Arthdal Chronicles: The Sword of Aramun (2023) Episode 1

Arthdal Chronicles The Sword of Aramun (아라문의 검: 아스달 연대기) is the newest season of the historical fantasy Kdrama under the same name directed by Kim Kwang-shik. The show brings back the old cast along with many new faces including, Jang Dong-gun, Lee Joon-gi, Shin Sae-kyeong, Kim Ok-bin, Shin Joo-hwan, and Park Hae-joon alongside other cast members.

Arthdal Chronicles season 2 brings us to eight years after Tagon was crowned King and now a much-awaited war is soon to arrive. While Tagon and Eunseom prepare for a battle to bring in a new dynasty, political wars continue behind the scenes as rebellion, bloodshed and revenge await in the dark. Who will become the ruler of Arthdal and what does the new dynasty behold?

The show will have 12 episodes and be broadcast on tvN on the Saturday-Sunday slot at 9:20 PM KST time slot previously occupied by The Uncanny Counter season 2. Arthdal Chronicles season 2 episode 1 has a run time of 77 minutes.

 

Arthdal Chronicles Season 2 Episode 1 Recap

Arthdal Chronicles The Sword of Aramun episode 1 begins with a recap of season 1 and where the story of Arthdal has come to be. From the birth of the twin brothers Eunseom and Saya to the separation, growth and later the attack on the Wahan tribe and Iark. The recap also brings about the legend of the Heavenly Objects that will end the world; the objects that will be in the hands of Tanya (star-shaped bell), Eunseom (sword) and Saya (mirror).

 

The recap then brings us to Tanya’s rise as the high priestess, Eunseom becoming the leader of the East as their Inaishingi, and Saya becoming the military commander of Tagon’s forces. While the end of the world rests in the hands of these three, they are unaware of the changes that they will bring when they one day meet.

With this, we are told what happened after Tagin became the King and declared to capture the East and grow his power once again. As Tagon’s forces made their move to capture the East, they were blocked by the tribes on the way which gave his army a hard time for months together.

It was only when Tagon himself stepped into the battlefield that these forces crumbled before the Arthdal forces and faced a big loss. Now, only the Bato tribe and the Agon Union on the banks of the Notsan River lay in the middle of Tagon’s conquest of the East. However, these two are not easy to capture, especially when their Inaishingi (Eunseom) leads the troop.

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Somewhere far away, children who grew up seeing the wars sing a song which praises Inaishingi. While the commander of the Arthdal army following him is dumbstruck by their fearlessness, Syoreujakin tells him of how Inaishingi’s tales are spread all across this land which is why they sing these songs.

However, the two are now in the midst of following a plan that is sure to help them capture the Inaishingi. While it is still unknown what this man looks like or what his real name is, they are sure to end his tale with the plan that Saya has come up with.

Later, Inaishingi arrives with a mask at the Bato tribe with his men in response to his invitation and for negotiations, while Saya is ready to put his plan into action. The Bato tribe leader speaks of joining forces with the Ago clan, following which the two leaders raise their cups in rejoicing. Right then, Syoreujakin stops them and reveals the real Inaishingi who is hidden in the Ago crowd. It is none other than Eunseom who has once saved his ungrateful life only to now see him taking part in such scheming while portraying himself as a merchant.

 

With this, the tension in the room reaches its peak as swords are drawn out a young Bato tribesman points his sword at Eunseom’s throat while another sword is pointed at his throat. Eunseom sees his fear of being killed surpassing his desire to kill the Inaishingi, so he provokes him and soon has him killed.

Fear breaks out among the other Bato tribe members and soon the killings begin following which the Bato tribe chief is taken hostage and a surprise attack is launched on the warriors standing outside. However, seeing the tribe chief being held hostage, the tribesman standing next to Saya orders for the attacks to stop.

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Seeing this, Saya lures him with the desire to become the next chief when an arrow is shot from a distance and chaos breaks again. Amidst this, the tribe chief escapes while Saya observes the Ago warriors and finds out who the Inaishingi is, thus, commanding everyone to attack him.

Eunseom fights them bravely and finally sets his eyes on Saya, however, another soldier follows him and has him lose his mask. Upon killing him, Eunseom turns around and Saya sees a face that is similar to his own. Eunseom then walks towards him but is interrupted by another Ago warrior who tells him that they need to leave.

Saya is saved, however, he is surprised to know that the Inaishingi is none other than his twin brother Eunseom. Meanwhile, the Ago warriors are chased by the Arthdal soldiers all the way to the banks of the Notsan River when Eunseom shoots a whistling arrow and their backup soldiers arrive and begin chasing the soldiers.

However, Saya sees the bigger picture and understands that the Ago warriors are actually rushing to Hanchu City. Elsewhere, Tagon returns to Arthdal with a victory and slaves for the people. As the people of Arthdal rejoice in his return, Tagon asks where the queen is.

Taealha is seen spending a leisurely time with her son Arok when they are interrupted by two men who claim to be craftsmen from a nearby tribe. However, they soon show their true colours when they make an attack on Arok who is saved by Taealha, who then makes Arok kill the assassin.

 

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Tagon is told about this assassination attempt and doesn’t fret too much after finding out that the two are safe. He then gives orders to the commanders to train the troops and be prepared for war whenever needed. The commanders salute him and this is when Tagon sees the bracelets on the wrists of the commanders which makes him question Mubaek.

Mubaek tells him that these have been given by the Grand Temple and are worn by the commanders who are anxious due to the impending war. At the Grand Temple, Tanya’s influence on the people and soldiers is astonishing as they come to her with a wish to seek blessings and relief from their pains.

Tanya takes care of them with gentleness which only increases their faith in her while her own psychic powers have gone through astonishing changes. Meanwhile, Mubaek asks his trusted aide to take care of Tanya in his absence and he tells Mubaek that his life was given by Tanya and he will make sure to protect her.

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He then confronts Mubaek about their plan to fight Tagon which alerts Mubaek who is soon astonished to see the man’s faith in Tanya. Elsewhere, Tanya’s aide passes on the words spoken by Doti as a reply to Tanya’s message and while it seems to be talks about some soldiers, she is unaware of what is happening.

Later, Tanya meets Mubaek and asks him about the attack on Arok only to find out that it can be the handiwork of the Bato clansmen, the queen or even the king. The two then talk about the future of Arthdal and the possibility of Saya becoming the new king which leads to discussing Saya’s diligent search for Eun-seom.

She then wishes him a safe journey and the scene shifts to Taealha who persistently insists that Saya was the one who tried to assassinate her son in front of Tagon. However, the relationship between the two has long turned cold and while Taealha continuously speaks ill of Saya, Tagon tells her that he has only just returned after settling chaos.

Elsewhere, Tanya has a dream where Eunseom and Saya are surrounded by fire when she is woken up from the nightmare. Meanwhile, news of the Ago warriors crossing the Notsan River and entering Hanchu City reaches Tagon. A council is held and Taealha saves Tagon by telling them that this is all under Tagon’s expectations.

The Arthdal soldiers will now attack the Ago warriors in the open wilderness which will be a huge disadvantage for the latter. Right then Saya arrives and tells Tagon that it is Eunseom who is the Inaishingi that everyone in Ago has been talking about. Tagon recalls the young man who became the victim when he killed his father which surprises Saya, only to then find out that Tagon hasn’t seen Eunseom’s face.

 

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Tagon then tells him that he needs to defeat Eunseom as this is what will officially make him the heir. Later, Saya tells Tanya about Eunseom and how they might just have to give up on their plan of defeating Tagon as Eunseom is the Inaishingi and Saya will soon have to fight him.

 

Saya tells her that Tagon already knew of Eunseom being the Inaishingi which makes it important for Saya to get rid of Eunseom before he is seen by Tagon. Tanya then asks if Saya met Eunseom face to face to which he says that they did not as Saya hid from Eunseom. Later that night, Tanya goes to Doti’s house and tells her that she has come to meet the horse Daoyu.

She tells Daoyu about Eunseom and tells him to go find Eunseom and help him in every way possible. Elsewhere, Nunbyeol and Chaeeun are held by Saya who has plans to use the two sisters to overthrow Tagon. He plans to send Nunbyeol into the palace while Chaeeun is to accompany him onto the battlefield.

Meanwhile, Taealha meets Asa Yon and tells him that she needs the Sahati children to be sent to the battlefield to take care of Saya. Soon, the day of the troop’s departure arrives and Tanya blesses the soldiers while asking Saya to spare Eunseom and come back safe.

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Arthdal Chronicles Season 2 Episode 1 Ending

On the other hand, Eunseom’s men have taken over Hanchu City and see his mercy on the people as he commands his men to not loot the cities they capture. Later, his men discuss Eunseom’s ideals and how words of his will soon be spread everywhere across Arthdal so that people will see Eunseom for what he truly is and look forward to the world he wants to create.

However, Eunseom’s army is also facing a problem due to a lack of weapons and he asks two men to bring the Wahan tribe’s father Yeolson for help. The next day, warriors of the Ago tribe chase after some Arthdal soldiers and soon see the enemy camp which leaves them astonished.

Soon, a meeting is held and it is found that the supply routes have been blocked and they now have limited ration for the troops. Soon, a message arrives from the Arthdal troops in which Eunseom finds out that there is a traitor among them who has leaked the information about their limited rations.

 

Eunseom orders all the members to follow and keep an eye on each other, if they fail to do so then they will be considered the enemy of Ago. Suddenly, the tension is broken by the noise made by restless horses outside and Eunseom soon spots Daoyu who has arrived to help him in the upcoming battle.

He then sees the necklace he gave to Tanya hidden on Daoyu’s back and the two are seen missing each other dearly. The next day, the battle in the plains finally begins and the cavalry of Arthdal face a huge loss when they are thrown off their horses from the Agon tribes’ planning.

With this, the battle between Arthdal and Ago finally begins.

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Arthdal Chronicles Season 2 Episode 1 Review

Arthdal Chronicles The Sword Of Aramun has finally taken off and this long wait has been worth it all. Arthdal has really brought in a new era of chaos within eight years and we see the growth of many characters in their own way.

Tanya’s powers growing not just spiritually but also in the hearts of the people, Tagon is no where behind as his many victories still live in the hearts of the Arthdal people. Meanwhile, Taealha fears Saya becoming the heir but is also on her way to cut off every weed on her way.

On the other hand, Eunseom has has grown up to become a more confident and skilled warrior while Saya’s craftiness has also reached a new level. However, what interests me is how Tanya and Mubaek convinced him to take their side and fight against Tagon.

Altogether, the show has finally arrived with many things to look forward to and will be a delightful ride for the upcoming weeks.