REVIEW: ‘King The Land,’ Episodes 11-12

The past couple King The Land episodes have been the calm before the storm. Now, after returning from Paradise, the gang has crashed back into reality. In King The Land Episodes 11-12, we finally have the arrival of the special 100th-anniversary event, the great war between heirs heating up, and a brutal reminder to Cheon Sa-rang  (Im Yoon-ah) of her place in Gu Won’s  (Lee Jun-Ho) life. The die has been cast to set up the remaining four episodes, with much at stake for our workplace couple.

Now that the Thailand trip is over, Gu Won can’t hide from his responsibilities anymore surrounding the King Hotel’s anniversary event. There’s the guest list to finalize and the schedule of events to tackle. Won wants to prioritize the employees who have been the backbone of the King properties for decades. Gu Hwa-ran (Kim Sun-young) has other priorities. Mainly, she’s hoping to court the politicians and those with actual power for long-term investment. She has no room for sentimentality. This is something she makes sure Won and her father,  Chairman Gu Il-han (Son Byung-ho), know in these episodes.

In King The Land Episode 11, we watch as Won frantically goes around meeting with employees. Despite everything going on, the search for his mother is on his mind, as is Sa-rang. A discussion with a long-time employee puts a temporary end to the search for his mother, but Sa-rang is determined to seek out more information. Guided by her personal experiences surrounding her own parents, she tries to initiate a conversation with room inspector, Ok-ja, but is turned away when she improperly enters the guest room with shoes on.

When he is not busy observing intricate dress rehearsals for the anniversary event, Won is sneaking into Sa-rang’s grandmother’s house to give her presents. A topic of conversation ensues about Sa-rang, with Won promising to take care of both of them. Viewers, we all know this heralds upcoming conflict because it has been too long since there’s been trouble between our two lovebirds.

The day of the anniversary event arrives and we witness one of two things. Won’s event organization is a success, but at the expense of his sister who loses face in front of her invited guests. While Won’s focus on the King Hotel’s employees for the 100th-anniversary yields a lot of positive attention for the King properties, Hwa-ran reminds her father that without her guests’ support, the hotel will run into issues. This sets the stage for a further clash in King The Land Episode 12.

After spending episodes hiding their love for one another, the beginning of King The Land Episode 12 deals with Won and Sa-rang getting caught by their friends.  It is here that Won also finally reveals his identity to Gang Da-eul (Kim Ga-eun), Oh Pyeong-hwa (Go Won-hee), and  Lee Ro-woon (Kim Jae-won) as the son of the chairman, which highlights how awkward the dynamics can change between friends when statues shift. Thankfully, after some back and forth between all the characters, Won’s and Sa-rang’s friends settle into an agreement of sorts.

King The Land Episodes 11-12 deepen the romantic stakes.

Then we’re back to the hotel for some more battles between siblings. It is in King The Land Episode 12 that we see how long Hwa-ran will go to ensure her success. In a board meeting, their father tells them to create a business plan that dictates their future plans for King Hotel. Won doesn’t want to make any cuts to the budget, stating that it just punishes the hardworking employees that run the hotel rather than the higher-ups. Hwa-ran insists the opposite, with the hotel’s profits being the only thing that she cares for. The bottom line is the through line of her character and her decision-making, and it shines brightly in this particular episode.

What’s been fascinating about the clash between Hwa-ran and Won is the difference in mentalities directed toward business. That and the obvious gender dynamics. Hwa-ran is clearly a competent boss but she has been geared as the series’ villain for some time as she’s taken the competitive approach against Won. She continues to show her insecurities by being so combative and cutthroat, even to her own father.

However, it should be noted that she has also grown up in a male-dominated industry. She’s had to cut every slice of emotion out of her. For a woman, especially in business, emotion is a weakness and paints us as irrational and incapable.  How she behaves is no different than how many of us have watched male businessmen behave, but she cannot afford to make any mistakes or have any distractions.

Knowing all of this makes it easier to understand why she tries to control her husband, push away her son, and think nothing of trying to fire the ever-loyal Sa-rang to save face. As it stands now based on King The Land Episodes 11-12, it seems she is being primed for an excruciating downfall. She’s so set in her ways that that would be the only way she’d be able to learn the lesson that it seems the writers are aiming for surrounding business.

Another theme that the writers have been attempting to address is the power dynamics between employer and employee and – by extension – the haves and have-nots. This serves as the ultimate dilemma that gets dropped at the end of King The Land Episode 12 when Sa-rang gets invited to participate in the Dream Team. This team does not make mistakes, which means mistakes will be made by Sa-rang at some point.

At lunch at the Chairman’s place, we see Won with a rival hotel owner’s daughter. It is here that a major bombshell drops in front of Sa-rang as she prepares to serve Won. It is also what makes me question whether or not inviting Sa-rang to the Dream Team was innocent or meant to remind her of her place.

Earlier on in the episode, Hwa-ran has a discussion with Noh Sang-sik (Ahn Se-ha), wanting to know everything there is to know about Won. Whether professional or personal, she is offering to fulfill all of Sang-sik’s ambitious goals if he gives her the information she craves. Knowing this meeting took place paints the episode’s final moments in a different light. It also makes a crack in the foundation of Won’s and Sa-rang’s relationship that the next episodes will tackle.

If there is anything to complain about in King The Land Episodes 11-12, it’s wanting more time with Da-eul and Pyeong-hwa since we’ve cut to them for tiny segments of time. With four episodes left, their respective arcs feel like they’re going to be left unfulfilled or likely rushed. Particularly, Da-eul’s arc has been treading the same water for quite some time. Here’s hoping we see some forward movement with them in the remaining episodes.

King The Land Episodes 11-12 bring us back to reality with some tense high-stakes episodes. Things have been smooth sailing for our couple, but it’s time to remind ourselves what is at stake between the two. It may not matter how good the two of them are at winning over their colleagues and employees. If they can’t resolve the tension between themselves, then this relationship is doomed to fail. Considering how delightfully stubborn both of them are, it is likely they will survive. But anything can happen.

King The Land is now available on Netflix.