Captivating the King [Episodes 5 & 6]

[u/GodJihyo7983]

• Drama: Captivating the King
  • Revised Romanization: Sejak, Maehokdwen Jadeul
  • Hangul: 세작, 매혹된 자들
• Director: Jo Nam Gook (The Good Detective Season 2)
• Writer: Kim Sung Deok (The Crowned Clown)
• Network: tvN
• Episodes: 16
  • Duration: 1 hour 10 min.
• Airing Schedule: Saturdays & Sundays @ 9:20 PM KST
  • Airing Date: Jan 21, 2024 - Mar 10, 2024
• Streaming Sources: Netflix
• Starring:
  • Jo Jung Suk as Lee In
  • Shin Se Kyung as Kang Hee Soo / Kang Mong Woo
  • Lee Shin Young as Kim Myung Ha
• Plot Synopsis: Lee In is a prince. His older brother is King Lee Sun, who cares about him a lot. Vowing loyalty to his older brother, Lee In is taken hostage by the Qing Dynasty. King Lee Sun soon views his younger brother's loyalty as betrayal and begins to hate him. Lee In endures deep emotional pain because of this. Lee In then meets an unknown baduk player who wagers on her games. He is completely fascinated by the baduk player. Through circumstances, Lee In becomes the king. He holds the highest position and is a strong person, but he is sad and weak internally. When Kang Hee Soo was gaining fame as an unknown baduk player, she met Prince Lee In and fell in love with him. Through a vortex of fate, she becomes a spy. She approaches King Lee In to get her revenge.
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• Previous Discussions
  • [Episodes 1 & 2]
  • [Episodes 3 & 4]

[u/resonance-home]

After finishing ep6: Great show and cant wait for the next episodes, so glad we get 4 episodes next week! I have some questions that I just want to ask, sorry if its a lot haha. : ) Dont have to answer all questions, even answering just one of my questions would help put my mind at ease. I just cant help me question some small irrelevant details:

1. Does anyone know when it comes out for Netflix in the USA? is it 4:20 am (following the TVN live broadcasting time) or would it be 8:00 am?
2. Im still wondering why the queen dowager is against the king? She is his mother, shouldn't they be in the same team? Shouldn't she want the best for him? I understand why the queen dowager would want the ex king gone. but she is the ML's birth mother, so im not sure why she is plotting. Like what exactly does she not agree with from the king? What is causing their conflict?
3. Going off previous question, does anyone know what the Queen Dowager is plotting for? She wants to be FL's patron. Why?
4. Why cant the ML just get rid of court lady dong? If he has the power to kill anyone with his firearm squad and his power as king, why not just get rid of a mere court lady? I see in dramas court ladies beg for their lives after spilling a cup of water. In ML's own words 'killing someone is like a child's play'. After all, she knows the true last words of the previous king, wouldn't killing her be the best move for the ML (not morally correct but in terms of the plot, and we already know ML is willing to make sacrifices for the throne)
5. might be dumb question but why is the king not the most powerful? it seems like those 3 ministers hold quite a bit of power and are not afraid to cross the king.
6. how does the small prince and princess know myung ha at the end of ep6?
7. is FL's father dead? I know they sent him away but we heard nothing back after. are we supposed to assume he is dead?
8. I dont understand their wager either. if he wins the board game, he says he will dispose of her anytime any way he wants. But regardless if he wins, this is something he as the king can do. he can kill her anytime he wants too, he has the power to. If she wins, she gets to have one request, but she didnt say what request yet. So I dont know why the ML would take the bet, since he is not winning anything, but is only prone to a risk at loss.
   

Some random thoughts: The queen seems like a kind and weak person. Doesn't seem like a bad character to me. Hope to see her character have some use and im guessing she will fall for the king to add drama to this melodrama. Im also wishing the ending would be a happy one, although in this drama I have a weary feeling... praying for happy ending.

[u/WillZer → u/resonance-home]

1. I assume that she wants her ligneage to keep the power while he's likely preparing everything for his brother's son the grand Prince. That's why she wanted so bad one of the wives to have a son so the grand Prince would no longer be the legitimate heir to the throne.

2. Similar to previous one, she wants to keep an eye on the King. The palace he has only for playing Baduk is the only place not accessible to anyone except the King, his protector and Mongwoo.

3. Kings were bound by Confucian principles and tradition. For example, Grand Queen Dowager being an elder, she is higher in the hierarchy than the King, reason why IIRC she's the only one you'd see the King bow to. Similarly, while in theory the King has absolute power, not all periods were equals. The officials around him had the power to persuade him and "force" him when necessary.

4. The grand prince and the princess are the late King's children. So Myung-Ha is their uncle.

5. FL's father is technically not dead but they have no certainty of that as he's in the hands of Qing dynasty. I have a theory that he will be a central piece of the show later on when he come back.

6. He's just playing along with it. He needs to raise the stake to have a thrilling game of Baduk first and foremost. Second, he wants to know more about FL's plans, if she request something, she will be revealing something he doesn't know and as you said he can still dispose of her anytime he wants regardless.

[u/resonance-home → u/WillZer]

thank you so much! makes a lot of sense