'The Remarried Empress' viewers divided over costumes, dialogue delivery

The Korea Times - Nov 9, 2026

“The Remarried Empress,” which has built a global fan base through its original web novel and webtoon, has made its live-action debut. Given the popularity of the original, expectations were high even before its release. But so were concerns over whether a live-action adaptation featuring Korean actors could convincingly bring to life the world of a romance fantasy set in a Western-style imperial court. Released on Nov. 3, the Disney+ original series “The Remarried Empress” is an epic romance fantasy centered on Navier (Shin Min-a), the seemingly perfect empress of the Eastern Empire. When Emperor Sovieshu (Ju Ji-hoon) tells her he wants a divorce after falling for Rashta (Lee Se-young), a runaway slave, Navier agrees on one condition: that she be allowed to remarry Prince Heinrey (Lee Jong-suk) of the Western Kingdom. The series is directed by Jo Soo-won, known for hit dramas including “I Can Hear Your Voice” and “Pinocchio.” “The Remarried Empress” already boasts a substantial global following. The original web novel has recorded more than 160 million downloads, w

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Lee vows to hire more firefighters, expand investment to ensure public safety

Lee vows to hire more firefighters, expand investment to ensure public safety

President Lee Jae Myung on Monday vowed to hire more firefighters and increase investment in strengthening their capabilities to ensure public safety amid diverse disaster risks. Lee made the pledge during a ceremony marking the 64th Day of Firefighting in the central city of Sejong, attended by government officials, firefighters, those who died while on duty and their bereaved families. The president stressed the ongoing climate crisis is increasing the diversity and scale of disasters, likely making them more complicated and difficult for firefighters to combat. "Preparing for and responding to changes a step ahead of time would be the way to protect the people's lives and ensure their safety," Lee said. He pledged to hire more firefighters, strengthen their command system and expand investment to enable them to respond more promptly and systematically to disasters and ensure public safety. Through the investment, the government plans to harness artificial intelligence (AI) and drones to identify risk factors, and undertake dangerous rescue operations while deploying cutting-edge defense

PPP leaders gather outside Cheong Wa Dae to protest special counsel bill

PPP leaders gather outside Cheong Wa Dae to protest special counsel bill

Leaders of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) gathered outside Cheong Wa Dae on Monday to protest the recent passage of a bill calling for a special counsel investigation into alleged fabricated indictments targeting President Lee Jae Myung and others. The PPP leadership held a Supreme Council meeting outside the presidential office, after the ruling Democratic Party of Korea railroaded the bill through a plenary session of the National Assembly on Friday. The legislation calls for appointing an independent counsel to investigate suspicions the prosecution under former President Yoon Suk Yeol fabricated evidence or induced false testimonies to build cases against then opposition leader Lee and others. The PPP has denounced the effort as a pretext to cancel all of Lee's indictments, as his trials have been suspended under an article of the Constitution that exempts a sitting president from criminal prosecution except in cases of insurrection or treason. Lee faces charges of involvement in corrupt development schemes, illegal remittances to North Korea, and the misuse of a govern

Justice minister nominee cautious on withdrawal of indictments against Lee

Justice minister nominee cautious on withdrawal of indictments against Lee

Justice Minister nominee Lee Yong-cheol on Monday expressed reservations about nullifying indictments against President Lee Jae Myung following last week's passage of a special counsel bill to investigate allegations of fabricated indictments, including those that currently involve the president. The nominee, who currently serves as head of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), said the special counsel should focus exclusively on uncovering the truth. He was tapped Friday to become the justice minister, a post that has remained vacant for more than two months since Lee's first justice minister, Jung Sung-ho, resigned in late August. The National Assembly passed the special counsel bill on the same day amid protests from the main opposition People Power Party, which suspects the legislation is aimed at canceling all indictments against the president. "I believe it is appropriate for the special counsel to focus solely on uncovering the truth from now on, while all other matters should be handled in accordance with the law and established principles," the justice minister

Second vice minister of foreign affairs discusses role of diplomacy at HUFS lecture

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Germany's Henkel to open chip packaging materials R&D center in Seoul

Germany's Henkel to open chip packaging materials R&D center in Seoul

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Questions arise over constitutionality, conflict of interest in special counsel probe design

Questions arise over constitutionality, conflict of interest in special counsel probe design

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Seoul adds downtown crosswalks to free pedestrians from underground tunnels

Seoul adds downtown crosswalks to free pedestrians from underground tunnels

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Police chief nominee defends attendance at Cabinet meetings

Police chief nominee defends attendance at Cabinet meetings

Kim Jong-chul, nominee for commissioner general of the Korean National Police Agency (KNPA), said Monday that the police chief's attendance at Cabinet meetings is necessary and would not compromise the independence of police investigations and their political neutrality. The KNPA chief, who is not a member of the State Council, had not traditionally attended Cabinet meetings, but Kim has attended the meetings in his capacity as acting KNPA chief under President Lee Jae Myung's administration. Kim Ji-yong, the inaugural chief of the Serious Crime Investigation Agency, and acting Prosecutor General Lee Jeong-hyun have also attended Cabinet meetings, presided over by Lee, despite opposition criticism that their presence could undermine the political neutrality and independence of their respective agencies. "While I have attended Cabinet meetings on several occasions, not once has any specific case been discussed," the police chief nominee said in written responses to reporters' questions. He said attending Cabinet meetings is necessary to share the direction of state affairs and to facilita

Busan to host world port cities summit next year following Dunkirk

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Korea inspects coastal farms to protect migrant fishing workers

Korea inspects coastal farms to protect migrant fishing workers

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Seoul Station Plaza designated as no-drinking zone

Seoul Station Plaza designated as no-drinking zone

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PPP boycotts judiciary committee proceedings over special counsel bill

PPP boycotts judiciary committee proceedings over special counsel bill

People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers on the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee on Monday announced a boycott of all committee proceedings, including budget reviews, in protest of the recent passage of a bill calling for a special counsel investigation into allegations of fabricated indictments against President Lee Jae Myung and others. Park Hyeung-soo, the committee's vice chair, and other PPP lawmakers made the announcement at a news conference, saying that, as conscientious members of the National Assembly, they could not sit down and conduct budget reviews alongside Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) lawmakers who had undermined the rule of law by pushing through the special counsel bill. "The DPK pushed through the special counsel bill aimed at dropping charges against the president in just three days after forcibly ending the opposition party's filibuster through a vote. It would violate the constitutional principle of equality before the law if a special counsel were to manufacture grounds for nullifying indictments against the president, enabling him to evade lega

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