#(though she IS an important historical figure - the FIRST queen of joseon!!!)

[seamayweed]

In Defense of Lady Kang/Queen Sindeok (1/3)

As promised, here's the first part of my defense of Queen Sindeok, explaining her historical political situation + clearing up some common fandom misconceptions about her, which I don't blame anyone for since they originate from the show itself. I must admit that I have a bit of a soft spot for her since history generally tends to be unkind to women - this extends to modern media and MCTNA is no exception:

(more under the cut)

Before we start, I thought I'd give a small refresher on the Yi family constellation - crucial for setting up the conflict and crown prince issue - with the aid of this extremely useful graphic by bodashiri (excluding the daughters for simplicity's sake):

(From here: x)

As you can see, Yi Seong-gye (King Taejo of Joseon) had two wives:

His first wife Lady Han (Queen Sinui) gave birth to six sons: 1. Yi Bang-woo (Prince Jinan), 2. Yi Bang-gwa (Prince Youngan), 3. Yi Bang-ui (Prince Yikan), 4. Yi Bang-gan (Prince Hoean), 5. Yi Bang-won (Prince Jeongan) and 6. Yi Bang-yeon (Prince Deokan).

His second wife Lady Kang (Queen Sindeok) gave birth to two sons: 7. Yi Bang-beon (Prince Muan) and 8. Yi Bang-seok (Prince Uian),

meaning that Seong-gye had eight sons overall.

With that out of the way, let's get started!!!

1. Queen Sindeok was NOT a concubine

(From here: x)

She is referred to as Yi Seong-gye/King Taejo's capital/Seoul wife in the show too:

However, every time Bang-won calls her a concubine and her children illegitimate there is never any pushback or correction by anyone, not even when he calls her younger son Bang-seok/Prince Uian a ‘seoja’ (illegitimate child born to a commoner concubine or royal concubine) in front of Seon-ho:

You'd think Seon-ho would defend Bang-seok by correcting Bang-won... but nope. Nada.

Not even Queen Sindeok (!!!) is allowed to defend herself and her children when they get accused of the same:

Like, what is this madness!!!

Anyone who doesn't know about Korean history would never even SUSPECT that this isn’t actually true, and that Queen Sindeok is in fact a legitimate second wife and queen. By giving no pushback to the (false) claims of illegitimacy, the show seems to implicitly support Bang-won’s narrative of her being a lying, conniving, greedy bitch who wants to push her child on the throne despite having no right to it whatsoever as a concubine and bastard respectively.

Queen Sindeok's tragedy, the one that MCTNA fails to portray, is not that she was a concubine who tried to rise above her station (because she was not); it's that, due to the transition from Goryeo to Joseon, she found herself caught between two conflicting sets of laws:

(From Tombstones without a Tomb by Hildi Kang)

A queen while alive, and unjustly demoted to a concubine in death by Bang-won/King Taejong who used these legal changes and the new Confucian ruling to his advantage, her status was a matter of contention for scholars and kings alike for almost 300 years, until finally, in 1669, the scholar Song Si-yeol managed to amass enough people and put enough pressure on King Hyeonjong to make him give in to their demands and restore Queen Sindeok to her rightful status and honor as queen.

+ Bonus:

(From Tombstones without a Tomb by Hildi Kang)

Turns out that according to the new Confucian ruling, Bang-won himself should have been considered illegitimate too!! Surprise!!!

[swordsandparasols]

Actual history and Rookie Historian Goo Hae Ryung

I mentioned in a chat a while back that the King and Crown Prince in Rookie Historian Goo Hae Ryung reminded me of King Taejong and King Sejong.  Taejong is known for, among other things, being a tyrant and solidifying power and rule,  while Sejong is known for being a progressive reformer and creating Hangul.  It’s easy to see that replicated to a degree with the King and Crown Prince here.  Taejong also abdicated in favor of Sejong, but served as regent with Sejong effectively a puppet king for the first 4 years of Sejong reign.  In Rookie Historian, the King has made the Crown Prince his regent fro a time for training, but in many ways it’s in-name-only, with the King stepping in to overrule when the Crown Prince tries to, you know, change anything.

The show likes it’s references to actual history even though it’s about fictional royalty, of particular note is Hae Ryung’s reference to Yeonsan’s literati purges.  Another thing that I THINK might be a reference but I’m not sure are the mysterious Ho Dam and his book, which I suspect might be somewhat based on Heo Gyun and Hong Gil Dong.  The show hasn’t told us much about Ho Dam or his book (personally theory that might be a bit to much on the “secret babies” front:  Yi Rim is the son of the former king or crown prince who was overthrown/murdered by the current king, as I’ve mentioned before, and Hae Ryung is the daughter of Ho Dam) only that his mysterious book is sought after, and could possibly destroy the King.  Heo Gyun was a scholar and official during the reigns of Seonjo and Gwanghae.  He as a progressive thinker who dreamed of a radically reformed society.  His book Hong Gil Dong (well  there’s some dispute over whether or not he’s the actual author, but he’d still generally considered the author, as far as I know), very very loosely based on the historical thief of the same name, as well as the rebel, Im Kkeokjeong* was built around those ideas, and included the titular lead eventually founding a kingdom based on those ideas.  Anyway, Heo Gyun got exiled a few times for, well, sticking his nose where the kings didn’t think it belonged, and eventually was executed by Gwanghae for treasons.  (You can see this in an earlier episode of Hwajung.  If that was an accurate representation of how he was executed, then yipes.)  I may be completely off base with that one, and whether I’m right or wrong probably doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of the show, but it’s something I’ve thought of every time Ho Dam is mentioned.

Anyway, I got off track there.  Getting back to the possibility that the King and Crown Prince are based on Taejong and Sejong (also worth noting that Taejong murdered his own brothers to keep them from the throne, and it’s highly probable that the King murdered his own brother as well), I was reading recently about Taejong’s OTHER sons.  Specifically, Prince Yangnyeong, Taejong’s oldest son and original crown prince.  Yangnyeong was known for his calligraphy and literature skills (sound half familiar?) who very strongly believed that he didn’t have what it takes to be king (also sound familiar?).  He was, however, completely convinced the third prince, the future Sejong, was destined to be a great king (Still sounding familiar?).  For the record, prince #2 also thought their younger brother would be the best choice and took himself out of the running and potentially being sucked into plotting by running away to be a monk when Sejong’s elevation was pretty sure.  Given Taejong’s tendency to murder his and his kids’ in-laws, he was probably also hoping to avoid yet another murder spree if he stuck around.  Anyway, Yangnyeong was originally the crown prince, but got out of it by, well, pissing people off in court, marrying a peasant woman and causing so much ruckus that he got disowned, stripped of rank and kicked out of the capital.  At which point he pretty much went “good luck bro” in Sejong’s general direction and peaced out to the countryside, presumably with his latest wife (And others?  He had around two dozen kids with 6 women, and his descendants are, I think, supposed to be one of the larger Yi clans in modern Korea.) and spent the next 40+ years wandering Joseon.

While Yi Rim is younger and most likely a cousin instead of brother, there are definitely some similarities, whether deliberate or coincidental  (a benefit of your show involving a fake generation of royals is that you can cherry pick what historical figures you want to have bits and pieces of, as opposed to having to mostly operate within the confines of the royals you’re making an AU of), and I think we’re universally in agreement that Rookie Historian Goo Hae Ryung needs to end with the Crown Prince as king and Yi rim peacing out to the countryside where he can write his Joseon smut in peace.  (Presumably with Hae Ryung, though I also don’t want her to give up her position as historian, unless she finds another career to replace it.  We’ll see what happens.)

As a sidenote, I realized today well technically yesterday now) that this is the third sageuk where Shin Se Kyung’s character’s literacy is a core element of the show’s plot, though Boon Yi and Dahm were both much lower of the social ladder than Hae Ryung is.  I don’t recall literacy being as important with Cheonmyeong in Queen Seon Deok, but she was also smart and clever with spies and secret identities and whatnot, so it’s close to counting.

*Like Robin Hood, these commoners got gentrified over the years, including this particular book making the lead a nobleman’s son who becomes a king.

[supaliaxpress]

Ruler (Master of the Mask) Review Episodes 1 - 4: I am this country’s Crown Prince

Despite my huge disliking for the 30 minute short episodes (honestly, the first four episodes could have been consolidated into two episodes lol)… the first four episodes were good enough to spark my interest. What was surprisingly shocking was how the first episode focused SO MUCH on hiding the crown prince’s face, to only be discovered by the end of the first episode…. well… not a secret anymore. >.> Anyways…. I’m a little behind on schedule for this drama since I started a little late… opps… oh well… I’ll try to catch up since we’re already on episodes 9 and 10 this week!!! o.o I guess time to binge watch.

Episode 1 and 2 were basically a shit ton of information jammed packed into 30 minutes to provide the following: 1) the backstory to explain the evil organization Pyeonsoo-hwe, 2) describe how the current king was an idiot to allow this organization to control him, and 3) set the stage for how the Crown Prince will constantly be in grave danger. We learn that the King is controlled by the evil organization through poisonous flowers, and the only way to survive is to continue the consumption of the poison. Shortly after the Crown Prince was born, Dae Mok (head of the Pyeonsoo-hwe) requested of the King for control of Joseon’s water. This can be symbolic in two ways: 1) Pyeonsoo-hwe wants to control Joseon’s water because water is the sustenance of life thus controlling the country, and 2) the Crown Prince’s horoscope was that of water, therefore, Pyeonsoo-hwe wants to control the next King of the country. 

Seriously though guys…. I’m not surprised he’s a bad guy in this drama LMAO

For the first time in the King’s life, he decided to stand up against the organization… only to have his son poisoned. The King had to give up the country’s water in order to save his son, which miraculously allowed the baby Crown Prince to become immune to poison (obviously this will play a HUGE role later on). The King ordered to have his son’s face hidden to protect him. Hiding his identity will give the King the upper hand to “switch” his son between a substitute. Whoever sees the Crown Prince’s face is killed. Finally, the entrance of the grown up Crown Prince showed us how he has been sheltered all his life and he doesn’t understand why he has to hide his face; therefore, he wants to know the reasoning behind his mask. What I don’t understand is why would the King NOT tell his son his plans… but instead he sheltered his son despite wanting him to become “A TRUE KING?” Go figure.

It was interesting how the second lead female actress was introduced first before the main lead. The introduction of Hwa-Goon showcased her as a strong and independent woman looking out for her own interests. What was even more shocking was how all the hype surrounding the Crown Prince’s mask/hidden identity was quickly stripped away, when Hwa-Goon discovered his identity as the Crown Prince by sneaking into his secret place (she even managed to mark him too, OMFG). Hwa-Goon got off easily with the help of the Queen; however, what was interesting was how Hwa-Goon hid the truth of seeing the Crown Prince’s face from her grandfather. Basically, Hwa-Goon fell in love at first sight with the Crown Price and this will be her motive, for the next few episodes, for her “rebellious behavior” against her family. 

To put it short, episodes 2-3 were basically the Crown Prince disobeying his father and escaping outside, without his mask, to seek Professor Woo Bo to answer his questions regarding his mask/illness (Remember, Woo Bo was the professor who knew about poison). He was really adorable as he experienced amazing things walking through the market place for the first time without his mask, but then the poor baby had to witness the cruelty of the world - the suffering of the poor and sickly and the evil doing of the Pyeonsoo-hwe. The Crown Prince’s innocence (and foolishness) would lead him to meeting Lee Sun and Han Ga-Eun, as he tried to give water to a sick child. Instead, he witnessed how people fought over water that was controlled by the Pyeonsoo-hwe. He was even shot by an arrow because he was holding the stick… smdh. Luckily, the witty Ga-Eun saved him from his chasers and our naive Crown Prince fell-in-love-at-first-sight with Ga-Eun’s bravery and beauty!!! >.< (I love it when the guy falls head over heels in love with the girl first, lmao) 

Finally the remaining lead cast were introduced in episodes 3 and 4, Han Ga-Eun and the other Lee Sun (Crown Prince’s name is also Lee Sun). Han Ga-Eun is a beautiful young lady who is very knowledgeable and kind to the commoners, despite her higher status as the daughter of an official. As for Lee Sun, he is the son of a poor butcher, but he is very smart and wants to study literature. Both were disciples of Professor Woo Bo and they lead the Crown Prince to meet the professor. However, Woo Bo didn’t answer the Prince’s question about his mask right away. Instead he gave him a riddle to solve about the drought and the water associated with Pyeonsoo-hwe. As he sought the answer to Woo Bo’s riddle, the Prince became closer to Ga-Eun and Lee Sun, while experiencing new things such as forming relationships (friends), unlike when he was kept away in the palace. Unfortunately for the Prince, everyone was searching for him… both his father and the evil organization. The King sent Chung-Woon, the son of his Guard and the Prince’s closest friend, to find his son (I feel so bad for Chung-Woon…. the freaking Prince made his job so fuckin difficult). 

As the Prince experienced the hardships of the people, his resolve to protect them strengthened - especially when Lee Sun’s father was imprisoned for stealing water to save his wife who was in labor. After Ga-Eun’s father tried to save Lee Sun’s father, the Crown Prince saved Lee Sun’s father from execution (tbh, he was totally badass and I was fangirling the whole time). However, this was all apart of Hwa-Goon’s plan to find the Prince after she revealed to her grandfather that the Crown Prince had escaped. Finally, the Crown Prince figured out the riddle with the help of the soldier Park Moo Ha and ordered him and Ga-Eun’s father to investigate Yangsucheong. Despite the Crown Prince’s intervention, Lee Sun’s father was still murdered even after the Prince stepped in to stop his father’s execution - thus leading to the Prince to reveal his real identity to Lee Sun… “I am this country’s Crown Prince.” I believe these were the most powerful words in the first four episodes as the Crown Prince has never revealed his identity to anyone… even his own friend. It’s very special that Lee Sun was the first person which implies that Lee Sun will play a very important role in the drama with the Crown Prince. The Prince vowed to Lee Sun that he will avenge his father’s death, and that Lee Sun should keep his jade pendant as proof of that promise. But, as they were about to leave, the sneaky bastards from Pyeonsoo-hwe surrounded them…. thus the ending of episode 4. 

Tbh, I love how this guy just casually shows up everywhere on the roof. 

So what do I think? Well for starters, I think the cast is very “promising” due to their liveliness and attractiveness (the boys and girls are definitely eye-candy lol). But I have to say, I’m not entirely impressed so far with the acting… but then again I’ve only watched the first 4 episodes >.> 

I will say that I am greatly impressed by L’s performance as the commoner Lee Sun. I really felt his struggles as a butcher’s son who wants to pursue his dreams, but the cruel society doesn’t help the poor at all, therefore he conforms to what he can only scavenge. We can definitely see the parallel between the commoner Lee Sun and the Crown Prince Lee Sun. Obviously both guys like our adorable Ga-Eun, but the difference between the two guys is that Lee Sun is hesitant while the Crown Prince just dives right in with no shame (I mean… he’s the Crown Prince after all). 

A perfect example would be the fireflies scene… Lee Sun stares at her from afar but can’t look her in the eyes, while the Crown Prince is helplessly staring right at her (sighs… I already know where this love triangle is heading towards). I especially felt his deep sadness and pain when he saw his father’s body hung from the tree (and what was worse was that he was just finally confessing to his father that he will work even harder than before T.T). NO ONE… I REPEAT… NO ONE SHOULD EVER HAVE TO WITNESS SUCH A TERRIBLE SIGHT!! Despite being a genius, even geniuses go on a rampage when their vision is blinded by rage… we can’t blame the guy for wanting to kill those a**holes after the Crown Prince saved his father…

So far, Kim So Hyun’s character hasn’t really done anything lol other than being really cute ^^ … but it’s only been 4 episodes with 30 minutes of content >.> I’m sure much more has happened in the next few episodes. I have to say that Yoon So Hee is doing a pretty good job of acting Hwa Goon cause I hate her guts for being the cause of Lee Sun’s father’s death… (I laughed a little bit too hard when the Crown Prince walked right past her to Ga-Eun and she was so excited too, lol)

Overall, I believe this drama has great potential to be an amazing historical drama… as well as… it has great potential to flop too if things go out of hand. The plot is a bit messy and the Crown Prince is just too naive for his own good at the moment, but the gist of the story is that the current King is pretty much useless against the organization, so our Crown Prince will have to grow up soon to become a wise ruler.