Anyone else confused about the weird, constantly changing drama-programming schedule these days? Well, blame it all on Monday-Tuesday’s sageuk juggernaut drama Yi San.

MBC’s extremely popular long-running historical hit (which began airing last September) was originally set to air, I believe, something around 50 episodes. But because of its popularity, the series was extended, and extended again — and then retracted its extension, only to then extend it again. Finally, they’d set today (June 10th, that is) as its finale airdate — until President Lee Myung Bak announced his intention to have a “Talk with the Nation” to air the 9th, which would push Yi San’s finale to the following Monday (June 16). However, then the talk was canceled, bringing the finale back to the 10th, but then MBC decided to reschedule it to the 16th anyway.

As a result, KBS and SBS have likewise scrambled to avoid butting heads with the competition with their new dramas. That explains why Strongest Chil Woo, which was originally planning to premiere yesterday (June 9), moved to next Tuesday (June 17), with SBS’s Gourmet following suit. Tuesday is a strange day to premiere a new Monday-Tuesday show (I wonder if both series will then extend their runs by one episode to even out their broadcast schedule), but with Yi San ending Monday, they aren’t taking chances.

You might wonder why the other two stations would so obviously show their fear of MBC’s drama, but we’re talking brand-new series here. If a minor schedule reshuffling can start the new drama on a clean slate, it’s a small price to pay rather than jinxing its schedule by handicapping its premiere episode knowingly. And MBC’s constant extensions may have frustrated some fans — story always suffers with last-minute tinkering — but MBC’s had a rather lackluster ratings year. Nothing else has matched, or even come near, Yi San’s 30% ratings numbers, which is why they’ve been so reluctant to relinquish it. (MBC follows Yi San with the Kim Sun Ah series When Night Comes.)

In any case, with their finale still to air, the cast and crew of Yi San gathered at Seoul’s 63 Building on the 10th to pre-emptively raise a toast to the end of their drama (maybe they had no time to shift their location reservation with all this last-minute schedule reshuffling?). Stars Lee Seo Jin and Han Ji Min were naturally present, as was MBC president Eom Ki Young.

Who wants to lay bets on how long it takes Lee Seo Jin to announce his wedding plans now that he’s free from filming?

Via New Daily, E Daily

SONG OF THE DAY

Ibadi – “끝나지 않은 이야기” (Unending story) [ Download ]

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I was thinking how I’ve been watching lots of first episodes of dramas these days, but haven’t found anything to dive into since the end of Who Are You? It’s starting to feel like going on a string of disappointing first dates — measuring up expectations versus performance, anticipation versus letdown, etc.

You know, there’s that date you’re really looking forward to, so you get dressed up and put on your heels and makeup and count down the hours, and he turns out to be a total dud. Or the date you agreed to because it was easier to give the guy your number than to try to invent an excuse not to because those excuses always come out embarrassingly half-assed — like you say you don’t have a phone and then it rings, or something — but then you end up having a good time.

I didn’t exactly intend to go off on an extended metaphor, but when I thought about all the recent dramas I’ve caught, they all seemed to fit (more or less).

SONG OF THE DAY

G.O.D. – “Falling” [ Download ]

First dates, by which I mean… >>

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[And now for Dahee Fanel's comprehensive take on the past year! --javabeans]

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 ]

In which I am embarrassingly long-winded

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The set of “Yi San”

“Circle lenses in the Chosun era?”

Viewers’ sharp eyes are making sageuk drama producers sweat under the scrutiny.

Sageuk fans following MBC’s Yi San have voiced a complaint about a part of the drama’s set. That’s because Yi San, which is set in the Chosun era [from 1392 to 1910], is using the sets from the SBS drama Seo Dong Yo, which deals with the Baekje nation during the era of the Three Kingdoms [57 BCE to 668 A.D.]. Using the internet, viewers have compared the photographs of the palace sets appearing in Seo Dong Yo and Yi San, noting, “I might not have known otherwise, but I wonder if it negates certain aspects if a drama set in the Chosun era is using Baekje-era sets.”

SONG OF THE DAY

Ex – “Marionette” [ zShare download ]

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Yoo Seung Ho, Shim Eun Kyung (both from “Legend”)

 
Longtime kdrama lovers have noted for a while now that Korea’s got some serious talent in the child-acting department. Ever since young Moon Geun Young stole the show in Autumn Love Story, perhaps even eclipsing her adult counterpart Song Hye Gyo (one of Korea’s most famous natural beauties, but never noted for her acting skills), lots of child actors have gained notice not just as props in a series but as legitimate, moving characters.

There’s been a boom lately, too, one of the reasons being the recent crowd of sageuk dramas, which tend to span more of a character’s life, often including his/her childhood.

According to Star News:

Child actors’ contributions to dramas are growing larger, to the extent that some say they influence one’s success or failure. The actors portraying the childhood roles of the adult actors in dramas like MBC’s Legend, SBS’s King and I, MBC’s Yi San etc. are garnering attention with their roles. …

(Random) SONG OF THE DAY

Maybee – “Day dream” [ zShare download ]

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