Drama Thoughts: The King's Daughter-Su Baek Hyang-The first 47 Episodes (and why you SHOULD be watching!!!!!!!)

The Awesomeness of the First 47 Episodes of King's Daughter, Su Baek Hyang

**Contains Limited SPOILERS**

UPDATE: For those who have reached the 70's, to boost our broken hearts, I've created a tumblr page to lift our spirits of the good times!!

Stars:

Jo Hyun Jae as Crown Prince Myung-Nong 

Seo Hyun Jin as Sol Nan/Su Baek Hyang 

Seo Woo as Sol-Hi / Soo Baek Hyang's younger sister

Lee Jae Ryong as King Muryeong

Jun Tae Soo as Jin-Moo

Cha Hwa Yun as Instructor Do-Rim 

Kim Roe Ha as Ddol-Dae

Kim Min Kyo as Mang-Goo
Yoon Tae Young as Ku-Cheon

Character Introductions (pay attention, it can be really complicated)!

Crown Prince Myung-Nong is actually Prince Jin Moo who was the previous King, King Dongseong's son who was 4 years old when he died of poisoning.

Sol-Nan is actually Su Baek Hyang, daughter of the current King, King Muryeong and Chaelhwa. She has never met her real father as a matter of fact, doesn't even know he is her father.

Sol-Hi is the fake Su Baek Hyang and Sol-Nan's younger half sister.. After finding out that her half sister is the daughter of the King, she fakes her own death and takes her sister's place as Princess of Baekje.

Prince Jin Moo is actually the real Myung-Nong who was switched with the real Jin Moo at 4 years old. He grew up hating his real father and wanting revenge for his fake father's death.

King Muryeong, father of Sol-Nan and the real Myung-Nong. He knows about the boys being switched as he did the switching but the daughters he doesn't know, only what Sol-Hi has said.

Chaelhwa, mother of both Sol-Nan and Sol-Hi. Unfortunately, she dies without telling Sol-Nan the truth but mistakenly tells Sol-Hi instead; however, she has prepared Sol-Nan with facts and information that eventually will come out.

Ku-Cheon, father of Sol-Hi and step father to Sol-Nan. He used to be a slave and Korguryo spy that was caught and his tongue was removed.

My Thoughts: Admittedly, this doesn't have the humongous budget of Empress Ki. So you aren't going to see pageantry and large scaled scenes that you are seeing in that drama; however what you will see is the development of a relationship between two people in a seriously complicated story. 

I also like the mix of comedy and seriousness that happens with every episode. Instead of a totally dark saguek, you really have moments of laughter. Ddol-Dae and Mang Goo, Sol-Nan's partners and members of the The Band, Crown Prince Myung-Nong's spy network, are hysterically funny! They tend to remind me of the old US show couple from the show called "The Odd Couple".

The story arc whereby the evilness of Sol-Hi is just starting to rear its head, beginning with episode 44. Us viewers are pretty sure that Sol-Hi's partner in crime will be Jin Moo who in his quest for vengeance will unknowingly be hurting not only his real father but most likely his own sister. I think Jin Moo is the one character that I pity the most. Since the age of 4, he has been cast aside because of his relationship to the previous King (supposed). He has been left to be brought up by one of the Ministers who believe that the current King was responsible for his liege, King Dongseong' death.

The scenes between him and his sister, Sol-Nan are so cute but also so sad at the same time. The first time they meet, they both have an immediate kinship. So the saying "the blood knows" is definitely true in their case.

But most importantly, is the separate love stories that are developing. I am not a big fan of the "Love Triangle" that saguek dramas are so fond of. I find them tedious and I generally avoid them. So, what I like about Su Baek Hyang is that it is devoid of that story line. 

From the first moment that Sol-Nan and Crown Prince Myung-Nong meet, she has a strength about her.

Sol-Nan is the ultimate tom-boy. Unlike her ultra feminine sister, she has made it, with some efforts through the trials of becoming a Band Member. Why? To find the sister that she thinks has been stolen away. 

She works extremely hard to get into the Band as she feels it is the only way for her to find her sister. The Crown Prince uses this knowledge to his benefit.

But gradually, we are seeing the building of their relationship. From the first time he instructs her on how to shoot the bow;

His concern when she faints during training. His demeanor totally changes so much that even the Band Instructor takes notice;

From following her around (okay, he says he wasn't) during her first undercover assignment to make sure she didn't get into trouble;

Then the more intimate settings of the Crown Prince giving her the tapir tattoo which represents that she is a member of the Band; his words, Now you belong to me;

To their walk in the garden as; his words, brother and sister. Yes, holding hands and him gently tucking her cold hand inside his robe to get warm....right..

Even though we knew how she felt about him, he can no longer hid his true feelings for her, beginning with episode 44. The chemistry between Jo Hyun Jae and Seo Hyun Jin is amazing! The subtleness of each look, quick caress is poignant! I imagine if ( I hope) and when they do kiss, sparks will fly off the screen. However, you do remember reading the synopsis above? These two, somewhere down the road, will think they are brother and sister. I cannot wait for that to happen!

Again, the evilness of Sol-Hi is just starting. I really cannot comment on that. But I have a feeling, with 73 more episodes to go, we are in for a serious ride!

I really can't do justice to the awesomeness of this drama. After Ugly Alert completed, I didn't think there would be a drama to replace it. But I am daily waiting for the torrent to download or finding the latest episode on DailyMotion as soon as I can. With each episode only 30-32 minutes, the time goes by fast and leaves you anxiously waiting for the next.