I’d heard some rumblings for a while about a sequel to uber-Hallyu smash hit Dae Jang Geum being in the works, but I kind of figured it was one of those constant rumors. However, the production announced on June 3 that the drama project is not canceled, and despite initial plans to produce a Dae Jang Geum 2 this year, they have merely pushed it back to sometime next year instead.

On the other hand, it was also recently announced that Lee Young-ae will NOT be reprising her lead role, so I’m not sure how much of a sequel it’ll be when its title character is absent.

Attached to the project is the original series’ director, PD Lee Byung-hoon, while the scripts will be written by Yi San writer Kim Yi-young.

Via Asia Economy

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2009. | Permalink | 18 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Dae Jang Geum, Lee Young-ae, sageuk dramas, sequels

First of all, I’d like to bow my head in deep gratitude to Javabeans, the highly esteemed writer of this blog, for inviting me to post a few thoughts here. I hope she won’t regret her decision after reading what I have to say, hehe.

2007 was an interesting year, at least for me, particularly when it comes to Korean dramas. I’ve watched dramas on a regular basis since I was old enough to walk and talk (I am, after all, Korean), but I’ve never undergone such a transformation in terms of how I approach dramas as I have in the past couple of years…although I suppose you could argue that it’s turned me into nothing but a picky bitch. (But weren’t you always a picky bitch, Dahee?)

Still, despite my pickiness, I managed to watch quite a handful of dramas this year, although I certainly didn’t manage to finish them all (blame school and the crappy work that some PDs and writers dish out, putting off viewers like me). In fact, I watched so many, I can’t possibly talk about them all here. So I’ll just pick a few notables and dish out some kudos, as well as one or two boos. Because boos are just as fun as kudos, if not as well-received.

DAHEE’S SONG OF THE DAY

Jo Kwan Woo – “천년애” (chun nyun ae), from the soundtrack of the drama The King & I. [ zShare download ]

(...)
Read the rest of The Year in Review, Part 3: Dahee Fanel’s drama round-up (3,776 words)

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Post tags: Coffee Prince, Dae Jang Geum, Dal Ja's Spring, Devil, guest bloggers, Insoon Is Pretty, King and I, Legend, Madam Ah Hyun Dong, Mixed-up Investigative Agency, My Man's Woman, Surgeon Bong Dal Hee, Taereung National Village, Thank You, Time of Dog and Wolf, White Tower, year in review, Yi San

 
Yunno, I might just have to rethink my opinion on the whole sageuk thing. And by “rethink,” I mean “start watching.”

I’ve never been a fan of historical “sageuk” dramas. The Adults In The Family watched them all the time when I was growing up, and they’re consistently solid ratings performers among Korean viewers. But I didn’t get the appeal. Maybe it was the antiquated speech, maybe it was the (generally) low production values, maybe it was a culture gap thing. Maybe it struck me as old granny dramas since my grannies watched them. Even in light of recent, well-produced sageuk blockbusters (Dae Jang Geum, Jumong, Dae Jo Young…), I’ve remained staunchly anti-sageuk.

 
(Jumong)

 
I asked my parents a while ago what the appeal of sageuk dramas were, since they both watched them, although neither are huge sageuk fans. My mother (the literary buff) agreed that sageuks aren’t very fun, but they’re familiar and reliable, stories she’d grown up hearing. My father (the history buff) had a different interpretation, and that was that they are an important aspect of Korean people reclaiming their own histories.

After all, Korea has for ages resisted its conquerors who tried to rewrite its storied, rich history, and had to fight the marginalization of its historical importance. Hallyu is a great source of pride for Koreans for a great many different reasons — there’s the simple sense of pride in a job well done, seeing such overseas popularity of domestic products — but I’ve got to think part of the satisfaction must also stem from a sense of ownership, of one’s own folklore and history, that its achievements are finally being recognized outside its own insular culture. On a more visible platform than previously, at least.

My mother watches sageuks because they’re familiar entertainment; my father watches them because they’re important. As for me……

 
(Random) SONG OF THE DAY

Leeds 리즈 – “그깟 사랑” (That kind of love) [ zShare download ]

(...)
Read the rest of The Sageuk Bandwagon (1,059 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2007. | Permalink | 48 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Conspiracy in the Court, Dae Jang Geum, Hong Gil Dong, Jumong, King and I, Legend, sageuk dramas, Story of Hyang Dan