They're doing a 'Beauty and the Beast, learning to read' thing
Below you'll find a Speed Recap (i.e. the full episode in ten bulletpoints or less) and then some hot takes on the highlights. As always, spoilers ahead and if you're confused as to who's who, check out the...Who's Who post.
Speed recap: Hwarang, Episode 6
The lads all wake up hangover after last episode's mandated binge and immediately start fighting with each other like they're rival factions on an all-girls school trip to Normandy.
In the aftermath of another epic bust-up at Hwarang house for which DogBird takes the fall, Ah-ro is brought in as the in-house medic, on the assumption that her sheer lack of qualifications will keep this chaos on the down-low. The King goes to the next level of being Terrible With Girls, by just falling asleep on her.
The Queen comes to check out progress at Hwarang House. She's pissed at DogBird for being at risk of expulsion for his role in the fight and confronts him.
The Hwarang get their first assignment -a book report the Tao Te Ching. This is great for DogBird, who is functionally illiterate. So off we go back to Ah-ro's makeshift nightschool where we do some delicately flirtatious calligraphy.
Meanwhile, a new plotline is emerging as the mysterious archer from last episode shows up at Master Ahnji's place, and turns out to be Woo-Reuk, one of the guys from DogBird and Mak-moon's village. He seems to know Ahnji, and berates him for "unlocking DogBird’s fate". Ooh-er, destiny etc.
The King decides he wants in on DogBird's lessons with Ah-ro and in a moment alone with Ah-ro kisses her with all the intensity of a three year-old kissing their teddy bear. God, he's so bad at this.
What did we learn?
SHOWER SCENE
Aside from Episode 1's ludicrous club scene, this has to be my absolute favourite anachronism of this series.
Ban-ryu, are you redeemable?
Ban-ryu is quickly emerging as Hwarang's Draco Malfoy, as he starts on DogBird for being a 'peasant' with a 'half-breed' sister. He also goes onto imply that he's keen to give Ah-ro a shagging, which cements his current status as Campus Cunt.
Back in Episode 4 we learned a great deal about about Ban-ryu and his two straight dads, and the fact that this isn't the blended family that we would all hope for. It's obviously led to him becoming a pretty nasty piece of work, so what remains to be seen is whether he'll emerge as a real villain or get a redemption arc.
Soo-ho's sister is the great bestie
Every good female lead character needs to have a slightly unreliable best friend to tell her that having mention-itis about a guy that's 'really annoying you' means that you're actually secretly in love with him...even if he's your brother.
In Hwarang, Soo-ho's little sister Soo-yeon is very much that girl, and we know that if she'd lived today she'd 100% be that woman in the girl's toilets at the club drunkenly telling you you're pretty.
Kim Taehyung, you're doing great, sweetie
BTS's resident space cadet is doing the absolute most to steal your heart and he's succeeding.