1. THE MASTERPIECE
LEE JOON GI
AND
MOON LOVERS SCARLET HEART RYEO
MOON LOVERS SCARLET HEART RYEO
AN ACTOR
AND
A DRAMA
PASSIONATELY LOVED
BY
BY
THE GLOBAL AUDIENCE
THE MASTERPIECE
LEE JOON GI
AND
MOON LOVERS: SCARLET HEART RYEO
AN ACTOR
AND
A DRAMA
PASSIONATELY LOVED BY THE GLOBAL AUDIENCE
SBS’s Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo, which is written by Jo
Yoon Young and directed by Kim Kyu Tae, is a masterpiece. It the most heatedly
discussed and fiercely debated Asian drama by the global English-speaking
audience and international drama community as proven by the number of
comments on drama websites and elsewhere on the Internet. It is almost
impossible to imagine the massive coverage by the various media. Never before
in drama history has there been such an amazing outpouring of global love and
support for an Asian drama, which is, indeed, a stunning revelation.
The historical-fiction drama is
an adaptation of Bu Bu Jing Xing, a Chinese novel written by Tong Hua. It has
a Chinese predecessor, Bu Bu Jing Xing or Scarlet Heart, which is also a much-celebrated drama.
Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo tells the story of the meteoric rise of Wang So, the
Fourth Prince of Goryeo, who is the unwitting victim of the quarrel between King
Taejo, his father and Queen Yoo, his mother. The prince’s facial scar, caused
by the queen’s dagger during the scuffle, provokes sympathy and
underestimation.
The young Wang So is sent to Shinju as a political hostage by
the queen because his masked face is a constant irritant and reminder of her
folly, rashness and guilt.
Recalled to Songak, the capital of Goryeo, by the king for the
Narye ritual, Wang So, with his wolfdog intelligence and martial arts skills,
makes himself indispensable by protecting Wang Mu, his older half-brother who is the Crown Prince.
Wang So is embroiled in the power struggles among the various
princes, Wang Yo and Wang Jung, his blood brothers; and Wang Wook and Wang Won,
his half-brothers; who are the offsprings of Taejo and his consorts from
various political marriages. The story features, in all, 8 princes including
2 non-ambitious princes, Wang Eun and Baek Ah.
It is interesting to note that the Fourth Prince is destined to fall in love with Hae Soo, a
maiden who travels back in time from 21st century Seoul to 10th
century Goryeo during a solar eclipse. Figuring importantly in his life, she
causes the reversal of his fortunes and becomes the love of his life. From a
wild beast raised in Shinju, the neglected prince transforms into a kind,
humane and civilised prince under the gentle and loving guidance of Hae Soo in Goryeo.
Once thought to be his weakness, Wang So’s facial scar instead
marks him for greatness. Tasked with the responsibility of being the rainmaker
during a great drought, Wang So, with the help of the gods, makes the rain
fall. In the eyes of the Goryeon people, he is the Son of the Dragon.
With that, the romance of Wang So and Hae Soo slowly blossoms. Their love withstands
the storms and turbulence of palace politics.
On his ascension to the throne, the newly-minted king is ensnared in political traps that he is compelled to navigate cautiously. Known in history as Gwangjong, the fourth king of Goryeo descends
into bloodthirsty ruthlessness resulting in the ripping apart of his loving relationship with Hae Soo.
 
Upon her death in Goryeo, Hae Soo travels back to 21st
century Seoul, where she wakes up from her coma.
That there is no reunion for Gwangjong and Hae Soo in the twenty-first
century is a burning issue, a fact that the global viewers of Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo cannot reconcile with. The passionate fans of the
drama continue to pine for Gwangjong and Hae Soo, the most romantic couple in
Asian historical drama history.
The question is: Will there be a second season for Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo?
 
The fans of Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo would always remember
that the amazing drama was pitted against a rival historical drama, in the
same broadcast slot in South Korea and in many countries in 2016.
Although global viewers perceive drama ratings in South Korea
to be irrelevant, the Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo audience were aghast
and baffled when the ratings of that rival drama, for reasons that remain
obscure up to today, rose higher than those of Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo.
However, it is common knowledge that the unusual ratings
pertained only to South Korea, and
nowhere else.
By any objective standards, Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo, which
started airing on 29 August 2016, is by far, a better drama. Global viewers
ranted and raved at the evil characters, laughed at the princes’ hilarious
antics and shed copious tears over the
heart-breaking romance of the star-crossed lovers, Gwangjong and Hae Soo.
The charismatic and magnetic Wang So, the Fourth Prince,
portrayed by top-notch actor, Lee Joon Gi, will forever be etched in the
viewers’ memory. Like Lee Joon Gi’s amazing 2005 movie, The King and The
Clown, the unforgettable 2016 drama, Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo, has a rightful
place in the Classic Movie and Drama Hall of Fame.
(l) Gong-gil - The King and The Clown (r) Wang So - Moon Lovers Scarlet Heart: Ryeo
It isn’t surprising to global viewers but it must have been
shocking news to some South Koreans in 2016 that Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo was the rage in China. It had 2.5 billion views on China’s biggest video
platform, Youku.
In Singapore and Malaysia, SBS’s Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo emerged first among the shows of the four Korean TV channels, garnering
73% of the viewership.
Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo topped Taiwan’s VOD service
website KKTV chart and Lee Joon Gi was awarded KKTV’s Best Actor of 2016.
Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo was the top content on Hong
Kong VOD service’s Laiko since the first week of September 2016.
A DRAMAFEVER spokesperson announced in 2016 that ‘Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo is the
second most watched K-drama in North and South America.’ It recorded more
than 2 million views within the mid-series. The only K-drama surpassing it is Cinderella and Four Knights.
In an American survey conducted on Korean content consumers in
October 2016, Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo and Lee Joon Gi were placed second in the favourite drama
and the favourite actor charts respectively, while IU was placed third in the
favourite actress chart.
Many drama critics, writers, viewers and fans have lauded Lee
Joon Gi’s amazing acting performance in Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo.
You could almost hear a pin drop when MBC’s ‘Star Romance Car’ show host declared on 16 July 2018 that ‘Lee Joon Gi looked and acted better than the original actor’.
   
The said original actor is Nicky Wu, a good-looking and impressive actor who had won an award at the Seoul
International Drama Awards in 2012 and several other awards in China for his
Fourth Prince role in China’s Scarlet Heart or Bu Bu Jing Xin.
Nicky Wu at the Seoul International Drama
Awards 2012
Shockingly, the highly acclaimed and handsome Korean actor, Lee Joon
Gi, received no acting awards for his exceptional acting performance in Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo in his home country. But he did receive an international award, The Best Actor 2016 award
from Taiwan’s KKTV.
One imagines a normal drama viewer trying to grasp what went wrong in
2016. Such an anomaly has since pushed analytical global minds into overdrive,
precipitating blistering protests but to no avail.
Lee Joon Gi should have been declared The Best Actor 2016/17
and the tear-jerking historical-fiction masterpiece should also have been declared The Best Drama of 2016/2017. This opinion echoes the sentiments of the global
audience.
Since Lee Joon Gi's The King and The Clown days, the global superstar has enthralled the global audience with his stupendous acting performance in his various dramas and movies, including his awesome 2018 legal-action thriller, Lawless Lawyer. Every year, fans wait impatiently for his next magnificient drama and movie.
Original Posting: 14 July 2019
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