Tuesday 22 December 2015

[LET'S GET TO KNOW] Korean Sageuks' and In What Order You Can Watch Them (Part 2)

The continuation ~ The Goryeo Dynasty 

The famous painting by King Gongmin


Goryeo (Hangul: 고려; hanja: 高麗 (918–1392), was a Korean dynasty established in 918 by King Taejo (of Goryeo) also known as Emperor Wang Gun, and overthrown by Yi Seong Gye (who became King Taejo of Joseon) with the help of his son Yi Bang Won (later king Taejong) and scholar Jeong Do Jeon in 1392. The name "Goryeo" later gave name to the modern exonym "Korea". 

There hasn't been a lot of dramas done in this time period. I don't know why, I guess nothing major happened, expect for when the Yuan Empire took over Goryeo and the establishment of the Joseon Dynasty which is pretty much what I'll cover in this blogpost, and it'll go quickly:

Goryeo:

Emperor Wang Gun (the founder of Goryeo)

The Iron Empress (Wang Gun's granddaugther)

(and then the dramas that I think you should watch to get a good overall view on this dynasty will be marked with a *)

Empress Ki * (focuses a lot on the Yuan Empire and the struggle between Yuan and Goryeo, as well as the fall of the Yuan)

The Great Seer (If you're interested in seeing how life in Goryeo was for both the king and the citizens during Yuan's harsh rule, check out Empress Ki or Faith instead. I know Ji Sung is in it, but I personally don't recommend this drama) 

Faith * (It's a time-travel - supernatural drama, with not much historical accuracy except that you get a good introduction to who King Gongmin, Queen Nagook and General Choi Young were) It's not super important, but I watched it before Six Flying Dragons, and you got a better understanding of General Choi Young, why the government was the way it was and as well as who the old kings that are mentioned in SFD were)

A frozen Flower (It's supposed to be about King Gongmin and Queen Nagook and their relationship, but it adapted from a fictional point of view, it's involves mature content, nudity and homosexuality, just so you know. It's not accurate to history but it's still a highly enjoyable movie!

Six Flying Dragons *** (Yes three stars are needed! All biased feelings aside, this IS the most important drama to watch, after probably Empress Ki and Faith if you decide to watch those, of this dynasty! I dare say that if you skip this drama you are pretty much skipping on an essential part of korean history. Just watch it! It's epic! (Yeah, I'll leave it at that since I think unless you're a new reader, you probably already know how much I've fangirled and spammed about this particular drama xD oh and if you're feeling hesitant because of Shin Se Kyung, don't worry, I used to dislike her actinga  lot too, but in this....she blows minds! Her acting has improved so much! So yeah, if this is holding you back, mark my words, you won't face-palm whenever you see her on the screen)   

Shin Don (Set in the same time period as Faith, it follows the life of the rumoured father of King U, who was one of the last Goryeo kings. I haven't seen it myself but unless you're hardcore and want to know every detail about what went down between the Empress Ki - Six Flying Dragons time period, you can skip this one, especially since I haven't managed to find it with subs ._. it's quite an old drama). 

Jeong Do Jeon (I'd dare say this is a twin of Six Flying Dragons, but only focuses on the scholar Jeong Do Jeon and his backstory. Sadly I have only been able to find the first episode subbed, but if you're fluent in korean, go ahead and check it out! 

Empire of Lust (movie) 

Non-historically accurate drama, but still set in the time-period:


So yeah, in my opinion if you just check out Empress Ki, (Faith), (A frozen Flower) and Six Flying Dragons you'll pretty much get the full picture of the important stuff in this dynasty! I hope you enjoyed :3 If you have any questions you're more than welcome to post a comment down below or contact me through my mydramalist! I'll see you in part 3 where we'll jump right ahead into the Joseon dynasty ~  

End of part 2  

4 comments:

  1. Wow, this sure is accurate! This article is a good guide :)

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  2. I really want to watch empress ki and warrior Baek Dong soo because of Ji Chang Wook, and I also will give six flying dragons a try but I want to wait a little b4 I start it because I don't like waiting. And it's still going to be airing till march. BTW do u know anything about the history of the moon embracing the sun? I already watched shine or go crazy and faith

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    1. Hm...The moon embracing the sun is set in the Joseon Era, but it's about a fictional king so it's not really related to history except for the timeperiod. It is still a very good drama though, so do check it out! :)

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