The random (fandom related) thoughts of a passionately optimistic day dreamer. An old soul who is young at heart. Holder of many OTPs. Holds the medium of animation and animated stories close to heart. Recently sucked into a whirlpool of foreign shows in which subtitles are required. A sucker for found families, tight knit friendships, natural romantic chemistry, action, adventure, comedy, fantasy and happy endings.
I know that right now it is merely being implied and the trailers have been notoriously misleading but you just have to do a double take at the plot devices they think acceptable to use in the year 2026.
What do you mean it is all in her head?
What do you mean this is in fact a manifestation of mental illness?!
When women are consistently being told they are too dramatic, hysteric, overreacting when they try to bring up any concerns they have over anything - mental health, physical wellbeing, interpersonal dynamics... when those same remarks are used as excuses to strip women of their freedom and autonomy...when dismissal of those valid concerns often materialize in their death....
You are going to tell me that instead of a woman surviving against all odds and making the choice to actively pursue and protect her happiness and independence......this is all a story of something wrong with her specifically. Mentally. Instead of simply being stubborn and eccentric as an old soul who reincarnated to the modern day, she was instead mentally unstable?!!! The yearning love story and the trauma of the Joseon era was all something she invented ?! That everything was a lie and she was deluded?! Making all the people who insulted and mocked the personality we have known for the past 12 episodes factually correct?!
Literally give me any other explanation instead of mental instability. You have already so dramatically undermined the required intellect, astuteness and capabilities that Kang Danshim would have acquired through her experience in the Joseon Royal Court and would have logically taken with her as she became Shin Seori, that to put in to question her mental capacity in general is several steps too far. It also then creates gaslighting on an enormous scale because she would be made to doubt not only everything but also every philosophical discovery and moment of growth. Every change in perspective. Every microscopic improvement in her relationship with Cha Segye. Every step forward made in her journey will be immediately wiped out.
Stop weakening this character for drama. Stop contributing to the continued terrible perception of female characters (which influences how actual women are perceived in reality) by giving any validity to the disrespect and disdain shown to her throughout the show by taunts of mental instability. Stop platforming gaslighting. Stop undermining not only the experiences that Kang Danshim/Shin Seori have gone through thus far but also the audience that saw a mirror to their struggles and their trauma. You are insulting them too by using this tactic. Abuse and trauma are not topics to handle so carelessly. They do not exist in the fictional world alone.
If I had a dollar for every single time a female character failed to fulfill her potential, I could buy a small country at this point. The fact that this is still happening is ridiculous.
The manifestation of this potential differs between modern and fantasy settings, but the core failing remains the same -- these characters never fully become badass, independent women who are capable and skilled.
For fantasy dramas, the emphasis is literally on badass. To be clear, this badassery is not The Chosen One levels of insane skill but clearly being able to hold your own in a world of magic, fantastical creatures, mystical powers, and life and death stakes. These female characters themselves have these fantastical abilities and they are supposed to be powerful. They themselves, independent of any man, are a threat. Brain and brawn. The reaction to their initial introduction/full manifestation of their abilities is one of awe and fear because the reputation of being a badass woman precedes her. However, instead of being a vital part of the action and the overarching plot of the story, they are quickly sidelined and have no impact at all. They revert to just being there. They wear pale clothing to almost literally blend into the background, they have little dialogue and any individual goal or motivation they had prior vanishes. They function from a given point as mainly the love interest of the male character. To worry over the man, to bat their eyelashes, scream their name (it is one of the only lines of dialogue they have) and to occasionally use their abilities (now so much weaker) to save the man. The end result often is that they end up sacrificing themselves for the man. This entire disintegration of self usually has beautiful bgm attached to it because this dynamic is presented as The Definition Of True Love and the person they become is just a girl in luuuuuurrrvvvveee. Total bullshit.
For modern dramas, the emphasis is on being a smart and capable badass. There are no life and death stakes and the woman is neither witch nor demon but the area of life she inhabits, she dominates. She is skilled, intelligent, GOOD AT WHAT SHE DOES. In what I have noticed, this is underplayed immediately. The writer must assume that the audience is stupid and cannot put two and two together. In a world dominated by men, you do not become a female CEO by laughing like a hyena and tripping into a garbage can. You cannot survive if you are mediocre and average. Your existence enough is testament to a level of capability and intelligence. To pursue the career you want and rise to the top of that field despite outright hostility and ostracization from your family, you cannot be an airhead with no cares in the world. To claim power in cutthroat environments where you have no allies, you have to play high stakes political chess and mastered the art of subterfuge, manipulation and observation at the very least. Instead any career that the woman possesses is treated like a name tag and nothing more. She then becomes a caricature. Absolutely dramatic 300% of the time. Acting like she is five when she is in fact thirty five. Not thinking a single thing through. Flighty and impulsive. The points of conflict in the story, it is written that the female character either started or made worse. She becomes the problem. Then enters the calm, collected, cool, demonstrably intelligent male character who becomes the solution. He is cleaning up all her messes. She is made to feel grateful for his assistance, she couldn't have done it without him because she is not capable in any shape or form whatsoever. The capability and intelligence that the woman MUST POSSESS are never allowed to be part of the story. Her true self is trapped in a cage of perpetual mediocrity in order to make the male character look better. Once again, hypnotism through visuals, background music and filters attempt to make the audience forget who she could have become because look how her life has improved with Perfect Man male character. She wouldn't need saving if she could be her original smart, capable badass self.
It's like nobody paid attention to Legally Blonde. Elle Woods contained multitudes. She was smart and loved fashion and beauty. Through not picking one over the other, her particular blend of talents and interests ending up winning the case. She was no less intelligent simply because she refused to give up wearing pink or because she was friendly to strangers. The romance she later pursues does not force her to shrink herself to become convenient and easily palatable to the guy. Throughout the movie, Elle Woods remained a badass.
Female characters contain multitudes. They can be smart and kind. They can be capable and funny. They can be able to kill their enemies using only a spoon and be gentle with baby animals. They can be an active part of the plot without giving up their badassery. In fact, their badassery can be an instrumental aid in the protagonists' overarching mission.
Let them stand shoulder to shoulder with all the other protagonists as EQUALS. Let them stand side by side with their love interests AS EQUALS.
YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE TO DIM THE LIGHT OF THE FEMALE CHARACTER in order to have the romance or plot exist.
LET THEM BE SKILLED AND INTELLIGENT THE ENTIRE TIME.
It is an out of body experience for a show to go from something that brings you such joy to something that brings you such dread.
Dopamine and escape to anxiety and exhaustion.
Becoming disillusioned with a show you relied on to be a lifeboat in a world of chaos is like being devoured by an energy vampire.
It hits you even harder when you had such anticipation and excitement because the chemistry of the actors is so compelling.
This has become my experience with My Royal Nemesis.
A RANT:
The dread didn't sweep over me like a tidal wave but creeped up on me like a shadow.
It was a culmination of waiting for something that never happened and the anxiety created by what took its place instead.
For a premise that initially felt so refreshing, the script fell into age-old patterns of back-to-back drama with no respite.
And I am tired.
What was I waiting for?
I was waiting for a competent, intelligent female character. I was waiting for a mature relationship with mutual conversation. I was waiting for successful teamwork.
I got nothing.
Kang Danshim was presented in the opening sequence as a villain. As someone so cunning and powerful, she became too successful. She held too much power as the second most powerful person in the court despite her status as a concubine. So, she became the scapegoat, was murdered and erased from history. You see her wake up in the modern day and was not a quiet wallflower but headstrong with no filter. When she rescued Cha Segye due to her sixth sense for assassination attempts, I eagerly awaited for all her other capabilities to emerge. Survival in such a cutthroat ancient court environment required both being quick on your feet and skillful mastery of subtle manipulation.
The combination of those soft skills and the refusal to shrink herself or back down should have created a character who is a valuable ally to a chaebol CEO. The long awaited relationship dynamic where both are equally morally grey, intelligent and deadly and thus, an intimidating powerhouse when combined.
It would have been amazing.
Instead, headstrong became her entire personality to the point of being a caricature. The "she is eccentric and chaotic" antics lose its charm when there is no underlying intelligence and competence. Especially when it is a clear and present obstacle to their working relationship let alone their romantic relationship. It also sabotages and undermines her individual, personal journey making it hard to root for her character because you are so frustrated by her.
Kang Danshim would have had clear communication with Cha Segye. She would have told him about the encounters she had with his family and the creepy vibes, stalking and manipulation attempts from Choi Mundo. To her, this is simply information. Facts. Current events. That pertain to him so he should be in on the loop as she would have considered him an ally. She would have smelled the possibility of future manipulation if she withheld the truth from a mile away. She would have no reason to not be suspicious of Choi Mundo as his mannerisms and behavior match that of the King who ordered for her to die; she would have carried that hate to the modern day. The angst and conflict that was created from withholding that information would have never happened if Kang Danshim as Shin Seori was rational and reasonable.
The romantic relationship in general quickly became incredibly draining as it became angst without end. Every single episode started to include a fight. You could not enjoy the time in-between because the angst would appear again with ferocity, sending their relationship once again ten steps backwards. You never got the sense that their relationship grew in strength or understanding because nothing was ever resolved with mutual conversation. The torture of the miscommunication troupe is still present with incomplete communication and the anguish that gets dragged out because of it. In 2026, there is no longer anything noble in noble idiocy because you are taking away someone's choice. You are not respecting them to make their own decisions. You are not giving them the information needed for them to make an informed choice. By deciding for them, you are removing their autonomy. It is simply pure idiocy. There is nothing romantic about that. Ultimately, the refreshing, healing, healthy, mature couple we were promised never came to fruition. In all regards, their relationship still remains in the "will-they-won't-they" unstable stage. Heo Namjun and Lim Jiyeon's chemistry and acting are insane and the only thing saving anything, but gradually I lost all dopamine from their bickering because the bickering took the place of conversations that needed to happen. The actors' chemistry and acting only enhanced my desire to see their peaceful moments together which were way too few and far between for the limited number of episodes this show has.
Two episodes left and they are still not a team. They have never tackled a single thing together. You cannot successfully team up and focus on outsmarting the enemy when your bond is fractured and fragile. In fact, Choi Mundo is running circles around them both. Instead of being five steps ahead of him, they are twenty steps behind. Instead of being the ones who take action, they are simply reacting to his machinations. It is absolutely unsatisfying. What makes it worse is I cannot fathom at this point what them working together will look like. This was supposed to be a partnership of similar minds but they are so far from that status it is laughable. Scheming for Shin Seori currently will look less like detailed observations and a calculated trap, and more her stumbling into a solution and the luck of sprinkles and unicorns. They undermined the required intellect and astuteness of her character so comprehensively that it is hard to picture her being instrumental in coming up with a take-down plot. Cha Segye's edges have been dulled enough that I am not convinced he will initiate any plans in time. To be honest, with the time left and the angst in the trailer, I don't think they will ever become the ones to defeat Choi Mundo. I wouldn't be surprised if Choi Mundo dies in true cartoon villain fashion: tripping on a banana peel, falling off a cliff, or yet another white truck of doom. I was robbed of what should have been an amazing partnership and everything they would have accomplished.
I was robbed of everything this drama could have been. What it instead became has left me exhausted, drained and completely disillusioned. I had come into this drama blind and found myself so initially entertained that I grew attached. Heo Namjun and Lim Jiyeon's chemistry and acting were so well done that I thought it would be different this time. I watch drama for an escape, for dopamine and serotonin so my head doesn't feel so heavy. Angst without respite is the antithesis of what I need. I continued this drama with hope and worry consistently battling in my mind. I hoped they would tactfully handle the angst so that it wouldn't overwhelm the healing promise of the drama and I worried that it would crash and burn in the second half like so many dramas before it. I continued following it from a distance as I held out hope. My hopes were fruitless and my worries were proven right. There is absolutely not enough time in two hours to fix things but nothing will be enough to alleviate the anxiety and exhaustion that has taken the place of joy when I watch this drama.
Any healing that exists in My Royal Nemesis exists in the behind the scenes with Heo Namjun and Lim Jiyeon. Dopamine can be found in the joy and laughter that radiates from those clips and the blast they clearly had filming this drama.
Let me start off by saying I will always love Bake Off. It is the best baking show out there because of the cozy vibes and the way the bakers support one another. In Bake Off, competition itself isn’t the priority and the bakers restore a little of your faith in the goodness of humanity.
However, the start of this season signaled to me that it continues to move away from its bread and butter and is trying to mold itself into something it isn’t.
Don’t get me wrong, it has been on this track for a couple seasons now but I thought they would stop and readjust but they haven’t. This show was built on regular good hearted people. They didn’t have fancy jobs, they weren’t rolling in money, and they baked to feed the people around them and as a love language. What they baked during Bake Off was rough around the edges in presentation because that was the point. Nobody in their daily lives had the time to bother about the superficial appearance of their food as they juggled work and other responsibilities. As a bonus, there were baking history lessons to learn the ancient origins of modern everyday staples as it set itself further apart from hyper-competitive professional baking shows as a show for and about the regular working class person. Bake Off marketed itself as being down-to-earth and firmly rooted in community; celebrating people who went ignored by its competitors. And it found great success!
It doesn’t seem like Bake Off is for these salt of the earth bakers anymore. What is the value of hyper-realistic edible art for someone who grabs a few precious hours every week to bake in between working full time and trying to pay the bills?! What is the purpose of making an uncommon cake without a recipe?! What is the point of requiring equipment and techniques to succeed that cost a lot of money to acquire?! These challenges get more and more outlandish and the bakers are given less and less time AND FOR WHAT?! So that Paul and Prue can have the smuggest grins on their faces as they watch people struggle?!
People watch Bake Off because it isn’t Iron Chef or Sugar Rush. The appeal of this show is that they are not professional bakers so stop designing professional level challenges with professional level standards.
Stop consistently emphasizing finesse and appearance.
This show’s appeal was cemented years ago in the good old days and it remains because people are clinging to the few scraps of similarities left. This show is being destroyed while it acts as a vehicle for Paul and Prue’s ego trips.
Enough already. Stop before it’s too late and go back to your roots.
I think at this point all the challenges should be judged blindfolded. So you make up your mind about the flavor (aka the most important part) before you see what it looks like (a bonus). Paul and Prue seem incapable of separating the two otherwise.
I feel like Paul needs to be visited by the Spirit of Baking Past, the Spirit of Baking Present and the Sprit of Baking Future to get it drilled into his head that finesse has never truly mattered throughout history. It has never been finesse above all. It has been about baking as a love language and means to feed your loved ones. The flavor and the thought is what counts.
And it is the bakers' duty to occasionally as frequently as possible make this duty as hard as possible. Make Paul suffer in his line of work! It is an act of public service!
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