Post by ajk on Aug 17, 2019 13:59:12 GMT -5
Enjoying the relaxed pace of the storytelling so far and the beautiful settings we’re seeing. Interesting story, lots of real history, nice music score, what’s not to like. This was another good episode—not eventful but good for a setting-up episode.
The only quibble I had was too much foreshadowing about what an exceptional child Wang Guhn is and his future with Goongyae. Enough already. We know what’s coming, he’s the title character. We’re not idiots. Sheesh. Maybe the producers were nervous about losing viewers right away, but whatever. Too much.
Okay so we’re out of the nested flashback, and the main flashback has jumped forward ten years to the year 887. Here’s the first narrated text, which accompanied the glimpses of events in those ten years:
Actually one more quibble. Goongyae was born eight years or so before WG, ao at this point in the flashback WG is ten and Goongyae is eighteen. They brought in a kid to play WG—seems older than ten but not by enough to make an issue about it—but they didn’t cast a younger Goongyae. Anybody else think that was a mistake? The actor was 37 when this episode aired and I’m sorry but he doesn’t look anywhere remotely near 18. Should have brought in a different actor because we needed to remember that Goongyae was only 18 at this point.
Wait, was that supposed to be Buddha anointing Goongyae with light, sort of like the Christian Holy Spirit? Hmmm....I wonder if that will be a continuity issue going forward. We'll see.
Master Bumkyo to WG: “You’re a Hae-ryong! It means Dragon of the Sea.” EOS again?
The brief narration that accompanied one of those too-many bits of foreshadowing:
The only quibble I had was too much foreshadowing about what an exceptional child Wang Guhn is and his future with Goongyae. Enough already. We know what’s coming, he’s the title character. We’re not idiots. Sheesh. Maybe the producers were nervous about losing viewers right away, but whatever. Too much.
Okay so we’re out of the nested flashback, and the main flashback has jumped forward ten years to the year 887. Here’s the first narrated text, which accompanied the glimpses of events in those ten years:
Goongyae. He spent ten years in meditation at Saedal Temple. As a monk he was called Sunjong, and his exceptional intelligence was acknowledged at an early age. The chronicle of the Three Kingdoms writes that Goongyae was unrestrained by the monastic laws, and was courageous and stubborn. One can also interpret this as fulfillment of enlightenment in the world of Buddhism. Saedal Temple is a predecessor of Hong-kyo Temple. Hong-kyo Temple existed in two locations: one near Song-ak, and the other in Youngwol. At this time, Buddhism was rapidly transforming from [the] royalty- and nobility-focused Avatamska school of Buddhism to [the] Zen school of Buddhism, which was focused on the teachings of Dharma and delivered hope of enlightenment to lay believers. These monasteries were self-sustained and stood on the side of the lay people. These monks not only educated themselves, but also trained in martial arts for their own protection. It is evident that Goongyae also underwent this training.That’s a lot of narration, but no complaints at all. Good stuff, and as in previous episodes good visuals to go with it. I’m assuming that General Weehung is the same Wi Hong that we saw in the previous episode—King Gyeongmun’s brother. It wasn’t clear, but that would make sense.
Wang Guhn was no less exceptional. Wang Ryung extensively taught his young son about the sea and commerce, and he employed mentors in both literary and military arts in preparation for his future. At this time, Shilla was under the rule of Queen Jinseong, who was a half-sister of Goongyae. She was the third queen [ruler] of Shilla, following Queen Seondeok and Queen Jindeok. Shilla was on a rapid path to decline. General Weehung had dominated political power and the court was being shaped at his command. This is how [the] ten years had passed.
Actually one more quibble. Goongyae was born eight years or so before WG, ao at this point in the flashback WG is ten and Goongyae is eighteen. They brought in a kid to play WG—seems older than ten but not by enough to make an issue about it—but they didn’t cast a younger Goongyae. Anybody else think that was a mistake? The actor was 37 when this episode aired and I’m sorry but he doesn’t look anywhere remotely near 18. Should have brought in a different actor because we needed to remember that Goongyae was only 18 at this point.
Wait, was that supposed to be Buddha anointing Goongyae with light, sort of like the Christian Holy Spirit? Hmmm....I wonder if that will be a continuity issue going forward. We'll see.
Master Bumkyo to WG: “You’re a Hae-ryong! It means Dragon of the Sea.” EOS again?
The brief narration that accompanied one of those too-many bits of foreshadowing:
A crow brings a piece of jade to Goongyae with [the] inscription “King.” It sounds like a mythical tale, but it is so written in the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms. Whether fiction or real, it reinforces that Goongyae was born to be a king.
“Tang is in utter chaos after Huang Chao’s rebellion.” By this point Huang had already been killed, but from the story of it all you can definitely believe the country was in chaos. Here’s the story if anyone’s interested:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huang_Chao
“I was remembering what I should forget.” I did like that Goongyae ended up in the same room as before, and it triggered the memories. We sure didn’t need a replay of the traumatized kid scene but at least they kept it short.
“They are descendants of Jang Bogo’s men...” Now cut that out! lol
“Choong! Choong! Choong!” Oh and now is Choe U here too? This is getting very weird.
Looking forward to seeing what Seorabeol looks like.