Promotional poster for The Legend.
The Legend (Korean: 태왕사신기; Hanja: 太王四神記; RR: Taewangsasingi; lit. Story of the First King's Four Gods) is a 2007 South Korean historical fantasy television series. The series is mainly based on Dangun's legend and the tale of Gwanggaeto the Great of Goguryeo, but also adds mythical elements of the Four Symbols depicted in fantasy form as the four guardians who serve the king of Jyushin within the story.
Starring Bae Yong-joon, Lee Ji-ah, Moon So-ri and Choi Min-soo, directed by Kim Jong-hak and written by Song Ji-na, it aired on MBC from September 11 to December 5, 2007 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 24 episodes.
Plot[]
A long time ago, a tribe that respected the tiger and controlled fire called the Ho-jok (Tiger Tribe), ruled the world. They eliminated and assimilated all tribes except the tribe that respected the bear, called the Ung-jok (Bear Tribe). The Ho-jok and the Ung-jok fought, and Hwanung could not bear to see so many people getting killed. He brought the three gods of nature; Poong-Baek (백호, the White Tiger), Woonsa (청룡, the Azure Dragon), and Woosa (현무, the Black Tortoise).
He removed the power of fire from the leader of the Ho-jok, Kajin, sealed the power into an artifact called the Heart of Jujak (주작, the Vermilion Bird/Phoenix), and gave it to the woman he loved; Sae-oh. However, Kajin was mortally wounded while attacking another tribe, and she seemed to die until Hwanung healed her. This event makes Kajin develop love for Hwanung. When her tribe declared in a war council they would Hwanung take back the power of fire, Kajin then slew her tribe's elders with her own blade. She then escapes from her own tribe in search of Hwanung, deciding to become Hwanung's woman.
However, Hwanung likes Sae-oh and declared his love for her, not knowing that Kajin was watching them secretly when this took place. Kajin was infuriated by this and began reforming the Ho-jok and attacked the Ung-jok. Unfortunately, this was the time when Sae-oh was pregnant, and when she had given birth, the baby was kidnapped by Kajin who offered Sae-oh a deal to trade her baby for the power of fire. When Sae-oh refuses Kajin, Kajin responds by dropping Sae-oh's baby from a cliff, leading to Sae-oh going out of control and releasing the Heuk-Jujak (흑주작, the Black Phoenix), even though Hwanung had saved the baby. Hwanung's subordinates, the Poong-Baek, the Woonsa and the Woosa fought the Heuk-Jujak, but they were no match for it.
Left with no choice, Hwanung used his Heavenly Bow to kill Sae-oh, the source of the power of the Heuk-Jujak, and managed to seal it once again in the heart of the Phoenix. Kajin committed suicide by jumping from the cliff because she now "had no reason to live in this world any more." Hwanung sealed the powers of the 'Four Gods' (Vermilion Bird, White Tiger, Azure Dragon, and Black Tortoise) in certain artifacts and left them in the care of certain people, telling them that they will wake when the King of Jyushin is born.
Many centuries later, Damdeok, the reincarnation of Hwanung, was born. Along with him, the artifacts of the guardians of the King were born. Damdeok met difficulties in becoming the king of Goguryeo, mainly because of Yeon Hogae who mistook Damdeok for the murderer of his mother, and his father who turned the king's parliament against him.
Characters[]
Main cast[]
- Bae Yong-joon as Damdeok (later Gwanggaeto the Great of Goguryeo)
- Yoo Seung-ho as young Damdeok
- Lee Ji-ah as Sujini
- Shim Eun-kyung as young Sujini
- Moon So-ri as Seo Kiha
- Park Eun-bin as teenage Kiha
- Kim Eun-seo as 5-year-old Kiha
- Oh Kwang-rok as Hyeon-go
- Oh Seung-yoon as young Hyeon-go
- Choi Min-soo as Daejangro
- Yoon Tae-young as Yeon Hogae
- Kim Ho-young as young Hogae
- Park Sang-won as Yeon Garyo
- Lee Phillip as Cheoro
- Lee Hyun-woo as young Cheoro
- Park Sung-woong as Jumuchi
- Park Seong-min as Saryang
Supporting cast[]
- Park Jung-hak as General Go Woo-cheung
- Jang Hang-sun as Heukgae
- Kim Hyuk as Dalgu
- Kim Seok as Dalgu's friend
- Shin Eun-jung as Dalbi
- Ha Ji-young as Personal Writer
- Kim Mi-kyung as Bason
- Min Ji-oh as Soidooroo
- Baek Jae-jin as Buldeul
- Hong Kyung-yeon as Dae Shin-kwan
- Jung Yun-seok as Ahjik
- Lee Da-hee as Gakdan
- Song Kwi-hyun as Jo Joo-do
- Woo Hyun as wheat seller
- Kim Sun-kyung as Hogae's mother
- Dokgo Young-jae as King Gogugyang
- Bae Yong-joon as Hwanung
- Lee Ji-ah as Sae-oh
- Moon So-ri as Kajin
Videos[]
External links[]
- The Legend official MBC website (in Korean)
- The Legend on IMDb
| Television series based on mythology | |
|---|---|
| 1990's | In the Beginning: The Bible Stories • Xena: Warrior Princess |
| 2000's | Clash of the Gods • Olympus Guardian • The Legend |
| 2010's | Vikings |
| 2020's | Dracula • Ragnarok |