Post by ajk on Aug 14, 2022 1:36:33 GMT -5
This one sure packed a wallop. Frankly I thought once the doppelganger gimmick was proposed it was going to poison the episode, simply because everyone acted like it was a brilliant idea that nobody ever thought of before and that it wouldn’t occur to the enemy either (and remember, KH had just been dressing as a common soldier on the march to Surabul). And yeah it was a problem, but things were so intense that it wasn’t much of a distraction. Not so far, at least.
More great work with the logs in the opening. Wasn’t crazy about guys spitting blood out their mouths as soon as the logs touched them, that was silly and unnecessary…But the rest of it with the logs was terrific.
WG: “We are besieged on all sides…all exits are blocked.” Whoops, a rare continuity error there—he wouldn’t know that General Shin’s path was blocked because Shin just got there and hadn’t told him yet. We saw it, of course, but WG didn’t know it yet. But at least it’s finally dawned on him that he bleeped up.
And now Kyun-hwon shows up from high ground and starts trash-talking him, that was very enjoyable.
Hey look at that, they’re studying maps of Mt. Gong. Gee you’d think somebody would have thought of doing that BEFORE they got there.
(click for full size)
OK so I was wrong. Good heavens.
Ugh, that Jimong guy again, pulling sticks out of a tube. Okay maybe they really did do that back then but good grief it’s embarrassing.
The battle scene, right from the start you knew it would be special, because they kicked it off with archers like you’d expect a real battle to. How about that! It was terrific stuff like we’ve come to expect. Setting the catapult stones on fire, there’d be no need for that…but the logs on fire, maybe that makes more sense because they don’t just roll out of the way like the stones would. The music was mostly the same old battle stuff; wish they had come up with something fresher, but it wasn’t that big a deal either way. The battle went on for quite a while and very effectively conveyed the hopelessness of it all for Koryo.
The only problem I really had with any of it was this:
(click for full size)
Clearly some sort of a trip device was rigged along that entire line so that the horses would all fall down together. It wasn’t even intended to show a booby trap, it was just for visual effect. Looking at sequences like this, well King of Tears really did open our eyes to this stuff.
(click for full size)
At some point you just shake your head and sigh.
General Shin: “There was a warrior named Quisin under Gaozu of ancient Han. When Gaozu was surrounded by Hang Wu’s troops at Hanam Fort, he got into Gaozu’s coach and tricked the enemy, safely allowing Gaozu to escape and dying in his place.” I wasn’t able to confirm this online…wonder if it’s a true story or a legend from Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
General Shin: “I resemble his majesty the most of all of us.” Oh I do NOT see that at all. He’s bigger and has more facial hair…and he’s apparently not going to trim it.
But in spite of that it really did get to be very emotional towards the end, especially after having endured the long, grueling battle scene. Choi Soo Jong and everyone else portrayed it very well. It’s a shame that we got such a huge spoiler about Shin—actually we got it twice, all the way back in episode 23 and then in episode 132—but it still was emotional to watch the parting.
More great work with the logs in the opening. Wasn’t crazy about guys spitting blood out their mouths as soon as the logs touched them, that was silly and unnecessary…But the rest of it with the logs was terrific.
WG: “We are besieged on all sides…all exits are blocked.” Whoops, a rare continuity error there—he wouldn’t know that General Shin’s path was blocked because Shin just got there and hadn’t told him yet. We saw it, of course, but WG didn’t know it yet. But at least it’s finally dawned on him that he bleeped up.
And now Kyun-hwon shows up from high ground and starts trash-talking him, that was very enjoyable.
Hey look at that, they’re studying maps of Mt. Gong. Gee you’d think somebody would have thought of doing that BEFORE they got there.
(click for full size)
OK so I was wrong. Good heavens.
Ugh, that Jimong guy again, pulling sticks out of a tube. Okay maybe they really did do that back then but good grief it’s embarrassing.
The battle scene, right from the start you knew it would be special, because they kicked it off with archers like you’d expect a real battle to. How about that! It was terrific stuff like we’ve come to expect. Setting the catapult stones on fire, there’d be no need for that…but the logs on fire, maybe that makes more sense because they don’t just roll out of the way like the stones would. The music was mostly the same old battle stuff; wish they had come up with something fresher, but it wasn’t that big a deal either way. The battle went on for quite a while and very effectively conveyed the hopelessness of it all for Koryo.
The only problem I really had with any of it was this:
(click for full size)
Clearly some sort of a trip device was rigged along that entire line so that the horses would all fall down together. It wasn’t even intended to show a booby trap, it was just for visual effect. Looking at sequences like this, well King of Tears really did open our eyes to this stuff.
(click for full size)
At some point you just shake your head and sigh.
General Shin: “There was a warrior named Quisin under Gaozu of ancient Han. When Gaozu was surrounded by Hang Wu’s troops at Hanam Fort, he got into Gaozu’s coach and tricked the enemy, safely allowing Gaozu to escape and dying in his place.” I wasn’t able to confirm this online…wonder if it’s a true story or a legend from Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
General Shin: “I resemble his majesty the most of all of us.” Oh I do NOT see that at all. He’s bigger and has more facial hair…and he’s apparently not going to trim it.
But in spite of that it really did get to be very emotional towards the end, especially after having endured the long, grueling battle scene. Choi Soo Jong and everyone else portrayed it very well. It’s a shame that we got such a huge spoiler about Shin—actually we got it twice, all the way back in episode 23 and then in episode 132—but it still was emotional to watch the parting.
