Premiere Watch: Captivating the King
by missvictrix
Time slot: Saturday-Sunday
Broadcaster: tvN
Genre: Sageuk, romance
Episode count: 16
Reasons to watch: Jo Jung-seok! Baduk! Palace intrigue! The latest sageuk to hit town stars Jo Jung-seok, going from crown prince to king, and Shin Se-kyung, going from cross-dressing baduk genius to, well, something else later on in our tale. The promos promise an emotional and layered story brimming with the complex history between our two leads, and everything the comes between them. Also starring are: Lee Shin-young, Park Ye-young, Jo Sung-ha (perennial baddie?), Choi Dae-hoon (excellent wild card actor), and Jang Young-nam (currently killing it in Like Flowers in Sand), among others.
In order to make way for the Asian Games, Captivating the King will air both premiere episodes on Sunday this week, and then resume with its Saturday-Sunday scheduling.
TL;DR: Jo Jung-seok, Shin Se-kyung, baduk, and baddies
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1 Lord Cobol (Kdramas, like water, flow downhill)
January 20, 2024 at 10:12 AM
"Entangled between the two is a story of double identities, political struggle, revenge, and hidden desire."
So, kdrama?
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hacja
January 20, 2024 at 3:02 PM
I wonder where they'll hide the desire?
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bong-soo
January 20, 2024 at 4:52 PM
Oh my, you two are the first up!! The reunion of Martin and Lewis. You guys decide who is who.
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Seon-ha
January 20, 2024 at 7:26 PM
omg im dying with this deep cut
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2 bbstl 🧹
January 20, 2024 at 10:16 AM
Yay, on Netflix US!
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3 RenOIshi
January 20, 2024 at 11:09 AM
JJS is one of my favourite actors but I have never seen any of his sageuk’s so will definitely give this one a try.
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4 CDF
January 20, 2024 at 11:54 AM
My only exposure to baduk game was in the show - The Glory between Dong-eun and Do-yeong and it was quite impressive - intense It was less about game and more about the captivating the opponent.
I think the drama is going for the same dynamics.
Hope drama will be able to capture the same intensity and play during baduk game.
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zindigo
January 20, 2024 at 2:16 PM
Yes! Same reason I'm really hoping that Netflix eventually releases Yoo In-Ah's movie "The Match" about 2 legendary baduk players (the other played by Lee Byung Hun)!
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narrative addict
January 21, 2024 at 5:37 AM
Best use of baduk was in Misaeng, which is well worth watching if you haven’t seen it.
Btw, does “excellent wild card actor” mean “can be an enormous ham on occasion” ?
(I do like Choi Dae-hoon.)
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5 PYC
January 21, 2024 at 4:14 AM
I’m a big fan of JJS but sageuk is not my thing. Neutral to Shin Se-kyung who can be good or bad depending on the project but Choi Dae-hoon is a big drawcard whose performance in Beyond Evil is phenomenal.
Will wait and see.
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6 Emperor
January 21, 2024 at 8:55 AM
So the baddies are: queen dowager, left-state councilor (or any ministers), and evil concubines, I presume?
If yes then I wonder why every sageuk always puts these roles as villains to the point where it becomes very predictable ...
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7 Diana Hansen
January 21, 2024 at 12:17 PM
I'm down! Definite watch for me. This year is shaping up to be a busy one so far. So many to like.
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8 chrissy23
January 22, 2024 at 7:12 AM
love the 2 episode
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9 Ali in KC
January 22, 2024 at 4:05 PM
I loved episodes 1 & 2. But in the description it says:
"a cruel romance unfolds as the king of Joseon — a weak and unhappy person — is reunited with a baduk player he knew when he was a prince."
Did those episodes lead you to think he would be a weak and unhappy person? And, "a cruel romance?" I may not like where this is going, but I'll stick with it for a while. I do not like sad endings.
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10 🌸 Seeker 🌸
January 23, 2024 at 12:27 PM
Watching for Jo Jung-seok. Let's see for how long one can continue.
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11 Ang
April 5, 2024 at 7:51 PM
I did not find Shin se-kyung believable as a man in the slightest. I also found the bizarre kissing scenes very awkward and therefore, I no longer was invested in the romance. I found the other actors did quite well. The little crown prince was excellent. Plot twists were good and kept me watching until the end.
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