Every year I do an end of year post from the lighter side of things. This year my target is all those Sageuks.

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    For somone who doesn’t like sageuks, you watch a lot of them :p

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    Lmaooo~
    Technically, every second year is the Year of the Sageuk- I’m not joking, the number of sageuks basically doubles and then drops again in a biennial cycle, so your Covid Theory is nice, but not accurate.

    I personally, because I’m possibly a bit weird, I dunno, like gats so much if I could buy one, I legitimately would, but even so, I would still give up buying a gat for a good 3K sageuk.

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      If I win the lottery I will buy you a gat. If not, I would absolutely fund a good 3K Sageuk because, despite my gripes, there’s some narrative meat there that hasn’t been picked over until it’s just bones.

      I feel like this year has an unusual number of Sageuks even for a Sageuk year.

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        And it’s not over! 2 are coming just for you 😀

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        I would be eternally grateful. For either of those things. haha
        Some narrative meat? Just some? Well I guess for a non sageuk fan maybe only some, but for me, so much, you have no idea haha.

        I think I worked out a Sageuk Year has on average 10/11 sageuks; I think this year has 12, depending on whether you count the ones that only start airing in Dec, so about on average, maybe just a bit over.
        I think it just feels like a lot, maybe cos there were so many significant ones, or scandalous ones? hah.

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      You are right.
      Recently 2019 was a very good sageuk year. Just the ones I watched: THE CROWNED CLOWN, KINGDOM, HEACHI, NOKDU FLOWER, ARTHDAL CHRONICLES, JOSEON SURVIVAL, and MY COUNTY.

      2020 was sparse: I watched QUEEN: LOVE AND WAR, KINGDOM 2, THE KING: ETERNAL MONARCH, and KINGMAKER: THE CHANGE OF DESTINY. (Maybe TK:EM should not be included. )

      2021 has been a banner sageuk year: My viewing RIVER WHERE THE MOON RISES (dropped), JOSEON EXORCIST (cancelled), BOSSAM: STEAL THE FATE, SECRET ROYAL INSPECTOR & JOY, THE RED SLEEVE and I anticipate working in the 2 upcoming sageuks, THE KING OF TEARS, LEE BANG WON and MOONSHINE. (I passed on a number of sageuks throughout the year.)

      2022 (so far) sageuk/historical previews: KBS’s RED SINGLE HEART, tvN’s UMBRELLA, Netflix’s THIEF: THE SOUND OF THE SWORD and tvN’s JOSEON PSYCHIATRIST YOO SE POONG.

      Then there is the HONG SISTERS’ RETURN/HWAN HON. It has been difficult trying to nail down information on this drama.

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        What is this “TKEM” of which you speak?

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        It’s hard to know whether to include fusions sometimes isn’t it haha.
        I wouldn’t include TKEM myself. As far as I know, it’s total AU fantasy, not even a half/half fusion like Live Up to Your Name or Queen In Hyun’s Man.

        2020 was indeed so sparse! I had the idea that some channels plan a bigger sageuk only every second year, potentially due to costs, but I don’t know if that checks out, it was just a thought I had.

        All I know about the Hongs new drama is that it’s supposed to be pre Joseon fantasy, possibly fusion, and Lee Jae Wook is lead. Which is bad for me because its my genre and era! but it’s the Hongs… sigh.

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          I mean, again, even though it contradicts an entire thing I just wrote I do see fusion as being its own genre. On paper there may be a lot of Sageuks this year but a lot of them are fusion. It feels like they’re turning dramas they’d otherwise make and set in modern times into fusion Sageuks, which is what led to my Covid theory.

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            I do agree at least that several of this years Sageuks are just modern dramas in hanbok.
            Genre is a bit of a fickle beast, and sageuk often is just a broad term for anything historical, so whilst I prefer to just subgenre it to oblivion, I do see where you’re coming from.

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    I found out yesterday that they changed the English name of Yoo Seung-ho’s drama to ‘Moonshine’. It’s actually a pretty smart name given the theme of the drama but I’m sad we can no longer make fun of the name 😔

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    I love your photo captions!! Hahahahaha

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    So funny—I read this frantically, and it was funnier! I do love sageuks—sad you didn’t mention how impossibly pretty everyone who is not a minister or peasant is. I’m still getting a handle on my year—to submit to DB. Real life sucked and I’m sure an inaccurate historical sageuk probably could capture the feeling of it.

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    The captions 😂

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    Happy Birthday Dame Judi (Dench).

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    “ Everyone questioning their sexuality, including the audience”

    Best line.

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