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Our Blooming Youth: Episodes 7-8

by alathe

Trust is hard won, and easily lost. Our hero’s paranoia has led him astray: in one fell swoop, he’s axed any chance of solving the mysteries that plague him, and alienated the closest friend he’s had in years. As for our heroine? It’s been a long, exhausting road, and she’s close to breaking. Still, ominous prophecies wait for no one’s broken heart, and circumstances may bring our protagonists together once again…

 

EPISODES 7-8

Jae-yi peers at the peonies in the incense bowl. Suddenly, she’s assaulted by a barrage of memories. There were peonies the day her family died. And while she was preparing breakfast — someone caught her hand. Young! Horrified, she rushes to share this news with Hwan. This is in some ways convenient, because Hwan has already sent for her. In every other way, it’s awful. Hwan has decided to banish her from the eastern palace. Riding a heady wave of paranoia and self-righteousness, Hwan shoves Young’s suicide note at Jae-yi: proof, he claims, of her deceit.

Jae-yi scarcely has time to struggle before the man she trusted has her flung bodily out of his household. Tearful, she wracks her brain for memories of the day her family died. There’s nothing. Just the faintest recollection of Young, and the certainty there’s something she’s missing. Hwan is hardly the picture of mental wellbeing himself; wide awake, he broods the night away. Two years ago, his father urged him to trust nothing and no one — not even him. He’d made Jae-yi the exception. He’d thought she was the ally he was waiting for.

Meanwhile, Ga-ram has her own fears: her face has joined Jae-yi’s on the wanted posters. If captured, she’ll be branded on the cheek and consigned once more to servitude. Dodging the guards who come knocking on her door, she finds solace in the quiet of Myung-jin’s laboratory. Sure, there’s a body in the back room, but that’s just how her teacher rolls! (Gulp.) Except — as Ga-ram musters up the courage to twitch back the sheet, she finds herself facing a startled, still-breathing Jae-yi.

Barred from her palace room, Jae-yi too has sought sanctuary in the lab-slash-morgue. She’s devastated to hear of Ga-ram’s dilemma, even as her sworn sister plasters on a brave face. Jae-yi has reached the limits of her own resilience. Could it be, she asks, numbly, that Young was her lover — that her own amnesia is to blame? Firmly, Ga-ram dismisses this as nonsense. Meanwhile, across the city, Myung-jin muses sadly at the posters of Jae-yi and Ga-ram. He’d aid them in an instant… if he only knew how.

Our Blooming Youth: Episodes 7-8

Hwan too is beginning to doubt himself. He catches himself asking if Jae-yi slept well. As she goes about her day doing ordinary eunuch things that don’t involve murder trials, autopsies, or secret satsuma consumption, he shadows her like a half-ashamed puppy. But the real nail in the coffin of his resolve comes when Sung-on brings up the topic of his missing fiancée. Sung-on’s devotion to Jae-yi is unswerving. All evidence suggests she’s a murderer? Well, the evidence is wrong! And even if she did fool around behind his back — she’s still the one he swore to protect.

Perhaps this is why Myung-jin, Ga-ram, and Jae-yi are soon greeted by an old friend: the tall, hot, and dorky Scholar Park. He’s here — ostensibly — to help investigate the Head Shaman’s odd incense habits. Nothing more. It’s not like he likes them or anything. This doesn’t prevent Myung-jin from launching himself at him in glee, declaring them brothers. Hwan, who never learned a healthy attachment style in his life, sharply denies this — whereupon Ga-ram, scenting blood (or, repressed affection) merrily joins the teasing.

As for Jae-yi? Her wounded look speaks volumes. Even the most plaintive of puppy-dog eyes from Hwan can’t soothe it. When Jae-yi speaks, it’s only to give the bare facts. She saw Young in the kitchen the day her family died. Her memories remain scattered. But, try as she might, she can’t envision a world — even a hypothetical, forgotten one — where she was in love with Young. This confessed, she turns on her heel and departs, leaving Hwan remorseful and still speechless. Apologizing not by telepathy is hard!

At the palace, their paths cross again. A eunuch’s burden is to be forever lifting heavy items of furniture: this time, Jae-yi plods across a bridge with a chair in each hand. Halfway, she sits down to rest. And, staring into the pond — she breaks. You, she declares, are a heartless bastard. Your heart is smaller than a soy sauce plate. You’re — you’re a stupid butthole! Sometimes, the only response to a problem is to pout, cry, and wriggle your legs with angry abandon!

Unbeknown to her, Hwan has taken a seat in the opposite chair. Frowning, he listens to all the reasons he ought to have trusted her. Then, as she wheels around to deliver a final screw you!, he gives her a flat look. Jae-yi gasps, steps back — and plummets towards the water. Without missing a beat, he catches her by the waist.

The moment of reckoning has arrived. Jae-yi, with earnest eyes, explains that she was hurling abuse… at the pond. The pond, agrees Hwan, soberly, must have hurt her. She shrugs, turns, and issues a loud apology. To… the pond. Then, as she begins to leave, Hwan asks — was he that harsh?

Yes. He was. Jae-yi understands why he was frightened. But, she says, consider this! Confucius once said that trust was the most important foundation of government — more fundamental than food. And Hwan, after a moment of effort — agrees. He shouldn’t have kicked her out. His heart, he declares, is smaller than a soy sauce plate! But when she asks if she can return to the eastern palace, something flickers in his face. He remembers Sung-on’s unwavering devotion. No, he says, she cannot.

Our Blooming Youth: Episodes 7-8

To Jae-yi, this looks like rank obnoxiousness. So, when the annual polo competition between the army and royal guard wheels around, she tells Hwan to his face: her money’s on the army. Meanwhile, the ludicrously adorable Princess Hayeon has been toiling for hours — well, ordering your court ladies to do it counts, right? — on the perfect full-face makeup to snag Sung-on’s attention. He’ll spot her in the stands. Any minute now. And when he does, he’ll be dazzled into submission by her perfectly natural blush!

Sung-on’s got more on his mind, alas. In a spate of sheer bitterness, Hwan will be competing personally. Does it put his arm at risk? Sure does. But, if Jae-yi’s supporting the army, what choice does he have?

The match is brutal. Hwan and Sung-on are unrivalled champions of scooping up small balls with loopy sticks whilst on horseback. Jae-yi, who is not immune to pettiness, leads a very pointed cheer for the army. However, in the end, the victory is Hwan’s. Sung-on is no sore loser. In fact, he’s delighted to prove his devotion to the prince. He’s not the only one devoted. As he tells “Eunuch Go,” she might have been cheering for him… but she couldn’t take her eyes off Hwan. (Jae-yi scowls. Very rude of Hwan to be so cool.)

Our Blooming Youth: Episodes 7-8

Elsewhere, Ga-ram spots a familiar face: the man she once almost mowed down in the marketplace — the one with the weird fish! Turns out, his name is MONK MOOJIN (Jung In-gyeom) — Myung-jin’s master. What’s more, she finally remembers where she’s seen him. On the day of the Min family murders, Monk Moojin was in Gaeseong, collecting rice from Young.

She can’t glean any more details. Myung-jin is too distracted with his latest genius scheme: posing in front of every noblewoman he meets! The hope is that one of them will turn out to be his betrothed, whose face and personality remain a mystery to him. Alas, ignorance might have been preferable. When he does encounter the much-vaunted third daughter of the Minister for General Affairs (Jang Yeo-bin), she baldly rejects him. A self-respecting girl of her ambitions wouldn’t be caught dead with a man who thinks monkey bones constitute accessorizing! Poor guy. Maybe if he toned down that laugh…?

Ultimately, our protagonists face bigger problems than Myung-jin’s wreck of a love life. The Head Shaman’s trial looms — and she’s determined to meet her end cackling. The king offers her the chance to live, provided she reveals the name of the letter she’d meant to carve on the final corpse. She laughs in his face. Meanwhile, throughout the capital, giant lanterns appear in the sky. At the touch of an arrow, they burst, sending red paper raining down. Each leaf reads, ‘song ga myeol yi’. The Song family will destroy the plum tree. Everyone knows what the plum tree stands for: Yi, the royal family.

Thunder begins to clash overhead. The Head Shaman screams that soon, the Yi family will be destroyed in its entirety. The king snaps. Sword in hand, he hurls himself forward — but it’s too late. An amur viper, the same snake whose venom once poisoned Hwan, writhes under the Head Shaman’s clothes, looping its way around her neck. Before it can launch itself at the king, Sung-on cleaves it in two. But the Head Shaman has already been bitten. Freshly carved onto her rapidly-cooling wrist is the final letter: yi. The curse, it seems, has been sealed.

Outside, there’s chaos in the courtyard. Lightning strikes a plum tree. It explodes into unextinguishable flame. Arriving at the scene, Hwan demands that someone fetch Eunuch Go.

Jae-yi, however, has her own worries. Amid the falling letters, she spots shadowy figures atop the roof, black-clad and masked. She, Myung-jin, and Ga-ram immediately give chase. After some frantic parkour through the crowds, Ga-ram scoops up a couple of laundry sticks from a startled housewife. Armed with her weapon of choice, she corners one attacker, as Myung-jin cuts off their escape. They meet each other’s eyes. Grin. Ga-ram swings back one of her sticks and hurls it at the enemy…! Aaaand, the enemy ducks. The stick cracks Myung-jin square on the nose.

Okay, so if there’s one thing we’ve learned this week, it’s that teamwork takes practice. Nonetheless, Jae-yi manages to scramble after her quarry solo. The second attacker leads her to a deserted street, whipping out a bow and arrow. Jae-yi dodges in time to evade the worst of it, but an arrow swipes her hat, slamming her off balance. Before she knows it, she’s sprawled out on the dirt — with a boot at her chest, and an arrow at her throat.

Our Blooming Youth: Episodes 7-8

Trust is a tricky thing. For Jae-yi and Hwan, it’s all or nothing, life or death: trust me wholeheartedly, or lock me out completely. It’s intimate, and it’s scary, but their first instinct is to return to each other. To stare when the other isn’t watching. And ultimately, the most unsettling thing for both is being unable to trust themselves — Jae-yi, in doubting her own memories; Hwan, in second-guessing his ability to discern truth from lies. The solution for Jae-yi is to look inward, relying on her own self-knowledge. For Hwan? He’s looked inward for far too long. For him, the best solution lies in accepting that to trust someone, you’ve got to be prepared to give a little back.

Meanwhile, for Ga-ram and Myung-jin, trust is in the little things. They’re on the same wavelength, and halfway to working as a team; every time they grin and put their heads together over a problem, it’s incredibly sweet. Still, they don’t quite fit together yet: when you can’t work out when to duck, eventually, someone’s going to get whacked on the head with a laundry stick. Jae-yi and Ga-ram worked seamlessly together in the past, but now they both have to branch out and adapt to someone who doesn’t quite know their patterns. Still, if there’s an upside to being obliged to thwart a treasonous prophecy together, it’s that it’s a great group bonding experience! I can’t wait to see how our spiky, damaged, delightful group of miscreants bounce off each other in future episodes.

Our Blooming Youth: Episodes 7-8

 
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Tags: Jeon So-ni, Jung Woong-in, Lee Tae-sun, Our Blooming Youth, Park Hyung-shik, Pyo Ye-jin, Yoon Jong-seok

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Wonderful recap, as always.

These were solid, exciting episodes with just enough Scooby Gang shenanigans, longing, yearning, and PHS doing sports in gorgeous costumes to make me happy.

Random Thoughts:

--I'm really starting to wonder if the head eunuch guy knows that Jae-yi is a woman. I'm not sure if he's aware that the woman she is is Jae-yi, but the way he immediately assured her of future employment after Hwan threw her out, and a few could-be knowing glances here and there make me think he might recognize that Eunuch Go is no eunuch.

--This is not necessarily a criticism because it is understandable in terms of Hwan's characterization, but the writing isn't giving PHS very much to do right now. Hwan is a deeply guarded, stoic, and reticent character who spends a great deal of time living in his own head. But with Jae-yi--the one who took him out into the world, challenged his intellect, turned him into a patient nurse, and clearly turns him on--no longer in close proximity, he has so little to either do or react to.

--In some ways, Jae-yi is like the typical male protagonist in a sageuk, whereby she's out taking charge of her own fate on the daily. I continue to love her intelligence, daring spirit, and penchant for cursing. Even in her petty moments (as when she loudly cheered for Sung-on largely to stick it to Hwan) she's cool.

--I wonder if Myung-jin's intended will end up being in the running for Crown Princess. That part of the plot is clearly going to kick into gear in the next two episodes. I liked the tiny little moment of jealousy and wistfulness when Jae-yi realized she's helping to construct the future home of the woman who will marry Hwan. I don't think she's fully aware yet that her feelings of annoyance with the CP are commensurate with the rate at which her attraction to him is growing, but I liked how the actress subtly played that as a sad recognition of both her own lost marital prospects and the fact that whatever she has with Hwan has a clear expiration date.

--Loved the dialogue on the bridge, although I could have done without the extended dip and stare, complete with swelling OST, at the end of ep. 7. As I've mentioned before, I feel like the PD is still not sure how exactly to highlight the romantic elements of the story without resorting to clumsy tropes. But when these two just talk to each other--or Jae-yi talks and Hwan listens--it's way more sparky and interesting than him saving her from a potential fall.

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You make a really interest point (as is your wont😊) about the archetypal gendered roles and its reversal here. This is one of the reasons I like this drama and for having the inclination and the wherewithal to imagine a different emancipatory possibility within this repressive world. After all, so much of each sageuk is pure fiction so why not portray the hopes and deeds of a bright young woman - all be it still from a well-connected and wealthy family - who wants a seat at the ‘table’, empowered and emancipated, a better world for herself and for those whom she loves.

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‘Interesting’. This infernal keyboard!

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Hae Yi and Ga Ram are the reasons why I am watching this drama. Smart women who are capable and are willing to take control of their life. What’s not to love about them!
I need more of their scenes outside the palace. I was quite happy when she got kicked out of the palace because it’s more fun to have Hae Yi near Ga Ram and Min Young than the crown prince :)

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I could really do without the occult shenanigans….

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I usually am not a fan but I kinda like it here. I am guessing in that era superstitions, prophecies, curses and omens were more terrifying. So it really can break people. This kinda explains how fear can penetrate and make people lose trust. Thus enabling a chaos. So to me it makes it more interesting if the leads can overcome this, maintain a level head and solve the mystery.

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Also, our FL has already debunked one omen using science-- I am hoping she will do the same here.

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I’m thinking the supernatural stuff will all be debunked, but I am curious how the Shaman timed her big death scene with Mother Nature’s thunder and lightning!

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Joseonweather.com. 😂

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Yeah, but there's something I don't get. We were told the curse required the fourth letter being carved onto an infant, but the Head Shaman doesn't exactly look like new "Life". Anyway, bye Shaman. Moving on.

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Joseonweather
dot com
😂

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Yup that one! How do you artificially create thunder and lightning?

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As he tells “Eunuch Go,” she might have been cheering for him… but she couldn’t take her eyes off Hwan.

Maybe Sung-on could have won the match if he'd been paying attention to the game instead of watching Jae-yi in the audience?

----

shadowy figures atop the roof, black-clad and masked.

So, clad in the traditional ninja uniform -- always perfect for blending in with the crowd while doing covert ops.

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Haha. Yes I think the black ninja outfit really works best when doing nefarious business in the dead of night and not in broad daylight. Perhaps a Khaki color to match the rooftop or reversible clothes to blend in with the crowd would be better 🤣.

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Both guys were paying too much of attention to Jaeyi in the crowd, but Hwan still slayed anyway)))

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Guess it’s the first time they saw cheer leader and cheering :) so they wanted to impress the cheer leader. Lol.

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Looking at Princess and rest of the crowd's enthusiasm I'm afraid this is bound to become a newest Joseon trend))) I've seen someone suggesting to bring dancing court ladies with pompoms next time...

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I just want to make a suggestion about the romance aspect of this show because I agree with @gikata that excessive use of the love triangle is a waste of a perfectly good charismatic actor, plus its derivative of the comedy sageuk that just appeared and also anticipates the next sageuk that is about to appear. This show is caught in the 2023 Joseon love triangle trap.

In this case, the solution was right before the writer’s eyes: make the princess who has a crush on the sergeant not a pubescent fangirl-relative of the crown prince, but rather a more mature, alluring young woman who is slated to become the wife of the crown prince.

With this easy script fix, the sergeant could still ridiculously have a temporary crush on the idea of Jae-Yi as his betrothed and sense that she's pretending to be a eunuch, but be pulled even more strongly toward the princess who really loves him. The resolution would be him releasing Jae-Yi from her marriage obligation and marrying the princess.

Meanwhile the Crown Prince could battle his sense of obligation to the princess (as I’ve reimagined her) vs. his love for Jae-Yi. The romance resolution would be him releasing the princess from her marital obligation, and marrying Jae-Yi.

The beauty of this romance fix is that the annoying love triangle disappears, the male characters become more complex in their relationships, yet nothing about the occult plot has to change!

Reading this, you might ask: why didn’t the writer and director call Hacja in as a script consultant? He would have made these suggestions free of charge, just to make the drama more to his liking!

Thats an excellent question, that I ask myself as I’m watching this show!

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I'm a bit lost here. The princess is his half sister🤨 or is there another Yi family 2.0 popping out somewhere else? Or do they have a crown princess chosen already that'll fall for Sung-on?

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Exactly, in the CURRENT version! But not in my, love triangle killer version.

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Isn’t Princess Hayeon (the one currently crushing on the sergeant) CP’s full sister? Only the boy is their half-sibling?

I think there’s going to be a Crown Princess in the next episodes. The eunuchs were shown preparing a palace for a crown princess, they said she will be chosen soon. But if they follow that particular plot in the original novel…

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Yes, I know, there was reference to that. It will be some additional complication that will actually heighten the love triangle, and pull the plot away from the all important gray-hair producing peony incense!

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I wonder if it’ll be the ambitious daughter of some minister who asked the coroner to refuse their marriage. Some comeuppance?

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While I agree that in general the less love triangles the better and your idea of rewriting this particular story would've improve many thing about this show, I have to admit that I'm not that annoyed at what we have here in the moment. Sure, if soon things go awry and Sung On, wounded by the lies of two people he cares (or thinks so) the most, fully joins the dark side, I won't be happy with it. At all. But the key point for me is that he has a whole life full of struggle and dilemma on his plate aside of impending love rivalry with his best friend/future king. Like we've discussed here many times already, his relationship with Hwan has been complex and full of conflict even before Jaeyi came into picture, plus his daddy issues and don't forget that he's also a big shot in this top-level important investigation case that he's shown rather polarizing results so far. And the whole thing about him potentially losing CP's favor to someone else (this would've still work if eunuch Go wasn't Jaeyi) and thus being petty and jealous in a way that has very little to do with LOVE rivalry specifically... Well, mostly. His sudden interest in "eunuch Go's" sympathies was weird. Was Hwan kicking the poor thing out enough to soften Sung On this much and this fast?))) Oh, right, he kind of kicked them both out of his good graces... I guess shared pains do draw people closer.

In other hand, I like that while topic of Hwan's soon-to-end bachelor status was finally brought up (he's just too old and important to stay single! stop stretching my suspension of disbelief, drama!), we've yet to see in flesh any royal bride to complicate the love polygon even further, and I'd really prefer for things to stay this way until the finale. Trust issues and mysterious regicidal curses are far more interesting than who ends up with whom.

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This is how I view the love triangle as well. It's not a problem unless the only reason it exists is to explain why Sung-on turns evil and vindictive. I would hate that to become reality not only because it's predictable and oft-seen, but because it would also mean that Sung-on would do the thing I loathe most when it comes to love triangles: assume that the person in the center's feelings don't really matter. That is, I'm going to assume that if the show takes this path, then when Sung-on realizes the CP has his own feelings for Jae-yi, Jae-yi will reciprocate those feelings, which is really all that would matter here. If he wants Hwan at that point, and not him, Sung-on would need to respect that, even if it hurt. But if instead he fixates only on Hwan's emotions, and ignores Jae-yi's, that's going to be hard for me to sit through.

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Drama can surprise us even further by making the inevitable love triangle reveal angst to be more about boys not wanting to compete with each other for a woman than how it's usually done in kdramas... But I'm not holding my breath because Sung On's been shown VERY unhappy with the idea of his fiancee loving someone else. And, unlike with Hwan, it took weeks for him to calm down from that raging Othello mode...

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This! I’ve found the boys’ fractured friendship strangely more heartbreaking and angsty than the romance so far— they clearly care for one another but Hwan’s boneheaded trust issues and trauma made him pull away, and then Sung On’s boneheaded decision to lie to Hwan about the compass only served to worsen Hwan’s paranoia about his best friend. But the care and longing is there! I feel like they’ll both act noble-idiot-ly wrt Jaeyi bc deep down they respect and care for each other. In the early eps Sung On’s fist clenching had me thinking he had a villain arc coming but the latest eps are showing me he’s not got it in him to turn bad— even if he momentarily may make a bad choice or act like a jerk (he was jealous of a lowly eunuch gaining Hwan’s trust), but in the end he always comes clean to Hwan, and he didn’t ignore Jaeyi’s call for help to catch the murderer.

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@happyokaytales, Sung On is still a variable to me - both thanks to his heavier boiling jealousy tendencies and that dad of his that's already proved himself to be a very questionable influence. Yes, he clearly wants to repair their relationship with Hwan, but if his family gets in the way once again... I wouldn't even blame him much if he makes the same choice for a second time. But he should certainly straight up his priorities once and for all at some point. Fully broken friendship, no matter how sad this may be, is still better than an endlessly rotting one.

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I think it was awesome the way Eunuch Go approached Sung-on and thanked him for allowing a "mere eunuch" to help with the search for the murderer. Jae-yi essentially gives Sung-on all the credit for the capture. It is the reason he's suddenly warm toward Eunuch Go and looking for him in the crowd and so on. He doesn't have to sense that this person is actually his fiance or whatever. There's a little feminine person of ambiguous gender who is cute and nice, who bravely helped him with a case but gives him all the macho credit. He might be strictly heterosexual and faithful as well as loyal to his future spouse, but that doesn't have to make him insensible to the charms of Eunuch Go.

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Jaeyi is a tomboy, but that doesn't mean she didn't pick up some noble lady tricks from her late mother. Namely strategically stroking egos of men she needs something from... She does it with CP too and to spectacular results)))

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As I posted below, I'm not quite as irritated (yet) with the love triangle, and it does feel different enough from the central plot line in "Forbidden Marriage" that I can go along with it (for now). But I absolutely agree that Hwan's sister (whether or not she remains his sister) should be less of a fangirl and more of a grown woman. In a show that's doing a pretty good job writing strong, interesting women, the princess isn't yet more than a cute adolescent trying to get a boy's attention. Maybe she'll surprise us as time goes on, but for now, as you said, she'd be more of a viable option if she was older and more mature, and if she were a viable option, the triangle becomes less predictable.

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@laurensophie , @gikata I bow to your superior script imagining abilities. I guess I have to give up my dream of writing, directing, and acting in a sageuk, in which an elderly Joseon monarch is surrounded by women ministers who, rather than plotting to overthrow him, revere him for his wisdom.

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Pls don't, your plot is already 10 times better than half of kdramas out there currently!
*sigh* If only my own writing was as cohesive as my analytical essays on someone else's work...

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"make the princess who has a crush on the sergeant not a pubescent fangirl-relative of the crown prince, but rather a more mature, alluring young woman who is slated to become the wife of the crown prince."

Such a person may be waiting in the wings. Surely any self-respecting, ambitious, jostling minister would have set their sights on the previous CP as husband material, transferring that ambition to the current CP on the older brother's death, and if needs be, to the youngest brother? It just remains to determine who will survive to become the King and which daughter/granddaughter to cast in the role. The original CP is dead, the current one on a "bendy twig" with no guarantee he will stay in place. They are probably keeping their powder dry and have all their women lined up on a shelf at home ready to be pressed into action when the situation becomes clearer. 😁

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Binders full of women! 🤣 (old US Mitt Romney prez campaign joke)

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History teaches us that kind sons of treacherous fathers meet an early death. So there is no need to think about a wife for him as she would only end up as a young widow.

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EP 7 was pretty bland. I get that the two leads may have trusted each other too quickly. Hwan still struggles with relationships so I didn't mind him having some time to adjust and face his feelings and mistakes.

Enjoyed EP 8 a lot more! It was infinitely better in terms of action, plot movement, and good old FUN! The polo game was great. I forgot what polo was so it all looked unfamiliar lol. It wasn't a surprise that Hwan won, but it was a nice adrenaline rush, anticipating the moves from the players.

Really loved Jae Yi and Ga Ram's adorably supporting Myung Jin after his rejection. Excited to see the detective crew bonding and working together more.

I randomly watched an old movie Anaconda (1997) recently and just seeing another snake (albeit small in comparison xD) grossed me out hahaha.

Man Deok's wife kept the hometown notice hidden from him so I wonder what came out of that. Didn't seem to have an effect on anything yet or maybe that will be shown next week.

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I enjoyed ep 7 as well for the character progression (Hwan needed some time to get through his trust issues and I’m glad we gave it the space it needed to move on strongly), but I agree with you ep8 was really exciting! I’m hoping it’s a turning point for the drama tbh, it’s taken a long enough time getting its sea legs with the hanging plot strands and abrupt tone shifts. Ep 8 starts to tie everything together and *finally* it seems like our leads are putting some pieces together. I love our detective crew! I don’t always jive perfectly with Myung Jin’s humor, but when Scholar Park is there as the put-upon straight man, the chemistry of the group works for me perfectly. Anyway, I need our guys to start figuring stuff out. It was getting frustrating having the masterminds stay so well hidden as they play our protagonists like puppets and manipulate them against each other.

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I still think this drama has issues with the different genres.

Hwan's anger and jealousy were weird. It was sudden and the fact nobody questionned the "lover" death is weirder... The guy accused her of murder when they know it's not her, so he lied but why? How convenient his death is? For genius, they're very slow...

I was happy to see that Sung-on was on her side. Now, Hwan promised to make her innocent and get her back to Sung-on, the situation will be more complicated between them. I liked how Sung-on was nice with her as a Eunnuch, he's not jealous of the fact she found the shaman.

I'm impressed by the fact the actors did the polo scene themselves. Being on horse, controlling him with one hand and spinning the cross is not for debutant...

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I mean, yeah? How hard is it to fake a suicide in a culture where they don't have fingerprints, DNA and so on? It must happen all the time!

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"The guy accused her of murder when they know it's not her, so he lied but why?"

That's if she is telling the truth. Of course we automatically believe her, we are meant to, but what if she really did murder them. That would be far more interesting than the usual caper of a woman who looks like a 12 year old dressing as a eunuch (a foot shorter than all the others) finding unlikely refuge while she clears her name and nobody questions it or thinks the CP is some kind of pervert. I'd be far more impressed if someone like her was actually bad, pretending to be a damsel in distress and/or a wise-beyond-her-years eunuch - and she could be. What a great way to get more than a ghost's letter into the CP's bedchamber, heart and mind. So she conveniently doesn't remember anything about the morning of the ill-fated breakfast until it suits her? OK.

If we are rewriting, this is my contribution.

Eps 9 & 10. The CP gives up wrestling with his feelings, traps Go between two houses in the next curfew and zooms in for a kiss. Sung-on who has been tailing then mistakes it for an attack and knocks both their hats off along with the pins in their top knots with his sword. The CP's mane is finally revealed in all its startling glory and Go's hair has turned white. A fight ensues and Sung-on tears the eunuch's robe right down the front so it falls off in two halves, first from one sleeve then the other. The evil ghost's letter is discovered tattooed on jae-yi's body. She is the letter personified - the writer, the delivery boy and the message itself. The screen freezes, the ominous music swells, Jae-yi's eyes glint in fury, Sung-on's are ruthless, the CP cries. It was his favourite hat and now it's ruined.

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They already proved she was very smart. So the fact she could poison her whole family when she was the one who cooked, didn't eat the food after buying herself the poison is against her intelligence... So I don't think he doubts about this.

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You just made me laugh hard enough to forget about my seasonal knee pain, thank you!))) The funniest thing about this all tho? Image of Hwan as a confident kissing aggressor. Not in this lifetime, I'm afraid! Even Jaeyi as a human ghost letter seductress-slash-assassin is more believable for now...

P.S. Why I'm now thinking how good Hyungsik would've look with long white mane of glory? He should totally try it in his next sageuk!

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He could borrow Nam Joo-hyuk's wig from Bride of Haebak.

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That one wasn't very good. We need cdrama hairstylists here, they have more experience with unusual colors and flowing long locks!

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eeeek! Now, that’s a terrifying thought! 😆

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Oh, BRAVA! This is brilliant. 😂

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I saw the BTS vid and I was really impressed that they used the real actors on horses for the polo match. It made a difference to the scene! You could tell it wasn’t shot using green screens and cut sways to close ups of actors on wooden horses. It was pretty cool to see.

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I think there is a tonal shift in the drama. sometimes it is a romcom with love in the moonlight vibes and at other times it is focused on the curse/the murders/ the murder. Episode 7 was the former while episode 8 was the latter. I wish the rest of the plot would blend both romance and investigation together so that we won't get a confusing drama that failed on both ends. Also, I don't want the drama to get too dark.

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I'm starting to think that I'm fine without the romance. I feel like episode 8 worked perfectly even if we didn't get romantic scenes, imo.
I actually found episode 7 really weird and frustrating (and I'm not such a fan of Hwan, tbh).

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I want Hyungsik's next drama to have ZERO romance in it. There, I've said it finally. Ooph... Not that there's anything wrong with him and how he plays the part - I love all the restrained tsundere histrionics he gives Hwan - but I'm really tired of people only noticing "honey eyes" which is just a small part of his constantly developing acting range. This drama could've go such route too but I suppose it was easier for the writer to build plot around "defrosting the ice prince" romantic trope since love stories are her main specialty. This and selling purely detective sageuk for domestic TV audience can be a tough call.

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He probably already has one? Maybe Suits?

And I don't think people just like his puppy eyes, at least not in this show.
Well, I'm enjoying his acting a lot, and it's definitely NOT for the romance. My problem is with the character, not the actor.
This is kinda funny. I'm having problems with the main actress even tho I adore Jae Yi. And I'm loving PHS' acting but I can't stand Hwan. Actually, I keep thinking that PSH is the one saving that character for me.
I think we can see his acting skills in most of his shows, tbh. I also loved him in Happiness, High Society, WWWMF, etc.

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Oh, Suits had a rather annoying love line with a very weakly written lady I prefer not to think much of despite my love for that drama. He did the romance-free movie before enlisting, but it was not mainstream enough for many people to watch it. Before that... hmm, Heirs? Yeah, that's it. Omg, the time flies...

Sadly, it is. I keep seeing people complaining that they find his performance in OBY dull/cold because - wait for it! - they don't feel the chemistry between him and So Nee *head-desks* Wtf is this logic? How about all the other Hwan's scenes aside of the romance that's yet to be started properly? Or the fact that his character is SUPPOSED to be cold and reserved? No, screw this, he absolutely should take a break from romance dramas in general and friends-to-lovers trope in particular. Saccharine-hungry target audience can keep watching their overhyped skeleton faves in cheesy romcoms instead.

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Well if the internet is to be trusted PHS’ next drama is going to Doctor Slump with PSH from Heirs and it’s a rom com. At least he gets to play a down on his luck doctor which will be new. I would really like him to get his desire of a noir role or antihero like Deadpool to show off his non-romantic acting chops.

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He's yet to officially accept the role so I still hope he declines. So many things that are potentially off about that project, I don't even know where to start... Doctor - yes, maybe, but down on his luck is hardly anything new to him. Gimme the noir villain Hyungsik!

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Oh, I haven't watched Suits so I didn't know. Sorry.
Juror 8 was nice. I like that movie.

Well, it's sad if some people can't see his talent. He has show it multiple times without having to play a crazy role or something. A thriller/mystery project that's completely romance-free would be good for him for diversity, avoid being typecast, or something, but I don't think he needs it to prove his acting, because he already did.
Maybe you can just take it like haters gonna hate or that people has different standards about some things.

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Suits is really good if you can ignore just-there-thanks-to-original shoehorned love line(s) and somewhat rushed latter half. His performance was really impressive, I've rewatched it like 6 times only for him and the insane chemistry he had with everyone there aside of his leading lady.

Nah, that's not haters, that's his so-called fans, which is doubly sad. I agree that he shouldn't have to prove anything no anyone... but real world is far from perfect and some people just doesn't get it until the truth smacks them hard in the face. Maybe him playing the baddie will finally clear their vision for good or worse so we won't have to return to this forcing an adult man into his kid shoes topic ever again?

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I struggled with ep 7. But ep 8 reeled me back in. My biggest issue is the way crown prince is written. I am ok if he is broken, scared and distrustful. But the writing seems inconsistent. He just sways too much too soon. I am
Ok if he doubted her for a few days until he gathered his thoughts and then showed signs of regret.
His actions, Be it with Eunuch go or the general
Can be confusing. I think the romantic scenes (the cues music etc) hindered with the story telling. One moment he is swooning (kinda) for her and then promising general to protect her and return her. I was just confused :)

Ep 8 was solid and loved it. I enjoyed the match and the chase. Everything came together beautifully. Loved our detective team. Fighting their own fears yet not losing their selves.

Ga Ram truly showed incredible strength. Love her. Min young seems quite dumb except when it comes to dead bodies. How does he not recognize these two. Lol.

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I mostly view the CP as a man confronting feelings and torn loyalties he's never experienced before, and therefore, he's struggling with doing what he knows is expected of him (honoring Jae-yi and Sung-on's engagement) with what he wants to do. But he's also not sure what he wants to do, lol. That's all believable to me considering what we've been shown of his cloistered, predictable life so far.

The one thing that I personally found confusing was why, exactly, Hwan kept Jae-yi exiled from the East Palace. Right before he told Jae-yi no to coming back, we saw him flash back to Sung-on's expression of continued loyalty to Jae-yi. So I know we were supposed to understand Hwan's decision was driven in part by jealousy. But I'm not sure how having Jae-yi working elsewhere in the palace and *not* at Hwan's beck and call keeps her from Sung-on? Or was that not the goal?

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He feels bad coming between the betrothed couple. There's both the matter of Sung-on continuing to protect her even though they last met when they were children, and his long friendship with Sung-on. If he keeps her close to him, he fears that he will continue to feel things. Also honestly, if you got to be Crown Prince by having your beloved brother assassinated, you might think twice about marrying for love. It puts whomever you love in danger.

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I guess he never expected to become a crown prince. He lived a happy life away from politics and didn’t seek the throne. He was just forced into this situation and I don’t think he had any time to process all this or to even know what he wants or how to go about it. He is still not moved on from his brothers death and almost losing his hand to poison. And that ghost letter/prophecy.
I really don’t know if he feels bad about coming between the betrothed couple. I didn’t get that feeling.

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He doesn't seem to 100% process his feelings yet, but he's smart enough to guess that they're uncalled for and will bring trouble if he doesn't so something about them asap. It was an action of despair, just like his rage outburst last week. Only more calculated this time.

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When Jae-yi asked him to let her back into the Eastern Palace, the CP flashed back on his conversation with Sung-on in which he said he was still committed to the marriage. Then he told her no. I thought this established his motivation. The CP and Jae-yi are in that sweet spot of liking each other as friends, and starting to feel some romantic feelings. He's way more aware that's what's going on than she is, which is why he's pushing her away and she doesn't get why. For example, when they are hiding from the curfew patrol, she comments on the adrenalin rush, saying that her heart is pounding. His heart is also pounding, but it's implied that he's aware of her proximity. (Oooh, I love that kind of stuff. ) So far, the writers aren't playing the rift between the two men as anything about the FL. It's all about the CP distrusting his old friend because he's so embattled.

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I think Hwan flashing back to his conversation confirms that hes keeping Jaeyi away from Eastern palace 100% because he’s finally realizing his proximity to former bestie’s fiancé (ex fiancé?) is totally inappropriate. That being said, his head may tell him Sung On still considers her his woman, but when push comes to shove during the polo match, he was *totally* jealous and miffed at Jaeyi rooting for Sung On instead of for his team. What I mean is he feels bad when he’s talking to Sung On, even enough to keep Jaeyi away a bit, but not bad enough when she’s actually in front of him not to feel territorial. Hwan for many reasons already discussed, is not particularly emotionally intelligent.

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The goal was to keep Jaeyi away from Hwan himself so his rapidly progressing feelings he's starting to realize (at least enough to know that they are dangerous and compromising) won't get even deeper in her 24/7 very close proximity. Too bad no one told this sweet summer child that while distance do nip some crushes in the bud it also makes some of them stronger than ever...

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Especially when he can't stop himself from either seeking her out or calling for her when something happens. His stares of yearning as he watches her struggle with her duties probably aren't helping either. I don't know how his guard sidekick hasn't picked up on the vibe by now.

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I feel sorry for him, really, but him tailing her like a sad duckling around the whole palace is SO entertaining to watch lol!

Tae Gang surely has rocks for brains to not suspect a thing at this point))) I kind of feel that the head eunuch is more observant though. I'm just not sure if it's eunuch Go's weak disguise or him simply knowing his young master too well for too long to not notice the obvious signs and develop a theory on that basis.

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I also think it’s interesting that with her he tends to be “mean” to explain his actions but it’s part of their dynamic. He likes to goad/challenge her and then quietly or furtively smile when she gets her heckles up. It amuses him and I don’t think he’s fully aware that the amusement is leading to like and love. Like when he told her the reason he can’t bring her back to the eastern palace or let her sleep in the library is because of her bad manners and her cursing at him. She was doing just fine living at the “morgue” and cursing him there.

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Boy built the whole Joseon urban legend around his jerk prince persona, ofc he uses it as a go-to excuse all the time))) Part of his attraction to her probably comes from the fact that she's hardly scared by this mask despite his best efforts. Him half-seriously agreeing to all the names she's called him was LOL. I'm afraid he starts to develop another, much more scandalous than his love for compliments kink here...

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See that’s the part I don’t get. Is it jealousy?
I can get behind him doing what he has to do which is morally right and expected of him vs what he wants for himself. That’s a good reason to get behind his actions.

Lol, yeah. He is not thinking through this. She is now getting more face time with her fiancé, which I do appreciate from a story telling POV. I am not a big fan of forcing leads together just to force the OTP. I want them to get together inspite of all this.

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Hwan doesn't mind that she is seeing her fiance more, (well, maybe he sort of does, but not enough to behave dishonorably) because the point of not letting her back into the Eastern Palace was to create distance between Jae-i and himself. Flashing back to Hwan's conversation with Seong-on was meant to convey the fact that Hwan feels guilty for his growing crush on another man's fiance, so he's trying to push her away a bit so he can get over his feelings.

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Hwan surely does mind though - he let them talk uninterrupted for what, 30 seconds? And then showed up all fake smiley and not interested AT ALL in what their conversation was about)))

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I question if it was jealousy as well. Maybe I have too much hope, but I feel the writer is working hard to subvert most of the kdrama tropes. I thought the conversation between CP and Cheif Han didnt alert him to their relationship, but rather gave him the excuse to trust her. Someone else thought she might not be the villain, so maybe he wasn't crazy to trust her (he's been struggling to trust his own judgement and sense of reality for over a year now). I thought his going back to the soldier that investigated her case was evidence that he was trying to find a reason to trust her and doubt the evidence. His friend gave him that, which is why he went back to approaching her. The flashback when he told her she couldn't come back, I thought was a reminder that they both promised to protect her. She is not safe in the eastern palace close to him. It may be where the sun rises, but it's also where princes go to die along with anyone close to him. She already lost her family because of their association with him. These two are falling for each other, but it's not with the usual petty kdrama tropes. They are building a relationship of vulnerability, dependency and earned trust. I think for now, that matters more to both of them than any possibility of attraction. That's why her spending more time with her fiancé isn't even an issue. Neither of them are there yet mentally. I too look forward to their budding romantic attraction despite their circumstances.

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And let's not forget how Hwan says one day "I'm gonna bring you your fiance" and the next thing he does is compete against him and make Jae Yi lose three yangs (?) because he was jealous she was cheering for the guy. 😂
I guess in his wingman 101 book, acting cool and defeating your bro in front of his fiance is the best way to get them closer together.

This guy can be hilarious sometimes.

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My perspective of that match was that Hwan is doing everything he can not to catch feelings for Jae-i, but in that moment, it was just too much. He couldn't just stand there and be beaten by Seong-on by default. If he can't have her, he's at least going to win this match.

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He's trying to behave honorably, but his subconscious still works hard to make her maybe reconsider her choice. It won't be much of his fault if she ultimately decides he's the hotter one, right?)))

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Exactly. He wasn't supposed to play in the first place. It seemed like he didn't even care about the game that much until he heard that she placed her bet on the Army team.

This will be really hard to explain in the future (to Sung On). He was being Julia Roberts in My Best Friend's Wedding. 😂

Even if he didn't mean to outshine Sung On, and it was about his pride, "winning" or wtv, I think it was an odd decision coming from the dude that's trying to bring the couple together.

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I think "trying to bring the couple together" is pretty strong hahaha! More like, "trying to behave in a way he can mentally justify later" or "not doing anything explicitly to break them up but wouldn't be mad if it happened" ;)

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He was protecting his team's honor, there's nothing to explain further here *wink*

Now that's the comparison... He didn't show up on their wedding with intention to crash it and steal the bride amidst the chaos, he just joined the game to let some steam (fine, a lot of it) off. And maybe earn an admiring glance or two while at it. It's not his obligation to play the ugly bestie of Sung On all the time.

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I enjoyed these episodes. I love when the full team gets together with Scholar Park, and he relaxes (slightly). I'm looking forward to seeing the team getting tighter.
I'm still thrown back to 100 Days My Prince everytime I see the couple who run the Inn, even if the husband is a ninja this time round!

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I don't want them to find out Scholar Park is the CP till the end. I'm fine if they find out in the last ten minutes of the show. 🥺 I don't want their interactions to change, they have a fun and cute dynamic.

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I f-love Scholar Park and how this persona magnifies Hwan’s awkwardness since no one is sucking up to the CP anymore. I also think Scholar Park is essential to the investigative team’s dynamic, when it’s just Garam and Myung Jin, honestly it feels a bit too silly in a way that doesn’t jive with the rest of the drama. Anyway, I agree with you and hope he keeps joining the team and also they keep ragging on him, not realizing he’s the CP for a while.

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I'm afraid the drama isn't grabbing me as much. It's not one specific thing, but lots of little quibbles. The budding romance feels a little forced, the plot too quick on the heels of TFB, too much slapstick, the choppy stitching of the different plot elements, the overacting of the FL, and I hate to say it of PSH, but his acting feels a little wooden. I have hopes on the latter as he's done well in roles where he adored a kickass FL (Happiness, SWBS, Soundtrack) but let's see.

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Maybe I’m biased, but I’m finding PHS’s moody and tortured Prince anything but wooden. He’s repressed as all hell, but the micro expressions revealing the layers underneath are fascinating to watch. Someone mentioned his subtle amusement with everything Jaeyi says and does, and I wanna add that I love that you can tell from his expressions he’s not just amused but frequently impressed by her. He always has this expression when she’s setting him down and he actually agrees with her— it’s like, oh I see, this “arrogant” prince is actually not that arrogant bc he acknowledges being wrong, and he really listens to reason, etc. Anyway, yes to many various issues with the drama and I understand it’s not meeting many peoples expectations, but I find the CP character pretty layered and interesting, personally.

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First things first: I might need a more idiomatic translation of “You look like a bird’s nest on a full moon!” What exactly is this meant to convey? She said it at the end of a long string of insults, but I gotta admit, it doesn’t sound that bad. Are we talking a messy clump of twigs, or a neat little swiftlet situation that you might put into soup?

I was glad for a slow-down for a minute in episode 7 to focus on the intertwined relationships between our major characters. We were right that Hwan’s quick reaction was one he regretted almost right away, but I understand his desire to be cautious, especially given his dad’s heartbreaking and questionable advice. Still, trust isn’t always based on evidence, and I’m glad the divide between our leads didn’t last too long. It seems like we might be headed in the direction of repairing the friendship between Hwan and Seong-on also? I mean yeah, Hwan has a massive crush on Seong-on’s fiance, but that can hardly be helped, and he’s being pretty honorable about the whole thing (although I do think he could have let her stay in the library again). Here’s hoping that the lecture Jae-i gave him, the friendly/jealous competition, and the spooky snake incident are going to lead them both in the right direction.

I love that Hwan is the only person in the palace who knows Jae-i’s true identity, and that she’s the only person who knows his identity outside. It makes for some of my favorite interactions in the whole show.

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About the library bit - this is not just any secret room he let her stay in temporarily, it's HIS secret room full of personal things and memories, including the very intimate ones. Letting her back into it would've been equal to letting her into his private space fully, even into his heart metaphorically... and he's not ready for that yet. Not when he just decided - like you've said, rather honorably - to draw some boundaries between them. We know it's a losing battle anyway but he is trying his hardest here, let's show some respect))) Plus this way we will be able to prepare ourselves for THINGS to happen once he gives up and invites her to live there again...

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hahaha, fair. My impression was that he's not using it so much anymore, now that his arm is much better and he can probably practice those things in his normal room again, so it wouldn't be that big of a deal to clear some space for her. But I suppose that would just make the metaphor more damning. Clearing space in his heart and all that.

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Well, last time they were there together he made her sleep in his bed (notice how she never used it herself before) and there was this charged moment when he treated her wound... I bet he's terrified of something similar happening again, dark secluded place and all)))

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Thank you for your recaps! I watched all 8 episodes so far, this week. I think I might have a thing for these cross dressing sageuks. Something about the lead characters getting to know each other while evading rigid gender roles. It’s probably why I love k drama in general.

I wanted to say about these episodes: I was afraid someone was giving the shaman a baby to kill in jail! So relieved that it was a motif, I mean a snake, instead. Also I fast forwarded through the polo match.

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Oh my goodness, me too! I felt sick when I saw something wriggling inside that bag. I thought it was a poor baby. 😰

Any guesses on who the person who delivered the snake is? He's dressed as a royal guard, but the royal guards were all at the polo match... so it can't be Tae-gang (whom I kind of suspect) but someone walking around the palace disguised as a royal guard. I mean why not. We have a girl walking around dressed as a eunuch.

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The shaman seemed to have recognize him too.

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Really loved this week!

I saw some complaints over on MDL, which seem to be shared here, that episode 7 was slow/boring but I disagree. A lot's happened very fast in this drama (as I said last week, it was giving me whiplash), so having an episode allowing our characters to reflect on what's happening, and give Hwan's actions some context - which felt over the top even for him - made for a nice interlude. And set the stage for things to ramp up again in episode 8. Which was a lot of fun!

I will say the romance between our leads is the weakest link in this drama. Not that I'm not totally aboard this ship (I absolutely am!) but it relies too much on tired tropes which aren't necessary. Jae-yi's determination to be loyal to him despite his misgivings, him battling his trust issues, them clinging to each other as a last desperate hope in solving the mysteries threatening to bring them down... there's enough there for a compelling relationship without resorting to the usual rom-com clichés.

It feels like someone in production felt there wasn't enough obvious romance, or didn't trust the audience to see it develop more subtly, so they just went "how about a slow-mo 'she falls and he catches her and they stare at each other swoonily' scene? People still dig those, right?"

Not looking forward to the potential love polygon and Crown Princess selection complicating things, even if it is realistic that the Powers that Be would want to marry our CP off. I am looking forward to our foursome reuniting to do more sleuthing - especially with our budding bromance between Myung-jin and our emotionally stunted Hot Scholar. Though I'm giving side-eye to our resident genius detective not catching on to our heroines' identities (despite literally staring at our girls' wanted posters side by side), but I guess his skill set doesn't extend to anything to do with women, as his attempts at impressing them have shown. Speaking of... how awesome are said women!? I just love them both.

Also I really liked Sung-on in these episodes. I do hope he doesn't go Evil, and continues to be an ally from the sidelines - even if it'll make the inevitable conclusion to our love triangle more heartbreaking. Even if his loyalty toward Jae-yi is driven by duty and his own version of her as a person rather than feelings for the real her, his friendship with Hwan is already so tenuous, I'm not sure it can survive another wedge.

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I agree that it is ridiculous that Myung-jin doesn't recognize the women, but this seems to be a central conceit of the show--i.e. that people see what they want to see or what they're told to see and don't question beyond that. Of course, Myung-jin is supposed to be smarter and less conventional than that, so it's the hardest to accept his ignorance. I guess we're supposed to chalk his ignorance up to his eccentricity and/or distraction due to his upcoming marriage.

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He is too used to dealing with dead bodies he can’t tell one living being from another, especially in disguise 🥸

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Those drawings on the wanted posters could be of just about anybody. My beef is he doesn't even realise they are women. He is the one man in constant proximity with them both. Do men's clothes really act as such an efficient shield of the truth? The man is supposed to be a detective after all.

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Agreed, the drawings are hilariously generic, but Myung Jin the autopsy genius still not realizing at least that Garam is a girl is disappointing. He hasn’t spent nearly as much time with Jaeyi, plus she’s pretending to be a eunuch, which means if “he” was castrated pre-puberty, you can accept her voice and not having developed more masculine features, but Garam is supposed to be a grown adult man in that squeaky voice? And they see each other in close quarters everyday? The suspension of disbelief is too high there.

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I suppose he could be having too much fun for the first time ever with someone who shares his interests and is just as unconventional as he is (on the run and cross-dressing) which is why he pretends he doesn't know as his playmate will be taken away.

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Interesting in the book the same character is also not able to tell. He is a genius coroner who hero worships the FL as a detective. I think it was used for humor in the book because he would frequently lament how much easier it would be solve if the FL was there not even aware she was standing right in front of him. I think they are slow playing the big reveal which was also funny in the book.

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MDL crowd can go choke with their mob nitpicking honestly. Yes, drama - and specifically directing - has a lot of issues, but trashing it to such extent just because it's not a hot romance heavy flick (no one said it was tho?!) ala AoS/TFM (I don't even know how to comment on the first one... there's NOTHING in common between that show and OBY!) and lack of trendy among teens actors is ridiculous. Calling Ep7 a filler was nail in the coffin. Sure, who needs a proper characterization anyway...

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As usual, essay warning)))

Spring is here and everything's in full bloom, show included. Feelings grow, relationships develop, main mystery gets even more colorful than it already was and even actual flowers take some important role. Good stuff))) First of all, contrary to most people here (and there) I liked Ep7 with all its slow pace and little to no action. This drama excels in action and thriller, sure, but I love me some heavy introspection from time to time, and here I think writer did really well in baring our characters feelings and thoughs without rushing the story to get faster to the next meaty action sequence. Hell, I even liked Sung On this week – not sure why, but he visibly loosened up and started to actually resemble the great guy everyone was gushing about since Ep1. You know, the one that's sweet to people, a good friend (I'm still seething that he never properly apologized for the turtle incident, but good for him to make an effort and reaching out to Hwan first, even in such macho form of polo match), a capable professional (few seconds of hesitation more and we could've get Hwan's coronation next episode, what a pity!) and overall cool guy with a nice smile. No wonder the Princess is so embarrassingly smitten (so much family resemblance with Hwan here lol, we've even got to see his own motor mouth in action during the “I'm not here cause I've missed you!” scene). Still idk what to think of this pairing potentially – plus I kind of suspect that Sung On noticed her crush, not that it was hard to do so – but since there are no better options on the horizon... Maybe including Hwan in his family tree by becoming in-laws is the solution to this family vs duty dilemma he's been struggling with lately? Daddy Han still won't approve for sure.

Overall there were so many subtle but still deep moments here that I absolutely loved. Like both leads quietly crying over the loss of each other as trusted allies, Garam's terrifying imagination theater (well, now we know for sure that she's still a slave, which rises the stakes for her and Jaeyi even higher), head eunuch being surprisingly nice to “Soondol” (I also think that he suspects/knows she's a girl), Myungjin's confusion over why his lack of political career prospects is a bad thing when he never wanted the job anyway (another sus guy btw – does he REALLY not know the identities of “guys” he's housing?), Hwan's long and bumpy (that Scholar Park's business-only visit was all kinds of disaster) journey of mustering the courage to admit he messed up and apologize directly and verbally, Jaeyi having a momentarily pause over the mention of Hwan's future marriage... The latter was especially well done since it delivered just right amount of emotions and “aha!” without going too far too soon. We still have those infamous staring contests with swirling OST to fill the weekly saccharine quota, oh heavens... Now with some literal CGI blooming flowers to drive the point...

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... drive the point home lol.
But my top favorite moment was Hwan's brooding night after kicking Jaeyi out – not only we've got to hear his thoughts on the matter (and wow, boy is also gifted in words department – what an epic confession his inner monologue was! If only he said all this to Jaeyi personally...), but there was also a flashback crammed in that showed and explained SO MUCH. Now we know few things for sure. First, King DOES care about his son – in a brutally cynical, murderous and emotionally traumatizing manner – but still. Telling Hwan that he should survive at all costs, even if it means not trusting anyone, his own family included, was... something. I do appreciate the honestly of not giving any false hope of support and admitting he's not powerful enough to place his son before his duty as a King. Remember that scene between Hwan and Sung On when the latter tried to appeal to their personal bond? Now we know why Hwan reacted so badly back then. Still, is King as useless in parenting department as he claims to be? Someone did send that letter to Jaeyi's dad seeking genius detective's assistance... Oh, and juxtaposition of Hwan crying in flashback and present – helpless, hurt child he was in front of his father then and much more jaded man he is now, looking as if he aged a decade since despite it being only a year – was purely brilliant. Hyungsik is such an elegant crier tho lol))) Many of his peers, including more famous ones, could've take a lesson or two from him in how to deliver angst and manly tears without making the audience cringe from excessive effort put into it.

Now onto the hotter stuff – namely the polo game (at least they choose less anachronistic sport than in Hwarang lmao). Ah, what a delicious testosterone fest it was! Must admit that I cackled at how little it took for Jaeyi to ruffle Hwan's feathers into joining the match with a fiery determination of “absolutely NOT losing” (poor Tae Gang probably gained few gray hair from the sheer menace in his master's tone in that scene). But damn, I can see why people who did bet on army said goodbyes to their money the very moment he was announced participating – the maine coon prince is a force of nature when he's fighting seriously. I'm pretty sure I've seen someone being mercilessly kicked out of his saddle in all the chaos and sticks surely not always landed on the ball either... Extra points for actors riding horses themselves, giving us all those pretty non zoomed-in shots. I do have to admit that maybe half of Jaeyi's staring at Hwan during game was out of worry for his arm and not purely fangirling (unlike with Princess and Sung On), but he did look super cool, so good for her to FINALLY noticing. Too bad he doesn't know she WAS impressed... Shouldn't rub that money loss in her face probably, but if I was him not sure I could've resist too)))

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Comedy bits actually landed better this time. The whole scholar Park visit scene was gold – from him avoiding hugs like a cat in grumpy mood to gang trolling both flowery scholar (did you notice this recurring pattern in his hanboks? priceless!) and the prince behind him (again, does Myungjin really that dense to not know?). Sure, he didn't miss anyone here and just came for work, that stammering sweaty denial was REALLY convincing... Bless Myungjin's big warm heart for actually jumping – literally – at the opportunity to glomp his new reluctant friend, tho for a moment I was worried it'll end up bloody. The questionable humor of Myungjin first being rejected (that girl is a real bitch – came to ask for his help yet started the convo with insults to his face) and then accidentally hit by Garam was not that impressive, but SK loves mean jokes, I suppose. This was one of my first impressions of sageuk as a genre years ago – abundance of violent physical comedy. Which still works sometimes, but here I feel like the theme is overplayed already. Hope Garam improves her aim next time and saves the day cause I don't have much hopes for Tae Gang – traitor or not, he won't bat an eye to let “eunuch Go” get hurt. I did notice that the actor showed improvement and picked up some comedy skills of his own (ink scene and “he asked me to tell you something, but I forgot”).
And finally the cherry on top of this week's plot – interrogation of shaman. I've certainly got more than I've expected here. Hwas was never sole target of the curse? And the whole conspiracy is not about CP position but overthrowing the whole Yi dynasty (which apparently is not the country's founder in this fictional universe)? Oh, and all we've seen so far is related. Plus one of CP's guards (Tae Gang or not, your bets?) is more than just a mole. What a way to rise the stakes higher... Things did feel a bit excessive tho – hypnotic (?) flower incense, dramatic public suicide by pet viper, cursing the royal family right to King's face, propaganda flyers delivered by lanterns and ninja archers, burned tree and thunder of doom out of nowhere... Our resident skeptic Jaeyi will have a lot of work to debunk all this. Someone pls hug both princes asap because they looked mortified - well, with the difference of Hwan having better control of his bladder... his arm tho... oh crap, not again!

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I'm thinking that it's not Tae-gang, just because there was a scene with the court lady and guard exchanging messages happening at the same time as the polo match. Could be editing to deliberately fake us out, but I'm inclined to think not at this point. Court lady's hands looked middle aged or older though, so I have my eyes peeled.

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Tae Gang is such an obvious suspect it's almost ridiculous - shady past, strong dislike of FL, close enough to CP to be considered a friend the curse mentioned... Nope, I hope writer doesn't go there, it's too easy.

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I came back to report that TVN’s Twitter posted screenshots of ep 8, and I zoomed in on the shot of the two ninjas atop a roof, and lo and behold, one of them has eyes and eyebrows suspiciously similar to our Tae-gang’s. So… how is he able to do all this while seemingly by Hwan’s side as well? Are they messing with us with the timelines, so the cross-cutting doesn’t mean those scenes are happening at the same time? I wonder now I’d Tae-gang and the town husband (forget his name— he hurt his arm fighting Sung On) are related somehow, since they could be working for the same org. And the white haired fish guy who town guy gives rice to, who supposedly takes care of orphans… maybe these are all orphans being used to further their organization. Lots to ponder!

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At least we have enough episodes left to unfold all this properly... at least I hope so.

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Strong agree on liking ep 7. It was good to take a pause and sort through motivations and emotions.

And it let all those beautiful moments you mentioned shine, instead of being lost in the shuffle of mystery and action. I love the faster-paced stuff too, but I was never bored watching our characters figure out where they are now, what they have to do next and (poor Hwan hahaha) how to apologize.

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I've recently watched a video on YT discussing Miyazaki's directing style (really informative one, I can find the link if anyone is interested) and how he always works with the "for every action there's also a breath" rule in mind. That was such a revelation of pacing building to me, I couldn't stop thinking about it and recalling examples after examples to see how it applies to different genres and setups. This one here was a good example imo.

To Hwan's credit, he didn't take an easy road of pushing issue aside or just calling it even after Jaeyi's insults and actually said the words. Her opinion really matters to him. It's so adorable, cliche or not.

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The trio of crime-solvers continues to be the most entertaining part of the drama. I was glad to see the storyline address the intertwined relationships between Jae-yi, Hwan and Sung-on. I interpreted Hwan’s refusal to let Jae-yi move back to the Eastern Palace to be mostly about setting a boundary with her, even if he himself isn’t entirely clear on what their relationship is, let alone if he has any hopes for what it could be in the future.
No objections to the reduced screen time for scheming ministers and palace intrigue in these episodes. (Btw, am I alone in thinking the rock pile-secret message signal doesn’t seem that secretive?) But, did the blood feud between the Song and Yi families get foreshadowed in any way? Or is this new info coming out of the blue?

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The whole Song family business was never hinted before, not even when investigation wracked their collective brains over the meaning of those bloody characters. I guess we'll get some heavy exposition dose as the start of Ep9.

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The first few minutes of ep7 really lost me, it felt like I missed an episode with the CP suddenly doubting Jae-yi and losing his trust when an ep ago he was going around how much he trusts her. Oh well. However, ep8 with the ladies and the team solving the cases, that was interesting.

I really hope that the ladies or Jae-yi will be able to scientifically prove the snake and the death of the shaman.

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I enjoyed reading your recap @alathe. I love the running commentary and snark. Reminds me of the good old DB days.

I enjoyed these episodes. I prefer the trust issues to be dealt with now rather than have an Episode 15 crisis. Hwan has to think hard on what kind of person and ruler he wants to be: "trust nobody and survive" like his father said, or follow Confucius as quoted by Jae-yi: "hold on to trust; it's the last thing you lose'. Coming from the daughter of his mentor, those words must have had an impact on him.

@kiara I so wish this drama were set during an actual Joseon reign. It would make the curse about the downfall of the Yi dynasty so much more interesting. The emphasis on the shaman going to Gaesong - capital of the Goryeo dynasty and previously known as Seongdo - suggests we might be talking about an ancient curse. Any thoughts?

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Tackling an actual Joseon history is really risky these days. I'm actually relieved that writer didn't go there and we won't have to worry about a possible controversy, even if the real stuff was much more meaty than any allusions.

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History needs to be constantly analysed and reinterpreted by historians who are good researchers and scholars as so much history the world over is hagiographic at best and highly distorted at worst. It should present contested accounts of events as opposed to how powerful vested interests memorialise themselves for posterity. I wonder if there is a Korean historian who like Howard Zinn has written the Peoples’ history of Korea? If so, would love to read that one day. That would make great sageuks and films.

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Knetz and Yi clan descendants would probably disagree with such dry scientific approach))) One passing suggestion of Annals of Joseon being a somewhat biased record in Mr Queen was enough to cause a stir that ended up returning with vengeance and clipping drama's wings in the long run. Doubting the legitimacy of the dynasty altogether like this show just did? Hello, bloody mess.

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Au contraire! It would be anything but dry! Scientific for sure though.

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I’m still traumatized by Joseon Exorcist. I was looking forward to that show and boom, canceled. I mean, it’s like if Americans had an outcry against Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter for its lack of historical accuracy… I’m sorry, but truly, wtf?

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@wishfultoki, unfortunately, I've only seen 2 episodes.
Since the source material is a work of fiction set in the Tang Dynasty, I don't think this writer will pull anything from the actual history. They'll keep taking from the novel or make up their own.
Shamanism vs. the Yi Dynasty makes little sense unless we are talking about Buddhism, which bore the brunt of the persecutions from the Yi dynasty.
I wish they had kept the timeline from the novel. Joseon fatigue is real, but I'll make exceptions for Woo Do-hwan.

OT, I'm currently watching "LUOYANG" while waiting for Unbreakable Sword's sageuk.

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I finished episodes 7 and 8 tonight. A few thoughts:
1. I watched the extended scene in episode 7 between the King and Hwan twice. First time I missed that it was a one year flashback before current events. The King did almost all of the talking and Hwan said very little. Emotionally I think it might have been Park Hyung-sik’s second best performance so far in the drama with the first being the defense of himself in the storage room to the charge of killing his brother. About half way through the scene when the King tells Hwan not to trust anyone PHS lowers his head, his eyes water a bit and he appeared totally alone and defeated. I thought it was a great scene for him.
2. Lee Tae-sun’s Myung-jin is my favorite character. I put a warning out early that LTS could be a scene stealer and I still stick by that. He was wonderful in the return visit by Scholar Park. He looked great in green.
(Also during that scene why did Viki not follow its traditional style on not translating hyung. Everyone time Min-jung called Hwan hyung it was translated ‘older brother’ which was correct but distracting. Later during the polo match Viki returned to not translating hyung.); and
3. As far as sporting competitions go I think the soccer/football match in HWARANG (2016/17) came of better than the polo match in OBY. It wasn’t bad but not as good.

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1 - it was really the best scene of the week acting-wise, you could totally see how that moment totally crushed Hwan and shaped him into paranoid mess he is now. I'm also eagerly waiting for that one highly dramatic scene from trailers that didn't happen yet...

2 - Viki caught Netflix sub disease this week. Who in their right mind thought it's okay to translate "nobi" as "servant"? It means "slave", plain and simple. Dumb, unprofessional, absolutely uncalled for hypocritical censoring. Fearing that some viewers might be uncomfortable with the word doesn't excuse the misleading translation.

3. I don't like team sports, esp team sports with ball, but horses are love and polo scenes were so pretty partly thanks to them)))

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1. I too thought it was a great scene. Also, from the way he glanced at his locked box (a very cool Joseon-era safe), it would seem Hwan was about to show the king the ghost's letter but he stopped short when the king told him to not trust anybody. So yes, those were tears of feeling alone and defeated. 😢

2. I am all for that potential bromance between Scholar Park and Myung-jin. He got a hug. Regarding the form of address, I think Myung-jin used the word "sayong" (not sure how to spell it), which I've only heard in Joseon sageuks spoken by a young scholar speaking to a more senior scholar whom he looks up to and admires, kind of like "sunbae" but closer to the "hyung" feel. Maybe someone who speaks Korean can explain this.

3. I thought the polo match was more intense since it was on horseback in a smallish enclosure. I think the actors did the riding too. By the way, I was curious about the gisaeng who tossed the ball... she appeared out of nowhere and disappeared just as quickly. (Which is probably good because she could have been trampled by horses. 🤣) Is she another mysterious character to look out for?

The HWARANG football match was hilarious though.

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In No. 2 I probably went too far out on a limb linguistically lol.
The things I noticed during the ball toss was that hat and the thought, ‘lady you are in a dangerous place right now’. All of a sudden she was gone. I may go back and watch the polo match again and see if she remained in the crowd.

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I wondered the same thing about the gisaeng. How did she get out of the way so quickly? Maybe she turns out to be a hidden assassin with excellent lightness skills. 🤔

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1 - Totally agree, PHS was great in that scene. And also one of the reasons why Ep7 is not a “filler” episode. The scene helps you understand the CP much better and why he reacts the way he does.
2 - Ugh, Prime’s subtitles are worse. They oversimplify way too much. I don’t even think it’s because they’re timing the reading to scene. It’s just plain bad localization.
3 - I loved the competition. It’s like a mix of polo and lacrosse which is amazing, made me wonder if it’s still being played today. I tried polo once and it’s hard just hitting a small ball from on top of a horse, how much more trying to scoop it up and pass it around. Props to the actors who actually shot the scenes themselves.

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Thank you for the wonderful recap!!

I was already struggling with my lukewarm feelings toward the crown prince and him kicking Jae-yi out like that. She wasn't just dismissed, but carried out and thrown out in disgrace in front of a dozen servants. The taking back of his trust combined with the public humiliation and being forced to find shelter outside of the palace in the middle of night...it felt so unfair. And then demoted to physical labor. This is after she solved the serial killer case (which she took on to prove herself to the crown prince), saved a baby, and received a head injury for her pains.

Other than the commendable work the crown prince did to secretly rehabilitate his arm in a palace that would judge him for being disabled, it seems like he's always just sitting there waiting for answers to come to him and for things to work themselves out.

I love Jae-yi because she's resourceful and driven in the face of adversity and still maintains her compassion. I loved her action scenes in episode 8 - chasing after that shadow figure through the neighborhood and climbing and jumping walls like a freaking BOSS! Incredibly quick reflexes too. She has dodged an arrow 3 times in the show already.

I love all the Min Jae-yi, Garam, and Myung-jin scenes. One of my favorite moments was when Myung-jin was telling Scholar Park how mean the Crown Prince was for kicking Eunuch Go out, explaining it's probably because the CP was spoiled from hearing "Jeonha! Jeonha!" all the time. Garam was laughing and trying to hide it. It felt like an unscripted Pyo Ye-jin moment.

I'm curious at how the Crown Prince hasn't caught on that Garam is a girl either. Her voice is so girly!

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