Hangul: 옷소매 붉은 끝동 (The Red Sleeve Cuff)

Original Air Date: November 12, 2021 - January 1, 2022

Genre: Melodrama/Historical Sageuk

Plot: Based on the real life King Jeongjo, the 22nd King of the Joseon Dynasty, this is his love story with one of his court ladies.

Watched Because: I've been in a sageuk mood lately. I enjoy being transported back in time to another era and time of life and learning a little history and culture. When I saw this was staring, 2PM's Lee Jun Ho, I knew I had to see it. I thought he did an amazing job in Just Between Lovers (which is being called Rain or Shine on Netflix right now).

My Review:

Oh wow, this was some drama. I finished it a few days ago, but had to collect my thoughts a little before writing this review. It packs an emotional punch, especially knowing it is based on a real story. This was a beautifully told story and I thought Lee Jun Ho stole the show as the Crown Prince/King Jeongjo. He completely floored me with his acting performance and range of emotions from adorable to indignant to commanding and heartbroken. I think he deserves an award for this.

Lee Se Young as court lady Seong Deok Im did great too, but she had a little more flat affect in her role, I think on purpose. But sometimes I wish she gave us a fleeting look or a little more nuance to let us know what she was really thinking or the conflict in emotions she was experiencing. She was often too stone cold and by the end, I was getting pretty mad at her character.

I'm getting more used to the sageuk format now and this drama tended to follow that plot progression. The first half of the drama brought on all the cute. There was a little mistaken identity as Deok Im treated the Crown Prince rather crassly. But he enjoying the banter and anonymity and didn't correct her. Their on screen chemistry was great and the set up for an epic love story was made. Then, the political pressures started to mount, our Crown Prince became a King and the show took a turn away from rom com towards melodrama. Around 3/4 through is also when I usually feel a drag in the show and that again happened for me. The drama was gaining popularity in South Korea and got extended to be 17 episodes instead of 16, so I don't know if that messed up with the writers original plan and caused some drag. But in the end, the show wrapped up all the characters and everyone got their ending.

The friendship between the court ladies was beautifully depicted

One aspect I enjoy about watching historical dramas is learning about the different roles of the court. In Rookie Historian Goo Hae Ryung, I learned about the role of the historians in preserving history. In Moonlight Drawn by Clouds, I learned a little more about the role of eunuchs supporting the king. In Sungkyunkwan Scandal, I learned about the education and role of the Joseon scholars and their influence on politics and the king. And in this show, Red Sleeve, I learned more about the court ladies. I liked the fact that the director and writers did not romanticize their role and gave a more realistic version of what they had to endure. As a court lady, you gave yourself to the king and had no right to marry. If you engaged with another man, you would be killed. Their sole existence was to serve the king. They could not leave the palace grounds and were bound to the life of serving the court. What was sad is that I learned they were not allowed to die in the palace. That was a right back then to die in the palace, so if a court lady fell ill, she was sent outside of the palace to die. How tragic.

So with that knowledge, although I rooted for our lead couple, it also brought some sadness knowing that she could never be his Queen. In fact, the crown prince had already been betrothed at age 9. The drama never depicted her and barley mentioned her, which was a good choice in allowing the viewer to not feel as conflicted about the romance in front of us. But at the same time, I could empathize with Seong Deok's hesitancy in becoming a concubine, knowing that she would be sharing this man with many other women. I had to repeatedly remind myself not to pull in my year 2022 values into this 18th century love story. It was necessary for a King to take many lovers in order to ensure a successor would be born and for the stability of the country. It's sad and it's the reality that existed for any concubine of the king. Having said that though, I did feel the writers dragged out Seong Deok's hesitancy a little too much in the late episodes and her demeanor and words to the king sometimes seemed unrealistic for the time period. I did get frustrated with her constant pushing away, especially when the King was being so open with his love to her.

My thoughts on the ending. *spoiler alert*

The Viki commenters were massive spoiler alerting this drama. So I had an idea how it would end. But even if you are prepared for it, it was hard to watch. I know some are mad at the writers for the ending, but I'm not sure they understand that this is based on a true story. The writers stuck with what happened in the past, as heart breaking and angsty as it was, this was a love story that didn't have a happy ending. But, I was still annoyed at Seong Deok's death bed comment to the King to pass her by in the next life in case they see each other. That was writer choice to put that line in there. I thought we got past that stage of her life of needing to hurt him and push him away in order to protect herself. I thought that was unnecessary punch to the gut in an already emotional scene. I did think though that they writers gave us the dream sequence/heaven sequence so that the audience wouldn't leave completely devastated. The last images we had of them were as a couple being happy and together - whether it was in the king's deathbed dream or it was a meeting up in heaven doesn't matter. It lets the viewer hold on to the idea that they really had an epic love story and although it ended tragically, there are beautiful moments in their love.

*End Spoiler Alert*

The Red Sleeve was a fabulously written and acted historical drama. I loved the deeper and realistic look into the life of a court lady and a concubine of the king. Lee Jun Ho was phenomenal in his role and if anything, he is worth the watch. It is a rather long watch with 17 episodes and the ending clocking in at 1 hour and 40 minutes! But if you are into sageuks/historical dramas, I think this is a must watch. If you are not, you can probably pass this one by until you are ready to enjoy the genre.

Final Opinion: Must See for those who enjoy Sageuks

Bonus Picture: Lee Jun Ho in a bath. It's a gratuitous fan service scene for his female viewers and oh boy, thank you directors for that ab shot!
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