“600 years ago, there were non-humans on this earth,” said a man behind him. “They are monsters. Man-eating monsters. “But it turns out that one of the men who fight with knives is such a creature. He had walked the earth all this time, cursed, put to death a kind of impenetrable irritation.
600 years ago, a group of frozen villagers were moving through the snow.
This is the final period in the history of Korean Koryo, and an attack by Japanese pirates on their village forces the group to head to the mountains. The problem is that monsters live there. And it only got worse. A pregnant woman in her group hanged herself but gave birth to a child after a death. It’s a cursed baby, said a wise old wizard. “He was never born, and he had to die with his mother. It has no soul and cannot die. Bulgasal cursed the baby. And Bulgasal holds a grudge against the baby of his previous life.
Ten years later, it doesn’t get any easier. The nameless boy lives as an outcast from the village, constantly terrorized by monsters. But then General Goryeo Dan Geuk confronted the boy. She adopted him and gave him Praise, which means “rebirth”. And Joseon’s early action preceded 17 years. Praise for being a terrible warrior; the general trained him well. “Theoreoxon, the water monster from the Yongsan River, and Gapsangoe, the monster from Mount Gap is that it killed many people, all died at the hands of my son,” said the general proudly. “These monsters must be afraid of him as much as Bulgasal is.” And Puji continues to defeat one of the last monsters, the bloodthirsty Dueoxini. Yet all this heroism, and he was still a man who was mistreated. His marriage to the general’s daughter brought only pain-ridden children. There is only one thing you must do. Praise vows to destroy Bulgasal once and for all and free himself from his curse.
It was for this mission that Praise was born.
But must also take the diversity of folklore into account. How Much Information About Bulgasal Becomes a Legend? How much has been lost through thousands of years of oral history or the collective fears of ordinary people? Praise must consider that his relationship with Bulgasal is not what it seems. And if so, then what is the curse on his children, especially his young son?
The thing about curses is that they hold back and demand a tangible reward. Make a damn deal with the devil for a shiny gold fiddle, you will lose the resulting jam session, and the devil will take your soul. It is always like that. And Hval’s predicament is no different; he moves through the sands of time to transport the grip of a mythical folklore ghost to the present, where he remains a persecuted exile looking for a way to free his poor soul.
Bulgasal: Immortal Souls looks more promising in this respect.
But in the first episode, it’s still about the battle 600 years ago, when roaming monsters and babies carry the stigma of past lives to their cursed present.
After Praise has aged from infancy to ten years and has finally become an older man, Bulgasal delivers conventional battlefield violence of sword and gout punches along with his fantastical horror elements: a massive demon with bulging eyes that promises vengeance. Praise for him has been cut off; a mysterious woman whose claws wreak bloody chaos.
But he had to fight again and again against Praise’s tormented existence, and Lee Jin-UK created a great atmosphere like Praise by slowly facing the camera or stroking his beard angrily. It’s stories, legends, and yes, Curse and Bulgasal: The Eternal Soul loves to lean on it.
Mainly as a starter for your Witcher marathon. Bulgasal: Eternal Soul is full of push and pulls between curses, legends, karma, and the struggle for your soul.