Off and running!
Kocowa posted the episode without the opening titles. If you look on DramaCool, what’s posted there starts with the titles sequence that sageuk was kind enough to post here. So yes that’s the opening. And I hate to start off with a downer...but let’s list the things that suck about it.
--The smoke imagery is a blatant ripoff of Kingdom’s opening titles.
--The credits that name the actors, could that font be any smaller? I can’t read Korean but that’s beside the point, the names deserve to be properly sized. You barely even notice them.
--The series couldn’t go for 22 seconds without it showing us Choi Soo Jong’s face. Yes I understand what they’re doing…Look everybody, here’s your guy! Watch this historical! It does make sense, but come on already. Ugh.
--The music is bland and uninspiring.
It’s only 50 seconds so way too little to judge. But we certainly hope for better.
Good disclaimer to start things off: “This drama is based on historical events, but some details may be different from historical facts.” The honesty is appreciated; now let’s hope those “details” are as few and as insignificant as possible.
And then this: “Production guidelines were closely followed when filming with animals.” Yeah I’ll bet they were!
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■ At the beginning of the tenth century in East Asia, the Khitan people rose like wildfire and began to conquer the surrounding areas one by one. With their extremely mobile mounted troops, the Khitans destroyed Balhae, built an empire that covered all regions from Liaodong to Mongolia, and became the dominant military power in East Asia, with an army stronger than Song’s. And the Khitans were now eyeing Goryeo as their next target.
TERRIFIC opening battle sequence, loved it. Any fear we had about KBS going cheap on the budget, well they sure put some cash into the opening. It was terrific except for the one point where all of the noise and chaos and fear behind the second defense line completely evaporates within seconds so that CSJ can step forward and whisper--whisper!--the dramatic words that revitalize everyone’s spirits. That was SO corny, how could you not laugh.
We have our first vocabulary word: cataphract. Wikipedia defines it as “a form of armored heavy cavalry that originated in Persia and was fielded in ancient warfare throughout Eurasia and Northern Africa.”
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CataphractThe battle sequence was captioned as 1019 AD, but immediately afterwards we flash back ten years to 1009. The twelfth year of Mokjong’s reign. A flyover through the countryside, into the capital. Kind of neat because Iron Empress ended with a flyover out through the countryside. Intentionally or not, nice parallel.
And then a beautiful marketplace sequence too, in the capital. They put some resources into that, for just a quick glimpse to add atmosphere. That was terrific.
(click for full size) Just eleven minutes in and one big question has been answered with no doubt: they sure didn’t duck the gay thing, did they. Wow.
“I may be bad at everything, but I am best at trusting you. Go and take care of it.” Very different Mokjong from IE’s, confident and even arrogant.
Kang Jo: “Justification comes from power. If one has power, one can use any excuse and turn it into a justification. If one does not have power, even if you have a great cause, it is but a mere counter-argument.” Some nice writing there, another encouraging sign.
Mokjong: “If only there were one more woman who was as beautiful as you in Goryeo, I would not have been attracted to men.” I don’t know if this was more of an incestuous vibe, or him just being a very open gay man and flirtatious in his personality. But it’s a bold piece of writing. Not sure how I feel about it but it certainly is gutsy, full credit for that.
Pardon me for being indiscreet but damn, Cheonchu is hot. She’s 45? Damn. Not exactly Chae Shira in body armor running around screaming at everybody, is it.
The Wang Sun chase scene was too over the top. Did not need that at all. And those guys were supposed to be assassins? That didn’t work. There’s no way they would have known for certain that Wang Sun would run into the woods like that. And besides, if they were real assassins they’d have just tailed him until he left the village to head home and killed him in the woods then.
“Even the cat in the main garden at the palace hall goes out whenever it wants.”
(click for full size) (Sorry but I have to put the cat here. And in the character roster. Forum rule. lol)
The flashback showing the young Wang Sun being sent off to the priesthood, that wasn’t necessary but they filmed it and put some money into it. Again an encouraging sign.
Another assassination attempt and this one doesn’t make sense either. Cheonchu sends her own court lady and all of those fighters, how is this not going to be blamed on her if they pull it off? Apparently the food is poisoned, at least that’s the impression I got. Are they going to kill all of the monks too, so there are no witnesses? Yikes this is shaky.
Bottom line, by about halfway through I was almost jumping up and down about how good this was. Plenty of money invested in it; bold writing; interesting characters; visually it looks terrific; and a first-rate battle sequence. Oh and that border skirmish on horseback, we actually saw arrows being shot where arrows make sense. For once! The two assassination attempts took some of the edge off--too gimmicky and weak. But we’ve seen first episodes that have some silliness in them and the silliness goes away soon enough, so fingers crossed on that. Overall a terrific start, really enjoyed it, way better than I expected. Can’t wait for episode 2.