OK so I went from “Poor baby… come here and I’ll give you a hug” to “OMG hot detective… I need a hug too” in two seconds flat. Jang Ki-yong’s quite good here and his acting has matured from when I first saw him in Go Back Couple. Not saying that he was bad back then, as I love me some Nam-gil sunbae. But I’m glad he had the chance to work with PD Kim Won-seok and the rest of the amazing casts in My Ajusshi before taking his first lead role. He must’ve learned lots from his sunbaes under PD Kim’s guidance, and Gwang-il is the perfect character to test his acting depth before tackling Na-moo/Do-jin. If he keeps improving at this rate, he’ll have a bright future ahead. Breakout actor of the year, or is it too early to call?
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    Definitely breakout actor of the year for me. Too early only because it’s June now.

    I guess some detractors may say it is too early because he debut only a couple of years back. However, I am placing my bets on this guy because:
    1) he has shown that he has range. No doubt he has just gotten his lead role in CAHM but in those smaller roles, web dramas etc he played diverse characters and played them well.
    2) he can play both protagonist and antagonist convincingly. Not many acrtors can even the very famous ones. Take your screencaps for example. He’s heart-achingly good in that scene where he broke down. And the one where he walked down the alley and gripped the knife. If he was the assailant, I would totally buy it.
    3) control – something that most actors even the older ones do not possess. Melodrama can be a good showcase for acting skills but it’s not easy either. Some especially the new ones can’t emote and so they fall flat. Just as bad or if maybe worse are those who kills every single scene with their melodramatic acting – Eyes popping out of their sockets, snarls, knitted eyebrows, knowing smile etc. Apparently audience love it but I don’t. I love this guy’s ability to keep his emotions under lid yet somehow managed to convey them to us.

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      Jang Ki-yong does have range, I can give him that. And more importantly the guts to play diverse characters, even outwardly despicable ones, as evident in My Ajusshi. I was very surprised when I saw him own his antagonist role without holding back. He beat the crap out of the nation’s little sister IU, and here I was worrying for the repercussions on his image, while at the same time applauding him for his project choices. He needed that role to show that he’s serious about moving on from being a pretty model-actor to a serious actor.

      Not many up-and-coming actors are gutsy enough to do this, hell even the so-called “stars” are stuck playing the same type of characters over and over again, whether as a result of image preservation or due to lack of range, or perhaps both. All I know is this will inevitably result in a stagnant career. Fans know, and they will just move on to the next big thing once the old one gets stale. Real actors should be able to play anything, and these select few are the ones who will be able to have a long-lasting career. So I admire his passion and wish him all the best.

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        I didn’t give much thought to it but you are right about him having the guts to play the antagonist in My Ajusshi.

        Good looks can work against you especially if you are serious about acting. It helps that he looks more mature than his age. Not old but has that certain edge which makes it more believable when he plays these complex roles.

        Many stars aren’t good actors. Most are decent but lack the range and depth. The true thespians don’t act like stars.

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          “Good looks can work against you especially if you are serious about acting”. I agree with this. I like Song Joong-ki enough but it occurred to me that despite his talents, his looks actually severely limits and is a big disadvantage when it comes to the type of characters that he can play. I had high hopes that he would go down the actor path and work hard to overcome this handicap, but who knows.

          “The true thespians don’t act like stars”. Ain’t that the truth. Park Hae-il comes to mind. He’s always solid, and so versatile that he can play any role and disappears into it. But I bet the majority of audience “forgot” about him when he’s not actively promoting since he’s not very high-profile, and is quite happy to stay under the radar until it’s time to re-surface and blow everyone’s mind again.

          I Googled Jang Ki-yong’s background and it looks like he attended university with a musical theater and performing arts major, which explains a lot. At any rate, I’m excited and look forward to seeing more of him.

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            I couldn’t watch DOTS. Like you I had hopes for SJK when I first saw him in SKKS. Let’s see how he does in his upcoming drama.

            I like actors who keeps a low profile. Maybe it’s part of their job but I dislike fan service, self promotion or whatever you call it.

            There are many actors I like who has theater background. I wonder if JKY has done any theater work before.

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            I used to be a big fan of SJK as well, back in SKKS day and even TWDR. Logically, I can understand why he chose to do DOTS as his comeback project. He was fresh out of the army and being out of the public eye for so long probably means that a blockbuster KES-penned drama is the surest and fastest way to gain his fame back, and earn some big bucks from advertisers. I’d even say he was smart. However it doesn’t mean that I’m not disappointed with his choice; and I regret that my respect for him has waned a bit, because now it looks like he’s mainly in the industry as a calculating businessman, and being a true thespian is only an after-thought. I’m still open-minded though, and will wait for the day I can say I’m his fan again.

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            I didn’t like him in Nice Guy although I know he shot to greater heights of popularity with that drama and even won some award. So, by the time DOTS came, my interest had waned. It’s not easy to do melo, that’s why I am appreciative of JKY in this role.

            I just hope SJK can be good in his new drama, I like the writer and especially the PD!

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      The most admiring part of Him acting Na Moo is that he kept his whole face straight while only his eyes did the work in most scenes. But when he grabbed the knife he delivered all emotions through words and facial expressions while keeping his eyes cold and gaze straight.

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        I am very, very much impressed with JKY here. Many of his most effective scenes so far have been with him just gazing at JKJ’s character. He is able to convey longing, sadness and regret with just his eyes.

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