It's been a long time since I've watched a show live (I'd rather binge watch than wait painfully every week) and maybe that's why I also went through a rollercoaster of emotions watching this drama. Was it perfect? No. (cough poison cough) But for all its faults, I absolutely loved this ending. After 20 ep of watching Hwi suffer bc of many factors out of her control - she finally got her happy ending and more importantly with those who she cared about.

Thanks dramabeans for recapping and thanks to Yeonmoz for bringing this story to life!

Here I am joining in the discussion at the ending. However, I just started watching this drama this week and am at episode 3, where I decided to drop it. Just didn't catch my interest.

Started watching for Rowoon but Park Eun Bin was so amazing in this that I binge-watched Do You Like Brahms? in the week leading up to finale week. She was amazing in that too (Hot Stove League, you're next!). Definitely will be looking forward to her future projects.

I had hoped Inspector Jung would survive, but he did too much wrong to have a happy ending. So him dying was fitting to the storyline.

Absolutely loved the ending scene at the beach, probably my favourite scene throughout the whole show.

So what happened to Lady Shin?

I haven’t been watching a lot of sageuk but this one was a gem. I binge-watched the middle half of it in 2 days, just in time for the finale. I wondered how they’re gonna end this drama so I was glad that it ended up on a happy note.
All of the cast are great 👍🏻
Love, love, love it. ❤️

Am I the only one who was ‘looking forward’ to the ‘sad ending’? How did she stay alive? I was waiting for the scene where we find out that she was alive because she was given an antidote of some sort by Riwoon (which was very plausible given that he was a pharmacist and was already researching the that said poison). How did her small body survive the poison when her grandfather had the same amount and died? Ugh!

One of my favorite parts was when the officials came together to plead on Dam-yi's behalf at her hearing; I teared up during that scene. They saw her for the outstanding king she was, not as a woman who illegally took the throne. As the official said, the position was forced on her as a child by greedy adults, and she did the best she could for her people. I'm glad our couple got their happy ending, they so deserved it. I don't care how Dam-yi survived (maybe the anxiety pill helped, maybe Ji-woon was able to figure out an antidote), I'm just glad she lived. And Ji-woon giving her a hairpin was so sweet. I was sad for Hyun because he seemed lonely as king; I just hope he finds a queen he can love.

A minority opinion, perhaps but this show staggered on the 2nd half because of 20 episodes. There are many scenes they could have done away with and thus the finale as usual feels rushed. I fast forwarded most of the scenes to arrive at the conclusion we already know. But, PEB was excellent, as always.

Now I can go back to binge-completing the series. Yes, the movie got me with Prince Jehyeon's death, but what better king could we wish for? Hyun has more right to the throne anyway. I'm sure that were Wonsan alive, Damyi would have still named Hyun as King.

It got bleak at the end, before it got better, especially with the death of the Prince Jehyeon. Ouch, that was pathetic (in a sad way) and horrible, in equal proportions. The King suddenly seemed very much on her own, but this served to show how brave, resilient and resourceful she was.

As soon as she took the anxiety pill, I expected it to work as an antidote to poison, so what followed didn't surprise me at all, although I did expect that we would learn Ji-woon had given it to her as protection against poison, but we didn't.

I enjoyed the reversal of the most obvious gender stereotypes, especially in the character of Ji-woon when he was at his most emotional and she was at her most level-headed and rational. It added to Park Eun-bin's wonderfully suggestive Crown Prince/King. As a small woman, she couldn't rely on her physicality to "become" male, but she accomplished it by the power of suggestion. I guess that's good acting.

It was a visually beautiful drama, and as a narrative, it followed an expected trajectory, although I think we may have all wondered how she'd extract herself from her role as king.

Most of all, I enjoyed Inspector Jung's character. Bae Soo-bin carried it off with the right amount of threat and vulnerability. His pivot added another dimension to the story at the end.

Grandfather's unprincipled lust for power anchored the whole thing, giving urgency to all the action. An exaggerated big bad, but in the parry and thrust between him and the king, he came across as extremely and unpredictability menacing. His brand of evil was convincing enough to justify the CP's fear-filled life.

Congratulations to all involved.

Honestly, I struggled with eps 19 and 20. They caught Grandpops in ep19 and a child could have explained to them that they needed to finish him off *now*. The idea that they didn't conceive he would be able to do a jail-break had me rolling my eyes. Same with Hyun's once again super-speedy recovery and readiness to become king at the drop of a hat. Then we had to go into the full all-out battle - this is very personal, but I find them very hard to get invested in. They're used so much, we pretty much know what the outcome is going to be, there's very little new that can be done with a sword fight, and it just feels tedious. And, lastly, I can't take seriously the idea that the king can just take a couple of days off with pretty much no entourage to go and visit a couple of friends on a deserted island. We didn't need to see a grand reunion of the "friends" (never felt they were a group anyway) - much better if they'd just left it with the two of them doing their thing.

Hahahahah - what a whinge! I really enjoyed the start of the drama and its freshness. But second half let me down and, nope, for me, it's not one of my highlights this year.

Thanks @sailorjumun for capturing the roller coaster of these two eps! Episode 19 had me muttering, wait/woah this is too easy, and sure enough it was. The finale was a mix-master of feels. Honestly I must have paced for a couple miles back and forth in front of the screen during the battle scenes. Every time Sangheon appeared on the screen I wanted one well-placed arrow to take him out. Cheered for Dowager Queen and her failed attempt on Wonsan but her archery skills were sadly not up to the task.
Finally, our fiesty little sword-wielding king decides to go toe to toe with her grandpa over tea (Princess Bride anyone?). Regarding her survival, I know that cyanide is used to leach gold from rocks and the stress med she took was wrapped in gold foil so either that or the herbal concoction within allowed her to live. Not overthinking this. After recovery she decides to accept punishment rather than cause more bloodshed - a noble, not idiot, gesture. Maybe implausible but glad the ministers were allowed a noble gesture of support as well.
Finally, our OTP enjoys a well-earned walk on a beach at sunset and Park Eun bin retains her status as one of the best K-actors of any gender. Congratulations to the entire production staff, actors, directors and especially writers, who should be righteously proud of their work on this show!

must say, Hyun looks (Im sorry) much swoonier in a kings´ robe than Dam-Yi ever did.
sorry can´t help it. maybe it is all in the width of the shoulders.

First, the episodes 19-20 :

I liked them! It was a great end!

Hwi could defeat her grandfather by the law, proving he was behind the death of the late King and arrested him how a King should do. But he never played by the law, so she had to use his tacticts and the poisining scene was really good, she avenged her father and her brother! How did she survive? I guess they didn't die immediately, nobody tried to save the grandfather and nobody knew for the poison for her father. Ji-Woon knew about the plant after all.

Ji-Woon's relationship with his father was really intense during the whole drama, always on the edge between love and hate. But their last scene was so sad with Inspector Jung saying the best part of Ji-Woon was that he wasn't like him. 😥

I was not expecting Prince Rabbit's death, the Queen Dowager was too kind with Prince Wonsan, she should have killed him with the first arrow! But I was really happy to see Hyun on the throne, he always was a good and fair man. Hwi let him her Eunuch and Court Lady, so he's not alone, like the new Commandant still lives with Ji-Woon's friends.

The young Queen finally knows the weird truth. I'm happy that she can have a new life, I hope this time she will be more mature. She was pretty lucky that the disgrace of father didn't touch her.

Dam-Y and Ji-Woon living their life at the end was the best part! I was really happy for them, they deserved it after all. I like to imagine that Ji-Woon's mother is living with them, she was nice and now as widow, I don't think Ji-Woon would have let her alone.

The last scene with the Eunuch, the Court Lady and Hyun was really beautiful. The 3 of them watched Hwi struggled during her whole life, they helped her their best and now, they can see the result of so much effort and how she's finally herself and happy.

Ahh! Finally Damyi's long journey as the King of Joseon is over! I'm not a sageuk person, yet I waited impatiently for this show every week because Park Eun Bin is just that good.

I enjoyed watching this show a lot, and while it definitely wasn't perfect and there were many many plotlines I wish theyd handled differently (but sageuks have to sageuk) I'd like to focus on the things I did love about this show and the things I loved so much I wish we'd seen more of it.

Things I loved in no particular order:
- Hakyung thinking fondly about Damyi while picking out something that would suit her well. She was really in love with her and I'm happy she chooses to remember her time with Damyi fondly.
- Damyi finally getting to live her own life! It's all I wanted from this show and I'm glad we at least got that.
- Damyi's goodbye scene with Jiwoon before meeting her grandpa. I love her when she's vulnerable and honest, but also determined to go through with her plans. At least, until the very end, she got to choose how she dealt with the terrible situation she was put in.
- The ending scene where Damyi was reunited with her Court Lady and Eunuch at the beach. I loved this trio and I'm glad they got one last scene together.
- Damyi smiling. I love her when she's icy and I love her when she's soft. Park Eunbin made me care so much for Damyi througout this entire drama and that's really the only thing I need a drama to do.
- Jiwoon and Damyi bickering. Honestly, their romance has been so cute the entire show. They both did really well and they made this dark and cold time of year a little warmer for me.

What I wish we'd seen more of:
- Hakyung and Soeun. Both together, as I enjoyed their friendship, and apart as characters impacting the plot. I wish they had been given a bigger role to play to support our heroes.
- Damyi adjusting to her new life as a free woman. I would've loved some scenes of her enjoying pretty hanboks and getting to buy the pretty things she had shown to want before. I also would've loved to see her have to adjust to (and possibly give up on) behaving like a lady, since she's never had to do so. And I would've loved seeing her enjoy her newfound freedom. She doesn't have to be cold and distant anymore, she can emote freely, express her desires and fool around however she wants to. I'm happy we got to see her smiling brightly, running around with a bow and enjoying her new life with Jiwoon... but... I wish the show had just given me a little more. We've watched this girl struggle for 20 episodes! Please show!!!
- Eunuch Hong and Court Lady Kim. I love them and I love how they loved Damyi and honestly, the entire show could've just used more of them.

These two turned out to be my favorite couple of the year. I’m surprised at myself for that, but everything they went through together was overpowering by the end. They sword fight having each others’ backs, they are literally about to die for each other, and then they walk on the beach and laugh easily together. They’re equals. And that makes them seem so perfect for each other.

The people in The King's Affection must have long lives, probably except, those soldiers standing with the King's side.

No kidding, there are way too many medical miracles in this drama (including the one that saved Damyi, although there may have explanation this time--Is it Jiwoon's great medical skill or his talent way to see the future?), but that probably will be an old man's little annoying complaint. The King's Affection successfully made us the audience care about the two main leads (or to be more exact, Park Eunbin's Damyi/Hwi/Yeonsun), so no matter how ridiculous the story is (it is not, except some silly issues), we are going to love the story, and relieve they both survive the ordeal. The most important thing is, She is now Yeonsun, not Hwi, not Damyi, but being herself. She don't need to hide her identity and gender, and live her own life as she choose.

Despite all these, however, the show point us to a brutal reality, that in real history there is no woman to be "King of Joseon" (or "Queen", or what ever you want to call). The initial tragedy of Yeonsun is: since she is a woman, her right to rule the country (even survive) is fully denied, and the only way she can be king is through illegal, immoral and a corrupt way (through the permission of her corrupted grandfather). The end the new king has to grant boil execution to the symbolic "Hwi" and grant her back her original identity Damyi, and her life being spared simply because the ministers agree her just rule, even that, her ruling is being erased by official record. This whole thing itself is a discrimination to her own gender. I am glad the screenwriter doesn't hide the dark side of this seemingly happy ending, although understanding it or not is up to the audience. I am also glad the ministers see the real meaning of the whole event, and we know even the official record denied her existence, the people of Joseon, who is the real writer of history, doesn't forget. I think this is the real happy ending of this drama.

For those who read my comment for sometimes knows I am not a fond supporter of happy ending, especially those happy endings are forced (some recent examples: Doom at Your Service, Jirisan, and especially, Inspector Koo). I only love happy ending as long as it is reasonable, and making points (For the time being, not one surpass My Mister, and more recently, Vincenzo. On the other hand, Romance is a Bonus Book as well Crash Landing on You are the two not as great, but at least good happy ending). The King's Affection is one of those few which has a comparatively better happy ending (Not great, but at least better then Romance and Crash Landing), and I congratulate to all those involve in this project.

This was one of Park Eun Bin's impressive roles! I'm glad I got to see her acting here. Ro Woon was a new face to me and gave a pleasant first impression. Their romance was a major part of this drama. They were a great couple.

I lost some of my interest during the last few episodes. The strongest, sweet tension was when Dam Yi's gender was still a secret from Ji Woon. The politics picked up more after that, which was inevitable. It was still a bit draggy for me. I like Inspector Jung's arc though. I kept thinking that they would have to fake Dam Yi's death, but it was interesting to see a different solution. The forest and beach ending was lovely.

That scene at the end when Hyun, in the king robe, sitting by himself looking wistfully into the distance made me think being king is the loneliest thing in the world. Men would kill for his position but I think he'd rather trade places with Ji Won and go catch some fishes for dinner.

Rant ahead. I tried to make it short, but i have so much to say. I won't talk about the negatives (there's MDL reviews for that), so I'd mention the parts I loved.

THE ENDING: Wow, what an ending! It was really beautiful, but not entirely unrealistic. When I saw the HEA, I honestly forgot of how saddened i was that the drama was dragging or that it had flaws. And yes, there were plenty flaws, but anytime I remember how the ending could've gone (Hyun/Hwi ending up dead) I go back to loving the series again.

LEE HWI: "I was alive. And yet, I was not."

Hwi was honestly the best part of this show, partly because of PEB, and partly because of her character. She's the definition of strong, not just physical strength, but emotional resilience. Lee Hwi is a boss. Period.

Ngl, I wanted Hwi to be a female king. But it wouldn't have been what she wanted. See how relieved she was when Jiun told her that everything was over? She didn't want a life in hiding. He entire life had been just that. She wanted to her own life as a woman, to be Yeonseon, to see the sea, to be free. And she got her wish.

Her character development was beautiful. She learned to love, not just Jiun, but also herself. And selflove is the most important part.

HWIWOON: People complained that later on, Jiun became nothing more than a love interest for Hwi, but as frustrating as that is, it's also refreshing. How many times have we had a FL be only a love interest for the ML, nothing more? At least Jiun had a personality. How absurd does it get when the ML saves the FL lead all the time? How many uncountable times have we seen an imbalance in k-relationships, with the FL lead being viewed as the weaker and lesser one?

I love me some Jiun. Enough said.

We got to see a reversal of their roles. At first, Jiun was the one chasing her. But when she owned her feelings, she became to one taking the initiative, comforting, asking him to stay, begging him not to leave. She became more trusting, more loving. It's crazy how much effect Jiun had on her.

It was a story about our heroine and her lover; The king and her affection; Hwi and Jiun, and they got to be together finally. Their love story was a gender-bender in itself, even down to the end. Hwi is still the better hunter; Jiun should probably just confine himself to being a physician. Daddy Jung was right about him not being able to survive in the palace. Poor boy still can't catch fish.

SOEUN AND HAKYUNG: Wholesome SFLs who aren't nuisances to the main plot? Check. Not trying to tear down our OTP into pieces? Check. Zero toxicity? Check. Positive character development? Check. Taking the initiative to break off an engagement, no matter how much it hurts? Not forcing yourself into the main leads? Not being a crazy bitch over the fact that your feelings are not reciprocated? Trying to move on wholesomely? Having nothing but love and respect for someone who deceived...

I've been going back to watch more of PEB's dramas because she's such a terrific actor! This was another example of her skill, she nailed this character.

In TKA I loved the gender reversals, the FL rescuing the ML. Yes for strong women characters!! Also the quick acceptance of Ji Woon's affection for who he thought was another man. The female king was the stronger of the two, emotionally and physically, after so many years of fighting to stay alive in her forced role.

I enjoyed the relationship between the king and her closest carers, their loyalty, protectiveness, and consideration for one another. Hyun's support for his king/cousin/friend. The complicated father/son relationship.

Honestly, after having watched Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Ro Woon actually looked a bit like Kang Tae Oh! Some of his facial expressions. Or was that just me?

For the most part I was entertained and happy with this drama. However there were a few plot points that yanked me out of the story because they seemed too unbelievable. I mean aside from the woman king! There were the very many times that the king wandered around without a bodyguard. Then placing evil grandpa in jail vs killing him or at least locking him in a more secure location - this made me think of the fantastical ways James Bond was meant to die but always managed an escape! The queen sharing a dangerous secret with her maid, always a bad move. And the fact that the previous king's eunuch was married. The king's closest servant would have had little life beyond service - being made a eunuch being an obvious example of this! - and then he was a married eunuch??!

I loved the HEA ending, the beautiful beach scenery. Overall a drama I'm glad to have spent 20 hours watching.

So tired of the WOKE stupidity being churned out via Hollywood and Disney, I found Korean entertainment that really embraces my heart and imagination. Entertainment value is beyond par.

The Kings’s Affection is my fourth Kdrama. I’m so hooked on Korean shows, I’ve started to teach myself Korean, so I can watch the ones that aren’t English dubbed, and would have to miss watching just to read what’s being said.

With the King’s Affection, I’ve laughed, I’ve cried, I’ve been on the edge of my seat cheering on the good guys and the underdogs and booing the bad guys.

I love this show. The storyline, the scenes, the costumes are beautifully presented, and the acting was first grade. 10🌟 out of 10.

This drama had the best payout. I couldn't stop bawling. All of our beloved characters going through hell and high water to finally get their true happy ending. And the ending was done so well - it's been a long time since I saw a drama that landed the ending, 10/10. A perfect scene showing the OTP, true to themselves, in their marital bliss and then having the rest of the gang show up just made me ugly cry even more. Bravo show, bravo.