Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 3 (슈룹) has once again proved its royal status when it comes to the k-drama arena. The third episode ventured into a rather sensitive portrayal of the issue of gender performativity and its burdens with Yoo Seon-ho’s Grand Prince Gye-seong at the focus. In the previous turn, Kim Hye-soo’s character had followed him right into the secret chamber which served as his safe haven away from the eyes of the public, where no one could judge him for his choices and he was free to express himself.
However, in the latest outing, his secrets are outed without his discretion to Queen Dowager by Consort Go, who sees it as an opportunity to gain her favor instead. In an era when things were led by orthodox rigidity, Queen Hwa-ryeong is the kind of mother everyone deserves. Her final assuring statement of awaiting a time in the future when people won’t be judged for preferring different choices than those of the majority is a heartening conclusion for Gye-seong’s storyline for the time being.
Viewers have praised Yoo Seon-ho’s delivery when put opposite the versatile Kim Hye-soo, and it comes as a much-anticipated and deserved answer to some reproaching comments registered in the past few days about the supporting cast of the show. While some asserted that only the actress playing the role of Queen Hwa-ryeong was “carrying the cast on her back”, in Episode 3 those thoughts are completely shunned as Seon-ho has stood tall against these call-outs.
Each character holds their own weight in the show, however, it’s only with time that each one of them will get the chance to be distinctly fleshed out, especially since a vast panel of actors is on-board at the same time. Moreover, Moon Sang-min’s Seong-nam, though having little to no screen time in this specific episode, owing to the focus on Gye-seong, has also yet again proved to climb up the favorite character rating.
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Those who’ve already watched the episode are applauding his character’s idiosyncratic ways of the mind, which are not single-mindedly calculative, but rather a reflection of his kindness. It’s not far-fetched to claim that he has the makings of a wise and ‘out-of-the-box’ type of king. No one knows what the future will bring but for now, let’s check out how the viewers received the latest episode and its storyline.
Check Out Some of the Reactions to Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 3
Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 3 is now streaming on Netflix.
Have you watched the episode yet? What do you think of Gye-seong and Hwa-ryeong’s relationship? Do you think the storyline did a good job of representing gender as a social construct that comes with baggage most of us wouldn’t like to bear? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Also Read: Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 3 Recap and Review: Heartwarming Acceptance Justifies Title