Ruler: Master of the Mask 군주-가면의 주인
★★★★★
The 2017 Korean drama also known as "The Emperor: Owner of the Mask," starring Yoo Seung-Ho as Crown Prince Lee Seon, Kim So-Hyun as Han Ga-Eun, Kim Myung-Soo ("L") as Peasant Lee Seon, and Heo Joon-Ho as Kim Dae-Mok.
Brief synopsis: The Pyeong-Soo-Hwe is a secret organization with its sights set to control the government and all of Joseon using an addictive drug to keep people under its thumb. The former King deals with it in order to get himself to the throne but doesn't desire his progeny to have any dealings with the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe, so when Crown Prince Lee Seon is born, he is given a mask. After all, the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe can't hurt him if they don't even know what the prince looks like. Lee Seon grows up wearing the mask but not knowing why. He meets Han Ga-Eun, her father, and a peasant also named Lee Seon as he starts to investigate undercover (that is, without the mask). However, Crown Prince Lee Seon finds out his investigating leads to dangerous consequences. People get hurt and the Crown Prince is left for dead, only to be saved by the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe leader's granddaughter, Kim Hwa-Goon. Alive and exiled, it's up to the Crown Prince to build himself up and find out what being a leader really means.
Daebak! This was the first drama I watched while it was still airing and I found myself clinging onto every episode released! It was all so intense! Yoo Seung-Ho is really talented and handsome, and Kim So-Hyun is one of the most popular younger actresses of 2017!
I have a special fondness for historical Korean dramas. The costuming and the sets have a unique taste that you just can't get anywhere else. "Ruler: Master of the Mask" (shall be hereafter referred to in this blog post as "Ruler") didn't disappoint in this area. It stuck to the genre, creating a nice harmony throughout.
The plot is like a cross between Mark Twain's "The Prince and the Pauper" and Disney's "The Lion King." Arguably, most of the plot is about the Crown Prince Lee Seon's relationship with the Peasant Lee Seon. I found that relationship the most interesting. Although the romance line between Ga-Eun and Crown Prince Lee Seon was really cute, it wasn't the most valuable piece to the story. Without the love interests, "Ruler" still could have succeeded. But without the tugging strings between the Crown Prince Lee Seon and Peasant Lee Seon, I don't think it could have.
And in speaking of the two of them, watching the Peasant Lee Seon's progression was more interesting. From the beginning we knew the Crown Prince was the protagonist. He's one that can't tolerate injustice no matter what. When Ga-Eun and Peasant Lee Seon came into the picture, we assumed they were protagonists too. After the main beginning plot event all three of them start becoming stronger. While Lee Seon was in the palace in the crown prince's stead, I'm sure he must've learned some things although his personality is still very impressionable. Towards the climax, it wrenched our hearts to watch him shift from protagonist to antagonist, and so harshly at that! But in the end, we just loved him.
I'll insert a warning about kdrama trends to beginning viewers- The second leading males typically end up either dead or alone. It's best not to let yourself get too attached in preparation for either result (but if you do anyways, that's called Second-Leading Male Syndrome. There is no cure).
I would have liked to see things work out between Moo-Ha and Mae Chang. I think they had potential as a secondary couple but it never went anywhere. It could have been cute!
I also wish we could have been given just a little more about Lee Chung-Woon and Gon. Their roles seem to operate as an extension of the will of the person they are serving. They're like swords, doing all of dirty work so that their person doesn't have to. For Chung-Woon, that's the Crown Prince. For Gon, that's Kim Hwa-Goon. We did come to know a bit more about Chung-Woon, but I'd still argue that we didn't see much about his private life. When it comes to Gon, I'm more disappointed. He should have been given a lot more credit, especially in the beginning. In fact, the drama could have also made it more apparent that he was crushing on Hwa-Goon. We didn't know that until the end, and even that concept execution was a little weak.
What I love most about this drama, however, is its examination of the question "what makes a leader?" In this drama, there are many people trying to become a leader. Dae-Mok wants to become the leader of Joseon. Peasant Lee Seon wants to become a real king. The real Crown Prince Lee Seon want to become a real king, too. Hwa-Goon wants to become the leader of the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe. Although all these characters have similar goals of gaining a higher position, they go about them a little differently and that's what makes this drama's world spin round. The role of the main character is to find out the right answer to the posed question and some characters just exist to help find out the right answer, making the main character look like an idiot and therefore a bit more human. But I liked what the answer was in the end- A true leader is one that serves his or her followers.
This drama definitely stirred up my heartstrings, but it was amazing! Totally recommend it!
★★★★★
The 2017 Korean drama also known as "The Emperor: Owner of the Mask," starring Yoo Seung-Ho as Crown Prince Lee Seon, Kim So-Hyun as Han Ga-Eun, Kim Myung-Soo ("L") as Peasant Lee Seon, and Heo Joon-Ho as Kim Dae-Mok.
Brief synopsis: The Pyeong-Soo-Hwe is a secret organization with its sights set to control the government and all of Joseon using an addictive drug to keep people under its thumb. The former King deals with it in order to get himself to the throne but doesn't desire his progeny to have any dealings with the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe, so when Crown Prince Lee Seon is born, he is given a mask. After all, the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe can't hurt him if they don't even know what the prince looks like. Lee Seon grows up wearing the mask but not knowing why. He meets Han Ga-Eun, her father, and a peasant also named Lee Seon as he starts to investigate undercover (that is, without the mask). However, Crown Prince Lee Seon finds out his investigating leads to dangerous consequences. People get hurt and the Crown Prince is left for dead, only to be saved by the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe leader's granddaughter, Kim Hwa-Goon. Alive and exiled, it's up to the Crown Prince to build himself up and find out what being a leader really means.
Daebak! This was the first drama I watched while it was still airing and I found myself clinging onto every episode released! It was all so intense! Yoo Seung-Ho is really talented and handsome, and Kim So-Hyun is one of the most popular younger actresses of 2017!
I have a special fondness for historical Korean dramas. The costuming and the sets have a unique taste that you just can't get anywhere else. "Ruler: Master of the Mask" (shall be hereafter referred to in this blog post as "Ruler") didn't disappoint in this area. It stuck to the genre, creating a nice harmony throughout.
The plot is like a cross between Mark Twain's "The Prince and the Pauper" and Disney's "The Lion King." Arguably, most of the plot is about the Crown Prince Lee Seon's relationship with the Peasant Lee Seon. I found that relationship the most interesting. Although the romance line between Ga-Eun and Crown Prince Lee Seon was really cute, it wasn't the most valuable piece to the story. Without the love interests, "Ruler" still could have succeeded. But without the tugging strings between the Crown Prince Lee Seon and Peasant Lee Seon, I don't think it could have.
And in speaking of the two of them, watching the Peasant Lee Seon's progression was more interesting. From the beginning we knew the Crown Prince was the protagonist. He's one that can't tolerate injustice no matter what. When Ga-Eun and Peasant Lee Seon came into the picture, we assumed they were protagonists too. After the main beginning plot event all three of them start becoming stronger. While Lee Seon was in the palace in the crown prince's stead, I'm sure he must've learned some things although his personality is still very impressionable. Towards the climax, it wrenched our hearts to watch him shift from protagonist to antagonist, and so harshly at that! But in the end, we just loved him.
I'll insert a warning about kdrama trends to beginning viewers- The second leading males typically end up either dead or alone. It's best not to let yourself get too attached in preparation for either result (but if you do anyways, that's called Second-Leading Male Syndrome. There is no cure).
I would have liked to see things work out between Moo-Ha and Mae Chang. I think they had potential as a secondary couple but it never went anywhere. It could have been cute!
I also wish we could have been given just a little more about Lee Chung-Woon and Gon. Their roles seem to operate as an extension of the will of the person they are serving. They're like swords, doing all of dirty work so that their person doesn't have to. For Chung-Woon, that's the Crown Prince. For Gon, that's Kim Hwa-Goon. We did come to know a bit more about Chung-Woon, but I'd still argue that we didn't see much about his private life. When it comes to Gon, I'm more disappointed. He should have been given a lot more credit, especially in the beginning. In fact, the drama could have also made it more apparent that he was crushing on Hwa-Goon. We didn't know that until the end, and even that concept execution was a little weak.
What I love most about this drama, however, is its examination of the question "what makes a leader?" In this drama, there are many people trying to become a leader. Dae-Mok wants to become the leader of Joseon. Peasant Lee Seon wants to become a real king. The real Crown Prince Lee Seon want to become a real king, too. Hwa-Goon wants to become the leader of the Pyeong-Soo-Hwe. Although all these characters have similar goals of gaining a higher position, they go about them a little differently and that's what makes this drama's world spin round. The role of the main character is to find out the right answer to the posed question and some characters just exist to help find out the right answer, making the main character look like an idiot and therefore a bit more human. But I liked what the answer was in the end- A true leader is one that serves his or her followers.
This drama definitely stirred up my heartstrings, but it was amazing! Totally recommend it!
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