Deokman - The Character I Grew to Love

If there is one quality of Deokman that you could process, which quality would it be?

Deokman is wise, brave, determined, compassionate, generous and so much more. Yet she is a character that is believable. As the protagonist of the show, Deokman is the most well-developed character, and with 62 episodes, you cannot help but develop a connection with her.

Lee Yo Won as Deokman
For me, Lee Yo Won's portrayal of Deokman is exceptional. Deokman undertakes drastic changes, both physically and emotionally. By the end of the show, I felt as though I've grown a long with Lee Yo Won's Deokman. Yo Won's versatility can be scene if you compare the earlier scenes with the later scenes of the drama. Her gesture, poise and expressions are so different! She definitely deserves all the awards she has won. Acting = 5/5

Characters Affected by Deokman
Deokman has influenced so many people in the drama, but I will highlight the most drastic ones.

Bidam -
Bidam is a tough character to understand. He possesses both good and evil. Had it not been Deokman, Bidam would have been the ultimate villain of the show.

Chunchu -
I think one day Chunchu will be a great ruler because he had Deokman as a mentor.

Must-Watch Music Videos of Deokman and Bidam

I've read a lot of great reviews on QSD, but it was after watching a fanmade video of Bidam and Deokman that prompted me to watch the drama (it's that well made). YouTube has so many videos on this pairing it's amazing! I've embedded my most favourite video created by delasai:

For a full list of my favourite Deokman and Bidam videos, please see below:

비 담 이별가...Ending Theme - So sad and well made. Love love this video.

Dukman Bidam-바람꽃- One word: Bittersweet. The music is Wild Flower from QSD's OST so you can just imagine how sad it is. The creator of this video does a great job at drawing your heartstring =*(

Queen Seon Deok - Deoakman and Bidam, a tragic love story- Catchy song for a tragic story =D

[선덕여왕MV]BIDAM-DEOKMAN tribute - Why are all these videos so sad? Another great video

[MV]선덕여왕 BIDAM❤DEOKMAN - 베이지 - Love love this video. The music is beautiful.

[MV] Deokman & Bidam 운명을 거슬러 (by 쩐자)- Well made video.

Just Ten Days - Has scenes outside of QSD as well. A well made video with great music.

Notice how all the videos are quite tragic? I wonder if there are any lighthearted videos of them...

The Chemistry Award Goes to Which Pairing?

So you see, having good onscreen chemistry between actors is very important. It can even make or break a drama. Luckily for us, QSD's cast is studded with actors and actresses who have great connection with each other. But of course, that is not to say that all the pairings are equally impressive.

And so here is my top list of best onscreen chemistry in QSD. I will definitely expand on these pairings on later posts. But to clarify, when I say onscreen chemistry, it's not the characters I'm talking about but the actors.

Lee Yo Won and Kim Nam Gil - I think Deokman and Yushin was supposed to be the main love story, yet by the last few episodes, I felt as though the story has always been between Deokman and Bidam. I think it is because of the tremendous chemistry between Yo Won and Nam Gil.


Nam Ji Huyn and Seo Young Hee - We only see these two actresses together in the first eight episodes, but it is enough to leave an impression. Some of the scenes in the desert where you see Sohwa and the young Deokman

Bidam - Stuck Between Good and Evil

Bidam is probably the most complex character in the drama. At first glance, he seems a bit selfish and incomprehensible. Yet Bidam is an exaggerated version of each one of us. He encompasses both good and evil like any of us.

Scenes highlighting that Bidam is not evil

Muno Dieing in Bidam's Arms
This is one of my favourite scenes. In his last breath, Muno finally realizes (although too late) that Bidam's nature is not purely evil or irrevocable.

Bidam and Mishil Moment
I did a post earlier about mother and child relationships and this is the same scene. Here Bidam tells his mother that he could not bring the document that would end Mishil's life to Deokman because it would be too cruel.

The Real Queen Seon Deok

So last week I was blogging about Deokman, but I've recently come across a painting of the real Deokman! In case you don't know yet, Queen Seon Deok is a drama based on the historical first queen of Shilla. So let's take a look at how Queen Seon Deok really looks like:

Quite different from the QSD of the drama. But I think the production crew has done a great job at keeping closely to the historical costumes. What do you think?

Sohwa, the Most Loyal Character

You probably had the same thoughts as me. When I watched the first few episodes of QSD, I gave little thought to the character Sohwa. She just seem so comical and insignificant. Yet everything changes immediately when her Highness places the responsibility on Sohwa to be the parent of his daughter.

Loyalty is a recurring theme in QSD. It is the quality that dignifies the most subordinate character in the drama. Yet Sohwa stands out amongst the most loyal characters. That is because she has the greatest transformation as a result of her loyalty to her ruler and Deokman. While other characters had in them the capacity to perform what is required of them to remain loyal to their masters, Sohwa changed from being a weak and dimwitted character to someone who is exceptionally brave.

Characters Influenced by Sohwa

Chilsuk - One of the characters most affected by Sohwa. Because of her, he was willing to deceit his master. As well, she has brought in his life something other than loyalty to Milsik, it is love and compassion.

Deokman - It is because of Sohwa that Deokman is so resilient and strong minded. There was one point where Sohwa says that Deokman has to be so strong because she is so weak. I think that is far from the truth. Deokman is only the way she is because of the positive influence of her mother.

Favourite Scene

My favourite Scene of Sohwa is also her saddest scene, when she disguised as Deokman and Chilsuk stabs her. This is the most bittersweet scene between Chilsuk and herself and this is also why she is the heroine of the show.

QSD Characters - Embrace Them All

Whether you hate it or love it, Queen Seon Deok is one of the few historical productions that can easily boast for its versatile performers and comprehensive characters. The scriptwriters of QSD are masters of their art, and with just a few lines and minimal screen time, they can add humanity to the smallest of support roles. I find myself sympathizing with almost all the characters (except for Yeomjong. He's the true villain and deserve a more brutal end) and wishing no harm to any of them.

I will start blogging thorough character analysis of my most favourite performers, but for now I've added some banners that I made below. More will be added to this post at a later time. For now enjoy!

By the way, who is your favourite character?