The only actor in the entire cast of Queenmaker who had enough personality to support his role as a politician was Ryu Soo Young’s Baek Jae Min. Even while that suits him, it is still a very sad development for the series’ overall goals. He was supposed to function as the impetus, forcing Oh Kyung Sook and Hwang Do Hee to use all of their cleverness, demonstrating the unique mental agility that only women could possess. However, we have explained why the unconscious pandering to patriarchy prevented that in our earlier pieces in the series. This meant that Baek Jae Min abruptly changed from a powerful villain to just someone who was unable to clear his name of mud. He was ideal for the kind of character that people love to despise, yet he was still only average.
He wasn’t unaware of politics, unlike Oh Kyung Sook. Until he had the chance to reveal his true colors, he had been calmly passing the time with his mother-in-law and his wife. His sister-in-law was never shy about expressing her contempt for him. At family dinners, she publicly attacked him by saying he was there simply for the money. While we don’t believe he ever truly loved his wife, he was a fantastic role model for a devoted husband both in public and in private. When it came to mocking him in public or ignoring him in private, Chae Ryeong was no different. However, Baek Jae Min was unconcerned because he had no regard for the affection of the Eunsang family. He merely desired a chance to utilize their influence for his own benefit.
Jae Min demonstrated this when he publicly revolted against the Chairwoman and appeared to be on the verge of winning the mayoral election. He requested Do Hee be released before leaving, and the Chairwoman had a negative response. The frequency with which the women in this series slap one another is pitiful. But if only every assault on Jae Min didn’t appeal to the irrational, shrieking woman stereotypes, we wouldn’t have been upset by her slap. In any case, Jae Min had confidence in his own ability to step in for Do Hee because he believed that Eunang could survive without her. He frequently had a lot of insights throughout the mayoral campaign and could even confront Carl Yoon with superior ideas. This is very dissimilar from Oh Kyung Sook, who was wholly dependent on Hwang Do Hee. Baek Jae Min would have been a much better candidate for the position than Oh Kyung Sook had he not been so evil.
We ponder what made the match between him and his wife conceivable in the first place after learning more about his cunning. It’s difficult to picture someone attempting to win over Chae Ryeong. But given that Jae Min hailed from a poor household, that had to be the case. They were once immensely powerful, but everything was lost when his father committed himself after being falsely accused of wrongdoing. This leads us to believe that Jae Min lacked the resources to wed Chae Ryeong in an arranged marriage. She must have fallen in love with him thanks to him. The fact that she appeared to be hurt when he passed away just serves to support our suspicion.
She also did not hesitate to comfort him when she discovered why he detested persimmons. These are not the behaviors of a lady who is uninterested in him. She may have put on a front of anger, but by making up the infertile narrative, she also contributed to his election. Despite all of her insults, Chae Ryeong did care for him. Perhaps she became as resentful as she was after being married when she realized he didn’t love her or was engaging in extramarital affairs. Jae Min was aware that she was his supporter even though she did not pretend to have his stomach. The interaction between the two is highly intriguing and ought to have been investigated more.
Jae Min was introduced to us as a very amiable individual who may have even flirted a little with Do Hee. But it became clear very quickly that he was in the family for financial gain. If the situation had been any different, he might have responded to his sister-in-law. Not because she had a different opinion on Jae Min, but more because she did not think it was proper dinner conversation, the Chairwoman was irritated by her daughter. She brought up his assault on I Seol, and we realized that. Do Hee was unaware that Jae Min had attacked I Seol, but the Chairwoman was aware of it. It just means that she was aware of his potential for evil and assumed that I Seol was not the only person he had done this to.
When Hwang Do Hee runs into the previous fixer at Eunsang, the latter claims to have informed the Chairwoman about Jae Min and requested that she not include him in the business. When Jae Min had just one day left before his wedding, he had behaved inappropriately toward a woman. However, the Chairwoman showed little concern, perhaps because she didn’t need to. She simply seized the chance when she realized the possible benefits of having a subservient son-in-law. She was correct, despite our desire to deny it. In truth, Guk Ji Yeon would have vanquished Oh Kyung Sook if she hadn’t become pregnant. Who could make the worst accusation against the other throughout the election was more important than competence. Jae Min could have triumphed because of that alone.
We believe that Jae Min would have defeated Kyung Sook in the actual election because he was simply more skillful with words rather than because he was a guy. When he argued that the public favored showmanship above facts, he wasn’t wrong, and Jae Min was an expert at it. We must agree that fighting a political war is insufficient despite our sincere idealism, considering all that Oh Kyung Sook possessed was a bullish attitude and good intentions. If the author had written the mayoral campaign with greater subtlety and cunning, Jae Min might have lost. However, Jae Min would have prevailed if these were the outcomes.
