I swear, this guy’s career is one well-oiled machine. Now that his drama The King 2 Hearts has wrapped, Lee Seung-gi has been announced as one of the MCs for a new variety show to hit SBS late this summer, called Table for 100. It hasn’t been confirmed, but if he does take the gig, it’ll at least solve the great riddle that would have been: What would happen to tv if Lee Seung-gi stopped being on it? Would sets just spontaneously combust? I was picturing more of a sad-mac situation and flags at half-mast around the country. I kid, but you kind of do wonder, right?

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Read the rest of Lee Seung-gi to return to variety? (290 words)

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Post tags: Lee Seung-gi

…has a curious lack of abs. C’mon, it’s the unwritten rule of post-army photos! Or maybe he’s being a big tease and saving it all up for the drama comeback, Arang and the Magistrate. Although, I dunno where in a mystery sageuk we’d expect to see the magistrate’s abs. This is where you pray it’s more fusion than sageuk, since fusion allows for liberties in style and convenient lapses in proper wardrobing.

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Read the rest of Lee Jun-ki’s first post-army photo shoot (252 words)

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Post tags: Lee Jun-ki, photo shoots

Hold onto your hats. And brains. And hearts. No one ever accused this show of doing too LITTLE, that’s for sure.

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Read the rest of The King 2 Hearts: Episode 19 (4,939 words)

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Post tags: featured, Ha Ji-won, Jo Jung-seok, Lee Seung-gi, Lee Soon-jae, Lee Yoon-ji, The King 2 Hearts

It’s a surprisingly moving episode, one that I didn’t expect given the dumbness of last week. But when you take away the tired corporate plots, resolve the villain conflict, and remove them from the picture, what’s left? Turns out it’s all the good stuff that made me enjoy the show so much in the first place. When we get to focus on relationships that matter to us, the result can be unexpectedly poignant. WHO KNEW.

SONG OF THE DAY

Infinite – “눈물만” (Only tears) [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Rooftop Prince: Episode 19 (3,764 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2012. | Permalink | 144 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: featured, Han Ji-min, Jung Yumi (2), Lee Tae-sung, Micky Yoochun, Rooftop Prince

Is it a love triangle if it’s the soul of one guy trapped in the body of another? I’m not sure if that makes it more of a love rhombus, or just one really confused accidental two-timer, but Big just might be one of the rare Hong sisters dramas that has an interestingly complex love square that isn’t just filled out by your standard daddy long legs and annoying first love, here to fulfill their second-lead meddling quotient.

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Read the rest of One Big love triangle…sort of (237 words)

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Post tags: Big, Gong Yoo, Lee Min-jung, Suzy

I’m getting the vague feeling… that this drama might, just might, have a little something to do with shoes. Maybe. Call it a hunch.

I Do, I Do looks cute, but I’m just not feeling its promotional material—stills, posters, trailers—at least not yet. I like the premise, I expect Kim Sun-ah and Lee Jang-woo to have crackling chemistry, and there’s a good chance it’ll be a pleasant, fun watch. I think they’ve taken a left turn with the promo is all.

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Read the rest of Shoes galore in I Do, I Do (330 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2012. | Permalink | 61 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: I Do I Do, Im Soo-hyang, Kim Sun-ah, Lee Jang-woo, Park Gun-hyung

This show brings a whole new level to the concept of distance dating, while some excellent swoon-worthy moments serve as padding for the inevitable drama to come. We get a bit more introspective as our characters navigate love over a three-hundred year divide, with one word or glance speaking volumes more than exposition ever could. I love that the sense of falling in love is so palpable here, helped along by sparkling chemistry, music that conveys a sense of longing, and a general, all-around synergy. ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

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Read the rest of Queen In-hyun’s Man: Episode 8 (3,183 words)

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Post tags: featured, Ji Hyun-woo, Queen In-hyun's Man, Yoo Inna

Memories can leave a different taste in our mouths – they can be sweet, salty, or even bitter. Gun-hee searches to rediscover Chinjung’s unique taste while Kang-jae ponders on what it means for kimchi to taste like a memory. Maybe it’s different for everyone or maybe it’s one of the same. If the show keep this pace, we might be in for a great finale.

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Read the rest of Marriage Plot: Episode 15 (2,785 words)

© gummimochi for Dramabeans, 2012. | Permalink | 12 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: featured, Kang Hye-jung, Lee Kyu-han, Marriage Plot

Park Ha-sun is featured in a couple of magazines for June, photos of which make me want to take off for the beach immediately and maybe joyride a sailboat. Probably a bad idea, since my knowledge of operating sailboats tops out at pirate movies and cartoons. And okay, also because it’s illegal and whatever.

The first shoot comes from Céci magazine, which doesn’t always have interesting photo shoots, but are splashy and colorful this time around. The second photo shoot is from Singles and showcases a complete different vibe for Park, who’s got a fairly standard fresh-and-innocent image for a rising actress, established from roles like gentle Queen In-hyun in Dong Yi and the teacher in High Kick 3 who was always praised for being ladylike and polite. (Which made it all the funnier when she went off the rails and unleashed her inner fierce side. That’s also what made me go from thinking she was just another actress to loving her, because she was fantastic and committed and hilarious.)

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Read the rest of Park Ha-sun’s June magazine shoots (139 words)

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Post tags: Park Ha-sun, photo shoots

It’s definitely been a chock-full drama year so far and there’s a glut of premieres about to hit at any moment, but one of the shows that’s farther off in the distance has been holding my interest for months now: the ghost fantasy-fusion romance drama Arang and the Magistrate, due out later in the summer. Now that the cast has been finalized, the production has officially begun. Here they are, gathered for the first table read to kick things off.

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Read the rest of Arang and the Magistrate’s first script read (274 words)

© girlfriday for Dramabeans, 2012. | Permalink | 103 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Arang and the Magistrate, Lee Jun-ki, Shin Mina, Yoo Seung-ho