An Oldie.... and no, it's not us.

Judy Here. I routinely search recommendations on Kdramas trying to find the hidden gems I have not seen. A title that kept popping up (including from our Korean Tour Guide) was Jewel in the Palace. This show was from 2003 and included 54 (Yikes!) episodes. Well, I decided I should watch this classic.

For approximately the first 20 episodes it was mainly a cooking competition. Two Joseon Palace Maids competed against each other to see who could make the best meals. Being intensely interested in cooking these episodes kept me riveted. (If you have read this blog for any length of time you know this is absolutely false...) I have not seen so much dicing, slicing, chopping, mincing, mashing, stirring, and tasting in my life. Yes, I'm familiar with the special rapid cutting method whereby you brace the knife against your bent finger & chop like a maniac. Do I need to see it for 20 hours? In a nutshell, no.

The next 20 episodes focused a bit on power dynamics in the palace. Guess what? There were families caught up in advancing their positions. There were underhanded deals made. There were arrests and interrogations of almost all the main characters. In short, there was the normal stuff you see in Joseon period Kdramas. But no fascinating intrigues or action that I particularly enjoyed... and they threw in a couple of cooking scenes to make me miss the first 20 episodes.

I'm now at Episode 40 and only have 14 to go. With my time invested, and the over-the-top recommendations this show got, I felt compelled to go the distance. The final 14 episodes we get to focus on the romance between the leads (of which there wasn't enough in my opinion) and the role of female doctors in Joseon Korea. This Kdrama is actually taken from a true story; the first Female Royal Physician who lived in the early 1500's. Her job was to be the personal physician to the King and that apparently was a no-no during that period. My perseverence paid off (kind of) with a bittersweet ending that I won't divulge here.

So, what did I think? Well, it would have been a great show if it had been 16 or maybe 24 episodes. The length was simply ridiculous. I suppose I did get to see a number of unusual cooking utensils but a stroll through Williams-Sonoma might be just as effective. I can assure you that I won't be rewatching the show... my life is too short.

Lee Young-ae and Ji Jin-hee who I thought was better in Misty. He's 32 in this shot and looks exactly like he does now at 53.

Pat here. Bittersweet ending? Slicing, dicing, chopping, mincing, mashing, stirring and even tasting? I’m in! Face it: these are two of my favorite things. Unrequited love and cooking get me every time. My only question for you, Judy, is how you knew the difference between slicing, dicing, chopping, mincing, and stirring? I’ll give you a point for tasting. You’re good at that. But the techniques of preparing a meal? Nah.

How are we still friends? ~ Judy