THERE is a very marked change happening in the K-Drama world. It is a very significant shift that has seen A-lister stars who put the Hallyu wave on the global map in a “precarious” position.
As the third quarter of 2021 opened, several dramas premiered that had three of the most famous A-listers leading stellar casts in much-touted, much-awaited big-budget dramas.
Song Hye Kyo and Jang Ki Yong in ‘Now We’re Breaking Up’ (Official poster)
There was Inspector Koo with Lee Young Ae (LYA) of Jewel in the Palace fame. Then there was Jirisan, headlined by Jun Ji Hyun of the mega blockbuster My Love From the Star. Song Hye Kyo had her loyal fans heating up chatrooms and comment boxes of fan-generated blogs to herald the comeback of their “goddess” in Now We Are Breaking Up.
At about the same time the three A-Listers were making their comeback, younger thespians, a New Generation of actors, were quietly headlining their own dramas and lighting up the K-Drama firmament with brilliant performances.
Lee Se Young and Junho in ‘Red Sleeve Cuff’ (Official poster)
As attention was on the A-listers, these three were holding their own and sending the ratings steadily climbing, stoking the ratings war for Red Sleeve Cuff with Lee Se Young, The King’s Affection with Park Eun Bin, and Hospital Playlist Season 2, with Jeon Mi Do as its lone female lead.
What is this so-called shift all about? The highly volatile and fickle K-Drama world is more than the sum of the ratings war. It is anchored not only on the stellar pull of such A-listers. But, what makes a drama soar? What consigns a much-heralded drama to the bottom of the heap a few episodes after it makes its debut?
Let us take a closer look at the six women who captured the hearts of their audiences in the dramas we cited.
As Dae Jang Geum in the epic Jewel in the Palace, LYA became a global phenomenon, the very first of A-listers to command a professional fee in the thousands of US dollars per taping day. This 54-episode sageuk aired in 2003 brought K-Drama to audiences worldwide. She was 33 then, not young to begin with, but no matter, her incandescent beauty and the material of the epic series—food, court life in the Joseon dynasty—set a standard difficult to meet.
And, it was a hard act to follow for LYA herself. After Jewel, she couldn’t take on just any material. In the next few years, she got married, raised a family. Then after a long spell, she came back via Saimdang Light’s Diary, a well-executed 30 episoder on an art lecturer exploring the mystery of a 16th century artist by using a diary to certify a suspicious painting that could lead her to the genuine article. This was well received by critics, but audience response was middling.
Lee Young Ae in ‘Inspector Koo’ (Official poster)
Fast forward to 2021. With Inspector Koo, LYA tests audience reaction with material that is almost the antithesis of the characters she has portrayed. Here, she is deglamorized as a reclusive ex-cop who reenters the game as an insurance investigator searching for clues in crime scenes perfectly staged by a serial killer.
Critics gave ‘Inspector Koo’ more than a nod, and lauded LYA’s audacity to give audiences something different—but the ratings told a different story
Critics gave Inspector Koo more than a nod, and lauded LYA’s audacity to give audiences something different. However, the ratings told a different story. From its opening week to its final episodes, LYA’s latest offering remained in the cellar—2.6 percent in its first two episodes, dipping to 1.8 percent in the fifth, and ending at 2.5 percent on its final week.
Jun Ji Hyun (JJH), the ingenue who charmed the world in the groundbreaking 2001 film My Sassy Girl, went on to dazzle audiences in 2013 with My Love from the Star. In this 21-episode blockbuster, an alien stranded on earth for more than 400 years is on the verge of returning home, but finds himself developing feelings for a famous actress played by JJH. She glides through her role with such panache that she and her co-star (A-lister Kim Soo Hyun) send viewers swooning each time they appear together onscreen. One of the most loved romantic fantasies in K-Dramaland, My Love garnered an all-time high rating of 24 percent, according to Nielsen Korea.
JJH then got married, had children, then returned with the mildly successful Legend of the Blue Sea opposite A-lister Lee Min Ho.
Then, in October 2021, she headlined the much awaited Jirisan. This 15th anniversary special drama of tvN that chronicled the lives of mountain rangers guarding Mt. Jirisan had a star-studded cast and a big budget, but it showed the extreme dichotomy with which dramas are received. From its premiere to its last episode, it had a 9.1 percent rating.
Fans of JJH flooded the comments of blogs and sites, saying Jirisan was “the best drama they saw this season.” Critics were loud in saying that the drama “is poorly written, a mess.” Early comments from viewers of the initial episodes decried the blurry photography and very inept use of CGIs (computer-generated images) for the scenes on Mt. Jirisan. But, over and above these divergent views, JJH delivered a noteworthy performance.
But, one viewer—an avid K-Drama watcher—gave voice to the contrasting reactions: “I’m probably most disappointed that a poor drama can be well received if it’s got a famous cast and crew.”
This comeback vehicle of the beautiful Song Hye Kyo (SHK), known to loyal fans as a “goddess,” attracted much attention as well, especially after the lackluster Encounter, also titled Boyfriend, where she played a hard-driving executive with no time to take a break. Viewers were disappointed with her stony and low-energy performance. Critics noted her “wooden” expression in most scenes. What saved the drama was the boyish, bedimpled A-lister Park Bo Gum, playing a young photographer she encountered in Havana. With half the episodes shot in the melancholic and sepia-toned Cuban capital, the drama garnered modest and decent ratings.
Viewers were disappointed with SHK’s stony performance in ‘Encounter’—but what saved the drama was Park Bo Gum
K-Drama watchers had anticipated that Now We’re Breaking Up would bring the sparkle back to her career that nosedived with her divorce after a short-lived marriage to A-lister Song Joong Ki. The lavish wedding after their megahit Descendants of the Sun made K-netz watchers euphoric, but the divorce sent them crashing down.
Did SHK’s Now We’re Breaking Up brighten up the skies for her and her fans? This is where it gets curiouser and curiouser. The drama premiered with a 6.4 percent rating, then peaked at 8.0 percent on its second episode. But, ratings started to dip until they ended at 6.7 percent.
These are decent numbers, but K-Drama watchers had expected much from SHK; instead they found her stiff and jaded. Not even the fabulous fashion scenes could put her in her element. And, the tall and dashing Jang Ki Yong could not draw enough energy from her to carry the drama to expected highs. Critics have pointed out that the problem could be because SHK, after Descendants, had opted to work with material that is safe and familiar to her audiences, and that she had acted consistently in the same way, no matter the role.
So where does this put our A-Listers in the highly competitive and constantly shifting K-Drama world?
Even as avid K-Drama watchers were following the series headlined by the three A-listers, they were increasingly getting glued to three dramas—aired almost at the same time—led by three young thespians who had paid their dues in well-written, directed, and acted vehicles.
‘Red Sleeve Cuff’ was not the first sageuk that Lee Se Young headlined
Red Sleeve Cuff was not the first sageuk that Lee Se Young headlined. In 2019, she appeared to critical acclaim as the queen in The Crowned Clown—she won the Excellence Award in the 12th Korean Drama Awards—and was noticed by a steadily growing audience that had followed her from her first film, 2004’s When I Turned Nine.
Other notable turns were in films and dramas, including musicals. In 2019, she had a highly nuanced portrayal in the prison drama Dr. John opposite the versatile and multi-awarded Ji Sung.
Red Sleeve opened quietly to very little notice. From an unremarkable 5 percent on its first episode, it steadily climbed the ratings chart, as the story of the king’s most loved court maid in Joseon history caught the attention of netizens. Mostly, it was LSY’s portrayal of a functional female lead who wanted an agency for herself and not become a mere support to the male lead (ably played by Junho, with whom she had beautiful chemistry). By the time Red Sleeve was drawing to a close, it was extended to 21 episodes and had peaked with 17 percent rating.
On February 3, LSY received an offer to star opposite Lee Seung Gi in the legal drama Love According to the Law. The two last worked together in the highly-rated and well received Hwayugi. Her agency confirmed the offer and said they are reviewing it.
Park Eun Bin and Rowoon in ‘The Kings’s Affection’ (Official poster)
Before The King’s Affection, Park Eun Bin (PEB) has played lead roles in quiet dramas notable for their excellent script, direction, and acting. The King’s is the young thespian’s first big hit, but the dramas she has appeared in, mostly with emerging young talented actors, have given audiences and critics a lot of material to see her potential.
In 2019, she played opposite the veteran Nam Goong Min in Hot Stove League, a baseball drama about two managers in an uphill battle to move their teams out of the bottom of the league. It won the Baeksang Arts Award for Best TV Drama. It garnered a modest share of viewers and put PEB on the radar of producers and viewers.
The following year, PEB starred in the quiet romantic drama Do You Like Brahms? opposite Kim Min Jae. She played the violin when she was younger, but for this series she had to train in the violin again to portray realistically a classical music student. In the prestigious university, she finds love and chases her dreams along with the fellow student who won her heart.
The King’s Affection, the big-budget sageuk, is PEB’s most notable project thus far. Playing the dual role of crown prince and his twin sister, who is forced by circumstances, after the death of the former at a young age, to take on the crown and navigate the intrigue and dangers in the royal court, PEB more than proves herself up to the challenge. It would have been hard to believe this petite actress could carry the weight of her role and the king’s royal robes on her frail shoulders. But, she did carry the role and more, displaying initially a reserved presence beside co-star Rowoon, then gradually delivering swoon-worthy turns as the drama reached its high point and her identity as the young court maid was revealed to Rowoon, whose character has fallen in love with her even as she was the king.
Before the halfway mark, viewers had forgotten that it was a petite PEB in the king’s robes. Acting with her eyes and a very purposeful gait, she has become the king. She also carried her fight scenes so brilliantly, one would think she had been an action star for quite some time.
The King’s Affection began with a rating of 6.5 percent, steadily climbing the charts to 9.6 percent at its close.
In ‘Hospital Playlist,’ Jeon Mi Do earned a huge following and notice by producers
As the lone female lead—four well-known actors played the other doctors—in Hospital Playlist 1 & 2, the most watched medical drama in 2020 (Season 1) and 2021 (season 2), Jeon Mi Do (JMD) provided not only the romantic lead to one of the most-loved characters in the drama, but also earned a huge following and notice by producers.
Hospital Playlist was her debut in K-Dramaland, but it was not her first as an actor. Before it, she was well known as a notable performer in musical theater, having played a wide range of roles, from classical to modern stage plays. The petite JMD is a singer noted for her lyrical voice and stage presence.
Jeon Mi Do in ‘The Hospital Playlist’ (Official poster)
For Hospital Playlist, she was recommended by one of the male lead actors. Hospital was loved by viewers and had a wide following, because it was a heartwarming medical drama that told the story of friends from undergrad school who remain close and share a love for music while working in the same hospital.
According to Nielsen Korea, Hospital opened its first season with 10 percent rating; its 12th and last episode closed at 14 percent. Its second season opened at 6.3 percent and closed at 14 percent, making it one of the highest rating series in 2020 and 2021.
Each of the 12 episodes ends with the five practising as a band. All five actors trained to be able to play keyboards, drums, and guitar. An interesting nugget is that JMD’s character sings off-key all the time, to the chagrin of her friends. How she was able to carry this off episode after episode is a testament to her excellent acting. Having earned the notice of producers, she stars in the current drama Thirty-Nine with Son Ye Jin and Kim Ji Hyun.
As the trio of senior A-list actors quietly moves away from the spotlight and resumes their quiet lives, avid K-drama followers have trained their sights on the three thespians climbing the peak of their careers headlining some of the biggest blockbusters of the season.
But, we can’t completely consign the three A-Listers to the past, because in the highly competitive and dynamic world that is K-Dramaland, there is always a surprise around the bend, making K-Drama watchers ever curiouser and curiouser.
