Summary
Episode 4 of Captivating the King is a highly dramatic affair, with multiple deaths and unexpected swerves.
Episode 4 turns the drama of Captivating the King up by quite a considerable notch. It begins with major a event – the king is dead! – and ends with a tantalizing setup – the first lead is morally compromised and the second lead wants revenge! – without really letting up much in between. I’ve enjoyed Season 1’s foregrounding of politics and palace intrigue throughout its first few episodes, but its theming is arguably even better, with the rippling effects of selfish or poor decisions leading to one less-than-ideal scenario after another like a line of toppling dominoes.
Episode 3 had a big cliffhanger ending in which Lee In, after scuffling with his crazy brother, held a sword to his throat to calm him down and shut him up. Well, he gets his wish, but not quite in the manner he intended. Suddenly, the king vomits blood and collapses, imploring Lee In with his dying words to find out who poisoned his herbal medicine. Treachery is afoot!
Lee In manipulates his way to power
Needless to say, the King’s death causes all kinds of political upheaval, but in a relatively unexpected development Lee In seizes the opportunity to manipulate events as best he can. He tells Jong-bae that the King’s final words were that Lee In should ascend the throne, and he ensures that the court lady is marching to the same beat. Does Jong-bae believe him? No, but since the physicians all claim that the King’s death was a total accident, it’s difficult for him to pin anything on Lee In.
The battle lines are drawn, then. Lee In offers some tokenistic platitudes about not really wanting the responsibility of dynastic rule, claiming that he’ll politely back off if any of the ministers oppose him, but it’s only Jong-bae who would have a mind to. He enlists Hyun-bo to strong-arm Hee-soo into a confession, but Myung-ha, in the interest of protecting her once again, handles the interrogation himself.
Hee-soo won’t sell out Lee In, which will turn out to be a decision she regrets because things are about to take one hell of a turn. Do keep up.
Jong-bae meets his end
So, Jong-bae tries to have Lee In arrested on the grounds of a fake testimony, but Lee In already anticipated that and bought the loyalty of Hyun-bo, who turns on Jong-bae and confirms that the confession is a forgery. For his efforts, Jong-bae is executed in front of Myung-ha, which is yikes moment numero uno.
To secure Hyun-bo’s crucial loyalty, he had promised to subject Hee-soo and the comfort woman to severe punishment, and he stands by this despite Hee-soo’s pleading for him not to. It’s an uncharacteristically and suddenly cold moment that results in the comfort woman’s death. That’s three bodies this episode has piled up while barely taking a breath.
How does Captivating the King Season 1 Episode 4 end?
Of course, Lee In’s actions here are going to come back to spite him in a big way, and the ending of Episode 4 makes this clear enough. For one thing, he has made several enemies, including Myung-ha, who is banished though left alive after the Queen begs for it, the Queen herself, who is sent away to become a monk, and Hee-soo, who manages to escape and swears revenge on Lee In.
After a three-year time skip, we see her arriving to participate in the Baduk contest that is being held to find a player of suitable ability to play with the King.
What did you think of Captivating the King Season 1 Episode 4? Let us know in the comments.
