Jumong: Korea goes Epic
Jul. 9th, 2007 05:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dangermousieThe picture that sold me on Jumong, Korea’s answer to Lord of the Rings, production values included even if the story is made for TV:
Hot men in armor? Check. Beautiful women and star-crossed love? Check. Salivating costumes? Check.
Jumong, last year’s monster hit (by the end, over 50% of Korea was watching it, and even if the country doesn’t have US’ amount of TV stations, that is still pretty huge) is a gritty, politically complex period epic with enough armies, duels (not pretty wuxia ones, but grimly elegant ones), costumes, betrayals, scheming politicians, family rivalries, and destined love, to fit about seventeen other stories.
Jumong follows the youth of…Jumong (what a shock). I had no idea who he was, but he is apparently a figure of quite a significance in early Korean history. He was (according to wikipedia) the founding monarch of Goguryeo, the northernmost of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. This story dispenses with mythical underpinnings (no one is being born out of an egg here or walking across a bridge of living turtles) and instead deals with epicy-colorful ‘reality.’
In this story, Jumong (played by super intense Song Il-Gook) is being brought up in the household of the King of Puyo, a small state dominated (as are all the city-states of the time) by the Chinese Empire. His mother, Lady Yuhwa, is the King’s concubine, but Jumong is not the King’s son. The secret of his parentage is one that will set his world rocking, but added to this, there is the rivalry his step-brothers feel for the aging King’s affections, his complicated relationship with his Mother, and oh, of course, the complex politics of rival states and the mantle that Jumong takes on as the leader of rebellion against China’s rule. Did I mention he grows up to be a legendary archer?
And then there is Sosunho. What is a period epic without a love story? Sosunho, a merchant’s daughter, crosses paths with Jumong, and dressing-as-a-boy, fighting side by side, falling madly in love, and other awesome things follow. Of course, creating further complications, his stepbrother Daeso wants not only the throne, but beautiful Sosunho as well.
Now, Jumong himself is yet to appear as anything but a shadow in his mother’s stomach, and the clever, brave merchant’s daughter Sosunho is only a newly born baby, but I don’t mind as the first two eps, while backstory, are a fascinating, tragic, colorful backstory, that could have made an awesome drama on its own.
Any drama that starts with a combat between two (to us, yet) unknowns, gets me pretty well, but that is by the bye.
What we get for the first two (and probably a few more episodes) is the backstory: the story of how connections are formed between Lady Yuhwa, the beautiful, strong daughter of a small local chieftain, and Prince Kumwa, the Crown Prince of Puyo, a small beleguered Kingdom, and Haemosu, the charismatic, dedicated (and to yours truly, awesome) rebel leader, who is leading a guerilla war against the Chinese.
Haemosu is that rare man, frightening to those in power: a dedicated idealist. You can’t bribe him, or threaten him, or bargain. He wants to defeat the Chinese army, he wants to protect the migrants escaping, and that is basically it.
Despite everything, he and Kumwa form a dedicated friendship (in fact, a bit too dedicated to a Western viewer. This is freakin’ slashy. There is a bit where Haemosu promises Kumwa that if the latter loses an arm, he Haemosu, will be his arm, or when Kumwa tells his Dad that if he had to pick between Puyo and Haemosu, he’d kill himself. Heh). Of course, Kumwa (who is married in an arranged loveless marriage, and is publically the meek prince) only fights on Haemosu’s side secretly.
The drama makes clear again and again that the local states are independent in name only, and are powerless against the ‘Iron Army’ which does such lovely things as execute a whole village when they think it hid Haemosu, or kill peasants trying to escape, making the nobles watch.
It is at the latter charming event, that Kumwa first sees Lady Yuhwa, who is the only one who dares to object (and, as a result, narrowly escapes death herself). Lady Yuhwa is not interested in the married Kumwa, and in any event, she returns home, to await marriage and other proper lady stuff. Except. During one of his battles, Haemosu is wounded and Lady Yuhwa fishes him out and ends up nursing him, not knowing who he is.
Do you see where this is going? Angsty, wounded rebel hero? Strong-willed rebel-admiring lady? Yeah. I am not doing a play by play here, but suffice it to say that after a lot of things happen (including Haemosu coming across Sosunho’s parents and protecting Sosunho’s Mom during childbirth), Yuhwa is with Haemosu’s army camp, they are together in every way, and she and is expecting (which Haemosu doesn’t know yet). However the nobles of Puyo, who do not want to be supplanted in power and popularity by Haemosu, sell him out, and as we end episode two, the Han had captured him, blinded him, and set him up for public mockery. There is a very angsty scene where Yuhwa sees it in a crowd and is only stopped from betraying herself (she is weeping ‘they blinded him so he can’t see me, I have to let him know I am here’ and trying to push soldiers aside) by Kumwa who promises to rescue his friend.
Hmmm. Seeing that Jumong grows up to be Mr. King’s Stepchild and not Rebel Hero Jr., I am not sensing good things.
I really love the complexity of this. Except for Orc-like Iron Army soldiers (always in helmets), there are no clear-cut villains yet. The motivations are always understandable, even for horrible actions. Betraying Haemosu to the Hans is damnable, but one can understand the fear that drives the elderly ruler of Puyo to do that. Neither the Prime Minister nor the Sorceress (I think they mean Oracle) are doing it and twirling in glee. They truly believe that what they are doing is best for the kingdom.
Oh, did I mention the archery? Haemosu is a legendary archer and Jumong takes after him. I know I did, but it's worth mentioning again.
Our OTP: Jumong and Sosunho:
Daeso, Sosunho, Jumong, Kumwa, Yuhwa:
Jumong being archer-like:
The awesomely prepared (clearly) Sosunho:
OTP!!!
Triangle with Daeso-the-interloper:
Kumwa:
Daeso:
Jumong’s parents’ in happier times:
And not having a good day:
The super-awesome and super-tough Lady Yuhwa:
Jumong:
Lady Yuhwa:
Sosunho:
Daeso:
As such a popular series, it's available everywhere, including Netflix. Hmmm, it's really new and thus not netflix. But ebay, amazon etc, as well as the usual drama places.
Hot men in armor? Check. Beautiful women and star-crossed love? Check. Salivating costumes? Check.
Jumong, last year’s monster hit (by the end, over 50% of Korea was watching it, and even if the country doesn’t have US’ amount of TV stations, that is still pretty huge) is a gritty, politically complex period epic with enough armies, duels (not pretty wuxia ones, but grimly elegant ones), costumes, betrayals, scheming politicians, family rivalries, and destined love, to fit about seventeen other stories.
Jumong follows the youth of…Jumong (what a shock). I had no idea who he was, but he is apparently a figure of quite a significance in early Korean history. He was (according to wikipedia) the founding monarch of Goguryeo, the northernmost of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. This story dispenses with mythical underpinnings (no one is being born out of an egg here or walking across a bridge of living turtles) and instead deals with epicy-colorful ‘reality.’
In this story, Jumong (played by super intense Song Il-Gook) is being brought up in the household of the King of Puyo, a small state dominated (as are all the city-states of the time) by the Chinese Empire. His mother, Lady Yuhwa, is the King’s concubine, but Jumong is not the King’s son. The secret of his parentage is one that will set his world rocking, but added to this, there is the rivalry his step-brothers feel for the aging King’s affections, his complicated relationship with his Mother, and oh, of course, the complex politics of rival states and the mantle that Jumong takes on as the leader of rebellion against China’s rule. Did I mention he grows up to be a legendary archer?
And then there is Sosunho. What is a period epic without a love story? Sosunho, a merchant’s daughter, crosses paths with Jumong, and dressing-as-a-boy, fighting side by side, falling madly in love, and other awesome things follow. Of course, creating further complications, his stepbrother Daeso wants not only the throne, but beautiful Sosunho as well.
Now, Jumong himself is yet to appear as anything but a shadow in his mother’s stomach, and the clever, brave merchant’s daughter Sosunho is only a newly born baby, but I don’t mind as the first two eps, while backstory, are a fascinating, tragic, colorful backstory, that could have made an awesome drama on its own.
Any drama that starts with a combat between two (to us, yet) unknowns, gets me pretty well, but that is by the bye.
What we get for the first two (and probably a few more episodes) is the backstory: the story of how connections are formed between Lady Yuhwa, the beautiful, strong daughter of a small local chieftain, and Prince Kumwa, the Crown Prince of Puyo, a small beleguered Kingdom, and Haemosu, the charismatic, dedicated (and to yours truly, awesome) rebel leader, who is leading a guerilla war against the Chinese.
Haemosu is that rare man, frightening to those in power: a dedicated idealist. You can’t bribe him, or threaten him, or bargain. He wants to defeat the Chinese army, he wants to protect the migrants escaping, and that is basically it.
Despite everything, he and Kumwa form a dedicated friendship (in fact, a bit too dedicated to a Western viewer. This is freakin’ slashy. There is a bit where Haemosu promises Kumwa that if the latter loses an arm, he Haemosu, will be his arm, or when Kumwa tells his Dad that if he had to pick between Puyo and Haemosu, he’d kill himself. Heh). Of course, Kumwa (who is married in an arranged loveless marriage, and is publically the meek prince) only fights on Haemosu’s side secretly.
The drama makes clear again and again that the local states are independent in name only, and are powerless against the ‘Iron Army’ which does such lovely things as execute a whole village when they think it hid Haemosu, or kill peasants trying to escape, making the nobles watch.
It is at the latter charming event, that Kumwa first sees Lady Yuhwa, who is the only one who dares to object (and, as a result, narrowly escapes death herself). Lady Yuhwa is not interested in the married Kumwa, and in any event, she returns home, to await marriage and other proper lady stuff. Except. During one of his battles, Haemosu is wounded and Lady Yuhwa fishes him out and ends up nursing him, not knowing who he is.
Do you see where this is going? Angsty, wounded rebel hero? Strong-willed rebel-admiring lady? Yeah. I am not doing a play by play here, but suffice it to say that after a lot of things happen (including Haemosu coming across Sosunho’s parents and protecting Sosunho’s Mom during childbirth), Yuhwa is with Haemosu’s army camp, they are together in every way, and she and is expecting (which Haemosu doesn’t know yet). However the nobles of Puyo, who do not want to be supplanted in power and popularity by Haemosu, sell him out, and as we end episode two, the Han had captured him, blinded him, and set him up for public mockery. There is a very angsty scene where Yuhwa sees it in a crowd and is only stopped from betraying herself (she is weeping ‘they blinded him so he can’t see me, I have to let him know I am here’ and trying to push soldiers aside) by Kumwa who promises to rescue his friend.
Hmmm. Seeing that Jumong grows up to be Mr. King’s Stepchild and not Rebel Hero Jr., I am not sensing good things.
I really love the complexity of this. Except for Orc-like Iron Army soldiers (always in helmets), there are no clear-cut villains yet. The motivations are always understandable, even for horrible actions. Betraying Haemosu to the Hans is damnable, but one can understand the fear that drives the elderly ruler of Puyo to do that. Neither the Prime Minister nor the Sorceress (I think they mean Oracle) are doing it and twirling in glee. They truly believe that what they are doing is best for the kingdom.
Oh, did I mention the archery? Haemosu is a legendary archer and Jumong takes after him. I know I did, but it's worth mentioning again.
Our OTP: Jumong and Sosunho:
Daeso, Sosunho, Jumong, Kumwa, Yuhwa:
Jumong being archer-like:
The awesomely prepared (clearly) Sosunho:
OTP!!!
Triangle with Daeso-the-interloper:
Kumwa:
Daeso:
Jumong’s parents’ in happier times:
And not having a good day:
The super-awesome and super-tough Lady Yuhwa:
Jumong:
Lady Yuhwa:
Sosunho:
Daeso:
