How this episode is full of betrayal: someone betrayed the Crown Prince, Cho Hak ju betrays Lord Ahn, and the Queen Consort betrays her father and the rest of the Haewon Cho clan
How Seo-bi violated our rule of never opening mysterious chests without knowing that what’s inside is a friendly person or a cute, furry animal.
How the Crown Prince must kill his zombie father, thereby honoring his father’s words to him from so long ago: Stay alive!
We learn more about what happened three years ago and we learn that Lord Ahn has deeply regretted his decision to create zombies ever since.
Cho Hak ju had Lord Ahn killed, something that the soldiers do with hesitation, given that Lord Ahn is a national war hero. So now, the Crown Prince’s mentor and guide has left him.
Lord Ahn makes himself a weapon against Cho Hak ju when he asks the Crown Prince to turn him into a zombie.
Back at Hanyang, the Minister of War orders the queen’s residence searched and the soldiers discover the bodies of seven mothers and babies. Curiously, the baby boy died of natural causes, while the baby girls were strangled to death.
The court officials debate the line of succession in light of the king’s death when the head eunuch announces that the Queen Consort has gone into labor.
The Queen, of course, is not in labor, but waiting for a baby boy to be born.
The ID tags that all men over the age of 18 carried around during the Joseon dynasty.
The desire for revenge by Young shin and Lord Ahn’s men, which leads them to try and take down Cho Hak ju when they are taken out of their jail cell to be transported to Hanyang.
We wonder where Mu Yeong is.
The crazy ending where the zombie Lord Ahn takes a chunk out of Cho Hak ju’s left cheek!
The K Drama elements in this episode, including the Crown Prince sinking to the ground with great emotion, and the queen’s amazing abs in episode 1 of season 2.
The enduring popularity of zombies, from around the world!
How Korean zombies are different from Western dramas in that they often focus on the relationships between the humans and the zombies.
References
Worn Identity, or information about the ID tags worn by people during the Joseon dynasty
King Cheoljong and his family, who were banished to Ganghwa Island
* Loved the stuff about "Joseon ID cards" :). Of course I have seen them in many dramas, but it was a nice tid bts about the material. Is there anything that class and money doesn't play a role?
ReplyDelete* I agree with Joanna about Royals wouldn't hesitate to kill as many people as they need to keep things secret, but I also agree with Sung Hee that the wider the circle gets, the harder it become.
*.....which brings me to a thought. Wouldn't have been easier to just steal a newborn boy? kill his parents (and maybe even neighbours). I realise in the series it is more dramatic, so no need to nitpick on the Queen's plan :)
*Have you given a thought about making a special episode about Korean Litreature especially now that Han Kang won The Nobel Prize (Regardless of my opinion about the prize, it is significant). I have read 6 S.Korean novels (excluding Pachinko), and currently reading "The Vegetarian" since I had it on my shelf for long time. Maybe you share some of your picks, if you like reading, with very general non-spoilery manner.
*In terms of new season, I will probably share some of my suggestions in few weeks, but I like to plea for something widely available (i.e major streaming platforms). Unfortunately Viki (and similar ones) is not legally available in UK.
* Does Bae Doona ever laugh or even smile? lol. I have seen Kingdom & Silent Sea, and she is always sombre.
Hello, Seven Seas! Loved your comments!
DeleteErnabel, Sung Hee and I were talking about how Henry VIII's wives should have done what the Queen Consort did! And you're right, she could have stolen a baby! I'll have to think about why she didn't do that.
Sung Hee and I are ready but we have not read a lot of S. Korean literature. Please do share your picks. I will even recommend to my book club!
Please do share your picks for Season 10. And good to know what Viki is not legally available in the UK. Wow! One reason we have done shows on Netflix is precisely because of availability. We know that Netflix is common, while Viki is not, and some people might balk at another download, even for the free version of Tiki.
I liked Bae Donna in Silent Sea, but you're right! She never smiles! We'll have to find a show where she smiles! I've seen photos of her smiling and she is beautiful!
Hi SevenSeas! Thanks for your comment.
DeleteI appreciate your thoughts on Korean literature. That is an area I have not yet explored at all, so at this point, it would be a brand new venture,. I would be very interested in your opinions about what you have read.
Joanna and I talk about shows that are on other streaming platforms, but we always come back to Netflix since it is clearly the most accessible to most people around the world, not just in the US.
Let us know your suggestions for Season 10!
Finally, the in-depth discussion of Kim Hye-jun’s abs that I have been waiting for! Thank you! 😉I appreciate Sung Hee’s insight that those abs never looked like the Queen was pregnant… Makes here plan seem even more devious. I also agree with Seven Seas regarding the fact that it doesn’t seem like she needed to round up a whole bunch of women and kill the mothers and baby girls. But again, very devious.
ReplyDeleteAs for Chi Hak-ju, in the words of Admiral Akbar: “It’s a trap!” Who is the mole?!?!?!? And his plan to have the Prince kill his own father effectively in front of everyone was pretty clever. But I don’t understand why the Prince didn’t just follow through and behead Hak-ju while he was at it! He was right in front of him! Wasn’t that the whole purpose of this plan?!
For someone who seemed to regret using his soldiers as zombies, he sure was quick to have himself turned into a zombie. As for me, I would be more than happy to be turned into a zombie and be turned on my enemies – starting with anyone who says anything disparaging about Something in the Rain!
My jaw nearly dropped when Sung-hee said decisions about turning people into zombies was exactly like the decisions she has to make every day! I thought, does she work in the zombie ward of the hospital. But the real reason was less interesting than that….
I also agree with Seven Seas that Seo-bi does not smile at all. But, in fairness, she doesn’t have much to smile about! Hopefully, the writers will give her something to smile about soon! You know who else could use something to smile about? Mu-yeong! I bet he’d smile if he got some beef pancakes!
lol
Delete"....... starting with anyone who says anything disparaging about Something in the Rain! "Joanna...you better start looking for that resurrection plant.
Malcolm, I agree with you that the Crown Prince should have just beheaded Cho Hak ju when he had the chance! Wasn't that the plan all along?
DeleteI'm hoping that you never get turned into a zombie or I'll be in BIG trouble! And did I tell you that I LOVED Something in the Rain?!
I'm gonna let Sung Hee defend herself. I never deal with life and death situations. Nobody dies because a development server went down. I have to remind my team of this on a regular basis.
Well, my work with zombies in the hospital is even less interesting, since it generally consists of everyone doing the night shift once we reach about 2 in the morning.
Delete