The crew of MBC’s upcoming Wednesday-Thursday drama Lawyers of the Republic of Korea gathered on the afternoon of June 2 in Seoul’s Kangnam neighborhood for the show’s press conference.

The drama centers around the world of divorce law (and the warring divorce attorneys on either side), in which Lee Soo Kyung (Soulmate, Golden Age of the Daughter in Law) plays a lawyer who passed the bar in last place in her class. She’s still bitter over an ex who left her, played by Ryu Soo Young (18 vs. 29, Bad Couple), and currently is in a career rut, unable to get any of the good cases.

That changes with the high-stakes divorce suit between her actress best friend, Han Eun Jung (Full House, The Person I Love), and fund manager husband Lee Sung Jae (Daisy, Stranger than Heaven). But Best Friend Actress hires lawyer Ryu Soo Young of the top law firm in the country, while husband chooses Lee Soo Kyung. Uh-oh! I’m sure the sparks start flying soon enough.

(Pet peeve: It’s not the Lawyers of the Great Republic of Korea; it’s simply “Republic of Korea.” But speaking of titles, it seems to be going for a cutesy vibe, even punctuating it differently [대~한민국 변호사] to suggest the ever-popular sporting cheer: Daaaae~ han min guk! *clapclap* *clap* *clap!*)

Since this is the drama that Lee Soo Kyung abruptly left When Night Comes to star in, I’m curious to see if it was a good choice on her part. I do like the actors of Lawyers, but I’m not intrigued by either the plot or preview. But Lee Soo Kyung’s bright, lively personality is always a breath of fresh air to watch.

Lawyers of the Republic of Korea airs after Spotlight retires; it premieres on July 9.

Via Newsen

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Aquibird – “Kiss Me” [ Download ]

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 25 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Han Eun-jung, Lawyers of Korea, Lee Soo-kyung, Lee Sung-jae, press conferences, Ryu Soo-young

For some reason I can’t quite fathom, the news is full of reports of renewed denials that Lee Soo Kyung and Shin Dong Wook, who played a couple in MBC’s Soulmate two years ago, are NOT dating. I wasn’t aware that it was much of a question these days, so I smell publicity maneuver, although it just seems so weirdly irrelevant. Anyway, both sides are denying that they’re anything more than friends. O-kay.

Of the two, I suppose Lee Soo Kyung is more in the public eye at the moment: Originally having agreed to appear in Kim Sun Ah and Lee Dong Gun’s upcoming drama When Night Comes, she has suddenly withdrawn from that project to headline her own, MBC’s Wednesday-Thursday drama Lawyers of Korea, set to follow Spotlight. Although the move has earned her some criticism, you can’t blame an actress for dropping a supporting role in favor of a leading one. Lawyers also stars Ryu Su Young (Bad Couple, 18 vs. 29) and starts in July.

In other casting news, Han Ye Seul will be starring in SBS’s drama Tazza, a television version based on the gambling film of the same name. She plays Madam Jung, the role originated by Kim Hye Soo in the film. (Umm, not so sure the casting fits for that one…)

And SBS’s upcoming “premium drama” My Sweet City has also cast Choi Kang Hee (Thank You, My Scary Girl) as an editor at a publishing firm. The drama co-stars Lee Seon Kyun (White Tower) and premieres on June 6.

I’m not necessarily drawn to any of the dramas in this batch, but since I’m not too drawn to a particular drama at the moment, at least the new spate of incoming series offers a change of pace. I’ll have to see if any of them sticks.

Via Mk.co.kr, My Daily, Hankyung

SONG OF THE DAY

Outsider – “사랑할수있을까?” (Could we love?) [ Download ]

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 12 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Choi Kang-hee, Han Ye-seul, Lawyers of Korea, Lee Seon-kyun, Lee Soo-kyung, My Sweet Seoul, Shin Dong-wook, Soulmate, Tazza