One of the reasons I love this show (not the least of which was that last scene of confirmation in Ep. 10) is…
WHO knows WHAT and WHY does it matter? The BIGGEST Secret: The soul swap of course. In the know: The Chairman (aka Hwang Jun Hyeon) and Director Lee Sang Jae. And I think that’s the way it’s going to end – just the two of them. And Jun-hyeon? Total amnesia – so perhaps another headbump to come.
The 2nd Biggest Secret: The Chairman (his body) is alive!! In the know: Professor Min (bravo for saving him [“prep the ECMO!”]) and. . . .Kang Jae-seong. NOT in the know – everyone else, of course but it is going to be the ultimate event when the Chairman finds out/figures it out. Will he swap back willingly? Accidentally? Try to stay? Can’t wait for that scene.
Next: The Murderer is Na Eun Se. In the know: Eun-se and her father. HJH/Chairman suspects but no proof yet. But everyone else suspects Kang Jae-gyeong (including her husband, bless his heart) Next: The video frame-up of Jae-gyeong which is being used to blackmail KJG. In the know: Na, Eun-se, Jae-gyeong and Chairman. NOT in the know: her siblings, her husband Next: Jae-gyeong’s corrupt deal with Chairman Na re: the Hydrogen plant. In the Know: Na and his daughter. I don’t think Chairman knows ?? The final secret: Jae-seong and Bang-guel now know about the corrupt deal and have proof – but they don’t plan to tell Jun-Hyeon/Chairman.
One of the reasons I love this show (not the least of which was that last scene of confirmation in Ep. 10) is all of the secrets that the VIEWER is privy to, but the characters are not! Characters making decisions on bad information, lack of information or misinformation. Writer-nim is treating the viewer with respect. More details below.
WHY ON EARTH would you watch with English dubbing anyway and not the original Language?!Half the Cultural nuance…
I'm in the USA. I have been a Viki subscriber for several years. During that time, the formats have changed significantly. 4 years ago - Viki volunteer translators/transcribers would sub-title an episode w/in 24-36 hours of release. The transcribers would frequently include parenthetical comments describing inside jokes/memes/cultural references. I recently watched a drama (on Viki) from 2020 - and the side notes/comments were still included. Also, if a character said "oppa", that was in the subtitle.
About 2 years ago, something changed - the translated/sub titles would appear w/in 1-2 hours of release in Korea. (similar to Netflix). It wasn't clear if Viki received the episode in advance so that the team could work ahead of time or if the Korean producer was creating sub-titles, but the cultural references or explanation of jokes disappeared for the most part.
W/in the last 3-4 months, I've noticed that some 1st episodes were immediately presented in English audio (dubbed) and I would need to manually change the setting (a setting I never requested). That's likely what happened to @BbalanceD. I believe the dubbing is something that comes from the productions team - not all recent releases include English audio.
Prime ALWAYS begins with English audio if it's available. I still haven't figured out how to change it on the smart TV, so need to get on computer. Grrrrrr.
My one complaint with Viki is that I cannot watch with Korean subtitles to check what a character actually said. For instance, I think Professor Min called his brother-in-law Hyeong, but the sub said "Jae Seong." 😒
WHY ON EARTH would you watch with English dubbing anyway and not the original Language?!Half the Cultural nuance…
This has happened to me several times with both Netflix, Prime and now Viki - when I first watch a brand new release, it's the damn DUB version and it takes me awhile to figure out why I am not enjoying it (after all, English voice is normal voice).
Not sure why you felt the need to go in full attack mode.
What is with this comment section? 🙄 This series has absolutely nothing to do with Palestine, yet that is all…
Glad I missed the political stuff. I remember well the outrage by a handful when one of my favorite dramas mentioned "Africa" and were furious because it didn't call out a specific "country" never mind that kdramas rarely call out specific countries but frequently use made up names (recent example: Reborn Rookie which mentioned "Yulivia" - intended to be Bolivia-lite, I guess??).
This drama is on my watch list, but I'm squeamish about violence and blood. A little goes a long way. And I really hate when innocents are caught in the middle. Can you vaguely spoil on the violence meter for me> TIA
How much does Mom know?Thoughts (w/spoilers) below.
In Ep. 9, there were strong hints regarding the doctor’s role in keeping Chairman alive: frantic attempts with the defibrator, ordering “prep the ECMO"*; wheeling the body out by himself; his resignation and total personality change. So, I was hoping for the twist today.
w/r/t Jae-seong, the hints were pretty weak – he wasn’t crying in church, he pretended to hate Bang-geul when in front of his twin but immediately played (nicer) big bro in private.
Edit: others have pointed out that Mom was trying to follow the doctor, so not likely that she was in on the secret. [Original comment but likely wrong: But after re-watching a few of those scenes, I think Mom MUST be in on the scam. She was already working with the doctor to save her husband, she knew that KJG had previously tried to kill the Chairman and this time hubby feared it as well. If I’m right, she did one hell of an acting job with her daughter while a very warm (and alive) body was laying there. Sobbing into her arms to keep her away??]
Only question left is: how did Jae-seong find out? He ordered the cremation and mom was furious – or was that also an act?
*Prepare the ECMO” means: activate and set up the heart-lung bypass machine so it is ready to connect to the patient within minutes.
Episode 9 was good and emotional. The middle scenes were especially emotional, and my favorite little plot was…
Thanks for sharing. I couldn't watch this morning and won't be able for another 12 hours 😒
I hope the doctor saved him - it's clear he's fed up with the constant attempts to kill his patient/father-in-law. If jaekyung didn't kill him after what they showed last week and in the hidden camera video, that's a very BAD plot twist - no fair misleading viewers to that extent.
Pretending someone died only to live again? That's okay. inserting a new villain into the mix at the last moment? not okay. {although, I always wonder - if there is a 3rd character that doesn't seem necessary and their name is usually Secretary Jo (but Secretary Lee in this case) then . . .too many times I've seen them turn out bad w/out proper foundation.
I think half-brother and his wife will reconcile - she's tried to stand up for him a couple of times, but her evil father was having none of it.
She was a court lady that became a grand consort. Who did she marry?
It's more complicated than that and I'm not an expert. Concubines were usually selected from noble families for two purposes - continue to produce male heirs and political alliances. It was unusual for someone like Kang Dan-sim to become part of the concubine hierarchy.
I pretty much gave up on the show around Ep. 11, but I'm fascinated by Korean history so started research on this topic because of this drama. From the complaints I have read, the drama never explained how Kang Dam-sin rose to the status of "Kang Huibin", Huibin meaning "beautiful concubine" (loose translation). And as far as I know, they never explained if she slept with the King or not.
But perhaps someone else can explain with something more than "My guess is. . . . . "
i understand there's not meant to be a romance (as many stubborn comments keep reiterating) but the running "gag"(????…
Well, there were no hints in Ep. 8 - in fact,, she was in full-on hate mode towards the ML I think the vague heart flutters are gone and hopefully never to be seen again.
Contrary to how many people feel, i dont see anything wrong with the chairman marrying the butler lady just one…
I wholeheartedly agree with your (positive) sentiments regarding Chairman's marriage with the housekeeper (butler) Sun-hui. but you are incorrect on the dates/ages.
Twins were born July 1984. According to JTBC website they are 42 (not late '40s/early 50's) Kang Beul was born March 1999. According to JTBC website, she is 27 (15 years apart) 1st wife died??? [my guess is 1997 thus the twins were 13 years old] Married 2nd wife??? [my guess is 1998 since it was supposedly one year later; twins 14 years old and then clearly 15 yrs old when KB was born]
Also from the JTBC website: 1st marriage was "political" and no love involved.
There are clearly reasons for the twins' resentment of their father's treatment and the 2nd wedding. But they are big girl/big boy now and altho the corporate scheming is rather fun, attempted murder (twice) is not. Jae-gyeong is irredeemable at this point and I hope Chairman doesn't forgive her for killing that poor soccer player (who is probably alive, but Chairman doesn't know that - yet].
Edit: Forgot to mention that teenager Jae-gyeong mistakenly believed that her father was cheating on the mother (this according to JTBC)
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https://x.com/junyoungies/status/2073230594235080918
The BIGGEST Secret: The soul swap of course. In the know: The Chairman (aka Hwang Jun Hyeon) and Director Lee Sang Jae. And I think that’s the way it’s going to end – just the two of them. And Jun-hyeon? Total amnesia – so perhaps another headbump to come.
The 2nd Biggest Secret: The Chairman (his body) is alive!! In the know: Professor Min (bravo for saving him [“prep the ECMO!”]) and. . . .Kang Jae-seong. NOT in the know – everyone else, of course but it is going to be the ultimate event when the Chairman finds out/figures it out. Will he swap back willingly? Accidentally? Try to stay? Can’t wait for that scene.
Next: The Murderer is Na Eun Se. In the know: Eun-se and her father. HJH/Chairman suspects but no proof yet. But everyone else suspects Kang Jae-gyeong (including her husband, bless his heart)
Next: The video frame-up of Jae-gyeong which is being used to blackmail KJG. In the know: Na, Eun-se, Jae-gyeong and Chairman. NOT in the know: her siblings, her husband
Next: Jae-gyeong’s corrupt deal with Chairman Na re: the Hydrogen plant. In the Know: Na and his daughter. I don’t think Chairman knows ??
The final secret: Jae-seong and Bang-guel now know about the corrupt deal and have proof – but they don’t plan to tell Jun-Hyeon/Chairman.
About 2 years ago, something changed - the translated/sub titles would appear w/in 1-2 hours of release in Korea. (similar to Netflix). It wasn't clear if Viki received the episode in advance so that the team could work ahead of time or if the Korean producer was creating sub-titles, but the cultural references or explanation of jokes disappeared for the most part.
W/in the last 3-4 months, I've noticed that some 1st episodes were immediately presented in English audio (dubbed) and I would need to manually change the setting (a setting I never requested). That's likely what happened to @BbalanceD. I believe the dubbing is something that comes from the productions team - not all recent releases include English audio.
Prime ALWAYS begins with English audio if it's available. I still haven't figured out how to change it on the smart TV, so need to get on computer. Grrrrrr.
My one complaint with Viki is that I cannot watch with Korean subtitles to check what a character actually said. For instance, I think Professor Min called his brother-in-law Hyeong, but the sub said "Jae Seong." 😒
Not sure why you felt the need to go in full attack mode.
This drama is on my watch list, but I'm squeamish about violence and blood. A little goes a long way. And I really hate when innocents are caught in the middle. Can you vaguely spoil on the violence meter for me> TIA
w/r/t Jae-seong, the hints were pretty weak – he wasn’t crying in church, he pretended to hate Bang-geul when in front of his twin but immediately played (nicer) big bro in private.
Edit: others have pointed out that Mom was trying to follow the doctor, so not likely that she was in on the secret. [Original comment but likely wrong: But after re-watching a few of those scenes, I think Mom MUST be in on the scam. She was already working with the doctor to save her husband, she knew that KJG had previously tried to kill the Chairman and this time hubby feared it as well. If I’m right, she did one hell of an acting job with her daughter while a very warm (and alive) body was laying there. Sobbing into her arms to keep her away??]
Only question left is: how did Jae-seong find out? He ordered the cremation and mom was furious – or was that also an act?
*Prepare the ECMO” means: activate and set up the heart-lung bypass machine so it is ready to connect to the patient within minutes.
Thoughts (w/spoilers) below.
Wish there were THREE more episodes because wrapping it all up in a coherent manner doesn't seem likely.
I hope the doctor saved him - it's clear he's fed up with the constant attempts to kill his patient/father-in-law. If jaekyung didn't kill him after what they showed last week and in the hidden camera video, that's a very BAD plot twist - no fair misleading viewers to that extent.
Pretending someone died only to live again? That's okay. inserting a new villain into the mix at the last moment? not okay. {although, I always wonder - if there is a 3rd character that doesn't seem necessary and their name is usually Secretary Jo (but Secretary Lee in this case) then . . .too many times I've seen them turn out bad w/out proper foundation.
I think half-brother and his wife will reconcile - she's tried to stand up for him a couple of times, but her evil father was having none of it.
I pretty much gave up on the show around Ep. 11, but I'm fascinated by Korean history so started research on this topic because of this drama. From the complaints I have read, the drama never explained how Kang Dam-sin rose to the status of "Kang Huibin", Huibin meaning "beautiful concubine" (loose translation). And as far as I know, they never explained if she slept with the King or not.
But perhaps someone else can explain with something more than "My guess is. . . . . "
Twins were born July 1984. According to JTBC website they are 42 (not late '40s/early 50's)
Kang Beul was born March 1999. According to JTBC website, she is 27 (15 years apart)
1st wife died??? [my guess is 1997 thus the twins were 13 years old]
Married 2nd wife??? [my guess is 1998 since it was supposedly one year later; twins 14 years old and then clearly 15 yrs old when KB was born]
Also from the JTBC website: 1st marriage was "political" and no love involved.
There are clearly reasons for the twins' resentment of their father's treatment and the 2nd wedding. But they are big girl/big boy now and altho the corporate scheming is rather fun, attempted murder (twice) is not. Jae-gyeong is irredeemable at this point and I hope Chairman doesn't forgive her for killing that poor soccer player (who is probably alive, but Chairman doesn't know that - yet].
Edit: Forgot to mention that teenager Jae-gyeong mistakenly believed that her father was cheating on the mother (this according to JTBC)