@kiara,
I haven't seen the Antoine Fuqua version of KING ARTHUR, but was definitely reminded of the Arthurian legends and their latter-day progeny. Song Joong-ki just needs antlers, Pictish blue paint, and a Beltane fire and he'd be good to go. LOL.

You might be onto something with the latest tweak to the title. This may be more of a "fusion" sageuk than we realized. Shades of MERLIN (2008) -- but will it have a talking dragon?!

Re: inhumane shooting schedule

'Arthdal Chronicles' to explore fabled, first monarchy on Korean Peninsula [VIDEO]
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/art/2019/04/688_267133.html

There are 168 hours in a week, and the crew was made to work for 151 of them while on site in Brunei. The ROK legal limit is 68 hours -- versus the 40-hour work week of yore. This is insane. In the remaining 17 hours that week, were the crew supposed to eat and heed the call of nature, or do they get to take short breaks for those biologically-mandated functions?

Aside: I didn't realize that Kim Young-hyun was the screenwriter of BALLAD OF SEODONG / SONG OF THE PRINCE. (Yay for Jo Hyun-jae!)

@PakalanaPikake
I had no expectations and I didn't know much about Arthur's Legend so it was all entertainment for me.
Everything is so vague from that era so I'd take any criticisms with a bag of salt lol.
I'm a total idiot for thinking those were Romans soldiers. The helmets and armor are not the same.

Anyway, thanks for the link. I read it at Korea Times too and @Soompi.
That has always been my concern with tvN and the productions they work closely with.

I'm expecting magical powers and all kinds of tribal rituals in this drama.
In the Paleolithic Age (Korea) they relied on magic for hunting so the Merlins of Korea will probably be a apart of this show in the form of Shamanism maybe?

I'm most curious about Kim Ok-bin's character (Tae-ha). She is said to be a descendants of the Noeantal race.
I've never heard of it before. It's hinted that's different from human. She is also the first empress of ASADAL.
Could she be some kind of bear/monkey queen in human form?
The intro for LEGEND OF THE 4 GODS showed the bear tribe in human form.

@kiara April 16, 2019 at 8:27 AM

Ooooh! I think you're right to expect all kinds of sympathetic magic by Neolithic (not Neo-Confucian -- har!) hunters. Maybe we'll even see a Korean analogue of the cave paintings at Lascaux and Altamira -- which would be dandy precursors to the murals in JUMONG. Shaman Michelangelos could not be far behind. ;-)

Re: Noeantal race

It wouldn't surprise me if Tae-ha's people had to do with bears, or maybe even tigers or leopards. I doubt there would have been a connection with monkeys since they aren't native to the peninsula -- unless snow monkeys somehow got blown across the water from Japan. Those Japanese macaques are really intelligent. Some of them like to soak in hot springs.

It's possible that the Noeantal might be a different population that has migrated into the area. If their culture and technology are sufficiently far advanced beyond the locals who are already there, they might be regarded as gods or supernatural beings.

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." -- Arthur C. Clarke
https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/arthur_c_clarke_101182

Honestly if it's fusion fantasy sageuk that might just make me more excited for it. I've been wanting another fantasy sageuk for a while. They're like my crack.

Oops @pakalanapikake the above is also for you

@pakalanapikake
"I doubt there would have been a connection with monkeys since they aren't native to the peninsula -- unless snow monkeys somehow got blown across the water from Japan."

Haha you are right. The tiger tribes makes more sense.

I'm a lazy reader. I have a couple of books to read from pre-historic time (Korea) but it's somewhere buried in my garage. Maybe I'll find something about the Noeantal people if they existed.

@kiara, @sicarius,

Re: Noeantal

*facepalm*

It just hit me:

Noe-an-tal =
Ne-an(der)-tal

Is this going to be a twist on CLAN OF THE CAVE BEAR or something?! (I haven't seen or read it. Just recall the title.)

Apropos of Neanderthals in Korea, University of Hawaii-Manoa Professor Christopher Bae writes:

"A plethora of new studies coming out of Central Asia and Siberia suggest that Neanderthals did not stay put in Europe and the Levant... Interestingly, palaeoanthropologists working in North Korea have written in the past that they might have found Neanderthal-like fossils. In Southeast China, the Maba partial skull has long been thought to resemble a Neanderthal – and probably would have been identified as such earlier on, had it been found further west."

https://aeon.co/essays/new-evidence-about-the-human-occupation-of-asia-is-cascading-in

[Orthographic note for word nerds:
"Neanderthal or Neandertal?"
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/homs/spelling.html%5D

ERRATUM:
PakalanaPikake April 17, 2019 at 2:32 PM

The cave murals aren't in JUMONG. They're in KINGDOM OF THE WINDS, doggone it. While the three-legged crow is very cool, the black turtle snake is the one I like best. With Song Il-kook in both lead roles, the dramas mush together in my mind. ;-)

@kiara... Just a public service so folks don't go bonkers looking for it under the old name. ;-)

I think I'll be okay with Choi Min-soo as a villain. ;-)

But I still haven't seen SANDGLASS.
*Skulks back into shadows.*

Much appreciated :). I have a bad habit of confusing folks lol.

You are a true fan!
He would've made a great Jafar in Aladin. I can't wait to read your review :).

@kiara April 15, 2019 at 12:20 PM

Choi Min-soo was terrific in LAWLESS LAWYER. Absolutely magnificent. -- What I didn't realize is that he played Lee Min-ho's tragic mentor in FAITH. He was memorable in that, too. I think THE SWORD IN THE MOON is the only other show I've seen him in -- but didn't realize it at the time. It will be fun to see him in LEGEND. ;-)

[And now I realize I've conflated Choi Min-soo with Choi Min-sik. Auwe! No wonder I couldn't find Yi Sun-shin / ROARING CURRENTS listed in his filmography. *facepalm* So embarrassing. I still get tripped up by Korean names. *crawls under rock*]

SANDGLASS is a Korean classic!
Can you believe Song Ji-na wrote that masterpiece?

There was some noise about a sequel back in 2016 and I haven't heard anything since then.
http://www.dramabeans.com/2016/07/sequel-to-blockbuster-k-drama-classic-sandglass-in-the-works/

@kiara,
You're absolutely right about Choi Min-soo's voice and appearance. He looked like the Ur-Grandpa of the Mayor of Gisung in LAWLESS ATTORNEY. Har! The fact that squadrons of bats flew out from the eaves of the pagoda level below his feet just added to the atmosphere. I couldn't help but think they were "carrier bats," or the Goguryeo equivalent of Flying Monkeys. * shudder *

I'm acutely aware of how lucky I am to have access to excellent subtitles for a show of this vintage -- heck, for a drama of any vintage. WITH S2 nō ka ‘oi [is zzang]!

Thanks for the recommandations @pakalanapikake! Interesting that Kingdom of the winds, Jumong and Legend all date from the 2007-2009'... It must have been some golden days for epic stuff! :) something in the water maybe!
I have really enjoyed some sageuk that came in later years (tree with deep roots, empress ki, the king loves, etc.) but the feel was very different from Legend, so I'm looking forward to how Asadal will fare!
Nirvana in fire: is it the Cdrama that some beanies were gushing about? because it did seem very tempting! :)

I bow to your drama knowledge!

@pakalanapikake

I blamed that era of sageuks for my addiction lol.
Back then we had Mrs Korea and MrX doing the English subtitles.
If I'm not mistaken LEGEND of the FOUR GODS was subbed by Mrs Korea.

If you'd like to watch a more historical version of Goryeo's establishment then I'd recommend "TAEJO WANG GEON" (2000-2001). It's a 200 eps subtitled by Mrs Korea.
It's very long but informative. It has more historical info about Goryeo than anything you could find on the net.
Kim Yeong-cheol was fantastic in it. I totally understand why his acting career is still thriving at his age.

Yes, GWANGGGAETO was quite famous for expanding Korea's land and he set the bar so high for the kings after him.
That's why Korean warlords back in the Goryeo days were obsessed with reclaiming the Liaodong Peninsula. It used to be part of Gojoseon and later reclaimed by Gwanggaeto as part of Goguryeo.

I'm definitely watching ARTHDAL and I'll take your advice and be more open minded.
I'm already not liking the costumes and the production. I just hope they'll be careful from here on.

I hope you are doing well @mrskorea!
I miss you and your WITHS2 team. You guys are still my favorite sub squad.

I must tell you that it took me half a year to finish watching all 200 episodes of "Taejo Wang Geon." I don't know how you did it, but I'm so grateful. I learned so much about pre-Goryeo, and it introduced me to some Amazing veteran actors.

Thank you ❤️!

@kathia,
You're most welcome. ;-)

This is a dandy history resource for sageuk fans:
https://thetalkingcupboard.com/resources/sageuk-timeline/.
As you can see, up until now, there haven't been any dramas set in Gojoseon. That's why I wanted to watch JUMONG, because that one goes back the furthest. One of the themes in that drama was the development of iron and steel weaponry by the Han Chinese, and the strenuous efforts of the Koreans to do their own metallurgical innovation.

Mr. X is one of the celebrated Kdrama and Kfilm mavens who wrote extensively on those subjects, subtitled dramas, etc. Here's his website, which is still online, but no longer active. Written In The Heavens Subbing Squad (WITH S2) cranked out tons of great subtitles that included dandy historical and linguistic notes.

https://vaultofdoom.wordpress.com/
-- be sure to leave a trail of breadcrumbs when you visit, or you may never find your way out. Enjoy. ;-)

As usual this conversation is way more interesting than this drama is likely to be.

@leetennant I've read all the comments. Yours is the best.
Apparently there's internal conflict while making the drama. Even though I posted the link at the end of this, I can't recall what it says...something about long hours and underpaid?

@PakalanaPikake

I watched Jumong and really enjoyed it. I also remember watching Ballad of Suh Dong and how they showed the making of clothing and dyeing. But, I'm most fascinated with technology and how the societies cope with innovation and discovery.

Have you people seen the movie Alpha? The beginning of the movie showed the stone crafting. The main stone tool that showed was a Biface via a process known as lithic reduction.

I know many fans like politics mainly in historical dramans. But, I would rather see a bit more of culture and costums than politics and royalty. I hope Asadal can explore some of the pivotal lifestyle of the people living on that period. How they live, how they hunt, what they eat, what they produce, among many others.

But, I guess I should not keep my hopes that high though.

@kathia April 16, 2019 at 7:04 AM

Thank you for mentioning ALPHA. I hadn't heard about that film. It sounds fascinating. I grew up reading about the Leakeys discoveries in Olduvai Gorge in National Geographic magazine when I was a kid and it left a lasting impression.

I, too, find the technology depicted in sageuks to be very interesting. Papermaking has cropped up in a couple of recent dramas and the 2005 movie BLOOD RAIN. I got a bang out of the development of gunpowder and associated weaponry in HWAJUNG and DAEMANG. In 8th grade I'd written a paper on the Civil War-era ironclad Union warship Monitor, and was agog to see Admiral Yi Sun-shin's armored turtle ships in ROARING CURRENTS. The development of Korean archery technology likewise fascinated me in WAR OF THE ARROWS. The Manchu crossbows and their projectiles capable of shattering trees were terrifying. But the Korean pyeonjeon short arrow shot with a tongah bamboo guide was even more impressive as a sniper weapon.

Here's hoping we get to see some authentically-accurate material culture in ARTHDAL.

Even though it's been many years since I threw pottery in art class and learned brazing, welding, and sandcasting in metal shop in high school, I'll be interested to see if any of these ancient technologies are demonstrated in the drama. I'd enjoy watching traditional timberframing and roof thatching. ;-)

@PakalanaPikake

Oh m, you started early on, so jealous! I got immersed on pre-history and history on college, and I chose to major in pre-history since I found that more thrilling and mysterious as opposed to history because you have ruins and a writing system. I love the unknown (but scientifically, not superstitions though), that's why I got extremely interested on pre-history.

Alpha is so underrated. Few people know it. But, it's a nice movie. It's about the early Homo sapiens (it looked like the Superior Paleolithic because of the climate, seemed like it was the last glacial age during the Pleistocene).
The introduction of domestic animals, namely the dog (Canis familiaris), though they were wolves (Canis lupus). It had a bit of fiction on that aspect, but I enjoyed that story very well. You need to check it out.

Olduvai!!! Awesome!!! Personally, I've been to Atapuerca, do you know it? It's about Homo ancestor and Homo heidelbergensis. They found tools from Homo neanderthalensis, but unlike the others I mentioned, no bones were found yet. I was at the site in 2016, and it was mind-blowing. I was speechless. It was too awesome to be honest. At the end of the day, we had a workshop how to learn to make some tools (pretty hard). It was a memorable day...Other places memorable I've been was Stonehenge, it was nice to see it up close, but it was too recent for me, Atapuerca was way more interesting. When you go to Spain, you should visit the Museum of Evolution in Burgos. Really interesting and informative.

Technology is amazing in all aspects. And from all periods (I'm still fascinated how the Romans were so far ahead of the period they lived in). But, the dramas and movies you mentioned sound interesting. I shall check them out to see the technology they maked and used.

It still amazes me how some people think learning history is useless. Without history, there's no future. We learn and we evolve. All thanks to our ancestors and the information they gave us.

@bbstl, You're most welcome. King's book is back in print, so you don't have to wreck your peepers. You can read it on a Kindle, too. Farmers of Forty Centuries was on the reading list for a biodynamic gardening course I took years ago.

if you're working all the time you can't do a good job. we're used to late nights but editing and being tired of course will lead to mistakes. how is it possible you can be in top shape if you can't barely sleep and eat. but you can also always tell when a crew is happy even if the labor should totally be overhauled and the crew need to be paid more money. it's sad.

Ok now somebody please tell me that it is a coincidense that Sam-Jang's real estates company name in Hwayugi was Hanbit...