I watched the first episode and it was somewhat compelling. I'm not a huge Park Ji-hoon fan, which does detract from my enjoyment. He's fine in this--once again, the problem is me. But I do find myself re-casting the part in my head, and then I feel bad about doing so. This makes for a semi-stressful watching experience even before we consider the actual plot which relies heavily on some exceptionally abusive parenting by the king.

My own inner turmoil aside, the set-up for this was clearly delineated, the directing and pacing are crisp, and the PTSD profound. I'm not sure the sudden on-set amnesia trope either made sense or was necessary here, but we'll see how it develops. I'm willing to give it another episode or two.

I just saw that this is shown on Viki and it's only 1 episode a week? I wonder if, for this type of drama, that works in its favor. Does it have alot if special effects or something that would benefit from airing once weekly?

For Park Ji Hoon to be a "pretty boy", he can have awfully sad & resigned eyes. I wondered if that's part of how he's going to try to differentiate between Ak Hee & Sajo Hyun.

It's so weird cause I am not interested in the show but now I just curious how it's gonna play out.

I like the opening credits though. That alone makes the show pretty intriguing to me.

I just realized I had started this webtoon months ago but never finished it haha

And if I hadn't actually watched the episode, I wouldn't even be curious about the show. I don't think the trailers capture the ridiculous weirdness since they seem to be focused on the dramatics of ill fated connections, destined love, and split personalities.

I guess, maybe, technically going by the first episode (I don't know how much the folks who cut these trailers know or see before they do these edits) those are the buzzwords but it still feels kinda weird given what I just saw.

Ak Hee's mask, after it was cut, reminds me of the phantom of the opera haha

And I've read more of the webtoon and so far based on what I read, I prefer the change to have the father be an antagonist. Maybe it's because I'm not invested in the webtoon but I don't get why people would be mad about this change (Hyun not yet king).

Sidenote: it is ironic that I said that given I was mad/disappointed with Weak Hero Class 1 making a likely similar change even though I understood it.

Watching the 2nd ep preview, I'm in awe. I was really waiting for an interaction between the two personalities and it was so good? I mean it's the same actor at the same time and yet he served two different characters so perfectly? Like I didn't have the thought of them being the same person until I was writing here. It's so good.
And the two personalities Sajo Hyeon and Akhee can only meet in his head, so it was hilarious to see how Akhee designed his palace, like a painting and even having musical sessions with wine (something similar), he's so cool

I don't have the words to describe how Hyun is different from Ak Hee but I think one of the ways being used to differenciate the two is the physicality.

One thing I liked in episode 2 is seeing a bit of how the girl could possibly develop interest in Hyun because she's drawn to how happy and passionate he is when making clothes. It's one of those things I like about the amnesia trope; when people are drawn to the same people, places, or actions without any context or reference.

The episode once again zips by and leaves me wanting more. I just want more of Ak Hee, Hyun, and the girl. I want to know how she gets out of her situation.

This is random but Ak Hee/Hyun's interactions with the girl reminds me of the song Satisfied from the Broadway show Hamilton haha

🎶set my heart aflame, everything aflame, this is not a game🎶
Haha

lol I'm back again after watching the 3rd ep preview and AKHEEEEE!!!! PARK JIHOON IS INSANE FOR PLAYING THIS ROLE!! Also seeing how hyeon is in shackles it seems like he couldn't pull the uno reverse card as it was supposed to happen according to the webtoon and THIS is what creates a very big plot twist because it was supposed to be akhee in there and not hyeon. I am so nervous because it looks like already half of the webtoon will be done by ep 3 BUT this plot twist (I really hope it is) might literally take a completely new turn to the og story.
Also I need to say this so much, Gyera is so beautiful. Literally every woman in there is soooo beautiful ♡
The King Sajo Seung is is effed up. Even Akhee cannot stand him (I'm very sure of that)

The ending of the first episode was super creepy. In a show where the king is criticized for using his power to sleep with anyone he wants, it's weird that they put ML on the same boat. I also feel like it was very slow in the beginning and the rebellion comes out of nowhere.

Ah, this show is so dumb but I'm enjoying it so far haha. The weecaper said the show had campiness and I think I get what they were talking about haha. I think the ridiculousness is the reason I'm liking this so far. For this to be about ill fates and tortured souls, it doesn't take itself seriously (at all so far)

I feel bad for Sajo Hyun because he seems so weak and powerless compared to Ak Hee. The fact that Ak Hee could actually force himself out or lock Sajo Hyun up is just so messed up.

The speed at which things are progressing makes me wonder what's in store that they're getting through the setups so fast. I don't necessarily hate it cause why draw out her learning about the 2 personalities and trying to get her memory back but for the folks who do care about developing the characters and all that, it's lacking.

I don't remember if I've watched many shows or dramas that dealt with dual multiple personalities but I have seen some shows where the characters are hiding "dark"/sinister personas and why are those ALWAYS the more compelling?! Haha

The "bad" one is almost always the one that has this dangerous, confident charisma to them. They have the glint in their eye and they *almost*, depending on the levels of their badness, make you root for them. I feel like that may be the case with Ak Hee. I don't think he necessarily makes you want to root for him but he does have the comedic moments as well as the confident charisma.

3 episodes so far and I still don't really know what to think or feel about Sajo Hyun aside from he seems weaker to Ak Hee. Maybe he's also more serious/stern. I saw someone say they found him boring. I personally don't find him boring but I think more could possibly be done to make him charming; maybe he could have a deadpan, sardonic sense of humor? A hidden cute side? I think there has to be something, aside from his passion and enjoyment when doing his designs, that makes Gyera fall for him

I get it; it's a hard balancing act of having to make to distinct personalities sharing one body.

Fellow Beanies who watched episode 3, I need advice here. Is this really a sinking ship or did it get better?

Guess what happened? The pre-release clip of ep 4 dropped!
I don't know why I was expecting another Hyeon-Akhee interaction like the previous two eps (well one of them got locked out in the earlier ep but we have to see yet who it is, my guess is the ritual backlash hit akhee and he got locked up intsead in that....'bonghamsal'?)
Ep 4 preview was about the fl and the king, and according to the king she looks a lot similar to someone he knew very well. And ofcourse he meant Yeon Punghak aka. the fl's late father. He also jokingly said the fl looks like a real leader (ooh foreshadowing I believe).
So far it looks good and I'm really eager to know what will happen next because every ep was so fast paced I had no idea what to expect. But since Akhee got locked (99% sure) we'll see more of Hyeon-Wol (the fl has so many names but since she's gotten her memories back I'll be going with Wol from now on)

Ep 4 prerelease pt. 2 has me shocked?? Like omg?? The crown princess already found out about wol's real identity?? I thought from the previous clip that the king just thought that she looked familiar but what if the crown princess shares this info to the king later? Thank God she went to Sajo Hyeon earlier, I REALLY hope he finds a way to save Wol this time though he'll be pretty shocked and devastated himself from her real identity, but let's see.

I think I know enough about the webtoon to mentally fill in some blanks but man, does this zip by haha.

I wouldn't be surprised if something happened with the king this week or the next.

I meant to mention this before but what's with sageuks having not only a clothes designer who's going against norms (though technically this is a fantasy so norms don't necessarily apply) but crepe myrtle flowers?

Is that a popular flower? If it is, it's funny that I'm *just* learning about their existence.

Hmm, I don't know what to say. Mixed feelings? I liked the show SIGNIFICANTLY more when it had the dumb fun element. I knew Ak Hee brought the mischievous charm aspect and when it's gone, sigh, the flaws in the show are more noticable to me.

I felt like I had whiplash and that I had somehow blanked on everything I had previously seen particularly regarding the grand prince. Are all the royal guys supposed to have issues because seriously, wtf? The king has bouts of delusion and hallucinations. The crown prince is possessed. The grand prince has some crazed, duplicitous moments. He maybe just as deranged as the king. What did I just watch?!

That aside, I do feel bad for Sajo Hyun. He really must feel like he doesn't have anyone he can truly trust or rely on who cares about and accepts him. And he wanted to be "better" than Ak Hee and get that praise and acceptance but he just doesn't have it in him to be needlessly cruel or violent. It's so weird that is considered a negative for him. I hope he's able to prove himself without having to sacrifice who he is in future episodes.

During week 1, I said I thought there had to be more to Hyun and Gyera falling for each other than the clothes. Now I'm wondering if they're gonna be bonded over trauma.

The moments with the eunuch and the shaman made me chuckle.

With the ep 4 prerelease clip, I thought hyeon would save wol. But oh wow, he literally sent her to be punished, hah.. haha.

The ep 5 pre-release clip shows hyeon in his mourning clothes, mourning qt the king's funeral (YAY HE'S DED, although that was so sudden, like this is only ep 4?? What more do they have in store for us?) And call me whatever you want, but he looked SOO GOOD in that attire?? I'm like...fascinated. That aside, I really wished Hyeon to stay indifferent to his father's death just like he was in the webtoon. But here he was really mourning, and that's a sad side of every domestically ab-used child. Hyeon wanted 'validation from his father, and he was even starting to work on it (although he didn't have it in himself to hunt an animal) by getting into the royal gatherings and also with Wol's help. But all went in vain and he literally sent Wol to be punished for she was accused of assassinating the king.
Wol's cries and screams shuddered me actually. And the best part of the clip - Akhee waking up in his vessel!!!. Haha he's really gonna beck after just one episode

The dumb fun has turned into stupid melodrama😔
The same feel that the promos probably tried to convey that I had no interest in.

When I found myself not having as much fun with it, I compared it to Kokkdu: Season of Diety and that has been my metric on whether to continue or not. So far, it's not Kokkdu levels of bad to me but I just they had kept the dumb fun. Apparently people insist on comparing it to the webtoon and saying how it's different; if it's already different, why not keep it fun?

I don't know if this is considered campiness or what, but the way the grand prince and the consort reacted to the king's death just reminded me of the word "hammy"; just totally hammy acting and I was left thinking is this a direction or was this an acting choice. It's just so obvious that the grand prince was being super dramatic and attention getting as if to let the audience know "yeah, he did it; he's the guy"

I thought it was so messed up how he framed and betrayed the group that he been sponsoring for years. I mean, it does fit his now shown power hungry and duplicitous side but it's still messed up.

I stopped scrolling for a comment of someone who likes the show as much as I did. I don't know. Maybe my taste is different or I just really enjoyed this show a lot (especially Akhee who always made me smile lately) to even care about the flaws every one else is saying. But I guess since there's more negative comments than positive so there is no per episode recap/review here in this site. Which sucks really but I guess I'll just enjoy it on my own. I already can't wait for episode 6

I wonder if Hyeon's time on the run, outside the palace will give him a better sense of what the kingdom needs. I mean it's not a stretch to say ALOT needs to be done since the king and his sycophantic supporters haven't done much of anything except engage their greedy, selfish interests but knowing something and experiencing it are very different.

Maybe his time in as a commoner will up his endearing charm since there's the potential for some fish out of water moments.

Ah, and we're back to some of the ridiculousness from the earlier episodes haha

Imagine coming back to your body and you're not only underwater but you're kissing someone haha

Then the jealousy of "Oh, sorry I'm so cold to the touch and Ah Kee was so warm. You must've liked that"

Hyeon had a light smile of triumph thinking he got one over on Ah Kee by being able to carry Gyera only for the bubble to quickly burst haha

"Ah Kee endures pain to touch you? Like touch you how? Just a slight brush or mmmore?"

I like how Gyera was amused watching that play out haha. It must be such a mind freak to witness.

And the shaman! Haha
Oh that's so weird and awkward talking about Ah Kee needing to keep his lusty thoughts and impulses at bay haha.
I truly can imagine how much cringing happened after that scene was shot haha. Just so embarrassing haha

"I can't love or lust, what can I do?" Haha

Wow, I don't know what to say about the fact that Hyun seemed to know nothing while Ah Kee seemed to know EVERYTHING.

See, it's stuff like this that has people saying Ah Kee should be the real crown prince

The palace stuff is just bad and weird. Maybe I view it even worse because I'm not into palace schemes and machinations but wow, it's like such pit of snakes. How do you willingly go back into that?

It is a known fact that grand prince tried killing the crown prince. It's a known fact that he's been manipulating public opinion, raising a secret army, and sponsored a group trying to bring back the original king's throne/assassins. (I hesistate to call them assassins because no one seems particularly skilled in murder. I don't think they've killed or seriously injured anyone thus far). All in a bid to the throne he's not even remotely entitled to. I don't even understand why the king took him in (I mean it was said that the king used him to provoke Hyun but that's just one of the pitfalls of the writing so I won't dwell on it)

The ministers easily turned on Hyun, willing to make the Grand Prince, King even though Hyun was still technically a viable successor.

The Crown Princess is clearly just gonna use her authority to mistreat Gyera as while her father tries to control Hyun.

How is Hyun supposed to accomplish anything when the only person he can trust was demoted to a court lady while everyone else is either trying to kill him or use him?

I didn't have enough time to write about the ep 6 pre release clips so I'm gonna talk about the whole ep 6 instead since it'll cover those too.

Ep 6 was really enjoyable to me. After ep 5 I was worried that Akhee was gonna diminish bc trust me, kisses that happen before ep 8 (which is halfway mark of standard kdramas) are legit asking for tragedy. But I was so relieved to see that it wasn't anything like that, it was just Akhee's foolishness. LOL he was too immersed in that moment. And the way Chungta talked about the lust-love issue to Akhee, i don't know why I had to look away from the screen, I REALLY couldn't watch that scene (it felt like second hand embarrassment to me? I don't mean anything bad!) Porr Akhee, he has to live like a hopeless romantic. And It's funny to see Akhee how Akhee knows every single family gossip while Hyeon knows nothing, I can literally imagine him sitting with all the court ladies and eunuchs around and sharing gossips from everywhere.

Hyeon and Wol interactions aware so much fun this time!! All this time they were giving us pain and now finally we got to see some scenes outside the palace (which is also my favorite part of sageuk dramas) which were really lovely to me. Hyeon is hesitant (it's his first time outside without his boy Ji Jeonseo, so I understand) so Wol takes the lead and does everything for them. And I also need to mention how cute Hyeon looks without his seriousness, he's just an adorable little cat! Especially when Wol was sleeping and Hyeon was just sitting there and opening-closing his palms to keep himself awake, I am love with that part. It's actually something I myself do too, so I felt personally more connected to that scene.

In the morning when Hyeon said he'll go his way by himself I was laughing like 'hyeon, you know you can't do that by yourself, you're so gonna need wol by your side' and yes, that's what happened later on when he got almost attacked. S8gh,hyeon, what will you do without her in this deadly world?

And if anyone, I mean anyone tries to say hyeon is weak this and that, I will not accept that. I think we all should know by now that hyeon is not like your typical 'savior' guy. In this drama, the savior is Wol. And I LOVE this kind of dynamic. It's different from the rest of your daily shows. This is what excites me the most for this drama.

Sajo Yung is a nasty person. I don't wanna say this, but am I the only one who finds his acting too obvious? I mean the fake-crying from wp 5 was literally showing, but in this ep too. The scene where Yang Jaeyi comes up in front of Yung. I won't say anymore.

Hyeon requesting Wol to help him stay sane in that palace so that he doesn't turn into a monster like his father, it is a literal cry saying 'save me or I'll die in there from all the pressure'. And I think he would really die because he is fragile and he wouldn't let himself live if he ever turned out monstrous.

I love...

[continuation from the last post]
I love Wol's dialog in the last scene 'I'll protect you but if you ever turn out to be monster my blade will go to you'(definitely not accurate but you get it) like YES GIRL THIS IS WHAT I WANT LET'S GO!!

(Oh and about Sajo Yung being a nasty person, like how could he send his own mother to prison?? He literally framed his own mom - who was wholly supporting him - for his own crime. Like Did Sajo Seung teleport to Yung? Hah so glad Hyeon came back at the right time and claimed his throne back just in time.

I think Episode 6 has been one of the best so far, especially in pace, dialogues and characters building.

I hope the rest of the episodes keep this balance between dark and funny.

I really liked the ending when Crown Prince begs Kyera for help. He doesn't want to be alone in the Palace. I like that he trusts her before starting to really love her.

Oh my god! It's sooooooooo uncomfortable on soooooooooo many levels.

I can't believe that's where the episode ended. That's one of the grossest and cruelest power plays I think I've seen in a kdrama.

I don't think they're actually gonna go through with it but the fact that we're left with the possibility of it happening still warrants this reaction

Once again, I was reminded of the Broadway show Hamilton haha. This time is when Hyun decided to end the hunting.

In the musical, there's a moment when the new president is like "wait, I'm president now; I don't have to follow what the previous guy did".

If I were good at editing, or even knew how to do it, I think I would make a clip of scenes from this with music from Hamilton haha

Just watched episode 6 and as usual I miss Akhee again because he's not in this episode. Even though it is literally the same person haha. I really just don't like Sajo Hyuns character, as of now. I don't like how he treats Hyera/Gyera I mean compared to how Akhee treats her.

I know the show would probably be over if the grand prince was dealt with now but he *did* try to kill Hyun. Twice! And Hyun knows about at least one of those attempts.
You would think that warrants some kind of consequence but instead he's just free to take part in the assemblys, hobnob with the ministers, and have Hyun spied on.

Ahh, I feel so bad for Hyun. He doesn't deserve Ak Hee making him seem unhinged and undermining whatever changes he's trying to make happen as well as being taken even remotely seriously.

I mean, it obviously wasn't good before when he was crown prince but as king?!

As much as I feel bad for Hyeon, it is entertaining to see how Ak Hee's antics fluster and unnerve the ministers because if they're scared or intimidated, maybe try messing with him. Then again, it could totally backfire and they want to get rid of him.

Wow, I do not even know what to say about episode 8 haha. I can't not mention the editing. I was *not* a fan of the editing choices for this episode. I'm not even a technical kind of person so for me to mention something like this means that had to really stand out to me.

Now that that's out of the way haha

I almost feel bad for Ak Hee. He really felt his feelings were recipocated and he's always so endearing when he appears. I feel like the queen would be team Ak Hee because he actually engaged with her.

Also, if he did work with Hyun, I really do think they could affect change since Ak Hee isn't intimidated or concerned about challenging others or fighting back while apparently Hyun can be more strategic if he wants.

It makes zero sense to me how the grand prince and his mother are allowed to still not only be in the palace but take part as if nothing happened. The grand prince has tried to kill Hyun 3 times! He killed the king (though no evidence so put that aside) but his mother's needle was used to kill the king and she gets to be treated just the same as before. No murmurs or whispers amongst the court about her possibly being involved in the king's death.

But fine, the plot needs to happen so the grand prince (and his mother) have to stick around but why couldn't something be done to at least acknowledge they did wrong and Hyun knows? What is point of just letting them continue to go on as normal?
Maybe it's an enemies closer approach?

I like Hyun and Yeon Wol has a team. Even though he's the son of her sworn enemy, the fact they're both heirs who were victims of the former king is something they have in common and they both want to help others who harmed by the former king and his reign.

A part of me feels like quitting because I just cannot stand how the grand prince just keeps getting away with things. It's not even like he's sneaky about it; it's an open freaking secret! But then I do the mental gymnastics of "they must be doing this for a reason. There must be some plan in the writer's mind that I'm just not seeing because it makes no logical sense how someone can SO overtly try to kill and undermine you and NOTHING gets done. No torture, no exile, no limited movements, no surveillance, no execution. Even the former king shot the arrow at the grand prince, slicing his ear, for mocking Hyun.

It would make more sense to me if Hyun sentenced Yoong (I think that's his name) to be executed but Yoong's supporters helped him escape and Yoong continued his plotting while in hiding.

I think that's my biggest peeve with the story.

I always suspected the grand prince would be the same or worse than the former king and I think that's where the story is going. It just makes me wish Hyun had more people on his side especially since now people know about about Ak Hee.

It's always so hard for me to formulate my thoughts because each week I end up feeling like "what did I just watch?!" Haha.

I honestly don't know for sure but I think this is the most bananas show I've ever watched. With this one show, I can see elements that weecappers and commenters refer to that I often miss.

That being said, I'm still here haha

Ak Hee continues being very entertaining and it's so clear that Park Jihoon is having fun playing him. I think one of my favorite moments of his thus far is when the ministers were having their protest and he was like "you wanna protest? I'll show you a protest" and kneeled along with them and challenged them to who would last longer (again, another moment when I think he should have gotten rid of people but I digress).

I like Hyun as king and he writes down notes about what he thinks needs to be addressed. If only he had a good support network, I think he could be a good king.

I think the last 10/15 minutes of episode 10 was the best moments between Hyeon, the grand prince, and Ak Hee thus far. It was a masterful manipulation in my opinion. Predictable but still executed well. It felt that like the writer had a burst of cat & mouse inspiration haha.

I wish we could've gotten this type of energy before but at least we got that moment.

I don't watch many sageuks so I don't know if it's true but when I saw what obviously plagues symptoms, I thought this drama is just filling out all the historical tropes haha

Honestly, it probably fills all the tropes bingos with the birth secrets, inferiorty complex, and delusions of grandeur.

It is something how Yoong keeps talking about people knowing/not knowing their place meanwhile he is the son of a gambling commoner and a consort; no way, shape, or form legimately a claim to the throne. The former king didn't even acknowlege him as a claim to the throne.

I liked when Hyun called him a delusional fool.

In my head I'm like "I know everyone has worked hard on this and it's not easy being creative" but then I'm also like I do not understand what the hell the writer and director are doing.

A part of me feels like blind dart throwing was involved but then it also feels like maybe working while in a dream state was involved. And yet this is STILL somehow better than Kokdu: Season of Deity haha (which is my metric). I can't explain it.

Maybe because the fun parts are fun to me such as Ak Hee's offense at being compared to the shaman (he just seemed so teenager like haha; like "ugh, can you not gosh!" Haha
Or when he kept helping with Yeon Wol & Hyun's romance despite himself and then asked why he was doing it. That also made me feel bad for him but it was also chuckleworthy.

It's just the messiness that's a turnoff to me. It's like there is no direction or vision involved, just Park Jihoon was good in Weak Hero Class 1 so let's let him do the quiet, reserved thing here. Park Jihoon is an idol who can be cute and do fan service so let's let him channel that here.

Regarding Yoong, I guess the direction is supposed to be that he's a great manipulative strategist but then he's unhinged.

There was 1 good moment/sequence to me and that was when Yoong exposed Hyun/Ak Hee in front of everyone.

The only appealing part in episode 11 was Ak Hee to me and then they paralyzed him along with Hyun (after having him have blurry vision)! What even?! Is this some kind of acting challenge to have BOTH characters paralyzed (and I think they're supposed to be unable to speak to others), hearing inner monologues?

Sometimes I feel like I'm being too negative and might turn people off. That's not my intent; just trying to share the thoughts that come to mind as I watch.

I just thought about how the prince of the neighboring country/area/whatever brought a plague, while he was trying to traffick women back to his country, and nothing was done or could be done because of political tension.

This is something that I always think when watching sageuks: how does anything anything get done when it seems the kings are always handicapped by the ministers?

The grand prince who should've been dealt with but the show needs to happen is the reason the guy was there in the first place and while Hyun/Ak Hee are being blamed, Yoong is being herald as a savior of all. The man who kidnapped and trafficked women. Sigh

I am losing interest in this, and I feel bad, because I really thought many beanies were missing out, as it was to me an underrated gem. Right now however, I am questioning the intent of the writer/director... as I feel like many parts do not "mash up" well together. It seems disjointed to me at this point. For one, I did not really get why Yeon Wol fell in love with Hyun, it was so out of the blue, the writers did not try hard to make it believable, we just had to accept that. Also, the conflict between Ak Hee and Hyun to only be at this point about Yeon Wol/Gyera is weird. I am on episode 10 right now, and I have to admit I don't understand what really is going on, where the plot is going. Are they trying to take down the prince? Are they trying "to kill" Ak Hee inside of Hyun? Did Yeon Wol leave her revenge plan altogether? What is her goal now? Is she trying the become the queen? The back and forth between Ak Hee and Hyun was cute at first, but it's getting old, without much resolution. The shaman was also an interesting character, but that also is going downhill for me. I thought the plot would be more about how Ak Hee and Hyun would heal and reconcile into one person and anything else in the plot would be contributing to that, but I feel this is absolutely not what is going on. I don't like dropping after so many hours, but I have such a hard time picking it back up, I wonder if it's worth it.

The good thing about this, for me, was the "fun" parts and once again the fun parts are gone leaving just this mess of flaws exposed. I really and truly do not understand the writer or director. How and why did they make this disjointed mess? If they wanted to tell a serious story about obsession, love, and fantasy/supernatural elements, they shouldn't have made Ak Hee comedic. If they wanted to in a dark comedy/throwing the tradtional tropes on their head route, then they should've committed to that.

I do not understand why they insist on saying Kyera is an assassin when she doesn't seem like she's killed anyone nor is she able to do it. I don't know what label would be more accurate (skilled warrior? Trained fighter?) but yeah, don't understand these choices. Even if in the webtoon she was called an assassin, they didn't adapt it well, in my opinion.

Another choice I don't understand is having Ak Hee and Hyun both out of commission so it's just Hyun's voiceover and Ak Hee's one sided conversations to Hyun's voice over. Is that a webtoon thing? Did he have to used, humiliated, and thrown away like that? (I mean by the court)

Maybe I'll watch the final episode to see how it ends. I imagine it's gonna be unsatisfying and predictable.

I still think the entire court should be killed and/or exiled. Even if Hyun isn't on the throne, they are a bunch of traitorous bastards screwing over the country for their own selfish ends.

I emotionally dropped this after episode 12 but @IsaGC just made me so curious that I decided to catch up haha

Hyun being free of the burdens is just so wholesome haha. If only he could just happily make clothes.
So many people [seem to] prefer Ak Hee and yet Hyun is the one that I constantly feel for. I have such mixed feelings about Ak Hee because even though he's technically supposed to be a spirit who possessed Hyun, the way he's portrayed is kinda like a brotherly part of him(?). It's weird and hard to explain haha but it makes me want them to get find a middle ground so they can coexist.

It's not funny but it's funny, maybe also weird, how much the writer/director seem to just want Park Jihoon screaming in pain. I'm wondering how his throat was after filming these scenes.

This drama is so weird. I have no idea what the point of the story. He's king but he does nothing, he had many occasions to punish the villain, he didn't do it, he's relationship with Ak-Hee is pretty good now, so he's not trying to get ride of him...

The editing is so bad. She saved Ak-hee and then they're on a beach and he lost his memories. Then, they had to tell what happened with different flashbacks not in order...

I just mentioned Ak Hee possessed Hyun and the show reinforces the two personalities angle haha
But then Ak Hee refers to himself as an evil spirit.

I am so confused how I'm supposed to feel about them.

I guess this is a hard concept to pull off(?)

It sucks how everyone, including Ak Hee, are manipulating and straight lying to Hyun when he's in such a vulnerable state. It just feels so violating to me.

Seriously though, the spiel they keep giving Ak Hee about getting rid of Hyun as a way of getting Kyera makes no sense unless he's planning on drugging her again and kidnapping her. She can tell them apart and has already let it be known she has feelings for Hyun, not Ak Hee. She would just end up resenting Ak Hee for doing things that would help Yoong usurp the throne, ignoring her agency, and hurting Hyun.

It's sad that Yeon Wol's teacher died. He's more than her teacher but I'm not sure what title would be more fitting. He was the person with her longest and he saved her and aided her so many times. Objectively, it's really sad that he had to die to get Hyun on the right track.

The amnesia plot seems to work well for Hyun. Because he doesn't have his memories, he seemed more open to his curiousity such as "why couldn't he also see Ak Hee's memories?"

Once again, the execution is messy but at least Hyun isn't on the backfoot for once.

Something that amuses me but I don't know if it's intentional: Yoong's disbelief over Hyun's confidence. Each time Hyun is confident, he's like "how can this be?! It must be Ak Hee! What makes him so damn confident"

People just underestimated him so much and why? Because he made clothes and didn't like hunting. They called him a half wit when he'd never shown any signs of lacking intellectually; he just wasn't like his father.

I can't believe I actually finished this haha
Oh this messy mess of a show. I don't even know how to put it into words.

One thing that made me chuckle in the finale was Ak Hee being confused why Hyun being stabbed in the mind space didn't kill him or incapacitate him and the shaman appearing to say "no duh, it didn't work; Hyun is a real human being and you're an evil spirit. Ak Hee: "but it worked on me in here and in the real world" Shaman: "thems the breaks *shrugs* haha

I wonder if after time away from this, I'll see it in a different light; maybe it's *not* as much of an unhinged mess as it appeared and the writer & director were just on another level. I have no other ways of rationalizing how this drama unfolded especially considering it's not like this creative team was newbies or inexperienced in telling a decent story.

I know alot of the folks who watched this watched it mainly for Park Jihoon. I think I might also be in that category. I was trying to find that actor that I liked in Weak Hero Class 1 in this but instead it more like him from Flower Crew but with a bit more experience. It made me once again realize how important the building blocks are for an actor to truly shine in a role. The writing, the directing, the supporting cast all play a vital part.

I think he did a good job of playing both roles. There's definitely room for growth but a decent effort especially considering it was alot of how he looked at people and then physicality.

I saw an interview and I saw some comments that he spoke differently when speaking as Hyun and Ak Hee. I thought he sounded more stern/authoritative when portraying Hyun but I can't tell dialects, accents, or tones well enough to notice the difference.

I hope he was able to gain more experience from this and become an even better actor.

Split personality/Disassocitive Identity Disorder (D.I.D) vs possession
I don't know too much about them but I guess they are hard concepts to execute. I say that even though I know it's been done a number of times but I've never really seen the conclusions haha.

United States of Tara (US series): never saw the final seasons
Kill Me Heal: never saw the final episodes (the last thing I remember is him as the teen girl kissing the brother and the brother being mortified. I have no idea when it happened)
Bad and Crazy: never watched it but I saw the ending and it gave me mixed feelings

I can't think of any shows featuring possession. Ah! I know one: Oh My Ghost and I don't even remember it haha. I think I watched it early in my kdrama days and now it's like I've never even seen it.

All this to say, I have no idea if this drama did a good job of portraying either concept but I feel like they weren't even sure which idea they wanted to do. Sometimes they would lean into the idea that Hyun was possessed by Ak Hee which is why Ak Hee was seemingly so much more powerful and capable. Other times they leaned into Ak Hee just being another personality of Hyun that made up for what he lacked which is why he was a better fighter or was more expressive. Even the conclusion was like a mix of both ideas.

The fact that Ak Hee was able to bring Yeon Wol into the mind space muddles the idea even more.

Maybe because I've seen A Korean Odysessy/Hwayugi, the shaman was slightly less confusing and even if it was confusing, it could just be dismissed as "magic/supernatural" (such as how the shaman could get in the mind space in the first)

The "rules" of this drama are just so fluid; it reminds me of a lava lamp haha