Season 1
16 episodes Apr 17, 2020 8.7
Overview
Korean emperor Lee Gon tries to close the doors to a parallel world which was opened by demons; a detective tries to protect the people and the one she loves.
Seasons
2 listed- Status
- Ended
- Seasons
- 1 season
- Episodes
- 16 episodes
- First aired
- Apr 17, 2020
- Last aired
- Jun 12, 2020
- Episode length
- 72m
- Network
- SBS
Latest episode: S1 E16 Episode 16 (Jun 12, 2020)
Specials
1 episode May 17, 2020
Cast
12 people
Reviews
6 min readA Doorway, a Crown, and the Cost of Splitting the Self
I keep coming back to the image of a man on horseback moving through a nearly empty Seoul street, as if the city had briefly agreed to become a fairy tale and then forgotten to tell anyone else. That’s the kind of audacious visual promise The King: Eternal Monarch makes early on: a sovereign from one Korea slipping between worlds, latestnetflix.com contends, with a detective on the other side who doesn’t have time for his destiny or his expensive coat.
For a few minutes, it feels like the series might be a sleek alternate-history romance, a political fantasy, and a metaphysical puzzle all at once. Which, to be fair, it is. Or tries very hard to be.
What’s interesting about the show, especially in hindsight, is that it arrived as a glossy, high-concept return for writer Kim Eun-sook’s brand of imperial-scale melodrama, even though the credited creators here are Baek Sang-hoon, Jung Jee-hyun, and Yu Je-won. The discourse around it, at least in the English-speaking corner of the internet, often settled into a familiar argument: was it overstuffed nonsense, or deliciously overcommitted nonsense?
That sounds like a cheap distinction, but it matters. Some series are embarrassed by their own absurdity. This one isn’t.
It puts a horse in a city, a monarch in a leather jacket, and a parallel Korea in play, then asks you to accept that love, like sovereignty, may be a matter of crossing the right border at the right time.
I don’t think the show is really about parallel universes, not in the comic-book sense. It’s about division. National division, yes, but also the much smaller and more painful sort: the split between duty and appetite, performance and feeling, the person the state needs and the person who shows up alone at 2 a.m.
Lee Gon, as played by Lee Min-ho, has the stillness of someone trained to look like an emblem. That’s not the same thing as being emotionally vacant, and Lee knows it. He carries himself like a display case given a pulse — chin lifted, shoulders squared, voice kept lower than necessary — and then lets tiny cracks appear, usually in the eyes before anywhere else.
His casting matters because so much of his screen identity has been built on polished romantic authority; here, that polish becomes a trap. He’s a prince-shaped loneliness machine.
Kim Go-eun gives the series its most human energy. She has always been good at making intelligence look improvised, like she’s thinking just a half-step ahead of the room and resenting the room for making her explain herself. In The King, that quality keeps the detective from becoming merely the ordinary-world counterpart in a fantasy romance.
Audience Opinions
Broad evidence
Audience 7.5/10
"A lush Korean fantasy romance that hooks devoted fans, though not everyone stays for the long haul."
The King: Eternal Monarch is a South Korean fantasy, romance and historical drama built around hour-plus episodes that aired Friday and Saturday on SBS. The crowd response is warm but split: it holds an 8.2 scored by 74,818 users on one fan platform alongside a 6.5 from 305 votes elsewhere. Enthusiastic viewers call it brilliantly imaginative and totally addictive, linking it to the writer of Mr Sunshine, Goblin and Descendants of the sun and praising Korean mastery of romantic drama. latestnetflix.com's take is that First Impressions and Reaction viewing and dedicated KDrama Review discussion show people watched to judge the high-concept romance for themselves.
What viewers praise
- Addictive romantic imagination Viewers describe it as brilliantly imaginative and addictive, from the writer behind Mr Sunshine, Goblin and Descendants of the sun, praising Korean mastery of romantic drama.
- Large engaged fan base An 8.2 scored by 74,818 users for the South Korean Friday and Saturday SBS run points to a big, invested audience.
- Active first-impression conversation First Impressions and Reaction viewing and dedicated KDrama Review coverage show viewers tuning in early to react and debate.
Common complaints
- Split reception A 6.5 from 305 votes shows the love is not universal and some viewers connected less strongly.
- Long episodes demand commitment With duration listed around 72 minutes to 1 hr 10 min blending fantasy, romance and historical elements, it asks for sustained attention.
Recommended for
Fans of Korean fantasy romance with historical flavor Viewers who like long, addictive romantic dramas in the Goblin and Descendants of the sun lineage
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsBehind the Scenes of The King: Eternal Monarch: The Highs, Hype, and Hurdles
The King: Eternal Monarch (2020) arrived with sky-high expectations. From its star-studded cast to its ambitious premise—a romantic fantasy blending parallel worlds—it was poised to be a global K-drama sensation. But behind the glossy production, the series faced its share of challenges, from creative debates to logistical hurdles. latestnetflix.com's take is that here’s what the evidence reveals about the making of this much-discussed drama.
A Script with Star Power—and Scrutiny
At the heart of The King: Eternal Monarch was writer Kim Eun-sook, a heavyweight in Korean television known for hits like Descendants of the Sun and Goblin. Her involvement alone guaranteed buzz, but the script’s ambitious blend of fantasy, romance, and mystery also drew skepticism. The premise—a modern-day emperor crossing into a parallel world to meet a detective—was a departure from her usual fare, and early snippets suggested a complex narrative that would test even her storytelling prowess 
.
The production was helmed by Hwa&Dam Pictures and Studio Dragon, two powerhouses in K-drama production, which likely meant high budgets and tight schedules. However, the evidence doesn’t specify whether the script underwent major revisions, leaving fans to speculate about the creative process behind its twists and turns .
Casting Lee Min-ho and Kim Go-eun: A Dream Team or a Gamble?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lgkzo3RBHe0
Lee Min-ho and Kim Go-eun were the undeniable draws of the series. Lee, a global Hallyu star fresh off The Legend of the Blue Sea, and Kim, riding high from Goblin and Youth of May, were a pairing that promised chemistry. But their on-screen dynamic became a talking point—some fans adored it, while others found it lacking compared to their previous roles 
.
Supporting cast members like Woo Do-hwan (Mad Dog, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) and Jung Eun-chae (Hospital Playlist) added depth, but the evidence doesn’t reveal whether there were any behind-the-scenes tensions or creative differences among the actors. Rumors of on-set clashes occasionally surfaced in fan circles, but nothing was confirmed by the sources .
Production Challenges: From Parallel Worlds to Real-World Problems
Filming a drama set in two parallel universes—one a modern constitutional monarchy, the other a dystopian alternate reality—required elaborate sets, VFX, and meticulous planning. The evidence hints at the scale of the production, with mentions of Studio Dragon’s involvement suggesting a high budget . However, the snippets don’t detail whether the team faced delays, budget overruns, or technical difficulties.
One unverified rumor circulating at the time suggested that the series’ ambitious visual effects led to post-production delays, though this wasn’t confirmed by the sources. The 16-episode run, which aired from April to June 2020, may have been a tight window for such a complex project .
Reception: Hype vs. Reality
The King: Eternal Monarch premiered to massive anticipation, with Netflix securing global streaming rights—a sign of its international appeal. But the reception was mixed. While some viewers praised its cinematography and Lee Min-ho’s charisma, others criticized the plot’s convoluted twists and pacing. The series’ rating of 6.5/10 on SensCritique reflects this divide .
The evidence doesn’t delve into whether the cast or crew responded publicly to the criticism, but the drama’s legacy remains a topic of debate among K-drama fans. Some argue it was a victim of its own hype, while others see it as a bold, if flawed, experiment in genre-blending .
The Verdict: A Series of What-Ifs
For all its ambition, The King: Eternal Monarch remains a fascinating case study in K-drama production—one where high expectations collided with creative risks. The evidence leaves many questions unanswered: Were there script rewrites? Did the cast gel behind the scenes? Did the VFX team struggle to meet deadlines? Without more details, fans are left to piece together the story from snippets and speculation.
What’s clear is that the series left a mark, for better or worse, as a high-profile experiment in fantasy romance. Whether it’s remembered as a misfire or a cult favorite may depend on who you ask.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.
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