The female lead never showed her feelings to the king because it's the only thing she could really own. She was…
Yeah, but you see I'm not finding a fault in what was done to save her, just the way she always reacted to it by being guarded and being resigned, rarely expressing whatever small amount of happiness she must've felt at her eventual consort status.
The female lead never showed her feelings to the king because it's the only thing she could really own. She was…
Hmm, that outside perspective is what gave me some hope, but yeah, a fault in screenwriting too. As for not liking LSY, purely a personal choice, and I know exactly what you mean by it being better for me to have been spared the pain this way lol. But then again, isn't it better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all? IDK But what I do know is that over the many years that I've been immersed in Korean shows, I have suffered many MANY times by the pure FEELS which are so damn overwhelming it makes me cry. I already have an addictive personality, and I become utterly obsessed if I take a liking to these fictional characters/their actors, the music, the cinematography, the subtle details, and all that jazz. Just happened that it didn't happen to me with this show.
The female lead never showed her feelings to the king because it's the only thing she could really own. She was…
'After reading the translations of the novel' If we're discussing the show, then I think it's unfair to bring the novel into play here, the show was seen by me as it is, no extra material has influenced my opinion. And as cleared by @CKT_DramaFan above, the novel had certain points that make things a lot more clearer with regards to her feelings for the King, but not adding them to show means that for most viewers, like me, they never happened. Which means that I see her as it is, and disagree with her treatment of the King all the same. And still not falling with her as an actress sadly, which is why her character didn't appeal to me either, and since she was the main lead, I was left disappointed. She was slightly better in the Crowned Clown maybe, but not by much (of course, it's also because Yeo Jin Goo is a powerhouse and it's hard to notice anyone in front of him). Anyway, it was still a show worth one watch acc to me, and thanks for commenting.
The female lead never showed her feelings to the king because it's the only thing she could really own. She was…
Of course, my review is only my perspective, because no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't fall in love with her character the way I wanted to, and the way I usually do with Kdrama. 'Junho/San could verbalize everything and command everything because it’s written in history, Seyoung/Doek-Im couldn’t do that since IRL, her thoughts and feelings were unknown.' I think partly true. I agree that she couldn't voice her opinion as per the norm, but I also disagree because he asked her countless times for an honest answer whenever they were alone as to whether she truly wanted him or not, and I just wish she could've said something definitive to him, instead of mostly diverting the conversation to riddles. And left the King always guessing her feelings and then rushing to save her from people who misunderstood their relationship anyway.
"It's Deokim sincerity, it's like saying 'I love you so much it'll be painful to meet you again... “ Well well well, if that was the intention, then my original point is rendered partly moot, isn't it? I usually devour all BTS content of any show I fall in love with, but I didn't do it for this show, so I missed that. And again, I WISH SHE HAD SAID THAT SHE LOVED HIM TOO MUCH TO LOVE HIM AGAIN IN ANOTHER LIFE aaaaaa All I wanted was for the King to KNOW what she was thinking about, at least in her dying breath she could've been vulnerable in front of him.
And the novel version which you mentioned, had it been added to the show, it would've solved a lot of my problems about her unsure heart throughout the show, it makes sense because she always said that she wanted to have something to call wholly hers, which the King can't ever do.
But I do have a question, if the King wanted, and if his favoured lady gave birth to boy(s),could he have faked/refused to get intimate with the other concubines, and even the actual Queen? The primary aim is to provide an heir isn't it? Or maybe the Queen couldn't be avoided?
Anywayyy, thanks for clarifying some points which actually make me feel less sad for the actual King, if the story is true in the novel!
The female lead never showed her feelings to the king because it's the only thing she could really own. She was…
Oh of course yeah, I never meant he forced her to sleep with him (or do anything else really, he was a gentleman through and through), just that calling her to his bedchambers was reason enough for everyone to 'know' that she was 'taken' by the King, and therefore now untouchable and revered, which is exactly what she didn't want acc to me.
The female lead never showed her feelings to the king because it's the only thing she could really own. She was…
Hmm I can comment on 3 points further: First on: 'the fact that she chose to become a concubine even though she would rather just be a simple court lady with her friends, shows how much she loves the king.' tbh I would have thought the same thing, except the fact that the King ordered her to spend the night with him and that's how she ended up as his official concubine, didn't she? I would have taken just one sentence from her spoken in earnest about how she loves him but she also loves her freedom equally, or something along those lines, but she never once said it to him, not even in private, presumably not even once after she became a rank one consort, because they never showed it. I remember she said how she didn't want to become his concubine because of her loss of freedom (never mentioned the word love), but every single thought she had about how she was truly happy in some moments as a concubine in her later days were never said to the King. And the words she said to him right before dying? Unnecessary and cruel.
Second: 'I think people should have understood why she was rejecting him after episode 16.' Yes, she made it clear after this episode, but don't you honestly think that's a little too late to finally understand the feelings of the main character when they should've been obvious since a little earlier in the show, from her acting? I blame the actress for this, and also please don't misunderstand, they could've showed that the girl did not love the King, and that he was the only one in love, and I would've been totally fine with that. The problem was in the fact that she remained unsure, and never truly rejected/accepted him.
Lastly on the comment by CKT_DramaFan, agree that it isn't a typical historical tale, but you're wrong in assuming that that is what I was seeking from this show. Most sageuks I've seen have been out-of-the-box and unique, and this show falls in that category, but my problem with the indecisiveness of the female lead's true emotions is what makes it less than satisfactory. Maybe my expectations were too high because of the story and the cast.
One of the most disappointing shows I've seen recently, which is a shame because ever since I heard of the casting for this, I had been looking forward to it!
I'm SO surprised this show has done as well as it has in this time, given that it has the old-ancient type of romance angle to it, with a forced first kiss, massive power imbalance between the couple, immature female lead, and the girl resisting the man at literally every second. And I can't buy the sageuk angle as the reason for this type of romance, literally every other historical Kdrama I've seen manages easily to convey a cultural difference between now and then without showing forced feelings. The main reason for my dislike was the unsure theme behind the romance, I still can't tell if the heroine ever truly loved the King the way he loved her. She was always hesitant of showing her feelings, to the point where she even said those cruel words to him right before dying, leaving him bitter and in an eternal life of regret. I get that this is supposedly the original story, but it was dissatisfying in every way.
Lee Jun Ho probably almost broke his back carrying the whole damn show. He was perfectly suited to play the role of the Crown Prince who tried all his life to grow out of his father's shadow in his grandfather's eyes, and who meets and falls for an intelligent and spunky court-lady along the way to becoming King. The fate of the court-lady is set, she must either give up on her love, or on her freedom. The premise was amazing till about episode 9, and things went great, but for me they started going downhill from there. Also I have tried hard to like this heroine, but she has disappointed me in The Crowned Clown and now in this show also. She was just okay in both shows, but other actresses could've definitely elevated both shows for me.
The other cast of this show was great, I specially loved Lee Jun Ho's personal guard, and the King (grandfather) was amazing as well!!
Anyway, hope to see Lee Jun Ho in his next project!
As for not liking LSY, purely a personal choice, and I know exactly what you mean by it being better for me to have been spared the pain this way lol.
But then again, isn't it better to have loved and lost, than to have never loved at all? IDK
But what I do know is that over the many years that I've been immersed in Korean shows, I have suffered many MANY times by the pure FEELS which are so damn overwhelming it makes me cry.
I already have an addictive personality, and I become utterly obsessed if I take a liking to these fictional characters/their actors, the music, the cinematography, the subtle details, and all that jazz.
Just happened that it didn't happen to me with this show.
If we're discussing the show, then I think it's unfair to bring the novel into play here, the show was seen by me as it is, no extra material has influenced my opinion.
And as cleared by @CKT_DramaFan above, the novel had certain points that make things a lot more clearer with regards to her feelings for the King, but not adding them to show means that for most viewers, like me, they never happened. Which means that I see her as it is, and disagree with her treatment of the King all the same.
And still not falling with her as an actress sadly, which is why her character didn't appeal to me either, and since she was the main lead, I was left disappointed.
She was slightly better in the Crowned Clown maybe, but not by much (of course, it's also because Yeo Jin Goo is a powerhouse and it's hard to notice anyone in front of him).
Anyway, it was still a show worth one watch acc to me, and thanks for commenting.
'Junho/San could verbalize everything and command everything because it’s written in history, Seyoung/Doek-Im couldn’t do that since IRL, her thoughts and feelings were unknown.'
I think partly true. I agree that she couldn't voice her opinion as per the norm, but I also disagree because he asked her countless times for an honest answer whenever they were alone as to whether she truly wanted him or not, and I just wish she could've said something definitive to him, instead of mostly diverting the conversation to riddles.
And left the King always guessing her feelings and then rushing to save her from people who misunderstood their relationship anyway.
"It's Deokim sincerity, it's like saying 'I love you so much it'll be painful to meet you again... “
Well well well, if that was the intention, then my original point is rendered partly moot, isn't it? I usually devour all BTS content of any show I fall in love with, but I didn't do it for this show, so I missed that. And again, I WISH SHE HAD SAID THAT SHE LOVED HIM TOO MUCH TO LOVE HIM AGAIN IN ANOTHER LIFE aaaaaa
All I wanted was for the King to KNOW what she was thinking about, at least in her dying breath she could've been vulnerable in front of him.
And the novel version which you mentioned, had it been added to the show, it would've solved a lot of my problems about her unsure heart throughout the show, it makes sense because she always said that she wanted to have something to call wholly hers, which the King can't ever do.
But I do have a question, if the King wanted, and if his favoured lady gave birth to boy(s),could he have faked/refused to get intimate with the other concubines, and even the actual Queen? The primary aim is to provide an heir isn't it? Or maybe the Queen couldn't be avoided?
Anywayyy, thanks for clarifying some points which actually make me feel less sad for the actual King, if the story is true in the novel!
First on: 'the fact that she chose to become a concubine even though she would rather just be a simple court lady with her friends, shows how much she loves the king.'
tbh I would have thought the same thing, except the fact that the King ordered her to spend the night with him and that's how she ended up as his official concubine, didn't she? I would have taken just one sentence from her spoken in earnest about how she loves him but she also loves her freedom equally, or something along those lines, but she never once said it to him, not even in private, presumably not even once after she became a rank one consort, because they never showed it. I remember she said how she didn't want to become his concubine because of her loss of freedom (never mentioned the word love), but every single thought she had about how she was truly happy in some moments as a concubine in her later days were never said to the King.
And the words she said to him right before dying? Unnecessary and cruel.
Second: 'I think people should have understood why she was rejecting him after episode 16.'
Yes, she made it clear after this episode, but don't you honestly think that's a little too late to finally understand the feelings of the main character when they should've been obvious since a little earlier in the show, from her acting? I blame the actress for this, and also please don't misunderstand, they could've showed that the girl did not love the King, and that he was the only one in love, and I would've been totally fine with that.
The problem was in the fact that she remained unsure, and never truly rejected/accepted him.
Lastly on the comment by CKT_DramaFan, agree that it isn't a typical historical tale, but you're wrong in assuming that that is what I was seeking from this show. Most sageuks I've seen have been out-of-the-box and unique, and this show falls in that category, but my problem with the indecisiveness of the female lead's true emotions is what makes it less than satisfactory. Maybe my expectations were too high because of the story and the cast.
Anyway, thanks for commenting!
I'm SO surprised this show has done as well as it has in this time, given that it has the old-ancient type of romance angle to it, with a forced first kiss, massive power imbalance between the couple, immature female lead, and the girl resisting the man at literally every second.
And I can't buy the sageuk angle as the reason for this type of romance, literally every other historical Kdrama I've seen manages easily to convey a cultural difference between now and then without showing forced feelings.
The main reason for my dislike was the unsure theme behind the romance, I still can't tell if the heroine ever truly loved the King the way he loved her. She was always hesitant of showing her feelings, to the point where she even said those cruel words to him right before dying, leaving him bitter and in an eternal life of regret.
I get that this is supposedly the original story, but it was dissatisfying in every way.
Lee Jun Ho probably almost broke his back carrying the whole damn show. He was perfectly suited to play the role of the Crown Prince who tried all his life to grow out of his father's shadow in his grandfather's eyes, and who meets and falls for an intelligent and spunky court-lady along the way to becoming King. The fate of the court-lady is set, she must either give up on her love, or on her freedom.
The premise was amazing till about episode 9, and things went great, but for me they started going downhill from there.
Also I have tried hard to like this heroine, but she has disappointed me in The Crowned Clown and now in this show also. She was just okay in both shows, but other actresses could've definitely elevated both shows for me.
The other cast of this show was great, I specially loved Lee Jun Ho's personal guard, and the King (grandfather) was amazing as well!!
Anyway, hope to see Lee Jun Ho in his next project!