KBS has been known to cut its losses and shorten dramas most recently with beloved by its loyal viewers but critically low rated medical drama Beautiful Mind. That drama at least had double the ratings of the current Wed-Thurs trainwreck Manhole (Wonderland’s Feel or Feels So Good), a drama so lowly rated new pundits are digging up two decade long ratings records to see just how low it ranked with the recent episode 4 netting only 2% ratings.
Maybe KBS will put Manhole out of its misery early and to do so will need to have a followup drama ready. The network has slated Mad Dog to take over for Manhole, a drama about a former detective turned insurance fraud investigator. I know a drama about investigating insurance fraud sounds as exciting as watching paint dry but at this point anything sounds better than Manhole turned out to be. Mad Dog has cast Yoo Ji Tae, Ryu Hwayoung, and Gong Myung as the leads, and once again any cast of leads sounds better than the leads of Manhole turned out to be.
One point for Mad Dog is the screenwriter who wrote Awl and was one of the four writers on my favorite sitcom of all time I Live in Cheondamdong.
Such an unexciting casting and uninteresting drama title…
oo it’s PSH look alike Ryu Hwayoung minus bad acting.
Her personality and acting can not be compared with PSH. Also, she has big backing and can get a main role easily. PSH worked her socks off to get where she is.
I don’t know if you watched Age Of Youth. She acted brilliantly in it.
I haven’t but it is painful watching her in Father Is Strange and that is her latest work.
@anon LMAO they look nothing alike. Okay sometimes Hwayoung distantly resembles PSH in her Pinocchio era but other than that, not really. Oh, and Hwayoung’s definitely got more interesting choices of roles. Acting though? Her acting as Kang Yina is her most memorable one, and the rest is just so-so. She bored me out in Father Is Strange 🙂
@abc, well, personality doesn’t really matter in acting profession tbh. Sure, she may have cried a few crocodile tears and thrown T-ara under the bus and lived off from public sympathy, but again, does it really matter? Her father is her biggest backer though, can’t deny that.
@jazz, I’ve watched AoY and she is good there. She gives off ssen unni vibes and it probably has a lot to do with the fact that Kang Yina and her personality are similar. Just like Dominique Swain, who was brilliant in only one role she played and her consecutive works have failed because she was so-so after all 🙂
@prettyautumn, you gotta be kidding me personality doesn’t matter in the entertainment industry. It might be fine and well when the star is going well but, once they go out of favour no-one in the industry will help them back up. However, you may mean personality doesn’t matter for her because she has big daddy on her side.
@abc, nope, personality doesn’t matter when it comes to acting and acting skills. It does, however, in the working environment and how the industry perceives you. Take Mariah Carey. She is really talented but known for her diva attitude and someone very hard to work with. It still doesn’t take her talent away. I think @anon was NOT talking about personality at all. They were speaking of their opinion about her acting only. Just an advice, it doesn’t look too good to be *that* defensive because everything is not always what it seems.
@abc
To be fair, anon really wasn’t talking about personality or the ways Hwayoung manages to get roles. Anon was just stating her/his opinion about Hwayoung. And I disagree with anon just to be clear. They don’t look alike and Hwayoung’s acting is too different to be compared to PSH’s. Anon can get back to this once Hwayoung has acted in a drama as a female lead.This is sort of like when some people claimed that Krystal was a better actress that PSH until Krystal got a female lead role in She’s So Lovable, which made these people backtrack with their claims. Also, I agree with prettyautumn on this matter too.
@anon
I knew it. I almost expected a comment like this. Personally, I think Hwayoung’s got potential, but I’ve watched everything she was in and her acting since Come Back Mister and she isn’t that great. I-netz keep praising her because of her ”queen sugar daughter bad ass” character in Age of Youth but quite frankly, she has no other merits. Also, I don’t see any resemblance, no matter how much I try to look from different angles. They look completely different. This is like saying that Alicia Vikander an Jessica Alba look alike. Good job on bringing the PSH avid defenders though. You knew a comment like yours would bring swarms of them don’t you…
@Abc – whatever you say about Hwayoung’s personality, her filmography shows she spent the last 2-3 years doing supporting roles and short dramas before getting a lead in a full length drama.
I would say that counts as working her ass off too, and better her than yet another useless idol-actress like idk, Krystal or you know who who keep getting opportunities dropped in their lap when they have no talent. I mean, at least she can act.
I’m sorry but I don’t find her acting that good compared to other idols. It is so over-the-top kind of acting.
Well, sometimes, PSH’s acting is kinda over the top too. Especially in her youth dramas (You’re Beautiful and Heartstrings), to the point it was so cringy. You can’t really avoid OTT acting in k-dramas though.
@prettyautumn, I am bemused at you listing PSH’s old works and saying her acting there is OTT. I’ve always found her acting to be subdued, and she has improved a lot throughout the years.
@abc… I didn’t say her acting was bad though, did I ? It is true that those dramas were cringy and her acting was cringy/ OTT too. In Heirs too actually, which I forgot to mention earlier. It’s funny because she was really good in Stairway to Heaven and Tree of Heaven. She improved in Pinocchio and especially in Doctors. Doesn’t take away from her past OTT acting. It really could be because that’s what the directors wanted in those times and the style of youth dramas are usually like that. Im Ji Yeon is an actress who used to have a little too subdued acting (in the sense of underwhelming) so I wouldn’t say her acting is subdued. In fact, if you really watch Hwayoung in AoY, you wouldn’t say her acting is OTT, just like Park Shin Hye’s acting in Pinocchio or Doctors wasn’t OTT. However, I wasn’t talking about improvement. Even if you have bias, you shouldn’t let it muddle your critical thinking and see devils everywhere. So don’t misunderstand me and think I was hating on her lol.
@prettyautumn, Two things I never implied.
1. You think PSH was bad at acting
2. You hate her
I get why you think those teenage dramas/her acting are OTT but, I believe it has more to do with the style of the drama.
@teacakes, There’s no denying though that Hwayoung’s got backing since her father is some hot shot apparently.
Hwayoung’s definitely much better than idol actresses like Suzy, Krystal, Yoona, Seolhyun etc. and even actresses like Im Ji Yeon or Jin Se Yeon. I think most people in the industry work their butts off more or less though.
Sometimes this blog’s grammar and sentences are so all over the place, it’s difficult to make sense.
Agree, i made a comment about this before. Writing style is very wordy and words are used in very redundant way.
Aww does that mean my new love Woo Do Hwan is out. I wonder if Manhole being shortened and needing him asap has anything to do with it. Is filming on/for ‘Save Me’ still happening or was it all pre-produced? Man, I was looking forward to him and Yoo Ji Tae playing off one another one screen. Oh well, I hope many opportunities come his talented way once ‘Save Me’ finishes it’s run.
This seems to be old news. The latest is that Gong Myung is out since he was offered the role first, and the role has been offered to Woo Dohwan instead.
I hope Woo Dohwan gets it. This guy totally stole the show in “Save Me”. Not too thrilled about Ryu Hwayoung – still don’t think she is lead material. Been watching her in Father is Strange and she is the weakest actress among the sisters in comparasion to Lee Yuri and Jung So min. I don’t know why drama producers insist on casting idols in lead roles so much. You would think after Manhole, they would think twice.
It’s amusing how easy it is to disparaged Park Shin Hye just so one can praise another. Wonder what those directors and actors saw in her that all they can say are good things about her…..they themselves have said in interviews how they want to be in a project with her. As a fan, it is amusing to read and guessing, people are envious of her and her success. If you read her interviews especially of late, she knows her limitations and still trying to learn. The thing I appreciate about her is that she can express herself really well, a girl who can think on her feet. Wished she’s more greedy and accepts projects right and left but seems she is becoming more thoughtful in her choices. Haha! Also for one salty comment , when a project of a favorite “opa” fails…..guess whose name comes out from others so opa can get a sure hit? Just expressing my opinion.
Right? Some i-netz can try to down play her talent but in the end, PSH remains the most relevant young actress inside South-Korea and outside. There is a reason why people want to work with her, and that is how she anchors a scene, reciprocates and matches with her co-stars acting and highlights them, which in turn brings them a whole different leverage to their careers. Some people can keep downplaying that but fact is fact.
The only thing ,is that she gets a prime time drama when Ham Eun Jung( Dream high, Coffee house ) must start her acting carreer from the start in a daily drama and had to step down from “five fingers” drama a few years ago !
I’m not agree with the fact that PSH is looked down by i-netz. A contrario she has one of the strongest international fanbase if not the greatest. As some of you know, i’m not her biggest fan but the truth can be denied. Her popularity is tremendous !
She is popular internationally, but there are some k-drama or other Korean popular culture oriented sites with commenter base that find PSH less than stellar. They are usually ”oppa fans’’ or fans of actresses who aren’t as popular domestically or outside Korea and like to take it on PSH. Also there are those who are genuinely not into PSH’s acting style or the types of dramas she is in. All actors just don’t appeal to everyone. Literally, worshiped actress like Jun Ji Hyun used to get critique because of her over the top acting in the early 2000s but she improved and is now being praised. Everyone’s of course entitled to their opinions though. That anon commenter just wanted to open the Pandora’s box by that statement and got what he/she desired 🙂
hey chingu, once again we agree. Am not a PSH fan, but no one can deny her popularity. There are many actors and singers (really entertainers), that have a huge following, and I fail to understand why. But props to them.
meant to add @cahill chingu…:-)
Probably you all should open you eyes a bit and try to notice there was no growth in PSH’s acting esp you compare her with other actresses at similar age bracket for example Park So Dam,Kim Go-eun and Park Bo young. She also had this annoying facial expression in Doctor, which made me stop watching doctor. She improved a lot pinocchio but she went back to bad acting in doctor smh….she’s already in this business for so long but I don’t think she will improve.she’s already reached her plateau lmao.. Oh! of course she is very nice, I agree…same like the other actresses as well.
Ryu Hwayoung acted better when PSH was as young as her, hence the comparison. So peace! I’m no fan of these two. They don’t look super pretty either
but but… PSH debut performance alone beats any acting Hwayoung has acted LOL. She got better in Doctors actually, and you shouldn’t let your bias affect your statements too much. Personally, PBY has better acting, it’s more subtle and she is more ’chameleon like’ in her roles, whereas PSH has a distinct style. KGE is inconsistent and good at certain types of roles, just compare her performance in Coinlocker Girl and Goblin. Also, she isn’t as ’chameleon like’ as PBY. Well, movies show better acting anyways. Speaking of which, Park Sodam, who was only good in Priests. Her drama acting needs work.
I really don’t get why someone brought up niceness into this though. I’m pretty sure most actresses are nice to their co-workers anyway. Also it’s kinda ironic how they go around here saying that Hwayoung’s acting is ’painful to watch’ and over the top and how she gets roles because of connections yet when someone else gives opinion about her bias she gets so defensive. It’s fine, even recommendable, to have opinions but you should be able to take others’ opinions too even if you personally disagree with them.
that’s your opinion… in my opinion her acting in doctor are among her worst…probably heirs was her worst lmao! she should got better. as for RHW she is still early, just about to get her lead role. PSH on the other hand have a decade of acting. probably we all should wait and see and agree to disagree. I dont usually post this long but I some fan girl/boy annoyed me sometimes. peace!… i have nothing against PSH. in fact I shipped her with LMH who has equally mediocre acting lol but the ship tanked early. bye
Lolololol immature shippers now I see where you’re coming from ?, just too obvious
@prettyautumn, I believe your last paragraph is targeted at my opinions. I have no problem accepting other commentators opinions. In fact, as a PSH fan I feel it is an honour for so many actresses comparing to her. It is almost like the ‘majority’ of the audiences are taking PSH as the standard to be compared with currently. However, this doesn’t shade my opinion of Hwayoung’s acting in Father is strange. Out of the whole cast, her acting is slightly below par of the others. I agree with @Gilgit, let her take the lead role and we will see. Many actresses want to be the lead but can they carry it off? If they carry it off with one drama can they maintain it? I always believe being a female actress is 10 times harder than a handsome male actor in the entertainment industry.
I am confused with this article, since I think I’ve read another news recently that Gong Myung is no longer on the run for a part in this drama. But I am more confused with the comments….lols…
That aside, i like Yoo Ji Tae, he is a versatile actor. I have only seen Hwayoung in Ex GF Club and AOY and like her in both, though isn’t she a bit of typecasted? Whether she could show broader range of acting/emotion or is capable of shouldering a show’s weigh as a leading lady, I still have to wait and see.
There isn’t much revealed about the premise yet, but anything with the word ‘investigation’ always has my interest. Hope the execution doesn’t disappoint though…
Sigh, wondering why a lot of people commenting . . .
When PSH’s name is not even been mentioned on the article . . .
Sigh -_-
She kinda looks like Park shin hye and her acting is good I am reallyenjoying acting the of everyone in “father is strange” what a well casted drama.
Will watch this b/c of RHY, her acting is on point in Father is Strange, she has great comedic timing. She also did a great job in AoY. we all have our opinions, I happen to like watching her on the screen, she’s working her butt off and getting better and better. Congrats to her. I tried to watch Manhole, only made it to the second episode. She does look a little like PSH but I don’t think a lot, it’s superficial and they act very differently.