Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung
Promotional poster
Hangul	신입사관 구해령
Revised Romanization	Sin-ipsagwan Gu Hae-ryeong
Genre	Historical Romance Drama Comedy
Created by	Sohn Hyung-suk
Written by	Kim Ho-soo
Directed by	Kang Il-soo Han Hyun-hee
Starring	Shin Se-kyung Cha Eun-woo
Country of origin	South Korea
Original language	Korean
No. of episodes	20 [note 1]
Production
Producers	Kim Sang-heon Cho Hyung-jin
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	35 minutes [note 1]
Production company	Chorokbaem Media
Distributor	MBC Netflix
Release
Original network	MBC TV
Audio format	Dolby Digital
Original release	July 17 (2019-07-17) – September 26, 2019 (2019-09-26)

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung (Korean : 신입사관 구해령) is a 2019 South Korean television series starring Shin Se-kyung, in the title role as a free-spirited female historian, and Cha Eun-woo, as a prince working underground as a romance novelist. It is also a fictionalisation of part of the story of the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty and their right to be considered a true history.

The series aired on MBC's Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:00 KST time slot from July 17 to September 26, 2019, with Netflix carrying the series internationally. ^[2]

Synopsis

The scenario intertwines two storylines. One of them occurs in a "nowadays" placed in the early 19th century ^{[lower-alpha 1]} of Joseon. The other occurred twenty years before (white horse year, 1810 ^{[lower-alpha 2]} ). The first one is treated lightly, in the Sungkyunkwan Scandal vein, with caricatures ^{[lower-alpha 3]} , jokes, gimmicks, students fights, etc. The second one, only depicted by short flash-backs, is about the unjust situation of the rank and file people ^{[lower-alpha 4]} , and the brutal suppression of anyone who dares to object.

Nowadays, Nokseodang

Lovers under the moon,
painted by Sin Yun-bok

In the Joseon Dynasty, women were objectified and undervalued. But free-spirited lady Goo Hae-ryung is brave enough to follow her own view of life. Still single at 26 years old, she focuses on studying and gaining knowledge, and in defending those who are wronged and abused.

Meanwhile, the young and handsome 20-year-old Prince Dowon has been living his life alone at the Nokseodang 綠嶼堂 (green island pavilion). Isolated inside the Huwon Garden ^{[lower-alpha 5]} , he has to stay away from the royal Court and finds comfort by writing hangul romance novels. Published under the pen name Maehwa 梅花 (plum blossom), these novels become famous all over Hanyang, especially to women readers.

The two main characters meet, and this first meeting sparks a war of preferences. But politics disturb the romance. Suddenly, Korean books and European translations are banned, confiscated and burned. All the beard bearing red robes at court are infuriated that "so many noble ladies ran away to find the love of their life after reading Maehwa's books" ^{[lower-alpha 6]} . But this is only a "just cause". The real target is "The Story of Hodam", a book about events that occurred twenty years earlier.

In their frenzy to search and destroy every single copy of this book, the king and councilor Min Ik-pyeong go so far as ask for the recruitment of female historians, with the intent of planting spies in each chamber of the Royal Palace. As a result, four female apprentices (Goo Hae-ryung among them) are selected and added to the existing eight recorders. They became part of the everyday collection of pieces 사책 that will be compiled into the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. Many gender stereotypes surface, only to be derided... and overcome. The twelve historians become embroiled in disputes with the Court, asserting their right under law to record all conversations between the royal family and courtiers, and even go on strike against the king. ^{[lower-alpha 7]}

A smallpox epidemic will be the event that reconnects the two storylines. On the one hand, members of the court speculate on traditional remedies, and even attempt to kill the Prince by sending him to the infested provinces. On the other hand, Dowon organizes the state answer, seizing and distributing food while applying the 牛痘種書, 瑛眼 (vaccination treaty, by Yeongan) that was provided by the mysterious Moh-wa. Hae-ryung remembers being vaccinated by her father in the past and convinces the Prince to prove the method by being the first patient to be inoculated.

Twenty years ago, Seoraewon

The corner stone, saying:
Ho Dam and Yeongan. This place will open the road

A set of flash-backs disseminated all across the episodes describes the events of "twenty years ago". The former King, Yi Gyeom, Prince Huiyeong, styled Hodam, founded Seoraewon, together with Seo Mun-jik, styled Yeongan. The later was the dean, while Hodam was one of the teachers. The leading team was completed by Barthelemy Dominique, a medicine teacher, who was sent by the Paris Foreign Missions Society. As a result, Seoraewon was a school of Western studies aimed at educating people regardless of social class or gender. The Seoraewon name 曙來院 itself has the meaning of "Where Dawn Arrives".

This is where Moh-wa learned vaccination and surgery.

A conservative reaction ensued, led by Min Ik-pyeong. A forged letter of the King, allegedly saying "send more priests, and turn Joseon into a Catholic country" ^{[lower-alpha 9]} served as "just cause" for a massacre. Among the rare escapees were Dowon, the newborn son of Hodam and the 6 year-old Hae-ryung, the daughter of Yeongan.

The series ends three years after "nowadays". Min Ik-pyeong and his proxy king are gone and Seoraewon is reinstated. Prince Yi Jin is in charge of the throne. Dowon can live in leisure outside of the Palace, wandering across the world, while Hae-ryung becomes a full-ranked member of the Yemungwan. Prince Yi Rim (Dowon) and Hae-ryung are still in a relationship but not married. They find time to travel together.

Quotation

(Goo Hae-ryung). "Even if you slash my throat, our brushes will not stop writing. If I die, another historian will take my place; if you kill that historian, another will take their place. Even if you kill every historian in this land, and take away all the paper and brushes, you won't be able to stop us. From mouth to mouth, teacher to student, elder to child, history will be told. That is the power of truth." ^{[lower-alpha 10]}

Cast

Main

In the Netflix release, the following three characters are put forward in the opening sequence of each episode:

• Shin Se-kyung as Goo Hae-ryung (born Seo Hee-yeon) ^[3]

A noble lady who becomes one of the four female historians of the royal court. She is the daughter of Seo Moon-jik, the deceased dean of Seoraewon, and has been living with her guardian Jae-kyeong whom she regards as her older brother. She is among those Joseon women wanting to enforce their independence, moral and material as well, and to voice their ideas and opinions. As an historian, she is recognized as someone brave who does not fear anyone, even the King himself. She often cracks jokes even in the most dire circumstances, for example when she is locked in jail.

• Cha Eun-woo as Yi Rim (Prince Dowon) ^[4]

The first son of the dethroned King Huiyeong Yi Gyeom and the real heir to the throne. Not knowing his true lineage, he secretly works as a romance novelist under his nom de plume "Maehwa,". He does not involve himself in political matters, and regards his uncle King Yi Tae as his father and his cousin Crown Prince Yi Jin as his older brother. Spelled 島遠 ^{[lower-alpha 11]} , Dowon means "Remote Island". Until he meets Hae-ryung, Yi Rim leads a pathologically lonely existence. She is his first and only friend.

• Park Ki-woong as Crown Prince Yi Jin ^[5]

According to the credits, more than two hundred actors were involved. At the end of each episode, a recurring set of 34 actors is listed first, followed by a list specific to the episode. Moreover, the Korean subtitles embedded in the Netflix release attribute each sentence to the corresponding character.

People around Hae-ryung

• Gong Jung-hwan as Goo Jae-kyeong

Hae-ryung's guardian; former student of medicine and Mo-hwa's classmate in the Seoraewon. He forged the letter used as a "just cause" for the Seorawon's massacre. Later, his remorse made him write the banned book The Story of Hodam.

• Yang Jo-a as Seol-geum

Hae-ryung's caretaker and confidant. She is a servant girl who lives vicariously through Hae-ryung's romantic adventures.

• Lee Kwan-hoon as Gak-soi

Royal household and court

• Kim Min-sang as King Hamyeong Yi Tae

He reluctantly let Yi Rim live but is threatened by Yi Rim's superior claim to the throne. From the beginning the King tries to neutralize Yi Rim as a rival, through sheer neglect.

• Choi Deok-moon as Left State Councillor Min Ik-pyeong
• Kim Ye-rin as Crown Princess Min Woo-hee
• Kim Yeo-jin as Queen Dowager Yim

People from the Office of Royal Decrees (Yemun-gwan)

The elders

• Lee Ji-hoon as Min Woo-won ^[6]
• Heo Jeong-do as Yang Si-haeng
• Kang Hoon as Hyeon Kyeong-mook
• Nam Tae-woo as Son Gil-seung
• Yoon Jung-sub as Hwang Jang-goon
• Ji Gun-woo as Seong Seo-kwon
• Oh Hee-joon as Ahn Hong-ik
• Lee Jung-ha as Kimchi Guuk

The other three female apprentices

• Park Ji-hyun as Song Sa-hee ^[7]
• Lee Ye-rim as Oh Eun-im
• Jang Yoo-bin as Heo Ah-ran

Others

• Jeon Ye-seo as Mo-hwa, a confidant of the Queen Dowager, skilled in archery, former student of medicine in the Seoraewon
• Sung Ji-ru as Heo Sam-bo, Prince Yi Rim's eunuch. He gives some atrocious courtship tips to Yi Rim.
• Ryu Tae-ho as Song Jae-cheon, "M. Yes", father of Song Sa-hee
• Kim Yong-un as Gwi Jae, Min Ik-pyeong's handy man

Special appearances

• Seo Young-joo as Lee Seung-hoon : Hae-ryung husband-to-be, then magistrate of Songhwahyeon, E07
• Fabien Yoon as:
  • Jean Baptiste Barthélemy - a beomnanseoin (French national) who came to Joseon to look for his older brother
  • Dominique - Jean's deceased older brother; teacher of medicine in the Seoraewon
• Yoon Jong-hoon as Prince Huiyeong Yi Gyeom (a.k.a. Hodam)

The dethroned King and Prince Yi Rim's biological father

• Lee Seung-hyo as Seo Moon-jik (a.k.a. Yeongan)

Hae-ryung's biological father who was executed for treason charges 20 years ago. He was the dean of Seoraewon

• Lee Do-yeop as Shim Geum-yeol.
• Woo Mi-hwa as Go Hae-ryung’s teacher.

Production

The drama's entire 13 billion won budget was financed by Netflix. ^[8] Yeolhwajeong Pavilion—located in Ganggol Village, Deungnyang-myeon, Boseong County—is one of the filming locations of the series. ^{[9] [10]}

Original soundtrack

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung OST Special Album
Soundtrack album by Various artists
Recorded	June 2019
Genre	Soundtrack
Language	Korean English
Label	Pan Entertainment

Part 1

Released on July 17, 2019 (2019-07-17)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Fall in Luv"	Lee Na-young	KZ Taebongie Nam Woo-hyun CLEF CREW	Henry	03:38
2.	"Fall in Luv" (Inst.)		KZ Taebongie Nam Woo-hyun CLEF CREW		03:38
Total length:					07:16

Part 2

Released on August 7, 2019 (2019-08-07)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"My Dream"	Lee Na-young	Kanasus brew Na Eun	Yoon Mi-rae	03:54
2.	"My Dream" (Inst.)		Kanasus brew Na Eun		03:54
Total length:					07:48

Part 3

Released on August 21, 2019 (2019-08-21)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Come" (어서와)	GamDongis Kim Young-sung	Seo Jae-ha Kim Young-sung Do Hoon	Lee Seok-hoon (SG Wannabe)	04:02
2.	"Come" (Inst.)		Seo Jae-ha Kim Young-sung Do Hoon		04:02
Total length:					08:04

Part 4

Released on September 4, 2019 (2019-09-04)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"You Are My Love" (처음부터 내 사랑)	Lee Na-young Chae-ul	Lee Na-young Cha Gil-wan	Lucia	03:58
2.	"You Are My Love" (Inst.)		Lee Na-young Cha Gil-wan		03:58
Total length:					07:56

Part 5

Released on September 11, 2019 (2019-09-11)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Forever" (영원토록)	Park Soo-jin	Kwon Bin-gi	Park Soo-jin	03:01
2.	"Forever" (Inst.)		Kwon Bin-gi		03:01
Total length:					06:02

Part 6

Released on September 18, 2019 (2019-09-18)

No.	Title	Lyrics	Music	Artist	Length
1.	"Please Remember" (기억해줘요)	Ha Na	Seo Jae-ha Kim Young-sung	Cha Eun-woo (Astro)	03:33
2.	"Please Remember" (Inst.)		Seo Jae-ha Kim Young-sung		03:33
Total length:					07:06

Disc 2:

No.	Title	Artist	Length
1.	"Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung" (Opening Title)	Kim Ji-eun	1:20
2.	"Blossom"	Lee Sa-ya	2:19
3.	"Run"	Dacapo	1:46
4.	"On a Dazzling Day"	Lee Sa-ya	2:31
5.	"Be a Flower"	Park Jong-mi	4:02
6.	"Hanbang Romance"	Na Won-hye	2:01
7.	"My Dear"	Park Jong-mi	2:48
8.	"Nima"	Supersound	2:34
9.	"History on Records"	Lee Sa-ya	1:43
10.	"A Moonlit"	Im Na-rae	2:50
11.	"Feather"	Supersound	2:19
12.	"Behind Story"	Yoon Yoo-jin	2:31
13.	"Las Estrellas"	Supersound	3:36
14.	"Four Notes"	Im Na-rae	2:18
15.	"Dawn of War"	Supersound	2:45
16.	"Shadow"	Supersound	2:35
17.	"Solitude"	Im Na-rae	2:22
18.	"Swaying Lanterns"	Kim Ji-eun	3:35
19.	"Longing"	Kim Ji-eun	3:39
20.	"The Secret place in your heart"	Dacapo	3:50
Total length:			43:36

Viewership

Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung : South Korea viewers per episode (thousands)

Episodes		Episode number
		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
	1–10	N/A	937	N/A	798	N/A	1031	946	1165	N/A	1026
	11–20	810	1143	889	1213	773	1093	N/A	979	N/A	1206
	21–30	N/A	1060	833	1183	N/A	921	749	1123	N/A	862
	31–40	649	876	N/A	909	N/A	785	N/A	970	686	1023

Source: Audience measurement performed nationwide by Nielsen Media Research. ^[11]

Ep.	Original broadcast date	Average audience share
		AGB Nielsen [12]
		Nationwide	Seoul
1	July 17, 2019	4.0% (NR)	—
2		6.0% (14th)	6.7% (9th)
3	July 18, 2019	3.7%(NR)	—
4		5.0% (18th)	5.1% (19th)
5	July 24, 2019	4.5% (NR)	—
6		6.4% (14th)	6.4% (12th)
7	July 25, 2019	5.6% (17th)	5.8% (13th)
8		6.8% (11th)	7.3% (10th)
9	July 31, 2019	4.4% (NR)	—
10		7.3%(7th)	7.6%(8th)
11	August 1, 2019	4.7% (18th)	5.1% (17th)
12		6.9% (8th)	7.2% (6th)
13	August 7, 2019	5.1% (19th)	5.2% (19th)
14		6.8% (13th)	7.0% (10th)
15	August 8, 2019	4.7% (19th)	4.9% (17th)
16		6.4% (12th)	6.5% (9th)
17	August 14, 2019	4.1% (NR)	—
18		6.2% (12th)	6.8% (9th)
19	August 15, 2019	4.2% (NR)	—
20		6.5% (11th)	6.4% (10th)
21	August 21, 2019	4.3% (NR)	—
22		6.2% (12th)	6.3% (11th)
23	August 22, 2019	4.9% (20th)	5.2% (17th)
24		7.1% (9th)	7.6%(8th)
25	August 28, 2019	3.8% (NR)	—
26		5.9% (14th)	6.1% (9th)
27	August 29, 2019	4.4% (NR)	4.8%(19th)
28		6.9% (8th)	7.4% (7th)
29	September 4, 2019	3.7%(NR)	—
30		5.5% (16th)	5.5% (17th)
31	September 5, 2019	4.0% (NR)	—
32		5.4% (16th)	5.6% (15th)
33	September 18, 2019	4.0% (NR)	—
34		6.0% (14th)	6.0% (13th)
35	September 19, 2019	3.8% (NR)	—
36		5.0% (17th)	5.2% (14th)
37	September 25, 2019	4.0% (NR)	—
38		6.2% (13th)	6.2% (11th)
39	September 26, 2019	4.5% (NR)	4.7% (19th)
40		6.6% (10th)	6.6% (10th)
Average		5.3%	— [note 2]

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Recipient	Result	Ref.
2019	MBC Drama Awards	Grand Prize (Daesang)	Shin Se-kyung	Nominated	[13] [14]
		Drama of the Year	Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung	Nominated
		Top Excellence Award, Actress in a Wednesday-Thursday Drama	Shin Se-kyung	Won
		Excellence Award, Actor in a Wednesday-Thursday Drama	Cha Eun-woo	Won
			Park Ki-woong	Nominated
		Excellence Award, Actress in a Wednesday-Thursday Drama	Park Ji-hyun	Nominated
		Best Supporting Cast in a Wednesday-Thursday Drama	Lee Ji-hoon	Won
		Best Couple Award	Cha Eun-woo and Shin Se-kyung	Won

Notes

1. In order to circumvent Korean laws that prevent commercial breaks in the middle of an episode, what would previously have been aired as single 70 minute episodes are now being repackaged as two 35 minute episodes, with two episodes being shown each night with a commercial break between the two. ^[1]
2. Due to some ratings not recorded, the exact average rating is unknown.

1. E01-00:45
2. E17-09:55
3. bridal lessons E01-14:48
4. E04-44:58
5. E07-04:48
6. E02-08:30
7. E11-15:44
8. E19-41:05
9. E20-02:38
10. E20-17:55
11. E17-23:39

References

1. Park, Jin-hai (May 16, 2017). "Drama viewers angry over commercial breaks". The Korea Times . Retrieved April 17, 2020– via PressReader.
2. "'Rookie Historian Goo Hae Ryung' Season 1 Coming to Netflix Weekly in July 2019". What's on Netflix. July 6, 2019.
3. Shin, Mi-rae (January 28, 2019). "신세경 측 "'신입사관 구해령' 출연 제안 받고 검토 중"(공식입장)". MK (in Korean). Retrieved April 10, 2019.
4. Hong, Hyeong-min (March 4, 2019). "차은우, '신입사관 구해령' 출연 확정…신세경과 호흡 [공식]". Hankookilbo (in Korean). Retrieved April 10, 2019.
5. Yoo, Soo-gyeong (February 27, 2019). "박기웅, '신입사관 구해령' 차은우 형 되나..."출연 검토 중"". Hankookilbo (in Korean). Retrieved April 10, 2019.
6. Jung, An-ji (March 11, 2019). "[공식]이지훈, '신입사관 구해령' 출연 확정…신세경과의 호흡". News Chosun (in Korean). Retrieved April 10, 2019.
7. Yoo, Chung-hee (March 11, 2019). "박지현, MBC '신입사관 구해령' 출연 확정…세 번째 사극 도전". Hankyung (in Korean). Retrieved April 10, 2019.
8. "See what's next: Netflix reshapes Korean TV industry trends". Korea Times. 2020-08-01. Retrieved 2020-11-30.
9. Hwang, Tae-jong (June 2, 2022). "보성군, 열화정 '사극 드라마 촬영지'로 인기" (in Korean). Financial News. Archived from the original on June 10, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2022– via Naver News.
10. "Yeolhwajeong Pavilion, Boseong". Cultural Heritage Administration. Archived from the original on June 10, 2021. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
11. "Nielsen Korea". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Retrieved September 18, 2019.
12. "AGB Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Archived from the original on March 17, 2017. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
13. "김동욱, 영예의 대상…'특별근로감독관 조장풍' 5관왕 겹경사 [MBC 연기대상](종합)". Naver News (in Korean). December 31, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
14. "김동욱, '2019 MBC 연기대상' 대상 수상 "꿈 같은 순간"[종합]". Naver News (in Korean). December 31, 2019. Retrieved December 31, 2019.

External links

• Official website (in Korean)
• Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung at IMDb
• Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung at HanCinema
• Rookie Historian Goo Hae-ryung on Netflix