The Crowned Clown

A copy-cat Kdrama for the books!! --- WARNING: a few indirect spoilers ahead, no direct spoilers.

I cant believe I went about 3 years without knowing of or watching this killer of a sageuk (historical drama)!! The OST was spine chilling at the right times and heightened the tension so greatly that I found myself holding my breath till the next moment. As a seasoned fan of sageuk dramas, I started this show feeling like I know it all and I've seen it all. But wow, the story of a copy-cat look-a-like clown taking over the seat of the King left so much room for never before seen twists and turns in our precious but sometimes repetitive world of kdramas!!

Acting: Before I praise the good guys, let me make mention of the exceptional acting skills of the actors who play the "bad guys". Shin Chi Soo was brilliantly conniving and very convincing. My favourite of all was the Queen Dowager. Even though she wasn't seen much in the first half of the show, whenever we saw her she convinced us of her presence and power and her goal for revenge. Even as an audience member, I was always weary of her and kept her at the back of my mind wondering when she would strike next. She was so unrelenting in her quest for revenge by plotting murder after murder. I loved her facial expressions, very regal even when she was being nonchalant. These two actors really emphasised the discriminatory division between "upper class" and "lower class" and showed us the dangers behind prejudice. Their strong performances motivated the "good guys" to work and try even harder.

Yeo Jin Goo/Ha Seon/King: I will never forget the harrowing moment when King and Clown meet for the first time - coupled with the sharp and edgy OST - that's when I knew that this actor was about to take us for an endearing ride.
For such a young actor at the time of filming this, he really outdid himself and gave a knock-out performance. The original King absolutely CREEPED ME OUT with his gaunt face, troubling spells of histeria and outbursts against the servant staff and other royalty. His slow but steady decent into total "madness" was so realistic that it was worrying. It reminded me of Macbeth in William Shakespeares Macbeth, whose "bloody hands" haunt him till his last moment. I went from denouncing his appalling actions throughout his time to feeling sorry for him in his final moments when he said "I'm scared". Thats when I saw him as a victim of his own evil.

Secretary Lee (SL): Wow what can I say?! First of all I was surprised to learn that this is the actor from "What's wrong with my family/What happens to my family" ....That is the only drama I ever watched him in and he had a more comical, silly but serious role to play as he became entangled with the main family. Kim Sang Kyung is amazing in this role, so multi-dimensional at the right times. We saw him be a noble, "clean" politician but also saw him commit "sins" in order to wipe out the bad guys and save his country. He gave a strong and steady performance, and I felt he was the backbone of this drama. To me, he was the "father" of this drama and gave a strong sense of protective paternalism which is what HaSeon , along with us the audience, really needed in order for this "crowned clown" act to last as long as it did. He did an excellent job of supporting HaSeon with the mentoring and leadership that he needed, gently but sometimes firmly. He struck a perfect balance between guiding and letting Haseon make decisions as king. Just like with what Haseon experienced, SL showed the inner conflict that comes with doing whats rights and doing whats best. When he needs to let his guard down and shown some tenderness, he does so to Woon Shim [Courtesan] so sincerely. We hardly see him express his romantic feelings towards her but when we do, it is most convincing. I could feel the trust and compassion between them whenever SL would involve her and ask her to take care of certain things.
I cant wait to see him in the Joseon Psychiatrist Yoo Se Pung, another historical drama!!Even though I express my disappointment at how short the drama was below, I believe his character was well fleshed out and fully explored.

Queen: I love how the actress displayed a more reserved demeanour compared to other queens in other sageuks. Instead of plotting and scheming (even for good causes), I do appreciate how her character was faithful to the King through mental and emotional support instead of being too politically engaged. The actress did a good job of making this queen seem more human and "normal" because she hardly used her powers and made major decisions. She gave a great portrayal of a quiet but sure love.

OST: Really dynamic - it fed your emotions and really influenced the way you felt. I wont ever forget the chilling violin sounds for the tense scenes and the softer piano for the romantic scenes or scenes when an important conversation took place.

Story/Negatives: More episodes please!!
My only disappointment was that it was too short and plot lines were resolved too quickly. I so badly wanted 50 episodes, throughout which the clown's identity would be concealed for much longer as he and his crew continue to fool the bad guys and make real change in the Joseon nation. I wanted Ha Seon and Haksan to do more work together, to see Haseon win and fail and win again while navigating the heaviness of the crown. I felt like the Queen, her intelligence and her commitment to helping her King was not explored enough. We just saw her go through struggles but I felt she did not have enough victories in her position. I wanted her to win battles against the Queen Dowager. But I do love the way she gave mental and emotional support to her King.
***Spoiler ahead** * when Ha Seon revealed his identity to Shin Chi Soo I was soooo mad, it was way too early!!! That gave SCS too much ammunition against Ha Seon and Co. And what about the story of Secretary Lee and his "members" ? That story was introduced in the first half but was never fully developed or revisited thereafter.

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Emotional Engaging Brilliant

I watched the movie (Masquerade (2012)) one week ago and i liked the story,so i decided to start the series too. I have seen
Yeo Jin Goo in Beyond evil,liked his performance there and i wanted to see him in something different.

Music:Was on spot at every crucial scene,delivering all the right emotions.

Cast: All actors well chosen for their roles.
Acting: I will repeat myself and i dont care.Every time i write a review in a Kdrama i will always say that the majority of the Korean actors are too talended.After watching tons of series and movies from all over the world, i strongly believe Koreans belong to the very elite.Period.Same applies here.Outstanding performances from everyone.
Story:Interesting,engaging,heartbreaking.Full of hope.Full of despair.Shows how power can corrupt one and inspire another.
Long episodes but the pace is good and the story keeps going.You find yourself looking forward for the next episode without even realizing it!
Until episode 10 the drama was a solid 9.It was a marathon i enjoyed to run.But the last 6 episodes..Oh Gosh!What a ride!A sprint that left me breathless and dried but so satisfied.And the 9 became easily a 10!
The romance-fortunately for my taste-wasnt too heavy.Only in the later episodes was more intense,but the whole time supported the story perfectly.For those who really enjoys long and romantic scenes and the story revolves only around romance might be a bit disappointing.For me was the perfect dose.

Characters: Brilliant,powerful,well written characters with depth,with emotions,with strenghts and weaknesses.You feel their pain and their struggles.You put yourself in their shoes.You seek their revenge and their justice as it was yours!You can even justify the villains's actions,their evil shelves driven by power and money.Every character was substantial and had its importance for the story.Yeo Jin's char.I think this character,this dual role, gave him the opportunity to unfold his talent.This series surely enriched his Cv.
The madness in his eyes as the evil king.The kindness on his face as the good clown!Same face,two different persons,two opposite personalities.Yeo Jin Goo really nailed it!As the clown who had to take king's place he had to make many sacrifices,but walking down this dark and hard path he never lost himself .And that is what i loved the most about this char.He remained pure, he used the unexpected power he got for good.He had a vision and although he was a "fake" king he didnt want his people to suffer!All the way through he made the right choices.Many were hard and even cruel but all were for the best.
But it will be unfair not to praise Kim Sang Kyung as the Chief Royal Secretery(for his acting and his character as well)
He was the one who brought the clown to the palace.He saw the good inside him and felt there might be hope to achieve his dreams for a better nation through the kind-hearted fake king.For me this was the most interesting char and the pilar of the whole story.Eunuch Jo.Another outstanding character,same as Officer Jang.The definition of supportive roles.Without those 2 chars the story would't be complete.I havent mentioned the queen so far not because i forgot about her but because this role was more supportive than main.Her char was the weakest among all.It was the same typical queen role as in every historical Kdrama.No spine,no fire,no dynamic at all.Id love to see her been more energetic and take more decisions and support the king in a more powerful way.
Rewatch value:I gave a 5 because there are too many good Kdramas outthere waiting to be discovered and i only have 1 life and 24hrs per day!
I hope when you decide to watch this to enjoy it as much as i did!

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Well Done, except for the end

I assume that you have already watched the whole series, and this review is meant to discuss one problem of this overall very good show. So if you are looking for a thorough review of the different aspects of this show. This is not it. I mainly want to discuss one thing, namely, the the plot design of the very last episode. So let me explain my major issue with the show, and proceed to offer short comments on other aspects of it.

The major issue has to do with the overall themes of the show. It is worth saying again that this is an overall very good show. The majority of the plots are nicely laid out, and delivered to the audience in a digestable pace. This is not a show where the plots get so complicated that you need to re-watch in order to understand some of the intricacies. This is not to say that the plot is very straightforward and banal either. Both the premise of the show (namely, the a clown all of a sudden becomes a king) and the overall story progress are interesting and not cliché. The major conflict through the whole series, namely, the political and power fight within the court, is complex, multifarious yet well-articulated such that the show never gets boring (for me).

Spoiler alert again:
The major problem I had with this show then is where the show should end (I know, pretty technical and even pitty). The time distribution of the last episode is wrong. Given that the major conflict is the political fight, the show should end shortly after where that major plot is finished. While there are other themes and plotlines, such as the romance between the King and the Queen (roughly), the main theme is not romance, at least not so for the 15 episodes of the show. However, at the very end of the last episode, the director spent 20 minutes of the episode on romance, which has nothing to do with the political fight (because it is already finished at this point). It is also not very good romance: 20 minutes about how the King and the Queen are not able to find each other has "tears" value, but feels highly unnecessary. This last bit of the show, therefore, negatively impacted the overall coherence of the show because that bit, which is used to conclude the whole show, makes the whole show look like a romance when it is not. If someone only watches the last episode, s/he would have wrongly thought that romance is a major theme of the show. If s/he gets hooked by the last episode and decides to watch what happens before the last episode, s/he would be disappointed. It is as if the last episode is a nice bowl of chicken noodle soup. If someone likes the chicken noodle soup and wants more of it, s/he would be disappointed because the first 15 episodes are not chicken noodle soup, but stir-fried chicken and noodle with a bit of sauce. This is my major complaint of the last episode: still nice on its own, but not a good episode for concluding the show.

A minor complaint is the sound track, esp. the use of Schubert's ständchen, which is the theme song for (most if not )all romantic interactions. The melancholy of the song just doesn't fit well with some of the sweet interactions.

Actors are good! This is my first time watching the female lead Lee Se Young, and she catches my attention.

Much more can be said about the show, but I don't have much more interesting to add on top of all the reviews. So let this be it.

Thanks for reading.

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First episode and i am hooked lets see until the end

I couldn’t get over mr queen, tried several but it didnt interest me i stop at second episodes . Really miss mr queen , already rewatched it twice. I cam across this title and The first episode is very intriguing and interesting , the lead actor has superb acting skills . Its another side of him since hotel del luna . A more serious role and he nailed it. You can really feel that there are two different people with one face for ep 1 . Superb storyline even though its a giveaway with the plot summary . How its executed is the difference from those films with the same plot .Lets see until the end , for now , i am giving it a 10 .

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Se fosse a um tempo atrás teria muito a dizer e detalhar, mas passei muita coisa para poder ver esse dorama e olha que o comecei a ver quando estava sendo lançado, por isso não acho que devo encher de coisas, parecerão palavras ao vento.

Me perguntei o que quero destacar sobre ele, a primeira coisa é a maravilhosa atuação de Jin Goo. Os dois personagens são tão diferentes um do outro, ele conseguiu fazer ver isso em cada trejeito ou olhar, confesso que queria mais cenas dos dois junto e do rei maluco. A segunda é raiva, são tantos momentos que senti raiva que poucas linhas não seria suficiente. Raiva por injustiça, raiva por covardia, raiva por falta de atitude, raiva por bondade excessiva, raiva por muito drama, tudo é raiva.

Então com isso estou dizendo que não vale a pena ver? Não, justamente por isso gostei, por se tão bem escrito que faz despertar emoções é algo bom. Também quero deixar claro que há romance, mas acho que a politicagem tem um papel maior.

Se me perguntar se vale a pena ver, direi que vale pela atuação de Jin Goo, mas não imaginava que teria tanta politicagem, eu particularmente não gosto, então apenas vi até o final por curiosidade de como seria fechado.

O final foi o clássico, mas é feliz. Achei que acabaria parecendo uma referência ao de O Clone, contudo foi aceitável apesar de ter coisas que me irritam. Porém só o fato de finalmente ter conseguido terminar este dorama fico feliz.

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INFRAVALORADO: mismo rostro, dos personas diferentes.

"No se trata de la clase social en la que naces, sino de lo que hay en tu corazón y tu comportamiento." -Hasun.

Antes de empezar con mi opinión sobre esta obra maestra me gustaría preguntarte algo: ¿Eres de esas personas que aún dudan de la capacidad actoral de Yeo Jingoo? Si es así entonces ¡VE A VER THE CROWNED CLOWN AHORA MISMO! Porque este es su mejor protagonico hasta el momento (seguido por Beyond Evil)


The crowned clown nos presenta a un joven rey sanguinareo que supone una amenaza constante para si mismo y por ende para su pueblo. Por otro lado, tenemos a Hasun, un encantador y humilde payaso que se dedida a parodiar los terribles dichos de los mismos pueblerinos sobre las atrocidades que ocurren dentro del palacio. La vida de Hasun da un giro peligroso cuando descubren que su rostro es idéntico al del rey, siendo arrastrado puertas adentro y teniendo que seder al mandato real si quiere conservar su vida: debe ser una marioneta real hasta que el verdadero rey mejore su adicción a las drogas y problemas mentales.

Durante los primeros 6 capítulos se convive con la tensión constante de que Hasun sea descubierto, a su vez que el rey cautivo regrese a ocupar su trono, representando así una amenaza del bien obrar pero ¿volverá? ¿Que pasará con Hasun y el pueblo que tanto desea proteger de la mano del secretario Baksan?


DIFERENCIA DE CLASES, SUSPENSO, HAMBRE DE PODER, TRAICIÓN, HUMANISMO, ROMANCE Y UN PAYASO ENCANTADOR hicieron que The Crowned Clown consumiera mi vida durante tres días, llevaba tiempo deseando ver este drama y cuando netflix lo agregó a su catálogo fui feliz, sin embargo seguí esperando hasta que me decidí Y FUE LA MEJOR DECISIÓN QUE TOMÉ. TCC es simplemente UNA OBRA DE ARTE MARAVILLOSA. Desde el minuto uno nos cautiva con una ambientación que nos invita a subirnos al barco y undirnos con él de ser necesario, la banda sonora es un deleite auditivo y está tan bien usada en cada momento que causa placer, lo mismo con los cliffhangers al final de cada capítulo. Pero lo que más deseo destacar es la EXCELENTE ACTUACIÓN DE YEO JINGOO, realmente se lució interpretando a DOS PERSONAS TAN OPUESTAS ENTRE SI, al punto de que aún cuando eran la misma cara y por ende el mismo actor: LA VIBRA QUE TRANSMITÍA CADA UNO ERA TOTALMENTE DIFERENTE, tanto que cada vez que aparecía el rey, la vibra inquietante traspasaba la pantalla y eso es algo que solo un gran actor puede lograr.

De principio a fin quedé maravillada y ahora mismo siento un gran vacío en mi pecho y desearía poder borrar todo lo que vi para volver a verlo y volver a vivir cada emoción otra vez.

Si bien constantemente sientes esa expectativa por el qué pasará, a partir del capítulo 11 fue realmente agónico para mi, seguía viendo con un nudo en el estómago y el corazón en la mano.

Me gustaría destacar la relación que Hasun mantiene con aquellos tanto dentro como fuera del palacio: su hermana y su compañero, el Eunuco Jo, el general Jang, la reina y por supuesto Baksan. Cada uno de estos personajes tienen su peso y se llevaron parte de mi corazon. (todos me hicieron llorar)

Mi corazón se sentía cálido cada vez que veía a Hasun interpretando al rey, porque tengo cierta debilidad por los reyes buenos y Hasun es uno de ellos.

Ahora bien, por mucho que desee decir que todo fue perfecto, la honestidad puede más y hubo cosas durante toda mi experiencia viendo TCC que no puedo pasar por alto y ahora sí: SE VIENEN LOS SPOILERS.



1- Sentí que se olvidaron demasiado rápido del Rey, quién pese a ser un tirano lo cierto es que fue maltratado por su padre desde que nació y luego por aquellos que vieron una oportunidad para obtener más poder a costa suya, la dama de la corte que lo drogaba siguiendo instrucciones de Shin Chisoo, ellos fueron los verdaderos culpables de que el joven rey acabara como lo hizo y tanto su muerte como la forma en la que desistieron de él me rompió el corazón, porque me recordó al príncipe Sado (recomiendo ver la película The Thorne, para entender mejor mi punto) después de todo él era el verdadero hijo del Rey ¿y se olvidaron tan rápido como si no fuese nada más que un estorbo?
2- Siempre tuve emociones encontradas con Baksan y ciertos accionares que tuvo, porque si bien fue para asegurar el trono, haber matado a ese niño me resultó muy cruel y por ende al final me sentí mal por la reina viuda, quién presa de la sed de venganza y el poder terminó confiándose demasiado.
3- Llegando al final me hubiese gustado ver a Hasun reencontrarse con su hermana, después de todo él accedió a ser el suplente del Rey para obtener poder y así castigar a quienes la habían dañado y ponían en peligro a su pueblo.
4- Hasta último momento barajé la idea de que en algún punto de la trama dirían que la consorte real en realidad dio a luz a gemelos pero eso nunca se resolvió, aunque entre líneas dieron a entender que podría ser posible, Hasun mismo dijo que ni siquiera sabía cuando era su cumpleaños *guiño guiño*

Quitando todo eso, no puedo dejar de pensar en lo maravilloso que me resultó este drama, también en lo infravalorado que está, me molesta, me enoja que no tenga el reconocimiento que merece porque verlo es toda una experiencia. Supieron mantener la tensión constantemente en un tablero de ajedrez en donde los malos (aquellos clasistas con hambre de poder) podían ganar en cualquier momento, pero entonces los acontecimientos daban otro giro y mi corazón saltaba de un lado a otro.

MARAVILLOSO Y MEMORABLE. EL MEJOR PROTAGÓNICO DE YEO JINGOO y con sólo 20 AÑOS !!

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Altamente recomendado para quem gosta de drama históricos com política.

A histórica política é show de bola, bem costurada do inicio ao fim, com todos os personagens se envolvendo de forma ativa para o desenvolvimento dela.
A atuação também foi excelente , principalmente do personagem principal, do secretário chefe, eunuco Jo, e o ministro da esquerda.
Só não dou 10 porque o final foi levemente wtf, e o romance também não foi um "nota 10", algumas vezes a rainha tinha falas repetidas e os momentos deles dois juntos não foram tão envolventes.
Também faltou certo equilibrio, o bem sempre vencia em todos os episódios, diferente dos outros dramas que geralmente o vilão tá sempre um passo a frente, aqui os heróis estão sempre um passo a frente, e isso quebra um pouco a imprevisibilidade.

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Rivisto e confermo il mio primo giudizio: Finalmente un 10 pieno.
Fa parte del gruppetto dei 10 che amo rivedere.
The Crowned Clown è una di quelle serie rare che riescono ad avere tutto: una storia scritta benissimo, personaggi profondi, tensione continua e un coinvolgimento emotivo che non cala mai.
Gli attori sono semplicemente bravissimi, in particolare Yeo Jin-goo, impressionante nel doppio ruolo: riesce a far percepire due persone completamente diverse pur avendo lo stesso volto.
Anche la regia è davvero di altissimo livello: elegante, intensa e capace di valorizzare ogni scena senza mai risultare eccessiva. La fotografia è stupenda, con luci, colori e inquadrature che rendono il palazzo reale quasi vivo e contribuiscono tantissimo all’atmosfera della serie.
Il ritmo è perfetto: non ci sono episodi inutili, scene tirate per le lunghe o momenti noiosi. Ogni puntata aggiunge qualcosa e ti spinge a guardare quella successiva. Politica, emozioni, romance e suspense sono bilanciati alla perfezione.
Ma la cosa migliore è quanto riesca a coinvolgere dall’inizio alla fine. Ti affezioni ai personaggi, soffri con loro, speri per loro. E quando una serie riesce a farti provare tutto questo senza perdere qualità neanche per un attimo, vuol dire che ha davvero fatto centro.
Per me: top!

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Este kdrama tenía bastante potencial para llegar lejos, sin embargo, me dejó deseando más en varios aspectos. Primeramente, la razón por la que lo terminé fue por la actuación de Han su, nuestro personaje principal. El actor encargado de darle vida lo hice perfectamente y tenía un talento descomunal, que resaltaba en contraste al otro personaje que debía interpretar. Me encantó verlo interpretando personajes tan diferentes de una manera tan correcta, solo con la mirada ya era posible conocer al personaje que estaría encarnado en ciertas escenas. Diría que si él, "The Crowned Clown" tendría un puntaje muchísimo más bajo que el que le di. Hasta cierto punto estoy agradecida de haberlo terminado, porque me permitió apreciar mejor al actor y me creó una necesidad de ver todos sus proyectos.

Poniendo eso de lado, no hay mucho que recalcar en los demás aspectos. Es cierto que la cinematografía fue muy buena, al igual que la banda sonora, pero no lo suficiente para sentir que destacó en comparación a otros kdramas que he visto. Aun así, puedo decir que me gustó mucho.

El romance se sintió un poco forzado y la chica (el interés romántico) no tenía personalidad. Me pareció insoportable la manera en que se le dio más protagonismo a ella que a otros personajes mucho más interesantes. Y me sorprende que a pesar de tener tanto tiempo en pantalla no de desarrollara ningún aspecto de quién era como persona. Lo único que la audiencia podía saber era que no le gustaba ser reina hasta la llegada de Han su, que tenía un padre y le guardaba mucho cariño y que tenía mucho auto control ante ciertas situaciones. Eso no es suficiente para crear un vínculo con ella y por lo tanto, nunca me importó lo que le sucediera. Era muy aburrida. Y el hecho de que besó a alguien sin consentimiento aprovechando que estaba dormido... No me gustó para nada.

Tampoco me gustó que asesinaran al rey malvado a mitad de temporada. Amaba a su personaje y tenía tantas cosas que contar. Un pasado triste, traumas presentes y la soledad. Tenía tanto que contar y decidieron deshacerse de él solo por conveniencia a la trama. Y a partir de ese momento me inicié a aburrir y en ciertos momentos hasta sueño me daba. No soy la clase de personas que omite algunas escenas (me gusta ver hasta el más mínimo detalle), pero con esta serie tuve que hacerlo (aunque intenté hacerlo lo menos posible). Si no fuera porque me estaba viendo esto con otra persona, probablemente lo hubiera dejado de ver después del capítulo 5 o tal vez el 8.

Como ya mencioné, no voy a decir que me arrepiento de haber visto "The Crowned Clown", pero si estoy altamente decepcionada.

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