Moon River Episode 2: Inside Kang Tae Oh and Lee Sin Young's High-Stakes Rescue of Kim Se Jeong

MBC’s Moon River slams into high gear in Episode 2, delivering a breathless rescue as Crown Prince Lee Gang and Prince Lee Woon join forces to drag Park Dal-i from the brink—an early-season shock that raises the K-drama stakes.

Moon River just dropped a whopper of a rescue in Episode 2, the sort of white-knuckle sequence that reminds you why this genre hooks people. Two princes, one merchant in serious danger, and a small-town authority ready to make a brutal example of her. It is intense, and it absolutely moves the pieces for the rest of the season.

So what is this show again?

MBC's fantasy romance kicked off November 7, 2025, and it centers on a grief-struck crown prince and a traveling merchant who may or may not have swapped bodies under mysterious circumstances. The wrinkle: Park Dal-i looks uncannily like Crown Prince Lee Gang's late wife. That eerie echo is not subtle, and the show is clearly playing with it.

'Episode 2 of Moon River dives deep into the emotional core of the story, balancing myth, romance, and heartbreak with delicate precision.'

- Leisure Byte

The widow rescue that backfired

Dal-i (Kim Se Jeong) does something brave: she intercepts a young widow being pushed by her in-laws to kill herself so the family can grab a 'virtuous woman' plaque and bask in the prestige. Dal-i gets the widow out, and for about five minutes it feels like a win.

Then the in-laws plant stolen goods on Dal-i, drag her before the Dobong authorities, and the whole thing flips into a nightmare. Her protests do nothing. The sentence: thirty lashes and leg amputation. Yes, that extreme. They even have her bundled in a mat, ready to start.

Two princes, two styles, one save

Just as the punishment is about to land, Crown Prince Lee Gang (Kang Tae Oh) barrels in with his royal guards and a palace eunuch, ordering the proceedings to stop. Seeing Dal-i trussed up hits a nerve for him, and he does not hide it.

Right after, Prince Lee Woon (Lee Sin Young) arrives, cool-headed and smiling like he already solved the problem. He did. He shows actual evidence that Dal-i was framed. Between the Crown Prince's authority and Lee Woon's receipts, Dal-i walks out intact.

• Lee Gang (Kang Tae Oh): Crown Prince who storms in and halts the punishment
• Lee Woon (Lee Sin Young): Prince who presents evidence clearing Dal-i
• Park Dal-i (Kim Se Jeong): Traveling merchant framed for theft
• Oh Shin Won (Kwon Ju Seok): Left Royal Guard with Lee Gang
• Yoon Se Dol (Han Sang Jo): Palace eunuch assisting in the intervention

Why this scene hits

Beyond the heroics, the rescue tightens the emotional thread between Lee Gang and Dal-i. He is still rattled by how much she resembles his late wife, and yet he cannot ignore an innocent person being railroaded. Kang Tae Oh and Kim Se Jeong spark off each other hard here; if you were wondering who is going to carry this 14-episode run, Episode 2 pretty much answers that.

When and where to watch

Moon River airs Fridays and Saturdays at 9:50 PM KST on MBC TV. International viewers can stream it on Viki (worldwide, including India) and on Viu in Singapore, Indonesia, and the Philippines. In South Korea, it is available on Wavve and TVING.