I just found the perfect historical K-drama that rivals Game of Thrones—Here's why it's a must-watch

HBO’s popular fantasy series, Game of Thrones, premiered in 2011 and quickly became a fan favorite show. The fantasy show is also more popular for breaking and introducing new and unique concepts, changing the television landscape. Set in the fictional King’s Landing, it follows several royal houses involved in the political turmoil arising from the quest to sit on the Iron Throne while also fighting to keep the White Walkers of the north at bay.

The HBO series is among the most-watched shows due to its blending of multiple themes to create this complex narrative. This introduced many shows that attempted to follow and create powerful and intriguing narrative. One of these genre-blending shows is Netflix’s historical Korean series, Kingdom.

This show is set in the Joseon dynasty of Korea, offering a glimpse into the period's political landscape and social customs. Using themes of political turmoil, historical setting, with elements of horror, this show might even be called a rival for Game of Thrones.

More on this in our story.

Kingdom: A genre-blending show similar to Game of Thrones

The Korean series debuted on Netflix in 2019 and is set in a fictional time in the 17th century in Joseon, three years after the terrible Imjin War, which was the Japanese invasion. As the people of Joseon were trying to get back on their feet, a new threat started looming when the king became ill.

The crown prince Lee Chang, played by Ju Ji-hoon (The Trauma Code: Heroes on Call), gets suspicious of the King’s illness and tries to investigate but is caught by Cho Beom-il, the brother of the queen consort and son of Lord Cho Hak-ju, who is trying to seize the power of the throne for himself and his clan, the Haewon Cho clan.

Lee Chang succeeds in fleeing from getting arrested but finds himself amid the deadly epidemic that is threatening the lives of the people of his kingdom. Like Game of Thrones, the show introduces the political turmoil and the fight for the throne as one of its central storylines.

Not only the royal clashes, the show also dives into the class divide between the rich and powerful and the poor, who, due to being neglected, have been exposed to this deadly epidemic that brings back the dead. While dragons might not be there, the Kingdom introduces the supernatural through zombies.

With a historical setting like Game of Thrones and political conflicts amid the fight with the supernatural, Kingdom covers all the major points of becoming the next top show, contending with the HBO fantasy series. Moreover, with limited episodes, as both seasons consist of six episodes each and a special episode depicting the origin of the zombie apocalypse, it might even become a rival to the HBO fantasy series.

The Walking Dead might have popularized the zombie-apocalypse shows, but Kingdom takes it in a more intriguing direction by providing a historical and clear beginning of how the undead started to roam the earth. Moreover, the zombies in Kingdom also introduced another facet of creatures as they were sensitive to temperature, meaning that they thrived in the cold weather, which might remind many of you of the White Walkers.

While Game of Thrones was a broader narrative, which had many subplots and might have strayed from impactful storytelling several times, Kingdom provides a clear and concise narrative, where each scene is effectively utilized and executed, without wasting any time wandering or drifting from the main plot.

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If you are a fan of Game of Thrones, don't forget to watch Kingdom, which is available to stream on Netflix.

Also Read: Top 10 fighters from Game of Thrones, ranked

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