Turtle ship fever

To get an idea of how seriously Koreans take matters of national pride, take a look at this [imitation] Lego kobukseon (거북선 거북船).

Admiral Yi Sun Shin was undoubtedly one of the great men of Korean history, but his victories were in the 1590s. Nevertheless, there are manhwa (manga, comic books) charting his biography, TV shows about the period, and scores of Yi Sun Shin/turtle ship memorabilia everywhere.

Maybe the recent flare-up of anti-Japanese feelings has had something to do with it, because I can't imagine anyone in England or the U.S. getting fired up (there's a pun coming up) about a 1580s era Lego model of the fire ships used against the Spanish Armada.

Oh well, you have to admit -- they really were the first iron clads, and by at least 200 years....