21st Century's Top-Rated Korean Drama Hits Record High

MBC drama 'The King's Affection' has officially apologized for historical accuracy controversies. This is due to criticisms that the 'Guryumyeonryugwan' (a type of crown) and the 'Cheonse' (ten thousand years) cheer used in the king's coronation scene undermined the status of a sovereign nation. The production team stated on their official website, "We sincerely bow our heads and apologize for causing concern due to issues with world-building and historical accuracy."

The controversial scene aired on the 11th episode on the 15th. The problem arose from the scene where the king wore the 'Guryumyeonryugwan' and his subjects shouted 'Cheonse' during the coronation ceremony. It was pointed out that this was a ritual used by a vassal state when it was subordinate to an imperial state, unlike the 'Sipimyeonryugwan' (another type of crown) and the 'Manse' (ten thousand years) cheer used by the emperor of a sovereign nation. Netizens criticized the fact that a world setting of a constitutional monarchy, an independent nation, was established, yet the rituals of a vassal state from the Joseon Dynasty were adopted.

The drama production team admitted, "This issue arose because the production team did not carefully examine how Joseon's rituals changed throughout history," and acknowledged that careful and in-depth consideration was needed for parts where the fictional world intersected with historical context, but the effort to refine the world-building and examine it more closely was insufficient. Accordingly, they promised to expedite the modification of the audio and subtitles for the relevant parts in future re-broadcasts, VOD, and OTT services. In fact, the re-broadcast of the 11th episode omitted the 'Cheonse' audio.

'The King's Affection' is an alternate history romance set in a 21st-century constitutional monarchy in Korea, and it recently recorded its highest viewership rating of 13.5%, continuing its upward trend. It also became the most-watched Korean series globally as a Disney+ original content. However, as it approaches its finale, it has been marred by an unexpected historical accuracy controversy, leaving a sense of regret.

Meanwhile, the drama has been increasing viewer immersion by balancing political conflict and melodrama in its latter half, depicting the romance between Seong Hwi-ju (played by IU) and Prince Ian (played by Byun Woo-seok), the conflict of Yoon Yi-rang (played by Gong Seung-yeon), and Prince Ian's will to abolish the monarchy. Attention is focused on whether Prince Ian can realize his great cause of abolishing the monarchy by ascending to the throne.