High Kick’s PD heads to tvN for new sitcom
by javabeans
Watch out, broadcasters: If you aren’t careful, all your talent will head for cable and leave you behind choking on their dust. It’s happened with a handful of star drama writers and producers already, and now sitcom hitmaker PD Kim Byung-wook is joining their ranks by heading to tvN after helming three successful seasons of the High Kick franchise for MBC. (Admittedly the third season brought in lower ratings than the first two, which were uncontested hits, but it still pulled respectable double-digit numbers, compared to the sitcoms that have since aired.)
PD Kim’s new project is currently in pre-production stages, and has confirmed a September launch. He’ll be working with the same producers that he worked with on the High Kick series, but the show won’t be a High Kick 4—it’ll start fresh with a new idea and storyline. Like most daily sitcoms, it will air Monday through Thursday and is set for 120 episodes.
The writers of the previous High Kicks will be back as well (the shows employed a team of four or more writers), though one of the first season’s writers, Song Jae-jung, won’t be one of them (she recently raised her profile with Nine and Queen In-hyun’s Man). And this isn’t PD Kim’s first connection with tvN; he worked on the miniseries Once Upon a Time in Saengchori for tvN in 2010, which was one of those small cult shows (though he was part of the planning team, not the director).
Unstoppable High Kick (aka Season 1), which aired in 2006, was the first daily that I watched on a consistent basis and also the first family sitcom, and High Kick: Counterrattack of the Short Legs (Season 3) was the first daily/family sitcom to suck me into recapping. If you’ve never seen a High Kick show, you may wonder what’s so special about its mundane stories and not-really-that-funny comedy lines. What I’ve found, though, is that the shows grow on you steadily and strongly, and by the end you’re in love with the little corner of the world inhabited by these characters. It’s slice-of-life in a sweetly poignant way. If the new show can pull off that kind of heartwarming realism, I’ll be watching.
Via Star News
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1 Shiku
June 3, 2013 at 4:43 PM
I don't mind if cable continues to kick the main 3 broadcasters butts, they need a wakeup call. All my fave dramas right now (cruel palace:war of the flowers, ten2, End of the world & monstar) are on cable.
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Kiara
June 3, 2013 at 9:22 PM
Love rooting for the little guys with quality. Watching Cruel Palace and Ten2.
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2 pabo ceo reom
June 3, 2013 at 4:55 PM
Once Upon a Time in Saengchori was awesome. Glad someone told me to watch it!
*starts googling Ha Suk-jin and Kim Dong-yoon's photos*
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GrandmaFran
June 3, 2013 at 6:47 PM
love LOVE that show
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Noemi
June 3, 2013 at 7:54 PM
Saengchori was SO awesome! I just about lost it whenever Ha Suk-jin would squat in that field and sing his numbers to the tune of Phantom of the Opera...priceless!
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canxi
June 3, 2013 at 9:58 PM
I tried but I never got into that show. Maybe the first couple episodes were just slow...I'll try again soon, since I doubt I got to the good stuff.
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3 sparks121
June 3, 2013 at 5:18 PM
it better be as good as high kick 1. the 2nd one was meh compared to it and the 3rd just sucked.
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kent
June 3, 2013 at 5:39 PM
High Kick 3 was the best. I loved the characters and all the intra-relation of them. Every episode had own stories but also connects with previous and later episodes. Can't wait for this new sitcom!
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Hazel
June 3, 2013 at 7:57 PM
Yeah, I'd completely disagree. The third outing was FAR more winning than the second in my opinion.
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4 sartorius
June 3, 2013 at 5:31 PM
CABLE TV FOR THE WIN!!!!
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5 Ivoire
June 3, 2013 at 5:43 PM
Thanks for the news, JB!
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6 Perrie
June 3, 2013 at 6:02 PM
High Kick 2 was my personal favorite where I discovered my love for Hwang Jung Eum and Daniel Choi. I really recommend it to kdrama beginners especially because it's short and easy to get into (such as the other High Kicks I'm guessing, but high kick 2 is my personal favorite in the series)
I'm excited for this PD. tvN is honestly kicking ass with their works as of late, so yeah, korean broad cast channels should be scared, haha.
I think Song jae jung made a great choice is branching out on her own. Her works are fantastic and I'm looking forward to her next work. Queen In Hyun's man is one of the only three dramas from last year that I still remember and sincerely love.
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carolies541
June 4, 2013 at 4:04 AM
I watched both HK1 and HK2, loved HK2 more for some reason, I think it's mainly because of HJE and Daniel Choi pairing works well for me. HK1 have very lovable characters, I love the teacher loveline and JIW the poor boy..
I followed HK3 for about 30-40 episodes but couldn't finish, because I was rooting for Baek Jin Hee character, it's a pity that she's not gonna end up with YKS...
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saturtledaisy
June 4, 2013 at 8:13 AM
I loved HK2 for the Hwang Jung Eum and Daniel Choi pairing!
But despite all the love, .....it just left a bitter aftertaste. I wouldn't recommend the sitcom, though it wasn't /bad/ per se.
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7 snow_white
June 3, 2013 at 6:07 PM
Everyone is heading to cable channels....
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8 kdramapedia
June 3, 2013 at 6:09 PM
High Kick 1 confirmed for me that I would forever love kdramas. I haven't been able to get into any daily dramas aside from high kick, so I hope this will bring back my interest in them.
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9 amee
June 3, 2013 at 6:21 PM
I've only seen High Kick 2, but it's one of my personal favorites (besides that crap ending I've erased from memory.) I fell in love with Daniel Choi and Hwang Jungeum. It also introduced me to Yoon Shiyoon. It's a drama that just gave me so many heartwarming feelings.
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10 crazedlu
June 3, 2013 at 6:36 PM
I looooved Season 3! I'm excited. Can't wait for the cast to be announced.
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11 Tartani
June 3, 2013 at 6:37 PM
The 3 major broadcasting companies really needs to pick it up with all these talented people heading to cable. They're losing some of the best variety pds, drama pds and writers to cable. Most of my favorites from last year; QIHM, Reply 1997, SUFBB, etc..were all on cable last year. And this year, Nine and Cruel Palace.
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12 Annie
June 3, 2013 at 6:38 PM
I'm glad they headed over to TvN considering MBC decided to no longer air sitcoms.
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xarden
June 4, 2013 at 2:21 AM
Yes I wonder what was in the mind of the MBC Board to decide to put sitcoms away. Aww. :( But yeah maybe they thought of it real hard. Go TVN! Btw, I'm watching DATING AGENCY: CYRANO. It's fancy, fresh and keeps me outta my toes! Way to go Dating Agency, fighting!
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Annie
June 4, 2013 at 2:37 PM
I think it was because their last sitcom (standby) didn't do so well in terms of rating.
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13 Abbie
June 3, 2013 at 7:11 PM
I loved High Kick 3, but I've never been able to sit through many episodes of the first and second. I may give them another shot. I like this PD. He has good ideas, and his shows receive a lot of buzz. I hope this next daily is just as good as High Kick 3 was.
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14 Enz
June 3, 2013 at 7:22 PM
I just want to take this chance to repeat that I want to see jung il woo onscreen again!! I miss him! :D
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Noemi
June 3, 2013 at 7:48 PM
I second that! A sageuk with a nice main of glory would be nice...but really anything to see Jung Il Woo on screen again is fine by me!
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Noemi
June 3, 2013 at 7:49 PM
oops...mane :D
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15 Cynthia
June 3, 2013 at 7:32 PM
thanks jb,
Right now pure love and princess aurora is also got
scriptwriting.
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Cynthia
June 3, 2013 at 7:34 PM
sorry typo error "good".
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16 shoesrgreatrite
June 3, 2013 at 9:36 PM
woahhhh tvN has been rocking my socks off lately. from flower boy ramyun to shut up flower boy band to queen in hyun's man (MY MOST FAV DRAMA OF ALL TIME) to AM1997 to Flower boy next door and NINE (FAV DRAMA OF THE YEAR) and now, high kick pd is joining the bandwagon?!?!?!??! so much love for cable shows ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
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17 Tyme
June 3, 2013 at 9:47 PM
The High Kick shows are probably the only dailies I've watched from start to end. They manage to pull that many episodes without introducing traditional makjang elements.
It also seems to be a nice platform for young (non-idol) actors/actresses to get known.
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18 canxi
June 3, 2013 at 9:57 PM
Ahhh cable is becoming more and more awesome I see. Gotta agree on High Kick. I definitely didn't think I would be so addicted to High Kick 3. I really loved them all.
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19 Jo
June 3, 2013 at 10:21 PM
"Song Jae-jung, won’t be one of them (she recently raised her profile with Nine and Queen In-hyun’s Man)"
WHAA. wow, serious props to her. She wrote very awesome, unpretentious dramas that fit right in their niche and thrived. I loved Queen Inhyun's Man and Nine (a little less, but because of the actress)
wowow. serious talent TVN is ringing in.
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20 Baby panda
June 3, 2013 at 11:32 PM
I loved High Kick 2 because of the cast. Felt everyone shined in their role and the stories were heartwarming and fun, despite the crap ending. Couldn't get into season 1&3 but maybe I'll try again when there is a lull in k dramas to watch.
Looking forward to this new sitcom.
Once upon a time in Saengchori is also one of my favorite lesser known k dramas.
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21 john
June 4, 2013 at 4:20 AM
I loved Unstoppable High Kick. I loved Miss Seo.
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22 Ace
June 4, 2013 at 5:42 AM
The problem for me with good cable sitcoms is that not only is there zero subs, but it's also hard to find the raw episodes. I've been wanting to watch I Live In Cheongdam-dong ever since I heard the buzz about it but I can't even find a decent site to watch it raw. So yay for a new good sitcom on cable but boo that it would take a long time before I can watch it online.
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Eisley
August 3, 2013 at 1:31 AM
Hey!
I'm starting to recap all of I Live In Cheongdamdong. Sadly, I jumped in at the middle, but it's still lovely. Check out a recap for Ep 102 if you're still looking for ILICDD material. :)
http://therighthandcorner.wordpress.com/2013/08/03/i-live-in-cheongdamdong-episode-102-recap/
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23 sweetspring
June 4, 2013 at 7:25 AM
I only clicked on the article coz it mentioned High Kick. For me that title means season 2, sooo loved that show like jb wrote in her eloquent way, the everyday life of the characters draw you in bit by bit... then of course came the unforgivable ending but since finding out one of the writers is behind QIHM & Nine which i love love love so i shall reduce my internal cursing of the season 2 team by just a little. :)
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24 Valerie Gudorf
June 4, 2013 at 12:14 PM
This steady exodus to TVN can only bode well for the major networks and ultimately, for K-drama fans because it will serve to shake the big boys out of their complacency. Honestly, did they really think people would sit for mediocrity just because they're KBS, SBS, and MBC? Other then Cheongdamdong Alice, and (except for the WTF ending) King of Dramas, I was pretty disappointed with last season's offerings. Perhaps if I liked Sageuk, Revenge, and political dramas, I would have found more to love...? But I'm a sucker for Rom-Com and family dramas, so thems was pretty slim pickins' last year.
Now I'm hoping Park Shi Hoo can survive the pall thrown over his career by the now-dropped rape charges, come back, and wow me with a new Rom-Com. (Rubs hands together in supplication) Please Drama gods?!
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25 bd
June 5, 2013 at 12:36 AM
tvN is where it's at.
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26 Lilian
June 5, 2013 at 8:37 AM
I've liked all the tvN dramas I've watched so far. Hope they keep up the good work! And yeah, competition is good. I don't wanna see boring stuff, with birth secrets again!
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27 onewcondition
June 6, 2013 at 11:39 AM
Personally, High Kick 3 was my favourite XD
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28 Star
June 7, 2013 at 4:58 AM
I absolutely love love love the HK series. They're the only thing that has kept me watching other sitcoms and dramas. Both HK2 and HK3 had amazing cast with various of different people. Despite the heart breaking moments it gives, the High Kick series always have a good storyline and you will get addicted as soon as you watch!
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