Under the Queen’s Umbrella is a sprawling, lavish historical K-drama with a massive wealth of characters. For the convenience of viewers, here is a detailed cast list matched with the characters they’re playing in the show.
- Park Seo Joon (Jung Woo Hyun)
- Yoo Jae Suk (Lee Min Ho)
- Choi Jung Hwa (Jung Eun Hee)
- Kim Ji Suk (Yoo Jae Suk)
- Kim Seung Hwan (Choi Jung Hwa)
- Park Ki Sung (Jung Woo Hyun)
- Kim Min Jung (Yoo Jae Suk) 8. Choi Kang Ho (Jung Eun Hee) 9. Ryu Soo Hyun (Kim Ji Suk) 10. Yoo Ahn Seok (Park Ki Sung)
The new season of the popular Korean drama “Queen In-hyuk” features Kim Hye-soo as Queen Im Hwa-ryeong, Kim Hae-sook as the Queen Dowager, and Choi Won-young as King Lee-ho. Other actors joining the cast include Moon Sang-min as Grand Prince Seong-nam, Bae In-hyuk as the Crown Prince, Yoo Seon-ho as the Grand Prince Gye-seong, and Kang Chan-hee as Prince Ui-seong. ..
Episode 1 Recap
Episode 1 of Under The Queen’s Umbrella begins with Queen Hwa-ryeong being taken to the palace frantically by her soldiers. Once there, she removes the Prince from Princess Cho-wol’s bed and takes him back. Queen Dowager welcomes the Crown Prince and Princess and their son. ..
The king is busy dealing with internal matters of the State. A plague has broken out in Seochon, which forces him to make a decision. He decides to take care of the people by giving them food, but this risks the spread of the plague. Some of the men are disappointed with this decision. ..
When Hwa-ryeong returns to South Korea, she is met with both positive and negative reactions from viewers. We meet several key characters at Jonghak, the institute where the royal prince and princesses go for an education. Prince Uiseong, Consort Hwang, Prince Simso, Ko, Consort Kim, and Prince Yeongmin are the special ones we will focus on here.
It has been a long time since Dowager and Lee were supposed to arrive at the institute. The students are anxious because the royal students who were supposed to come are all missing, and Hwa-ryeong is trying to take care of the situation. Seongnam still hasn’t arrived, even after the King and Queen have. The Crown Prince has a different school of study. ..
The Crown Prince goes to the Sigangwaon, where he is exposed to different subjects and interests. Seongnam finally arrives, but does so when the King is in his final minutes of a lesson at Jonghak. Queen Dowager is left unimpressed and later complains to Hwa about their reckless behavior. She tries to allay the Queen’s fears and is impressed by how the Crown Prince is receiving his education at the other institute. All of the members of the royal family are expected to set an example and lead from the front. ..
Dowager and Hwa are discussing the recent events when they hear a knock on the door. Dowager goes to answer it, and finds a man standing there with a letter in hand. He introduces himself as Sigangwon, the Prince of Goguryeo. Dowager is surprised to hear that he has passed the test with flying colors. She tells him that she was worried about him, but he assures her that everything is going well. They discuss future plans and how they can help each other.
The Uiseong Royal Family is facing a lot of bullying from the Grand Princes. This has caused Dowager Queen to become angry and she punishes the boys. Watching the scene may remind one of how Aegon was bullied by the kids in episode 5 of House of Dragons. Coming back to point, this incident leads to a truly tense moment where Crown Prince collapses on the ground without any external wounds. ..
Hwa is concerned about her son’s suddenly deteriorated condition. It seems like it is nothing serious and she then attends to Dowager in her quarters. Hwang reprimands Uiseong for being jealous of Hwa and the Crown Prince.
We see the Queen and her advisors conferring about what to do next. They decide that they need to find out more about the Crown Prince’s health and whether he is susceptible to this disease. They also decide that they need to get the help of some of the best healers in the land so that they can treat him properly.
The Dowager informs Hwa of the punishment meted out to the princes for their outrageous behavior with Uiseong. Hwa is careful not to mention the Crown Prince’s condition to anyone else, including the King and the Queen. The next lesson at the Jonghak is about relations. It is your average biology class and a chance for the boys to create a mess among the students.
We see the King and the Queen discussing who can be a possible replacement for Ja-hong, who has gone to China. The King and the Queen aren’t able to decide immediately. Rumors swirl when a Special Court Lady gets the nod from the King to sit with the others. We see some low-level politics just below the Crown, kickstarted by Consort Hwang when an opportunity comes for the Jonghak Princes to take up a spot with the Crown Prince as a “cohort”.
Uiseong is upset that she will not be able to compete in the concubine lottery and her mother is sure to fill the ears of fellow concubines about these prejudiced traditions. Each of the concubines tried to investigate how the present traditions came into being, especially the question of how Dowager had managed to turn the tables in her time.
The Crown Prince’s condition has again taken center stage in the kingdom, and Hwa tries to take the focus off of him. She gets a bit defensive when she learns of the cohort idea and that Dowager proposed the same. Consort Tae, who had grabbed hold of a book by Dowager about kingsmanship and how to mold one, makes the Queen even more insecure about the entire situation.
Dowager finally has a one-on-one with the Crown Prince after insisting on being with him in bed. She is more interested in matters related to the crown than health and how soon he can get better. She sees all of the Grand Princes as unfit to rule and their behavior is childish. Only the Crown Prince is in her eyes capable of ruling the people well.
Cho even insinuates that the princes will be stopped from making their claims on the throne if the situation arises for the position to be filled. It is like an open threat to Hwa, who can do nothing about it in the current situation. Hwa, now desperate for answers, asks around for details about who in the lineage was infected with the disease. The Prince who was infected passed on and was Queen Yoon’s son. But as it turns out, Dowager has her reach deep into every aspect of royal life Hwa wants to interfere in. ..
In a recent interview with The Korea Herald, Yoon said she already has a secret pact with Dowager and there are no suggestions made by her in this regard. Dowager meets with Hwang and encourages her to push Ueiseong for the role. It is all about gaining loyalty and an upper hand in this impending battle of ascension the crown will face in some time.
The Episode Review
Under the Queen’s Umbrella is a period drama that displays great quality. ..
The first good thing about Episode 1 is that the money was spent well on costumes, set designs, and getting the contours of the traditions right. A bit of a downer and positive at the same time is the humungous cast. It will take some time for you to get used to all of the players who will participate in this power struggle. ..
In both cases, it’s important to stay focused on the main goal. In order to make the most of your time, it’s important to be aware of what’s happening in front of you and not get lost in the details.
The central conflict between Dowager and Hwa is certainly a compelling one. Given how the actresses have given an account of themselves in episode 1, Under the Queen’s Umbrella looks set to be a sumptuous occasion to see the craftsmanship of the highest quality on display. ..
The comic undertones in this episode were not fully optimized, but the intention to push the narrative in that direction is appreciated. upcoming episodes will provide an opportunity to rectify those shortcomings. ..
