I’ve been rather underwhelmed with the latest rounds of casting news for upcoming K-dramas, aside from the ones which are in production already that I’m looking forward to, such as Thousand Day Promise, Tree with Deep Roots, and Padam Padam: The Sound of His and Her Heartbeat. But the casting pigeons have been in overdrive these past two weeks with one casting confirmation or rebuttal after another.
Since I’ve been living in the Qing Dynasty lately and haven’t had the time to post much about it, it’s easier if I do a quick summary of the remaining prime time K-dramas scheduled to air in the final few months of 2011. In addition to the ones mentioned above, I am most interested in the upcoming MBC 50th Anniversary production Light and Shadows, which just confirmed Ahn Jae Wook, Nam Sang Mi, and Lee Min Jong. Please let this epic drama be the next Giant, please.
Light and Shadows (MBC): Ahn Jae Wook, Nam Sang Mi, Kim Min Jong, and Son Dambi, reuniting the PD and screenwriter from Jumong. Airing after Gye Baek on Mon-Tues, slated for a 50-episode run. Story spans decades, starting in the mid-60s when Ahn Jae Wook’s character starts out his entertainment career and follows him through the rise of Korean entertainment. An epic period drama with a heavy-hitting male cast and a female lead I adore? I’m totally onboard, baby! Setting aside Son Dambi, who is marginally better than Yoona and that’s about it.
Me Too, Flower! (MBC): Kim Jae Won, Lee Ji Ah, Han Go Eun, and Seo Hyo Rim. From the scriptwriter of My Name is Kim Sam Soon and What’s Up, Fox?, airing after Can’t Lose on Wed-Thurs. Kim Jae Won plays a parking lot attendant by day and a lingerie company chaebol by night, his duel identities allowing him to romance two ladies. Love the screenwriter, but meh about the lead cast other than Seo Hyo Rim. On the other hand, heard that Kim Jae Won has been working out and getting a tan to play this character, which would totally destroy my recent aversion to him caused by his character being so mindbogglingly lily-white in Can You Hear My Heart, making me have grody flashes to Edward in Twilight that I simply couldn’t watch that drama anymore. I really ought to get over my weird aversion to pallor.
Man of Honor (KBS): Chun Jung Myung, Park Min Young, Lee Jang Woo, and Lee Jin, reuniting the PD and screenwriter from Baker King, Kim Tak Gu. Airing after The Princess’s Man on Wed-Thurs. Chun Jung Myung is a washed up baseball player who meets sunny nurse Park Min Young. Love me some PIE, but everything else about this sounds contrived and a tad simplistic.
Brain (KBS): Currently confirmed is Jung Jin Young, whereas the first young cast was fired, then Song Seung Heon ended up turning down the offer, and now word on the street is that the production is close to landing Kim Joo Hyuk and Shin Ha Kyun. Following Poseidon on Mon-Tues, with a story centering around neurosurgeons at a Seoul hospital. I almost never have the desire to watch doctor dramas, yet when I do, I really enjoy them if it’s done well (New Heart, Surgeon Bong Dal Hae, OB/GYN). I’ll take a wait and see attitude after this cast is locked down.
Thousand Day Promise (SBS): Kim Rae Won, Su Ae, Lee Sang Woo, and Jung Yumi, from the pen of famed screenwriter Kim Soo Hyun. Following Warrior Baek Dong Soo on Mon-Tues, with Kim Rae Won playing a man in love with Su Ae, who is gradually losing her memory. Got my tissues ready, so hit me, baby!
Tree with Deep Roots (SBS): Jang Hyuk, Shin Se Kyung, Han Suk Kyu, Song Joong Ki. Following Protect the Boss, Tree is a sageuk set in the era of King Sejong, centering around a murder mystery/conspiracy happening during the period Kimg Sejong is creating hangul, the Korean written alphabet. Rubbing my hands in anticipation of the awesome, but might bank it for a marathon the way I did with The Duo.
Padam Padam: The Sound of His and Her Heartbeat (jTBC): Jung Woo Sung, Han Ji Min, and Kim Bum, by famed screenwriter Noh Hee Kyung. Jung Woo Sung plays a man who was wrongfully convicted and served 16 years in prison, during which he meets Kim Bum’s character who becomes a guardian angel of sorts to him, together they head to Seoul where they meet Han Ji Min’s cold and guarded veterinarian. Do you even need to ask? This has my I Lub You paired with my favorite K-drama screenwriter, plus Bummie as the cherry on top. Of course I’m watching this!
Fermentation Family (jTBC): Song Il Gook and Park Jin Hee, reuniting the PD and screenwriter who did Mawang and Resurrection. Song Il Gook plays a rough and tumble gangster and Park Jin Hee the chef with big dreams who runs a local restaurant that ends up bringing together people in that neighborhood. Love the leads, love the production team, and this sounds like it can be a cross of Bad Family with Gourmet, both of which I really liked.
Flower Boy Ramyun Shop (tvN): Jung Il Woo, Lee Chung Ah, and Lee Ki Woo. About a ramyun shop run by cute high school boys, and the older noona who manages the shop and finds herself in a love triangle with the aforementioned cute boys. Not really my bowl of ramyun, but a nice breezy youth rom-com is always appreciated to liven up the mood.
Vampire Prosecutor (OCN): Yeon Jung Hoon and Lee Young Ah. Er, the story is exactly what the title suggests, a prosecutor in Seoul who just happens to be a vampire. I suppose it’s Dexter crossed with the ever popular vampire-does-something genre. This ought to be interesting. It can either be epic fail, or strangely watcheable.
Rumorville:
Yesterday I just heard about the potential casting of Lee Bum Soo and Lee Min Jung for an upcoming 20-episode SBS drama that would reunite the PD and screenwriter from Giant, with the drama to follow Thousand Day Promise on SBS starting in early 2012. Oh hells yeah!!!
Rumors also have No Min Woo and Hwang Jung Eum for Full House 2, taking over the roles that rocketed Song Hye Kyo and Rain to Hallyu superstardom. This drama doesn’t have a broadcast station yet, and the casting is not confirmed by the management company of either actor.
Just so you know, I didn’t include any weekend dramas on this list since I don’t watch those for the most part. And finally, please don’t ask me if I’m going to recap a certain drama. I’ve been getting that question a lot recently. I appreciate the interest, but if I decide to recap it, it’ll show up, otherwise it won’t. That’s sorta how it works. 🙂
thanks for the roundup Koala 😀
Koala, thanks for laying it all out for us…it will be fun to see how these series develop. Especially interested in Fermentation Family, and whether Kim Joo Hyuk will be in Brain. Thanks again for the info.
I cannot imagine any drama, outside a period one, pairing LMJ and LBS. I love him to bits, but he looks old enough to be her father. My list is pretty similar to yours, except I do love weekend dramas so – the more, the older I get, for some reason. I am turning into an ahjumma 🙂
No no, I disagree. Who cares how old Lee Bum Soo looks like. The second he starts acting I’m sure we’ll all be sucked into his charisma. Agree? Plus the age difference is even less than Ryu Jin and Kim So Eun on Thousand Kisses right now (they are soooo cute together). 😀
Lee Bum Soo back on the small screen soon, along with Ahn Jae Wook and Lee Min Jong. What is this? Attack of the 90s hot shots. So excited~
totally agree with Lee Bum Soo’s charisma.. and LMJ seems to have chemistry pretty much to anyone… and with the writer who did giant.. i am totally looking forwards to it.
I thought that full house 2 is confirmed. I love NMW.. i think he has potential.. he is a great musician.. HJE did make a little impression on me after seeing her in CYHMY.. so I am ok with that… I just don’t want them to extend the story of first FH… don’t think it’s gonna work.. unless they are going to just use the house.. and do something related to the music industry and that might work…
thanks for the write up.. and I am looking forwards to quite a few of them.. the one that I am most curious about is Fermentation Family.. i love the PD and writer… and the devil being one of my all time favourite so i am really looking forward to it…
just want to mentioned that I have been stalking your site for any BBJX post.. you are the one made me watch BBJX and now I am seriously hooked.. and not that I am complaining because BBJX is just one awesome drama!
All I can ask is: how am I possibly going to juggle so many dramas!? I thought this year was going to be the worst in history, but from July onwards everything’s suddenly on fire!
And the Giant team’s new project? OMG! Really? Now this I have to see. The rumours won’t exactly be baseless… I was anticipating them reuniting for another show, likely a sageuk, but I’ll take whatever I can get.
Mr Gang-mo Ree, too! Why so awesome!? *faints*
2011 has been a good year for dramas. At least for me. And it looks like the trend will be continuing. 🙂
Thanks for saying that about KJW. I thought it was just me. I’ve seen him in other things and I don’t remember him being that pale. It really did start creeping me out in CYHMH. I hate to admit that I’m that shallow, but I guess I am.(hangs head in shame)
Anyway, it looks like I will be a downloading maniac for the forseeable future. 🙂 (claps hands in anticipation!)
You know, this has been a really good year for dramas. And yep, KJW’s paleness in CYHMH was so odd that even the other characters remarked on it – it became a running joke. Freaked me out a little, but then, that wasn’t a show to watch for man-candy for me.
I was KJW’s white-ness is on purposed in CYHMY… there were a lot of reference to him being the pale face guy… I was shocked to see him that pale that as the drama went on.. i though his was supposed to be that white… PSH is always seem pale in drama.. must be the makeup?!?
I do think KJW (who i’m totally crushing on right now! :D) is really pale…..i watched a video on youtube where I believe he was being discharged from the army and he was sitting with other K-celebs and he was REALLY pale compared to the rest….heck, he was even paler than Dong Wook!! heh….i remember watching the first couple of episodes of CYHMH and just stared at him as I was trying to deduce if his paleness was the work of awesome makeup. And, the result of my deduction, heh, was that “everybody just leave the guy alone he really is pale!!”
I really loved KJW in CYHMH so much that I re-watched “100 days…”…gosh, his character was such a jerk!! grrrr and have since started watching Romance….so far it’s such a mehh show but I’m just watching it for KJW. I do think he call pull off the suave character as he is soo much bigger in this drama. (apparently, the guy loves to workout but since the trend these days is the skinny look he’s adopted it as well) I hope he’ll do really well in the drama and show the naysayers what he’s all about!! KJW FIGHTING!! 😀
Awww you didn’t do any Brain puns :(. hehe.
I’m actually planning to watch quite a few of those. Looking forward to Flower Boy Ramyun Shop for the easy comedy feel, I love Jung il woo, and l really like Lee chung ah from Temptation of wolf. It’ll probably be the best bet to ease angst between Padam, Thousand day, and Deep tree. Oh no. I can already predict my sad fate. Deja vu? PTB, SofW, WBDS, TPM, BBJX. *Le big sigh*
Haha I want to give Vampire prosecutor a chance just because it’s the most hilarious thing ever. I heard he tastes their blood to know how the victim died. Disgustingly intriguing. Brain seems promising if they stop giving brain transplants. HAHA. :’). And I don’t know how I feel about the Kim Jae Won drama. But I could watch this guy smile all day. So I’ll give it a shot.
I guess the only one that doesn’t appeal to me is the Chun Jung Myung, and Park Min Young
drama. But I adore the two, so who knows?
*crossing fingers for the dramas lined up at Rumorville* Please drama gods, please ^O^.
Have you seen the teaser for Vampire Prosecutor? alsdkjalsd I think it could be really awesome. Fingers crossed!
Full House 2?
……why?
I KNOW!!! The first one survived on the leads cuteness alone for me and.perhaps for that reason leaves me with nothing but good memories but a second time aroynd I dont think this drama will make it for me as much as I do like the leads the as well
Thousand day promise…most anticipated, on my list! Su Ae is one of my favourites, especially after 9 End 2 Outs. Also, whatever you decide to recap, I’ll read it! No pressure. Thanks for your great updates 🙂
Thanks Koala for the roundup ….its going to be one interesting fall/winter we have a little bit of everything which is great.. 😀 but my 2 top dramas to watch is “Vampire Prosecutor” and the “Flower Boy Ramyun Shop “. So thanks again…..
Oh God. What happened to No Min-woo? That pic is…*blinks* I can’t even! Btw, of all the shows that could have had a season 2, the kdrama gods picked Full House?!? What the?
Re: Kim Jae-won’s complexion. Aw, man, I so hear you. It freaked me out at first (whenever I saw him on screen, I expected him to faint), but I gradually got over it. Then again, I was a Ma-roo/Joon-ah fangurl so I was pretty distracted by Nam Goong-min and the EPIC bromance between Ma-roo/Dong-joo, haha!
So many things to watch, chingu! So many!
I am looking forward for Kim Bum drama!!! YAY!!! totally love him… any air dates yet? thanks for the info… I just realized that your page is my newspaper!!! hahaha, first thing I open after my FB….hehehehe thanks! 🙂
KJW is pale in Real life, I saw some picture of him on the army and yeah he is pale…
I got a little sad when people said he creep them out people because he is too pale, it actually makes me sad because I’m just as pale as him. And the way you talk makes me a bit sad… I’m pale like this and no, even if a get a tan (that I can’t and don’t like because after getting a tan I look like a shrimp/tomato) I hate, hate when people tell me to go get a tan, wth this is my skin color, please respect this… hate jokes when peole say ”you are as white as paper/milk!” ”Do you know sun exists?” ”Do you don’t get out of your house in the day light?”
And the jokes they made on CYHMH- ”Look like have no blood running in your veins, do you need me to donate some of my blood?”
Sorry for my rant. . . I went to the personal side…
confirmed! Jung Eum and No Min Woo for Full House 2 ^^ http://www.soompi.com/news/hwang-jung-eum-to-join-full-house-2
good for her!! I really liked her in CYHMH!! so much so that I really wanted the reel-chemistry b/w her and KJW to transfer into real chemistry…..i just want them to get together!! wishful thinking i guess but from what i’ve read K-actors are better at hiding their romance than Hollywood actors!
haha me too!! I didn’t really know HJE before cyhmh and I was devastated when I found out that she had a boyfriend xD
am I the only one who likes KJW’s complexion? somewhere along cyhmh I stopped thinking of him as pasty and instead I thought he looked pretty bright? radiant? Can’t think of the right word hehe.
In fact I was kinda sad when it was announced that he would be tanning 😛
lulz same here….Radiant is a good word when using with KJW!! heh…i think the actor playing Maroo is beyond gorgeous but I really loved and adored KJW as CDJ *sigh le sigh* Korean men as soo hawt!! Period!
I am kinda excited abt KJW tanning as he’ll show all the naysayers who snicker abt his complexion that he’ll look awesome as the tanned, suave with abs of steel chaebol!! November come already!!
for the first time ever my anticipating-dramas list has not one rom-com on it (Only 1000 day promise, Padam Padam and Tree with deep roots)..it makes me kinda sad but i guess this goes to show that maybe I’m growing as a drama viewer, also the number of romcoms on this last are sparse…it’s almost a complete 180 when compared to how things were in the beginning of the year
From this list, I’m very must anticipating Me Too, Flower, Thousand Day Promise and Flower Boy Ramen for the eye-candy. If the drama starring Lee Bum Soo and Lee Min Jung come to fruitition, then YES! Those are two of my favorite actors in this industry but I associate LBS with more angsty and heavy dramas whereas I like LMJ in more cheerful dramas. Pairing the two of them would be very interesting.
As for Kim Jae Won tanning…NOOOOO!!! KJW’s trademarks have always been his smile and his skin complexion. It was even a running gag on CYHMY. It’s disappointing to read that a lot of people don’t watch CYHMY because of KJW’s complexion =(. That drama was really quite good! It’s so sad to see and hear how freakin Edward Cullen has stigmatized super light skin.
Kim Jae Won’s paleness didn’t creep me out in CYHMH. The drama was awesome and he was very cute as Dong joo. Also I liked how they got a younger kid as pale as him to play the younger Dong joo. I am looking forward to his drama and his tan. I looked up some pictures and he hasn’t always been as pale. I also want to see Kim Bum’s and Jung Il Woo’s drama. Its pretty awesome that they both have dramas coming out at the same time since they are close friends. Kim Rae won is another actor i am looking forward too with Su ae however i dont like melodramas that much.
I’m sold on Tree With Deep Roots, even if I’m going to have to do some reading to get some context first. ‘Cause, you know, there’s very little I won’t do for Song Joong Ki.
then you will definitely watch Many a Little Romance? 🙂
Yes, yes, oh God, yes!
(That was an affirmation, not one of these. But, you know, with this guy saying lovely things at me with that lovely voice of his, it’s sometimes difficult to differentiate between the two :D)
Wow. So many interesting dramas to look forward to!
Can I say that I want to watch every single drama on your list? All of them have actors/actresses that I like and I can only hope that some of them will fail (bad me but just joking) so that I don’t have to use up all of my time just for drama watching. Sighs.
Amongst all, I’m most interested in KJW’s Me Too, Flower!, Padam Padam and AJW’s Light and Shadow.
And I totally forgot KRW and Su Ae’s drama there?
“since i’ve been living in the Qing Dynasty lately” — same here.
koala, if you find an easy way to leave (or at least stop thinking about) this era and all its bittersweet affairs, do let me know. i need my brain back. i can’t even summon the energy to be excited for any other show right now. *sigh*
*sigh*
Drag me back to 2011?