Under the Queen’s Umbrella (슈룹) is a historical Korean drama series directed by Kim Hyung-shik, and stars Kim Hye-soo as Queen Im Hwa-ryeong, Kim Hae-sook as Queen Dowager, and Choi Won-young as King Lee-ho. Others joining the show include Moon Sang-min as Grand Prince Seong-nam, Bae In-hyuk as Crown Prince, and Yoo Seon-ho as Grand Prince Gye-seong, Kang Chan-hee as Prince Ui-seong alongside other cast members.
The series takes on tvN’s Saturday-Sunday 09.10 PM timeslot previously occupied by Little Women. Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 4 has a runtime of 73 minutes.
Netflix describes the series as:
A SPIRITED QUEEN TRIES TO REIN IN HER ROWDY SONS IN ORDER TO MAKE ONE OF THEM THE NEXT KING OF JOSEON, WHILE HER COMPETITORS VIE TO SNATCH THE THRONE.
-Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 4 Recap Contains Spoilers-
Seong-nam finds out about the Crown Prince but is also met again by a bitter reality of his past which he was barred from being curious about. However, this time he’s promised better things by his mother (unlike his grandmother) but with his brother’s health as his priority, his turn will have to wait. Beginning his own search for a suitable doctor, he visits the outskirts of the palace to reach out for his resources.
Crown Princess’ due date nears and demands the Crown Prince’s presence. Meanwhile, the royal physician Cho Guk-yeong’s return is marked. Hwa-ryeong decides against consulting him as she notices an absurd pattern as per which every other physician involved in the case of Crown Prince Taein’s treatment is either dead or missing, except him, who had also happened to climb the social ladder, unlike his other colleagues.
The Chief State Councilor raises his doubts about the King’s choice of the second examination, announced as a debate to be held among the qualifying finalists – Seong-nam, Bo-geum and Ui-seong (Gye-seong had withdrawn his name from the selection). He does so as his motives are clearly in cohort with Prince Ui-seong replacing the Crown Prince. Approaching Queen Dowager for support, he reminds her of her own history and asks her to favor Ui-seong alone.
As the night falls, Consort Tae welcomes one of the tutors of the Crown Prince to help Prince Bo-geum with his preparation. The Prince, who wants to put himself to the ultimate test of his intellect, calls out the tutor’s behavior and his disregard for the rules. Following the teacher’s departure, when left alone with his mother, the Prince asks her against pulling such tactics again.
With the second examination ready to test the trio, we’re once again reminded that the Chief Stae Councilor had passed on his expertise as well as insight on the topics of the debate, and has even prepared the Price for all kinds of unexpected circumstances, as learned from last time. Once the debate ensues, Prince Bo-geum uses his personal understanding to grade the situation of the plaguing nation and the hut villages in Seochon. Price Ui-seong supports his arguments with examples of recent developments but Grand Prince Seong-nam takes a humanitarian ground, considering people’s real plight.
Ui-seong’s negative utilitarian approach singles out the people of the village as the cause of the problem instead of supporting them. Seong-nam is called out for leading with his emotions, so he settles down with some humane facts about the plague, picking up on the anxieties of the people arising out of the lack of awareness, which ultimately shuns Ui-seong’s claims and leads Bo-geum to join forces with him in his support.
As all of this is in procession, Grand Princes Mu-an and Il-yeong and Prince Shim-so head out to the secure section of the village for an entertaining day out of the palace. After the debate, Seong-nam too rushes to the village to find out the only physician who’s cured the deadly disease that troubles his brother. The only catch is that he must play on his own life to meet the doctor as he’s confined within the quarantined zone.
Playing by his instincts, he manages to get a prescription from Master Toji, the doctor in question, and procure the herbs required for the treatment after facing much trouble. Upon handing these medicines over to physician Kwon, his expedition is rejected because both the royal physician and the Queen question the credibility of the unknown doctor. Yet, after Crown Prince and Seong-nam’s urge for the motion, the Queen takes it upon as her responsibility to at least stop the acupuncture treatment, as guided by Master Toji.
Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 4 Ending
Hwa-ryeong is given an ultimatum by Queen Dowager for the Crown Prince to be present on the day of his daughter’s birth. However, with his condition not responding to any medications till now, she has no choice but to turn to the herbs brought in by Seong-nam. The day of the Crown Princess’ delivery arrives and everyone gathers to greet her, except the Crown Prince.
The consorts are quick to start speaking under their breath about the reason for his absence but defeating everyone’s doubts, the Crown Prince makes it in time, causing Hwa-ryeong to beam with pride. Her relief is translated into her decision of organizing a dinner feast to be shared with all five of her sons – the episode’s pleasant highlight and a sight for sore eyes, something all the fans have been waiting for since the first episode.
With a new day in sight, Prince Bo-geom assumes his position as the new Cohort on the Crown Prince’s side. They begin their lessons in concord, with both of their mothers observing this new feat. Things seem to be going well but of course, the episode can’t end on a happy note and leaves us in our usual mood of melancholy as the Crown Prince chokes up blood and is once again left unconscious. It does compel us to ponder over what could’ve instigated this. Has he perhaps relapsed despite his improvement over the last few days? Or is this yet another one of Queen Dowager’s plans of action that has intentionally misfired in Hwa-ryeong’s face?
Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 4 Review
In addition to the royal premises pictured in every episode till now, the fourth episode ventures into another territory as well. Bringing up the issue of the plaguing nation outside the walls of the palace in the second examination as a debate, this is the first time we’re let in on the actual sketch of the village. With Seong-nam’s much-needed exit into the real world of common people, we get to see people suffering from the epidemic at large, a vision much similar to our recent familiarity with the pandemic.
Hence, establishing that the palace is not the sole focus of the storyline, the series has maintained the hut villages and the predicament of the common folk as a grave topic of discussion since the first episode. However, it’s with episode four alone that we finally visualize the plight of the people, which is only further giving into discrimination and violence as highlighted by Seong-nam as well.
Another vision that we witness for the first time is the intermingling of the princes among themselves on an amicable note, unlike Seong-nam and Ui-seong’s raging feud. Prince Shim-so’s friendship with Prince Mu-an is presented in stark contrast with the former dynamic as in this relationship they take each other’s sides instead of standing on opposite ends of the scale. Such a comparison introduces characters and their relationships with each other in multiple shades rather than singling it out through the monochromatic lens of antagonism and hatred.
Moreover, even though the descriptive synopsis of the series illustrates each of the Grand Princes as ‘rowdy’ and ‘troublemakers’, it’s a very reductive analogy that the viewers of the show will disagree with. Each of the five siblings holds their own character and adds to the storyline in their own way.
Gye-seong’s narrative was brought to our attention in the previous episode, while Mu-an’s streak is to always stay in character by staying out of it especially since he eagerly wants to turn his back to his ‘princely’ ways. Il-yeong is merely talked of as the young one, but that again is in sync with keeping the youngest members out of such politics. Seong-nam and Crown Prince on the other hand are the constant figures who play out their roles to change the direction of the story.
The family dinner feast is a prime example of this individuality and the very cause of the pleasure it imparts to the viewers. Every episode balances out itself in terms of the highlights it covers. The third episode particularly focussed on Gye-seong but this time, though overtly, Seong-nam may be the hero of the day, we also meet the rest of the Grand Princes, thereby covering all aspects and dimensions of these characters.
Under the Queen’s Umbrella Episode 4 is now streaming on Netflix.
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It was hard to watch the Crown Prince be so sick while the Queen continues to be arrogant, undiscerning and unwilling to just talk to her children about the real danger they all face. Each episode is fraught with tension only because the writers are using fear to manipulate the viewer. The queen imo is one of the stupidest characters I’ve seen in a while. I detest when writers use this plot device to move the story along.