Plot Source: Wikipedia Thirteen-year-old Heo Yeon-woo, the daughter of a high-ranking official, accompanies her mother to the royal palace to attend her brother, Heo Yeom's civil service examination congratulatory ceremony. By chance, she comes across Crown Prince Lee Hwon in the midst of his escape attempt to see his older half brother, Prince Yang-myung. They fall in love and Yeon-woo is chosen as the Crown Princess of Joseon. This upsets Prince Yang-myung, who also loves Yeon-woo. Before they can marry, however, the Dowager Queen secretly orders her death, in order to install Yoon Bo-gyeong, the daughter of a family clan, as Crown Princess, thus securing more power for herself. She orders head shaman Jang Nok-yeong of Royal Star Mansion (Royal Astrology House) to cast a spell on Yeon-woo to stricken her with an unknown sickness. Thirteen-year-old Heo Yeon-woo, the daughter of a high-ranking official, accompanies her mother to the royal palace to attend her brother, Heo Yeom's civil service examination congratulatory ceremony. By chance, she comes across Crown Prince Lee Hwon in the midst of his escape attempt to see his older half brother, Prince Yang-myung. They fall in love and Yeon-woo is chosen as the Crown Princess of Joseon. This upsets Prince Yang-myung, who also loves Yeon-woo. Before they can marry, however, the Dowager Queen secretly orders her death, in order to install Yoon Bo-gyeong, the daughter of a family clan, as Crown Princess, thus securing more power for herself. She orders head shaman Jang Nok-yeong of Royal Star Mansion (Royal Astrology House) to cast a spell on Yeon-woo to stricken her with an unknown sickness. However, before Yeon-woo was born, her mother saved a shaman named Ari, who promised to repay her kindness by providing protection for Yeon-woo. Before she died, ri asked Nok-young to fulfill the promise. Nok-young secretly visits Yeon-woo's father and gives him a special potion for his daughter, which she tells him will allow Yeon-woo to die in peace. After dying, Yeon-woo is resurrected from her grave, but loses her memories. All believe her to be dead, including the Crown Prince Lee Hwon, who refuses to love another. Eight years later, Yeon-woo returns as a shaman named Wol (meaning moon). She has not been forgotten by those she left behind, and her fate is still intertwined with Lee Hwon, who is now the king. She must contend with the current Queen of Joseon, the Queen's Father, and the Queen Dowager in order to reclaim her rightful place as Queen of Joseon. Meanwhile the young king begins to investigate the death of his love after seeing the grown up Wol. But he is fighting against time, because the queen's powerful political clan wants him removed from power. "The problem is in one's own self and not in whom one faces" (Heo Yeon-woo to the crown prince in their first encounter) This is so addicting that I've spent 9 hours straight on my tv in just one day just so I can finally finish all 20 episodes on my second night! I was there crying and laughing and giggling all at the same time on a cold rainy Monday morning with two cups of coffee! The story was painfully beautiful.I'm not really into Koreanovelas but from time to time,I get to watch some really good one's specially those classic themed one's that talk about love and royalty.Stories about the palace and what it's like to serve the king always intrigued me and I find so much happiness and comfort by just watching a Korean historical fiction television series which is by the way a lot more popular here in the country than our local Telenovela's. I find theirs more genuine and realistic.I find so much wisdom in their scripts and just how they create the story is very addicting and inspiring really.Their storyline has a cute sense of humor and the love story of their main character is really done in a way that's so easy to love. I also love the fact that theirs are mostly conservative but very classy.It's not as loud as the western productions.I really love when the lines are in poetic form.I love the on screen chemistry of their lead characters where the boy and the girl just hold hands and It made me so breathless.Bedscenes are not needed to feel that.Just the way they stare and speak or hold each other is so intense that makes me so "kilig". THOUGHTS a) MARRIAGE ARRANGEMENT I think if only they allow the crown Prince to marry his one true love,then it's a lot easier.It will help stop hoarding women in the palace who's done nothing but to plot the assassination of the possible crown prince.I also think this will save them from having so many concubine just to make sure the king will produce off spring to assume the throne.I couldn't imagine how would the king make love to someone he really doesn't love at all? How would the kingdom expect the king to produce more offspring when he don't feel like doing it because he simply doesn't love that person? I think,love is the key but well of course I understand that they have to be very selective who to marry because they need a wise and healthy mother to the next successor to the throne.Apart from that,SOCIAL STATUS should not be one of those restrictions. b) THE ROLE OF WOMEN SHAMANS So the shaman can actually interfere with the future when Ari told the woman that her child will be protected so she'll be the moon someday that the sun (the king) needed to embrace.Then it's true that at the back of every successful man is a woman.Also,at every man's downfall is a woman.In the past even in the bible,women are not regarded that much but their power can destroy a very powerful man. In the movie,the Shamans are the spiritual strength of the palace and the god's will favor them depending on the strength of the Shaman.They could predict the future.But can they also arrange a future for someone specially the Crown Prince? Shamans responsible of protecting the Palace from invasion of evilness.Where they have to dedicate themselves to the protection of everyone. TALISMAN That's a bit creepy to be just there beside someone sleeping so that you can absorb the kings negative energy and sickness.But could there be anything worse than just sitting beside the man you cared and wanted the most but you cannot touch him because you're just there to serve your purpose.Base on the story,seemed that a talisman is a very noble and important role that one can offer specially to the king. How could the women be treated as nothing but sacrifice and sex slaves? How could the men watch while they are torturing the shaman in public? Are they that heartless and cold? c)WELL WRITTEN SCRIPT As part of choosing the Crown Prince' wife,the king have to test their intelligence.So he asked them ... How much do I worth as king? She answered; "One nyang.And that infuriated everyone who heard her answer because that is considered a dishonor to the king.But the king of course could decipher a true smart girl and he let the girl continue. The girl continued..."To the people starving and dress in rags,there is nothing more earnestly valued than one nyang.A wealthy man who has one thousand nyang doesn't know how precious one nyang is.But a poor man ,who has nothing knows piercely well what one nyang is.To the poor,your majesty is piercingly one nyang" Needless to say,she was chosen much to the Crown Prince' relief. During Heo Yeom's encounter with his best buddy on his way to revenge,his friend tried to stop him.This man rarely speaks but he said... "Holding a sword in anger is dangerous but holding a sword in love is more dangerous" I love how the scripts are well deeply written. d) TWIST OF THE STORY Well,they have to fake her death,erase her memory and let her live again her life away from her family without any memory of her past.And she returned nameless as a shaman where she met the Crown Prince now a king after.The king asked her,if she was indeed a shaman,why does she read classics and she she replied... "Although I am a shaman,I read classics to understand the world a little better.I'm not doing it for selfish motives but to help others" e) SENSE OF HUMOR A koreanovela has it's unique humor always either through a character or just how the script was written.The crown Prince' personal assistance was physically very funny.The first encounter of the the crown prince and Yeon Woo was romantically funny.Also,when a palace guard was investigating Yeon Woo's death the doctor has his doubts so he asked him... "Are you really her relative because as far as I can remember,all of them are good looking!" What I love about the sense of humor was it's clean and doesn't involve racial insults.It's just the funny acting and it's a fresh breath from a typical american sitcom where every single world is inserted with "f" word. f) CULTURE I still think that Asian culture in general today is still way reserved and old fashioned as compared to western culture where it felt like they are too loud and very straight forward. I love how Asian culture in general are into meditation.It has that respect and fear to a higher being.I love how it uphold dignity and loyalty even if it means sacrifice through honorable death. It was fun but painful.It was full of cute good looking and funny casts.I enjoyed crying early in the morning for 9 straight hours!
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