I read a recent story about home shows that take place in exotic locations. It appears that people watch them because it gives them a chance to see how people live in places different than their normal lives. The chance to see something out of the ordinary and mundane can be a draw for historical dramas. The streaming service Rakuten Viki gives viewers a chance to see new lavash settings and go back in time. Check out some of the historical dramas you can see on Rakuten Viki. The service starts at $4.99 a month, with the Plus Pass for $9.99.
- River Where the Moon Rises: Retells the love story between Pyeonggang and On Dal, who are characters in a classic Goguryeo folktale. Pyeonggang (Kim So Hyun), who is born a princess, but leaves home after losing her memories and identity. She gets raised as a soldier and very ambitious that she dreams of becoming the first female to lead Goguryeo. She meets On Dal, who is peace-loving but goes against his principles in order to protect Pyeonggang. Pyeonggang uses On Dal’s feelings for her to achieve her goals, but gets confused as she also develops feelings for On Dal which is something new for her.
- Legend of Fuyao – Only she can restore peace to the land. Meng Fuyao (Yang Mi) is a young woman who was born out of a divine lotus petal. She masters an invincible fighting technique at the age of 16 and then embarks on a journey to collect the secret talismen from five kingdoms that will gain her entry into a sacred land called the Firmament. On her journey, Fuyao falls in love with the Crown Prince Zhangsun Wuji (Ethan Juan), who helps her to fight the powerful political forces along the way.
- Princess Agents – During the lawless times of the Northern Wei, innocent citizens were kidnapped and turned into slaves. Chu Qiao (Zhao Li Ying) is one of the unlucky people who becomes enslaved and then thrown into a forest as a hunting target for the rich lords. Yan Xun (Dou Xiao), the Prince of Northern Yan, rescues Chu Qiao, and they develop a strong bond. But when she becomes embroiled with the powerful Yuwen family and Yuwen Yue (Lin Geng Xin) takes an interest in her, Chu Qiao will have to decide where her loyalties lie.
- The Song of Glory – With powerful aristocrats clamoring for power, the people of the Song Empire have succumbed to the ensuing chaos. Desperate to bring peace to his crumbling nation, the young prince, Liu Yi Kang (Qin Hao), is willing to do whatever it takes to save his people, but the road before him will not be easy. With most of the country’s powerful families plotting against him, Yi Kang’s list of allies is growing dangerously thin. Knowing the only way to strengthen his position is to ally himself with a mighty family, Yi Kang agrees to an alliance through marriage with the powerful Shen family. A family with deep military roots, the Shen family can provide the strength Yi Kang needs to enact the reform necessary to oust the aristocrats bent on destroying the nation. With the family’s brilliant and beautiful, Shen Li Ge (Li Qin) by his side, the two begin the arduous task of reformation.
- The Flame’s Daughter – When a woman’s life is forever changed by the evil acts of a vengeful man, can the three men who love her help rectify the wrong? A man named An Ye Luo lashes out when the woman he loves decides to marry a wandering warrior. To get revenge, he switches their daughter with the newborn son of the Lie Huo Pavilion. The daughter, Lie Ru Ge (Dilraba Dilmurat), grows up as the heiress of Lie Huo Pavilion who is loved by three very different men. The son, Zhan Feng (Zhang Bin Bin), is taken in as a disciple of Lie Huo Pavilion, after his father’s death. He becomes the first love of Ru Ge who will eventually breaks her heart. The skilled martial artist Yin Xue (Vic Chou) harbors a one-sided love for Ru Ge but enters into a life of immortality just for the chance to see Ru Ge again. The disabled prince Yu Zi Han (Wayne Liu) steadfastly remains by Ru Ge as her true friend despite starting to lose most of his senses. But when Ye Luo reappears to weave more vengeful lies to tear Ru Ge and Zhan Feng apart and bring turmoil to the nation, can Ru Ge and the men who love her seek out the truth and restore peace?
- The Story of Ming Lan – Sheng Ming Lan (Zhao Li Ying) has been mistreated by her legal mother and half siblings her whole life after her mother’s death. Although she is the daughter of an official, she is the sixth child, and is often looked down on despite her beauty and intelligence. Throughout her years of suffering, she decides to devise a plan to avenge her mother’s death. In order to do so, she must be patient and hide her true intentions from everyone else in the dynasty. One day, Ming Lan, meets Gu Ting Ye (Feng Shao Feng), the hedonistic son of the Marquis of Ningyuan. They fall in love and over the years their relationship leads to marriage. As a power couple working towards the same goals, can they avenge Ming Lan’s mother’s death?
- The King’s Woman – During the Warring States Era, the most beautiful woman in the land captures the hearts of two very powerful men. Gong Sun Li (Dilraba Dilmurat) is the granddaughter and disciple of the powerful military commander Gong Sun Yu. The first disciple Jing Ke (Liu Chang) and Li have always been in love with each other since childhood. When the Qin troops attack, Jing Ke is poisoned while trying to protect Li. In order to save Jing Ke, Li agrees to marry Ying Zheng (Zhang Bin Bin), the King of the Qin State, but discovers that she is already pregnant with Jing Ke’s baby. Ying Zheng has always been in love with Li and accepts the child as his own. As Li gets to know the kinder, gentler side of the ruthless ruler, she begins to fall in love with him. Where will her allegiance lie when Jing Ke comes to the palace to assassinate Ying Zheng?
- 100 Days My Prince– After a political coup, Lee Yul (D.O.) becomes the somewhat reluctant Crown Prince of Korea – after his uncle is disposed of to make way for his father to have the throne. As part of his duties, Lee Yul issues an edict that forces all of the throne’s subjects to marry before they turn 28. One woman struggling to stay on the right side of the new law is villager Hong Shim (Nam Ji Hyun), a woman with a secret identity even she is not fully aware of. A bizarre twist of fate brings her together with the prince whose edict is burdening her so much, unaware that their paths have actually crossed once before. While passing through the village Lee Yul is attacked and his life is saved by a quick-thinking official, who dresses the Crown Prince in peasant garb. After falling unconscious, he wakes up and finds himself in Hong Shim’s house. Unaware of who he is, she and her father treat his wounds. The attack has left him with memory loss, and – taking him for an unmarried commoner – the villagers wonder if he could possibly marry Hong Shim, saving her from her predicament, unaware of his true identity.
- The Tale of Nokdu– The family of a young noble heir named Jeon Nok Du (Jang Dong Yoon) is attacked by a band of female assassins. During his pursuit of one of the members of this violent gang, Jeon Nok Du finds himself in a village that is populated entirely by widows! Jeon Nok Du is forced to go undercover, disguising himself as a woman in order to evade detection while he searches for clues. In the village, he encounters a woman named Dong Dong Ju (Kim So Hyun), who discovers his true identity. However, Dong Dong Ju is also hiding a secret – she has also run away from home. Dong Dong Ju is fleeing from an ill-fated gisaeng (courtesan) apprenticeship. Although she is very adept at practical tasks, she is hopeless at singing, dancing, and the other artistic skills required of the gisaeng. Will the unlikely duo succeed in keeping each others’ identities a secret? And what will happen when they begin developing romantic feelings for one another?
- King Maker: The Change of Destiny– During the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), Choi Cheon Joong (Park Shi Hoo) is Korea’s leading fortune teller and face-reading physiognomist – as well as a skilled gambler and martial artist. He is beloved by the people of the realm and is a fierce patriot. However, he now faces his biggest challenge yet when he takes it upon himself to replace the corrupt regime running the country, hoping to elect in their place a virtuous young prince from a minor royal line. The prince, he believes, is the ideal man to take the Joseon throne. He also identifies the realm’s ideal royal consort – a humble street girl. Choi Cheon Joong must use all of his abilities to help the couple take power – but is aided in his efforts by a princess named Hwang Bong Ryun (Go Sung Hee), a woman who also displays incredible fortune-telling skills. As the duo proceeds with the audacious plan, they begin to develop feelings for one another.
- Sungkyunkwan Scandal– During the Joseon Dynasty when women were not expected to be smart or allowed to be educated, Kim Yoon Hee (Park Min Young) was both. After her father passes away and her brother becomes ill, Yoon Hee disguises herself as a boy and takes on her brother’s identity to get odd jobs and help support her struggling family. When she realizes that there is good money to be made, Yoon Hee begins to take the entrance exams for the prestigious Sungkyunkwan University. During one test, Yoon Hee is discovered to be perpetrating the illegal activity by the morally upright Lee Sun Joon (Park Yoochun), who threatens to turn her in. But believing that Yoon Hee is a boy, Sun Joon encourages her to take the test herself (with her brother’s identity). Both pass the exam and get into the university and become roommates. As Yoon Hee is now enjoying the glories of getting a higher education, she befriends the playboy Goo Yong Ha (Song Joong Ki) and the rebellious Moon Jae Shin (Yoo Ah In) and starts to develop feelings for Sun Joon – all the while trying to keep her true gender a secret from her new friends and the other male students. Can she keep up the charade long enough to get the education she desires and keep her emotions at bay?
