Dear Queen: Create Space

Monday, 23 August 2021

 





Dear Queen,


It's been a long while.

Not sure if this letter-writing-thing will become a  regular activity again,

but I just wanted to say well done for unintendedly discovering yourself  once more.

Isn't that the funniest thing about getting older?
You can still surprise yourself. 

Who knew that a peaceful internal revolution and transformation could be triggered by
 simply having control over one's own physical space? 

You woke up early in the morning and started your weekend by cleaning. 

No one forced you too. 

You set your mind to it. 

You were halfway through mopping the floor with a divinely Lavender scented soap,
 when it dawned on you that you were having fun chugging back and forth across the slippery surface while loudly singing along to Tiwa Savage's and Davido's Park Well song. 

What!?

Enjoying doing chores!?  Your mother is laughing in heaven.

The awkward teenage who avoided such responsibilities...

Eh....times have really changed. 

Intrinsic actions like organizing your desk, your cupboard, your bedside table give you joy. 

Quiet joy.

Quiet joy effortlessly emanating from your heart. 

It started slowly. 
You sat down to go through your jewelry and accessory boxes

You put your earrings here.

You put your necklaces there. 

And on and on till everything had it's place. 

The old and discolored were finally thrown out.

A chore became a metaphor of what you were doing with your whole life.

 Simple inconsequential activities help boost your self-confidence. 

You got to decide, on your own, by yourself.

Imagine such facile daily actions helping get you back on track!?

Sooooo satisfying to the soul.

Your mind is clear like a polished quartz crystal.

Queen, feel some secret pride in yourself for flourishing at this adulting aspect,
because it is encouraging you to pause,
in a world that often doesn't like it when you  hesitate.

Take this time to pause and reflect.

You are still attempting to tackle your habit of  constantly sacrificing yourself.

So  yes ....pause and reflect cause
you can't save everyone.

Still endeavoring to create physical and mental boundaries?
 Yes....pause and reflect.
 Let people handle their own disappointment.
They will be fine.

Wow....growing pains are a very real thing,
 not so perfectly experienced like in the popular coming-of-age-movies .

Once again well done Queen! 

Let's celebrate the wins while we can. 

I am observing and appreciating this time in your life.

That's why I wrote today. 

In the future I will come here and read this again,

So I that I can remember to cheer you on.


Until next time

All my love,
M


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Watch Mr Queen! - The Most Hilarious Korean Costume Drama I've watched so far

Friday, 13 August 2021

 


Hands down tvN's Mr Queen is the best drama I have watched this year, and it's only August!

I laughed a lot. Not just a quiet chuckle while viewing each episode but loud high-pitched squealing peels of laughter. What a delight and relief it was to consume this #Kdrama while going through an isolating second lockdown in Kampala, Uganda due to the second wave of COVID 19 (the dreadful delta strain). #StayHomeBlues

My first Korean drama surprised me; it hooked me right from the first episode and made me binge watch the whole thing in a few days. Each episode is jam packed with entertaining plot points.


Here's what I think worked so well in the first one. 

The fishing hook found in a Michelin-star-fish-meal for a high level guest 


A male chef waking up in new female body, a Queen in a different time period.


The chef realizing his 'path' back to the modern world and his male body is temporarily blocked.

  

The King hiding porn in his book of current state affairs


The loyal Eunuch of the King destroying the-said-book to save his master from extreme embarrassment .


 The Queen quietly jubilating that she graced her coronation without wearing a bra

 

The catchy theme tune 'Bong Hwan A' at the end of the episode 

 

And this is only the first episode...imagine what happens in the next ones!



The series written by Park Gye Ok, centers around the story of a  man, a chef thrown back in time to the Joseon era/Kingdom into the body of Queen Cheorin. The K-drama stars Shin Hye-Sun as Kim So-ong , Queen Cheorin and Kim Jung-Hyun as Yi Won-Beonm, King Cheoljong.

 

There is some controversy around this drama... firstly  the alleged claims it is an exact rip off of the Chinese drama Go Princess Go,  secondly the fear that audiences may think it is an accurate historical and 'disrespectful' depiction because they use the real names of people who existed  (note: it is not a real depiction), and thirdly that it prompts discussions on sexuality and gender  which are not addressed in depth. Even while typing this review I know my use of the correct pronouns may be all over the place. My sincere apologies in advance. 


So what made this a brilliant enjoyable watch for me?

 << SPOILER ALERT>>


1. The Superb Acting and Comic Timing of  the Royal Servants 


Everyone is essential and contributed to this fun heart-warming story. Nobody's time on screen is wasted and all actors seem committed to playing their roles.  They are all is soooooo good I can't imagine them as modern people. 

Court Lady Choi (Cha Chang-Hwa) is my favorite. She is constantly tormented by  the fact that her master,  Queen Cheorin is  unpredictable and continues to break all royal protocol and etiquette every chance she gets. The pained Court Lady does her best to find humorous methods that will help her restrain her unending frustration.

Then we have Hong Yeon (Chae Seo-Eun), who has been the Queen's maid since childhood, and who is  also doing her utter best to ensure that her master fully recovers from the 'lake incident'.  Court Lady Choi and Yeon,  have an endearing loyalty to the Queen that will leave you teary eyed and warm hearted near the end. 

Naïve Kim Hwan (Yoo Young Jea) a 'silver spoon' noble aimlessly goofing around the palace, unaware of the power plays taking place, being rejected by his first love and in the end, to our surprise, finally finding purpose and clumsily saving the King and the Queen.  

The Head Eunuch (Yoon Jin Ho) deserves all the praise, his master, the King is forever in his heart even in 'death'. 

The Royal Chef (Kim In-Kwon), who initially fights against the Queen's 'leading-edge' cooking methods, then voluntary takes up arms for her towards the end. 

Honorable mention goes to 44:32 to 45:50 in episode 5, smartly depicting how like a bad game of Chinese Whispers, gossip spreads among servants in the palace...it's just genius and starts with the dainty details of real flowers being glued on as decorations on room dividers! 







2. The Main Characters Magnetic 'No-touchy' Chemistry

 

Yooooooo, I love watching these two bicker! These actors just played off each other so well and the chemistry was off the charts!  I looked forward to every scene that they were in together. At first, the Queen spends her time avoiding consummating her marriage to the King, and trying to return to the modern world and her male body. In turn, the King avoids her too, because of his distain of the Andong Kim family. They disrespect him in court and make it clear he is an inexperienced  'puppet' King. This is an arranged marriage, forced on the King to keep the most powerful family at the top.  That's our dramatic tension.  


 Awkward and outspoken the Queen 's role is played so well by Shin Hye-sun, in collaboration with Choi Jin Hyuk. Through her internal dialogue, we remain convinced that Jang-Bong-Hwan lives inside her. Forgetting sometimes that he is in a women's body or maybe even rebelling against his seemly doomed situation, the queen heading to a brothel in the middle of the night or hitting on her fellow co-wives by writing them secret love letters just added to the comedy. My favorite moment was the Queen twerking in the palace courtyard while it was raining to the utter dismay of Court Lady Choi; then rebuking the King when he humbly approached her to apologize and share his umbrella. 


A lot of dialogue happens in the minds of characters during this k-drama, most especially for the Queen. The fact that they were able to sustain this throughout many episodes and keep it amusing and enthralling, speaks to the talent of the cast, the director and the scriptwriter. Usually internal dialogue works well on paper but becomes very boring in film. Not the case with this series!








3. Political Intrigue and Suspense


Like every ancient royal drama there is the essential fight for the throne, for power and for influence! So we don't just spend every episode giggling, we are also intrigued. 


What's going to happen next? 


Who is going to win? 


Will my favorites die?


Even though this is a fictional series, knowing that in the present day Korea is no longer ruled by a monarch  somehow adds to the suspense. 


 Will they try to incorporate some historical elements, even though the story is purely fiction? 


I was enjoyably kept me on my toes, holding my breath till the very last minutes of the the very last episode! There are some great characters and elements that add to the thrill and the suspense...

The Andong Kim Family clan though the Grand Queen Dowager ( Bae Jong-Ok) and her brother Kim Jwa Geun (Kim Tae Woo) are vying for power against the Poongyang Jo family through the Queen Dowager (Jo Yun Hee) and the royal concubine Jo Hwa Jin (Seol In A). We learn most of the history about this ancient family feud through  Jang-Bong-Hwan's internal dialogue.



Jo Hwa Jin, the royal concubine added to the intensity in the beginning because she was part of the love triangle between the King and the Queen. Her character arc was a bit 'meeeeh' towards the end. She had integrity, which means there wasn't much for the writers to work with later on, so she bows out gracefully. #Justmytwocents





The Queen's teenage lover (Na In Woo) is also a Kim family member, who tries his best to gain his father's, Kim Jwa Geun , approval and secure the 'Kim' family influence. He is the only antagonist that has layers to his character because of his internal conflict. The rest of his family seem one minded. However even his father betrays him in the end. Let me warn you now to get the tissues ready....tears.....lots of tears in his last scene! 


Then there's the Queen dowager and her witchcraft tendencies... 




The King has a secret army which he is using to stage a revolution against the Kim family....  


Lastly, the cinematography is good. It sooooo much a part of the storytelling you hardly notice  how clever the crew was at making the story flow so easily for the audience . There are some ingenious moments, you'll know when you see them.





 I watched Mr Queen on the Rakuten Viki app and I have to mention the wonderful crazy madness that is the 'timed comments '. It's like you are watching the show with a loud global audience that talks and reacts to every moment but doesn't disturb the viewing experience. As mentioned at the beginning of this post, I watched this alone while the country was in lockdown...so it was a perfect much needed creation!




Here's where you can watch the full series.

Comment below with  your best moments and elements. I would love to read them.
 


posters/photos downloaded from Hancinema 

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