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Of course, I think anyone could see that it did develop BH. The only conflict with what you said is that "SY had no impact" whatsoever but it was her initial and current feelings for CJ that initiated BH to feel a deeper connection for him. Her being inside her own body, hidden behind BH was the force that pushed BH/SB to feel romantically close with CJ.

But there's literally indications that SY was still in the body, controlling things. BH literally said himself when he would randomly just start acting on things.

And must I say, "doesn't mean she did of anything importance" literally disregards her character so much when her story and memories itself helped BH the most

Also, how is she not part of the story when it's literally her body... she might not have had full control but it was still her and BH's story in one body. Of course BH was the main character, being present in the past and present and all but why would they establish SY's backstory just to be like "oh, this character isn't relevant to the importance of the story". I think it's a bit too narrow-minded to portray So Bong as 100% BH like come on, it's even in the name.

It was probably already written that way from the very beginning. I can't speak for all dramas but Start-Up, another show under TVN went through the same things. The public heavily weighed in on the second-lead all throughout the drama, in Korea and internationally. Jipyeong literally trended every episode but despite all that commotion, the drama ended with the majority feeling dissatisfied. I think they usually just stick with their initial plot despite ratings and whatnot.

Definitely agree with you about the expectations though. They definitely built it up and fell kind of flat with the ending

But So Yong was still in that body no? If you read my initial review I stated that SY was the driving force but BH acted on it for her. Like, I know BH probably came to terms with new things but it's a bit selfish to just diminish SY's whole existence when it's literally her own body. I won't discredit BH but I also won't just thoughtlessly remove SY from her own story.

Plus BH was literally relieved in the end that he saved both SY and CJ which showcases that if he had the choice to, he would give SY her body back

I think So Yong and Bong Hwang dying would completely disregard their development within So Bong. They both "died" prior to being in the same body and throughout the story established their realization of the importance and blessings in life. I genuinely do not think CJ and SB dying would satisfy the majority and we got a closed ending nonetheless, it's just not the best one they could have done.

Yeah I know that, but then again, the "good" ending you're implying is them both dying. That, I just can't wrap my head around.

I definitely think you're watching the wrong genre if you had hoped for that ending instead. Mr. Queen is literally advertised as a RomCom and them both dying would just betray the whole idea itself. I do agree that there were other aways to end the show but just like this ending, other endings will still instill conflict with people. They can't really satisfy everyone especially because their national audience in Korea isn't as used to concepts such as this as their international viewers are.

It definitely was not the ending many had hoped for but it did satisfy me in a way. I mean I already saw it coming since you can't really expect such a "radical" ending in a big national tv network in Korea but there was definitely some kind of hope there that this drama would trigger the change.

Now, for the reason that the ending did somewhat satisfy me is that ever since the early episodes, Bong Hwan established his goal to be to leave the palace and return back to his life but his duties as a queen prevented him from doing so. The last episode feeds on this and grants Bong Hwan his goal (though I think this should have been earlier and not rushed at the last episode to leave viewers enough time to get to know So Yong and her changes with Bong Hwan's soul dominating inside her body).

The soul-switch part, I also understand. I've always seen that the romance dominance in So Bong's body has always been So Yong. She's been the driving force and Bong Hwan was definitely the steering wheel of it. He allowed her to project herself in confidence and boldness, something she's always been afraid to do due to her family. My girl l o v e d Cheoljong. Cheoljong loving her was her last bit of hope of happiness in the palace thus making it obvious that SHE was the feelings and romance in So Bong's body. Bong Hwan's mannerisms definitely made her more lovable. Now, I'm just establishing this thought because some see that the ending makes everything the plot built up to, "ingenuine" which I can see in a way but I do see how passionate So Yong was of her feelings to Cheoljong that it refused to be dominated by Bong Hwan's soul. (P.S you can even see her soul being stronger than BH whenever he mentions it himself or when she talks to her father despite having BH in her)

Final thoughts? We were definitely robbed of a "great" ending. Under a less conservative network, this would definitely, 100%, end with BH staying and hell yes, I would love to see it but for the effort they did under such restrictions, I can't say I hate it. They definitely gave it some justice throughout the whole drama though I just hope future dramas can be bolder in establishing a chemistry and going "all-in" til the end for it.

NOW, this is merely MY OWN opinion. I respect everyone else's who may disagree or agree with me but it's literally just my own thoughts and perspective of the show.