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Complete Main Character Descriptions for Jang Ok Jung, Live In Love — 37 Comments

  1. I’m not sure I’d go quite so far as to compare this to Bu Bu Jing Xin personally – that was a once-in-a-lifetime drama for me in terms of feels.

    But I agree that this drama is very, very accomplished in its own right. It would have been even more amazing with better casting.

    • Agreed. I am merely using BBJX as a reference for some comparative benchmarks buts not intending to stack them up against each other. Only in terms of how its making me feel some real pathos brewing.

      Also agree on the accomplishment of JOJ being even better with a stronger cast. KTH is good (enough, for me) but Ha Ji Won would do more with showing her rage at life or Son Ye Jin bringing out more delicate sense of hope. Lee Sang Yeob, bless his sweet heart, acts like he’s still in I Live in Cheongdamdong, and when he talks with his Ok Jung-ah I half expect Oh Ji Eun’s face on the other side of him. I am also very very worried about Han Seung Yeon as Choi Sukbin.

    • From what I read through the character descriptions on Naver, the Dowager Queen is King Injo’s last queen, known posthumously as Queen Jangryeol. Historically, King Injo is Sukjong (Lee Soon)’s great-grandfather, BUT Sukjong and the Queen Dowager are not blood-related, since Sukjong’s maternal lineage comes from King Injo’s first wife/queen, Queen Inryeol. Queen Dowager also mentions having no blood relations to Sukjong during the preliminary crown princess selections in episode 3.

  2. I read a version of the descriptions awhile ago but these are better translated.

    I am definitely going to be a complete mess at the end of the drama. Oh boy… Lots of tragedy and not very much happiness headed this way. There is no way out for anyone. Isn’t there some rule that all the women in the palace are the king’s women? So once she enters the palace, she’s his technically anyways. Between CS and DP… I am going to be crying buckets because they can’t even compete fairly. There is no fair here. Her fate is the king and she loved him. I think my prediction that only the king and dong yi will make it through alive at the end is on target. Can we get a dream sequence where both are not royalty and can live happily as simple commoners? I would though like to see what this intense love looks like. King sukjong is a ruthless man – is he really going to crush CS? This is not for the faint hearted. How there can even be any love or happiness in this kind of environment would be a miracle. Everyone has an “evil” side – maybe except In Hyun and DP.

  3. Ms K, like you i didnt read through the character synopsis in detail at the beginning so i really appreciate this. From the looks of this, i have to ready myself with boxes of tissue. I just hope the journey will be worth it, and so far it has proven so (crosses fingers).

  4. My new addiction:D I dunno but everything in this drama look freaking beautiful especially KTH. She has that pure beauty.

  5. Thanks for this write up, specifically we’re truly engrossed and fascinated to this drama. Main actors were able to deliver significantly. Super special, we do love it!

  6. Three girls falling for the same guy. Three guys falling for the same girl.. Sounds like it could get complicated.. And yet it works. Every character definitely has their own moment to shine, and i’m curious as to how each of these characters and their relationships will play out.

  7. Ms Koala, I wasn’t planning to watch this. But have enjoyed your recaps. It does sound so good.

    But ma’am you do know how to strike fear into my heart. That is one scary, tears galore inducing story you’ve just given us today. Who the heck is going to watch something that will just tear their heart into tiny, tiny pieces and then jump on the pieces.

    Even I know the fate of the real characters in history. But now it’s even colouring my views of the so called good characters in history.

  8. poor women! it’s all because of King Sukjong for have too many wives with no equal care and love for them. Lol I watch all other drama about Sukjong period and I still trying to tell myself JOJ is “nice” and Queen Inhyun and Dong Yi are “evil”.

    • i watched Dong Yi, Ok jung not that bad actually, but when Sukjong heart betrayed hers, she became the way she is remembered in history. and i hate the idea that dong yi is evil.

  9. thank you for translating this, Ms K. I used to faithfully watched but never finish BBJX for fear that my heart couldn’t take the tear galore. now i have the same feeling that maybe i couldn’t finish JOJ. ah the fate of drama watcher, wait for great drama that offer trifecta but also happy ending (read: no one died).

  10. Thanks Koala!

    Having the character descriptions really helps me keep the “intrigue” straight. IMO, it makes the drama more meaningful when you “get” why a character makes a certain expression or takes a particular action.

    Besides, it’s another way to feed my (suprise) addiction to JOJ. Until next week!

  11. Wow! You’re right! The whole characters description really threw me for a loop! Now I can’t wait to see Chi Soo (Jae Hee) in actions. Oh, Dongpyung-gun. My heart and eyes are gonna bleed and tear so hard for you! Yoo Ah In is seriously rocking his Seja role so perfectly. His expressions, his movements, his looks; so good that it’s driving me so insane! Yes, when a drama comes with no expectations, everything seems out of this world perfect. And now I am praying hard for FOJ to have the same effect on me, tho it’s rather unlikely since I have pretty high expectations on that drama now. But thank you, Ms. Koala for sharing. This show is gonna be one heck of a ride. And I can foresee myself slipping back into the Moon/Sun hype again. 😛

  12. Wonder if they creating all JOJ characters based on history.. coz it has different interpretation from Dong Yi. In Dong yi’s version.. the king is not skillful in Martial art. In dong yi’s JOJ evil’s side is elicited by the fact that she was being under pressure from political side and her own ambition.. and dong yi…her evil side is because she wants to survive in the palace since she didn’t represent any politics party. So i wonder which one is true or its all a mere fantasy.

  13. Oooh goosh…
    I think I need to prepare myself.. Reading your descriptions alone could bring mix feeling to me..
    This drama is suprisingly making me addicted..
    Anyway thank you for posting this..

  14. the thing i don’t like about this drama is how far it deviates in portraying jang heebin from what is written in history book.

    she was not a good person and full of ambition. she was the cause why queen in hyun was exiled n in the end she was trying to kill inhyun but it fired back cos the king found out n killed her at the end.

    • Are you sure you know what you are talking about?

      Jang Heebin has only in modern days (since 1930s onward) been in scrubs of Korean history books been written as a sexpot power hungry bitch. Remember that history is written by the victor. Who is the victor in that battle? Dong Yi (Choi Sukbin). Her son was the one who became the next long-serving King. Do you think he would have written down that his mom was involved? No, he wrote that his mom Dong Yi was perfect and angelic and saintly. For Queen In Hyun, who his mom served and they were all on the same side, then she was the victim as well. Jang Heebin’s side was the opponent, the enemy, of the eventual victors. I’m not surprised history paints her as black. More modern scholars have acknowledged that Jang Heebin was as much a victim as In Hyun in all the in-fighting. It was a battle where all the women were sacrificed in the end.

      There is no such thing as “history book” that is gospel. If you go to North Korea, try reading their history books. Look no further than Japan, which national curriculum teaches “history” once it gets to WWII that significantly deviates from what other countries said happened. Japan refuses to acknowledge the used Korean and Chinese comfort women. Tens of thousands of them. I’m sure the US history book and the British history books discuss the Revolutionary War differently. Facts about events don’t change, but motivations can certainly be colored.

      • Just like how Shakespeare wrote Richard III as a hunchback monster!!! Epiphany…. 😀

      • Could you show us the source that more modern scholars have acknowledged that Jang Heebin was as much a victim as In Hyun in all the in-fighting? Are you sure you know what you are talking about?

      • I read about this before~ and I agree with you that history book is not a gospel. It depends on who wrote it and his political tendencies. History has two faces in one coin.

  15. Thank you for this stellar recommendation. I wouldn’t have given it a go, if you hadn’t mentioned it. I’m only halfway through the first episode and already I love the set, the costumes, the premise and the subversion of recorded history. The fact that it presents a stylised anachronistic (?) fashion facet is just icing on the cake. The acting could be better but I’ll take that and hope for improvement. 😉

    PS: I just kept rewinding to catch the details!

  16. At first I thought it’s going to be the writer imaginative of romance fiction inJoseon time, but after read this Character Description. Then comes the 2nd thought, yes, it’s true that “there’re always 2 sides of everything” but which side depend on their circumstance.
    Surely! many histories will be on the turn, in the future.
    Most of us already known one side story of 4 main characters (King Sukjong, Queen Inhyun, Jang Hee Bin and Dong Yi) from Dong Yi, and now JOJ, for the other side of their character,
    I really love and enjoy this drama and your recap, it’s getting more exciting and will be a lot of heartbreaking scenes T,.T can’t wait!
    I wonder! There were fashion show, Tea Palace Party and the character of Hyun Chi-soo n Prince Dongpyung at that time!!!!

    Thanks a lot for the translation ♡koala♡

  17. As always Auntie K, only you can turn me into a True addict ( just like you did for LTM).
    I started to watch Jang Ok Jung, LIL because of you and then because it’s such good crack.

    This show is so freaking good, I was like Gu Family Book who?
    Im in love with this show and can’t understand why ain’t there more addicts.

    Thank you again for ALWAYS giving us the goods!!!

    • nah the writer changed their ages and other details, as like OJ is only 2yrs than LS here. He’s probably 19 now, she’s 21.

  18. Thank you! this’s a must read in order to get a better view and understand this drama, I must stop mixing them up between the 2 versions… So I need to erase “Dong Yi” of my mind at the time be… then enjoy “JOJ” version more, and I hope that Mr scriptwriter will has a well balance of sorrow & happiness, otherwise my poor eyes because I’m a real crybaby.

  19. Thanks Ms Koala. I am obsessed with JOJ.

    I will believe that Ok Jung is the one and only true love for Lee Soon for the sake of this drama and forget about Dong Yi….hehehe

    I hope this drama gives us a satisfying happy ending…instead of going ahead showing the fall of JOJ….

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