In Defense of Scarlet Heart Ryeo (Moonlover's).....This is an article on the drama written thru fan collaboration, it is not a chapter in the season 2 fanfic.

In Defense of Scarlet Heart Ryeo.

By @Pei, @Anne, @Persian, @Maui (fan collaboration)

Over a year ago Moonlover’s Scarlet Heart Ryeo (MLSHR) aired to disappointing ratings at home.  Worldwide it garnered attention including 2.5 billion watches on China’s Youku.  Setting the drama on dual platforms. Success abroad but low ratings at home.

There are many reasons fans love so much about the story. MLSHR explores what stirs the human heart. It is told in a way that makes you care deeply about its characters.

 Promotional clips showed a light youth flower-boy drama but MLSHR is not just another youth sageuk. 

It is a drama that is brutally honest in the dynamic inside “Goryeo’s” royal family. Intimately told with personal portraits as we explore their relationships.

Comments in dramabeans alone (1,265 for episode 20) show the story engaged viewers into deep analysis.

There are many elements that appeal to different audiences, ages and cultures. There’s romance, history, action, tragedy.  

The cinematography and visuals create dreamlike scenes like live action post cards or paintings brought to life.

  

 The costumes and make-up, artfully done, beautifully produced create screen magic. 

The close ups, at times criticized, but in scenes (Hae-Soo applying makeup for 4^th Prince) they bring intimacy, allowing us to see nuanced gestures.

The panoramic angles inspire the imagination in a way that great art does. This along with an incredible soundtrack makes scenes unforgettable. 

Transporting us to more than grief, or loss. Lady Oh’s death scene suddenly hits you in the gut, as the OST crawls right into your soul.

 Characters in MLSHR are complex, layered, flawed not heroic written with believable struggles in 10 years they experience growth and change.

Character are not written into the story as filler or comedic relief. Their backstory, their small appearance leaves audiences wanting to know more. Cringing at their naivety, their choices, lamenting their fates, surprised as they change over time.

The relationships in MLSHR are explored adding gravitas to the story. These are intimate moments, portraits explored in a rich tapestry due to some brilliant casting choices.

Lee Joon-Gi’s performance as 4^th Prince an actor at the top of his game. What a treat to watch him convey emotion intimately. Some so raw we are left feeling shaken. Watching in full color as he slowly, knowingly swallows poison.   

Through 4^th Prince we explore relationships with his mother Queen Shinmyeongsunseong and brother Prince Yo thru scenes full of complex dark emotions leading us down tunnels of greed and twisted love. 

Tortured souls trapped in their own fears. 4^th Prince’s final goodbye to his mother; raw, visceral, a human longing for unattainable love.

8^th Prince brilliantly cast by Kang Ha Neul, creates perfect tension. One reaching for the light, the other traveling away from it.

Prince Baek-Ah’s innocence more fit to be a revolutionary or socialist. King Mu’s lack of ruthlessness the missing piece to a true enduring monarch. 

Prince Eun, immature and young surprising us with his sacrifices as husband. King Taejo: ambitious, wise, cruel, clever, merciful. All of them flawed. All change paying the price for their choices.

Then there’s romance and possibly the most loved/hated protagonist Hae-Soo played by IU. In defense of her performance, we must consider Lee Joon-Gi . Cast next to him as leading lady is not easy for any actress even experienced beautiful ones. 

Yet IU manages to shine in the beauty department not looking like his noona, and has in addition chemistry with the Prince’s.

The ability to portray young and aged in the second half of the drama allows her to fit the Prince’s different heights, ages, and personalities.

She develops a unique relationship with each one.

4^th Prince and Hae Soo’s relationship isn’t one where he is captured by her beauty, but where time, friendship, circumstances slowly bring hearts at odds together.

When love finds him 4^th Prince falls hard for Hae Soo.

She is flawed, naive and unaware of what love is. 

She finds in him love surpassing all others.

She isn’t perfect, but she compliments him so well.  The Kingmaker, with a compassionate heart who understands the castaway.

Tortured in a cell she waits, he visits. Not asking how she is, but reprimanding her. She wonders what to do with him?

Their conversation is intimate in its silence like watching an old married couple. It is their eyes that convey their hearts.

Hae-Soo’s naivety and choices are difficult to understand. The writers portray a flawed person who makes emotional choices and pays the price. 

We cringe at the brutal honesty and get angry when the price is paid for those choices. Hae-Soo is very human with strengths (the heart that wins a King) and weaknesses (emotional choices). She too grows and changes.

The story has its moments of sheer epic-ness. Including fight scene feeling like a Tarantino movie as Lee Joon-Gi shows off his martial arts single handed against an entire temple of assassin monks with no stuntman.

MLSHR’s strong women include: Princess Yeon-Hwa surviving by aiming to win the game of thrones, Park Son Deok who can outfight and outmaneuver any soldier, Chae Ryung a slave boiling down the essentials to love is stronger.

 There struggles are real, poignant, adding layers, showing love can be multi-faceted. The writers again don’t shy away from showing how their actions have consequences.

The last episode leaves ample room to grow. Why did Ji-Mong leave? What about the King’s daughter? How will he travel to the future?   What happens now?  Open threads needing so much more exploration, leaving us wanting more.

As fans we appreciate the good, the bad and the ugly.  Feeling grateful for the details and quality. 

It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but MLSHR universe found a solid place in many fans hearts. Making it the standard by which they judge other sageuk.

Its real characters continue to haunt us and the yet unexplored storylines. The endless possibilities for the story. These thoughts leave us with no real closure.