Playing on Viki, this is a superior Sageuk (Korean historical) drama. I already gave my thoughts about this show in my review of the much inferior The King's Affection (Netflix) but here they are in slightly expanded form.
The basic premise of The Red Sleeve is that Crown Prince Yi San, played by Lee Joon-ho, comes to know a palace maid (one of 700, we are told), Sung Deok-im, played by Lee Se-young, with whom he falls in love. The Crown Prince is the grandson of a domineering elderly King Yeongjo of Joseon, superbly played by Lee Deok-hwa, who is beginning to suffer from dementia. The King had caused the Crown Prince's homicidal father, who had gone mad, to be cruelly executed by being locked in a box for eight days (this is actually a matter of historical record). Nevertheless, the King and the Crown Prince remain close and when the King dies, the Crown Prince succeeds him.
Despite repeated entreaties, Deok-im rejects Yi San both as the Crown Prince and later when he becomes King. She has already experienced the confinement of being a palace lady and she does not wish for the even more confining life of a royal concubine, always at the King's beck and call, and knowing that a King, especially this King, will always put his duties as monarch first, even to the point of being unwilling to give to Deok-im's closest friend among the palace maids a reprieve from being executed for the crime of having a lover. (Adultery was a crime in South Korea, punishable by two years of imprisonment, until its Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional in 2015.) Her rejection comes despite having feelings for Yi San, feelings she repeatedly denies to him and occasionally to herself. In one exchange, as he is saying "You will always be mine", she is heard thinking "But you will never be mine." She maintains these thoughts with enormous and largely justifiable fortitude.
Yi San is also admirably portrayed by Lee Joon-ho and by the writing of his character. As much as he loves Deok-im, he is never truly able to put her first, imprisoned by his sense of duty to his family and his obligations to his entire people. The scene where their three-year old son having just died of smallpox, the King reminds Deok-im that he is father to the whole nation is just heart rending, all the more so because of its being faithful to his character.
The two go through many adventures and intrigues before they finally unite for what turns out to be a tragically brief period (again, this is a matter of historical record). The new King eventually becomes known as King Jeongjeo the Great - it is said that Deok-im, later known as Royal Consort Uibin Seong, was the only one of his wives he ever truly loved.
Compared with The King's Affection, this story is in every possible way better told, better written (by Jung Hae-ri), more emotionally truthful, more genuinely exciting in its realization. Although there are a couple of sword fights (far fewer than in The King's Affection), they are never central to the story. Lee Se-young admirably portrays the physical and moral courage of her character and the chemistry between her and Lee Joon-ho smolders like a barely suppressed fire. The love affair takes a long time to resolve but does so with minimal unneeded repetition. In the meantime, the devious maneuverings, particularly by Yi San's Machiavellian best friend Hong Deok-ro (Kang Hoon), the conspiracies, and the outright treacheries of other palace denizens that take place both upstairs and downstairs, so to speak, keep the pot boiling nicely. The ending, sad as it is, feels uplifting. The plot doesn't drag and the 17 episodes never feel stretched.
The basic premise of The Red Sleeve is that Crown Prince Yi San, played by Lee Joon-ho, comes to know a palace maid (one of 700, we are told), Sung Deok-im, played by Lee Se-young, with whom he falls in love. The Crown Prince is the grandson of a domineering elderly King Yeongjo of Joseon, superbly played by Lee Deok-hwa, who is beginning to suffer from dementia. The King had caused the Crown Prince's homicidal father, who had gone mad, to be cruelly executed by being locked in a box for eight days (this is actually a matter of historical record). Nevertheless, the King and the Crown Prince remain close and when the King dies, the Crown Prince succeeds him.
Despite repeated entreaties, Deok-im rejects Yi San both as the Crown Prince and later when he becomes King. She has already experienced the confinement of being a palace lady and she does not wish for the even more confining life of a royal concubine, always at the King's beck and call, and knowing that a King, especially this King, will always put his duties as monarch first, even to the point of being unwilling to give to Deok-im's closest friend among the palace maids a reprieve from being executed for the crime of having a lover. (Adultery was a crime in South Korea, punishable by two years of imprisonment, until its Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional in 2015.) Her rejection comes despite having feelings for Yi San, feelings she repeatedly denies to him and occasionally to herself. In one exchange, as he is saying "You will always be mine", she is heard thinking "But you will never be mine." She maintains these thoughts with enormous and largely justifiable fortitude.
Yi San is also admirably portrayed by Lee Joon-ho and by the writing of his character. As much as he loves Deok-im, he is never truly able to put her first, imprisoned by his sense of duty to his family and his obligations to his entire people. The scene where their three-year old son having just died of smallpox, the King reminds Deok-im that he is father to the whole nation is just heart rending, all the more so because of its being faithful to his character.
The two go through many adventures and intrigues before they finally unite for what turns out to be a tragically brief period (again, this is a matter of historical record). The new King eventually becomes known as King Jeongjeo the Great - it is said that Deok-im, later known as Royal Consort Uibin Seong, was the only one of his wives he ever truly loved.
Compared with The King's Affection, this story is in every possible way better told, better written (by Jung Hae-ri), more emotionally truthful, more genuinely exciting in its realization. Although there are a couple of sword fights (far fewer than in The King's Affection), they are never central to the story. Lee Se-young admirably portrays the physical and moral courage of her character and the chemistry between her and Lee Joon-ho smolders like a barely suppressed fire. The love affair takes a long time to resolve but does so with minimal unneeded repetition. In the meantime, the devious maneuverings, particularly by Yi San's Machiavellian best friend Hong Deok-ro (Kang Hoon), the conspiracies, and the outright treacheries of other palace denizens that take place both upstairs and downstairs, so to speak, keep the pot boiling nicely. The ending, sad as it is, feels uplifting. The plot doesn't drag and the 17 episodes never feel stretched.