King the Land (2023)

August 27, 2023

Our Take: A lighthearted, old-school fairytale rom-com. 

King the Land begins in 2015 when Cheon Sa Rang (Im Yoon Ah) is interviewing for a coveted internship at The King Hotel, one of South Korea's most luxurious stays. Sa Rang spent a good chunk of her childhood with her mom at or near hotels, including The King Hotel. Because of her joyful childhood experiences, she dreams of working as a hotel concierge and bringing the same happiness to everyone she meets. 

Despite never attending college, her quick wits and bright smile impress The King Group's director, Gu Hwa Ran (Kim Sun Young). She lands her dream job but initially faces animosity and prejudice from her coworkers, who look down on her for not having a college degree. However, she quickly works her way up. By 2022, she'd been promoted to the lobby staff and recognized as "Best Talent" for 2 years running. 

When The King Group's heir, Gu Won (Lee Jun Ho), returns to South Korea after studying abroad, he gets appointed Head Manager of The King Hotel. There, he meets Sa Rang for the first time and gets into a misunderstanding with her. Because of his past trauma, he can't stand fake smiles, including Sa Rang's, leading them to clash. However, her sincerity eventually wins him over with his kindness. At the same time, Won gets thrown into a bitter succession battle against his sister, Hwa Ran. 

King the Land excels at being a wholesome and pure rom-com. No serial killers are on the loose, and no one is out to get revenge. Instead, the drama employs various tropes and cliches reminiscent of old-school romance dramas, including inheritance wars, mysterious mothers, arranged marriages, disapproving parents, etc.

Sa Rang is a confident but humble everyday woman. She grew up without a mom and lives with her best friends, Oh Pyung Hwa (Go Won Hee) and Kang Da Eul (Kim Ga Eun). Her struggles are not romanticized, and it's clear that she is intimately familiar with the pains of working in the service industry. Though she experiences sexual harassment and verbal abuse at work, she maintains a positive outlook. 

Sa Rang is known by her coworkers, friends, and guests for her kindness and empathy, but she is not a pushover. For example, when she realizes her boyfriend doesn't respect or value her, she quickly breaks up with him and calls him out for his lack of consideration and care. When he tries to guilt-trip her to stay with him, she remains firm on her decision and enforces a clean break.  

In typical rom-com fashion, Gu Won returns to Korea as the dashing, prodigal son of The King Group's CEO — a modern-day prince. But he's not your typical elitist. Won is an idealist who understands his privilege and uses it to support his staff. While he can be moody and aloof, he cares deeply about the well-being of those around him and goes above and beyond to take care of everyone. 

Won quickly falls for Sa Rang but never abuses his authority despite their professional power imbalance. He respects her boundaries and gives her space to make her own decisions. This equality leads to the beginning of a lasting partnership. In other words, Won is the definition of a walking green flag.

Some people may find the romance between Gu Won and Cheon Sa Rang boring or slow, but there is beauty in the simplicity of their love and the overarching story. Gu Won showers Sa Rang with plenty of romantic escapades, including renting out an amusement park for her, getting matching couple's outfits, and putting on a fireworks show. Meanwhile, Sa Rang helps Gu Won overcome his traumas and become a better person and leader.

What stands out in their relationship is the strength of their foundation. They have mutual respect and trust for each other. There are no prolonged misunderstandings or unnecessary heartache. When their relationship gets tested, they wholeheartedly support each other and fight for their love. Even little details, such as them saving each other's names as a star and angel on their phones or Won taking care of Sa Rang's grandmother, all reflect how mature their relationship is. 

Gu Won and Sa Rang's best friends also have their own storylines outside their friendship, adding a nice touch to the drama. The natural progress of Pyeong Hwa and Lee Ro Woon's (Kim Jae Won) relationship was sweet and endearing. Ro Woon is attentive to Pyeong Hwa's needs but never oversteps her boundaries. Even though he falls for her first, he does not pressure her to reciprocate his feelings. Instead, he subtly stands up to her when she gets bullied at work and takes care of her when she gets hurt. 

On the other hand, Da Eul's relationships with her husband, Seo Choong Jae (Choi Tae Hwan), and in-laws were painful to watch. Despite being unemployed, Choong Jae refuses to help Da Eul with chores and allows his family to take advantage of her kindness, including stopping by their apartment without notice and demanding that she cook for them. Luckily, their daughter, Seo Cho Rong (Lee Ye Joo), is aware of what's happening and repeatedly calls her father out for being lazy and rude. 

Rounding out the 6 siblings is No Sang Sik (Ahn Se Ha), Won's secretary and closest friend. While he can be over-the-top, he is a loyal friend to Won and sticks by his side through the good and bad times. Additionally, Won's bond with Sa Rang's grandmother, Cha Sun Hui (Kim Young Ok), is also heartwarming to watch. Sa Rang's grandmother always hypes her granddaughter up and reminds Won how lucky he is to have her, while Won always takes great care of her.

Gu Won and Sa Rang's best friends also have their own storylines outside of their friendship, adding a nice touch to the drama. The natural progress of Pyeong Hwa and Lee Ro Woon's (Kim Jae Won) relationship was sweet and endearing. Ro Woon is highly attentive to Pyeong Hwa's needs, but never oversteps his boundaries. Even though he fell for her first, he never pressures her to reciprocate his feelings. Instead, he subtly stands up her when she gets bullied at work and takes care of her when she gets hurt. 

On the other hand, Da Eul's relationships with her husband Seo Choong Jae (Choi Tae Hwan) and in-laws were painful to watch. Despite being unemployed Choong Jae refuses to help Da Eul with chores and allows his family to take advantage of her kindness, including stopping by their apartment without notice. Luckily, their daughter Seo Cho Rong (Lee Ye Joo) is aware of what's happening and repeatedly calls her father out for being lazy and rude. 

Rounding out the 6 siblings is No Sang Sik (Ahn Se Ha), Won's secretary and closest friend. While he can be over-the-top at times, he proves to be a loyal friend to Won and sticks by his side through the good and bad times. Additionally, Won's bond with Sa Rang's grandmother Cha Sun Hui (Kim Young Ok) is also heartwarming to watch. Sa Rang's grandmother always hypes up her granddaughter and reminds Won how lucky he is to have her while Won always takes special care of her. 

Themes of pro-worker sentiment and the role of women are prominent throughout the show. The writers don't shy away from highlighting how service workers get mistreated and the negative impact of power and wealth disparities. Gu Won attempts to correct these issues by treating his employees as valuable assets rather than people you can toss aside at a whim. While more of a pipe dream in reality, Won's philosophy is sorely needed in today's capitalist society. 

The role of women as housewives and the cultural taboo of divorce also get challenged. In the case of Da Eul's family, she is the clear breadwinner. Thus, it's fair for the household chores to get shifted toward her husband, who doesn't even have a job. Pyeong Hwa's divorce costs her a promotion and nearly ruins her career. But, she learns to stand up for herself and not let a divorce overshadow her hard work. 

One of the more disappointing but realistic arcs in the series is when Sa Rang is promoted to the "Dream Team" and finds out the role is nothing more than a glorified maid to Won's family. Sa Rang rightly recognizes the irony of this position, as the company's best talents are serving food to Won's family, cleaning after them, and playing nanny to Hwa Ran's son.

Unfortunately, the inheritance war between Won and Hwa Ran is poorly executed and borderline misogynistic. While we are supposed to root for Won and his employee-friendly initiatives, you can't help but feel bad for Hwa Ran. When Won was busy studying abroad, his sister was successfully managing The King Group and its subsidiaries. Yet, when he returns, he's immediately given a seat at the table even though he has no prior work experience. 

From the first episode, it's clear Hwa Ran is a competent and seasoned leader who knows how to run a conglomerate. She rightly acknowledges Sa Rang's worth despite her lack of higher education and even quickly promotes her several times. Though she's less empathetic than Won, her management skills are exactly what shareholders look for and value in real life.

The inclusion of Won's friend, Prince Samir (Anupam Tripathi), was also highly controversial. While his character and background are fictitious, he perpetuates negative stereotypes of Arabs. Samir is a womanizer who uses his money and power to make others uncomfortable. 

He falls in love with Sa Rang at first sight, which is meant to be comedic relief, but comes off as pushy instead. Sa Rang does not reciprocate his feelings and feels awkward around him. But she's forced to go along with his antics because he's an important guest at the hotel. He also enjoys drinking and nightlife and is a certified playboy — completely contrary to Arab culture. 

Final Thoughts

King the Land doesn't push any boundaries or have twists and turns. But, the lack of unnecessary conflict and focus on the relationship between Gu Won and Cheon Sa Rang brings a lot of joy and pleasure. If you want to watch a fairytale romance, King the Land may be exactly what you need.