"The King: Eternal Monarch", Will Kim Eun-sook Fall Like This?

Published on 2020/04/28 | Source

The SBS Friday – Saturday drama "The King: Eternal Monarch" is up to four episodes now. However, anachronistic lines and failure to build characters earned the drama criticism.

The disappointed responses to the drama aren't limited to just online, but viewership went from 11.4% to 9.0%.

Viewers picked 'cheesy' lines and background set up as well as unfriendly directing as poor reasons for "The King: Eternal Monarch". The fact that the character gets a job at the public information office with qualifications as a fan fiction writer and the set up which would not even be used in novels for teenagers, caused viewers to scoff. The lines thrown at each other by the male and female characters dividing each other into liberal arts and natural sciences were characterized as so 'unbearably cheesy'.

There were also complaints that the two parallel worlds of the Korean Empire and the Republic of Korea were confusing. Lee Rim (Lee Jung-jin), the villain with the remaining half of the Manpa-style, freely travels between the two worlds and whenever he appears, it is hard to tell whether he is in the Korean Empire or the Republic of Korea. There have also been a flurry of requests to specify where Lee Rim is located with subtitles or lines.

Although the first four episodes have been harshly criticized, it is reviewed that the end of the fourth episode raised expectations for the upcoming episodes. The scene in which Lee Gon (Lee Min-ho) finally gave his name to the Daehan Empire with Jeong Tae-eul (Kim Go-eun) on his horse, saying, "I am the emperor of the Korean Empire and my name is Lee Gon, who was named not to be called", received a heated response.

The story of Lee Gon and Jeong Tae-eul will be carried out in earnest in the Korean Empire from the fifth episode. Romance in the coolest space of the male lead is considered the genre that writer Kim Eun-sook writes best. Lee Gon, who was treated as a fool in Korea, is expected to become a dashing emperor of the Korean Empire and shake up Jeong Tae-eul.

Will "The King: Eternal Monarch" overcome the hypercriticism and succeed?

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"The King: Eternal Monarch" is directed by Baek Sang-hoon, Jung Ji-hyun, written by Kim Eun-sook, and features Lee Min-ho, Kim Go-eun, Woo Do-hwan, Kim Kyung-nam, Jung Eun-chae, Lee Jung-jin. Broadcasting information in Korea: 2020/04/17~Now airing, Fri, Sat 22:00 on SBS.