Let me first give a little background on my liking for Ha Ji Won. Somehow I feel there is gut in her, that makes me want to watch her acting. Secret Garden was my 1st korean drama and still remains my all-time favorite. While it is undeniably Hyun Bin who stole the show in Secret Garden, I realized how much I came to love and respect Gil Ra Im (Ha Ji Won's character). I think she's the only female character I have ever had a girl-crush on. I feel that she can overcome any challenges given to her. So, it was pretty expected of me to pick up Empress Ki eventually.
I spent a week of trip back to historical era. Although I don't watch 50+ episodes dramas easily, I picked one up once in a while if it catches my interest. I started this drama just to watch Ha Ji Won in action again and also because I was in a mood for a historical drama. But honestly, all I was expecting was an overrated drama with a poor, exaggerated plot and brilliant acting. Oh boy, I was wrong.
This drama is based on fictional history of Empress Ki. Well, to be precise drama follows the life of a girl from Koryeo who becomes the most powerful woman of a Yuan Empire and her loves as she is torn between two countires. Empress Ki is undeniably the best drama of 2013. The plot is so well-paced that you won't feel like stopping even for a moment and won't feel like skipping a single scene either. The plot evokes such trouble for all protagonists but yet you sit in relief knowing Ki Seung Nyang is there. Watching, observing, plotting, winning.
Seung Nyang. She is the best thing about this drama. She is behind-the-scene most of the time and she defeats her opponents before they even know who they are up against. The girl has wits and she can plot and fight. She is the perfect one-man army. I haven't seen a more wiser character than her. Coming Wang Yu, he is perfect too, faithful, loyal and undying love for Seung Nyang. From the beginning you know Seung Nyang and Wang Yu aren't meant to be since she's destined to marry the king of Yuan and become Empress Ki. But even then you can't help rooting for him from time to time and falling for his charms and his sincerity towards Seung Nyang.
The King of Yuan isn't someone you can take for granted. Even though he's a bit of a coward and a puppet played by many, he is still very cute and likeable. Honestly I think he's a naive soul stuck in the horrible politics of the palace with no one to rely on and with no option but to fight not just for his throne but his life. I really loved his devotion for Empress Ki in all circumstances. Even till the end of his life, he still hoped to receive her true love.
All supporting actors were simply brilliant and were nowhere beneath the main cast. My personal favorites were El Temur (because I loved seeing him go down!) and his kids (who were utterly mean and vicious). I also loved the servants of Goryeo and all the eunuchs of Yuan. Tal Tal and his uncle were also amazing. Some characters I loved because they acted very well.
I personally preferred the first 20 episodes until episode 23 onwards, the life of Seung Nyang changed 180 degrees. Beause all she wanted is to revenge. Her hatred got over her. What I felt strange was Lady Park was pregnant much earlier than Lady Ki but yet Lady Ki gave birth before Lady Park. Another plot that doesn't make sense is there are many chances to kill Yeom Byung-Soo (One of the vallians) Somehow he just couldn't die until the last episode :P Another scene is that all the nuns in the temple supposed to die, somehow the later part of the episodes, different nuns keep appearing to tell the truth haha :D I didn't like the fact that it has a lot of killing and unjustice in this drama. But I understand how traumatised the era to be, with so much power struggle and monetary gains.
To come to such a high overall score despite the glaring shortcomings of the script, I took the whole picture into consideration. A 51-hours long story that manages to keep the interest alive till the very end is commendable in itself. The visuals are used at its highest, with stunningly beautiful sets, costumes, colours and camera work. From the clothes to palaces and the forests, everything they shot was so beautiful and historically rich. If you are able to suspend belief at times and focus on style and emotional impact, you'll no doubt enjoy Empress Ki as much as I did. The music was great and the production was simply breathtaking.
Coming to the historical significance, many historians complained that the drama portrayed Empress Ki as a national hero where in fact she was a traitor who tried to make her brother sit on Goryeo's throne. The drama has been repeatedly been accused of exaggerating facts and misguiding people (especially young ones, who are not much aware of Empress Ki) into idolizing empress ki. Although I cannot comment on the historical facts, I would ask people to watch this with an open mind, without trying to find empress ki from history in the character of Seung Nyang. She has been frictionize, might not be the same person but the character that has been written is truly worth a watch.
I would recommend this drama to everyone. If you've never watched a 50+ eps drama, this is a good place to start. If you've never watched a historical drama, this is a good place to start. Definitely Ha Ji won's best portrayal so far. She deserved all those Daesang awards she got for this.
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