What is "Bulgasal-i"? Ep.02 (feat.Tale of the Nine Tailed(2020))

I will explain 'bulgasal-i,' which appears in episode 2 of the 2020 Korean drama 'Tale of the Nine Tailed,' in the context of Korean culture and talk about the drama's setting.

What is "bulgasal-i"?

'Bulgasari' is a supernatural creature from Korean folk legends. Mentions of this creature can be found in various texts, but one of the most striking accounts is from a book called 'Gyeyab-munrok' from the 19th century. According to the story, a woman named 'Bulgasal-i' gathered all the iron in her village and threw it into a river. Later, this iron was retrieved by Yi Seong-gye, who used it to found the Joseon Dynasty. In this story, 'Bulgasari' is portrayed as a creature that eats iron, and this is the most convincing portrayal of its nature.

One of the most well-known characteristics of 'Bulgasal-i' in Korean legends is that it eats iron. Due to this trait, in modern times it is mostly portrayed as a monster related to steel in various animations or movies. Originally, it was described as an immortal being, but because it mainly plays the role of a villain in hero stories where the protagonist has to defeat the antagonist, its death is depicted in all stories. Originally, it was depicted as a being with the power to defeat misfortune and nightmares, but in <Tale of the Nine Tailed>, this characteristic is expressed with some modification.

Bulgasal-i' in <Tale of the Nine Tailed>

In <Gumiho: Tale of the Fox's Child>, the 'Bulgasal-i' has a different setting compared to the traditional story that has been passed down. In this story, 'Bulgasal-i' still gets excited when it sees iron and maintains its trait of eating it, but it is portrayed differently from the setting of dispelling bad luck and nightmares. It is depicted as a monster that eats nightmares rather than repelling them, and as a result, it is portrayed as a being that stays in crowded places and chases after nightmares.

In addition, it seems to maintain the legend's original settings, such as being strong against the power of fire and utilizing it.

The 'bulgasal-i' in <The Tale of the Nine-Tailed> is depicted with a dramatic imagination added to the Korean folktales that have been passed down and with a slight interpretation change. In several episodes of <The Tale of the Nine-Tailed>, you can meet the main characters in folk tales who have been slightly modified, such as 'bulgasal-i'.