!
Welcome on board @Kuroshio!
Hi @Cleo, @Kuroshio, @Welmaris and of course our host @pkml3!!!
It’s been such a long time since we’ve spent time watching together. I missed it!
Good morning rewatchers!!! I’m here!!!
Glad you can make it @kuroshio. Just tell us when @GB. Hi there @Welmaris and @Cleopatra
@GB Unnie,
You are right! What a lovely way to start our Autumn days!
It is sunny around here and I am going to enjoy one of my most favorite stories ever!
I have seen @Welmaris around here. Is @Janey going to be with us too?
It’s time to start!! Let’s go!!!
I’m itching to start. Counting the seconds…
Go!
Such feelings when I hear this music.
I really like the title song.
Amazing photography in Canada.
Our our Granny Samshin is introducing us to the story!
Hi @Janey!
Ah the sword … in a sense, it was one of the silent main characters. It was one of the objects that imbibed the spirit of the humans… taking on their longing, resentments and sins.
Eun Tak’s mum is so pretty.
Okay, @GB. Let’s go.
Opening lines:
“When a long-cherished desire is buried in an object that’s been touched by human hands or human blood, it becomes a goblin.”
What do you think what’s Kim Shin’s desire when he died?
Revenge?
To warn the silly King about the bad adviser and clear up his sister’s good name?
ET’s Mum roots around in a jewellery box and takes out the jade ring of Queen Sun Hee. Our first view of another one of those objects that held people’s longing, etc.
Mum :”The creator is evil.”
Granny “It’s always been that way. It’s selfish and envious. It’s very self-centred.”
Interesting that they speak that way about the ‘almighty’… who is probably listening to them.
Just back home and ready.
I love Lee El. Her voice is amazing.
Here comes Kim Shin …He is dashing. (Gong Yoo is)
Nam Da Reum is so so good…
It’s 20 years earlier and I presume KS is in Canada giving the boy a sandwich…. until Subway comes along LOL. Next time in the almost present, we see KS in Korea, saving ET’s mum.
This!
@GB. I have to remind myself that this is NOT about Christianity. It’s about Korean mythology or shamanism.
And they’re right. Their deity in the story was a mean one “Just like a jerk.”
Selfish and jealous and self-centered.
I spot Nam Dereum!!! And I appreciate Gong Yoo more now than when I first watched.
Goo Yoo’s voiceovers as Kim Shin is everything.
I love those pieces in the soundtrack where he is doing a monologue.
(I have a bias for the man I admit it. I am just proud of him.)
@pkml3, If we can take his words to Wang Yeo/Reaper at the end of the series, then his determined steps up to meet the king (which resulted in death to his family) was just to tell him that the previous King cared for him, that KS was on his side, that people loved him, including his sister. But the young king stubbornly only listened to the evil eunuch.
Agapimeni @Janey you are here!
I love Gong Yoo. I love him more since we share the same bday.
Yes. I believe that scene with the young Na Da Reum was taken in Quebec City. Pretty city. Very touristy now because of the Goblin tourists. lol.
I told you right? I stayed in that hotel on my last business trip, and the lobby was swarming with Asian tourists. hahaha. I wouldn’t take the elevator in front of the famous mail chute because I didn’t want to photobomb them so I took the side elevators.
“When a long cherished desire is buried in an object that’s been touched by human hands or human blood, it becomes a goblin.”
So we start with the mystery: What was Kim Shin’s long-cherished desire that he held during his lifetime, so strong that it caused his sword and him to become Goblin?
“Would there be so much blood from thousands of battle buried in the sword that it even includes the blood of its owner? Only the goblin bride can remove the sword. Once the sword is pulled out, the owner will return to nothingness and be at peace.”
I still remember that scene and what happened next. 🙁
@pkml3 I’ve a bias for Gong Yoo and Nam Da Reum too!!
Hi @Fern! Glad you’re here!
Did ET’s mother buy the ring or leave it behind?
True @pkml3, this almighty was a cruel, unfair deity. He/it merely looked on while others suffered. Instead of punishing the one who was evil, he punished the one who was loyal and following orders.
Yes. We did start with a mystery, @Welmaris. For now — because I can’t remember the details of the next episodes — I’m assuming that his “desire” was similar to a grudge because when he woke up/reborn…his first move was to go after the Eunuch and kill him.
So THAT to me was the first — and last — thing on his mind. To get his hand on that Eunuch and to deliver his message to the (dead) King.
Hey @Fern!
Glad you made it!
BTW, the actor who plays the king is the one who plays the Cocky Prince these days!
“Even though I look like this now, I broke a few hearts in my day.”
Amazing transformation of Lee El. She had to sit for hours in the makeup chair to be so convincingly aged. Excellent work, makeup and wardrobe departments! But also excellent work Lee El, getting the movements right so we believe you’re that old.
Yes, @pkml3, I read what you wrote about your trip to Quebec. One day, I’ll go too and be one of those Asian tourists LOL. I actually want to look at those tombstones. Such a strange place to have them.
@Fern,
No, She just was looking at it. Sunny will later on.
No, that I am more into sageuk. I understand that they are talking in a specific manner.
This song, though. It gets me everytime I listen to it!
Yes. This whole deity thing threw me off because I couldn’t understand why its followers would stay believers and not just ditch him. (I would.) What’s the whole point of having a cruel, self-centered deity? It gives you a jaundiced worldview…
Fortunately, Kim Shin wasn’t like that.
@Pm3, the scene with Nam De Reum was labeled as Paris in Dramacool. I read you stayed in that famous hotel. How funny that Asia tourists were swarming there. Other foreigners probably thought it weird.
@Cleo, Now you have another cool person to share your birthday with! Nicolas Tesla and Gong Yoo!
@Fern, ET’s mother did not buy the ring. It remained with Samshin Granny until she engineered the meeting of Grim Reaper and Sunny. Then you’ll remember/see what happened with that ring.
@Cleopatra, I recognised him straight away. Was he in his teens?
Wait! There are NO tombstones there. Those tombstones were fake. They were just stage props. 🙂
After 2 years watching Kdrama, I found this Korean mythology stroy is all about HAN.Both KIM shin and the reaper.
I wonder if it would have been better for KS to have allowed himself to be beheaded LOL. To have a sword through him and die slowly in the open field was horrible. And then to go around with that sword stuck in him for 1,000 years… I don’t think the almighty would have wanted him as a headless goblin LOL, so beheading might have been better.
“That jerk who ran off without you is the mean one.”
“That’s true. But that story is so sad.”
I’ve never figured out if Eun Tak’s father died, or abandoned his pregnant wife. Maybe both, perhaps in reverse order of what I just wrote. Eun Tak later does say both her parents died.
@Janey,
So true! And as it seems, we share some specific traits…!
His second in command killed him, following Kim Shin’s orders and then the Royal guard killed the second.
This Eunuch is the most evil person I have seen so far.
@Welmaris,
To be honest, I’ve never heard of Lee El before this show, and never heard of her afterwards. Was she a popular actress?
But yes, I read that it took hours making her look old. But she (without the old woman’s make-up) and Lee DongWook here really look like marble statues — no wrinkles!!
@Fern,
Yes. I didn’t make the connection earlier though.
I have seen him also in Dr. Romantic and these days with Dali and Cocky Prince I realized who he was.
He was in his teens obviously…
I like how the blade was superimposed on his face, like a shadow, when he died, as the voice-over said … he died by the very blade he wielded.
@pkml3 Kim Shin was a good human being who turned into a deity of sorts. So he kept his more noble characteristics, but unfortunately remained or became super petty LOL.
As a parallel, stupid king becomes Grim Reaper, and without the machinations of evil eunuch, he seemed to have been a pretty okay guy. He’s also able to control minds etc, so a kind of deity but under more bureaucratic control.
@Kuroshio,
Excellent point. I heard about the HAN for another movie recently.
Thank you for bringing this up!
@pkml3. Thanks for telling me!! I’d be so disappointed to not see tombstones LOL.
Here’s the scene where the Show really devastated their first car. This show destroyed a heck of a lot of vehicles!
@Packmule3,
Lee el played in Detective Black as well. To be honest with you I have seen Black first and it followed by Goblin. She is good!
I really like her deep voice.
I love KIM Minjae(Cocky Prince)! His honey-smooth voice!
Emperors are supposed to be treated like gods and the general thru his war conquests is more revered than the emperor, hence the jealousy.
But General Shin should just have conceded there (but then we will not have this kdrama, LOL!). However, He let his sister die and the others, too. Because of pride? Because he wanted to clear it out with the emperor? Now he will take this guilt as long as he is exists.
@Janey, Yes. That scene was “labeled” Paris but I doubt they’d fly two actors and a crew to Paris just for that scene when Quebec City looked just as Parisian.
I just smiled to myself when I saw the tourists because I knew why there were there. But I had to pretend like I didn’t know. And really! They came in buses. I saw different buses when I left my hotel, and when I returned. And they were just milling around the mail chute.
The balcony where EunTak stood was cordoned off, though. So they couldn’t walk up and down the stairs and take pictures on the balcony.
Wow I made it!! The scene art the steps with the king. It was hard to understand the first time around. Thanks @GB for putting it so succinctly. Took me the whole series to get why he did that. Helps rewatching this.
The Reaper and the tea that makes you forget all the memories from you current life.
It reminds me greek mythology and the drink the souls were drinking in order to forget.
And the Bromance starts…
Tokaebbi?
Hanja saja?
Great job by director and stunt team to convey the chaos of the battlefield.
That moment when Kim Shin and the leader of the opposing lock eyes, dang! Gong Yoo can convey so much with he eyes.
Immediately when Grim Reaper meets Goblin they are at odds with each other. It’s more KS’s fault for being insulting and petty.
I love how the candles are all above the dining table.
LOL the young Deok Hwa who is soooo rude. He never changes. I wonder if even then as a child, the almighty was around DH.
Hi everyone!! This rewatch party is the highlight of my week- got me through the most godawful week at work. Gong Yoo is just good for the soul (and eyes!). So powerful. The music and scenes are hitting even more powerfully this time around.
First time I watched it I was trying to figure out who was related to whom and what was happening…this time. Oh the feels!
The actor who plays the young Deok Hwa is going to be the child his servant brought back in his tomb.
I have watched the documentary and I enjoyed the BTS…
This little boy couldn’t cry by director’s wishes and Gong Yoo talked to him gently in order to do the scene we are going to see in a while…
Cut to the past with the original lookalike of DH. His grandfather brings him to the buckwheat field and speaks to the Sword as if it is the master.
“Grandpa, are you saying this sword is ‘Sir’?”
The sword shakes. Lightning and thunder erupts.
Voice of the almighty: “The souls of your people are saving you. However the blood of thousands are on your sword. The blood of your enemies, who were also descendants of deities. You shall be immortal and watch your loved ones die. You will not forget a single death. This is the award I give you and the punishment you shall receive. Only the goblin’s bride shall remove the sword. Once the sword is removed, you shall return to ash, and be at peace.”
So what does this mean, the sword and the goblin are one? The servant recognised the sword as his master. And the reason that the almighty relented and let goblin resurrect is because of his servants’ consideration for him?
@Welmaris, All I know from this episode is that Eun Tak’s mom was a single mom and she knew she was going to be a single mom when she was still pregnant.
I like how the Samshin told her, “When you face a moment at the brink of life and death, be sure to pray earnestly. Perhaps a god with a tender heart may be listening to you.”
And that turned out to be Goblin. He’s the one with the tender heart.
The story establishes early on, that despite Kim Shin being a warrior and a “god of war,” he was essentially a person with a good heart. He went to war and killed men for Goryeo in service of his king, but he wasn’t by nature a killer.
Anneyong @MrsRJH1!
@Cleo, yes I saw that BTS where Gong Yoo coached the boy actor on how to grieve for his grandfather. So sweet of him! That’s the way actors learn and improve on the job, from good mentors.
@Packmule3,
I agree. Kim Shim went away because the King ordered him so.
The King was jealous of his accomplishments, so he gifted him with that Sword and sent him to the borders. If he ever could come back, he was going to die.
@GB, The show has a lot of “traffic accidents” because I think the Grim Reaper here was in charge of vehicular deaths. 🙂
At least, in this episode, all his deaths consisted of deaths involving a vehicle.
The one that was supposedly a wild boar
The one involving Euntak’s mom (which she survived because of Kim Shin)
The one that finally killed Euntak’s mom. She said she was at the “crosswalk.”
Then, later on, the truck of doom.
@pkml3 @Welmaris
There is a repeated mention of powerful desire or earnest prayer.
It figured later in ET’s wish over her birthday cake at age 19, and when she asked to be saved from loan sharks. Up to a point, her great desire brought KS to her, and while the goblin mark on her neck was still strong, KS too could just find her somehow. But this ability, like the mark, seems to fade.
Welcome to the blog, @Carolina. Just keep on posting.
You’re welcome @Carolina! Glad you’re joining us.
Ahhh. I totally forgot about that. Thanks, @Cleopatra!
@GB,
So true. It is not easy to cry. When Lee Dong Wook was doing “Because I want to talk” he said to GY that he was anxious the day they were filming THAT difficult scene. GY was not quiet that day and he had to cry.
I have also seen that LDW is still calling Kim Go Eun, lost soul or EunTak. They are all very good friends with each other!
@pkml3… hmmmm that’s true about the Reaper being in charge of traffic deaths … except maybe for the doctor who died from overwork. The rest did seem to be traffic accidents or people in cars etc. Maybe the doctor was involved in saving a person who was in an accident so that’s related.
Here’s KS sitting on the ILOOM logo on the building. Terrible to have to hear all the sounds of the city. But then he hears the crash that gets ET’s mum and so he creates his own bride.
@Packmule3,
Although It is my second time watching this. I was mesmerized by the mythology of it. Kim Eun Sook had as an advisor a History of Literature who his speciality was in myths. I was amazed by it.
Here comes the scene we’ve been waiting for!
Correction:A Professor of Literature*
The sincere prayer to a shin with a good heart.
When Doom approaches ET’s mother, there are flowers blooming above him. Is that to do with Shin?
The blood was too much that day. 🙁
Yes you are a tender-hearted God…
KS hears the heartbeat of ET in her mother and decides to meddle. It’s ironic that he gives her life which should have been taken away, only for her to live a life in which she’s always being sought by the Grim Reaper.
He is the one who inadvertently makes her his bride, but he’s also the one who later keeps denying that she can be his bride (or that he is the goblin).
@Fern,
Goblin’s power did that. It has to do with his mood swings…
@Janey, my memory of the backstory of General Shin and his sister is rather grainy. But I believe his sister/Queen wants HIM to talk to the her husband/king and warn him about the Eunuch. The Eunuch is brainwashing the King and the Queen wants it stopped.
Hence, their conversation at the steps. Kim Shin would have stepped no further but the Queen wanted him to go talk to the King.
Queen: Please go, General. I am all right.
Kim Shin: I… Your Highness.
Queen: I know. I truly know everything. If this is our last moment, this is my fate. So, please go. Don’t stop and go to the King, General.
She wanted him to deliver the message and she was willing to die for it. She was doing it FOR the King but the King’s judgment was impaired…(no) thanks to his advisor, the Eunuch.
@Fern yes, when KS is happy, there may be flowers out of season. Seems to happen when he has been drinking and may be when he’s a little drunk.
Poor Eun Tak on her 9th birthday, realises that she’s seeing her mum’s ghost. That child actress has so little time in the Show but she does such powerful acting.
@GB, I thought Kim Shin sitting on top of the “ILOOM” logo was appropriate because he was looming over the city — kinda like Batman. So “I loom.” 🙂
@Packmule3,
Later on it will be revealed that the King gave the Queen an ultimatum.
She will stand with her traitor brother or with her Husband.
That was the Queen’s choice. To stand with her General Brother.
The Queen was telling the King that he was wrong, but he was not listening to her.
This sad scene. I remembered that one… 🙁
The Soundtrack suits the story so well. I love this song.
LOL @pkml3, yes KS looms over the city. He’s also making sure he’s on top of his own building and business, since he’s supposed to be CEO of that company.
Oooo that little actresses’ tears. So good!
Yes the music in this Show is so effective too.
And I’m here by Kim Kyung Hee.
The little Eun Tak nailed it in this scene.
I love the OST when EK found out her mother is dead.
I love many of the OSTs. I was just listening to them again today. They are so effective, so appropriate to each mood and shift in scene.
@Fern, I’m not sure if the flowers blooming is connected to Shin per se or Samshin (because she was the god of birth/new life).
Either way, the flowers blooming here and the flower tattoo that appeared on the child Eun Tak meant that she was designated from birth to be the Goblin’s bride.
Noteworthy:
on her birth day, flowers bloomed.
on her 9th birthday, she received the cabbage from Samshin.
And on her 19th birthday, the buckwheat flower from Goblin.
Thanks, @Cleopatra.
Strictly speaking then, the Queen told her brother Kim Shin/future Goblin to stand with the King because she sent Kim Shin to the King.
Among the deities, Samshin seems to have a slightly higher status… she can recognise the almighty but KS and GR don’t seem to be able to.
Anyway, she can successfully ward off GR. She gives ET the crucial advice to keep her safe but not necessarily happy. Poor ET.
@Yes, GB. The OSTs of this drama were “attuned” to the mood and ambiance of the given scenes.
Now I undestand why Goblin appears to Eun Tak when she blows a candle. He hears prayers/wishes to gods and candles are associated to both.
@Packmule3,
Exactly that happened. But the King was foolish and didn’t realize it at that specific time.
Heh a 25 year old Deok Hwa can’t pay for drinks with Samshin LOL. He’s the most ignored character in this Show and when we know who he is, that’s so laughable.
We don’t know it yet and now we think that Yoo Duk-Hwa was hitting SamShin, but it was not him really…LMAO!
That moment after Kim Shin has slain the fleeing enemy: remorselessness and pride.
Then coming back into the capital, soaking in the adulation of the masses. Why a battle-tested general would put his faithful troops in danger, lead them into a trap, is hard to comprehend. I suppose he was too blinded by his own pride. He defies the order to drop his sword and kneel, and because of that pride his faithful men die. The surprise on Kim Shin’s face when he turns and sees the carnage behind him is testament to his self-delusion. He thought his battlefield fame and prowess was enough to protect him and his troops.
Kim Shin temporarily gets his way, walking in the opened gate to see the king (rather than kneeling in submission outside the gate), unsheathed sword in hand (which, I believe, is not allowed in a king’s presence).
The snake whispering half-truths into the king’s ear has poisoned the young king’s mind.
Again, it’s amazing what Gong Yoo can convey with his face. He changes from anger and defiance to gentle love when he sees his sister, the Queen.
The queen encourages Kim Shin to continue his defiance of the king, even willing to sacrifice herself. She was willing to die for principles, as well as for her brother and his honor. Cut from the same cloth, those two. He knows when the arrow hits her–he knows that sound too well–but he doesn’t turn back. He keeps advancing. Family members, servants, are slaughtered in front of him, and he keeps coming…until he locks eyes with one family retainer. Something about that relationship makes him stop and call a halt to the killing. What was the strength of that connection that surpassed even his concern for his sister? Was she sacrificed because she was willing? Kim Shin finally stopped because of the innocence and fear of the servant moved his heart, but what of all the people who’d just died because of Kim Shin’s pride?
That’s why heaven’s judgement on Kim Shin was so severe: he not only killed combatants in battle, but many innocent people died because of his stubborn pride. I don’t think he aspired to take over the throne. He was no politician. He failed miserably, died miserably, because he paid no attention to politics.
@GB Unnie,
He was hilarious as well.
Here is the ghost we have seen in Mr. Gumiho!
And here is their first meet accompanied by Beautiful by Crush.
The Umbrella Motif
Shin has the umbrella but Eun Tak only has her hoodie. She takes care of herself. Later on Shin shares his umbrella with ET. On the radio we hear of a person who can be one’s umbrella. At first KS and ET bypass each other and go in opposite directions. He senses something about her. He does not know that she thinks he’s a ghost (we know why).
Then Sunny gives her, her own umbrella to keep.
OST: Beautiful (or Beautiful Life)
KS can see images of somethings he’ll share with ET but it’s not clear and he’s already a bit intrigued by this school girl. He stops and looks back.
Yes, @Cleopatra. The King was foolhardy and jealous. Dangerous mix.
And I like Kim Shin’s voiceover, too, as he approached his sister on the steps. Referring to himself, he said, “He clearly saw the enemy’s sword. But didn’t see the young King’s jealousy and fear directed toward him.”
Meaning, he was a god in the battlefield all right. But here in this minefield, he couldn’t tell that he was stepping in — what essentially was — a marital discord between his sister and the King. lol.
@Cleo
And here’s DH being rude again. And scheming. The minute he sees the passport he has the idea of renting out the place in samchoon’s absence.
@Packmule3,
I agree. There are so many layers in the story, you simply cannot understand from the very beginning.
I really like Yum Hye-Ran. She is my second favorite ahjumma.
I’m just noting this for the team.
The flower field in the opening scene — where the Goblin’s sword was stuck on the ground — is the same flower field that Kim Shin would be waiting at when EunTak summoned him.
I thought that was foreshadowing.
If you want to know where this buckwheat field is it’s the Borinawa Hagwon Farm.
https://www.seoulkoreatour.net/places/kochang/outdoors-recreation/borinara-hagwon-farm/
I thought it was terrible to throw a bowl of rice at ET’s head. That was really mean on more than 1 level, not least of which was wasting food.
She can’t even get an umbrella from her family, but she ends up meeting her umbrella.
Goblin was not able to find his bride all the years even after she was born, because she never made a wish. It was only on her 19th birthday that she did.
ET : “When I was 9 I decided never to do this again, but it’s urgent. Please understand. Please let me find a job, do something about Aunt’s family, and please let me get a boyfriend.”
Shin can hear her wish.
“… and save me from this misery. Even a dime …” Then she thinks no one hears her so she says “What am I doing. To whom am I praying? Deities don’t exist.”
(It’s possible that the Almighty does hear her but we are not shown this. I’m guessing because of what happens later.)
@Packmule3,
Thanks for the link! I will check it later!
Hush by Lasse Lindh.
@GB,
I have seen the BTS Yum Hye-Ran was worried if she hit Kim Go Eun hard.
FIRST MEETING
ET on her birthday hears thunder. She blows out her candles and this summons KS… this could be the doing of the Almighty as well.
ET is upset over the thunder and threatening rain : “We only have two umbrellas. Why does it keep raining?”
KS : “Was it you?” KS is standing behind her on the pier with a bunch of Buckwheat flowers.
When he asked her how she called him, she says, ‘Desperately?’
(as in powerful desire… so KS got summoned, especially since she has his mark.)
ET recognises him from seeing him on the street. She says she didn’t call him, she just can see him. She thinks he’s a ghost.
ET : “Because our eyes met by mistake on the street that time.”
KS : “What do you mean you see me?”
ET : “You’re a ghost. I see ghosts.”
KS : “I’m not a ghost.” (The question that KS failed to ask is why she though he was a ghost. It was obviously because he had a sword in him. If he’d gotten her answer then, he’d have realised that he’d met his bride.)
ET : “Were you a shaman before you died or something? Or a con man? Future? Give me a break.” (KS had never encountered a human who was so disbelieving and dismissive of him.)
Patronisingly : “Go to a good place. It isn’t good to wander for too long”. …(He is speechless.) “But what are the flowers for?”
(So because she did not believe him and treated him like a stubborn ghost, he’s put out and starts bickering with her. This is the early tone of their relationship.)
“Why are you asking? You said to leave.”
“Fine. Go, then.”
“Buckwheat flower [Meimei kot]”
“That’s not what I’m asking. Why are you holding them?” (When they get married, she’ll be the one holding a big bunch of Buckwheat flowers.) “Give them to me. They don’t suit you.”
(She’s not afraid to ask for things.)
ET : “You can give them to me. It’s my birthday. A very depressing birthday.”
He passes the flowers to her. “I always get greens on my birthday. I received a cabbage on my 9th birthday. But what does the Buckwheat flower mean?”
“Lover.” (The first giving… later on she will give him the leaf. The leaf will come to have a greater significance, tied with memory. That leaf was also to mean ‘lover’ ie ‘If you catch a falling maple leaf, you’ll fall in love with the person you’re walking with.’
I’m sorry I’m going so slowly, but this drama is so well crafted that I don’t want to rush.
Well there’s a twist on the truck of doom. Car of doom is instead the first of many cars that will meet their end in this drama.
The woman found in the trunk of the wrecked car had been killed previous to the car accident. So we see that Grim Reapers are not always with their clients at the moment of death. But it was at the first moment the client realized she was dead.
The lighting figure in Grim Reaper’s office was very expensive, from what I read. It is gorgeous.
We see Goblin and Grim Reaper greet each other, apparently after not seeing one another for a long time. The tone of their bromance is set: friendly mockery. And that tone is important as the depth of their relationship is revealed over the course of this drama. There’s good feelings between them, but also a battle of wills to see who will come out on top.
Shin seems to be predicting to ET : “Say goodbye to your aunt’s family. You won’t see them for a while. work hard at the chicken restaurant. You’ll get it.” Then he walks and vanishes as blue flame.
She calls out after him because he did not mention getting a boyfriend. Perhaps, even at this time, Goblin was reserving the right to boyfriend to himself??
Repartee between Goblin and Reaper. Goblin gives in because Reaper threatens to to take Deok Hwa if he does not get to keep the house he rented for 20 years.
So KS is a good guy LOL.
Also sharing my notes with the team.
That 1968 scene in Paris…or Quebec City.
To me, the purpose of this scene (aside from introducing Na Da Reum to us, lol) was to show that Goblin can see the future.
He knew that NDR was going to run away and that the step-father was going down the stairs to chase after him.
He told NDR that “The answer to your math problem #17 is 4, not 2. You just missed that one.”
Goblin can see into the future as well as read the person’s future in his eyes.
Why is this important?
Because it tells us that he knew that he’d met his bride on that day he and EunTak “first” met in the rain.
That wasn’t an accidental meeting.
All the spirits knew that Euntak was the “Goblin’s bride.” Kim Shin would know her, too.
But the problem was when he walked by her to read her future (and confirm that she was indeed his bride), he couldn’t see her future clearly. He only had dark images that didn’t make sense. So he doubted that she was his bride.
As for EunTak she also knew that he was special because she could see that he was walking around with that sword imbedded in his chest. But she wasn’t going to tell him that.
I love their bickering. It made the drama so funny and light…
@pkml3
Thanks for your notes. I was thinking that if the ghosts knew, then KS should have known, especially since she could see ghosts AND summon him. Later in this episode, when she walked into Quebec with him, it should have been obvious but he was so stuck on her seeing the sword he never thought that she never said she couldn’t see it, only that she never mentioned it.
3RD MEETING
LOL ET is teasing KS with her fairy business – Tinker Bell LOL.
She asks what kind of shin he is LOL and it sounds like guardian as well as god. She’s so close but does not know he really is a deity.
KS : “Do you even know what you’re doing to me …”
ET : “No. I never called you.”
KS : “It’s you. I’m sure of it. This never happened to me before.”
ET : “Is it really me? Really? If that’s true, what am I? I know.” (She’s teasing him now, because he refuses to believe that she didn’t deliberately call him.)
KS : “What?”
ET : “Tell me what you see on me.”
KS : “You’re wearing a uniform.”
ET : “What else?”
KS : “Pretty… (She smiles) Uniform (her smile gets smaller).”
She draws breath : “Is that all? Don’t you see wings or anything? I must be a fairy. Tinker Bell.”
Shin is annoyed and goes off as smoke.
4TH MEETING
Next she’s in church and suddenly gets a brainwave. She lights a candle and blows it out in church.
Shin walks in
“I got it. I know how I can call you.”
“Okay, but did you really have to call me here?” (He looks at a statue)
“Are you afraid? I heard they’re nice.”
“Don’t try to flatter them. You questioned divinity before.”
“I’m just trying to figure out where it is.”
“Why aren’t you using your flame to disappear?”
“I can’t do it here. You can consider it a demilitarized zone.”
She asked about the boyfriend wish.
Shin : “You need to work on it too.” (LOL… actually inadvertently, she is working on him and slowly making him her boyfriend.)
@Growing Beautifully, I had the impression that ET is teasing KS; she has been told that she is the Goblin’s bride. She’s having a bit of fun with him?
Deokha was spoiled because he was the male descendant of the Butler.
I like it when Deokha asked Kim Shin who he was, and Kim Shin replied, “I am your uncle, then I will be your brother. Then, I’ll be your son, and your grandson.”
If Kim Shin’s age is a constant 32, then that means —
he’s an Uncle, when DH’s age is between 5 and 25.
he’s a brother, when DH’s age is between 30 to mid-40s
he’ll turn into a son, when DH’s age is in his 60s
he’ll be a grandson, when DH is in his 80s.
He leaves Korea to return to Canada and stays there for a few years to hide. When he returns to Seoul, it won’t be apparent to other people that he hasn’t changed a single day.
@Fern Yes and no. On the one hand she’s desperately needing an alternative to living with her aunt and wants to find her destiny since she’s the goblin’s bride. On the other, KS is irritating her by not helping her much or believing her, and later in not cooperating in telling her what she’s supposed to see and continually denying that she’s the bride, so yes, she’s deliberately irritating him as well.
He keeps asking her to prove who she is, without telling her who he is and answering her most important questions.
He’s too narrow minded to see his way around communicating with her in such a way that she’d have answered his questions. He lies to her over and over again instead, saying he’s not the goblin, which is annoying.
Since KS opens that door and later ET tries to use the same door to get back to Quebec on her own, but finds herself in the washroom with Samshin … that means that KS was opening the door of the Ladies Washroom LOLOL.
ET : “Canada? The maple country? Where there’s aurora? Are we in a foreign country?” And she walks off enthusiastically.
ET : “Amazing! I didn’t know you could do something like this.”
“You can too. Who are you, really?”
(The question of identity keeps cropping up. If only he’d told her the truth. In retrospect, how could he doubt her based on only 1 missing piece of evidence? And it was not proven that she had not seen the sword, only that she refused to mention it. Who else could think him a ghost, who could summon him and go through the portal with him if not his bride? His one-direction way of thinking led him to his death and the deaths of many innocents.)
The most lovely “Sarangheo” we have heard!
Along with Stay with Me by Chanyeol & Punch.
Aww gotta go my kids woke up. This was nice even though was short for me.
I have so many questions, but I’ll ask one:
Did the act of saving ET mom made the baby be the bride?
Don’t remember or was it meant to be like that (fate)
@pkml3 Yes, I thought the relocation every 20 years was a smart way for KS to live long without raising speculation. He kept changing his name as well with the surname Yu to belong to his butler’s family.
Thanks for the buckwheat link!!
KGE is so youthful here, her expressions are exactly how a high schooler is. That’s probably why I felt uncomfortable with the pairing initially. But goblin has same age forever, ET will have to grow up.
The sparks flew with goblin and grim reaper in the same house. Love it!
@CArolina,
ET’s mom prayed to a good hearted Shin to save her child.
She didn’t ask to save her. She wanted her child to be born.
And the Goblin did so, as Samshin predicted!
For that reason, I think the Nabi Shin, made ET the Goblin’s bride.
How come it ended so quickly…one and a half hour later! LMAO!
@Carolina
My guess is that the almighty had a hand in it. ET’s mum and KS both had scathing things to say about the almighty. The latter had also promised that there should be a bride to draw out the sword. So at that time, KS’s saving ET’s mum resulted in all these circumstances coming together and he created his own bride in the unborn ET.
ET had no choice in the matter, so it was kind of fate for her and she was branded with the goblin mark. But KS had the choice to save ET’s mother, knowing that she was pregnant, so he inadvertently made his destiny.
Thank you all. This rewatch is really inspriing. Gotta run now!
@GB,
I believe Goblin knew where she was all along. But he ONLY said that he was still in search for her. He let his butler/assistant think that he was still looking for her when all along he found her.
That’s why in later episodes, we’re shown that he knew about Euntak’s crush on the baseball kid.
Remember: he was spying on the kids and he blew Euntak’s petal before Euntak could fall in love with the baseball kid.
And that first meeting in the rain wasn’t accidental. He knew that she was going to walk there.
All the spirits knew that EunTak was the Goblin’s child.
And that’s why he was waiting in the buckwheat field with the bouquet of buckwheat. He was waiting to be summoned — but he didn’t know HOW he was going to be summoned because he couldn’t see/read anything in Euntak’s mind when he crossed paths with her.
His waiting in the buckwheat field wasn’t accidental either. He knew that was the day he was going to encounter his bride. Hence the prepared bouquet. And the choice of flowers — the buckwheat. Which meant “Lover.” He was trying to tell her that he was her groom.
And he kept asking her “HOW” she summoned him because that part of their meeting he didn’t get. He knew OF their encounter (because he can see the future, i.e., Nam DaReum and the baguette), but he just didn’t know how he was going to establish connection with Euntak because there was NO way he’d go up to her and tell her that she was his bride. The “how” aspect was a mystery to him. He didn’t expect it to be as simple as blowing and extinguishing a light.
That’s one of the things that viewers will miss when they watch this show for the first time. 🙂
Bye @Kuroshio! See you next Saturday!
The family retainer for whom Kim Shin stopped advancing toward the king, who was spared because Kim Shin stopped, honored the remains and sword of Kim Shin into his old age, turning over the task of serving the memory of his lord to his grandson. Again, the strength of the bond between Kim Shin and this particular person seems stronger than with Kim Shin and his faithful troops, his sister, or anyone else in Kim Shin’s life.
The love of the servant and his willingness to serve Kim Shin even after death is what brings Goblin into being.
“The desire of your people is saving you. However, the blood of thousands is on your sword. They were enemies to you but they were also God’s creations. Stay immortal alone and watch your loved ones die. You will never forget any deaths. This is my reward to you and the punishment you will receive. Only the bride of the Goblin can remove that sword. Once the sword is pulled out, you will return to nothingness and be at peace.”
And I think the old family retainer’s reaction when Goblin appears proves his unshakable love of Kim Shin: he welcomed Goblin, rather than running away in fear.
And what is the first thing Goblin does when he’s given life again? He kills for revenge. He’s still driven by stubborn pride.
We see that time moves differently for Goblin than it does for the rest of the world. He leaves his faithful family retainer, who is old and ailing, to go to the palace to wreak his revenge. When he comes back, the old man is dead and already buried. Goblin encounters the grandson grieving at the burial site, which is where Kim Shin had lain in death until nothing was left but his sword.
If you can find it, I highly recommend watching the behind-the-scenes footage of this part of the drama. Gong Yoo coaches the child actor in a beautiful way, helping him dig into and display true emotion, all done with gentleness and respect for his young co-actor.
@pkml3 That’s true. That explains why he was there with the flowers in a bouquet. However it does not explain why he was so reluctant to admit that she’d figured it out correctly. He really was the goblin and he knew she was his bride, so why the reticence? Did he think her too young and decided to wait a bit? Did she have to say she saw the sword in order for him to own up to be the goblin? But why?
To everyone who has to leave … bye! And thanks for a great party! See you next week.
@GB Unnie, @Packmule3, @Janey and @Welmaris,
It was a lovely first episode, isn’t it?
I had a lovely time watching Goblin with you guys!
Yes, @GB, their first meeting on the street is remarkable because it looked like nothing happened.
But they knew who each other was.
She knew that she was the “Goblin’s bride.” That’s why she was hounded by that ghost (and it wouldn’t be the first time either), The ghost ran away because “Goblin” appeared. Upon spotting Goblin in the distance, the ghost said, “You! It’s true then! I’m sorry. sorry.” EunTak didn’t get why the ghost was apologizing.
The ghost was apologizing because she confirmed the rumors that EunTak was the Goblin’s Bride. She realized that she was bugging THE Goblin’s bride, and Goblin wouldn’t like that, of course.
Kim Shin knew that she was the one he’d been waiting for. But he probably thought that she was too young to approach. He was curious to know why her of all people and what made her special. But there was nothing in her mind to indicate her “special-ness.”
@Packmule3 and @GB,
He didn’t connect the dots that she was the baby he saved some 18 years ago…He realized it when they were in that library.
@Cleo, @Janey, @Welmaris, @pkml3, @Fern and whoever is still here yes, it was a lovely rewatch as usual. And this time with pkml3’s notes, we get more insights!!! So exciting.
@Cleo, yes that’s right. He only figured it out when she was trying to show him the mark on her neck. But he still wanted the ultimate proof of her saying that she could see the sword. Stubborn fellow.
I love the ending song.
@Growing Beautifully, if indeed he knew she was his bridge, I think he is confused that his bride is such a young person – probably not what he expected. Maybe he was waiting for something about her to show that she was mentally ready/equipped to be his bride? She has already said that she had no future, so she sounds unsurprised that she may die young. At this early point, I would think that he is wondering if he should delay a few years for her to grow up more?
@pkml3 I’d think KS would know who ET was or should have been, however ET didn’t know the goblin would be walking around with a sword in him. She took him for a ghost who strangely needed to carry an umbrella.
She used reasoning to come to the right conclusion, but he refused to confirm her suspicions. Still she stuck to her guns and kept speaking to him as if he was the goblin, whether he admitted it or not.
Bride, not bridge? Auto-correct, for shame.
@GB,
I think that was before, he realized he had feelings for her.
He was denying to himself that she was like spring to him.
That’s why he was fighting it. He wanted validation that she was his bride, when she already could summon him per her will and follow his portal to Quebec…
@Growing Beautifully, yes, ET was very confident in her deductions. Same with the candle and even the phone candle app.
@Fern, yes you may have a point there. He was looking for some other sign in his bride and she didn’t give off the right vibes. Calling herself Tinker Bell and asking for help (like he was a genie) didn’t help either LOL. You could be right in that he thought her too immature to be the bride, not that he’d marry her but for her to pull out that sword.
I don’t think any of the bride stuff was ever romantic in their minds. It was a job or a role that had to be taken up by someone, and not meant to be a romantic liaison.
@Fern
ET is a bright kid. She always was and would be. 🙂
I have to go for now! I really enjoying to talking to you all!
It was a pleasure to be live commenting after a while.
Have a nice weekend everyone ! *mwah*
@Cleo @Fern, I suspect that KS started having feelings for her pretty soon… like at the Christmas shop in Quebec.
SPOILER
SPOILER
He stared at her in that particular way as if he became aware of something. Then he took the photo indifferently and tossed the phone… because it was not appropriate for him to like a child, and such a bright and innocent being like ET.
Bye @Cleo!! See you next week!
@Cleopatra, yes, validation. He believed it, yet didn’t believe it. I think his confusion was sincere.
I think that ET, having by now figured out that he is a goblin and she a goblin’s bride, is really excited by the prospect of being with him. Mostly for the travel benefits and wishes, mind. And to get away from her miserable family and ‘crappy life’. as KS put it, in the dramacool translation.
@packmule3 and @Growing Beautifully, and all others here, many thanks for hosting this. I am new to the Goblin and appreciate it so much thanks to you.
Yes, @GB, I don’t know exactly when it would dawn on her that he was Goblin. But if she reflected later on the words of the scared-ghost-who-disappeared, she would come to realize that this man-walking-with-a-sword was special to her because he was her Goblin.
Because the ghost said, “So it’s true! Sorry. Sorry.”
That’s why she also asked for the posy of buckwheat. I thought it was kinda forward/brazen of her to ask for the posy from a stranger. But if she had an inkling that the posy was actually meant for her because she’s his bride, then it was her subtle way of breaking-the-ice. 🙂
I’m back reading now since I got immersed by some of the scenes and I do t want to miss on KGE and GY facial acting.
That saranghe in the end was cute and age appropriate so aegyo meter is low here. ET wants out of her miserable life and now that she met goblin, she was grabbing the opportunity. LOL!
On the other hand, I agree that goblin knew ET is his bride but is in denial. How can she be this young and why, how come she is the one are probably his questions. The concept is good but the reality is a bit weird.
So how does goblin bride get born (“again” as some of the ghosts said, foreshadowing they will have to do this multiple times)? Through the grace of a deity (represented by a butterfly), it seems.
Now that the show is finished, the sun is out!!! Thanks for the rewatch everyone!!!
Thanks for your thoughts too Janey! See you and Good Morning!
Goblin is a good autumn rewatch. We get to see the maple leaves next episode.
Bye bye for now! I’m off to see another KGE drama. I’m now imagining Eun Tak cells reacting to meeting Goblin. Hahaha!
Thanks @pkml3 and putting what you say together with what @Fern and the others say, my conjecture is this.
KS is pretty hopeless at dealing with young ladies. He couldn’t even hold a decent conversation with his own sister. (Hopefully his letters to her were better.) He also started a bickering with her by calling her ugly when he really thought she was beautiful. So he said the opposite to end the conversation on a topic that he was not comfortable with.
Instead of dealing with young girls and their enthusiasm meticulously, he side steps what he is not comfortable with by denials and escape.
Faced with ET who is super intelligent and argumentative, high-spirited, and although depressed, still full of hope at being saved by a ‘genie’, he takes the easy way out and denies that he’s the goblin so that he can get away from her.
It’s true that she does not fit into an ancient warrior gentleman’s idea of what a bride should be. At least, she should have been more mature. He’s quite at a loss at being at the beck and call of a young chit of a girl who wants him to help with her future, which is a future that he is surprised he cannot see.
Since she is so young, he also has to take special care to be a guardian and not to take advantage of her. While I believe that he likes her pretty much from early on, for propriety’s sake, he keeps his distance. To keep her from continually hounding him and from any impropriety, he keeps pushing her away until he can figure out what to do with her.
Yes, @Fern, There’s this issue of their age difference which was talked about a lot by netizens at that time.
However, in the context of the story, it didn’t matter. “Fate” intended them to be together. And who argues with “Fate”? The netizens could suspend their disbelief and continue watching or they could walk away. But once they buy into the story or premise of the story, then there’s no choice but to see that their age didn’t matter. “Fate” has spoken.
But Goblin was aware of her youthfulness. He knew they were going to meet and he was going to give her the flowers. But he wasn’t going to tell her outright that she’s his bride.
I’m glad that he realized that it would be creepy and just wrong.
Note: It wouldn’t be criminal though because the age of consent in SK was 13 (at the time this kdrama was aired). Nevertheless, it would be creepy and… wrong.
Goblin was willing to “introduce” himself but nothing more until he’s confirmed and verified that she was truly the Bride. As far as he was concerned the Bride was meant for one and only one purpose anyway: to pull out the sword in him.
Love didn’t enter the question.
So whether she was 18, 19, 20, or 55, didn’t matter as long as she just did her job. He was disappointed…no, he was actually angry… to discover that she couldn’t even see the sword.
Hmm… it seems @pkml3, we had the same thought about ET’s age and the bride role being just for the sword and nothing more. So there was nothing icky about it at all.
The complications arise, as they always do, when the emotions got in the way. Young ET had no clue what ‘I love you’ entailed, except that it was supposed to be something between a bride and groom. She was intentionally teasing him (knowing that he was uncomfortable) to see how far she could go now that she’d found her own gold mine in the goblin. She did note that he never protested about her saying that.
Goblin adds a rock to the burial site of his faithful family retainer. “You are my first punishment, it seems…I was blinded by revenge. I never even asked how he’d been.” This is the beginning of Goblin’s growth. He’s become aware of the price he pays for his stubborn pride.
Goblin is touched that despite ignoring his family retainer to seek revenge, missing the opportunity to receive and give love with the old man, the child obeys his grandfather’s will and pledges to serve Goblin. This is going to be the first relationship in which Goblin learns about giving as well as receiving.
“Do you know what happens when a human is worse than a beast? You meet an angry god.” Kim Shin would know this, because he has been on the “worse than beast” side of the equation. He’s been punished by an angry god, and now he is the angry god. And he isn’t merciful, at least toward the crew of the ship he sinks in judgment for their murderous greed. When one begs “save us,” Goblin replies it is too late and deals the death blow to the ship with his sword. If he’d wished, his powers were such that he could have saved the ship and its crew. Vengeance still burns strong in Goblin. Will that ever change?
Goblin sits high above Seoul, drinking beer and hearing the sounds of the city and its people. It has been many centuries since the Goryeo Period (918-1392). He’s emotionally detached, even jaded. But the earnest prayers of a woman who’s bleeding to death after being hit by a car stir him into action. She’s the one who had been advised by the old woman on the bridge to pray earnestly in time of need. This moment has been foretold. “My principle is to not get involved in human life and death.” Goblin seems to have changed, compared to how his anger and sense of righteousness drove him to action in the past. “You were lucky. You met a tender-hearted god. I don’t want to see anyone die tonight.” He just did, in fact. We heard her heart stop. She is dead.
There’s so much iconic cinematography in this drama. Filming Gong Yoo’s face through his fingers is genius.
Grim Reaper arrives to meet his client, who isn’t there. He walks toward the large pool of blood staining the snow, but our view is through the branches of a tree that is blooming. Goblin is happy. “Snow and blood and flower.” Grim Reaper knows his clients (mother and unborn baby) are missing because of divine intervention.
I’m putting this note here.
Typically, “bromance” is one of my banned words.
However, I’m allowing it in our discussions of “Goblin.” I don’t think viewers realize that the inside joke was played on them. The Goblin and the Grim Reaper are in a “BROmance” because they are siblings.
The Grim Reaper is the reincarnation of Kim Shin’s sister.
They squabble like they did before. Kim Shin and his sister were close and as @GB said, “He also started a bickering with her by calling her ugly when he really thought she was beautiful. So he said the opposite to end the conversation on a topic that he was not comfortable with.”
Same thing here. We had two clues so far.
On their first meeting, what did Goblin say to Grim Reaper? “What a vulgar hat you wear.”
Then, when they met again, they were bickering because Grim Reaper wanted to stay in his house.
Their personal traits and relationship didn’t change even after the Queen/sister’s reincarnation as the Grim Reaper.
@packmule3,
The grim reaper is the reincarnation of the King.
Sunny is the reincarnation of KS’s sister aka the Queen…
🙂
Yes, @GB.
There was nothing icky about being the “Goblin’s Bride” because their relationship as “Fate” intended it, was to be purely transactional, i.e., just pull the sword out and end his miserable existence.
Love had nothing to do with it.
No, @Cleopatra. 🙂
That’s the thing.
Sunny is NOT the reincarnation of the King. You’ll understand what I’m saying as the story goes along. I’ll point them out.
Heh! I read your thoughts on this before @pkml3. Trust you to make the leap (which the Show did not portray, or rather it kept showing the opposite) which no one else would.
The other clue is that Reaper himself says something like “Who says the king would reincarnate into a guy.” LOL. So sister could have become a guy.
However, I don’t know how the rest of it holds up since the evil eunuch ghost identifies Reaper as Wang Yeo, and he remembers his guilt as Wang Yeo, after kissing Sunny.
Had to take a break but came back and finished the first episode. And wow. I am enjoying this 1000x more this time round than my first watch. Especially with reading your comments and getting that additional depth and understanding.
Thank you for this rewatch, I’m so glad I get to enjoy the full potential of this show.
It seems like this writer packs so much depth in her shows that 2 watches seem almost necessary. I enjoyed TKEM, but I feel like it’s worth rewatching that to get all the feels of it.
Can’t wait rod next Saturday! In the meantime off to finish the last 2 episodes of Masters Son.
@packmule3,
I am confused…🤔
Sunny is the reincarnation of the Queen. That is I have understood.
@GB, Yes, Reaper said that “tongue-in-cheek” but, as usual, there was more than an ounce of truth in that statement.
I’m telling you. The Queen is the Grim Reaper.
And that’s why Sunny would leave the Grim Reaper. Right? She voluntarily exiled herself. She left, and Grim Reaper wouldn’t meet her again until death.
That’s divine retribution. That’s the King’s atonement for what he had done to the one person he said he love. He killed her out of jealousy.
So he had to pay for that “sin” in this lifetime so they could meet again in the future with a clean slate.
Otherwise, they’re bound to repeat the same mistake over and over again because there was still this “debt” or crime or sin that he had to pay for.
@Cleo, don’t worry about it. Sunny and Reaper, whether queen and king or vice versa…. we are theorising past what the Show is showing us. This Show makes it very obvious (not subtle at all) who we are to think is whom. It will cut over to the character that is being spoken of etc, so if we follow the clues of the Show, we’ll never get to where @pkml3 got to LOL.
However there are ambiguities that allows us to play around with the idea that all is not what it appears or what the Show is portraying.
Just wait, @Cleopatra. I’ll tell you the clues/hints as we go along. Just note that the characteristics of the Queen don’t line up with Sunny. But they match the Grim Reaper’s to a T.
I actually didn’t want to share this. I like keeping the secret to myself.
Just be open to the possibility that what you see is not what you think it is.
If we are talking about some META, I will try to follow your hints @Packmule3.
I was talking about the script based on what we are being told.
@PM3 – interesting viewpoint that Grim reaper is the sister’s reincarnation and not Sunny. Sunny and KS will acknowledge each other as brother and sister eventually in further episodes. Also, one becomes a grim reaper after committing a grave sin which was fitting for the king due to what he did to KS, his followers and the Queen. The “bromance” now is what could have been the relationship between the king and KS without the poisonous eunuch in between.
@pkml3 let’s add logic to back up this theory.
If a person becomes a Grim Reaper because they committed suicide, then we have to define Kim Sun’s standing there in solidarity with her brother as suicide. She stood there knowing she’d be killed.
One problem with the theory is that Sunny has also been given the name Kim Sun, which she hates. So shall we say that it’s the name that recalls the king’s shame, and so Sunny as king hates it?
In her memories of her past life, Sunny sees from Kim Sun’s point of view, the king walking away after she is shot. She does not remember the scene from the king’s point of view. So that part is hard to reconcile.
The depth of sorrow and guilt suffered by Reaper at the sight of Kim Sun’s portrait, and in the temple when KS accosted him, seems to make him more like Wang Yeo than Kim Sun.
There are arguments both ways.
Will keep an eye on the GR and Sunny more in the succeeding rewatches. I like this new perspective, it keeps the viewing fresh again.
@Janey IKR?!?!? This was the thing that I read @pkml3 wrote before and found so intriguing. How to reconcile with all the rest of it!!! Now we rewatch with extra eagle eyes LOL.
@Janey same over here.
@GB Unnie, I am intrigued by this, so I will oay attention.
As you and @Janey already stated the script give us those specific arguments.
For instance, the jade ring. Samshin took it from the King.
In the flashback, the King was the Grim Reaper. He remembered his sins, because he was punished by his superiors.
I am open though to this…
@GB and @ Cleopatra
Thank you for taking the time to answer. Came here for quick minute to read the rest of comments so that I could have some answers. My brain is a bit fuzzy on the details.
Thank you all for making this such an amazing enjoyable time.
Wait. Wait. Wait. I told you I’ll explain everything as the episodes roll in. Right now, you’re bombarding me with questions from all over the kdrama, and I only rewatched Ep 1.
I’m just saying that you MUST keep an open mind. The sex (or gender) of the personalities could have changed…and I believe they have. Just because the Queen was female doesn’t automatically mean that Sunny is her reincarnated form. The Queen could have been reincarnated as male.
However, although the sex/gender may have changed in reincarnation, the personalities, character traits, and quirks don’t change in reincarnation. They’re carried over from one life to another.
Goblin reacted to Grim Reaper that way (i.e., criticizing him about the hat and insulting him) because that’s how he treated his beloved sister. On his part, the Grim Reaper pouted and resented the Goblin’s comments because the Queen was sensitive to her brother’s teasing as young sisters do.
They’re siblings in the previous lifetime so the “bromance” takes on a special meaning here. And that’s the joke.
Just wait.
You’re welcome @Carolina. Glad that you were able to come back and that any of our ideas helped.
We might be in and out of here during the week and may add on more comments. @nrllee said that she might come in to read from tomorrow onwards since she is asleep at the time we start the party. So you can drop by again to check later on in the week.
It is during the act of lighting the candles on her birthday cake that Eun Tak realizes that her mother is dead. Eun Tak, her ability see others beyond death, and flame will be tied together throughout this drama.
The music starts. “And I’m here…” I’ve seen this scene a number of times, and it is so beautiful, sad, and effective that it still brings tears to my eyes. Eun Tak releases her mom, saying goodbye and wishing she’ll go to heaven. She doesn’t want her mom wandering as a ghost, like the others she sees.
The red knit scarf: it’s what Eun Tak’s mother was wearing eight years ago when she was the victim of the hit-and-run driver then restored to life by Goblin.
I note that the calendar in Eun Tak’s home had September 13 marked with stars. That must be her birthday. But shortly before, when she was at the beach with her mother (before they talked about her wanting a real cake for her birthday), Eun Tak had caught a cherry blossom petal in her hand and said spring was coming. Not true. Fall, then winter, will come before spring. That out-of-season cherry blossom petal was a sign of Goblin’s happiness. He was near, watching her.
Eun Tak’s mother was a good person. Before her soul departed, she thanked the bridge granny for giving her the advice that extended her life.
Eun Tak can see Grim Reaper while he’s wearing his hat. For normal, living humans, when he’s wearing his hat he’s invisible. We can tell from Grim Reaper’s conversation with Eun Tak that he’s not omniscient. He doesn’t know Eun Tak’s identity, at first. And bridge granny (we’ve gotten enough hints she’s some sort of divinity, right?) stymies Grim Reaper with a technicality: he can’t belatedly escort Eun Tak into the afterlife along with her mother because Eun Tak now has a name, but when he received his orders eight years ago she didn’t have a name. And we see that Grim Reaper is hampered by bureaucracy, as are other office workers in life.
Bridge granny tells Eun Tak, “After midnight tonight, a man and two women will come looking for you. Follow them. You’ll suffer a little bit, but you don’t have any other choice. Later, we’ll see that Eun Tak still calls her aunt and two cousins, “a man and two women.”
Eun Tak had divine beginnings, even before Goblin saved her life and her mother’s. When the granny responds to Eun Tak’s question why she’s giving advice, she tells Eun Tak, “Because I like you. When I gave you to her…I was happy.” She reveals herself as Sam Shin, the goddess of birth (among other attributes). It’s good to be loved by the gods and have them on your side; but ease of life isn’t a given even when that is the case.
Again, a memorable moment–and iconic cinematography–of this drama is when Sam Shin and the grandson of Goblin’s assistant pass each other on the bridge in 1998 (after Eun Tak’s mother dies) and it changes to present time. Another incarnation of Sam Shin is shown. Can you believe the same actress plays both the granny and the gorgeous woman? The wonders of makeup and prosthetics!
The schoolgirls gossiping about Eun Tak during lunchtime: “Look at her. She can hear everything but pretends not to.” We know from the rain outside, which reflects the mood of the main characters in the scene, that Eun Tak does hear their unkind words and they hurt her. She is depressed.
The ghost who accosts Eun Tak on the pathway says she’s heard she’s the Goblin’s Bride. She hasn’t just hears a rumor: she was one of the ghosts in the background on the day of Eun Tak’s birth.
The marriage of beautiful music, acting, and camera work does its magic again during the scene where Goblin and Eun Tak pass each other on the walkway. In the initial shots from behind Eun Tak, it seems Goblin is looking right in my eyes, not hers. Powerful! Then we see how they lock eyes as they pass one another. Goblin sees images of the future. They brush arms as they pass each other.
In the following scene, Goblin is sitting at his long dining table, so lost in thought he hadn’t lit his candles (which we’ve previously seen he can do with just a thought). The implication is that he’s thinking of his encounter with Eun Tak. We learn a little more about Goblin’s existence, that he must adopt new identities and live in different places every 20 years or so to hide the fact that he doesn’t age. That explains why he was in Paris in the 1960s, and why it had been 20 years since he’d last been in Seoul when he arrived before Eun Tak’s birth.
@Welmaris, I’ll just answer you on the blog. 🙂
Eun Tak does all the early morning cooking chores for her aunt and cousins while they laze in bed. She calls them to eat, “Eat breakfast, one man, two women.” She still calls them what Sam Shin had called them when telling newly orphaned Eun Tak she’d be living with them. They speak harshly to Eun Tak, and it is obvious she hasn’t been living in a loving home; it sounds like she’s been subjected to physical abuse as well as verbal and emotional. Her aunt demands that Eun Tak brings her bank book to the bank after school, and it appears to be an ongoing battle between them. Auntie hurls her rice bowl at Eun Tak, striking her in the head. I’ve seen a BTS in which Gong Yoo says this was the very first scene Kim Go Eun filmed of this drama.
Eun Tak not only cooks seaweed soup for herself and relatives to commemorate her own birthday, but later she buys her own birthday cake. She sits, alone, at the end of the jetty. This is an excellent visual representation of her life: a lone figure surrounded by tossing sea on a gloomy day. In contrast, Goblin is seated in sunshine, in the field where he’d once died as Kim Shin, then was brought back to life as Goblin. He looks peaceful, but his memories are of a conversation with his old assistant. He’s not found the Goblin Bride. The sword in him sometimes causes pain, but at other times he enjoys life. He has mixed feelings about finding the one who can pull out the sword and end his long penance.
When Eun Tak lighted the candles on her birthday cake at age nine (eight by Western reckoning), it was the act of lighting them that opened her eyes to seeing that her mother’s soul, not her mother, sat before her. When Eun Tak lights the candles on this year’s birthday cake, she decides to wish on the candles for the first time in ten years. She wishes for a part time job, for relief from her aunt and cousins, and to get a boyfriend. Her wishes grab Goblin’s attention. “What the heck am I doing? Who am I begging? There’s no god.” A crack of thunder could be Goblin’s response to that statement. He should be more empathetic, since Kim Shin’s dying thoughts were, “Do not pray to anyone. Since God is not listening.”
Eun Tak and Goblin’s conversation on the jetty–their first, although Eun Tak remembers their first wordless meeting on the street–demonstrates that they confuse one another because they’re encountering someone, something new to them. Goblin was summoned by Eun Tak, but Eun Tak doesn’t think she’s responsible. She thinks he’s a ghost, despite his saying he is not.
G: What are you? What are you that I can’t see what I normally see?
ET: What should you be seeing?
G: your 20s and 30s, your future. (He did get glimpses of their future when he passed ET in the street.)
G: I guess I don’t have a future. (She doesn’t know she’s living on borrowed time. She may have forgotten her conversation with Grim Reaper ten years ago.)
There’s another truth Eun Tak speaks to Goblin without knowing its full impact: “Rest in peace. It’s not good for you to roam around for long.”
And more truth is spoken–unknowingly at that point–between Goblin and Eun Tak in regard to the bouquet he’s been holding since coming from the buckwheat field to the jetty.
ET: You can give them to me. It’s my birthday today. A very glum birthday.
[Goblin thinks about it for a few ticks, then hands the bouquet to Eun Tak.]
ET: I seem to get plants on my birthdays. When I was 9, I got cabbage. What does buckwheat flower mean in flower language?
G: [With no hesitation] Lover.
[Goblin probably gathered the buckwheat bouquet to take to the grave of his first assistant, the grandson of Kim Shin’s old family retainer.]
Goblin tells Eun Tak he’s granting her birthday wishes. Her aunt and cousins will go away. She’ll get a job at a chicken restaurant. Then he disappears. Eun Tak shouts after him, “Hello? What about my boyfriend?”
Goblin had said his goodbyes to the old man currently serving as his assistant, and was supposed to be adopting a new identity in a different location, but after his encounter with Eun Tak, he goes back to his house in Seoul. It seems time had advanced in the world since Goblin was last in his house, since he discovers that his new assistant already rented his house to Grim Reaper and bought a new car with the proceeds. Goblin and Grim Reaper seem to know each other only by reputation, but their banter veils animosity that runs deeper than just the issue of the house.
G: You’re going to fight with a goblin?
GR: I’m sure you’re aware of what a contract with the Grim Reaper means. In lieu of this house, can I take that buddy right now? [Note: Remember how under the influence of his advisor, the king used the lives of Kim Shin’s loved ones as bartering chips.]
G: I gues there’s no other choice. We’ve got many extra rooms so you can stay here like it’s your own.
GR: It is my house.
G: It’s my house. If you can kick out a goblin on goblin land, then I’ll give you a cheer. [Note: The accusation of treason against Kim Shin stemmed from his being more acclaimed by the people than the king. The king’s fear was that if we wasn’t first in the hearts of the people, he’d lose his kingdom. In the king’s mind, the question came down to whose kingdom it was, his or Kim Shin’s. At least in the territorial battle over Goblin’s house, there was less bloodshed.]
Unique abilities Eun Tak has in relation to Goblin: she can summon Goblin; and when she grabs Goblin’s arm, she sees and feels a blue flame.
When Goblin asks her to prove she’s the Goblin’s Bride by describing what she sees when she looks at him, the first place she looks is at his chest before looking back up at his face. Before her second response she looks back at his chest. She never says anything about seeing a sword.
The mark on Eun Tak’s neck is the shape the pool of her mother’s blood took in the snow before Goblin brought her back to life. When Goblin sees the mark, he realizes his connection with Eun Tak and her mother. Because Eun Tak doesn’t say she can see a sword, Goblin disputes her claim to be the Goblin’s Bride, saying, “You have no effective value to a goblin…You’re just a side effect from a violation of the principle against messing with human life and death.”
Goblin lies to Eun Tak when she again asks if he’s a goblin. He’s may have done so because he considers the true nature of his existence to be on a “need to know” basis. Disappointed that Eun Tak didn’t provide him the evidence he asked to back her claim to be Goblin’s Bride, he is dismissive of her, even suggesting that she die as she should have before he intervened. Eun Tak is angry, and she’s a fighter. “What are you that you decide whether I have value or not?”
Not willing to let Goblin walk away with the final word, his having admonished her to live in reality rather than rumor, Eun Tak follows him through the door from the school library to Quebec, Canada. He is shocked to see her. She is shocked to have transported.
ET: Amazing! You had this kind of power?
G: You do, too. What are you really?
ET: If this is really Canada and if you can do this with your power, then I’ve decided.
G: On what?
ET: I’ve made up my mind.
G: About what?
ET: I’ll marry you, Mister. No matter how I think about this, I really think you are a goblin. [Ugh! Aegyo] I love you. [At least she said it with -yo, to be more respectful.]
What I liked about this episode is how masterfully the pieces were put into place. The backstory is doled out in a way that helps us empathize with Goblin’s current state of mind. Eun Tak’s backstory also helps us feel her determination to endure even when she’s unhappy, and how she works hard to find happiness. She is a top student despite being shunned by classmates and overworked at home. She sees herself as optimistic despite having lived a difficult, painful life the past ten years.
Some people complain about Eun Tak’s cutesy ways, but I see her aegyo as a tool she uses, one among many, to better her life. And sometimes what we might see is aegyo may be the response of a girl who’s long been denied love having someone care about her. She’s had ghosts treat her better than her blood relatives. It must be intoxicating for someone who’s been neglected and abused to experience kindness.
Well this has taken me forever. I look forward to reading everyone else’s comments above. Maybe after I eat lunch and take a nap, I’ll be able to respond to some of them.
Thanks @Welmaris for narrating, interpreting and transcribing what the episode was doing. You have made several points clear, explained what was going on behind the words, and given us more possibilities for consideration.
Yes, this Show is beautifully made in every area. There’s so much to enjoy, one viewing alone is not enough.
Thanks to everyone here too, this rewatch has been made so much more rewarding for having been shared!!
Dear Friends, I completely forgot!!!. Right now I am charging my stream to watch episode 1. Will comment and later will read and respond to you. See you next week! -_-U
@FGB4877, I’m glad you’ll be joining us. Have fun! I look forward to reading your comments.
I’d like to make a clarification. After doing research on Goryeo Period costumes, I’m convinced the evil man influencing the young king is not a eunuch, but a court official, which probably means he’s a noble and potentially vying for his clan’s control of the throne, if not seating himself directly on the throne. Yes, his clothing and headwear look like how eunuchs were dressed in the Joseon Period, but this drama is set during the Goryeo Period.
I found an abstract for an interesting reference document on Goryeo Period costumes, and downloaded the PDF. If you want to browse through it yourself, the link to the PDF is
https://www.koreascience.or.kr/article/JAKO201608967046815.pdf
Most of it is written in Korean, but the abstract is in English. A key line for our issue is: “The results shows that the Song’s system was used exclusively for the dress style of the king and government officers of Goryeo after Goryeo’s submission period by Yuan.” Song refers to the Chinese Song Dynasty, 960-1279. The Goryeo Period in Korea was 918-1392. Mogul emperor Kublai Khan declared the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty in 1272; Goryeo was a semi-autonomous vassal state of the Yuan empire from 1270 to 1356. This means the style of robe we see the evil man wearing in Goblin is what was worn by Goryeo court officials 1356-1392 and places our drama in that span of years.
I do not know how to add images to my comments on this thread. But if you click on this link, you can see a screen clip of pictures from the Goryeo costume study.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Th5hVPIjVtTuiF1KwvqS0XLdOKed34_w/view?usp=sharing
As you will see, the costumes worn in the pictures, which show artwork of the period, are similar to what we see worn by the evil man and others who accompany the king.
Another point I want to clarify, since people are calling the old man helping Goblin in South Korea his butler. He does attend to Goblin’s personal matters when Goblin is home, but the role the public sees him in is CEO of Goblin’s South Korean business conglomerate. He’s a chaebol, not a butler. His grandson, Deok Hwa, gripes about being a third-generation chaebol with no access to money.
The old man and Deok Hwa are from a long line of Goblin’s assistants, starting with the servant whose imminent slaughter caused Kim Shin to stop advancing toward the young king. That servant and others stood at a distance from Kim Shin, entreating the gods on his behalf, while Kim Shin died. They were forbidden from attending to him by kings orders, which sprang from the mind and mouth of the evil man influencing the king. From that sad day forward, throughout the rest of his life, that servant came to the site of Kim Shin’s death, marked by the sword that remained standing, to honor his lord. When he had a grandson, he trained the child to do the same and passed the responsibility to him. That child pledged himself in service to Goblin after the death of his grandfather; that child accompanied Goblin when he sailed from South Korea. I assume Goblin saved him from drowning sometime between when the wicked man of the ship’s crew dropped him over the side and Goblin sank the ship in retribution.
My estimate, based on the clothing worn by court officials when Kim Shin was killed, was that the events shown in the first scenes of Goblin took place in the second half of the 1300s, at the end of the Goryeo period. Since Quebec City was not founded until 1608, Goblin and his young retainer could not have been headed there when they sailed from South Korea. The boy was roughly 8-9 years old (the actor’s age at the time he played this role), and he was the grandson of the servant who looked middle aged when Kim Shin died, so I’m guessing 30-50 years had passed between when Kim Shin died and when he was raised up as Goblin. That would place Goblin’s first departure from Korea sometime in the middle 1400s.
As someone who’s an amateur genealogist, I perked up when Deok Hwa’s grandfather said while introducing the young Deok Hwa to Goblin, “It’s my grandson that I mentioned in my letter…he’s the only son in four generations, so very spoiled.” Those two statements seem to contradict: grandfather and grandson are two generations apart, not four. The grandfather, although he’s of advanced age, doesn’t seem old enough to have a daughter (generation.1), granddaughter (gen.2), great-granddaughter (gen.3), and great-great-grandson (gen.4 – Deok Hwa). Perhaps because of their association with Goblin, the males of the family that serve him have extraordinarily good health over extraordinarily long lives. Or there was a translation error in the English subtitles. Since Deok Hwa calls himself a third-generation chaebol, his grandfather being the first, I’m more inclined to believe two generations, not four, divide them.
@Welmaris, you gave me a whole bunch of catnip and I am a happy cat!!! (=^-^=) . Period dressing is always interesting. Regrettably I have no Korean under my belt.
My guess about the costume “blunder” would be that most period Dramas are staged during Joseon, so it is most likely that there is a big collection of Joseon garment from past Dramas, a much smaller collection of Goryeo clothing and that to be so nitpicky about a specific dress would mean an additional cost to make a new uniform when a decent costume was already available. Right now I am about to dinner while watching Goblin!!!. To be honest I guess I will join you all next Saturday instead of writing here since it will be less lonely XD .
Had to skip through Kim Shin’s harsh reception this time. It became hard to watch due to the King’s ungratefulness.
Did not remember Grim’s introduction. The characters started cold and we warmed to them as we discovered their humanity through the run.
Hi my dear @FGB4877, I was going to contact you to remind you, if you didn’t make an appearance some time this week before Saturday. I’m very happy to see you’ve come by.
Yes, it’s lonely after the party, but a few of us may haunt the past threads when we notice that there are posts coming in.
Show very quickly gave us the human qualities of KS, and then of GReaper. They are both supposed to be ‘terrible’ deities in the powers that they can wield, but they turn out to be petty pussy cats LOL. Once Show humanised them, the fun just increased.
Dear @GB, it has been an interesting albeit lonely week. I just forgot, I’ve missed you all a lot. Friday the 15 I was able to get my second shot of SinoPharm and I am over the moon about being vaccinated. Just knowing I can go visit a lot of my friends and not getting sick from them is just a gift (I know a lot of them no longer live here, but… THE POTENTIAL 😉 ). Life has opened just a little bit and for that I am grateful.
How have you been?, your MIL?, hope everything is OK in Singapore, and would love to read more from you 🙂
My Dear FGB, I’ll email you! 🙂
At @FGB4877, it’s good to hear that you have had your second shot. Please continue to be cautious and stay well.
Interesting things I saw in the 1st episode: ET’s mother scoffed at the Goblin legend, but became part of it. The old woman complained about getting old, then said ‘…not something to brag about in front of you,’ implying no ageing for the younger woman. The mother said something like, that’s not nice. – Did ET’s mother already understand that she might die young? Or were my subtitles slightly off?
When the reaper walks towards a death his footsteps echo as though coming through a tunnel or passageway with solid sides, even when he is outdoors. The casting is very good because to me, Lee Dong Wook has an unusual, bony face and odd eyes. The only other actor I can think of who has similar visual quality is the American Willem Dafoe (they don’t look alike, just a similar feeling.)
@Fern… Here are my notes on that part you mentioned below. I may not be right but it’s one interpretation.
ET’s mum laughs disbelievingly at what Samshin says about Goblin : ” ‘The Goblin is looking for his bride, which happens to be me.’ Is that it?”
(She is so close but just short of the truth. The bride would be the baby in her womb.)
Samshin : “I may not look like it, but I was a man-eater in my days. I might not be here the next time you come around.” (As if she might meet a man still and have a better life?)
ET’s Mum : “I envy you.”
Samshin : “I must be going senile. I shouldn’t say that in front of a single mother.”
(Samshin is speaking about herself being a man-eater in front of a pregnant woman who’s been abandoned by the father of her child. So it’s thoughtless of her. We do not know at this stage that in her other persona as the young woman, Samshin is indeed a man-eater and she really does not need to keep selling vegetables and trinkets. It becomes an inside joke for viewers who rewatch.)
ET’s Mum : “You’re mean.”
Samshin : “Mean?” (Samshin might be taking the other meaning of ‘mean’ as in stingy as well as in ‘unkind’. Not sure if they have the same double meanings in Korean.) “How much discount did I give you on my vegetables? The man who left you is the mean one.”
ET’s Mum : “That’s true.”
@Fern, about Lee Dong Wook’s unusual looks: on one episode of his talk show, Because I Want to Talk (later retitled Wook Talk), the guest was a forensic scientist. Part of their discussion centered on DNA testing he did on LDW, and the results showed he has rare genetics for a Korean. I won’t spoil it for you if you want to watch for yourself. Wook Talk is on Viki.
You might also want to watch the first two episodes of Wook Talk: the guest is Gong Yoo. They talk about filming Goblin, and also their struggle with depression after completing intense roles.
@Welmaris,
I have found the first two episodes of “I wanna Talk” but It is not open on Viki for us. In which episode is the forensic scientist, do you remember?
This is my first watch so I have no context and all this talk about the Grim Reaper and Sunny is going over my head. 😂. I didn’t even know KSH (Queen) who died was KS’s sister. I thought she was his wife initially or secret lover. I did think it strange that he seemed so terribly stoic upon her death. All the commoners treated him like a god anyway? So I guess it was fitting that he was granted that in death (when he was resurrected). It’s as @Welmaris suggested, it was almost as if the will of the people caused his rebirth.
Nam DaReum…sigh what can I say? He’s got what it takes to go far. Did I mention I only watched the beginning of Start Up for him? 😂. As soon as grown up JP appeared, he paled in comparison.
And from what the Butler mentioned when he shared a drink with KS, there were other potential brides in the past? But none who saw the sword? Or did I hear wrong?
@Cleopatra, I had to look it up. The forensic doctor was on Wook Talk in Episode 7.
@nrllee, this rewatch discussion is a bit hard to follow because some comments reference things that are revealed later in the drama. Consider them spoilers.
Goblin heard the words of the almighty, as he was being raised, that only Goblin’s Bride could pull out the sword and end his immortal life. Since then, Goblin has been looking for his bride. His interminable existence wears on him, and he finds it hard to lose all the people he loves. (Part of his punishment is that he won’t forget even one person who has died.) Sometimes the sword causes him pain. He does say during his talk with his current assistant, the old man, that there are moments he enjoys life and doesn’t want it to end as yet. And that may be one reason he doesn’t tell Eun Tak the hint that seeing the sword is the criterion for being the Goblin’s Bride. Nothing else about his prophesied bride matters to him: not age, not looks, not ethnicity, not social standing. But from the first time he encounters Eun Tak, he’s intrigued because he experiences new things because of her: he can’t see her future as he does with all others, she’s the only one who can summon him at will, and she surprised him by following when he transported to another location. For someone who’s been around for centuries, experiencing something new must be invigorating. Eun Tak brings spark (er…extinguished flame and smoke) into Goblin’s life.
As for Eun Tak, she may have heard from the ghosts that she’s the Goblin’s Bride, but what that means fully, she hasn’t been told. Goblin wants a bride to end his existence, not embark on a happily ever after. I imagine Eun Tak hears “bride” and thinks love, companionship, family, mutual support, and growing old together. For Goblin, his bride will bring him extinction and peace. The almighty told Goblin that when the sword is pulled, he’ll dissipate into ashes. As Eun Tak’s own mother said to Bridge Granny, “It’s a terribly romantic curse. Having to find a bride in order to die.” If Eun Tak knew that’s the primary purpose of the Goblin’s Bride, do you think she’d be eager to marry him?
You mention, @nrllee, Kim Shin’s stoicism about his sister’s death. I have wondered why he, a general, seemed clueless about the situation into which he walked. Why did he rush to see the king after three days of fighting? He and his men didn’t even clean the blood and dirt of the battlefield off themselves. (I would think court protocol would dictate looking one’s best when appearing before the king.) General Kim Shin is stopped at the gate of the court and told to remove his armor and receive the king’s order. Kim Shin and his lieutenant are taken aback by this, so it must not be consistent with previous receptions. The king had decided his plan of action without seeing or hearing Kim Shin. And Kim Shin is labeled a traitor, despite fighting on the king’s behalf. He’s told to kneel–a gesture of subservience, obedience–not before the king himself, but rather a low-ranking spokesperson for the king. This is not a warrior’s welcome, but meant to humiliate Kim Shin. When he was again called traitor and ordered to put down his sword, having seen archers on the wall above with drawn bows, arrows aimed at his men, Kim Shin unsheathed his sword. As a man of war, he must have known he and his men were in a vulnerable position. So why did he persist?
a. He thought the king was bluffing.
b. He believed he was invincible.
c. He wasn’t thinking, either because he was enraged or because he was obtuse.
d. He had a task to perform regardless of cost.
e. All of the above.
Kim Shin voiced his goal at that moment: “I’ll meet the king.”
He refused to play by the king’s rules. He did remove his armor, but he didn’t kneel, he didn’t listen to the king’s orders delivered by a minion, and he didn’t drop his sword…indeed, he threatened to wield it. He’d been called a traitor for reasons not revealed to viewers, but these particular actions appear traitorous since he’s directly defying the king’s commands. A trap was set for him, and he was caught, perhaps because he still viewed his actions as being driven by loyalty to the king.
The disbelief on Kim Shin’s face when he looks behind him at his men slain by the archers suggests he had thought the standoff was a bluff. Yet he continues, entering the gate that has been opened for him. He tells his lieutenant he’ll be right back. Even after seeing his soldiers slaughtered, is he thinking he’s invincible?
Once he enters the gate, alone, and it closes behind him, Kim Shin pauses when he sees a woman, richly dressed in a white hanbok with a golden tiara in her hair, standing on the landing between him and the king. She is the queen, but she’s positioned as a sacrificial lamb. The walls are lined with archers, bows drawn, arrows aimed toward the courtyard. Armed soldiers line the courtyard. On the terrace above the queen stands the king, two non-military men (one holding the king’s umbrella) and one woman. The man without the umbrella man speaks into the king’s ear, and his words give us the clues we need to understand how Kim Shin fell out of the King’s favor: “King above the people, God above the king [I imagine he’s citing a proverb]…They say that ‘god’ refers to Kim Shin. That man’s continual victory is mesmerizing the people and…his power continues to mock the royal court. Please punish him strictly according to the law of the land.” According to this advisor, Kim Shin deserves to be punished for doing his assigned job too well. What Kim Shin considered loyal service, the king was led to consider usurpation. In a voiceover, spoken from a future perspective, we hear Kim Shin say, “He clearly saw the enemy’s sword. But he didn’t see the young King’s jealousy and fear directed toward him. That was the sharpest blade ever pointed at him. He did not know that.” At this critical moment, Kim Shin’s understanding failed him.
At this point in Episode 1, we do not know the relationship between the queen and General Kim Shin, but when he approaches her, his face softens and she greets him with a small smile and welcome in her eyes. There is fondness between them.
Kim Shin looks up at the king and asks quietly, “Must you go to this extent?” The king responds by telling Kim Shin to stop. He gives Kim Shin a choice, and clarifies the stakes: “Stop right there and die a traitor. Then, everyone else will survive except you. But if you move one step closer…I’ll kill everyone at every move you make and lay them in front of you.” The queen speaks to Kim Shin.
Q: Please go, General. I…am all right.
KS: I…Your highness…
Q: I know. I truly know everything. If this is our last moment, this is my fate. [The king, on hearing her, displays rage on his face.] So, please go. Don’t stop and go to the king, General.
And despite the threatened consequences, Kim Shin obeys her and advances toward the king, sword still in hand. A tear falls from the queen’s eye as Kim Shin passes her. The king declares angrily, “It’s treason! Don’t let anyone in that household live! This is the King’s order!” The first one to be sacrificed is the queen, an arrow striking her in the chest. This confirms she is of Kim Shin’s household. (In a later episode we learn she’s Kim Shin’s younger sister.) Kim Shin continues steadily walking toward the king, not looking back at the fallen queen even though he, with all his battle experience, must have recognized the sound of the arrow hitting her.
@Nrllee, you bring up Kim Shin’s stoicism. I believe his lack of reaction as his sister is shot behind him, and others are slaughtered before him, is because he knew if he allowed himself to react, he couldn’t continue as the queen commanded him. His sister and the first line of household members received their killing blows without an outcry. As the second group of his household members was brought forward to be killed, Kim Shin’s steps shortened and slowed. Perhaps his resolve was faltering, but he reached the base of the steps leading to terrace on which the king stood, and between him and the king knelt another line of his household members; he saw one servant flinch in fear as the soldier behind him raised his sword. What spared them was the king’s advisor shouting “Halt! What are you doing? Make the criminal kneel!” From then the king and his advisor’s focus was on physically forcing Kim Shin to stop, as he had demonstrated that psychological warfare wouldn’t sway him from the task he’d been appointed by his sister, the queen.
What exactly was that task? What is the “everything” that the queen claims to truly know? We can only speculate, at this point in the drama. But I believe the reason Kim Shin came straight to the court from a three-day battle was because his sister summoned him. She needed him for some purpose which involved his talking to the king. There was some message she wanted to get through to the king, and she herself was incapable of doing it.
After Kim Shin was run through with his sword, the order given that his corpse be thrown in a field and unattended, and the king left…only then, as he was dying, did Kim Shin turn his head to his sister who lay dying behind him. They exchanged looks before their eyelids closed, a tear then rolling from the queen’s eye. I interpret it as Kim Shin messaging his sister, “I tried. I’m sorry I failed.”
@Welmaris,
Thank you for the info.
What an amazing interpretation of the scene. I love this!
I wanted to add that it was also Kim Shin’s oath to the old King who asked / ordered him to protect the new King – his little brother, that he continue to move after the Queen’s order.
Still, as you said the King was jealous and poisoned by the callous advisor. Later the young King will understand what he did exactly…
@nrllee
The Dramafever subs say:
CEO Yu : “My Lord, will you traveling alone this time too?”
KS : “Yes, it would seem so. No woman I’ve ever met has been able to see the sword.”
CEO Yu : “Which is a great relief to me. I hope the bride appears quickly for you when you’re in agony over the sword. But if the sword is seen, I hope no one finds out about it. That’s just human greed, I guess.”
KS : “It’s a relief for me too. To still have you by my side, and a full drink in my hand besides. For tonight at least, I’d like to remain alive.”
I take it that KS has been about looking for someone who can the sword. I don’t consider any other ladies potential brides, because he was just looking for a female who could see the sword. I’m guessing that as long as none of them screamed at the sight of him or pointed at his chest, they were all dismissed as ‘not brides’.
The ones who know about the sword are KS, Samshin who told the goblin story, CEO Yu who must have heard it from his grandfather and the deity himself who started the goblin thing. The ghosts seem to know only that he is the goblin, that ET has the goblin mark (I thought it was the shape of the flames from his hand as he resurrected her mum) and that she’s the goblin’s bride. They never spoke of a sword or the rest of the tale that Samshin told. Pity ET’s mum never told ET the story either. It occurs to me to wonder if Samshin chose to tell that tale to ET’s mum, knowing that the baby she carried would be the goblin’s bride. Maybe she expected ET to hear of her own ‘destiny’ from her mum.
What a well written breakdown of the palace scene @Welmaris!!! I was literally transported to the scene in my mind as you walked through KS’ steps. Thank you for this!!!
There were many if-only’s here that could have settled the “conflict” in a different way or at least without much bloodshed to his household but KS was a warrior through and through and May have been used to collateral damage.too often.
@Welmaris thanks for that write up of the palace scene. He never flinched did he? You could interpret his stoicism as indifference almost? He never backed down or showed dismay. Steely resolve. It was almost as if he was so battle hardened that he didn’t even register that his foot soldiers and his household/family were being slaughtered? Maybe that’s why that scene was done the way it was. With him still covered with the blood of the enemies in the homecoming. A reception fit for a king. He was still very much in the “war” mindset. Did he feel invincible? Was that it? Did he believe all those murmurings about him being a god of war? Hence his resolute March to his impending doom? The KS that we see with NDR and even on the ship with the little boy was very different. Kind. Caring. Although admittedly I was waiting with bated breath for the return of the boy who was tossed out into the raging waters by the motley crew and wasn’t paying much attention to the mayhem on the ship. I assume the boy lived? We are not shown in Ep1. He was the sole descendant of his faithful servant so he must’ve. 😂.
@GB thanks for the transcript. That clears it up for me. No other potential brides. Maybe love interests. 😂 But none that he would give buckwheat flowers to.
@nrllee
I believe that Kim Shin was almost completely unlike the character of warrior-hero-god that the king’s advisor (Villain Park) was making him out to be. Park was constantly repeating a false narrative into the ear of the king. It was true that the people revered KS as a great warrior, but it seems to be only Park who says that they make KS like a god above the king. There was no evidence of it.
So I don’t think he felt invincible or thought of himself as a god of war. He was in the difficult position of having the commission of the previous king still to fulfill, while he was given a contradicting commission by the current king. You will understand better when you get the backstory a bit more in much later episodes.
I believe his resolute steps towards the current king was to fulfill the previous king’s commission. I’m not sure how much the queen knew, but she supported Kim Shin in his resolve, trusting that he was doing something that he was convinced was honourable and right.
That’s about all I can think of to say without spoiling it.
KS’s nature: As you noted, he was happy to be peacefully watching the little boy enjoy the scenery or the dancing lights and he did not take up his sword to punish the ship’s crew until they had proven their murderous treachery (presumably after he’d paid them for safe passage).
Although his first reaction on resurrecting as goblin was to kill the villains behind the king’s betrayal, he proves himself to be as ‘good’ a god as he could be by meddling only sometimes to help some individuals. A totally unwarlike soul.
And his ‘fights’ with Reaper LOL… ya, you’ll need to watch them for yourself.
With all the power of a goblin at his disposal, his only exertion of power was to ensure that he and his faithful Yu family followers were comfortable in business and wealth, while he scoured the world for his bride.
About the bunch of Buckwheat flowers… @pkml3 believes, and I tend to agree that given the great whisperings of the ghosts about there being a goblin bride up and about, it was likely that Kim Shin sort of expected to meet her someway, somehow. In the Buckwheat field, he was thinking about that conversation with CEO Yu that I transcribed above, about how no woman could see the sword and sometimes he was glad that he was still alive, since finding that sword-seeing-woman would spell his death. He may have gathered the flowers for fun or while considering that he could give them to his bride if he ever met her, or as I think you said, in preparation for his trip to visit the graves. But the flowers meant ‘lover’ and he had that in his mind … he gave ET that answer to the meaning of the flowers without hesitation. So I’m more of the opinion that he was thinking of giving the flowers to his bride.
To his surprise, because he really did not expect it, he found himself summoned to a desolate breakwater on which there was a single teenage girl. He kept asking her if she had called him, but surely it should have been obvious, because there was no one else there. It must have occurred to him that it could only have been possible for her to summon him, if she was his bride. But she was ‘all wrong’ and so he was confused.
She was the wrong age. She merely recognised him as the ‘ghost’ she’d seen on the street and she dismissed him, so she had the wrong reaction. She made wishes and treated him like a genie, so she appeared mercenary, which probably turned him off. She never let on that she saw the sword, which was his prerequisite for bride-hood LOL.
When she asked for the flowers, he was not willing to give them to her. She had to persuade him finally by saying it was her birthday. I’m guessing that in his mind, he meant the flowers to go to the bride who’d be closer to his image of a ‘lover’. Eun Tak was the wrong image of a bride to him. In the end he reluctantly gives her the flowers.
To fob off her requests, he appears to fulfill her first 2 wishes only. (But he did nothing at first for several days or longer). But, interestingly, he refuses to mention the fulfillment of her 3rd wish.
He was thinking that it was unlikely ET was his bride, but at the back of his mind he was wondering if maybe he was missing something, and she might be? Who else could summon him. Getting her a boyfriend was already something he didn’t want to do LOL, possibly because he might be wrong and she might be his bride?
@GB Yes I thought he was confuzzled because she was so young and seemingly ditzy 😂. He was incredulous that she could even potentially be his bride. He probably pictured someone older and more reserved? 😂.
@nrllee,
He’s aware of her age because he was watching her at the batting cage with her then-crush when she was a kid. (You’ll see this in a later episode.)
Btw, her crush was played by your fave actor, Jung Haein. 🙂
When they met in the rain, it wasn’t an accident.
When he was waiting by the gate in the buckwheat field to be summoned, that wasn’t an accident.
And when he had the buckwheat posy to hand her, that wasn’t an accident.
What he couldn’t understand however is “why her??!!” What was so special about her that she was his designated bride? He realized that she could summon him. He realized too that she could travel like him if she followed him.
But he still didn’t know why she was the Goblin’s Bride when (he assumed incorrectly) she couldn’t even see the sword in his chest. So how was she going to pull the sword out?
His number 1 priority is getting the sword out. He wasn’t looking for a lover/bedmate/ soulmate, so her age or her personality didn’t really matter. 🙂 He didn’t expect to live her with long enough to bond with her, or grow attached to her, anyway. He just wanted the sword out at the earliest possible moment. That’s it. 😂
Aww @packmule3. Where’s the fun in that? Famous last words from a man. Why her? 😂. Why NOT her? I am looking forward to her breaking down his prejudices just like how Lizzie broke down Mr Darcy’s walls.
🤪 I must be tired tonight, @nrllee. When you wrote, “breaking down his prejudices just like how Lizzie broke down Mr Darcy’s walls,” I had the wrong image of Reagan saying, “Mr Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” instead of Kim GoEun’s cute “Saranghae.”
I’m calling an early night. I’m bone-tired. 🦴 See ya later.
😂 @packmule3. Good night.
@Packmule3, the off-kilter mental image continues with Reagan doing aegyo. Ugh!