Two new dramas premiered this weekend, to mixed reactions: MBC’s Creating Destiny starring Eugene, above, and KBS’s Hot-Blooded Salesman, starring Chae Jung-ahn and Park Hae-jin.

Perhaps Tamra fans will feel vindicated (or further insulted?) to know that the drama that replaced it (after Tamra was unceremoniously slashed) pulled in even lower numbers; Creating Destiny only managed a very low 3.5% for its first outing.

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Read the rest of Tentative starts for new weekend dramas (395 words)

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Post tags: Chae Jung-ahn, drama ratings, Eugene, Hot-Blooded Salesman, Ki Tae-young, Park Hae-jin

Hot-Blooded Salesman [열혈장사꾼] is the new KBS drama series starring Chae Jung-ahn (Cain & Abel) and Park Hae-jin (East of Eden) as, well, hot-blooded salesmen. Specifically, car salesmen. In these stills and preview clips (watch below), Chae gets into character showing off a sexier image than her usual elegant one.

These new stills come from scenes recently filmed in Seoul’s Kangnam district at a foreign car dealership. The scene in which Chae wields a sword (shown in previously released stills) depicts the younger, more innocent version of her character acting the part of a hero. Following her entree into the business world, however, she becomes cold and successful as a famous car dealer.

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Read the rest of Preview videos for Hot-Blooded Salesman (77 words)

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Post tags: Chae Jung-ahn, Park Hae-jin

Finally, news of a new KBS weekend drama! (The historical series Iron Empress has occupied the slot for many months, and is finally heading to its close. I, for one, am happy to see another contemporary offering take its place.)

The show to take that prime-time slot in October is called Hot-Blooded Salesman [열혈장사꾼], and stars Chae Jung-ahn (Cain & Abel, Coffee Prince), Park Hae-jin (East of Eden), and Choi Chul-ho (Partner, Queen of Housewives).

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Read the rest of Chae Jung-ahn in the Hot-Blooded Salesman (268 words)

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Post tags: Chae Jung-ahn, Choi Chul-ho, Hot-Blooded Salesman, Park Hae-jin

Lee Seon-kyun (34) married his 33-year-old bride Jeon Hye-jin on May 23; the event was closed to the media but the couple has released official photos of the ceremony.

The day was emceed by Lee’s good friends, actor Oh Man-seok and Hong Sung-bo, and featured a serenade by the groom himself, as well as songs by actor Kim Chang-wan (Coffee Prince) and indie artists Zitten and Tearliner. I am officially jealous not only of the bride’s good fortune but their awesome musical lineup.

The song Lee sang was the one he’d also sung for Coffee Prince co-star Chae Jung-ahn (who was in attendance), titled “Ocean Voyage” (listen below).

SONG OF THE DAY

Lee Seon-kyun – “바다여행” (Ocean Travel) [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Lee Seon-kyun serenades his bride (180 words)

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Post tags: Chae Jung-ahn, Jeon Hye-jin, Kim Chang-wan, Kim Ji-woo, Kim Su-ro, Lee Seon-kyun, Oh Man-seok, weddings, Yoo Sun, Yoon Eun-hye

How time flies, huh? It felt like just the other day I was writing up my first impressions on the SBS revenge drama Cain & Abel, and now it’s already over. (The last episode aired Thursday, April 23.)

As with other popular shows I haven’t followed, I’m opening this up to an Open Thread, so you can discuss Cain & Abel’s run, its ending, whatever, go wild. (Previous end-of-drama open threads: Tazza, East of Eden).

Starting next week in Cain’s Wednesday-Thursday SBS timeslot is Kim Sun-ah’s City Hall.

SONG OF THE DAY

Cain & Abel OST – “운명” (Fate). One of these days I’d like to see a kdrama soundtrack (particularly a thriller) NOT feature a song named “운명.” Just for a change, you know? [ Download ]

RELATED POSTS

• Currently airing dramas: A roundup
• Cain & Abel: First impressions
• Showing some brotherly love for Cain and Abel
• New stills from Cain & Abel

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Post tags: Cain and Abel, Chae Jung-ahn, Han Ji-min, Shin Hyun-joon, So Ji-sub

Caveat: This isn’t a proper recap. It’s not even a proper review. After catching the first few episodes, I wasn’t intending to write about SBS’s new Wednesday-Thursday drama, Cain & Abel, but I got a lot (a lot!) of emails from people asking what I thought of it and requesting recaps.

The thing is, I didn’t know how I would feel about Cain & Abel going in, but was expecting one of a few scenarios: to love it or to hate it. To be drawn in right away or turned off right away. To be impressed or to be disappointed.

What I did NOT expect, however… was to be bored.

SONG OF THE DAY

Cain & Abel OST – “미련한 사랑” (Foolish love) by G (So Ji-sub) (he’s the rapper) and Chae Dong-ha [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Cain & Abel: First impressions (1,752 words)

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Post tags: Cain and Abel, Chae Jung-ahn, episode recaps, Han Ji-min, Shin Hyun-joon, So Ji-sub

So Ji-sub and Shin Hyun-joon may be cast as competitive brothers embroiled in strife, but they look anything but antagonistic in front of reporters, no?

SBS is about to premiere its new drama, the (long, long-)awaited Cain & Abel, which follows the just-ended Star’s Lover on Wednesdays and Thursdays. (With the big names of A Star’s Lover failing to attract ratings — the Choi Ji-woo and Yoo Ji-tae-led series went out with a disappointing 6.2% — SBS is hoping that this star-studded series will have better luck.)

The high-profile cast was on hand for the drama’s production press conference, which was held in North Chungcheong on the afternoon of February 13. The drama airs its first episode next week, on February 18.

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Read the rest of Showing some brotherly love for Cain & Abel (153 words)

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Post tags: Cain and Abel, Chae Jung-ahn, Han Ji-min, Shin Hyun-joon, So Ji-sub