All I can think when I saw the first posters and teasers for the upcoming TVING sageuk drama Queen Woo is that if this was a K-movie it was definitely move into Forbidden Flower and The Concubine territory level of sex/power/fighting. Alas this is but a tightly wound 8-episode sageuk that puts female lead Jeon Jong Seo as the titular Queen Woo who loses her king husband Ji Chang Wook in a guest starring role and must solidify power with even more hot smexy men around her including Kim Moo Yeol and Lee Soo Hyuk. But she looks like the take no prisoners type herself so I expect lots of give as good as she gets.
Teaser for Queen Woo:
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Hmm… tbh from the trailer alone I’m not sure if JJS is convincing enough as a queen in the Goryeo dynasty… Hope I’ll be proven wrong though.
same thoughts. i don’t know what it is, but based on the trailer, she just looks like she’s playing the typical modern “strong, independent, badass female lead character who can beat up men” you typically see in modern dramas, if that makes sense? don’t get me wrong, there are many actresses who have successfully portrayed badass female characters in historical dramas without giving a modern vibe, she’s just not one of those. her vibe makes her look like she belongs in a modern action drama or something.
but then again, it’s just the trailer, maybe i’ll change my opinion once i’ve watched the drama in full
Unfortunately, it looks like the ‘historical fantasy’ (aka make up whatever we want and put it in period costume) trend is never going to go away.
I would love to see a proper sageuk.
Yeah, that’s exactly my thoughts. Based on her few seconds of screen time, the way she walks/her demeanour in general is giving badass modern woman dressed in a historical queen costume. Not much gravitas or regality that you would expect from royalty of that period.
Though I suspect the producers are trying to appeal to a younger audience (given the platform and who they cast for the leads), so perhaps they are actually going for a modern action thriller vibe just in a historical setting, rather than striving for realism?
I felt that too. But it’s just a teaser, who knows
Goguryeo*
From several drama i see her in, she always play strong character and this was is the same too.
Just 8 episodes is a good thing for me. I am here for this. Looks great.
It’s nice to get a sageuk focused on a female character with power!
Yeah, always good to make stuff up just so some modern viewers can fulfill their fantasies!
It’s stupid. The 3 periods were very different Silla, Goryeo and Joseon. Joseon was the worst for women because of the Confuciansim but before they had more power, this drama takes place in Goryeo era.
Perhaps just costume in sageuk, nothing more than that is sageuk. LOL. But to give female more power, they definitely have to step outside the real historical setting.
Goryeo women had a lot more autonomy, rights and independence than Joseon women who were subjugated by Confucianism. It wouldn’t be too hard to write a believable strong female character in this period and stay relatively close to history. But the way JJS is carrying her self in the trailer, on the other hand, just looks so anachronistic.
not a fan of the female lead, there’s just something about her i find annoying (maybe it’s her having only one facial expression in scenes of her i’ve seen, which is the “badass” or “fierce” look, which i find too forced? idk). however, ji chang wook impressed me in empress ki so i’m glad he’s back in a historical drama again even if it’s just a special appearance, so i’ll check this out.
i hope the fans of the female lead don’t come for me, it’s literally just my opinion lol
This looks great.
Only Jeon Jong Seo the attraction of this drama…others just meh!!
It looks pretty cool but there are some shots where JJS looks slightly out of place. I’m seated mostly for Kim Moo-yeol and Lee Soo-hyuk who’re both always fantastic!
I still remember how much I enjoyed Empress Ki… Ji Chang Wook was so lame and weak in the drama but adorable. He have grown so much since then.
I remember I disliked Empress Ki just because how the story went. LOL. But I liked JCW (as the 2nd ML?) more than the first ML.
It was one of those…why did it have to be like that kind of drama… But I still enjoyed it…in those days, I was really not as fussy about Kdramas 🤣🤣.
I think JJS does well at playing strong, fierce characters. It’s in the scenes where she’s walking that take her out of the era the drama takes place in. That’s a very modern, tough girl kind of walk that works well in the modern era, not so much Goguryeo dynasty. The trailer is self is very taut and action packed. I’ll definitely check this one out!
THIS gave me more of Game of Thrones vibe than anything in historical Sageuk. I love it. LOL.
I know nothing about any main actors in the cast except for JCW whom I like. Although the visuals are not appealing in the trailer, the vibes definitely are my cup of tea. If they can deliver the same quality as Arthdal Chronicles II, I definitely will watch it.
I was interested in this drama but Jeon Jong Seo is looking rather miscast in this trailer. I’m all for a strong female lead but she has the same expression in every scene and the way she is walking arms swinging casually in the scenes like some random girl on the street with a bad attitude is too modern and unbelievable especially for a character that is supposed to be a queen. You can see the contrast with the two actresses on either side of her who are walking in a much more appropriate way for the time period.
Disappointing. Goryeo and Goguryeo are my favourite time period for Korean history but seems to have bad luck with dramas
Even her voice tone does not suit this.. she clearly looks out of place.
JJS is so wildly miscast, its not even funny. Even in the short trailer, the way she talks, walks and even looks – its so so off. Its also the PD’s fault for not reining in the 21st Century mannerisms at least in the most obvious scenes. Meh, meh and meh. A good thing its OTT because this is likely to get a lot of flack from knetz who take their sageuks very seriously.
I personally will never understand some folks need for some level of historical accuracy especially when it’s not a documentary. I am all for mix things up, shake things up and not these restrictions people place on writers, it is not a documentary! Also if a badass queen was talking and walking the way society dictated, I’d personally really be worried. Anyways, I had no issues with the trailer
I can’t say it’s a “society dictated”, it’s more like how they were raised. They talked and walked like that because they can’t do it otherwise, since they lived in that environment, and was raised like that.
You know, it’s like the villagers and common people at the middle ages, the way they talked was also different from nowadays people.
If an illiterate peasant, who was not taught to read and write, starts speaking in a high-ranking tone or modern phrases in the film, it will be implausible, the same with the nobility.
In my country, the dialect of people, both illiterate peasants and educated nobility, was noticeably different from today’s, and this is shown in historical films.
But I’m only responding to your comment, I don’t know Korean and I don’t know what exactly people are criticizing in Jeon Jong Seo’s speech, and if she really sounds modern and unconvincing or not.
I think I get what you’re saying. In my country, we have a powerful queen called queen Amina of Zaria. She was so badass she went to wars, she was an architect, she expanded her kingdom, history says she brought never before seen wealth to her kingdom and she never married, I think she was courted fiercely but she settled for a partner. She took over after her brother passed, perhaps not leaving any child. The thing is, if someone were to play queen Amina, (who reigned in the 16th century), no way they’re playing her having mannerism that women of her time had, she was way ahead and was a mighty queen. She probably walked like a boss and not like a queen of her time walked. Queen woo loses her husband and has to up her game, no way she’s acting, talking or walking like every other noble. Anyways maybe I’m just too much of a modern girl😂😂
Embarrassed to say, I didn’t know about Amina of Zaria. I will read about her.
And embarrassed to say, again, I didn’t know about Queen Woo before this drama came out, I need to read about her too.
I just judged by 5-7 queens I know, some of them were a badass, but still followed rules and ethicet, because this was environment they lived in.
Now I need to shut up, to sit and to read histories book lol.
@Jennilee, I totally agree with your points. @Olesya1 also made her case too. There are no conflicts between your opinions, just from different perspectives.
I’d rather take this drama in historical fantasy genre, more like Arthdal Chronicles perhaps?
I’m the one all for historical fantasy. That’s my favorite genre. Whether characters exude appropriate mannerism doesn’t matter that much, but the plots will always be the most important factor. Perhaps because I don’t understand Korean, therefore I can cut slack on the way actors speak. Perhaps some Korean viewers or those who understand Korean just can’t bear with modern tones spoken in a historical setting. Similarly, I had qualms about how certain Chinese actors speak in costume dramas cos that’s the language I’m familiar with.