UPCOMING KOREAN DRAMA 2011 SEAGUK "THE DUO" Cast Han Ji Hye and Chun Jung Myung

TV Show: The Duo (literal title)

Revised romanization: Jjakpae

Hangul: 짝패

Director:

Writer:

Network: MBC

Episodes:

Release Date: February 7, 2011

Runtime: Mondays & Tuesdays 21:55

Language: Korean

Country: South Korea

Plot

"The Duo" is a period drama centered around two men who were switched at birth and went on to live different lives.

Chun Dong (Chun Jung Myung) was born into a rich noble family, but switched with a baby born into a beggar's mud hut. Gwi Dong (Lee Sang Yun) was born in that beggar's mud hut, but grew up with the noble family.

Cast

Chun Jung Myung Chun-Dong

Han Ji Hye - Dong Nyeo

Lee Sang Yun - Gwi Dong

Kang Shin Il - Dong Nyeo's father

Lee Mun-Shik - Jang Kkot-Ji

Kim Yong Hee - Pan Sool

Jeong Kyeong Ho - Kkul Dduk

Everyone’s favorite baby-faced man-boy Chun Jung-myung (Cinderella’s Sister, What’s Up Fox) is looking at his next project…a sageuk? Historical dramas aren’t his usual fare, but it’d be his first, so I’m all for uncharted waters. Thankfully, it’s a fusion sageuk, so there’s bound to be enough cheekiness to go around.

The drama is MBC’s upcoming [짝패] meaning “pair, duo, companion” a la The Marx Brothers, or Bonnie and Clyde. Until they come up with an official English title, I’m going with The Duo. Hm. Sounds like a Western, huh?

The fusion sageuk is a Joseon-era tale of two men, one born noble and the other born a slave…who get switched at birth and live each other’s lives. Has potential, depending of course on how far off the deep end they go with the melodramatics. I enjoyed this basic setup in East of Eden, for instance. That is…until they beat that dead horse into a pulp, fed it to a NEW horse, then beat THAT one till it died.

If cast, Chun Jung-myung would play the character of noble birth, living as a slave. PD Im Tae-woo (Air City) was careful to say that nothing has been finalized, especially on the heels of the rumor that Han He-jin (Jejoongwon, Terroir) would star as the love interest for both men, which got squashed.

I don’t know if babyface is going to pull off looking anything other than…baby-faced in sageuk garb, but I have faith that he’s got the acting chops to pull it off. I just hope they don’t make him in any way whiny or pathetic, as his Cinderella’s Sister character still leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Personally, I’m in the mood for something different, so perhaps this’ll shape up to be a nice change of pace in 2011. 

MBC’s highly anticipated drama The Duo — which has now confirmed Chun Jung-myungfor the lead — has cast its leading lady in Han Ji-hye. The drama tells the story of two boys born on the same day — one noble, one slave — whose fates are switched. On paper, that sounds similar to the poor-boy-swapped-with-rich-boy premise of East of Eden, which happens to be Han’s last drama, although we can surmise (hope) that this drama will probably take a different approach to the story, not least because it’s a sageuk.

Han plays the daughter of an upright village schoolteacher, who grows up educated and clever. She’ll get caught in a love triangle (of course) between the two leads, one of whom is played by Chun Jung-myung, the other of whom has not yet been cast. I like the cast so far… I think the third lead will tip me over into full excitement mode if he’s good, or drop me back down to earth if he’s not. Since appearing in Eden, Han has spent some time away from her acting by pursuing ashoe designing endeavor, publishing an essay book, and getting married. This’ll be her first project since her September wedding. Han Ji-hye has given verbal agreement to appear in The Duo (contract pending), which’ll be her first traditional sageuk series but not her first time in a period project; she acted in the stylized Lee Jun-ik film Like the Moon Escaping From Clouds, which was released earlier this year.

Via Hankook Ilbo

Kang Ji-sub makes sageuk debut in The Duo

Another actor has been added to The Duo, MBC’s upcoming buzz project: Kang Ji-sub, who joins castmates Chun Jung-myung, Han Ji-hye, and Lee Sang-yoon in the switched-at-birth sageuk drama where boys born to a nobleman and a slave are swapped and grow up living each other’s lives.

Kang Ji-sub, the 29-year-old actor of Fine Windy Day and Women in the Sun, will play Chun-dong’s (Chun Jung-myung) only friend in the drama, and is also the leader of a gang that is dominant in the region. Described as extremely loyal, he’s a man who’ll risk his life for his friend.

Kang debuted in 2005′s Love In Heaven, and will be making his first foray into the sageuk genre with The Duo. He’s currently busy training in martial arts for what I anticipate will be many action scenes. Hmm, looks like there are a number of sageuk newbs in this drama, although that’s not automatically a bad thing. 

The Duo will air in February, after the recently extended Queen of Reversals wraps.

Via Star News

With production off to a late start, MBC sageuk drama The Duo is finally moving into high gear for its upcoming premiere, and has released photos from its script reading.

Pictured here are the series’ three leads, Chun Jung-myung (Cinderella’s Sister), Han Ji-hye (East of Eden), and Lee Sang-yoon (Life Is Beautiful).

Lee Sang-yoon arrived an hour late to the reading, earning him the joke by PD Im Tae-woo (Air City, Dandelion Family) that his tardiness required a song. Lee immediately launched into the national anthem, setting an upbeat atmosphere.

In the drama, Chun Jung-myung is born to a noble family, but grows up in a beggar’s hut and becomes a Robin Hood-like heroic outlaw. Lee Sang-yoon has the opposite fate, born a beggar but raised as a nobleman. Han Ji-hye is the daughter of the village schoolteacher who becomes caught in a love triangle between the two men.

The Duo will replace Queen of Reversals, which was extended to allow this drama more time to prepare. It premieres in mid-February as a Monday-Tuesday series.

The Duo is set to follow Birdie Buddy, which is set to follow Queen of Reversals. Except Queen of Reversals refuses to end. Hey, you’re holding up the line!

Via Star News