Mr. Queen - Blog Posts

~ Shin Hye Sun appreciation post for her absolutely delightful performance in Mr. Queen / Queen Cheorin ~ 💕

'Mr. Queen’ Taught Me “Be You. The World Will Adjust.”

I have no shame in proclaiming this so early into this year but… 'Mr. Queen' or ‘Queen Cheorin’ is my favorite drama watch of 2021.

Quite honestly, I don't know where to start with this show. There is so much happening in it, right from the very first scene and yet, it doesn't overwhelm or addle you (well done, team TVN).

A time-travel story, prominent Korean chef Jang-Bong Hwan's spirit suddenly transports back to the Joseon Dynasty and settles into Queen Kim So-Yong's body. Strangely, it is exactly at the same time when the Queen decides to jump into a palatial lake.

So what does a man from the 21st century do trapped in a woman's body from a couple of 100 years ago? Of course, he tries every possible trick in the book to swap back to his own physical being.

But the deities have other plans and we then see how Bong Hwan's spirit decides to own his role as a Queen until the heavens deem it right for him to return to present times.

I shall pause here and applaud the absolute brilliancy of actress Shin Hye-Sun who's done such a fantastic job portraying a narcissistic male spirit in a feminine form. She's a complete rock-star, our Queen Cheorin. She has zero hoots to give, she damns patriarchy in the face, she teaches the king a thing or two about how to run a goddamn country, she leads the creation of ramen as we know it today, she's bold, selfish and hellish funny.

King Cheoljung is another interesting entity. Sporting a façade as a 'puppet king', he's actually the mastermind behind the revolt brewing up among the masses. He was never really into Kim So-Yong because his heart is already tied to Jo Hwa-Jin. His marriage to So-Yong is nothing but an extension of court politics and this infuriates our very handsome but clearly-a-bit-twisted second lead, Kim Byeong-in.

In Byeong-in's defense, he's loved So-Yong ever since they were children and he's aware of her being despondent in finding no comfort or companionship in Cheoljong.

We then have two classic bitches-of-the-first-order in Queen Sunwon (great grandmother-in-law) and Queen Dowager Jo (mother-in-law). The former is supported by the slyest villain in the history of Joseon dynasty Kim Jwa-Guen and is evil enough on her own, mind you. Topped up with Queen Dowager's crappy antiques, the trio deserve an ovation for the amount of times they can piss you off.

The story follows the survival of Jang-Bong Hwan as Kim So-Yong amidst political intrigues and secrets that compose the palace and its people.

The show is hilarious. The comic timing, is absolutely woot-worthy and it just keeps wanting you to sit your ass down and move on to the next episode and then the next. Even through the darkest moments of storytelling, the show finds a way to make you laugh. And this, more than anything else (exception: Shin-Hye Sun's stellar performance) is the reason why I simply LOVE and adore the show.

I cannot not talk about Court Lady Choi-Hwa, a sensational, traditional mother-figure who's about to lose her shit thanks to the baffling antiques of our Mr. Queen. From walking with her skirt held up to her knees, from burping in your face, from taking over the Royal Kitchen and to dancing in the rain, So-Yong's sudden change of character causes Lady Choi to almost faint.

So-Yong, Lady Choi and Hong Yeon's femme bonding is one of my favorite parts of this entire tale, hands down.

There are so many sensational and cute side characters in the show but I'm going to list down some key learnings I picked up:

1. Have the courage to love yourself first.

Often, it is easier to love another before loving ourselves first. But to sit down with yourself and give yourself the love you crave for is a no-bargain deal, even if it means not having the space to love others.

2. Celebrate your weird, your crazy and your wild.

Life's really, really rather short to be anything but the whole of you. I love that about So-Yong: her ability to be radically herself and celebrate it.

3. You are only defeated when you think yourself to be.

No matter what life throws at you or if time has your back or not, you cannot be defeated until you allow yourself to be. I think this is one of my favorite qualities of King Cheoljung.

I'd like to rewatch this drama, at a slower pace, with large bowls of chili popcorn, now that the suspense is over and I know how it ends. My last words: So-Yong eating ramen. ❤

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GIF Credits: GIF 1 & 13 - Tumbex | GIF 2: Choi Jin-Hyuk y Dramas, Tumblr | GIF 3: @labelledejour​ | GIF 4: Aghasewatchtv | GIF 5: MyDramaList | GIF 5: Kenh 14 a | GIF 11: Dramabeans | GIF 12: Bitches Over Dramas | GIF 14: Tenor | GIF 15: @thingskateknows​ | 

Me: *falls in love with dramas*

Me: So this is what it’s like to be a fan...

My heart:

a) One of my favorite quotes from ‘Mr. Queen’

b) I still don’t fully realize how hard I’ve fallen for this drama. 

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Pictures | TVN & The Doodle App

Okay, so I've been watching a lot of kdramas (or by extent Asian dramas) since March 2020, and there were a lot of characters who were so queer coded (or just had a fruityness to them)?? Anyway, so here's a list

But let's start with some canonically queer characters in mainstream dramas, shall we?

Park Mae Yi (Run On) - is ace and talks about her asexuality early on in the show

Go Ye Joon (Run On) - is gay and outs himself in the end, has a talk with another character about the discrimination and struggles of being gay

Ma Hyun Yi (Itaewon Class) - is mtf transgender, and while her being a cook is her main story arc, her confidence and pride of being trans is important too

Hikari Kuina (Alice in Borderland) - is mtf transgender and an absolute badass fighter as she grew up learning martial arts

Jung Seo Hyun (Mine) - is lesbian and (like every woman in this drama) an incredible independant badass

Now that we have that out of the way, let's move on to the actual queer-coding:

Seo Moon Jo (Strangers from Hell) - okay, he may be a psychopath and a serial killer BUT he calls Jongwoo 'babe' every chance he gets, and immediately threw his strategies out the window for him, so I declare him gay

Seo In Woo (Psychopath Diary) - again, similar to Moon Jo, the homoerotic tension of obsessive love is STRONG, and in his case, In Woo and Dong Sik are even mistaken as a couple at some point, he's definitely gay

Oh Mi Joo (Run On) - she just gives me bisexual wife energy, especially when you consider her chemistry with Dan Ah

Jang Bong Hwan / Queen So Young (Mr. Queen) - considering their souls are trapped in the same body, and Bong Hwan actually falls in love with the king at some point, they definitely fall into the genderfluid and queer spectrum

Han Se Ju (Chicago Typewriter) - like with Mi Joo, I have no actual reasoning other than vibes, and Se Ju just gives me incredible chaotic bisexual vibes, also his character is basically in a polyamorous relationship that's disguised with some bromance

Jang Man Weol (Hotel Del Luna) - okay, you cannot tell me that somebody who has been alive for 1300 years and is as flirty and cheeky as Man Weol is straight, she definitely falls on the mspec spectrum as well

So Mun (The Uncanny Counter) - again, this is based off vibes, but So Mun feels like a closeted bisexual kid (and boy am I speaking from experience here lmao)

Lee Yeon (Tale of the Nine Tailed) - this man is not only an ancient god, but a fruity god at that. One, he has that bromance chemistry with his best friend, second his true love is kind of split into a male and a female soul if I remember correctly?? that's kinda queer

Wen Kexing and Zhou Zishou (Word of Honor) - I'm putting them together because they're technically canon in the source material, but their chemistry in the drama is still off the charts

Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji (The Untamed) - again, they're gay in the novel but are demoted to "platonic soulmates" in the drama

Wen Qing (The Untamed) - my queen and her (not subtle) hatred for men flirting with her~ she gives me lesbian vibes and you cannot change my mind

Lu Yao and Qiao Chusheng (My Roommate is a Detective) - I don't know if this has a novel, but considering their immense chemistry, an incident of Yao introducing himself as Chusheng's boyfriend, and their overall vibes, they both give me bisexual vibes

Shang Xirui and Cheng Fengtai (Winter Begonia) - aside from the cinematography of this masterpiece, both Xirui and Fengtai are very queer, and canon in the novel

Rizuna Ann (Alice in Borderland) - she's giving me girlboss-lesbian-who-will-outsmart-you vibes, especially after her and Kuina became ~closer friends~ and solved the last murder case