What a view | The showdown is coming in The King: Eternal Monarch, but is the series living up to its promise?
- The K-drama, which arrived on Netflix in April to much fanfare, is fast approaching its climax
- Who will triumph – in love and in which of the parallel realms – is soon to be decided
Much fanfare accompanied the global debut of Netflix’s recent star signing, South Korea’s The King: Eternal Monarch. As series one nears the climax of its 16-show run, has the dimension-busting, science-fiction fantasy romance fulfilled its early promise?
Going straight into many a first-choice viewing line-up, The King arrived with a bloody flourish, the monarch being cut down by his envious half-brotherin a burst of Hamlet-inspired regicide.
Next came parallel worlds thrown open by demons, a love triangle or two and potentially a bit of a square in the shape of new king Lee Gon (Lee Min-ho), out to avenge his slaughtered father but aloof in his burgeoning relationship with detective Jung Tae-eul (Kim Go-eun). It must be difficult trying to keep a girl interested when you’re forever nipping back to your other universe and she’s suspicious of your social diary.
All this started with a spat concerning a magic flute that ultimately was less the pipe of peace advertised than a war trumpet, hence the massing of armies across the supernatural divide and the face-off between the king and the traitor. And with most main characters playing two roles in different worlds, the narrative has sprawled and swerved – making a whole-series binge-watch (or re-watch) the best option.
As for the climax: the good-versus-evil eternal storm is coming.
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