It makes sense that we had at least a good part of Arthdal Chronicles Episode 6 dedicated to Saya. After all, it did not seem right that Eunseom did so many things in Arthdal, and all Saya did here was heal from his injuries. There is something different about the man when the shadow of Arthdal is not upon him, and it is a welcome change. Therefore, let us see what happens in this recap of the episode of Season 2, Episode 6.
Spoiler Alert
How do the people of Arthdal accept the prophecy?
Since Yangcha gave the message to Tanya, she knows that Eunseom is ready to unite the Inaishingi and Aramun parts of himself. She only needs to convince the people of Arthdal that it is possible. As the prophecy goes, she brings the tree with the sword to the temple, and the people are all there, asking her their questions. That is when Tanya tells, or rather teaches them, to ask and introspect. It is the chapter on critical thinking that most schools miss in their syllabus, which Tanya is now imparting to the people. She asks them to consider their past treatment of Igutus and how true unity lies in recognizing the difference and using it. All laws and divisions are man-made, and that means that in our ignorance, we may have neglected to see where true greatness was. Before we write more philosophy, we would like to briefly establish Tanya’s point that the welfare of the nation lies in reuniting with the Ago tribe and not seeing them as the enemy.
Is Tagon going mad?
Tagon is delirious, partly due to the medicines and partly because of the shock of having his Igutu blood revealed. He is unable to process that he is being accepted by the masses, and he actually believes that whatever happened when he went to save his son was a dream. Taelha assures him of everything and lets him know that his vision of his father taunting him is not reality. Tagon heeds Taelha’s words, but what ends up working is some unintentional therapy from Nunbyeol. She is the only one brave enough to give him medicine, and he asks her how she sees his blood. Nunbyeol’s reply is that of someone who might have taken Hippocratis’ oath, and she says that blood is blood no matter the color. That particular statement erases the vision of Tagon’s father, and he gains a modicum of peace, though he still has a long way to go. As he stumbles to the temple, it is clear that he is aware of the prophecy. Additionally, Tanya has access to his thoughts, and all she can hear is a child crying. Years of suppressing himself and fighting against everything never let Tagon grow up from the scared child that he was, and it is exactly that person who lashes out at everyone right then.
Tagon gives the order that everyone born in the Year of the Wolf should be rounded up. This includes Eunseom and Saya. When one of his trusted people protests this, Tagon cuts off his ear. On the other hand, Tagon also insults Taelha in a way that there is no coming back from. It may be in a fit of madness and insecurity, but the insults cut deep because Taelha probably realizes that these are things that Tagon has always thought about her. The wife and husband may have been at loggerheads, but for the king to not see how staunchly the queen had always fought for him and to further insult some of her most painful memories was a death blow to their marriage. This changes all of Taelha’s plans, and she may not think of Tagon the way she did before.
How does Saya convince the Ago tribe of his identity?
There is no one like Saya, and it upsets us that we are so accustomed to seeing him as the villain, at least partly. He joins the Ago tribe because he cannot reveal his true identity, but once he is there, he is overwhelmed by the love he receives, even though he knows that it is actually for Eunseom. Part of the reason why Saya is as he is could be that he has grown up in an environment of hostility and has not received much love in his life. Therefore, taking his brother’s place does not only make sense from a political viewpoint but also from an emotional one. It is just something he wants to experience for a while longer before he inevitably returns to being the Arthdal General. He very cleverly gets the names of all the chiefs of the tribes through an excuse of them paying their respect to Chaeeun. He is also very invested in the health of the horses, and he announces that it is the work of a spy whom he needs to find. But all his well wishes cannot save him when Ipsaeng comes back, and here we see his crafty side make a return.
Does Saya want to be the Inaishingi?
Ipsaeng is unable to prove that the person in front of everyone is not Eunseom, but Saya. It doesn’t help that Saya very cleverly shows that Ipsaeng tried to kill him and might be the spy from Arthdal. Given Ipsaeng’s track record, nobody believes him. Since he is not aware that Saya can see Eunsoem’s dreams, he asks him a question, and Saya easily answers that, proving that Ipsaeng has lost his mind. As he is held captive, Ipsaeng begs Badoru to check a cottage, where he says that Eunseom will be along with Dalsae. Luckily, Badoru decides to listen to this one thing and finds it to be true. When Eunseom realizes what Saya is doing, he asks Badoru not to reveal the truth but to just lead his brother to him. If the truth is revealed, it would cause unnecessary chaos among the Ago tribe. The best way to resolve this is peacefully.
Since Ipsaeng is held captive, we suspect that the knife was given to him by Badoru, but we will have to see in the next episodes to confirm. Ipsaeng frees himself and tries to kill Saya, but a girl, Myonita, gets in between. Ipsaeng is thrown into captivity once again, but Saya is a changed man. When he first arrived at the settlement, it was this girl who hugged and welcomed him. Right now, it was she who had sacrificed herself for him. No one had done that for Saya before, and this kind of love was changing something in him, which even Chaeeun noticed. That is why, at the end of Episode 6 of Arthdal Chronicles season 2, Saya offers to join the expedition for some weapons, not knowing that this was a trap laid out by the spy and the Arthdal forces. As expected, all of them were in danger the next day, and they split to save themselves. It is evident that Saya cares about the people dying, something he has not done before. He would have died himself, but his little brother was hiding within the troops and saved his life. Saya and Eunseom meet once again, and it is going to be a complicated reunion because we doubt Saya wants to leave all this behind.
Final Thoughts
This was quite an episode, and we rediscovered why we had liked Saya so much to begin with. It makes us wonder once again: What if the roles were reversed? What if Saya had grown up with the Wahan tribe and Eunseom had been in the palace? How differently would they have found their fates, and wouldn’t that have been more interesting? Either way, Lee Joon Ki proves why he can seldom do anything wrong, and we are left very happy after this 80-minute-long episode.
