“Captivating the King” on tvN enjoyed a notable rise in ratings last night, reaching an average of 6.7% nationwide for its latest episode. 

“Captivating the King” episode 12 recap

[Feb 18] “Captivating the King” Episode 12: Rating & Recap

Fire and fury: The King’s dilemma

"Captivating the King" episode 12 begins with a fire that destroys the peach tree planted by King Lee Sun for his brother Lee In. Lee In feels guilty and wonders if he should have let his brother keep the throne. He also suspects that Lady Dong might know who poisoned Lee Sun. She remembers how Lee Sun attacked her.

Queen Dowager and Park want to secure their power by finding a new queen for Lee In and a wife for Grand Prince Munseong. They also want to send Munseong away from the palace. The Mins are happy because they think the new queen will come from their clan.

In the court, Je-nam interprets the fire as a sign to fix the problems of the country and get rid of the palace corruption. Park acts like he agrees with him but Je-nam snubs him.

Munseong confides in Mong-woo that he cares for the King. She asks him if he fears the King and he says no because the King would never harm him. But Myung-ha thinks that Munseong will realize how evil the King is when he grows older.

Queen Oh is dying and she makes her father promise to support Munseong as the Crown Prince. Minister Oh is shocked when he sees Hyun-bo bringing expensive gifts for Queen Dowager and understands that his nieces will be ignored for the new queen’s selection.

A deadly game: The King’s enemies

Queen Dowager isn't pleased but Park has a scheme – he wants to cut ties with the Mins and control Hyun-bo instead. He proposes to marry Min Ji-hwan’s daughter to Grand Prince Munseong. Mong-woo and Myung-ha use this opportunity to meet with an angry Ji-hwan. He has no choice but to accept the offer but he also wants to back Munseong as the heir so his daughter can be the future queen. Then, he is confronted by Minister Oh who urges him to support Munseong as well because they cannot let Hyun-bo and Park win. Ji-hwan agrees to the plan.

When Mong-woo sees the King, he says he will replace the peach tree with a new one. She assumes he means that he will make Munseong his successor.

At the same time, Park tells Hyun-bo to ask for Munseong’s marriage and departure from the palace.

But in the court, before Hyun-bo can speak, Minister Oh asks for Munseong to be the heir as per the Queen’s wish and Je-nam supports him. Park is stunned because this would mean that Lee In took the throne illegally as Munseong is the son of the previous King. However, Ji-hwan has a solution, for Lee In to adopt Munseong.

The King questions both Queen Oh and Mong-woo but he is only concerned about Munseong’s safety. Queen Dowager opposes it but he eventually adopts Munseong as his son and heir.

At Yeonchwijeong, Mong-woo is waiting for the King but she hides when Park arrives with Lee In. He lectures his nephew about Munseong but Lee In admits that it is all a trick to calm the court and the people. He says he will exile and kill Munseong if necessary. Mong-woo is terrified while Park is happy that they are on the same page again.

Queen Oh passes away peacefully after Munseong becomes her son officially. Mong-woo meets Dal-ha who tells her that Munseong will always be in danger as long as the King lives and she reluctantly agrees.

The next day, the King is playful and doesn’t notice anything wrong as she invites him to meet her at night. Dal-ha plans to have Mong-woo act innocent while he is a nameless killer who murders the King.

"Captivating the King" episode 12 ends with Mong-woo and Lee In meeting outside Yeonchwijeong. She prevents him from entering and he jokes with her. He sees tears on her face and wonders if there is an assassin.

Review 

We knew it, we totally knew it. Dal-ha was going to ruin everything for Mong-woo and Lee In, right? Well, he didn’t mean to, but he spilled his plan to Mong-woo at the worst possible time when she was feeling low and suspicious of Lee In in Captivating the King Episode 12.

Oh, what a disaster! She had to overhear Lee In’s conversation with Park, where he was pretending to be a cold-blooded killer. How could she fall for such a blatant lie? Anyone with eyes can tell that he is playing his uncle like a fiddle. How can she forget everything he has done for her and think that he would murder Munseong?

This is the typical hair-tearing plot twist that happens in the second half of a K-drama… We really hope that Mong-woo gives Lee In a chance to clear things up before she makes any rash decisions.

(Source: Nielsen Korea)