The Terrifying Face of Power Beyond Zombies
Zombies as Background, Power Struggle as the Real Protagonist
The most common remark viewers make after watching Kingdom is: "People are scarier than zombies." This observation accurately identifies Kingdom not as a simple zombie horror but as an intricate political drama. While the terror of zombie hordes appearing nightly is certainly an important attraction, Kingdom's true essence lies in the power struggle surrounding the dead king and Crown Prince Lee Chang's fight for survival.
From the beginning, the drama presents a clear political conflict structure. The sick king has died, but Queen Consort Cho has not yet borne a son. If the king's death becomes known, Crown Prince Lee Chang will inherit the throne, and the Cho clan's power will crumble. Therefore, Lord Cho Hak-ju conceals the king's death and disguises the zombified king as still living using the resurrection plant. This setup already provides the framework for a thrilling political thriller.
As Cho Hak-ju's meticulous schemes to frame the Crown Prince as a traitor, the Crown Prince's struggle to counter this, and ministers' choices based on their own interests become intricately intertwined, the drama evolves beyond a simple survival narrative into a work exploring the nature of power. Zombies serve as catalysts exploding these political conflicts and as symbols of the catastrophe created by those in power's greed.
Cho Hak-ju, The Perfect Political Villain
What enhanced Kingdom's completeness as a political drama was the character of Cho Hak-ju. Played by Ryu Seung-ryong, Cho Hak-ju is not simply an evil character. He is a cold realist who will do anything to protect his power, yet simultaneously a father willing to sacrifice everything for his daughter. This multidimensional character design transformed Cho Hak-ju from a simple villain into someone understandable yet utterly unforgivable.
Cho Hak-ju's pursuit of power reveals structural problems in Joseon society beyond individual greed. The situation where a maternal relative's power surpasses royal authority, where a subject manipulates the king. This was a reality repeated throughout the Joseon Dynasty, and Kingdom shows this more vividly by combining it with the extreme situation of zombies. Cho Hak-ju represents a character who considers protecting his power more important than people dying and becoming zombies. Such a character embodies the nature of power that repeats endlessly throughout history and in modern society.
Particularly shocking is the revelation that Cho Hak-ju turned Sumang Village people into zombies during the war three years ago to use them in battle. This starkly demonstrates how those in power treat people as tools. The image of commoners who were consumables of war in life being exploited even in death symbolically expresses power's cruelty. Though Cho Hak-ju ultimately meets his tragic end bitten by the zombies he created, even his death ironically proves power's emptiness.
Crown Prince Lee Chang, A Leader Who Chose People Over Power
If Cho Hak-ju is a character who abandons everything for power, Crown Prince Lee Chang is portrayed as an ideal leader who chooses people over power. Played by Ju Ji-hoon, Lee Chang initially appears somewhat powerless and indecisive. However, through experiencing the zombie plague, he grows into a true monarch. Lee Chang's growth narrative is where Kingdom expands beyond a simple political thriller into a story about leadership and responsibility.
The dilemma Lee Chang faces is very realistic. He must fight against forces framing him as a traitor while simultaneously saving people from the zombie plague. Reclaiming royal authority and saving people's lives, these two goals sometimes conflict. However, Lee Chang consistently prioritizes people's lives. This contrasts with Cho Hak-ju and represents the true leadership Kingdom presents.
Particularly, scenes where he fights zombies alongside people in Dongnae, where he desperately tries to save people in Sangju, well demonstrate Lee Chang's leadership. He abandons his status as Crown Prince and breathes alongside people as a human being. Such portrayal carries significant implications for modern leaders. It conveys the message that true leaders are not those who wield power, but those who endure hardship with people and create hope together.
Joseon's Political History of Factional Strife and Class Conflict
Kingdom deeply addresses structural problems in Joseon politics beyond individual power struggles. Conflicts between maternal relatives and Sarim forces, tensions between central government and regional powers, contradictions in the class structure based on status system permeate throughout the drama. Particularly, the character Lord Ahn Hyeon well demonstrates this political complexity. He is someone who knows of Cho Hak-ju's corruption but must follow him due to being compromised, symbolizing how powerless individuals are within power structures.
The drama also shows that information control is key to maintaining power. Cho Hak-ju concealing the king's death and attempting to cover up the zombie plague's reality represents power's operating method commonly seen in modern politics. In contrast, Crown Prince Lee Chang strives to reveal the truth and inform the people. This opposition structure can be read as a confrontation between transparency and concealment, democracy and autocracy.
Kingdom ultimately uses the fantasy element of zombies to explore the essence of Joseon politics and, furthermore, the essence of politics in all eras. How is power maintained and abused? What is true leadership? What should be the relationship between people and those in power? These questions are universal themes transcending time, and Kingdom presents them very convincingly. The extreme situation of zombies functions as a device making these political themes sharper.
Messages for Modern Politics
The reason Kingdom resonated with many viewers upon its 2019 release was not merely due to its thrilling story. The political themes the drama addresses remain valid in modern society. The privatization of power, concealment of information, and politicians prioritizing power maintenance over people's (citizens') lives continue to repeat in the 21st century.
Particularly, the epidemic theme became more realistic after experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. How those in power behave before an epidemic, what should be prioritized to protect citizens' lives were both questions Kingdom posed and challenges modern society faced. In this sense, Kingdom reads not just as a historical drama but as an allegory and warning about modern politics.
Despite being only 6 episodes, Kingdom Season 1 demonstrated high completeness as a political drama. A deep narrative exploring the nature of power beneath the flashy exterior of zombies, multidimensionally portrayed characters, and universal messages valid in modern society. Kingdom remains a rare work that captured both entertainment and message.