[Drama 2020] The King: Eternal Monarch, 더 킹: 영원의 군주

[gabylee]

6 hours ago, syntyche said:

It's interesting how Tae Eul noticed the moon during their flight. Moon is "Luna" in Latin, which coincidentally is the name of her doppelganger. And yet another possible clue is dropped when she mentions the myth about rabbits living on the moon (which should send us reading up on that myth). Didn't Luna wear a rabbit costume when Lee Gon chased her?

 

Hello, glad to be back...

 

I was reading Syntyche post and I thought about what she just wrote about the rabbit on the moon, which as she already mentioned, moon means Luna in spanish. I believe the writer has placed all the pieces in strategic places and this part is not casuality. However, I was curious about this because the legend of the rabbit on the moon is mexican and came from long time ago... In short terms, is the story about an aztec god named Quetzalcoatl, who, in one of his travels to discover the world, he stopped to rest in a forest, thirsty and hungry. One rabbit saw him and offered itself as food.  The god refused, but the animal insisted. Then, the god took the rabbit, he lifted it against the moon and as a reward, he got its shape embedded  in the moon surface, for all mankind to remember its kindness. And that is why we are able to see the rabbit at night when the moon is clear.

 

I am not sure if there is another version (korean or international) of this folk tale.  If it's similar to others and we apply it to the drama.. maybe, just maybe Luna will sacrifice for the good at the end.. maybe she will be the hero... I don't know, just putting my 5 cents on this.

 

I think I overthink too much LOL.  Sorry if I am not clear, english is my second language   Loving The King! Greetings from Mexico!!

 

Gaby

 

[syntyche]

cr: moonsol1

 

 

 

[cpt_falcon]

44 minutes ago, YongZura⁷ said:

 

@cpt_falcon I'm loving  your description in this part - The parallels (and contrasts) between JTE's father and LG cooking. 

 

At first when her father asked her the whereabouts of  Max.. I was thinking that, that was his way of asking indirectly where the owner of the horse was 

Like he was trying to ask in a roundabout way where her boyfriend was (because I suspect LG wasn't exactly subtle about his interest in JTE in those talks, probably didn't hide it at all considering it's him heee )?  Or trying to tell her he thought he was a keeper and approved of him and JTE shouldn't screw things up by scaring him off like she maybe has other boyfriends.   Like he wanted to ask that, but not seem too straight-forward in fear of making her angry with him maybe.

I'm all in with LG/JTE and I never really thought poor SJ stood any chance (JTE legitimately doesn't seem to see him that way at all), but I contrast JTE's father's amiability (almost like between peers) with LG, to the point her dad was whining about missing their talks LOL, with how her dad didn't seem as amiable with SJ.  It's true her father interacted with them at different stages of their lives (SJ as a teen, LG as an adult), yet that in itself could be telling.  We're presented with JTE's father interact with SJ as some wayward kid (which is what he was at the time) he was showing some charity (depicted clearly as an elder to subordinate dynamic).   Yet LG's interactions with her father is when he's a grown man and it's a dynamic of peers/friends.

This also seems to reflect in JTE's own dynamics with both men.  JTE never seemed to see SJ as anything but this platonic brother figure who she looks out for, but I think - if rather unintentionally - saw him as someone who couldn't really help himself, it's always her (or her dad) who had to step in for him.  A man who can't help himself, and, even if it may not necessarily been true, someone she saw, deep down, as not able to have her back or be dependable enough to be that shoulder she could lean on when times get really hard.  I kind of think that's what drew her so strongly in part to LG.  It was the mystery about him (and her being a detective, that was probably a definite pull) and him being so strange, but the more she got to know him, the more she realized this was someone who was strong and dependable (makes sense since this is a guy who was raised to literally carry a country on his shoulders).  Despite the tragedies in his life from early on, it didn't weaken or darken him.  He's still kind and a gentleman (though with a bit of an ego, probably too accustomed being the smartest guy in the room).

I feel like I'm not being entirely fair to SJ, but I've had a bad feeling - ever since he made that comment about how being a detective is like walking this razor's edge between the light and the dark - and though he's resisted and rejected that darkness (first test in the form of the mob boss offering him money) thusfar?  I felt like that walking the line between light and dark line was foreshadowing.  I just fear his resistance to the dark so far may not hold.  As yet to SJ, LG is just a crazy person spouting about being some king.  SJ doesn't know what JTE knows and even if he were to find out?  If he were to believe it, would he be angry at the unfairness of it all?  All his life he sees himself as being there for JTE and kept walking that razor's edge to the light side (no matter how hard he may have seen it), hoping maybe she'd see him differently one day..... and yet this actual king on a white horse from a parallel universe just drops out of nowhere one day and, like a lighting flash, JTE fell for him and fell for him so quickly.

If the mob boss was the first test, so to speak, what tests may I see SJ going through in the future and I'm afraid he may fail?  Probably if he's tested by the story's main villain (LR) and LR offering some Faustian deal.... and this time, SJ doesn't reject it (and fails the test).  Possibly because when JTE does finally tell him the truth re: parallel universes, who LG really is, etc, SJ doesn't have the reaction she was expecting.  Instead he reacts angrily and maybe not in small part for the bitter realization JTE also deeply loves LG by this point.

JTE may be the crux of it, but due to SJ knowing that royal symbol (though I think, and I've seen others speculate this possibility too, it's because SJ's family had some kind of shady dealings with LR in the past.  Like others here, I also think SJ may originally be from Corea but doesn't remember).... LR may paint some fraudulent or incomplete picture of LG's background or family that makes LG/LG's fam look bad.  Somehow like the misfortunes in his life somehow all lead back to LG (rather than LR).  SJ's situation could be something of a parallel to Lee Jongin, whose family is forced to live in exile essentially because of the King.  Yet it's simultaneously not really LG's fault, as if LG could have it another way he would.  Whatever situation may exist with SJ and his past?  It may not have been LG's fault either really, but unlike Jong-in, SJ does blame him and wants revenge and further exacerbated the fact JTE fell in love/chose him (but, if this is the way things go down, SJ may regret his choices / redeem himself before things are over).

[mamabear]

2 hours ago, scrawford said:

Ok, Don't hate me, But am i the only one feel like the Kiss a little bit flat and rushed. It's cute and sweet. But, it lacks that sparks and magic. Maybe i have such expectation knowing how each actor has done their kiss scene, i was expecting a bit more passion???and i wish that JTE would at least close her eyes instead of staring. The Hug at the end had more impact and emotional weight for me as their feeling are now mutual.

Maybe because we know that at that moment, JTE has not understood her feelings for LG yet, thus, the lack of reaction during and after the scene. It happened in Ep 5, for goodness sake LG! Haha. The first kiss on other dramas usually happens at episode 8 to 10. Now that the feelings are mutual, I am excited to see how they will deliver their upcoming kiss scenes. Just by thinking about it made me smile from ear to ear 

 

[1ouise]

 

11 hours ago, Heretorant said:

I tried doing further research but couldn’t find anything on gyesu trees. Is it possible it is a tree that only exists in the folktale?

 

Until we get clarity on the translation, I’m going to stick with it’s some magical seeds that will sprout into a ginkgo tree. I’m going to believe earlier sources until proven wrong . Unless we are all wrong and what she planted is not what we see in the intro and they are actually two separate things. 

 

I think gyesu in the moon rabbit tale is the cassia tree, which looks like the intro tree.

 

(It is interesting to read about the moon rabbit in Journey to the West.)  

Spoiler

The Jade Rabbit Spirit (玉兔精) is actually the moon rabbit that pounds a mortar and pestle in Guanghan Palace (廣寒宮) on the Moon. The fairy Su'e (素娥) once hit her and she bore a grudge against her. Su'e was later reincarnated as a princess of India (天竺). The rabbit escapes into the human world to take revenge against Su'e. She lives in Maoying Mountain (毛穎山) and wields a short staff (transformed from the pestle) as her weapon. She kidnaps the princess of India and impersonates her. She meets Tang Sanzang when he passes by India on his journey, and wants to marry him so that she can absorb his yang essence and increase her powers. Sun Wukong sees through her disguise and fights with her. Just as Sun Wukong is about to defeat the Jade Rabbit, the moon goddess, Chang'e, shows up, stops him, assumes custody of the wayward-rabbit, and takes her back to the Moon and to her work.  source

 

Ginkgo trees don't usually have the umbrella shape that we see in the intro. 

But the promos did say that the ginkgo in front of TE's house would play a role.

 

10 hours ago, Keikokoko said:

I had mistaken the seed sowed by JTE was "相思樹 ( tree)". After rewatching again,  it's "相思花 (flower)" not tree. Nevertheless, the meaning of "相思" itself carries yearning,  longing, thinking of loved ones.

 

In my opinion, TE planted some flowers.

 

11 hours ago, Heretorant said:

I searched through 20 pages just to find your comment . It’s been at the back of my mind and bothering me for some time now. Finally, I had time to check and I suggest rewatching the scene again. You’ll notice they are not the same.

This is the Korean flag. The three full strips on the top left corner is on the top right corner of the Corean flag. They are a mirror of each other but not the same. 

I wish I can include photos of the this particular scene but unfortunately, I cannot take screenshots on Netflix. 

 

Let me add a shot:

Also, you'll notice that the yin-yang swirl is different on the Corean flag. 

 

I bring that up cuz I want to put all your minds to work on the opening interrogation scene with this form:

TE and SJ are talking with LR in 2020 and looking at this form, which appears to be Corean.  So did this interrogation take place in Corea?

 

11 hours ago, bebebisous33 said:

Look at the reflection of LG: upside down..

Since it is a reflection, it means that people from Mon. Corea are living the opposite of their life in Rep. Korea

 

It's true that many people are living opposite lives in Corea and Korea, but not everyone.  For example,

Myeong Na-ri / Myeong Seung-ah is a successful building owner in both worlds, and 

the two police detectives are detectives in both worlds.

 

8 hours ago, YongZura⁷ said:

As for ES - in the character's description, the twins were written as his younger siblings ... and someone did mention they were the one at the market with the President's mother. 

 

Yes, ES does not have children; they are his brother and sister.

And to be clear, they are not the same as the children seen at the fish shop.

 

[YongZura⁷]

19 minutes ago, 1ouise said:

 

Yes, ES does not have children; they are his brother and sister.

And to be clear, they are not the same as the children seen at the fish shop.

 

 

Thank you for confirming it.... 

 

Now, got to go back to my RL activities.  Ha ha... never thought i can spend hours here ... but its worth it. Take care everyone and be safe.

[syntyche]

 

 

[mamabear]

3 hours ago, scrawford said:

Somebody here mention how if there is a time Loop, this will be the 998th time since there are "The King 997" username. and will this End with Lee Gon keep on looping to get things right until he can be together with JTE or... He would have to loop over and over again just to be with JTE? Thinking about the ending and the OST from Davichi, im gonna need a lot of Tissue. I had not cried over Kdrama since "Autumn in My Heart". it's been a long timeeeee.

This is so sad if this happens to be the case. Imagine living your life on a loop for 998 times, living your life for 25 lonnngg years per loop? Then at the end, you fail saving the love of your life. That is so tragic  

[syntyche]

 

 

[kiklaminHo]

8 hours ago, ElleSor said:

ok, so hear me out on this. 

Is there any possibility that Shin Jae is Lee Gon in the other world?

I've wondered why Shin Jae is being built up so much when he's just the high school friend.

JTE doesn't even have romantic feelings for him so why the build up?

 

 

@ElleSor

I was  thinking something similar since I rewatch ep6 today.

I was start thinking if the person who saves kid LG is not LG but Shin Jae .It looks like a very far fetched possibility but I start thinking on this.

I still have a lot of doubts because

a) I know LMH body and the tall guy in mask ep.1 looked 99.9% as LMH.

b) TE father told him to leave in the edge of good and bad (he used different words but that was the meaning-I guess ).Until ep.6 I thought this sentence was foreshadow his ultimate choice to join LR.

But what if in  the future he regrets possibly bad choices he will do (going with LR) and as atonement (?) saves kid LG?

He has access in TE's ID and also he is the one that brought to TE her new ID when she forgot to pick it up.

 

[leeminhosny]

Spoiler

 

 

[aidanelle]

Fancy another Woo Do-hwan, Kim Kyung-nam and Jung Eun-chae?

https://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/entertainment/2020/05/03/fancy-another-woo-do-hwan-kim-kyung-nam-and-jung-eun-chae

 

[syntyche]

1 hour ago, 1ouise said:

 

Let me add a shot:

 

Also, you'll notice that the yin-yang swirl is different on the Corean flag. 

 

I bring that up cuz I want to put all your minds to work on the opening interrogation scene with this form:

 

TE and SJ are talking with LR in 2020 and looking at this form, which appears to be Corean.  So did this interrogation take place in Corea?

 

 

Wow, @1ouise, you're onto something here! Yep, my mind is now working on it, alright! 

[Heretorant]

37 minutes ago, simplebeauty08 said:

This is so sad if this happens to be the case. Imagine living your life on a loop for 998 times, living your life for 25 lonnngg years per loop? Then at the end, you fail saving the love of your life. That is so tragic  

God knows how many times he’s gone back to redo it over but if it’s 998 times, that means he actually waited to be with her for 24,950 years!   (I’m getting good at math guys lmao )

 

Goblin, where you at? 

 

Writer Kim loves to make her ML wait for their love huh? 
 

 I love how we speak as though our theories are all true lol. Hey, if it helps us cope until Friday comes around, right? Lol. 
 

Quote

Also, you'll notice that the yin-yang swirl is different on the Corean flag. 

I bring that up cuz I want to put all your minds to work on the opening interrogation scene with this form:

TE and SJ are talking with LR in 2020 and looking at this form, which appears to be Corean.  So did this interrogation take place in Corea?

 

 

You, my friend, have the sharpest eyes! 

[scrawford]

1 hour ago, Heretorant said:

Sorry chingu, I cut your post short. 
 

The kiss - And more so than the kiss, I enjoyed their conversation afterwards. I really like how Lee Gon realized where JTE stood. At least he figured there was a line between them and he hadn’t quite succeed in crossing over. Maybe I wish they would have hold off too but then we wouldn’t get moments of JTE reminiscing and possibly regretting she didn’t kiss him back lol. After episode 6, I believe they’re at the point where a kiss would make absolute sense. A soulful, passionate one! 
 

The war - There’s plenty of speculations that the war with Japan will play a bigger part of the plot. I don’t know if it’ll involve Lee Rim but I do believe this is not the last time we’ll see Japan. Will they really retreat after 1 attempt? I think they feel humiliated and will want revenge. But regardless, I believe the war played a big part in the story by making Corea seem more real. It’s the writer’s way of exploring the idea of if Corea was Korea today. While it doesn’t necessarily move the plot forward, it played a significance in solidifying the plot and the world of Corea. I actually quite like it because of that. 

 

The end - The way you described it and the way everyone has been theorizing, it’s a little too sad, no? Honestly, if he is forever stuck in this loop to save JTE just to be with her, I would prefer to end it with a sad ending. I think there comes a point where you have to let go and move on. It’s too pitiful for him to live his life over and over again just to try and save her. In that case, I will fully accept if the ending we get is the one where Lee Gon decides to stop the loop. It’s heartbreaking and I will cry a river but at least it’ll mean he’s learned to move on. Unless the writer wants to make him save her by the end, which I am ok with too. But over 998 times of redoing it, then my king, it is time to give up and let her go. 
 

 

@Heretorant

I too enjoyed their conversation afterwards. I love that scene where he was drawing a hypothetical line between them with his hand. Idk, there is something about it. And I am waiting and hoping for the real Kiss. 

 

Re: The end. Sigh..... that would be sad and Goblin all over again. I don't want LG to be stuck in the Loop over and over, but i can't figure out how they would be together. I will welcome any Theory of a possible good ending :).

 

This show is killing me. Just finished watching the 1 ep and im gonna binge watch all the way to episode 6. Hopefully i can go on about my week and get it out of my system

 

PS: regarding Kings combat and Shooting ability. Are they trying to convince the Audience that he is not good, but He actually is? i have a feeling he is really good, but they are trying to convince the viewer otherwise, for now.

[mamabear]

4 minutes ago, Heretorant said:

God knows how many times he’s gone back to redo it over but if it’s 998 times, that means he actually waited to be with her for 24,950 years!  

 

Goblin, where you at? 

 

Writer Kim loves to make her ML wait for their love huh? 
 

 I love how we speak as though our theories are all true lol. Hey, if it helps us cope until Friday comes around, right? Lol. 

LMAO. I just hope that won't be the case. But just what like other people here said, all the things seem like going against them, I wonder how KES will play this out. 

[syntyche]

16 minutes ago, scrawford said:

 

PS: regarding Kings combat and Shooting ability. Are they trying to convince the Audience that he is not good, but He actually is? i have a feeling he is really good, but they are trying to convince the viewer otherwise, for now.

 

@scrawford, I have the same thoughts on this

[cpt_falcon]

Someone on Tumblr actually also posited the theory Shin Jae saves kid LG, the theory is interesting and pretty in depth.  You can read it here:  https://watch-write-read-repeat.tumblr.com/post/617106830117797888/its-kind-of-early-to-theorise-about-the-central

Far-fetched as it may be, it'd make for a fantastic story.  Especially how I do think Shin Jae sees himself as weak and not brave, and unfavorably compares himself to JTE and some level sees himself as beneath her / not good enough.  Though I think he sees himself as still trying, trying to evolve and become better / be a better man.  Though the fact he's been infatuated with her for so many years and her perspective never has seemed to change re: her feelings for him?  I think some part of him uses that as a measure that he's still not that better man (and may never be, as long as she doesn't return the feelings he has for her).  Like her inability or unwillingness to love him as he wishes she would only amplifies these flaws or deficiencies he thinks he has.

But this would be a major problem if it were the case, judging himself too much based on another person / how he thinks this other person sees him.  Trying to be the man he thinks she wants.  Instead of living for himself and being that better man for himself.

Because then the fact JTE has seemed to have fallen in love with LG?  It'd then seem to suggest LG the better man, the one who isn't weak, is brave and strong, etc.

And if LR alleges there's some old conflict with LG's family?  That it's LG's family somehow responsible for the misfortunes his own family suffered (and why SJ has had to live as an exile or hidden, again per whatever hypothetical account of LR's)?  SJ thinking he would have been like LG (aka, the better man, wealthy, his mother not a gambling addict, his father still alive/around, brave, strong... and loved by JTE) had these things not occurred?  That's how LR could stick his claws in SJ and turn him.

It wouldn't be too late for him though, because I could see him turning back towards the light and redeeming himself.  Even if it's at the cost of his own life.

The idea it may be Shin Jae who saves young LG, thus proving his bravery and selflessness in the very end, would be a poignant, if also heartbreaking moment too when a young LG reaches for JTE's police badge and grips it to him.  I do think Shin Jae basically would have planted it because LG needed it to seed that mystery (and budding love) for his 'hero' JTE.  In a sense, what began everything (and what began the key to the worlds' salvation?).  I do think it's JTE/LG's dynamic and love that's key in saving everything, all the more reason SJ needs to let that badge go.  However, the way that exact moment plays out in the first episode?  It's like LG - even as a child and barely conscious - reaches for JTE and draws her to him.  That the badge slips right out of SJ's fingers (like he doesn't want to let it go, but he has to as it's not meant for him).  That JTE is meant for LG and LG is meant for JTE.  SJ this facilitator to seed this destined and world-saving love, but can be nothing more than that.

[scrawford]

25 minutes ago, syntyche said:

 

@scrawford, I have the same thoughts on this

@syntyche would like to know your honest opinion. Do you think lee Gon In Rep. Korea still alive? for some reason i have an open mind with that possibility, even tho i know that they showed his graved, but not his body. seems fishy

 

[syntyche]

There have been questions about the existence of another door to cross the parallel worlds. Lee Rim might be using another one aside from the one in the bamboo forest, which is guarded by the royal court and CCTVs. 

 

 

In the opening credits, there seems to be another door, through some arc structure:

 

 

 

 

By the way, there's a link to the character description and other useful links in the first page of this thread. We need all the help we can get in analyzing this drama