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

[Elnin Joery]

 

 

 

 

[Keikokoko]

2 hours ago, Kdramatic said:

Maybe Luna is JTE from some time line, but she’s been trapped for so long in KOC and since she doesn’t actually belong there, all her memories have faded and she’s just wandering trying to survive (this would be so sad...) She also has a terminal illness so maybe that is a symptom of being in the wrong world for too long?

 

I have been one of believers that Luna is a leftover JTE from one of time loops since episode 4 and posted about it from time to time. I am glad that someone esle thinks it the same way. Her existence in the current time loop will change the outcome of repeated time-line. She is an outlier and a wrinkle of otherwise smooth and repeated time-line in time loops. Her existence will ultimately assist in someway for LG to successfully reunite flute and closes gates to restore balance of nature in universes. 

 

Only 6 episodes left. Many loose ends will need to be tied up soon. Whether our speculation is proven right or wrong, I bet we are all being thoroughly entertained. Hats off to production team and mostly actors and actresses, not to mention the spectacular King. 

[Elnin Joery]

14 minutes ago, Keikokoko said:

 

I have been one of believers that Luna is a leftover JTE from one of time loops since episode 4 and posted about it from time to time. I am glad that someone esle thinks it the same way. Her existence in the current time loop will change the outcome of repeated time-line. She is an outlier and a wrinkle of otherwise smooth and repeated time-line in time loops. Her existence will ultimately assist in someway for LG to successfully reunite flute and closes gates to restore balance of nature in universes. 

 

Only 6 episodes left. Many loose ends will need to be tied up soon. Whether our speculation is proven right or wrong, I bet we are all being thoroughly entertained. Hats off to production team and mostly actors and actresses, not to mention the spectacular King. 

 

A decent theory when everything is considered. 

 

But I wanna touch on the last point and the fact that there is 6 episodes left with many loose ends. I think this is the first season of TKEM. meaning there is many loose ends and to many questions to fit all that into 6 episodes. I geninuely think that we will see a second season where KES will try to fit as much as possible in this season to leave us somehow in cliffhangar for second season. Where she will explore this world even more as per say compared to now. I back this decision I wanna see KES branch out into this world building as I find it very interesting and she should take it as far as it can go. The mystery and intrigue is there. It's a great material and has potential but depends on her where she wanna take it and how she uses it

[Keikokoko]

2 hours ago, vangsweetie637 said:

Exactly! And they make the chicken look so good. The chicken at my place isn’t even advertised half as good!  there was a bbq scene but i felt like food was wasted there too. There was a scene where TE brought homemade food for JY but felt like no one ate it. TE said she would order steak during the office scene with SJ. We never saw the delivery so probably if it had actually been in the scene, we would only get one bite again. The street food looks the most delicious because i love street food. But they took a couple of bites only too. I would have taken gigantic bites and get more LOL! I think what SJ was eating is spicy rice cake and JTE was eating a spicy fish cake. Yummy! As you can see, i love food! So it puts me into a spin when all these food are there but no one is taking advantage of it  (i know, it’s all PPL only but still. I mean, wouldn’t it be better to finish it so that people will know that it was so dang good that it’s all finished

 

@vangsweetie637 while you eyes were following food on screen, mine were on the eyes and lips. Did you notice how pillowy those lips were. And the eyes, I was drowning in that deep gaze and gasping for air... 

 

You can pack up all the food props, I won't fight you for them. 

[Kdramatic]

34 minutes ago, koreaboooo said:

 

Yea I've been juggling between either LG staying in the in between or Luna. But to calm my depressed soul from that last episode, I'm more inclined to think Luna. But if it's base on KES fondness for open/bittersweet ending... LG staying inside seems like a higher possibility. 

 

Also not sure if anyone knows this but the tree in the opening is a gyesu tree which in the Korean myth some think the rabbit on the moon, the rabbit is usually under that tree. I do feel this tale might have some huge significance since it's something derived from Buddhism and PM and her ex husband were nitpicking on religion earlier Christianity vs Buddhism... 

 

I don’t know if my heart can handle such a sad ending. 

 

17 minutes ago, Keikokoko said:

 

I have been one of believers that Luna is a leftover JTE from one of time loops since episode 4 and posted about it from time to time. I am glad that someone esle thinks it the same way. Her existence in the current time loop will change the outcome of repeated time-line. She is an outlier and a wrinkle of otherwise smooth and repeated time-line in time loops. Her existence will ultimately assist in someway for LG to successfully reunite flute and closes gates to restore balance of nature in universes. 

 

Only 6 episodes left. Many loose ends will need to be tied up soon. Whether our speculation is proven right or wrong, I bet we are all being thoroughly entertained. Hats off to production team and mostly actors and actresses, not to mention the spectacular King. 

 

Someone else posted the back story of Luna earlier which supports her not being JTE though. But even the backstory is a bit mysterious. Luna was apparently abandoned in Busan when she was younger. Maybe LL was supposed to switch her and JTE as well but didn’t? That could relate to him saying JTE is the move he didn’t make?

 

I don’t know what to think anymore! Lol There’s so many parts to this drama and so many little Easter eggs, it’s exciting and confusing at the same time.

 

I actually watched the first 2 episodes when it first came out and stopped because I knew I’d be in for a wild ride and it would drive me crazy waiting a week for the next episodes to be released so I thought I should just wait until all the episodes were released and then just binge watch it in entirety... but then I just couldn’t wait anymore so I caught up from episodes 3-8 during the week before 9&10 were released. Wish I could time travel to the future and binge watch the whole drama. Hahahahahaha 

[Joanna Alfson]

 

My review and theory. I watched it same night it came out but had to gather my thoughts before sharing my thoughts.

 

JTE meet two different Lee Gon's in my opinion. I remember few pages back that there is 3 timelines. 

 

Timeline A: In this timeline Lee Gon died with his father and dosen't exist beyond his young age

 

Timeline B: Lee Gon's death was prevented and he lived and reigned as King this is the timeline where him and JTE meet originally. This was the one she meet in the last scene. Because he was the one who altered this Timeline creating the time loop by going back again. 

 

Timeline C: This is the present Lee Gon the one who meets JTE in the first episode and he meet JTE in the first scene in the forest. 

 

The Question is why he can't remember the meeting because the time has been reset but his Timeline B has left a clue for him that ID card proving to him that indeed she was Timeline B's original Girl and he wanted Timeline C to follow that same pattern

[SweetButters]

I find myself while watching TKEM, thinking about to a quote in GoT. A character asks a question "is love the death of duty or is duty the death of love?". Much of the conflict existing between our two main leads is this exact question.

 

LG more so than JTE has a duty first and foremost to his country and its people. I don't think he could ever give up his country for her since the duty of the king is to protect his country and his people which far outweighs his love for her. The same could be said with JTE. She expressed those exact sentiments in ep.7 in the following dialogue:

 

JTE: "They are the five people who will help you regardless of anything in this world"

LG:  "Not you?"

JTE: "For me, the citizens come first."

 

 

---------------------------------------------------------

 

At this point in the show, I do not know for sure what direction this is all going. For example, in "Alice in Wonderland", Lewis Carroll assures the reader that Alice's story will have a happy ending by telling them so directly throughout the chapters. However, I do not know if whether this is that what KES is trying to allude to with all the side characters talking about marriage and JTE being queen?

 

Or will KES go down the following route listed below.......

 

In the last lines of Alice in Wonderland, Alice's older sister states:

 

"Lastly, she pictured to herself how this same little sister of hers would, in the after-time, be herself a grown woman ; and how she would keep, through all her riper years, the simple and loving heart of her childhood: and how she would gather about her other little children, and make their eyes bright and eager with many a strange tale, perhaps even with the dream of Wonderland of long-ago: and how she would feel with all their simple sorrows, and find a pleasure in all their simple joys, remembering her own child- life, and the happy summer day."

 

I wonder if KES is going to do the same with the TKEM's ending where both LG and JTE will be in their separate worlds though sad they cannot be together, but will look back fondly at the time they spent together in each others' "Wonderland". IF SO, I VOTE NO NO NO TO THIS ENDING !!!!!

 

 

It would be easier for KES to write a sad or bittersweet ending for TKEM. However, she could also see it as a challenge/opportunity and write such a beautiful happy ending for such a sad story. SO PLEASE GIVE US A HAPPY ENDING KES !!!! 

 

---------------------------------------------------------

 

On 5/17/2020 at 8:32 AM, Heretorant said:

Maybe he wouldn’t have told her directly but he probably would have told her he’ll be going away longer than usual to take care of business. And I totally understand the kiss was a goodbye kiss but to leave her in the middle of the kiss is a bit much. She literally opened her eyes and he was gone. If it turns out they decided to break our hearts only because LG is leaving for a couple of weeks and he will be back but decided he couldn’t spare even another minute to help ease JTE’s heart, I’m going to have a serious talk with writer Kim!
 

Also, I’m really liking the idea of that LG being from the future. It makes this scene so much more meaningful and heart wrenching. It’s as though he came from far away to meet his lover and they’d been separated for a long, long time. She possibly doesn’t even exist in his present anymore. It’s like having a last chance to speak to a loved one who’s passed. That’s what makes this scene so special and heart breaking. I’m going to be extremely disappointed if it turns out this LG is the one who’s currently mourning Prince Jong In’s death. To leave in the middle of a kiss is unacceptable! To not seek JY is irresponsible! I’ll have to have a serious talk with writer Kim!

 

@Heretorant I think in her JTE already knows in her heart that this time that he will be gone longer than usual as conveyed to the long pauses. I mean this whole scene was hella dramatic without many words needing to be said which in itself makes it ever so bittersweet. I mean you could look at it as it is LG mourning Prince Jong In's death too. For LG, death hasn't become a thing for LG since his father's death and now as an adult death of another fatherly figure like Prince Jong In's death reminds LG again that death of a loved one is a reality yet again. Therefore, LG realizing death is a reality is like whelp better tell JTE all the things Ive always meant to say now because she too might die at any moment . Again that scene between them could be interpreted in so many ways. 

[rocher22]

 Their relationship is something special...

 

 

 

[rcresh]

I finally decided not to theorise and just let the show take me to where it’s going. Until I opened this forum and stumbled upon other’s theories. Man, this drama! Haha. I guess the KES deliberately wanted us to rack our brains out connecting two and two together.

 

@Hikki @SweetButters I also wondered if the balloons are markers for something (note that they also look like the pin emoji and the location symbol). The first thing that confused me in ep 10 was LG saying he had five hours before he can come back on time in KOC, which is ten days at minimum. Then, of course, I quickly realised he was planning to take some time in the in-between to search for LL’s obelisks. At first, I thought maybe he marked all the spaces where he didn’t find the obelisks, so as not to confuse himself. But what if he found something else? Like what you both suggested, portals leading to different times? This is a bit of a stretch so I dare not say it in this forum. But I was glad there were two minds that also came up with this idea.

 

For now, though, I’m brushing off this theory aside. It’s just cool to think that the in-between may not only hold portals to different spaces but also to different times. And who knows, maybe you can only access the time portals when the Manpasikjeok is in your hands. This would also back up @Heretorant’s idea of LG walking through frozen moments. It makes me think of Interstellar’s tesseract scene when the lead saw different moments of time simultaneously in a single space.

 

A sample clip:
 

Spoiler

 

 

My heart would really sink though, if that ending scene turned out to be just another fast-forwarded portion that was placed there to confuse us  But my gut feeling says that LG from that scene is a different version.

 

Damn it, I wasn’t planning to post here until the next episode but this drama really is chasing my thoughts. Never in my whole life did i theorise this much over a KDRAMA. Haha. TKEM, daebak!

[Keikokoko]

47 minutes ago, Kdramatic said:

someone else posted the back story of Luna earlier which supports her not being JTE though. But even the backstory is a bit mysterious. Luna was apparently abandoned in Busan when she was younger. Maybe LL was supposed to switch her and JTE as well but didn’t? That could relate to him saying JTE is the move he didn’t make?

 

I will be happy to be wrong on Luna = leftover JTE. Luna is another tragic character like SJ. If she turns out to be a swap from RoK by LR (LL) and abandoned in Corea, that will mean JTE is the other side of swap originally from Corea? If so, why wouldn't she has fragment of memories like SJ from her time in Corea before swapped in young age? 

 

So many intrigues.... Shall we all just roll the dice and leave it to God's hands?!  

[Heretorant]

If you’re wondering: NO, I AM NOT OKAY! 

 

I’ve put back reading on hold for now but you all are wonderful. 
 

I’ve came to the conclusion that we all have plausible theories but they might not be the easiest to execute. The writer will probably go with the most simple but beautiful explanation. 

 

THIS, below, hits hard. He’s never shed a tear in front of anyone except in front of Yeong and Lady Noh when he was younger. 

 

Kim So Wol’s poems. There’s two that’s been introduced so far. “Invocation of death” in episode 3 and “House” in episode 10. @1ouise posted the translation of “House” over at lmh’s thread and I wanted to post it here as well. Anyone want to break it down and analyze it deeper? I’m not quite the liberal arts student you know? 

 

https://jasonfrancisco.net/poems-of-sowol

https://allpoetry.com/Sowol-Kim

 

 

 

 

My house

 


at the base of a distant hill, at the edge of a field, hard by the shore of the broad sea—
i’ll build it, my own house, and put a wide road in front—
 
those who go by, some might stop in, then go on alone—
the day will turn dark at the rise of the white rapids—
 
i’ll stand at the gate and i’ll wait, and shadows will grow lighter—
dawn birds will cry, and the day will turn bright and still—
 
the morning will come sparkling, and i’ll look at each one who passes, and wonder—
might it be you?  might it be?

 

 

translated from the korean by david r. mccann

adapted by jason francisco

 

Is there a reason why these poems are always voiced by Lady Noh? I feel like “Invocation of death” is from LG’s point of view. But “House” seems to be from JTE. It makes me wonder, if JTE dies, will it take LG a lifetime to save her and when he does, will he finally meet her again at an old age? But this all goes down the drain because I remember we were shown a clip of JTE roaming Corea in year 2022. It’s just a bittersweet possibility but maybe not very probable. I’m not going to lie, I will cry a river if they reunite at old age though. 

[Keikokoko]

52 minutes ago, SweetButters said:

"is love the death of duty or is duty the death of love?"

@SweetButters Thanks for sharing this quote. Very profound!! I think the King is trying very hard to find the beautiful answer to keep both love and duty. I will be one of his cheerleaders and rooting for his endeavor to hold his love close to his heart while carry on his duty.  

 

 

 

[lindas55]

This drama is one very big jigsaw puzzle. With this type of puzzle you have to first lay out all the pieces before you can fit them together to see the big picture. Well folks we have most of the pieces so lets start putting them together. One very important piece is Luna. This character has always been very mysterious. While her face is the same, her look,hair and physical condition are different from her counter in the other world. At first glance Luna is the moral opposite of her counterpart in the other world. However, we need to remember that Luna’s back story is almost nonexistent. We don’t know her real name because in this episode she talks to the cat revealing that she got her name from the cat and that she has build a new identity for herself. In earlier episodes we find out that the people who were after her also didn’t know her true identity or name. We know she was  sent to prison  for Special Larceny a serious crime that is punishable by a prison sentence off 1 to 10 years. We know she is running from a “boss” who she “stole from” and who is doing time in prison because of her. So again other then being told that she has committed thief and assault we don’t much. Our short glimpses of her in actions shows a strong women who trust no one but pays her debts to those she feels she owes. ( Remember she helps a young boy as payback and feed the cat for the same reason). Luna or whoever she is really, seems to be on a mission. Despite being terminal she is determined to do what needs to be done. My question is what is her real identity and what is her mission. If Luna symbolizes the “white rabbit” in Alice in Wonderland then she is indeed very central to this puzzle. Many sources state that the “white rabbit” “is the spark of curiosity that activates Alice's spiritual awakening. It is a symbol of her quest for knowledge.” What knowledge does Luna hold that will help the king awaken to his true destiny? In finding Luna will the king find knowledge that will help defeat his uncle? Luna is dying so her character’s true identity could leave an identity for JTE  to step into should she decide or need to stay in the kingdom. Luna might just be the missing puzzle pieces that will turn this whole story around so that our king and the women he loves come out victousis in the end.

[Kdramatic]

Actually I just thought of something...

 

LG is still chasing and trying to catch LL. From the previous episodes, time would stop for LG or LL when the OTHER person was travelling between the universes.

 

So maybe in the last episode, LG went to see JTE first to tell her he loves her because he doesn’t know if he will make it back to see her again anytime soon or ever if he is basically heading into a war with LL where he knows there’s a 50/50 chance that he will win/lose...

 

Then time froze as he was kissing JTE, meaning LL was travelling so he had to unfortunately leave her to go hunt him down in the in-between or possible quickly head to different gates in ROC he believes LL will appear at to try to catch him.

 

Still pretty sure there’s time traveling involved in the storyline given JTE’s ID and the odd inconsistency of certain scenes in the episodes, characters and their sometimes seemingly out of place dialogue.

 

7 hours ago, Keikokoko said:

 

I will be happy to be wrong on Luna = leftover JTE. Luna is another tragic character like SJ. If she turns out to be a swap from RoK by LR (LL) and abandoned in Corea, that will mean JTE is the other side of swap originally from Corea? If so, why wouldn't she has fragment of memories like SJ from her time in Corea before swapped in young age? 

 

So many intrigues.... Shall we all just roll the dice and leave it to God's hands?!  

Yeah! I was thinking if they were swapped, why doesn’t JTE have nightmares like SJ?

Unless... she was too young when she was swapped? 
 

Do we know how JTE’s mother passed away? I can’t remember if that was shown or discussed in an episode. They did mention that Luna has a terminal illness that was hereditary. If they were swapped then Luna may have the same illness the mom did in ROC if she did pass away from an illness?

 

Half of me feels that things can and will be explained rather simply and we are all just over thinking! 

[LorenHaze]

23 minutes ago, Kdramatic said:

Actually I just thought of something...

 

LG is still chasing and trying to catch LL. From the previous episodes, time would stop for LG or LL when the OTHER person was travelling between the universes.

 

So maybe in the last episode, LG went to see JTE first to tell her he loves her because he doesn’t know if he will make it back to see her again anytime soon or ever if he is basically heading into a war with LL where he knows there’s a 50/50 chance that he will win/lose...

 

Then time froze as he was kissing JTE, meaning LL was travelling so he had to unfortunately leave her to go hunt him down in the in-between or possible quickly head to different gates in ROC he believes LL will appear at to try to catch him.

 

Still pretty sure there’s time traveling involved in the storyline given JTE’s ID and the odd inconsistency of certain scenes in the episodes, characters and their sometimes seemingly out of place dialogue.

 
@KDramatics no word of a lie..after watching episode 10, I came here to post my thoughts about that same scene, with similar thoughts as yours. But decided against it as it seemed such a simplistic notion that..LG came back to bid JTE farewell & love as he is about to battle LL/LR..with no certainty of of returning. 
 

admittedly (and obviously lol), i don’t have a knack for theories and only see things at face value. but I do love reading about them. it makes everything more intriguing and exciting.  

[scrawford]

Can't really catch up on every post, this thread moved soo fast! 

With 10 episode under our belt, this drama, IMO really shows us that it gets better and better. And Honestly it's not giving me the usual Drama Vibe that i get when watching Kdrama. By ep.2 i knew i had to give this my full attention to fully grasp the story.

 

Just like most of us here, I'm stil shook by ep.10 ending. and I'm not sold on one theories. It's still either or for me.

1. could be that he is LG from the future and 2) it could be that JTE took a step back because as someone who know LG, she felt something off. ep 10 is giving the feeling that JTE has been waiting for Lee Gon to comeback for good. From the two reunion we got, You can tell that JTE has been waiting for him and based on their dialogue, it's almost Like JTE have been waiting for him to comeback with the solution for the relationship.

 

reunion #1

JTE asked "Are you here yet?"

Lg Answered : "not yet. Not entirely"

And The poems By Kim Woo Sol is being read again with Lady Not VO "When the sun Goes down over the white rapids I shall wait by the gates. Between shadows of the birds, singing at dawn. I see the world brightening up, in it still calmness. With my eyes fixated on traveler passing by, at the break of dawn, "is that you?", "Is that you?"

 

I highlighted the part where it was read over when LG Showed up at the Bamboo Forest. It's almost telling us, JTE is wondering when LG would comeback. I like the theory that their love stories is shown in different time loop and that would explain a lot why the building of the romance is not slow burn, however im not sold on that quite yet, because JTE is wearing the same outfit she was wearing where she met with JY for chicken and beer before coming to the Bamboo forest. However, the many many red baloons we saw LG pass by in the place "in  between" give a strong "tips" to the viewer that many time loops has passed by. 

 

reunion #2

We went from LG mourning his Uncles death to JTE at home watering her flower. And then She saw LG, excitedly went down and almost embrace him but something fell off so she took a step back.

 

LG VO: "There will come a moment where it seems i've disappeared. I don't want you to worry too much. It just means, I'm walking through the frozen moment in time."

 

That line to me seems like a lover who promised to his lady that He will come back. To me it's a temporary goodbye.

 

Looking at the drama pacing, we will see what happen in between LG mourning his uncle to when He came to see JTE. Seems like a lot has happen. And maybe LG took a while this time because he has been mourning, took care of things in his Kingdom, preparing to fight off LR (Which we all know that he is wearing the same outfit as the one in the beginning of episode 1.

So, He is either about to go fight LR or He has defeated LR and what's left is for him to reset the time loop or time travel, to take care of things so He can be with JTE for good. Jte reaction the me give me the feels of a lover who has been waiting for her lover to fulfill his promise after waiting a long time, but once again it's being heart broken that it's not time yet, so LG has to reassure her that Not too worry when it seems like he disappear. Im not fixed 100% yet because the time travel theory and the possibility of LG and JTE relationship is shown in different time loop, so the last scene being LG from the future could still make sense.

 

I love, love, love the acting in this episode. Everybody got their screen time evenly (aside maybe PM KO?)

WDH continue to slay his double role and gave us the lightness we all need in this episode.i hope he will get more leading man opportunities in the future. Although, i heard that he is about to start hi MS :(.

 

Shin jae and JTE scene is heartfelt and i can feel the depth of their friendship and Shin jae being really vulnerable by asking her if she welcome him. Which lead me to believe, his character is not's necessarily given to be Second lead in the love story. I believe that he loves her, But maybe not the romantic love LG has for JTE. For Shin Jae, JTE and her dad has been the people who accepted him and made him feel like he belonged in the world where he felt like he didn't fit and something is off. Im sure there is a longing for something more with JTE, but i have a feeling the show won't explore that too much. but as of now, I want to give him a hug!. I'm still curious what Role does shin Jae has since he had a lot of character development. Is it just to show us the impact or getting switched? KKN delivers really well and i felt for him and his struggle for belonging.

 

KGE is doing great as well, You want to cry when she cries. Ahhhh.....

 

LMH...well what can i say, he is my bias and he did really good as Lee Gon. Since Episode 8, we have been seeing more layers of LG. All the confrontation Scenes Like the one with the restaurant owner, With Lee Sang do in the stable and LR at the end of ep.9. Showed us that he is still using his brain even tho I'm sure he could just take the matter upon his hands. And we saw him mourning over his Uncle, and the heartfelt scene at the end of Ep. 10. Sigh..

[vangsweetie637]

7 hours ago, Kdramatic said:

Yeah! I was thinking if they were swapped, why doesn’t JTE have nightmares like SJ?

Unless... she was too young when she was swapped? 
 

Do we know how JTE’s mother passed away? I can’t remember if that was shown or discussed in an episode. They did mention that Luna has a terminal illness that was hereditary. If they were swapped then Luna may have the same illness the mom did in ROC?

 

Half of me feels that things can and will be explained rather simply and we are all just over thinking! 

I don’t think Luna was swapped. If LR swapped her, he would recognize her instead of looking confused and intrigued when his minion told him about her. And he would remember her name like how he remembers SJ. I don’t think TE told us directly how her mom passed but just that she was looking for her in Corea hoping she will find the doppelgänger.  Haha, sometimes overthinking just comes straight to us

 

9 hours ago, Keikokoko said:

 

@vangsweetie637 while you eyes were following food on screen, mine were on the eyes and lips. Did you notice how pillowy those lips were. And the eyes, I was drowning in that deep gaze and gasping for air... 

 

You can pack up all the food props, I won't fight you for them. 

 

Omo! Lips, eyes?! Of course! I noticed it!  The way you said “pillowy..” if I didn’t know any better, this must have been us: 

 

Food props, go away! I will take this kind of food instead!!

[rocher22]

Yeong's self-confidence is shaken...

 

[SweetButters]

1 hour ago, Heretorant said:

 

  Hide contents

My house

at the base of a distant hill, at the edge of a field, hard by the shore of the broad sea—
i’ll build it, my own house, and put a wide road in front—
 
those who go by, some might stop in, then go on alone—
the day will turn dark at the rise of the white rapids—
 
i’ll stand at the gate and i’ll wait, and shadows will grow lighter—
dawn birds will cry, and the day will turn bright and still—
 
the morning will come sparkling, and i’ll look at each one who passes, and wonder—
might it be you?  might it be?
 

Is there a reason why these poems are always voiced by Lady Noh? I feel like “Invocation of death” is from LG’s point of view. But “House” seems to be from JTE. It makes me wonder, if JTE dies, will it take LG a lifetime to save her and when he does, will he finally meet her again at an old age? But this all goes down the drain because I remember we were shown a clip of JTE roaming Corea in year 2022. It’s just a bittersweet possibility but maybe not very probable. I’m not going to lie, I will cry a river if they reunite at old age though. 

 

@Heretorant The way I look at the poem is the follow (pov from a scientist ):

 

Distant hill = life's many hurdles/obstacles/challenges one has to overcome. The narrator says they'll build a house at the base so the beginning of the hill just before one has to overcome life's many obstacles. Then they say they will put a road in front meaning like a path that leads to that place where the narrator is. So every person the narrator comes into contact with/encounters. Some are acquittances or friends that will briefly come into the narrator's life and then leave to face their own obstacles in life. Narrator describes the flow of time through usage of whole day to night metaphors (e.g shadows grow lighter aka night vs shadows grow darker in the day, day will turn dark, etc) in the 2nd and 3rd stanzas. 

 

Basically the narrator is expressing that with every person they encounter no matter how much time has passed, they will constantly be waiting and hoping that the next person is the one they've be waiting for and hoping that person will be with them to face every obstacle life has to offer together. 

 

Yea I think that poem is expressing JTE's pov. 

 

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1 hour ago, Keikokoko said:

@SweetButters Thanks for sharing this quote. Very profound!! I think the King is trying very hard to find the beautiful answer to keep both love and duty. I will be one of his cheerleaders and looting for his endeavor to hold his love close to his heart while carry on his duty.  

 

 

 

 

@Keikokoko OMG me too!! We can be his biggest cheerleaders ever ! Here's to happy ending where you can have your cake and eat it too 

 

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I finally decided not to theorise and just let the show take me to where it’s going. Until I opened this forum and stumbled upon other’s theories. Man, this drama! Haha. I guess the KES deliberately wanted us to rack our brains out connecting two and two together.

 

@Hikki @SweetButters I also wondered if the balloons are markers for something (note that they also look like the pin emoji and the location symbol). The first thing that confused me in ep 10 was LG saying he had five hours before he can come back on time in KOC, which is ten days at minimum. Then, of course, I quickly realised he was planning to take some time in the in-between to search for LL’s obelisks. At first, I thought maybe he marked all the spaces where he didn’t find the obelisks, so as not to confuse himself. But what if he found something else? Like what you both suggested, portals leading to different times? This is a bit of a stretch so I dare not say it in this forum. But I was glad there were two minds that also came up with this idea.

 

For now, though, I’m brushing off this theory aside. It’s just cool to think that the in-between may not only hold portals to different spaces but also to different times. And who knows, maybe you can only access the time portals when the Manpasikjeok is in your hands. This would also back up @Heretorant’s idea of LG walking through frozen moments. It makes me think of Interstellar’s tesseract scene when the lead saw different moments of time simultaneously in a single space.

 

 

 

@rcresh Yea I was kinda confused by too. I dont know whether he meant like does he mean 5 hrs in the in-between place or 5 hrs on the outside. We dont actually know how long it takes to travel from one portal to another lol. Time in both worlds (so far we are assuming there's just two worlds right now) run in parallel. Meaning one world does not run faster or slower than the other. However again, there might be a set of two other portals where the year on either side of the portals is like 2030 lol. Maybe you'll find this past post I made helpful!

[leeminhosny]

 

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