SBS is sure moving fast but who could blame them when so much is at stake in crafting a buzzworthy upcoming drama. The television ratings are abysmal these days even taking into account streaming viewer loss, all the networks desperately need a prime time hit and a few of the upcoming dramas have a shot at winning the viewers over including Hyde, Jekyll, and I. The two leads are confirmed to be Hyun Bin and Han Ji Min, reuniting after working on the sageuk movie The Fatal Encounter (The King’s Wrath), with both signing on the dotted line quite quickly.
Either the script is fantastic or they are just happy to work together again. The drama will be premiering after Pinocchio starring Lee Jong Seok and Park Shin Hye, with an airdate in early January pitting it against Kill Me, Heal Me on MBC and over at KBS it will be second half of The King’s Face and the first half of Unkind Woman. Unless Kill Me, Heal Me casts my baby Yoo Seung Ho (at which point all bets are off), then I know which drama out of the pack I’ll be watching come early January. Directing will be the PD of Yawang while the screenwriter was one half of the writing duo behind Cheongdamdong Alice.
Hyun Bin plays the president of the amusement park Wonderland, and is himself a third generation chaebol. His name is tentatively Gu So Jin and his dominant personality doesn’t drink or gamble, doesn’t like to drive or go outside, doesn’t need love and doesn’t want marriage. Because of a major trauma in his childhood left him with a severe personality schism whereby he has another personality inside of him that is warm and sweet, the exact opposite of his usual demeanor.
The rom-com is about how he meets the bright and cheerful heroine who falls in love with both sides of his personality and has a love triangle with basically one guy. LOL, I wonder if she’ll think he’s a pair of twins and agonize over falling for two different twins only to realize later it’s the same guy with two personalities. At least she’s not his treating psychiatrist, man that Kill Me, Heal Me is already so shaky with the medical ethics and also way behind in cast after the big Binnie kerfluffle two weeks ago.
Yesss!! Finally both male and female lead that I am fond of 🙂
Now, I want January to come sooner loool
My exact thoughts. I hope the story can deliver as well.
Please no take 2 of Hotel King. I loved that LDH-LDW reunited, but
the plot was “cray cray.”
there’s a lot of news this upcoming drama that feels like it will be first shown than Pinocchio. Common there still no script reading.
But why exactly korean dramas these days has low viewer ratings?
people couldn’t relate to the dramas and K viewers looking for something new for ex. I hear your voice, master sun, man from the stars last year.
Probably for the same exact reasons why ratings are down all over the world.
I also think people nowadays prefer to watch online
I believe if the drama is good they will watch it on tv, but if it sucks they probably watch it later using online tving.
Will I get stone to death if I say idols?
almost forgot that lol…
I don’t think so, what about with dramas with high profile actors in it, for e.g. Secret door or It’s ok that’s love, Fated to love you…all have low ratings.
I looked at the ratings for the three network’s Mon-Tue and Wed-Thur dramas recently, and here’s some numbers that illustrate how poorly they are doing. All numbers are Nielsen numbers.
Since circa December 2012 KBS, SBS, and MBC, have produced 54 dramas (not including those currently airing). Of these 54 dramas only two have managed to attract more than a average 20% viewer share, namely You From Another Star (SBS), 24%, and Empress Ki (MBC), 21.9%.
A measly 7 other dramas have been able to crack a share of 15%: I Hear Your Voice (18.8%), Good Doctor (18%), Master’s Sun (17.2%), Horse Doctor (17.2%), The Heirs (16.7%), Queen of Ambition (16.3%), and Gu Family Book (16.1%). So all in all 9 dramas produced in the last two years resemble anything like a bona fide hit. In contrast, a whopping 31 shows were unable to get more than 10% of the available viewers (again, on average).
Obviously, what springs to mind is the fact that no recent drama comes close to fetching the kind of numbers a big hit could rely on 5-10 years ago. Only YFAS and EK are even in the neighborhood. No doubt, we have revise our notion of what constitutes a hit – the networks will probably be increasingly happy with anything over 10%. And ecstatic if a show goes beyond 15%.
I also want to note that whereas MBC pretty consistently has dominated Mondays and Tuesdays, and SBS Wednesdays and Thursday, KBS has only aired one show that can be seen as real hit, Good Doctor (18.0%). In fact, they have basically managed to make all the true stinkers of recent years, shows such Full Sun (3.3%), Ad Genius Lee Tae Beek (4.1%), or Bel Ami (4.3%).
They must be really, really, really rooting for Cantabile Tomorrow, hoping it will get them their first hit in more than a year!
Yes but KBS is ruling the Weekends.
Hmm….heard this type of storyline before…..boring.
Gu So Jin sounds like a girl’s name.
i’m looking forward for this!
looking forward but not that enthusiastic 🙂 just will give a try
So will she know it is the same person? I really want to watch this, but I am still scarred from Fall in Love With Me and the one guy=two guys scenario.
In the webtoon, at first, she dont know….But later she became suspicious and did her own investigation and then Walla…..
Totally unrelated but I hope with this Binnie would make an appearance on Running Man.
Not into HJM. Why oh Why isn’t it YEH or SMA. I have been waiting forever for Binnie to pair with either one of those. 🙁
me too, not really into her…… and i was praying she would reject, but who am i kidding? who would binnie? like, duh……
Boring pair for me…. Han Ji Min is too bland for me.
Are we ever going to get rid of that ridiculous “handsome Chaebol meets Cinderella” stereotype in Korean dramas? I honestly don’t remember the last time I saw a quality drama with this scenario.
I’m not the biggest Han Ji Min fan. I was also disappointed when she was announced as the lead, but I admit it, they look good together and the pairing is definitely something to look forward to. I hope her character will win me over.
She is so lucky. Han Ji Min has such a hot career right now. It’ll just shoot up even further to the top with this drama. It’s almost definite this drama will do well. He brings in the female viewers and she’ll probably bring in the males.
I like both leads-finally – and I am excited for this one.
Yes, I like this pairing! Would be interesting to see how she romances both guys in the same body. Looking forward to this drama!
yay! i am so looking forward to this. the story too seems right up my alley.