T.S.Johnson

- Top emotional choices: Jin Mu or Huiju's dad
- Distant Distant Distant Third (but highly unlikely): Queen Mother or Prime Minister
- Likely choice but doesn't move the needle much as far as emotion but does so from a story perspective: The Spy in Grand Prince's home

Yeah, I think that's a poor misreading of things. He knows who Queen Mother's spy is...and do you not remember their initial confrontation? Politicians, business leaders, and the people love I-AN.

Do you think that happened by accident? Do you not think he has enough clout with everyone that if he pulled the trigger he wouldn't have support?

C'mon.

Why do you think she's been so adamant to get him married to someone of his choosing. She recognizes the leverage he has.

Alright re-watched the wedding sequence and yeah , possibly the wine b/c the moment I mentioned where she looks a little out of it happens after they had drank the wine. Poisoned wine tho is so lame. And so K-drama. lol

Agree. But I think with I-AN he needed some wind at his back. I don't think it's a coincidence that he's the most beloved Royal. I think he's spent the years since his brother's death building that up, building up alliances so he could comfortably make his move.

I think the wine is too simple and easily detectable. There's a moment before that where she looks a bit out of it - I'm gonna watch again - but I do think she may have been poisoned earlier perhaps...something slow acting, they mention built up toxicity in the previews. I do hope they aren't as obvious as the poison wine. SMH

Eh...for it's genre? I think it's pretty great actually. Best in awhile. Better than Business Proposal not *quite* as good as What's Wrong with Secretary Kim.

On another note I am enjoying watching Queen Mother watch the Prime Minister slowly explode. Her little mean girl/all knowing smirks. Yeah. She's enjoying that show and I'm enjoying her enjoying the show. lol

I'm very curious about that as well. Also don't think it was at the wedding. Think it's in her garment...which makes sense. Something harder to detect and not fast acting, builds up over time...so say since she tried on the gown 'til wearing it on the wedding day.

Running theory on Twitter:

They spy is responsible for the poisoning and that's why she looked so guilty throughout the episode.

Yeah. That what I was thinking. But they focused on it so much when the Prince confronted him about ol'girl that I was like...is it just a bracelet? A rosary but gifted by Huiju?

Once again. I disagree. For a variety reasons. He understands her just fine. I'd even wager she's more like him than his son...which irks hi. Same as I-AN's dad. The second children are the ones that are like their dads to their dads' chagrin.

I'm Team "Conflicted about her commoner status" - everything we've seen about him and propriety and appearance and career mater. Her birth, no matter how accomplished she is, impacts that. Think about his parents too. This man isn't one for going against the grain.

He didn't. And in my opinion obviously for family and political reasons. It's been shown he prioritizes appearance and career above all else, but will help Huiju when he can if it doesn't impact his own standing, so to speak.

Reminds of the character from Handmaids Tale - he loved ol'girl and would help her with anything, but he loved his standing in Gilead too...and would throw everyone else under the bus...just not her. That's the Prime Minister.

I think he sees in her a version of himself: second children whose parents are trying to deny them what should be their rightful place b/c they are the more capable sibling.

BUT he also sees her as an asset, she's a fighter, a real one, she's wealthier so has assets that can help him on his quest and more importantly her common status helps with the winning the people over even more to his side than they already are.

I think he wants to modernize the Crown and she's the perfect asset to do that. I think early interactions were definitely a side quest for him. Break up his mundane existing with a girl he was crushing on back in HS. But when she made her pitch at the end of episode 2...I think he saw a person who could help him win the Crown AND the potential for the love he wanted from his marriage.

I'm gonna throw Prime Minister Min a bone...had he known her father was trying to marry her off I think he would have made a move, but he didn't. She immediately launched her Marry The Grand Prince plan without him ever knowing the impetus for that, and here we are.

No. lol. That's not it.

Hmmm...I don't know. I think he's right about that. She would view a man on her level as competition to some extinct, b/c she wouldn't have been doing it for love...it would have been a business transaction. I think, in his own way, he wanted more for her than that and knew a good business match wouldn't accomplish that.

I know everyone (or many I should say) want a modern wedding, but I think fol kshould do more traditional weddings.

Like, if you can afford it do both. Have a modern one and a traditional one, with guests dressed accordingly. They are so great, and we shouldn't just see them in dramas.

This goes for all cultures, that have strayed away from their more traditional wedding traditions.

I think you underestimate how Queen Mother and her dad would have played that move up. The perception of it would have been very unflattering. And I-AN had no backers at the time. It would have been a tough row to hoe.

The father is an interesting character.

I get now why he was trying to marry her to a "lesser" man.

Yeah...it had to do with the succession, I'm sure...but also in his mind a lesser man may worship her, have her be the center of his world, since she clearly would be the "alpha" in that relationship.

He didn't want her marriage to also be a competition...b/c if it was someone at or above her level, he knows her personality, that she'd never bow down, and it wouldn't work. Someone has to bend. Someone has to "cherish" and it wasn't going to be her.

Well, until now. 'Cause I think once she realizes she's deeply in love with the Prince..she'll do plenty of bending. lol