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Ha Suk-jin signs on to new cable drama

If there’s one thing I take away from Standby, the sometimes-amusing, sometimes-frustrating sitcom on MBC, it’s that I love Ha Suk-jin and want to see much more of him. So I’m happy to hear he’s got a new drama lined up, and with a hitmaker writer too.

Granted, I’ll admit my Ha Suk-jin love is largely due to his awesome character, who is so offbeat and humorlessly hilarious that you can’t help but love his quirky ways. (He’s also pretty much the only Standby character given any emotional arcs at all.) So dryly funny. And when you’re in a sitcom playing a character bearing your own name, it tends to blur the lines. So my love is plentiful and undiscriminating when it comes to which Ha Suk-jin I care about.

The new drama is (roughly translated) Childless Good Fortune, and it’ll be the next project by veteran writer Kim Soo-hyun. Yes, her last project Thousand Day Promise did kind of end up on my shit list (have a plot, ferpetessake, other than “She’s dying, in the most depressing way possible”!), but she’s really quite a respected and talented writer; she also has Life Is Beautiful, Mom’s Dead Upset, and My Man’s Woman on her resumé, big hits all. PD Jung Eul-young from those previous dramas will also be onboard.

It’s a cable drama slated for weekends on JTBC, and is centered around the three generations of a family living in one house in the suburbs of Seoul. Hm, I wonder if the title is ironic then, like, “Man, NOT having kids would’ve been the good life!” Lee Soon-jae (everybody’s grandpa ever, from My Princess, The King 2 Hearts, and High Kick 1 and 2), plays the patriarch at the center, who has three married sons and a handful of grandchildren. He apparently wants them all procreating, stat. Which, ha, makes him different from every other grandpa how?


Eom Ji-won

So here’s how the family breaks down: Lee Soon-jae’s character is married to Seo Woo-rim, who are the grandpa-grandma pair at the top of the family tree. First son Yoo Dong-geun (Athena) is married to Kim Hae-sook, and Eom Ji-won (Can Love Become Money) is their daughter. Aww, Kim Hae-sook is the best mom actress ever, whether she’s cool and reserved (Thousand Day Promise) or boisterous (My Mom), and Eom Ji-won has got a bubbly charm of her own, which means I’ll probably love them together.

Second son Song Seung-hwan is married to Im Ye-jin, and third son Yoon Da-hoon is married to Kyun Miri. Dunno much about their characters yet.

In the show, Ha Suk-jin is a grandson and will play a dental surgeon. So, my worst nightmare. But he sounds cute, described as having a “scatterbrained charm” as a guy who looks like he’s put together and posh, only all his salary goes to pay a debt and he even has a part-time job… which he uses to buy clothes. Heh.

Rounding out the cast are Jung Joon (Thousand Day Promise) as a bank employee, paired with Kim Min-kyung (Padam Padam). And youngest Baek Jong-min (My Daughter Flower) plays an “aspiring barista,” to which I say, PFFFFT. What is it with dramas and their insistence that being a barista is something requiring years of schooling abroad and careful study? I take my coffee seriously, and even I know that’s a stretch.

The drama premieres on October 13 and is set for 30 episodes.

Via Osen

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On the contrary I like him cause he is good looking!

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Thank you for the news!

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Yes, me too! But also a capable actor.

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Oh my I am watching it already because yeah,he is about the only thing worth watching lately in that sitcom.What a bummer for us who can't give up now at Ep 93.God.
Plus I've discovered I like family dramas and I did like Life is Beautiful.

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But on the plus side, all the boring storylines/characters make certain episodes a quick watch: just click fast-forward and- hey, presto! You're done.

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I love the current sit-com "Unexpectedly you". It's really great an trending in Korea

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That's weird.

His character description here sounds like his Standby character (as per your last recap).

I was gonna complain about him being typecast, but if the result is more Ha Sukjin in our screens, Drama Gods, TYPECAST AWAY!!! (Sorry for my shoutiness, I keep imagining I'm telling Shi Won to jump Yoon Jae...)

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Please, Javabeans, could you add the new dramas to the currently airing list? i mean, there are articles about them, but they don't appear there
for example, this week two more dramas are on: The 3rd hospital(tvn) and The great king's dream as a weekend drama on kbs
and there's also Panda and hedgehog on channel A and soon this drama Childless comfort on jtbc - hopefully, you will add them, too

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You mean on the right, the drama airing schedule right?

I would like that too.

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oh yeeeeeeessssssss him

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So far I'm not seeing any partners for the grandchildren... who will pair up with whom?

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i love the writer since "Life is Beautiful" although "Thousand Day Promise" wasn't my thing i'm excited to watch her new family drama.

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Gah, I could not function in that household. Way to many people.

I like Eom Ji Won. I hope her character in this is awesome sauce. I didn't like her character in Can Love Become Money after a while.

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I've had a soft spot for Ha Suk-jin since Hello! Miss :) (The drama itself kinda sucked, but he was cute in it.)

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I really liked Ha Suk Jin in Once Upon a Time in Sangcheori (a delightful and underrated drama.

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this drama is one of my favorites!!! so underrated it took forever to be subbed!!! It has anything anyone would want to see in a drama: Thriller, mystery, comedy, romance... the cast, including Ha Suk Jin did a good job too ;)

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JTBC brings some of my favorite dramas this year like A wife's credentials so I'm definitely going to check this one out! Thanks Javabeans..

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I have a friend here in Seoul who actually WAS an aspiring barista, and you know what he did? He worked in a chain coffeeshop forever, getting practical experience while studying on his own, and then he took an exam. Lo and behold, he is now a licensed barista. No studying abroad, no special school attended, just some good-ol'-fashioned hard work. (Of course now he's in the military instead of opening his own cafe like he wanted, but that's a whole 'nother kettle of fish.)

I laugh every time I hear a Kdrama character has been/is going abroad to Italy/wherever to study coffee, because seriously? ....WHY?

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I lub him. <3 Haven't seen much of Standby but really love his character.

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LMAO, here's barista 101 for you Seoulites: you go to the nearest starbux/toms/angel-in-us/cafe benne/a bajillion other coffee shops there, you apply for a job, you do a training for a month. Voila.

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Ha! Barista...i've worked at starbucks, took me a week to learn, and i was considered one of the slower ones ; )

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Hahahaha "dental surgeon". The drama gods took my advice LOL

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Isn't this the same drama that will have Alex in it? Or is he out. I was already planning on watching that drama for Alex and Eom Ji-won (and Lee soon Jae) but if it has Ha Suk-jin then am really in.

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Yeah it is. Alex is out. He got into trouble because of a DUI, I believe, and then left on his own. :X

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Gasp, Alex got a DUI!??!!! I just find that so hard to believe. He was so reliable and responsible on WGM.

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Yeaaah, I know. I would think celebrities would take better care not to put themselves into these kind of situations, buuuut...well, they do.

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don't.** >_< lol

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Ha Suk Jin deserves bigger, better roles I think.

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I'm glad Ha Suk Jin was able to pick up another role quite quickly. He deserves more spotlight. Although this is a cable drama, I hope hope it succeeds. I love his character on Standby, and I'm hoping he gets his own happy ending.. >_<

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