*lol* Yes, I noticed the fantasy! **Like the magic jewel and things like that, it really came in handy! *lol* ** I find those fantasy details quite amusing!
And of course I don't think most of the story is based on true facts (such as the main character herself, magic objects, etc...), although some parts really are (the Ryukyu kingdom was an independant kingdom up until the late 19th century so it's not fake), and only my last question was related to that. The first was just, was it a plot hole or did I miss something? :)
I can see why you felt it was creepy, though. I think Jyo Teigai was very creepy!! As for the **age difference between the young king and his women (not only Mazuru but the other girl as well), my guess is that it wasn't very unusual for that time... the most important thing seems to have been the woman's talents, skills and intelligence, so age shouldn't have mattered that much.**
Another thing I reacted strongly to was that scene in episode 5 where she talked to Asakura. **Because he was the only one who knew her secret, they had this special relationship; she felt she could rely on him. (Well, I also felt that she was scared being reminded that she was, in fact, a woman.) He had known her since she was little, he was impressed by her, and he seems not to be shocked by the fact that a girl wants to study. But this good, intelligent man who just like her always want to do the right thing (while other people in high places might be greedy and corrupt, etc), he can’t take it anymore. He finds it harder and harder not to see her as a woman. I can understand that in a way. But. She has just been promoted; she’s happy about that and wants them to keep working together in the best interest of their respective countries. But he says that he wishes that she could life with him as his wife and stop being a minister.
But… it’s so unfair. She can’t. Because if she becomes somebody’s wife, then it’s impossible for her to do anything, and she has dreamed her whole life of being able to be useful to her country and always study and learn things. (Even the women at the court – the queen, the king’s sister, the concubine, and court ladies – they have to work out schemes behind the scenes and their world is extremely limited, even if they can acquire a certain amount of power.) I hated that this man who has always known this about her and respects and likes her for it, he was actually asking her to give it all up for him.
Later, when he pressures her, she says that she feels like she can be herself with him; that she is neither man nor woman, because he is the only one who sees her as just a human being… That’s what she wants. She wishes that it wouldn’t matter if a person is a man or a woman, but sadly, the world she lives in thinks differently, and he thinks like the world. :( It made me sad when I watched that, and although I sort of understand his feelings (not his fault; just the society they live in), this made me like him less.
Well, that was what I was thinking right after watching the episode. I guess the two of them are the main romantic couple of this drama, although I must admit that at this point I ship Mazuru/Choukun... but since he's already married, I guess that can't happen.**
But I shouldn't say too much; I've just watched ep7 so I don't know how it's going to end!
