K-Drama Mid-Review: Ruler: Master of the Mask

My goodness. I've been looking for a new period drama to watch for AGES that I decided to give this one a go. It's currently ongoing and I've caught up (as of today) to the 20 episodes that have already aired. When I first saw this drama was going to be 40 episodes I was a bit put off by the length but then quickly realised that each episode was only 30~ minutes long. So this is basically a mid-point review as to what I think the drama is like, where I think it's headed and overall so-far impressions of it. 

Without having to go into too much detail (and trying to be as spoiler-less for this part as much as poss), this drama is about a prince fighting against an evil group of people that are trying to control the country and the throne. At the same time there's also a romance between the prince and a noble girl. Of course, Yoo Seung Ho (Remember: War of the Son, Warrior Baek Dong-Soo) plays the role of the prince and Kim So Hyun (Goblin, Let's Fight Ghost & (special mention) The Moon that Embraces the Sun) plays the role of the girl the prince is involved with. 

SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERS*SPOILERS

Reading the synopsis and then watching 20 episodes of this drama, there is just soooooo much more to the story than just that. If you're reading the synopsis and thinking "oh this sounds boring", please, do watch the first 2-3 episodes of this drama. It will literally suck you in. 

OK, so far we know that:

• The prince's family have all been murdered by the evil peeps
• The prince's friend (arguably his bestie) has ended up on the throne as a "puppet king" being controlled by the evil group rather than him 
• The prince has therefore been living outside of the palace as a commoner and then becomes some master trader
• The prince has fallen in love with the daughter of a minister that basically died because of him, at this point she doesn't know the prince is actually the prince
• The girl has her own revenge that she's following through with and has ended up in the palace as a court lady to carry out these plans (and has subsequently ended things with the prince)
• The queen mother has hidden agendas to dethrone the king (when does the queen mother not have hidden agendas?) 
• The evil group's leader's granddaughter is also in love with the prince and wants to save him and make him hers 
• The prince has finally met with his friend who is currently the king and the king has realised that him and the prince are in love with the same girl, he's now turned from prince's bestie to his rival

So freaking much has happened that I'm so excited to see how the story resolves in the next 20 episodes. I'm anticipating that the prince will continue planting seeds in the palace who are really his people and then eventually take back his throne. The cliffhanger in episode 20 was interesting, he's presented with 2 options - use the army and take back the throne now, or continue waiting patiently. The preview for the next episode is also interesting, the rivalry between the prince and the king start surfacing and they're both fighting over Ga Eun. Then there's also the granddaughter who's trying to take over the evil group to make the prince like her, haven't seen much of her recently but she seems pretty smart in an evil way?

Also, I don't know why but I have this impending sense of doom feeling that the puppet king / prince's best friend will end up dying by the end in all of this. I honestly have the most feels for him right now because he has literally been made a prisoner because he got involved with the prince. He's not allowed to go visit his family (his poor mother probably thinks he's dead), his best friend also likes the same girl he's liked for so long, he has to wear that hideous mask all day long, he has no power or authority even though he's the king etc. This guy needs a break.

I'm really enjoying this drama at the moment and am pretty sad I've caught up already. It's going to be hard trying to watch this week by week. There's the main plot as well as this love square, plenty of room for many plot twists. 

Also, Yoo Seung Ho is an amazing period drama actor. I think he's just an amazing actor, the only dramas I've seen him in are the ones where he plays these tragic character roles though :< I wasn't too sure about Kim So Hyun playing the main female lead but she's actually growing on me, I remember her too much from The Moon that Embraces the Sun when she was that evil little girl who wanted to become the queen... she was like what? 10 years old when she was in that?

Anyhoo, can't wait for episode 21!