Arthdal Chronicles: The Sword of Aramun (2023) Episode 11

Episode 11 of Arthdal Chronicles season 2 starts with us back in the fiery forest, with the whirlwind of fire picking up. Tagon is mesmerized by the flames, and as he stares at his impending doom, we cut across to Tanya who decides to let Yangcha out. She’s not particularly happy to see him again, given she initially let him go to get away from the war. However, his destiny lies with Tanya, whom he thanks for allowing her to let him feel his emotions again.

Meanwhile, over at Gambal Mountain, Saya ends up crossing paths with Rottip. Saya smirks, pointing out that he’s technically dead now so he can go wherever he wants and live however he wants as well. But he goes to see Tanya, admitting that he’s seen the murals and knows that it’s her doing.

Saya is angry at being used, given his part of the prophecy is negligent in the grand scheme of things. Saya did did all of this because he was devoted to her and wanted to try and be there for her. Tanya though can’t accept this. She points out that it was his choice to like her and not hers. With no purpose, Saya toys with Rottip’s words and contemplates what to do with his destiny now that it is in his hands.

Elsewhere, the Queen is shocked to learn that Arthdal’s troops have been destroyed as a result of the fire whirlwind. The victory is hollow though, given Takuchan has lost an eye and they’ve suffered heavy losses. The fight is far from over though. Right now they need to march for Arthdal and finish this, once and for all.

The troops in Arthdal learn that the battle in the woods was a failure and so do the common folk too. As a result, the villagers start mobilizing, readying themselves for a revolt to allow a new regime to come into effect. In the wake of this, Minister Jeungsugae is attacked in the market and stuck in critical condition.

The Queen returns though and starts to bring the ministers and troops together, with the Generals even released from custody. She convinces everyone to stand up and fight for Arthdal, giving a rallying speech to everyone.

This couldn’t have come at a better time for them, given the troops – rallied by Tanya – arm up and prepare to fight. She too gives a rallying speech about what’s about to come, and both scenes (the speech here and that given by the Queen) overlap in a really nicely edited scene.

When Tanya marches on the palace, the Queen shows up and Tanya is shocked to see her. She believed she was still up at the White Mountain and not in Arthdal organizing traffic.

Unfortunately, Tanya’s forces are now surrounded, and with archers all round ready to fire, Tanya points out that all of these troops are cursed and they need to stop, otherwise they’re going to receive this awful curse. The Queen brandishes a sword though and rallies everyone behind her, pointing out that she’s not afraid of this superstition.

As everything looks set to kick off, the fires start after all and the sky fills with plumes of grey smoke. This is enough for the rest of the villagers in Arthdal to step up a gear and march on the palace. Yangcha is shocked that Tanya has so many people by her side and with the palace on the verge of being sieged, it’s now the Queen who’s put on the back-foot.

With Tagon gone. everyone believes that Arthdal is lost. Just before things reach fever pitch, the Queen slays one of her own soldiers. When one of the spearmen attempts to attack, Tanya telepathically communicates with her and it’s enough to convince him that this is Asa Sin’s voice commanding them to stop.

As the men drop to the ground, Tanya points out that the God’s voices are their own and convinces them all to be kind and be there for each other. She wants them to make the world a good place to live. This is also echoed by her own father’s sentiments all those years back. Unfortunately, things take an unexpected turn when Tagon returns absolutely fine and with barely a scratch. His motley band of troops are with him too.

Outside the city walls, Eunseom marches forward with the rest of the rebels. As they do, a man shows up on horseback with a white flag. The message is simple – retreat 600 steps back and wait for a message. The tribe refuse to do so and laugh incredulously at him… until they see the massacres inside Arthdal. Those from the Wahan Tribe are slaughtered on the battlements and throw down to the ground like ragdolls, one at a time.

Among those on the walls is Tanya, and with her used as a bargaining chip, Tanya communicates with Eunseom and reinforces that she’s the reincarnation of Asa Sin. She wants him to follow Inaishingi’s path and keep fighting. Off the back of this, the tribe retreat into the forest, while Tagon sets up his place at the top of Arthdal’s leadership hierarchy. The Queen is glad but Tagon reinforces that he was never going to leave this place behind.

Saya awakens after an awful dream among the Neanthal. They’re preparing to leave soon and they want him to be with them. At the same time, Tagon has his servant concoct up Bichwisan for him, under fear of suffering nasty ramifications. Tagon heads up to the castle walls and checks on Tanya, who’s tied up looking out over the wilderness. As he looks in her eyes, taunting her with his words, the episode comes to a close.

The Episode Review

So the penultimate episode of Arthdal Chronicles ends with everything hanging on a knife-edge. One would assume that Tanya is going to die in order for this new world order to pass, and Tagon will need to die as well, possibly from Eunseom’s hand. Either way, there’s an awful lot to unpack and digest with just one more episode remaining.

Parts of this series has remained underdeveloped, like Saya who hasn’t had a lot to do after being brought back to life again. His part in this prophecy appears to be done but we’ll have to wait and see.

As for the rest of the drama, the production design is still high and there’s been plenty of fantasy drama to whet the appetite. This history around the Neanthal is a nice touch too but again, it hasn’t quite been as prevalent and explored in as much detail as it could have been. Either way, tomorrow’s finale looks like a must-watch as this drama looks set to go out on a high.