This show continues to be a low-key delight.

Random Thoughts:

--There have been so many scenes of Yoo-ha giving Dan-oh and San major side eye, that it's absurd that he didn't realize they're in love. But I guess he simply didn't *want* to believe it, so he chose to ignore it for as long as he could. I like this character, but I, too, worry that his jealousy and disappointment over Dan-oh might become his primary motivation, which is basically character suicide. He needs to start paying attention to a certain courtesan (the one who's not his mother) instead of pining for someone who sees him as a brother and nothing more.

--I really liked the banter and obvious caring between San and Shi-yeol, who is truly the most interesting guy in the trio as far as I'm concerned. He's loyal, but not an automaton; he's secretive, but not afraid to make it clear that he's infatuated with Hong-joo; and he's a great fighter.

--I knew the San/Dan-oh kiss was coming the second it started snowing, but I wish it had happened earlier when San and Dan-oh were alone in her room the evening before. That would have seemed much more natural and, frankly, made more sense than them taking that moment when a) they'd just barely escaped death and b) they didn't know if the Watchman was ok and c) they were out in the open. It wasn't a bad kiss, but felt very choreographed, unfortunately.

Disappointed as I was when Yoo-ha said he only cared about Dan-oh’s safety and not Lee Seol (because what about his friends who have died for the cause?), I’m even more concerned by the fact that he appears to be setting himself up more as a scapegoat than a king. He’s hinted more than once that he’s prepared to be cast aside if it’s necessary to raise up a new king. But I’d love for him to be more than just a jealous second lead who eventually comes around and sacrifices himself so San can succeed and our lead couple can be together.
I'm with you here @mistyisles. He not thinking in that moment about his friends who died for the same cause Dan-oh is abetting took away the purpose for which they died almost immediately. I'm sure he just lost a screw or two and Yoo-ha will be back.
They just should not set the brothers up as enemies. It won't be nice at all. And if he ends up being a sacrificial lamb of some sort, it won't be nice at all. But I was quite surprised and disappointed that San's first line of action was to draw a sword at Yoo-ha's neck after he knew his identity as Lee Gyeom. You guys are housemates over there at Ihwawon. I applaud San jumping over the fence to confront Yoo-ha, that's a rational thing to do. Drawing a sword at his neck? Very uncalled for. I'd prefer dragging him to a secret backyard and ask what in the name of whatever is Yoo-ha doing impersonating Lee Seol? Especially when he knows that Yoo-ha is Gyeom.

And, that Royal Bodyguard, not Administrator Jang, the one who winked at Kim Chin-won. Is he a Mokinhoe loyalist or a loyalist of Lee Seol. I'm surprised at how quick and effortless he is to draw a sword at Lee Seol. I don't just know where he stands.

And to the romance that holds my attention - Shi-yeol and Hong-ju. I just can't get enough of them two. However, just as much as I can't get enough of them, I can't help but worry for the future. We learnt that Shi-yeol has been Sam's watchman for how long now? And her fiance died 8 years ago. If it so happens that he's the watchman that struck down the Six Swords, it'll be a big wrench thrown into their budding yet already fluffy romance. I kind of congratulated Hong-ju when she paid a visit to her late fiance's grave and said she is ready to live a life for herself now, I could not help but think about how his accompanying her to his grave and his presence behind her as she bade goodbye to Jang Hyun might be foreshadowing "She fell in love with the man who struck down her fiance in battle, and vice versa for Shi-yeol". It'll be a tragic fate I do not want them to live through.

But my worries aside, it was so nice to see Hong-ju be willing to risk being discovered when she noted that Shi-yeol was not on time. The tender air she blew on Shi-yeol's hurt wrist...🤭🤭👌🏽👌🏽. My lady is ready to take a man into her heart once again and all I have to say to Hong-ju is : Fighting!!!

Thank you, @mistyisles, for the weecap! Every time Shi-yeol forgets to add "yo" at his sentence when talking to San makes me laugh. I'm also thinking the minister will abandon Yoo-ha when San shows himself. The part I liked best in these episodes? When the pair of Shi-yeol and Hong-joo meet San and Dan-oh on their own "dates"!

I have some questions about the business model of Watchman, Inc.

- There's a whole organized Watchman school with lots of students. Where does the money come from?

- Watchmen exist only to watch over a prospective future king? Who decides which candidates get Watchmen?

- If more than one candidate at a time can have a watchman, what if they get into a succession dispute? Did our current evil king have one?

- How do they recruit trainees? Do kids volunteer for that life? Do their parents sell them into it? Is kidnapping involved? Kpoop-style slave contracts? Total lack of informed consent?

I didn’t worry much about who would end up on the throne in the end until you tied it to Shi-yeol’s freedom and ultimate happiness

You and me both @mistyisles! Not just because Shi-yeol is awesome but also because it'd be too cruel to Hong-joo otherwise.

The show definitely seems to be trending towards at least one dead flower boy from our main trio and I hope it bucks that trend. I'm looking forward to San and Yoo-ha's conversation next week. Maybe they'll solve everything through communication and work together (hey people can dream!) 🙏.

Thanks for the recap.

Although I'm still enjoying this, I have to admit I'm finding this all a bit slow at the moment, with too many things being dragged out unnecessarily and not much progress on the overall main plot.

First we had two episodes of several characters angsting about what they now know about who is who (esp Yook Ho, Ban-ya) but not actually deciding what to do about it. I think this trope is now a bit overcooked – so go ahead and betray him or not, just make a call!

Though I suspect we have at least one more round of this to go in the form of the royal bodyguard who signed up at same time as San – I’ve been wondering for a few episodes now if he might be another watchman covering the palace, one of the six Swords Jang group, or a plant aimed at San by Left Minister (why after all, did he attend that military exam?)...

Second, we still have no real sense of either lot of rebels’ actual plan is, but what we know so far just makes them all look like fools. San just seems to have some vague hope of getting the king almost alone and then killing him; the revolutionaries haven't got beyond spreading prophesies and signing pacts aimed at making it easy for the king to punish all the traitors (I'm still suspicious about what Left Minister is really up too...).

Third we haven't really advanced on what Administrator Jang/evil concubine's grand plan(s) are either. Is it nothing more than a long term plot to get her in place as Dowager, offspring (or fake offspring) on the throne and then kill king, hence his two lots of failed six swords secret boys, pushed on by a desire for revenge against watchman for killing his son? Or is there something more to it?

I’d also really like to be given a few more hints about what Left Minister’s real motivations are: is he using Yooha to lure out Lee Seol and capture all the rebels? Or does he see Yooha as a potential puppet king who he has excellent blackmail material over? Or is he genuinely committed to a better Joseon (seems highly unlikely given his willingness to be the current king’s minion).

On what plot developments we do have, just what does Yooha think he is doing going ahead and taking all those conspirators pledges after discovering who the real Yee Seol is? Once you've signed a formal pact, you've stepped over the line and can’t go back, and he’s been pretty much told as much both by Left State Minister and in the note he read from bodyguard, so he deserved that sword at his neck. I hope they can resolve it but...

Finally, its pretty clear now that Shi Yeol killed Jang's son/Hong joo's fiance (the worst day of his life remember, presumably because his protectee was in such danger and he had too kill so many people). So I'm worried we are going to get a very sad ending on this (much more convincing and interesting than San/Danoh) romance, with them both sacrificing themselves to save San/Danoh.

That was like 34823748734 kisses in just ONE episode, I thought my eyeballs were going to pop out. Okay it was like 3 but that’s more cutesy PDA than I’m used to seeing in my sageuks! Not used to seeing Kang San smiling this much either, to the point where I’m low-key worried for him every time he’s being all googly-eyed and giggly about Dan-oh. Worst time to be distracted my dude, the King has crazy eyes.

I did have a good giggle though at the contrast between when San (am I the only one who keeps thinking of San from ATEEZ every time I write the name ‘San’) and Dan-oh were all 💕 🥰 ❄️ after running away from the attackers, while there was a bloody 1 vs 10 fight to the death going on down the road hAHHA poor Shi Yeol!

I feel a bit bad for Yoo-ha this week. His predicament is a tough one and he definitely stepped into something bigger than he maybe initially conceptualised. I felt especially bad when he looked like was he was wracked with guilt and wistfulness getting love from his real grandma under false pretences. He was abandoned and now he’s being used - willingly maybe but still used - and when/if his charade gets out he’s going to have a whole host of people turn his back on him. Poor guy needs a break. Also not to mention the fact that the girl he’s been pining for for AGES is now long gone. And he’s now antagonised his half brother with his charade. I was not expecting YH and San to find out about each other but once again, pacing remains strong!

A side bar to talk about the antagonists in the show. Usually, I find the antagonists to be the weakest link in the writing of a show because they’re card-board cut outs or like are one-note but have some kind of generic ‘sympathetic’ backstory at best. BUT this show has some really interestingly written antagonists. We all thought it was going to be the scholars team in the good fight against the King at the start but the plot has developed in a much, much more interesting way now with that not being the case (or at least any time soon, we might have a final fight against the boss in ep 15 with the scholars all teaming up finally). Yes the King and his crazy eyes are borderline stereotypical sometimes but the REAL antagonist seems like it’s shaping up to be not him, not Administrator Jang but the Left State Councillor and his ‘there can’t be two suns in the sky’ philosophy. Which low-key makes sense, strategy wise, given what he’s committed to but nothing is scarier than a well intentioned bad guy sometimes. I just really vibe with the fact that we don’t just have ‘one bad guy’ though, because that runs the risk of becoming stale and cartoon-y. Other than Jang and the King there’s also the Queen, and the Eunuch (not strictly a bad guy but in the grey nevertheless) and it seems like YH might inadvertently become an antagonist at this rate too. I’d put Ban-ya and Shi-yeol in the ? box too, because given their backgrounds they’ve got reasons to become anti-Royalty or anti-San at some...

The show maintains its quick pace and shocking revelations. But with three weeks ahead of us, I keep worrying it might turn cliche with Yoo-ha and San wielding swords against each other which is done to death.

I love Shi-yeol and Hong-joo's slow-burn romance. Hence, I fear her learning the truth. It would be a heartbreaking and cruel turn of events for both sides.

Shi-Yeol is such an interesting character. He's the only funny one. I really liked his scenes with San. I want to learn more about his past. It was clearly not a happy one. If he accepted his duty and ready to die for his Prince (I hope it won't be the case), it looks like he doesn't want this fate for the other kids. He's a great warrior and I would like to see more of him in action like he went against several royal guards but didn't kill any of them. I wonder what he really knows about who he killed 8 years ago. Because at the tomb, he didn't really react but looked just curious about Hong-Joo's past lover.

Dan-Oh is just the main concern of San, Yoo-Ha and Yook Yook-Ho but otherwise she doesn't bring a lot to the story...

I hope San and Yoo-Ha will work together to take down the King.

Thanks for the recaps!

I have to mention the utterly beautiful cinematography when Shi Yeol and Heung Joo are talking about their wishes next to the river. The yellow/golden colors of the trees and the way it was filmed... wow. My favourite frame in the series so far.

I also liked when Shi Yeol trained/played with the little watchers. I loved the background music there.

What else? We already know that the courtesan is Yoo Ha's mother (a dangerous secret, what if he had fallen for her? Cringe!). Will she try to take him to the throne by all means?

Strangest part of the two episodes for me was when the king said that San would be around the same age and appearance as the CP if he was around. Completely random for me. Things are starting to drag a bit now, liking the romances but the politics isn't keeping me engaged.

San reminds me of people who think they are much brighter than they actually are because of familial connections, wealth and status, and, because no one has told them that they are not. How will he survive in that den of iniquity which is the palace? He has demonstrated very little strategic thinking, has no poker face and is dangerously impulsive. Even in the fictional setting of this drama, it seems very foolish to try and elevate him to a position of power as an absolute monarch.

On a different note, in ep 11, I liked the scene where Shiyeol used 우리 (our/my) regarding Danoh and the petulant San lost it. In Korean, unlike English and some other languages, the ‘our’ pronoun is often used instead of ‘my’ such as ‘our house’, our mother’, ‘our country’. This collective sense of belonging is an attractive feature of the language. Even though in this instance, Shiyeol was using it genuinely to denote ‘our Danoh”, the jealous manbaby that is San couldn’t take it.

"....because I didn’t worry much about who would end up on the throne in the end until you tied it to Shi-yeol’s freedom and ultimate happiness!"

Is there a Korean term for "bingo!"

At some point, either Shi-yeol or Hong-joo will discover/learn that HE (as Watchman) killed her fiancé. He did it to save the life of KangSan/Lee Seol/snowflake, of course. But Kang San is the only other person who knows this (unless Head Eunuch was watching?).

Very few people know the exact details of what happened 8 years ago. Only 3 people were there (unless Eunoch witnessed) and only TWO know WHY Jang Hyeon deserved to die after Lee Seol wanted to spare him.

My guess is that Shi-yeol is the first to connect the dots and he will back away from Hong-joo to protect her and keep her on her new path. I think he will assume that she will never be able to love him once (if) she knows the truth. Absolutely heart-wrenching but better than if she learns the truth first.

Based on comments here on Dramabeans - and the universal love for Shi-yeol and Hong-joo, I simply cannot conceive that the writers would doom these two precious souls to eternal sorrow. They - more than any other person or couple - deserve to be happy.