Only You (Drama - 2005) - 온리 유 (On-li Yoo)

Rain Finally Unveiled in Asia

Source | 2008/10/12 | Permalink |

By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter

Korean pop sensation "Rain" has officially returned to Asian fans. The 26-year-old singer was not only back home, but better than ever.

At his show, held at MBC Dreamcenter in Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province, fans from Japan, Taiwan, China and Korea who were exclusively invited waited patiently with their small fluorescent poles shaped in the letter "R" and pieces of that read "Rainism", the title of the singer's new album.

The lights finally dimmed and "Rain" appeared on stage dressed in a black suit, red tie, and a new hairstyle: short and burgundy.

"Rainism" was the first song he presented to fans, along with his trademark superb dance moves. There was a change in style with a more sensual and sexy dance routine replacing his usual powerful and energetic movements.

"Rain" continued with "Love Story", where he stood standing on a circular...| More

Ahn Jae-wook’s Summer Camp Ends Successfully

Source | 2006/08/08 | Permalink |

Actor Ahn Jae-wook has successfully held a summer camp that he organized for some 550 fans from Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, China, Taiwan and Malaysia at the Jeju Fitness Town.

The three-day camp, the tenth of its kind, began August 4 in a friendly atmosphere, with both the actor and his fans having great fun together. The singing contest that was held on the first day served as an opportunity to witness diverse Asian cultures, with participants showcasing the traditional costumes, dances and songs of their respective countries. Ahn's fans expressed their strong affection for the actor by dancing the fan dance and the hula dance to his songs.

The Japanese team, the largest in the camp, sang Ahn's song "Only You" in Korean to mark the 10th anniversary of the camp, while the Korean team prepared video footage about the history of the camp.

On the second day, the participants attended an athletic event, played games, held a barbecue party and a mini-concert, and made a campfire to s...| More

Women in Dramas Go to Work

Source | 2005/06/22 | Permalink |

Range of Jobs Widens for Female Characters in Popular Shows

By Park Chung-a
Staff Reporter

An increasing number of Korean women are choosing to pursue careers, regardless of their marriage plans. Heroines of popular television dramas are reflecting this societal change.

These days, the most popular careers for women on dramas seems to be in the culinary field. In MBC's "My Name is Kim Sam-soon", the main character Sam-soon is a pastry chef, while Eun-jae of "Only You" on SBS is the owner of a small Italian restaurant. One of the two protagonists of the MBC weekend drama "Ode To Love" is a cook and a waitress. MBC's "Jewel in the Palace ("Dae Jang Geum")", last year's major hit drama here and in China, tells the success story of a legendary royal cook who overcame social discrimination in the male-dominated society of the Choson Kingdom.

The most popular daily drama, MBC's "Be Strong, Geum-Soon!", features a young widow in her 20s working as an outgoing hairdresser. The ...| More

Might I Become Cinderella? My Chance to Meet a Prince Charming Is Only One Percentng.

Source | 2005/06/16 | Permalink |

by Yoon-Jong Yoo

The MBC dramas "My Name is Kim Sam-soon" with protagonist Kim Sam-soon (played by Kim Seon-ah), "Love Hymn" with heroine Oh Soon-jin (Jang Seo-hee), the SBS dramas "Only You" with main character Cha Eun-jae (Han Chae-young) and "Returned Single" with Chung Keum-joo (Kim Ji-ho) are all recent dramas that have spinsters, singles mothers, and divorced women living confident and progressive lives.

However, underneath, they will all ultimately end up marrying a prince charming. Culture critic Kim Hun-sik pointed out, "The dramas will probably conclude with the banal ending of the female protagonist meeting a rich heir or high society man and fall in love. That will be Hotel Group president's son Hyun Jin-heon (Hyeon Bin, "My Name is Kim Sam-soon"), Han Yi-jun (Jo Hyeon-jae, "Only You"), an heir to a large conglomerate with over 30 subsidiaries, or Kang Sae-han (Cheon Kwang-ryeol, "Love Hymn"), the heir to a fortune.

Only the actresses are different, and the shows a...| More

'Candyrellas' Return to TV

Source | 2005/06/06 | Permalink |

By Park Chung-a
Staff Reporter

Critics say the lead female characters in "My Name is Kim Sam-soon","Candyrella" characters are again dominating the TV drama scenes. The two representative dramas of the trend are MBC's mini-series drama "My Name is Kim Sam-soon", which airs at 9:55 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and the SBS drama "Only You", airing at 9: 45 p.m. on the weekend.

"The leading characters of the two dramas are mutated versions of `Candyrella' stories", said Bae Kuk-nam, a TV critic. "Candyrella", a new term coined by TV critics and journalists late last year, describes the heroines that combine the characters of Candy and Cinderella. Candy is representative of a girl with an ever-optimistic spirit despite encountering difficulties, originating from the name of a Japanese animation heroine, while Cinderella refers to ordinary women who succeed in changing their destiny by marrying rich men.

"My Name is Kim Sam-soon" is a romantic comedy, comically describing a...| More