Boys before flowers photo

Boys before flowers

Title: 꽃보다 남자 / Kgotboda Namja / Boys Before Flowers
Also known as: Boys Over Flowers
Chinese Title : 花样男子
Japanese Title : 花より男子 / Hana Yori Dango
Genre: Romance, comedy
Episodes: 25
Broadcast network: KBS2
Broadcast period: 2009-Jan-05 to 2009-Mar-31
Air time: Monday & Tuesday 21:55


Synopsis

Jan Di is an average girl whose family owns a dry cleaning store located near the luxurious and well known Shin Hwa College. Jan Di meets the four richest and most spoiled boys known as the F4. After saving a boy from jumping off the roof of Shinhwa High School, she is admitted into the school on a swimming scholarship. Jan Di tries to avoid confrontation with the F4 at all cost because she knows what happens to those that stand against them. However, when Jan Di’s friend, Oh Min Ji, accidentally gets ice cream on the leader of the F4′s shoes, she’s forced to declare war on the leader of the F4, Goo Joon Pyo.

Cast

Koo Hye Sun as Geum Jan Di aka Makino Tsukushi

F4

Lee Min Ho as Goo Joon Pyo aka Domyoji Tsukasa
Kim Hyun Joong as Yoon Ji Hoo aka Hanazawa Rui
Kim Bum as So Yi Jung aka Nishikado Sojiro
Kim Joon as Song Woo Bin aka Mimasaka Akira

Extended Cast

Kim So Eun as Chu Ga Eul (Jan Di’s best friend)
Kim Hyun Joo as Goo Joon Hee (Joon Pyo’s elder sister)
Lee Hye Young as Kang Hee Soo (Joon Pyo’s mother)
Ahn Suk Hwan as Geum Il Bong (Jan Di’s father)
Im Ye Jin as Na Gong Joo (Jan Di’s mother)
Park Ji Bin as Geum Kang San (Jan Di’s younger brother)
Han Chae Young as Min Seo Hyun (F4′s best friend/Ji Hoo’s ex girl friend)
Lee Min Jung as Ha Jae Kyung (JK Group’s CEO’s daughter and Jun Pyo’s fiancee)
Lee Jung Gil as Yoon Seok Young (Ji Hoo’s grandfather)
Jung Ho Bin as Jung Sang Rok (Kang Hee Soo’s Chief Secretary)
Lee Si Young as Oh Min Ji
Gook Ji Yun as Choi Jin Hee / Ginger
Jang Ja Yun as Park Sun Ja / Sunny
Min Young Won as Lee Mi Sook / Miranda
Kim Ki Bang as Bom Chun Sik (Jan Di and Ga Eul’s boss)
Song Suk Ho (송석호) as Butler Lee
Kim Young Ok as Head Maid
Im Ju Hwan as So Il Hyun (Yi Jung’s older brother)
Park Soo Jin as Cha Eun Jae (Yi Jung’s first love)
Kim Min Ji as Jang Yoo Mi
Kim Jong Jin (김종진) as So Hyun Sub (Yi Jung’s father)
Jung Ui Chul as Lee Min Ha / Min Jae Ha (fashion model)
Kim Hyung Joon as himself (cameo, ep4)
Kim Kyu Jong as himself (cameo, ep4)
Heo Young Saeng as himself (cameo, ep4)
Lee Hae Woo as Host Q (the guy who drugged Jan Di’s drink, ep4)
Lee Jung Joon as Gong Soo Pyo (Ga Eul’s boyfriend, ep9-10)
Heo Kyung Hwan (허경환) as (Cell phone event MC, ep10)
Lee Jung Sung as radiologist (cameo, ep13)
Hai Ming (하이밍) as Ming (Ji Hoo’s friend, ep14-15)
Lee Suk Goo (이석구) as (Shinhwa’s high school principal)
Jo Soo Bin as announcer
?? as Goo Bon Hyung (Joon Pyo’s father)

Production Credits

Original Work: Manga Hana Yori Dango by Kamio Yoko
Production Company: Group Eight
Director: Jun Ki Sang
Screenwriter: Yoon Ji Ryun

Awards

- 2009 14th Asian Television Awards: Nominated for Best Drama Series, Best Drama Performance by an Actor (Lee Min Ho), Best Drama Performance by an Actress (Koo Hye Sun)
- 2009 Seoul International Drama Awards: Most Popular Actor (Kim Hyun Joong)
- 2009 45th Baeksang Awards: Best New TV Actor (Lee Min Ho)
- 2009 45th Baeksang Awards: Most Popular TV Actor (Kim Hyun Joong)

Episode Ratings

Date Episode Nationwide Seoul
2009-01-05 1 14.3 (7th) 14.4 (6th)
2009-01-06 2 17.6 (4th) 17.4 (4th)
2009-01-12 3 20.8 (4th) 21.1 (4th)
2009-01-13 4 21.4 (4th) 21.6 (3rd)
2009-01-19 5 24.8 (3rd) 24.3 (3rd)
2009-01-20 6 24.8 (3rd) 24.6 (3rd)
2009-01-26 7 19.5 (1st) 19.1 (1st)
2009-01-27 8 25.9 (2nd) 25.3 (2nd)
2009-02-02 9 29.7 (2nd) 29.4 (2nd)
2009-02-03 10 30.5 (2nd) 30.2 (2nd)
2009-02-09 11 31.5 (2nd) 31.8 (2nd)
2009-02-10 12 31.4 (2nd) 31.2 (2nd)
2009-02-16 13 31.5 (2nd) 31.5 (2nd)
2009-02-17 14 31.9 (2nd) 32.0 (2nd)
2009-02-23 15 32.4 (2nd) 32.3 (2nd)
2009-02-24 16 33.2 (2nd) 32.9 (2nd)
2009-03-02 Special 21.8 (3rd) 22.4 (3rd)
2009-03-03 17 29.9 (2nd) 30.6 (2nd)
2009-03-09 18 35.5 (1st) 35.7 (2nd)
2009-03-10 19 31.2 (2nd) 31.3 (3rd)
2009-03-16 20 32.6 (2nd) 31.6 (2nd)
2009-03-17 21 33.6 (2nd) 33.8 (2nd)
2009-03-23 22 31.8 (2nd) 32.4 (2nd)
2009-03-24 23 31.8 (2nd) 31.6 (2nd)
2009-03-30 24 30.2 (2nd) 29.2 (2nd)
2009-03-31 25 34.8 (1st) 34.9 (1st)

Summer Scent (2003, KBS miniseries)

I finally finished watching Summer Scent. Don't misunderstand me. I am not implying that Summer Scent is such an unbearable show to watch that I have to force myself to watch it. It's just the feeling of relief you get when the drama finally comes to an end.

Summer Scent threads along the same vine as its predecessors: Autumn Fairy Tale and Winter Sonata. Narrating the story of two lovers and their tribulations, it certainly follows the directing style of Yoon Suk-ho, who also directed the previous two dramas.

In this drama, PD Yoon is reunited with actor Song Seung-hun (Calla, Ice Rain), who also acted in Autumn Fairy Tale. Perhaps it was the previous chemistry which they had build-up together in the previous drama, Song Seung-hun could grasp the PD's requirements and expectations, and thus played the role of Yoo Min Woo well. Song Ye-jin (The Classic, Crazy First Love), in her fifth role in dramas and movies, also showed that she has grown up to become a more mature actress since her debut in 2001 in Delicious Proposal.

Song Seung-hun plays the role of Yoo Min Woo, an architect who lost his first love, Eun Hye (played by actress Shin Ae) in a traffic accident on the day of their wedding. Ever since that freak accident, he believed that he would never be able to fall in love again, until he met Shim Hye Won, whose personality bears a striking resemblance to his first love. However, like how most Korean dramas go, their meeting was not immediate, but rather coincidental in the mountains three years later. What made this story complicated was the fact that Hye Won, who used to be a sickly child with a heart problem, had a heart transplant with, gasp! Eun Hye's heart!

The complications do not end here. The story also threads on a sideline, where the lovers find it tough to maintain their love since Hye Won was already attached to Park Jung Jae (played by actor Ryu Jin), a charismatic eligible bachelor. Making things worse, Jung Jae's younger sister Jung Ah (played by actress Han Ji-hye) who is also best friends with Hye Won, is in love with Min Woo...

Just looking at the relationships alone, one can pretty much tell that it's a messed-up entanglement. What stands out in this show also is the beautiful scenery and lovely soundtrack. Using Calla Resort and the tea fields as a backdrop, one can't help but to admire the beautiful scenery too. An avid classical music lover myself, it was exhilarating to hear Schbert's famous Serenade been played in the background. Besides Serenade, the soundtrack also boasts a couple of great songs that went well along with the scenes in the show.

As for the performance of the supporting cast, Ryu Jin put up a good performance. Portraying a composed, sensitive new age guy, he has clearly done a good rendition of what is required of his role. Han Ji-hye was impressive in her debut performance too. She is natural in her acting. Perhaps this could be the reason as to the success of her latest comedy-drama, Narang 18 Seh.

Summer Scent is a good drama to watch. But compared to Autumn Fairy Tale and Winter Sonata, I personally felt that this was the least exciting of all. Perhaps this could be attributed to the slow start-up pace of the drama. However, the audience can expect a more tense atmosphere with each episode. The plot has its pretty ridiculous moments as well, especially the heart-thumping moments, which I felt were pretty preposterous

Punch (2003, SBS drama special)

As the title suggests, Punch is a drama about boxing. This drama stars Joo Jin-mo (Musa, Wanee and Junah) and Shin Min-ah (Madeline, Volcano High) as the two main protagonists.

Joo Jin-mo, after a four-year hiatus from drama production, returns to the small screen as charismatic boxer Lee Han-sae. An interesting character, Lee Han-sae is perceived as a playboy by others who do not know him personally. A nightclub king at night (he's the manager of a nightclub) and a college dropout, Lee Han-sae does take his boxing training seriously. In fact, he was so good that he managed to win a boxing title.

This could be said to be where the story picks up. Shin Min-ah plays Jang Yoo-bin, the sister of an inspiring boxer named Jang Yoo-chul who rivals the skill of Lee Han-sae. However, during the final boxing match, where the two are pitted against each other, Lee Han-sae wins the match, with Yoo-chul dying of complications from his injuries. Then, by some twist of fate, Han-sae and Yoo-bin fall in love with each other until one day, she realizes that he was the one responsible for her brother's death.

Although the storyline sounds typical and predictable, I felt that this was one of the best dramas I have seen for a long time. Using boxing as a background could be said to provide a breadth of fresh air, instead of utilising the usual parental disapproval as the main reason why they had so many obstacles in their relationship (think Winter Sonata, Romance).

The characters turned in great performances in this show. Joo Jin-mo was fantastic. It was refreshing to see him back on the small google box after seeing him in so many big movie projects. This regular "oppa" (big brother) role seems to be tailored just for him. Shin Min-ah did a good performance too, considering that she's relatively inexperienced in acting except for a few movie projects under her belt. A natural talent, she could be one of the actresses to look out for in the near future.

Sung Shi-kyung, who is more known for his singing abilities than his acting, also had a supporting role in this show. After watching his performance, one might feel that it would be better if he had just stuck to singing. As this was his first foray into acting, his stiff expressions and emotions were quite a pain to watch. Luckily, at the end, the show was still saved by the excellent chemistry between Joo Jin-mo and Shin Min-ah

Stairway to Heaven (2003-2004, SBS drama special)

2003 could be said to be a pretty fulfilling year for Korean dramas. From All In to Mermaid Lady, Yellow Handkerchief to Damo, these dramas have garnered a pretty faithful following when played on TV. To top off the moving year of titillating Korean dramas, SBS broadcast Stairway to Heaven, starring current heartthrob Kwon Sang-woo and entrancing actress Choi Ji-woo.

This show was a big hit, considering that it could absorb a viewership of anything from 25%- 45%. Of course, one of its main reasons could be the star-studded cast. Starring Kwon Sang-woo, who returns to the screen after his major movie hit My Tutor Friend, fans can't seem to get enough of him. Also, Choi Ji-woo, the awe-aspiring actress from Winter Sonata, has not been in any productions since Winter Sonata, except a Hong Kong-Korea production, 101 Proposals. Another of its lead actors, Shin Hyun-joon has also been missing from drama productions since 1999. With a cast like that, it's no wonder that it was one of the most anticipated dramas of the year, even in its pre-production stage.

Alas, this drama is not exactly captivating or exciting. The storyline is too cliche. Most of the plot seems to have been copied from other dramas such as Autumn Fairy Tale and Winter Sonata. Certain parts of it also parallel the storyline of Beautiful Days, which might be due to the fact that the PD of this drama Lee Jang Soo was the PD of Beautiful Days.

Like any other melodrama, this story opens with two childhood friends: Cha Song Joo (Kwon Sang-woo) and Han Jung Suh (Choi Ji-woo). However, as Jung Suh's father remarries, her new stepmother Tae Mira, brings her two children along, Han Tae Hwa and Han Yuri (Kim Tae-hee). An introvert, Han Tae Hwa (Shin Hyun-joon) is touched by Jung Suh's kindness towards him and gradually falls in love with her. On the other hand, Jung Suh and Song Joo have an inseparable relationship. At the same time, Yuri also likes Song Joo. So you can see that there's pretty complicated relationship triangle, or rather, rectangle here.

The show than fast-forwards years later, when the children have all grown up. However, due to a freak accident, Jung Suh is run over by Yuri's car, which leaves her suffering from memory loss and living with Tae Hwa under a pseudonym. Song Joo is devastated, but never forgets about Jung Suh even though the irritating Yuri tries at all times to get his attention. When the lovers finally reunite, another cruel misfortune occurs...

Like Autumn Fairy Tale, this story also depicts two children who grew up together and become lovers. Kwon Sang-woo is captivating as Song Joo. In fact, the media reported that Kwon shed so much tears in one of the scenes of the show that even the production crew became teary. In fact, this seems to be his best production to date, having acted in pretty minor roles before. Choi Ji-woo is also charismatic in her role as Han Jung Suh. However, it seems like she has become so fixated in playing pathetic, damsel in distress roles (recall: Beautiful Days, Truth, Winter Sonata) that it is becoming numbing for the audience to see her in such pitiful renditions.

However, it was refreshing to see Shin Hyun-joon in dramas again. Taking a five year hiatus in drama productions to concentrate on his movie career, there have been significant changes in his acting style, becoming more mature and in-depth in his character portrayal. Another actress Kim Tae-hee, who plays the evil Yuri, failed to impress with her bad-girl impersonation. Going by the same few expressions, Kim clearly shows her weakness in portraying the inner feelings of Han Yuri, especially since the four main characters in the drama focus a lot on inner feelings. Lee Wan could be said to have brought in a breath of fresh air. Acting as the younger Tae Hwa, Lee Wan is considered one of the most prominent up-and-coming actors to look out for. In fact, he is Kim Tae-hee's brother in real life.

To conclude, Stairs to Heaven is typical Korean melodrama. Unless you are a big fan of Kwon Sang-woo or Choi Ji-woo, you would most probably find this story boring, since the storyline has been used in so many other high profile drama productions before. Watching the last episode, one feels not forlorn, but rather, melancholic.

Romance in Paris (2004, SBS drama special)

I had yet to watch another 2004 Korea drama production since Stairway to Heaven. For a while, I felt that the genre of Korean dramas had come to be stereotyped and typecast as sappy, romantic, authoritative dramas with each plot made up of repetitive, parallel and analogous storylines.

As I decided to choose a drama production to watch again, I was quite apprehensive on the choice of a drama. But after hearing positive reviews of Romance in Paris and the high ratings that it garnered, I was rather curious about this drama, and wondered if it would be as excellent a drama as others had described it to be.

Romance in Paris is addictive. With its first three episodes showing the landscape of Paris, it is no wonder why the audience would be beheld by the picturesque scenery of the city of Amour. The Eiffel Tower, Seine River and other sights and sounds of Paris are captivating in the opening scenes of this drama. However, this is not the only captivating factor. The drama itself is also alluring and draws viewers in with each subsequent episode.

This is a Cinderella story. Although there is no real prince living in palace with a line of maids and a butler, the male protagonist here could be said to be a reincarnation of one. Suave, rich, smart, he is everything that you could ask for in a guy. Our Cinderella is, as the name suggests, a poor, optimistic, beautiful lady with an enchanting smile that could melt almost any guy.

The actors in this show are excellent. It seems like the roles were tailored just for them. Our prince is Park Shin-yang, who is better known for his movies like A Promise and The Letter, both of which were hits in the 1990s, rather than drama roles. An outstanding actor, he gave an excellent rendition of the role, Han Ki-joo, who is the GM of a multi-national coporation dealing with cars. Initially, after viewing the first two episodes, his acting seemed a little stiff. In fact, I was wondering why the PD chose someone who cannot act to take upon the lead role. But as subsequent episodes were unveiled, I was really impressed with his performance.

Kim Jung-eun, best known for the movie Marrying the Mafia, is the hard-broke girl Kang Tae-young, who is constantly being fired in her part time jobs. Although she had never taken on the leading role in a drama production, Kim shows her own charisma and proved that she also is worthy of becoming an A-list actress. She is the one who provides the soul for the drama with her forgetful character and cutsey performance.

Of course, we should not forget another actor, Lee Dong-gun, who acts as Yoon Su-hyuk, who together with Park Shin-yang is head over heels for Kang Tae-young. It was amazing to see how much Lee Dong-gun has matured in his acting skills. When I first saw him in Ad Madness in 1999, he was still an aspiring singer acting in minor roles in small productions. But his depth in portraying Su-hyuk's inner emotions was overwhelming. At 24, he is definitely an excellent actor to look out for. In fact, after watching his performance in Romance in Paris, I had the urge to view his earlier works such as Sweet 18.

A Cinderella story, but is it a Cinderella ending? If there is one flaw in the drama, it is definitely the ending. After watching the ending, questions marks were flying in my head. It was simply incomprehensible. In fact, I had to re-watch the last episode again to try to understand the ending. But sad to say, another attempt to do that would be futile. My guess would be that the PD would want the audience to comprehend it at their own discretion.

Nice story, nice scenery, great soundtrack, great cast but bad ending. But if you are contemplating which Korean drama to watch, I would still highly recommend this one.

My Love Toram (2005, SBS special drama)

Our local public library recently began stocking Korean and Chinese TV dramas on DVD, which is great news for my bank balance. One of the first dramas I checked out was a two-part SBS special from 2005 called Nae Sarang Torami (My Love Toram), which I hadn't heard of before. The English title isn't even on the DVD case.

Jun Suk-yeon (Ha Hee-ra, To Be With You) and her husband Kim Seong-min (Kim Young-ho Second Proposal) live happily with their two children on Jeju Island, where they have an orchard. As the story begins, they agree to raise a golden retriever puppy named Toram for her husband's junior Yeom Dong-ho (Kwon Hae Hyo, My Lovely Samsoon), who trains guide dogs for the blind. Toram turns out to be a bright, friendly addition to the family and the community.

But then Suk-yeon is blinded in an accident. Furious at her new dependency, she flees to Seoul, intending to return to graduate school, demanding that her family stay away until she finds her way again. She has a terrible time until she's reunited with Toram and he becomes her guide dog. But even then, she is stymied by the nervousness her neighbors feel about a blind woman, and their outright fear of her big guide dog. So she returns to Jeju. Her husband, understanding her need to complete her education, sells their farm and returns to Seoul with the children while Suk-yeon attends graduate school there. She has to contend with her son's anger; he won't forgive her for abandoning them when she was first blinded, and he's embarrassed by her blindness now before his classmates.

Since this is a TV drama, Suk-yeon wins over not just her son but his entire class, developing Braille and mobility skills that would make Helen Keller envious. She wins over the bus driver who had at first refused to let her on the bus with Toram, though guide dogs are permitted on public transportation by law. But presently Toram begins to droop. He has cancer of the spleen, yet no matter how sick he is, he insists on staying with Suk-yeon.

Nae Sarang Torami is fairly shameless melodrama: on a shinpa scale of 1 to 5, I'd rate it a 4; in my recent viewing, only You Are My Sunshine evokes tears with more gusto. I didn't mind having my heartstrings yanked in the least. I just sat in front of the TV with tears running down my face, loving every minute, and only occasionally mocked my willingness to be manipulated. It doesn't hurt that the story is more or less true, based on the real Jun Suk-yeon's book about her beloved dog. The show incidentally serves as an infomercial for Samsung's training center for seeing-eye dogs, which gets prominent credit. SBS also booked Jun Suk-yeon and her husband on daytime TV, where she talked about her life and the program, illustrated with video clips.

Ha Hee-ra is taller, leaner and more glamorous than her real-life model -- she reminds me of Geena Davis -- but she's a perfect TV drama upscale suffering mom. Kim Young-ho is better cast as her husband: stocky, unglamorous, solid and totally credible. If I had trouble shaking the image of Kwon Hae-hyo as the wacky, macho chef in My Lovely Sam-soon, it was his fault only for being so memorable before; he's restrained and equally strong here.

It's a constant cause of wonder to me how much thought goes into even the lightest Korean entertainment, compared to the US. That's not always true, of course -- I've seen Sassy Girl Chunhyang, Marrying the Mafia, and OldBoy -- but they're the exceptions that prove the rule. My Love Toram could have been unbearably maudlin; instead it earned my emotional response honestly.

My Lovely Samsoon (2005, MBC miniseries)

My Lovely Sam-Soon was the most popular TV drama of 2005, and it's easy to see why, though the series doesn't fully work for me. Kim Seon-A is totally convincing and likable as the title character: a brassy, unglamorous, vulgar young woman with her own mind, but who still feels the tug of social expectations. They are her expectations too.

Kim Sam-soon is a high school graduate who went to France to study as a pastry chef. Returning to Korea, she acquired a boyfriend, a spoiled and disturbingly pretty rich boy. When she discovers, at the beginning of Episode 1, that he has been cheating on her casually, she flees to bawl her eyes out in a restroom stall. A knock on the stall door interrupts her; she learns that she'd run into a men's restroom by mistake. The man who knocked is another disturbingly pretty rich young man, Hyeon Jin-heon (played by Hyeon Bin), and even if you hadn't seen him in the opening credits, you'd know by the conventions of TV drama that he's the one. The question, as Sam-soon flees again, is how to get from this embarrassing first meeting to Happily Ever After.

Before you know it, Sam-soon has stumbled into a job as pastry chef in Jin-heon's chic restaurant, so you know that it's only a matter of time -- sixteen episodes, to be exact. All they have to do is get past Jin-heon's Gorgon of a mother, President Na Hyun-sook (Na Moon-hee); his former true love Yoo Hee-jin, returned from several years in California (Jung Ryeo-won); Henry Kim, the studly Korean-American doctor (Daniel Henney) who followed Hee-Jin to Korea from California; and all the other obstacles that a talented and sadistic writer can throw at them.

Another obstacle, of course, is Sam-soon's age: she's on the verge of 30. In Korea (and not only there) she's no longer prime meat in the marriage market, even if she weren't slightly plump, loud, and stubbornly self-willed. Even so, she has three disturbingly pretty, rich, younger men pursuing her. (I don't remember the third one's name. He's mainly a fall guy: every time he and Sam-soon sit down together in the hotel lounge for a lust-filled chat, a jealous Heon-bin intervenes and sends him on his way.) She isn't really overweight, just a normal Korean woman instead of a supermodel, and her appeal to men is more realistic than surprising. This clash between romantic fantasy and reality is the force that drives the series.

I don't have space to do justice to all the characters who thread in and out of Sam-soon's life, from her widowed mother to her glamorous, divorced older sister; from the restaurant staff to President Na Hyun-sook's icy lieutenant. There are more, all performed beautifully by the fine cast, except for Daniel Henney as Henry Kim, the studly Korean-American oncologist. He's game, but wooden; still, his model's good looks ensure that he's going to turn up in more TV dramas (and commercials, and Buddha only knows what else), despite his still practically non-existent Korean. Sweetest of all is Sam-soon's late father, who loved and encouraged her all her life, and who turns up often in flashbacks and Sam-soon's fantasy. In Sam-soon, Heon-bin like so many men is falling in love with a woman much like his mother; Heon-bin, unfortunately, is not at all like Sam-soon's father. That may be why, despite her attraction to him, she can still look at Heon-bin with a critical, even cynical eye.

My Lovely Sam-Soon, then, takes some believable and interesting characters and runs them through the meat grinder of TV drama conventions, from raucous slapstick to gothic melodrama. By the sixth episode I often felt as if I were sitting through the sixteen-hour director's cut of My Sassy Girl, but I was hooked by then and had to learn how it all turned out. The ending is surprisingly realistic, resisting the temptation and pressure for a Cinderella resolution; so it satisfied me even though it might not please everyone. What I love most is a long scene near the midpoint, between Sam-soon and Henry in a hotel lounge in Chejudo. Upstairs, Heon-bin has been reunited with his lost love Hee-jin, whom Henry also loves. Henry speaks no Korean. Sam-soon sizes him up and then, while he beams at her uncomprehendingly, she tells him (in French, Korean, and bits of English), about the role of pastry and memory in Marcel Proust's Remembrance of Things Past, a book she learned about during her training in France.

Can you imagine a long, funny, moving dialogue on literature and love, conducted in three languages, in an American TV comedy? Me neither, but it works. I only wished for more scenes like it. Still, because of the hodgepodge of incidents and styles, there's probably something in My Lovely Sam-Soon for everybody

Palace (2006, MBC miniseries)

Imagine being a happy-go-lucky high school student and finding out one day that your commoner grandfather and the King of the country had made a pact that you would marry the Crown Prince. This is Chae-kyung's predicament as she is quickly thrust into a royal marriage to a complete stranger. (Oh, and did I mention that Korea is a country that doesn't even have a monarchy in the real world?). For some, it's a true alternate reality Cinderella story, but for Chae-kyung, her Prince, named Shin, turns out to be mean and selfish with little intent of breaking up with his previous girlfriend and every intention of divorcing her in a couple years.

But the bubbly and good natured Chae-kyung finds solace in the Crown Prince's cousin, Prince Yool. He is the true Prince Charming, a kind and understanding soul who quickly falls in love with her (his cousin-in-law). Complicating the situation is the fact that prince Yool used to be the Crown Prince and she was originally betrothed to him. And as it turns out, the parents of the Princes have a complicated past and love triangles all their own.

Sound like a soap opera? Well, obviously it is. And a good one. Chae-kyung must navigate the difficult worlds of the palace and high school and marriage. The mixture of three situations that are difficult enough on their own creates all kinds of interesting difficulties for our girl next door.

Yoon Eun-hye (second from right) is perfectly charming as Chae-kyung. She is the most delightful part of the show -- goofy and cute without ever being too annoying. She cries a lot but never comes off as weak. The performance really brings a lot to a character that's hard to dislike and easy to care for. Joo Ji-hoon (far left) is also great as Shin, the troubled monarch to be (he does great even though he's almost always dressed in questionable pink frocks). At first Shin seems somewhat one dimensional, but over time his complexities and insecurities come to the fore and are portrayed very effectively. Former boy band idol Kim Jung-hoon (far right) debuts well here, portraying the complicated and tortured character Yool. Along with the three leads are a great cast of supporting characters. Particularly of note are Chae-kyung's bumpkin family and her wacky trio of friends -- the characters that add the greatest comic effect to the show.

And the show balances the comedy and the drama very well. It never gets too sad or too silly for too long. A scene where the elders try to get Crown Prince Shin and Chae-kyung to consummate their marriage had me practically rolling on the floor in laughter, while a simple shot of Chae-kyung waiting by the phone and never receiving a call from her absent husband required a box of tissues. The show is full of tender moments, and really works best when it focuses on the love triangle of the younger characters, and tends to lose steam when a lot of attention is paid to the Elders.

Prince Shin does eventually begin to warm to Chae-kyung's utter adorableness, and a love triangle full of joy and pain plays out over the show's 24 episodes (It was originally slated for 20, but the show became so popular that they extended it for 4 more episodes of misunderstandings and tears). In fact, the extra 4 episodes might be a bit too much, because it does seem like there's maybe one misunderstanding too many by the end. As for the end, it's a bit strange and not the most satisfying I've seen, but it certainly gets the job done, and in no way should be a deterrent from watching the rest of this truly enjoyable show.

But right up to the last couple episodes, I didn't know which guy to root for. Sometimes I wanted her to end up with Shin, and sometimes with Yool. And it's not only a question of who will get the girl, there's also a question of which Prince will become the next ruler. Because as the Princes struggle for Chae-kyung's affection, their mothers connive to grasp the throne for them. Once again, the court politics mixed in with high school politics add a great twist to this drama.

A lot of the success of the show is credited to the top notch production values. The three main characters wear an array of designer outfits, and seem to be in a different one every time they appear on screen. The crown prince and princess' quarters are stunningly beautiful. The production was denied when they asked to shoot in a real castle, but it's all for the best, because what was created was perfect for the series.

The show's surprise success in Korea (which shouldn't have been surprising, due to how great it looked and how good the main trio of actors are) has caused it to be dubbed the next big thing in the Korean wave. There are high hopes that the show will catch on in other Asian countries. Even Variety has called it the "future of Korea's TV drama industry". And it could easily gain a following as loyal as Dae Jang Geum or Winter Sonata.

Thank You (2007, MBC miniseries)

Praise be to public libraries, the training schools of Socialism! Mine has been getting in too many Korean TV dramas, old and new, for me to keep up with.

Lee Young-shin (Gong Hyo-jin), a single mother, lives with her eight-year-old daughter Spring (Suh Shin-ae) and her senile grandfather (Shin Goo) on Pureun Island. She works at a variety of jobs to support them, raises fruit that she hopes to sell on the Internet, and hides the fact that Spring has HIV/AIDS, which she contracted from a blood transfusion a couple of years before. Fearing the hostility Koreans feel for people with HIV, she keeps the nature of Spring's illness even from her, while drilling her strictly in how to deal with injuries so as not to put anyone else at risk.

Youngshin dreams about Choi Seok-hyeon (Shin Sung-rok), a handsome and popular young man she knew in high school, who went to the mainland to study and has become quite successful, acquiring a classy fiancee on the way. Seok-hyeon's mother looks down on Young-shin, Spring, and just about everyone else on the island, but Seok-hyeon seems to feel an obscure guilty connection to Youngshin, and is kind to her even when his mother is behaving obnoxiously. It soon becomes obvious that Seok-hyeon and Youngshin have a shared past of some sort.

Jang Hyuk, in his first TV role since he completed his military service, plays Doctor Ki-suh, a highly competent but personally intolerable surgeon. Ki-suh is probably the most dislikeable character who's not supposed to be a villain that I've encountered in TV dramas yet: he's a totally self-obsessed control freak, with no apparent empathy for anyone. His career suffered slightly when his father - also a doctor - had to give up his practice in a malpractice scandal, but that doesn't seem enough to explain his unsympathetic behavior.

Ki-suh's fiancee, Cha Ji-min, is also a doctor, working in a rural clinic. When Ki-suh learns that she has pancreatic cancer, he drives to her clinic to abuse her verbally and physically until she agrees to let him operate on her, even though she knows it's hopeless. He takes her illness as a personal affront to himself, rather than consider her suffering. (Korean women should really be taught martial arts; a quick chop to Ki-suh's neck would have eased Ji-min's remaining days enormously.)

Ji-min has a guilty secret of her own: it was she who accidentally gave Spring the infected transfusion that gave her AIDS. When even Ki-suh has to admit that Ji-min is dying, they travel together to Pureun Island so Ji-min can try to find Spring and apologize to her. She fails, but just before she dies Ji-min makes Ki-suh promise to carry out this mission for her. After she dies, Ki-suh sits outside the temple where her funeral is taking place. He won't go in because he's a Christian, which he demonstrates by being hateful to a young monk. The monk, who's about 10, responds by quoting Ecclesiastes at him, and blesses him in the name of the Buddha.

It turns out that Seok-hyeon is working for Ki-Suh's tycoon mother. When Ki-suh loses his job at the hospital for beating up the abusive and adulterous husband of a dying patient, President Kang sends him with Seok-hyeon to Pureun to survey its potential for redevelopment as a resort. Ki-suh boards with Young-shin and her family, unaware that the little girl is the one Ji-min charged him to seek out. Hiding his secret identity as a big-time doctor from Seoul, Ki-suh soon establishes himself as a mysterious Superdoctor who saves people that the bumbling local doctor can't.

Soon both Ki-suh and Seok-hyeon notice something odd about Spring, how she refuses help when she gets a bloody nose, and the secret of her infection becomes harder and harder to keep. What will happen if the islanders learn that Spring has HIV? Ki-suh, drawn to Young-shin, can't bring himself to give her Ji-min's message. Seok-hyeon, also drawn to Young-shin, has to contend with his mother's dislike for her and Spring, and wonders about another pressing question: who was Spring's father?

As usual with Korean TV dramas, Thank You has too many characters and subplots to summarize in a short review, but the outline above will give you an idea of what's going on. I'm of at least two minds about it, and wouldn't rank Thank You with my favorite dramas. The cast are all good, except possibly for Jang Hyuk, who I haven't seen before. Here he has a very limited range of facial expressions: he looks mean, he looks stupid, that's about it. He generally wears beard stubble on his chin, to signify that he's sophisticated and troubled. Too much of the series is taken up with Ki-suh's tantrums, and he hasn't changed much by the end; I'm not sure any actor could have done much with the role.

Gong Hyo-jin is warm, solid, and likeable as Youngshin; Shin Sung-rok is handsome but a bit dull as Seok-hyeon. Seo Shin-ae is appealing as Spring, though she's forced to be the typical smart-aleck kid. She's the focus of the story, after all, which is meant to inform and raise conciousness about HIV/AIDS among Koreans. Unfortunately that concern often gets lost amid the soap opera, especially since the adults feel that they must lie to Spring about her condition and prospects, even after she learns about her condition and needs them to tell her the truth. Dishonesty isn't the best metaphor for AIDS education in Korea.

Coffee Prince Number 1 (2007, MBC miniseries)

Coffee Prince Number 1 is probably the most enjoyable Korean TV drama I've watched so far. I loved Ruler of Your Own World, but it was darker, more serious, more dramatic. Coffee Prince is pure fun, and its popularity shows that many Koreans agree with me.

The premise is that Go Eun Chan (Yoon Eun-hye, Palace), by default the head of her family after her father died when she was 16, is often mistaken for a boy. She wears her hair fairly short, dresses ambiguously, knows Tae Kwon Do, does delivery work, and eats like a horse. Choi Han Gyeol (Gong Yoo, One Fine Day), handsome scion of a wealthy family, is being pressured to marry by his imperious grandmother (Kim Young-ok). He hires Eun Chan, whom he takes for male, to pretend to be his gay lover. Behaving outrageously in various hotel lobbies, the two scare off all the women his grandmother sends him.

Grandmother then raises the stakes. If Han Gyeol won't marry or go to work for the family company, he'll have to support himself; she takes away his care and gives him notice of eviction for his expensive rooftop apartment before he agrees to manage Coffee Prince, a rundown coffee shop in a student district, and increase its profits. Eun Chan wheedles him into hiring "him," and before long they find themselves powerfully drawn to each other. His interest in a cute boy understandably disturbs Han Gyeol, who reacts as if he were a closeted gay man: he alternately tries to keep Eun Chan close, and to drive "him" away.

Why is Han Gyeol so reluctant to marry? Several online articles I've seen describe him as a "playboy," but he's never shown dating women. He's in love with Han Yoo Joo (Chae Jeong-an, Emperor From the Sea), a beautiful and brilliant artist who has an on-again, off-again love with Han Gyeol's cousin Han Seong (Lee Seon-gyoon, White Tower), a musician and producer. As the series begins, Yoo Joo has just returned from a long stay in New York, where she was involved professionally and romantically with a man called DK. Now she's back and wants to start over with Han Seong, who (reasonably enough) doesn't quite trust her. But she's not in love with Han Gyeol either. By chance, Go Eun Chan delivers milk to Han Seong's house. She and Han Seong bond over Han Seong's sheepdog Ssulja, and become good friends.

As usual in a series, Coffee Prince includes a constellation of secondary characters, ranging from Eun Chan's feckless mother (Park Won-sook, Tomato) and the wacky butcher, Mr. Goo (Lee Han-wee, Love and Hate), who wants to marry her; and Eun Chan's more glamorous younger sister Eun Sae (Han Ye-in), who wants to be a star. Then there's the Coffee Prince team, assembled like disciples by Han Gyeol and Eun Chan: Han Gyeol's old friend Chin Ha Rim (Kim Dong-wook), who fancies himself a ladies' man but also seems interested in Eun Chan; the hunky but slow Hwang Min Yeop (Lee Eon, who tragically died in a motorcycle accident in 2008), who's in love with Eun Chan's sister and pursues her doggedly despite her best efforts to drive him away; the mysterious Master of Waffles No Jeon Ki (Kim Jae-wook), who keeps muttering in Japanese; and Manager Hong, the slovenly manager of the shop, whom Grandmother keeps on as co-manager to keep Han Gyeol on his toes.

Writers Lee Jeong-ah and Jang Hyeon-joo keep things steaming along entertainingly, and for the most part they keep the comedy in character, without much of the pointless slapstick or asides that disrupt some comedy-dramas. I'm also forever grateful that they never resort to a car or other accident to engender a crisis and permit tearful reconciliations and confessions, as in so many dramas. Some early plot points, like Eun Chan's supersensitive nose for smells, are introduced early on and then forgotten; on first meeting Eun Chan, Ha Rim calls "him" My Chan and exclaims over "his" cuteness, but after a few episodes he's chasing after young women and trying to give Eun Chan advice on handling the babes.

The story doesn't really come together until Han Gyeol and Eun Chan begin to fall in love. Most writers would, I think, have let Han Gyeol know that Eun Chan was a girl after no more than one episode of homosexual panic, but Lee and Jang stretch it over several episodes, and make Han Gyeol's anxiety wholly convincing. He sees a clueless old doctor, who gives him medicine to cure him of his tendencies. "You're gay, right?" he asks Eun Chan. "But I'm not. So stop seducing me."

"Who called me over in the middle of the night?" she points out.

"Let's be sworn brothers," he tells her. She refuses his evasion at first, then gives in. In voice over, each then tells us that even if it only means being a brother, he won't have to leave the other's side. But still Han Gyeol runs hot and cold, firing Eun Chan and then running to get "him" back. (One beautiful bit: Han Gyeol tells Eun Chan a major family secret. Sitting behind him, where he can't see her, she stretches out her hands and mimes embracing him, comforting him, because she doesn't dare to touch him. Yoon puts immense longing into that gesture.)

As more and more of the other characters are let in on the secret of Eun Chan's real sex, the tension builds. It's helped a lot by the wonderful chemistry between the leads, who are wholly convincing as new lovers delighted with each other. Gong Yoo resembles a younger Ju Jin-mo (Musa, Happy Ending), and he actually seems to grow up during the series, from a pretty but shallow young man to a strong but gentle adult. There's one lovely scene where Han Gyeol visits his grandmother, who's seriously ill and looks it. They bicker pleasurably, and I realized that Eun Chan is a younger version of Granny. Then Han Gyeol climbs into her bed and pillows her head on his arm, saying that no man had done that since Grandfather.

Yoon Eun-hye has a hard job. Typically in cross-dressing roles, the deception is not allowed to be too convincing: the audience is not allowed to succumb to the illusion that the actor or actress could pass for the other sex. Nor will be a performer be hired who looks the part too well. Yoon Eun-hye says she studied men's movements and body language, but maybe the director toned her down. She never quite persuaded me that women would chase her out of a women's sauna when she tried to make a good delivery, but she does have an androgynous charm and earnestness that makes her lovable. And after her femme makeover in episode 5, Go Eun Chan looks like a drag queen. She actually looks more like a boy when she's wearing a dress and full makeup than she does in trousers and t-shirt.

It doesn't really matter, though, because Coffee Prince Number One is a romantic fantasy, not a realistic story. It works very well on that level. Best of all, from my point of view, is that the story has no villain, and even the most foolish characters aren't clowns but believable people with reasons for their folly. The characters vary somewhat in their likability, but all are good at heart, even the unreliable Yoo Joo. As the literary critic Marvin Mudrick once said, nothing in life or literature is more interesting and exciting than goodness. (Review by Duncan Mitchel)


Coffee Prince Number 1 ("Keopi Peurinseu 1-hojeom"). Alternate title: "Coffee Prince's Flagship Store." 18 episodes. Written by Lee Jung Ah & Jang Hyun Joo. Produced by Lee Yoon Jung. Starring Yoon Eun-hye, Gong Yoo, Lee Sun-kyoon, Chae jung-an, Kim Chang-wan, Kim Dong-wook, Kim Jae-wook, Lee Eon. First aired on MBC in Korea from July 2 - August 28, 2007 on Monday and Tuesday nights at 9:55pm. Official website (in Korean): click here. Episodes can be downloaded for a fee here.

Presecutor Princess

Suka sama Legally Blonde pastinya juga akan suka sama drama korea yang satu ini yang mungkin saja terinspirasi sama film yang dibintangi oleh Reese Witherspoon itu.

Awalnya drama ini diberi judul Prosecutor Mata Hari (?) namun kemudian diputuskan untuk mengganti judulnya menjadi “Prosecutor Princess” dan kedengan lebih enak dikuping menurut gw :P
Dihari wisudanya menjadi Jaksa, Ma Hye Ri selesai menerima sertifikat lebih memilih untuk menghadiri pelelangan sepatu mewah dibandingkan mengikuti briefing atau pelatihan untuk menjadi jaksa.. dan kemudian pergilah Ma Hye Ri kepelelangan yang diadakan di sebuah hotel di pengunungan ski namun sial bagi Hye Ri..di saat dia sedang asyik bermain ski dia ngeliat mobilnya di bongkar orang dan dompet beserta isinya diambil semua dan nggak ketinggalan juga Handphone nya juga di ambil.
Dan kesialan Hye Ri tidak sampe disitu karena kemudian pihak hotel mengatakan kalo reservasi hotel yang sudah dipesan sudah dibatalkan oleh sahabatnya tanpa sepengetahuan Hye Ri dan ternyata karena kesibukannya di butik sahabatanya tidak bisa ikut menghadiri pelelangan sepatu itu. Dan kamar yang sudah di pesan itu sudah ditempati oleh penghuni lain hmmm seorang cowok cakep :P.
Dan cowok itu menawarkan pada Hye Ri untuk berbagi kamar dengannya namun di tolak oleh gadis itu apalagi dia tau kalo cowok itu sepertinya sedang menunggu seseorang dan kemudian Hye Ri memutuskan untuk berganti pakaian dan berdandan di dalam mobil karena sudah tidak ada waktu lagi dan pelelangan sudah mau di mulai.

Ma Hye Ri yang berusaha menghubungi nyokapnya dan bermaksud untuk meminta dikirimin uang namun apa daya telp2nya gak diangkat2 dan pelelangan sudah berlangsung dan dengan pede walaupun nggak pegang kartu kredit apalagi uang cash Hye Ri mengikuti pelelangan itu dan ternyata kemudian dia saling bersaing dengan cowok yang di hotel itu yang sepertinya juga tertarik dengan sepatu “grace” itu dan tanpa tanggung2 Hye Ri berani menawar dengan harga 7 Juta won!!! Untuk sepasang sepatu itu.
Namun ternyata ketika pihak panitia meminta pembayaran untuk sepasang sepatu itu Hye Ri kelabakan dan tiba-tiba matanya menangkap seseorang yang jaketnya mirip dengan orang yang telah mencuri dompet dan handphonenya kemudian Hye Ri minta tolong untuk di pegangkan sepatunya pada panitia itu dan dia berusaha menangkap “pencuri” itu yang ternyata adalah seorang jaksa yang sedang memburu orang-orang yang suka mencuri barang-barang mewah.

Sial buat Hye Ri ketika dia sudah sadar ternyata oleh pihak pelelangan sepatu itu sudah di jual kepada cowok yang tadi bersaing dengannya dan kemudian Hye Ri memutuskan untuk menerima tawaran cowok itu untuk berbagi kamar hotel itu dengannya, Hye Ri masih berusaha untuk mendapatkan sepatu dan berusaha untuk merayu cowok itu agar mau menyerahkan sepatu itu kepadanya dan akan membayarknya kemudian dan voilaaaa ternyata tuh cowok tanpa berpikir panjang menyerahkan sepasang sepatu itu pada Hye Ri berikut nomor telpnya.

Berbunga-bunga Hye Ri kembali ke rumah namun begitu nyampe rumah ternyata nomor telp cowok itu sudah hilang kemungkinan jatuh karena di letakan di kantong belakan roknya. Ayahnya Hye Ri yang terkenal galak meminta Hye Ri untuk bekerja di kantor kejaksaan di kota itu…walaupun sebenarnya Hye Ri tidak pernah berminat untuk menjadi seorang Jaksa karena itu adalah permintaan ayahnya karena dia sendiri sebenarnya ingin menjadi seorang fashion designer keliatan banget dari hobby nya belanja dan mengkoleksi sepatu,tas dan juga kacamata dan barang mewah lainnya. Terlahir dari orang tua yang kaya dan juga predikat anak tunggal amat mudah bagi Hye Ri untuk memenuhi dan membeli semua keinginannya atas barang-barang mewah itu.. Lulus dari Judicial Research and Training Institute with top grades dan dengan IQ diatas rata-rata ditambah lagi dengan wajah yang cantik dan body yang langsing tinggi menjulang sungguh membuat perempuan lain iri padanya.

Akhirnya Hye Ri keesokan harinya beneran berangkat kerja ke kantor kejaksaan dan well menjadi pemandangan yang aneh di kantor jaksa gimana nggak orang-orang baik pria ataupun wanita berpakaian yang benar-benar conventional tapi tidak dengan Hyo Ri dengan mengemudian mobil berkap terbuka berwarna merah menyala dan memakai pakaian yang wiiih rok mini dan bibir yang dilapisi lipstik warna merah benar-benar pemandangan langka di kantor kejakaan itu.
Tidak hanya pegawai di kantor itu yang sepertinya sedikit shock dengan penampilan Hye Ri namun juga Hye Ri karena ternyata atasannya di kantor jaksa adalah orang yang dituduhnya mencuri waktu di hotel yuppp dia adalah Jaksa Yoo Se Joon yang sepertinya sedikit berdarah dingin menurut gw karena cool banget.

Karena tidak yakin dengan kemampuan Hye Ri..senior-seniornya disana terutama sekali Jin Jeong-seon hanya memberikan pekerjaan yang ringan-ringan banget Hye Ri diminta untuk melakukan pemesanan makan siang untuk semua pegawai di divisi mereka namun dasar Hye Ri dia mungkin berpikir kalo semua orang memiliki uang berlebih seperti dirinya karena dia membawa semua rekan-rekan kantornya itu untuk makan siang di restoran mewah dan karena tidak enak hati akhinrya Hye Ri memutuskan untuk mentraktir mereka,namun kemudian Jin Jeong Seon memutuskan kalo Hye Ri tidak perlu lagi memesan makan siang untuk mereka namun dengan polosnya Hye Ri mengatakan apakah dia boleh ikut memesan walaupun dia tidak memesan di restaurant yang sama jelas aja Jeong seon sebel banget dengerinnya.

Kasus pertama yang ditangani oleh Hye Ri adalah pertengakaran yang melibatkan 2 orang wanita dan seperti biasa Hye Ri menanggapi santai kasus itu walaupun wanita yang satu ini menegaskan kalo dia tidak bersalah karena dia tidak pernah memukul wanita yang satu lagi namun Hye Ri samabil makan tomat terus saja mengetik membuat wanita itu sedikit jengkel.…

Wedding photos revealed from "Marry Me, Mary"

Wedding photographs from upcoming KBS TV series "Marry Me, Mary," starring Korean stars Moon Geun-young and Jang Keun-suk, have been revealed.

The show's promoter Ytree media on Friday released several pictures of the main character Mary (Moon) donning a short white wedding gown with a pink sash and Moo-kyul (Jang) wearing a black tuxedo.

Earlier this week, Ytree unveiled a picture of Mary in her wedding attire placed between Moo-kyul and Jung-in (played by Kim Jae-wook).

"I thought Mary (Moon) looked very pretty today (laugh) and I thought I looked pretty good as well. I had so much fun on set and I hope the audience will enjoy watching the show," Jang was quoted as saying.

Based on the online comic by famed writer Won Soo-yeon, "Marry Me" is about Mary who makes realizations about love and herself while being in two fake marriages for 100 days to completely different men -- Moo-kyul and Jung-in.

"Marry Me, Mary" will premiere on November 8 after current drama "SungKyunKwan Scandal," starring Park Yuchun finishes its run.

SHINee Minho to make acting debut through KBS drama

Minho from boy band SHINee [Zoom Agency]

Minho, a member of a popular boy band SHINee, will make his acting debut through
"KBS Drama Special," a 24-part single-episode omnibus series showing on the major public network.

According to a press release distributed by PR agency Zoom on Tuesday, Minho will appear as Oh Je-ro, a man in his twenties who is gifted in music, in the show's final episode titled "Pianist" set to go on air November 20.

In the story, Je-ro is a young man who despite his musical talent, was unable to hone his skill due to financial reasons and has been forced to work in a piano factory in place of his sick father for years.

Then one day, Je-ro falls in love with music teacher Yoon In-sa, to be played by actress Han Ji-hye.
,
“It’s my first time acting so I’m very excited, happy and hopeful,” Minho was quoted as saying while filming the drama for the first time yesterday.

Minho, 19, debuted as a member of five-member boy band SHINee in 2008. He and his fellow bandmates Key, Jonghyun, Taemin and Onew have produced many hits songs since then including “Replay,” “Ring Ding Dong” and “LUCIFER.”

Han, a well-known actress in Korea, has appeared in several movies and dramas since debuting in 2001 as a supermodel.

Reporter : Heidi Kim heidikim@
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@
<ⓒ10Asia All rights reserved>

[ Korean Drama 2009 ] Heading to the Ground

Genre: Romance, Sport
Episodes: 16
Broadcast network: MBC
Broadcast period: 2009-Sep-09 to 2009-Nov-04
Air time: Wednesday & Thursday 21:55

Cast:
U-Know Yunho as Bong-gun Cha
Ko Ara as Hae-bin Kang
Lee Sang-Yun as Seung-woo Jang
Lee Yun-Ji as Yeon-lee Oh

Synopsis:
Heading to the Ground is a story about a talented but misfortunate soccer player.
Bong-gun, a soccer player with great potential, wants to become a member of the national soccer team. As he works towards his goal, he meets Hae-bin, an attractive and independent rookie sports agent who ends up bickering with him all the time. With Seung-woo, an elite attorney, as his arch-enemy, Bong-gun’s journey towards love and success is rough. To make matters more complicated, it turns out that Yeon-lee, Bong-gun’s childhood friend and the soccer team nutritionist, has a secret crush on him.

“Super Junior” Sungmin cast in new drama “PRESIDENT”

Actor Park Sung-min [Feel-Lime EG Entertainment]

Sungmin from popular 13-member boy band “Super Junior” has been cast in a new KBS drama which will premiere next month.

Feel-Lime EG Entertainment, producer of the drama, announced through a press release Monday that the singer will play the son of a president in an upcoming series titled "PRESIDENT” starring veteran actor Choi Su-jong.

Sungmin will star as a graduate student who wishes to follows his father’s footsteps to become a politician. In the story, however, his attempts to help with this father’s election campaign only gets him into trouble for using means that are less than justifiable.

“It’s an amazing coincidence that name of the president’s son in the drama is Sung-min too, and we believe he is made for the role,” officials with the show's producer were quoted as saying. “He a perfectly prepared actor, gifted not only in singing and dancing but also in acting.”

"PRESIDENT" will not be Sungmin's first attempt at acting -- he played the young-version of one of the main characters in MBC drama “Sea of Sisters” in 2005. The upcoming drama will be the first role he takes on as a grown-up.

“It’s been a while since I have acted so I can’t wait,” Sungmin said in the press release. “It’s different from the first time I acted. Stay tuned because I’d like to show how much I’ve changed.”

“PRESIDENT,” about civil rights lawyer Jang Il-joon's (Choi) journey to presidency, caught additional attention for the casting of actress Ha Hee-ra, the real wife of actor Choi, as the first lady.

The drama will air Wednesdays and Thursdays starting December 8 after “Fugitive: Plan B” starring Rain and Lee Na-young ends its run.

Reporter: Heidi Kim heidikim@
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@
<ⓒ10Asia All rights reserved>

‘Finding Kim Jong Wook’ Released another (Better) Official Poster

Warm and lovely!
Another official poster has come out for new romantic-comedy Korean movie ‘Finding Kim Jong Wook’ and I think it IS better than the previous two. The poster features the two leads Gong Yoo and Im Soo Jung holding hands each other with big smile on their faces.
The movie features an owner of new love agency played by Gong Yoo who helps his first client (Im) to find her unforgettable first love who she met when she traveled to India years ago. But in process, the two falls to each other instead.
‘Finding Kim Jong Wook’ premieres on December 9.
Source: OSEN

Kim Min Joon as a Cold-Blooded Killer in ‘Blue Salt’

While the production is in underway, the upcoming thriller Korean movie ‘Blue Salt’ has recently added Korean actor Kim Min Joon of ‘Friend, Our Legend’ to its cast. He joins the two leads who confirmed earlier Song Kang Ho and Shin Se Kyung.

Like Shin’s role, Kim also plays as a mysterious cold-blooded killer who is only called by the name “K”. As a professional assassin, his mission always went swiftly and efficiently without hesitation. (It seems he’ll have no problems with this character, since he also played a darker character in last year’s ‘Friend, Our Legend’)

The movie also stars Chun Jung Myung (Cinderella’s Sister), Lee Jong Hyuk (Chuno), Yoon Yeo Jung (Housemaid), Kim Roi Ha (Comrades), and Oh Dal Soo (Thirst). Looks like the cast list are promising enough to deliver such a worth movie.

‘Blue Salt’ is aiming to release sometime next year.

Source: asiae

‘Dr.Champ’ Ended its Runs, ‘It’s Okay, Daddy’s Girl’ Airs Next Week

Alright, it’s what we have next week for taking place the time slot which was previously occupied by medical-sport drama ‘Dr. Champ’. The new drama is called ‘It’s Okay, Daddy’s Girl’ starring Korean actress Moon Chae Won. The drama just revealed the trailer and its official posters.

The drama revolves around a spoiled daugter who is forced to grow more mature after a sudden death of her beloved father. She must survive to face the real world and also go through all obstacles to keep her true love.

The drama also stars Kim Tae Ho (Pasta), Ha Ji Won’s little brother Jun Tae Soo (Sungkyunkwan Scandal), Choi Ja Hye (Baker King Kim Tak Goo), Super Junior’s Donghae, and CN Blue’s Kang Min Hyuk.
‘It’s Okay, Daddy’s Girl’ starts airing on November 22.