Monday sees the premiere of a new sitcom about town, not that most people would care since the Korean sitcoms occupy a lesser plane of consciousness since subtitles are rarely available for it. I’m actually quite intrigued by the upcoming Potato Star 2013QR3, which has an even more unwieldy earlier title of Sweet Potato-shaped Potato Star 2013QR3. It’s got a sprawling cast per the usual family and situational comey oriented requirements, but this drama got plenty of media coverage from the get go with the news that current It-boy teenage star Yeo Jin Gu was going to headline the younger cast. Originally Yeo Jin Gu was supposed to star in a SBS drama called Can We Love about a teacher-student romance but that got scuttled and in its place SBS ended up airing I Hear Your Voice which also banked on a noona-student romance. For Potato Star, Yeo Jin Gu plays a computer programmer and has a love line with rising actress Ha Yeon Soo. The core family unit in this drama is led by everyone’s favorite haraboji Lee Soon Jae, who goes for quirky patriarch with an all-encompassing love for his tiny dog. His son is No Joo Hyeon who is married to Geum Bo Ra (who must be thanking her lucky stars she made it out of I Summon You, Gold in one piece), and they have three kids in eldest daughter Choi Song Hyun, middle son Gu Kyung Pyo, and youngest daughter Seo Ye Ji. He Yeon Seo and her mom fall on hard times and she ends up supporting the family, and they rent out a room to Yeo Jin Gu, and already in the preview I see the requisite toilet humor even between the slated OTP. This drama also has plenty of sitcom credibility since its helmed by the PD who did the popular High Kick series, though Potato Star is not airing on MBC like those other dramas and is instead finding a home on cable network tvN. The long preview is out and the drama looks relatively entertaining and easy on the brains with its quirky humor. I quite like the directing and editing, delivering a cheeky and fresh mood that is perfect for packaging a half-hour of laughs a day. Yeo Jin Gu may only be 16 years old in real life but he honestly looks, acts, and has the charisma of someone much older. Unlike the much more wispy and baby-faced Yoo Seung Ho, who at 17 years old was cast in Flames of Desire playing a 25 year old married to Seo Woo. It was surreal to say the least. Here Yeo Jin Gu looks great and has fantastic chemistry with Ha Yeon Soo, who also has a love line with the hilarious Go Kyung Pyo. I hope the love triangle is as fun and poignant as the one in I Live in Cheongdamdong. Check out the cute poster and long preview below. Continue reading →