Great Expectations (Drama - 2006)

Traditional Dramas Beat Trendy Ones

Source | 2006/07/31 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter

Korean dramas are getting old.

Young and glamorous stars in a typical "Cinderella-like" love story that have spurred hallyu, or the Korean Wave, are struggling to hold onto the viewers. Instead, soap operas targeting the older crowd, especially the "ajumma", are on the rise.

The "ajumma" refers to the middle-aged married women in Korean, who have always been steady drama watchers with huge power over who gets to control the tv remote as well as the household budget in Korean households.

But as viewers tire of stereotyped Korean dramas with sappy, romantic themes and repetitive storylines, the young, especially those in their 20s, are turning a cold shoulder to tv.

The current trendy dramas _ "Smile Again", aired on SBS featuring such top young stars as Kim Hee-seon and Lee Dong-geon, "Great Expectations" on KBS starring Kim Jae-won and Han Ji-min, and "One Fine Day", on MBC starring Gong Yu and Sung Yu-ree _ all ended up with low viewer ...| More

TV Dramas Obsessed With Blood Ties

Source | 2006/06/21 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Park Chung-a
Staff Reporter

There is a story of a beautiful girl who leads a miserable life, having to cope with ill-treatment from her stepmother. One day, just like magic, a kind middle-aged woman appears out of the blue. She introduces her son, a rich and elite news anchor, making her a Cinderella. However, what if the very angel turns out to be her biological mother who abandoned her when she was a child?

This story is the popular TV soap opera "To Heaven", currently airing on SBS.

Despite such a nonsensical setting and relations among the characters, the drama has been enjoying top viewing in recent months.

In another popular TV drama, MBC's "One Fine Day", the heroine is a girl who desperately waits for her biological brother from whom she was separated at childhood. However, what do you do when the brother who turns up after 15 years is, in fact, not the real one?

The two dramas are a few of many of today's Korean TV dramas featuring sensational family secrets...| More