Korean Weekly News - March 20

Choi Dong-Hoon's 'Korean God of Gamblers' film 타짜 (A Flower's War) just got cooler. Talented TV Drama mainstay Kim Yoon-Seok, who played Eom Tae-Woong's mysterious, secret aid in the amazing 부활 (Rebirth) has joined a cast already packed with stars, where he'll play the main villain. Kim, who's currently playing Yoo Ho-Jung's husband in the KBS Weekend Drama 인생이여 고마워요 (Thank You Life), had a long and illustrious career in theater, and he's finally receiving the kind of attention he always deserved. He recently starred in the noir 야수 (Running Wild), and received many offers for films and TV Dramas appearances. The film, which recently cast Baek Yoon-Shik, Kim Hye-Soo, Jo Seung-Woo and Yoo Hae-Jin, is adapted from the first part of Heo Young-Man's classic manhwa of the same name, and will start shooting soon.

Although she sometimes took a few turns in comedies, Song Yoon-Ah has mostly been known for her melodramas, just like her latest film 사랑을 놓치다 (Lost in Love). But she'll try to finally shed that image, as she's been cast alongside Lee Dong-Wook in the horror 나를 잊지 말아요 (Don't Forget Me). Although this is the second horror for Song after 2004's 페이스 (Face), her role there wasn't too different from what she'd usually play in melodramas, so her image remained the same. The film is directed by Ahn Sang-Hoon, and will star Song and Lee as two detectives uncovering the truth behind a serial killer's murders. The film already had its opening 'sacrificial' ceremony (the 고사. You know, money in pig's head, bow, rewind, repeat) and started shooting on March 16. An interesting coincidence is that both Song and Lee have been working with an injured leg, as Lee injured it in a minor motorcycle accident while on the set of a Fashion shoot in Thailand, and Song injured an ankle while training for the film. Ahn was producer on Kim Ki-Duk's 나쁜남자 (Bad Guy), and will make his directing debut. Lee Dong-Wook has become increasingly popular after the success of the SBS Drama 마이걸 (My Girl), getting the rub from Lee Da-Hae and Lee Joon-Gi, but also showing he's improving as an actor.

After a very solid performance in the KBS Drama 안녕하세요 하느님 (Hello, God!), young talent Yoo Geon has been cat in his first leading role on the big screen, as he'll play the lead in Kwak Jae-Yong's upcoming youth melodrama tentatively entitled 무림 여대생 (Fighter Schoolgirl). After making stars out of Jeon Ji-Hyun, Chae Tae-Hyun, Jo Seung-Woo and Son Ye-Jin through his past films 엽기적인 그녀 (My Sassy Girl) and 클래식 (The Classic), Yoo might be Kwak's next target in line. He'll play Joon-Mo, ice hockey player and the most wanted on the list of most schoolgirls around him, including the other female lead -- who still hasn't been cast. But of course they'll fall in love at the end, in predictable Kwak Jae-Yong fashion. Yoo has also been cast in Lee Jae-Yong's 다세포 소녀 (Dasepo Naught Girls), once again working with Kim Ok-Bin, just like in this year's KBS Drama.

Not even a few days after release, the makers of 방과후 옥상 (What Happened on the Roof After School) are already planning a remake, which will be entitled 퇴근후 옥상 (What Happened on the Roof After Work). Producers CineOn commented on March 14 that the film will follow the story of Nam Goong-Dal, 10 years after the original. Now approaching his first day at work, our hero ends up messing up with the wrong person, just like what happens in the original (he ends up getting a 'I'll see you on the roof after school' invitation from the school's 짱, the toughest fighter) -- only problem is this time he'll be dealing with his boss. The film, which is now in pre-production and will start the script writing process soon, should feature once again Bong Tae-Gyu as Goong-Dal, after the surprisingly good performance the original film is enjoying at the box office, released last March 16. But there's also a controversy online regarding this film's alleged plagiarism of a 1987 Hollywood Film entitled Three O'Clock High, although producers commented that they started working on the film without knowing a thing about the Hollywood film, and that there's plenty of Japanese manga and novels with a similar subject, so the accusations are groundless.

Zainichi director Choi Yang-Il (a.k.a. Sai Yoichi) is mostly known overseas and in Korea for his amazing 血と骨 (Blood & Bones), but this year he'll get a chance to become even more popular in the country, as he'll make his Korean film debut with the hardboiled drama 더블캐스팅 (Double Casting). Although the producers announced nothing is set in stone, the main casting leaked out when Lee Gi-Young talked about it at the production meeting of the upcoming Jung Jae-Young comedy 마이 캡틴 김대출 (My Captain, Mr. Underground). Seems like the leads will be Lee himself and Ji Jin-Hee, whose last film 여교수의 은밀한 매력 (Bewitching Attraction) hit No. 1 at the box office this Weekend. Na Byung-Joo of Sidus HQ, Ji's management company, commented that Ji did receive an offer to star in the film, but he hasn't decided yet, as he's shooting a film outside Seoul, so he didn't have time to read the script yet. 'Double Casting' will be a Japan/Korea co-production, and is adapted from a popular manhwa. It will enter shooting as soon as casting is completed.

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TV DRAMA NEWS
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After his career making performance in 부활 (Rebirth), Eom Tae-Woong has been on the mouth of everyone in the TV Drama and Film industry in the last few months. His leading debut in the film 가족의 탄생 (The Birth of a Family) has the potential to become his gateway to stardom, but Eom Jung-Hwa's younger brother will continue his activity on TV as well, as he's been cast alongside Lee Sung-Jae in 천국보다 낯선 (Stranger Than Heaven). The show, a Popcorn Film production which will shoot half the episodes before broadcast, is produced by PD Kim Jong-Hyuk of 봄날 (Spring Days), and will soon decide which station will enjoy its services, alongside casting the final 'angle' of this love triangle. Lee and Eom will play brothers fighting each other for a woman, in what marks a long awaited return to the small screen for Lee, who hasn't been on TV for years. The show will start shooting in Canada from May.

Good news for fans of last year's 불멸의 이순신 (The Immortal Lee Soon-Shin). The fantastic 104 Episode Historical Drama about the life of legendary Admiral Lee Soon-Shin was supposed to come out on DVD this Spring from Bitwin, but for months there were no news other than it was under production. Now it's been announced that Sidus, which will enter the DVD market soon, bought the rights to release the Historical Drama on DVD. The company will also release 3 films -- the Eom Jung-Hwa human Drama 호로비츠를 위하여 (For Horowitz), Im Sang-Soo's 오래된 정원 (The Old Garden) and the romcom 키에누 꼬시기 (Hitting on Keanu), starring Daniel Henney and Eom once again. No release dates have been announced, but it shouldn't take too long.

What happens when you try to milk cows for too long? You get a kick in the face? Well, seems like MBC couldn't care less, as they want to give us more, more and more 궁 (Princess Hours). Although many of the stations' programs (not only TV Dramas) are experiencing a revival in the ratings war, the Trendy Sageuk has been MBC's flagship show for the last two months, the first to record ratings close to 30% in months. So not only we're getting a second season -- even though it will have to be written from scratch as the original manhwa only covers the story featured on Season 1 -- but also a sort of 'patch', entitled 'Princess Hours 1.5'. The 90 Minutes show will air after the conclusion of Season 1, which will air its 24th and final episode on March 30. The show will be a sort of bridge between Season 1 and 2, showing the most popular scenes and lines, previously unseen behind the scenes footage, and behind the story interviews with all the major cast members. Not only that, fans of the show will get a collection of 'scenarios' written by netizens, either predicting or wishing what could happen in Season 2, which shows plans for a second Season are already in motion, and the only reason why they haven't announced a thing yet brings us back to the cow and milk argument.

What's even scarier is that Taechang Entertainment, which produced the comedy 카리스마 탈출기 (Escaping from Charisma) has been sitting on the completed film for a few months, until it recently announced it would release it on March 30. The reason? A certain Yoon Eun-Hye, who happens to be the lead for both 'Princess Hours' and the film, which will 'coincidentally' release the same exact day Season 1 of 'Princess Hours' will end. But this created a little problem, as since Yoon will be busy for a while shooting the remaining four episodes tacked on at the end of the show after its rise in popularity, she won't be able to promote the film, which will have its first press and VIP screenings early this week. Yoon left for Macau on a 4 days and 3 nights trip for the conclusion of MBC's popular Drama, and will have to wait until late this week to start promoting the film.

Seems like the trials and tribulations for MBC's 늑대 (Wolf) will never end. You might remember the show was halted after three episodes in January, when two of the leading stars (Moon Jung-Hyuk and Han Ji-Min) suffered a serious accident on the set. At first the station planned to re-start broadcasting (showing an edited recap of the first three episodes, then the rest) in May, which then became July. With Moon and Han out of the hospital and their health improving, the shoot was supposed to restart this Month, but a new development emerged. According to MBC reps, producers Chorok Media moved that date to November, and that's only when shooting will begin. What's even more interesting is that, while the leading trio will remain the same, it's not a guarantee we will be seeing the same 'Wolf', or even a show along those lines. This could be a blessing in disguise, as the first three episodes of the show weren't exactly high quality, despite the actors trying hard (and I admit I was enjoying Eom Tae-Woong's character quite a bit), and ratings were pretty average. Now we might be dealing with an entirely new Drama, which in a way could be much better for MBC. Many things could change between now and late 2006, so who knows? Maybe they might hit it big later.

No More 샌프란시스코 (San Francisco)! Or better, no more San Francisco, and welcome to Australia for the upcoming MBC Drama 어느 멋진 날 (A Beautiful Day), which had to change its title after the producers decided to opt for Sidney instead of the Bay Area. The show recently completed its main cast, adding Namgoong Min to the previously announced Gong Yoo and Sung Yoo-Ri. The show, which will start broadcast on May 31, will star Namgoong as aquarium curator Kang Dong-Ha, the third angle of the usual 삼각관계 (love triangle). But not all hope is lost, as the talented Kang Sung-Jin, a theater and comedy regular, has also been cast as Gong Yoo's best friend, in what could be the only saving grace of this show. The shoot will start on March 24, with a couple of weeks in the Australian city around the beginning of April.

파리의 연인 (Lovers in Paris), 프라하의 연인 (Lovers in Prague), 러브스토리 인 하버드 (Lovestory in Harvard). What do they have in common, other than being popular trendy dramas (in varying degrees, at least)? They were all shot overseas and with reasonably big budgets by TV Drama standards. And with the craze for foreign locations seemingly raging once again, the last contender to enter the arena will be SBS' (who else) 러브스토리 인 소르본 (Lovestory in Sorbonne). President Lee Soo-Yeol of outsource producers Logos Films commented on the 13th that the show will commemorate the 120th Anniversary of the French Embassy and Council of Higher Education stationed in Korea, and pre-production will start from next month. The company will go on location in Paris (site of La Sorbonne, one of the most prestigious Universities in the world), and expect to broadcast the show on SBS at the end of the year, trying their best not to feel like a sequel of the 2004 show starring Kim Tae-Hee and Kim Rae-Won, which might include a title change (the title we used was picked by the media, it's just a label tacked on to the project, as nothing about the title or cast has been confirmed yet). After the conclusion of the show, 35 sequels will be produced, concluding with 러브스토리 인 서울대 (Lovestory in SNU) in 2020, when maybe producers will realize people are tired of hyper-trite plots with flashy locations as a bait, and the Korean Wave will have become a little ripple the size of Jeff Goldblum's glass of water in Jurassic Park. Ahhh... the chaos theory. Maybe if a butterfly flaps its wings in Sorbonne, that'll cause certain TV Drama producers in Korea to wake up from their mental laziness?

We knew TV Dramas were popular overseas, but 2005 marked an impressive record in overseas distribution sales. A report by the Association of Korean Broadcasters published last March 13 shows that in 2005 foreign distribution sales of TV content went up 72.8%, with terrestrial network television recording an increase of 78.7%. What's more important is that export wasn't just limited to the usual Miniseries, but also Weekend, Daily and even Historical Dramas, usually relegated to niche markets in the past. 95.3% of total sales came from the Asian market, with Japan getting the largest cut (60.1%), followed by Taiwan (11.4%), China (9.9%) and The Philippines (3.7%). Japan went up almost 3% from 2004's 57.4%, which shows the impact of the 한류 (Korean Wave) is not exactly dying down over there, despite fears the popularity of Korean stars and TV Drama was in a downward spiral in the neighboring country. But on the other hand, the high price of TV Dramas combined with less than spectacular ratings caused a decrease in imports from countries like Taiwan, a trend which should be taken into account, as Japan might follow through eventually. The total income for 2005 was an impressive US$ 123,490,000, the highest figure ever, with TV Dramas accounting for over 90% of exported TV content, with Documentaries and Music programs lagging way behind.

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TV DRAMA WRAPUP
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I never thought I'd say this, but we might be on the verge of getting a Korean version of Power Rangers. Kim Jong-Hak Production's latest 10 Billion Won SFX Drama 이레자이온 (The Seventh Zion) started shooting today in Jeolla Province, for what promises to be one of the most unique Korean TV productions of recent memory. The 26 Episode show, mixing 3D Animation with live action, tells the story of seven legendary soldiers, maintaining peace and prosperity on earth and space. The show, which is mostly starring new faces, will feature plenty of action, and has already signed a distribution contract with Japan. The name of the soldiers? 해 (Sun), 달 (Moon), 불 (Fire), 물 (Water), 나무 (Tree), 금속 (Metal) and finally the all important 흙 (Earth). Now the biggest problem might be the fact we're mostly dealing with people with no acting experience or even 얼짱 (pretty faces), and the idea of a dozen (you gotta have antagonists, right?) late teen/early twenties stiffs prattling around in costume throwing laser guns at each other in space battles sounds terribly silly, but it wouldn't be the first time Kim Jong-Hak surprises me.

As you can see below, the biggest news of the week in the ratings war was 별난여자 별난남자 (The Bizarre Bunch) finally losing its top spot to 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven), which thanks to its marriage arc is increasing its ratings by the week, and might be the first to finally reach the 40% this year, if things continue this way. Until 연애시대 (Alone in Love) stars, this is likely to be the only ratings 'war' on TV, as the only other strong competition comes from Weekend Dramas, although they're so fairly balanced that the most popular barely reaches the 15%. But we shouldn't care too much about ratings, right? Taking off Daily and Weekend Dramas, 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong) is finally bidding farewell after a strong finishing rush. As I said in the past, we're dealing with a problematic set of factors influencing the quality of the show, including SBS' tendency to sugarcoat just about everything they touch, the inexperienced main cast, and other little problems. But although it will never be remembered as much as Lee Byung-Hoon's past works like 대장금 (Dae Jang Geum), 상도 (Sang Do) and 허준 (Hur Joon), the power is still there. That rage which sets Lee's Dramas apart from the rest still made the show well worth watching, and in some ways more intriguing than KBS' traditionalist Sageuk structure.

As for 궁 (Princess Hours), seems like they're starting to rest on their initial laurels, as the show is starting to drag, although its charms certainly have very little to do with the story or the central 삼각관계 (love triangle) itself. You just feel they're lazily pushing things, waiting to throw everything in the pot the last 2-3 episodes, giving us a final cliffhanger which will prepare fans for Season 2. This might be the reason why the show hasn't hit the 30% ratings yet, as it's trying a little too hard to milk the cow. As for the newest Dramas showing at the moment, I'm afraid my fears weren't uncalled for. Both shows -- MBC's 넌 어느 별에서 왔니 (What's Your Star?) and KBS' 봄의 왈츠 (Spring Waltz) -- are being ignored by the public, with ratings around the low 10s as expected. 'Star', despite the pretty stars and the decent acting, is almost stupefyingly dull, with a pacing akin to waiting for a lake to freeze in August. As for Yoon Seok-Ho's latest marvel, which finally concludes the Season Drama saga, I have only two things to say: 1) Han Hyo-Joo is incredibly pretty... still, I'm not a drooling 15 year old teenager so that's not quite enough. 2) Loveholic's 'One Love' has become one of my favourite songs. Why? Because they might continue using it during the ending credits of the show.

But when you have something as good as 굿바이 솔로 (Goodbye Solo), who needs to worry? Noh Hee-Kyung's magic hits the airwaves once again, bringing back some much needed realism and 사람냄새 (smell of real people) to the weekly ratings war. I'll cover the show in depth when it's over in the usual mammoth review (and this one might really end up MAMMOTH, as it gives you so much food for thought I could write a book about it, after just a half dozen episodes), but just one example to show how good this writer is. Just one name: Kim Min-Hee. Just the fact she's been able to transform one of the most annoying actresses in Korea into a character you can relate to in some way is an incredible achievement. Of course Kim hasn't really improved as much as the Korean press would like you to think, but her character is not one of those Princesses from Bizarro World she played in the past, which is forcing her to come up with other tactics other than mugging the camera 24/7. And don't get me started on Na Moon-Hee. Think she was brilliant in 장밋빛 인생 (Life in Pink) and 주먹이 운다 (Crying Fist)? Watch this. Disarmingly affecting, feeling real without becoming super-bleak (yet, that is) like Noh's past works, 'Goodbye Solo' is already knocking at 신돈 (Shin Don)'s door for best show of the year. With Kim Soo-Hyun disappointing with her 사랑과 야망 (Love and Ambition), and all the big guns in the Sageuk world ready to start their engines, now all we need is In Jung-Ok's new Drama, and the world will be a better place. At least on TV...

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TV DRAMA RATINGS
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03/13~03/19

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01. 36.0% 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven)
Weekend Drama - SBS [Cast: Yoon Jung-Hee, Lee Tae-Gon, Lee Bo-Hee, Jo Yeon-Woo, Wang Bit-Na]
Official Website
PD: Lee Young-Hee
WRITER: Im Sung-Han

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02. 35.8% 별난여자 별난남자 (The Bizarre Bunch)
Daily Drama - KBS1 [Cast: Jung Joon, Kim Ah-Joong, Go Ju-Won, Kim Hae-Sook, Ahn Seok-Hwan]
Official Website
PD: Lee Deok-Geon
WRITER: Lee Deok-Jae

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03. 27.1% 궁 (Princess Hours)
Wed/Thu Drama - MBC [Cast: Yoon Eun-Hye, Song Ji-Hyo, Joo Ji-Hoon, Kim Hye-Ja, Kim Hyung-Joong]
Official Website
PD: Hwang In-Roi
WRITER: In Eun-Ah

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04. 23.9% 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong)
Historical Drama - SBS [Cast: Lee Bo-Young, Jo Hyun-Jae, Ryu Jin, Jeon Sung-Kyung, Heo Young-Ran]
Official Website
PD: Lee Byung-Hoon
WRITER: Kim Young-Hyun

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05. 20.9% 고향역 (A Place Called Home)
Daily Drama - KBS1 [Cast: Song Ok-Sook, Park Hyung-Jae, Kim Cheol-Gi, Jeon Ye-Seo, Oh Soo-Min]
Official Website
PD: Shin Hyun-Soo
WRITER: Lee Hong-Gu

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06. 19.7% 결혼합시다 (Let's Get Married)
Weekend Drama - MBC [Cast: Yoon Da-Hoon, Kang Sung-Yeon, Lee So-Yeon, Ju Hyeon, Bae Soo-Bin]
Official Website
PD: Choi Yi-Seop
WRITER: Kim Ji-Eun, Kim Nam-Kyung

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07. 19.1% 인생이여 고마워요 (Thank You Life)
Weekend Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Yoo Ho-Jung, Park Ye-Jin, Oh Ji-Ho, Kim Yoo-Seok, Kim Yoon-Seok]
Official Website
PD: Kim Sung-Geun
WRITER: Park Eun-Ryeong

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08. 17.0% 사랑과 야망 (Love and Ambition)
Weekend Drama - SBS [Cast: Han Go-Eun, Jo Min-Gi, Lee Hoon, Lee Min-Young, Chu Sang-Mi]
Official Website
PD: Kwak Young-Beom
WRITER: Kim Soo-Hyun

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09. 15.5%어느날 갑자기 (One Day, Suddenly)
Friday Drama - SBS [Cast: Sung Hyun-Ah, Lee Jong-Won, Song Seon-Mi, Yoon Sung-Hoon, Kim Il-Woo]
Official Website
PD: Park Young-Soo
WRITER: Park Hyun-Joo

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10. 15.0% 서울 1945 (Seoul 1945)
Historical Drama - KBS1 [Cast: Han Eun-Jung, So Yoo-Jin, Ryu Soo-Young, Kim Ho-Jin, Go Doo-Shim]
Official Website
PD: Yoon Chang-Beom
WRITER: Jung Sung-Hee

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11. 14.6% 걱정하지마 (Don't Worry)
Daily Morning Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Yoon Da-Hoon, Lee Young-Eun, Kim Sung-Ryeong, Bang Eun-Hee, Lee Seung-Shin]
Official Website
PD: Han Jung-Hee
WRITER: Kim Sa-Kyung

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12. 13.8% 사랑하고 싶다 (I Want To Love)
Daily Morning Drama - SBS [Cast: Kim Byung-Se, Shin So-Mi, Lee Eung-Kyung, Kim Ji-Seok, Sung Dong-Il]
Official Website
PD: Park Hyung-Gi
WRITER: Yoo Hyun-Mi

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13. 12.4% 굿바이 솔로 (Goodbye Solo)
Wed/Thu Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Cheon Jung-Myung, Yoon So-Yi, Bae Jong-Ok, Lee Jae-Ryong, Kim Min-Hee]
Official Website
PD: Gi Min-Soo
WRITER: Noh Hee-Kyung

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14. 12.2% 넌 어느 별에서 왔니 (What's Your Star?)
Mon/Tue Drama - MBC [Cast: Kim Rae-Won, Jung Ryeo-Won, Kang Jung-Hwa, Park Shi-Hoo, Im Ye-Jin]
Official Website
PD: 표민수 (Pyo Min-Soo)
WRITER: 정유경 (Jung Yoo-Kyung)

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15. 12.1% 봄의 왈츠 (Spring Waltz)
Mon/Tue Drama - KBS2 [Cast: Han Hyo-Joo, Seo Do-Young, Daniel Henney, Lee So-Yeon, Jung Dong-Hwan]
Official Website
PD: Yoon Seok-Ho
WRITER: Kim Ji-Yeon, Hwang Da-Eun

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THE TOP RATED DRAMAS OF 2006
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01/01~03/12

01. 37.5% 별난여자 별난남자 (The Bizarre Bunch) - KBS [Now Showing]
02. 36.0% 하늘이시여 (Dear Heaven) - SBS [Now Showing]
03. 31.9% 슬픔이여 안녕 (Goodbye To Sadness) - KBS [Complete]
04. 27.9% 궁 (Princess Hours) - MBC [Now Showing]
05. 26.7% 서동요 (The Ballad of Seo Dong) - SBS [Now Showing]
06. 24.9% 마이걸 (My Girl) - SBS [Complete]
07. 23.7% 그여자 (That Woman) - SBS [Complete]
08. 23.0% 황금사과 (Golden Apple) - KBS [Complete]
09. 22.3% 인생이여 고마워요 (Thank You Life) - KBS [Now Showing]
10. 21.3% 결혼합시다 (Let's Get Married) - MBC [Now Showing]
11. 21.1% 들꽃 (Wild Flower) - SBS [Complete]
12. 20.3% 고향역 (A Place Called Home) - KBS [Now Showing]
13. 20.1% 굿바이 솔로 (Goodbye Solo) - KBS [Now Showing]
14. 17.7% 사랑과 야망 (Love and Ambition) - SBS [Now Showing]
15. 17.7% 서울 1945 (Seoul 1945) - KBS [Now Showing]

Sources
Star News: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Yahoo Korea: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Yonhap News: 1, 2
Sport Today: 1
Goodday Entertainment: 1, 2
Naver News: 1, 2