*A thread on Lee Gon and LMH as an actor. #aftertlkem #leeminho @ActorLeeMinHo #TheKingEternalMonarch
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Nobility, strength, heartbreaking vulnerability--there is so much craft to Lee Min Ho's "Lee Gon" that weeks after it has ended,it burns fresh in my memory like an imprint.

Full disclosure: before TKEM I haven't seen a single thing of his. So I became curious about his other work. With covid-time aplenty, I binged on ALL his dramas & movies. I'm almost done (1 to go, halfway through Bounty Hunters) but I've seen more than enough.

Stray thought: When you watch someone’s body of work for the first time--consecutively--you notice things that others who’ve been doing it for years may have missed. One thing is clear to me--his growth as an actor in The King is unquestionable, and more than a little incredible.

I don't know what it is. Maybe it’s the time spent in military service, or the 2 years away from the public eye, or just natural growing up. But whatever the reason behind it, LMH as an artist, seems to have gone through a fundamental shift.

There’s a melancholy to him now, & a quiet, controlled temperament--a subtle maturity in his performance coming from a deep confidence that finally, he's totally in control. The depth & restraint he layered on his portrayal of Lee Gon w/ so much clarity, is an achievement.

With the possible exception of Gangnam Blues, I think TKEM is truly his best work to date, just on the aspect of craft alone. There are no false notes to his portrayal, and no matter how simple the scene, every expression is nuanced with Lee Gon’s history.

Every time he came onscreen, it feels as if you are watching the combined study of every modern monarch the public has known. And he does this with amazing consistency—hard to pull off on a series that was being filmed while it was airing. #leeminho #tkem

Lee Min Ho completely owned Lee Gon. From his carriage, to his walk, to his speech, to the way he wore the mantle of a king’s authority, everything was a completely believable, fully-fleshed-out character, that will be remembered for a long time to come.

He embodied the natural arrogance of aristocracy, countered by the benevolence of a King struggling with his deepest fears about his own destiny to rule, while keeping the core of that innocent and traumatized boy fully intact and at his disposal to show the audience when needed.

I really believe Lee Min Ho has just been waiting for this age to fully come into his acting skills. Watching his previous dramas, he seemed perpetually caught between awkward youth and forced maturity. There’s always been skill, but it needed control and it needed ripening.

In TKEM, everything came together, from his voice,to his tone,to his movements, to his emotional placements and creative choices, all finally caught up to each other & synced perfectly. It's a great time for him to fully explore meatier roles of this age. Bravo. @ActorLeeMinHo