Interesting. We were watching MNIKSS last night and commenting on Jung Ryuh Won - whether she had the chops to be a leading lady. Not having seen What Star Are You From or Two Faces, we were only going by what we saw as her playing Yoo Hee Jin. Hard to say from a single drama where she clearly was not the focus, but there were a few scenes where she had to prepare and deliver the goods - restaurant tete a tete vs. Samsoon, home visit to mo-in-law, and of course, the two big scenes with Hyun Bin. I felt like she wasn't quite as prepared as she could have been - her role as Hee Jin was sort of static and shouldn't have been that difficult to play, but I wish Hee Jin had a little more jang to her, she was ... "not salty" enough?), but maybe she just hadn't enough experience yet.... hard to say exactly but I think maybe it was just difficult to play the role opposite of Kim Sunah... can't really blame her.

If I could watch her in Ja Myung Go, and if I didn't have a thing about not waiting a week between episodes, I would definitely give her and the drama a good shot.

That said, by the time Ja Myung Go is finished and the reviews and comments are in, I am guessing I'll have a pretty good idea of whether to get it...

(small typo - a 10M Won loan would be about $7,500 USD? should read 10B won loan...).

-Samsooki

Actually, I think she did well in MNIKSS. That is also the only thing I've ever seen her in.

I think she had more chemistry in her scenes with Daniel Henney, but then again, I think that because in the scenes with main guy (Woo Bin? I can't remember) her character was basically a wet blanket but lively with Daniels character.

I wasn't OMGCRAZYAWESOME with her performance in MNIKSS but I wasn't underwhelmed either. I thought she did well and fine for her role.

(I do remember being particular impressed with her English. Maybe that's why I'm a little biased. She's the first Korean actor I've heard speak English and not Engrish. And it was cute to hear the Australian accent when she spoke too. I know there are other actors that speak English but for some reason can't seem to get past the accent but her accent was perfect, if you disregarded the Australian that peeked through)

@ mishane ....you should hear Phillip Lee speak english....OMG was my reaction lol...you can see him in story of a man...he's really good n hot in there :)

Honestly i'm not a fan of Jung Ryeo-won so i'm not watching it

@Mishane,

Off-topic, there was this actor who played a tiny role in Snow Queen, I think his name is Jerome (real name of Do Sung Min - he also was a member of the groups X-Large and On-Off. This dude speaks English as well as any American. I first heard him speak only in English, and then I thought - "hmmf. they brought over a So-Cal Korean-American actor who probably can't speak a lick of Korean.... " but then he spoke Korean really well and then I got jealous. In Snow Queen, he was flowing back and forth with Korean and English and I felt like I was in Korea Town all over again.

Jerome's Korean accent was a tiny bit off and his English was majorly twisted with So-Cal impurities, but he has true fluency in two languages and that's pretty special.

Still, if you thought Jung Ryuh Won was good in MNIKSS, then maybe I'm being a little harsh. I did appreciate her English ability for sure. How many Korean actresses have her English ability? Although, I can't say that her English ability will be much of a help in a sageuk like Ja Myung Go.....

-Samsooki

i am! no wait, i was.. i gave up after episode 2. dead, dead boring T.T might pick it back up from ep 12 in a couple of weeks when college vacation sets in though.. whoohoo

i agree... it puts me to sleep every time i tried to watch this show.. not enough attraction... and the story is so confusing that i got lost in the storyline...

@ Carol

I'm currently watching Story Of A Man so I'll be looking forward to that! Who does Phillip Lee play?

Hmm, I'm not much interested in this and I don't even know why. Maybe it's the format? 50 eps is kind of long for me and plus, it's a segeuk which it doesn't make things easier for me.

I've actually heard that this drama is really good in terms of quality, storytelling, and such. I haven't seen it personally, but to be honest, a 50 episode drama, a saeguk on top of it just don't scream 'watch me watch me' to me.

maybe people just wanna get off the sageuk train... after hong gil dong, iljimae (x 2!), jumong, yisan... what else was there?

I've only seen the first 2 episodes when it first came out, and then got distracted with the who BBF obsession. I wanted to watch more of it but mysoju.com took a long time to upload the newer episodes... but from what I've seen so far it's good, and left me wanting to watch more. It's been a long time since I watched a sageuk that I really enjoyed- I think the last sageuk I actually watched till the end was The Legend (or Tae-Wang-Sa-Shin-Ki with Bae Yong Joon). I think I like this one because it sorta has the TWSSK vibe to it...

It's really unfortunate that it's getting the ratings it's getting, and I think timing is important when it comes to how well a drama is received. I don't think people really know much about it either, especially since the whole BBF craze. Perhaps if the drama had more hot guys like BBF in it? lol. You can't go wrong with eye candy.

hm....Jung Ryeowon is not a BAD actress, but giving her a lead character in a sageuk was very risky in the first place.....
I've always thought tt she has a totally different kind of audience.....
and this series' ratings are beyond disheartening.....for a sageuk....
I mean not all sageuks succeed like Jumong or Yisan....but even the most moderate sageuks out there like Daewang saejong and the now running Empress Cheonchu draw double digits nearing the 20 range.....

I would say that they definitely miscasted a lot of people for this drama....
I personally watched the first few episodes and found that the story is a little jumpy.....There were too many flashbacks and the timeline blurred after awhile...but the worst part is the camera angles....so unflattering and choppy...The camera failed to shoot the best out of its actors/actresses......The whole ambience also kinda failed to capture the mystical and grandeur feeling this drama is supposed to have....
I might want to pick this up again later...and I think ttz the advantage of having 50 episodes...there's a lot of chances for improvement.....
but yeah right now in regards of the sageuks playing....Empress Cheonchu is definitely the better one (despite the fact that itz not Chae SiRa's best performance and the currently draggy plot in an effort to prolong and wait for Kim SukHoon's recovery)

I used to watch it, then for some mysterious and unknown reasons I stopped after episode 5!!!! I just really stopped caring, you know?! I don't care about Ja Myung and her nefarious fate... I don't care about Lahee and her desperate love for Hodong... I don't care about Hodong and his evil step mother... and I certainly don't care about the actor playing the role of Daemosin/Muhyul in here .___. after I saw Song Il Kook in Kingdom Of The Winds, and after I heard about that other veteran actor who's gonna take his role in here, I was really looking forward to it, but then OMG such a disappointment! I don't wanna say he can't act, but being in a saeguk certainly requires some sort of charisma that he absolutely doesn't have!!!

so maybe he's the main reason why I stopped caring for this drama! which is just weird cause I absolutely love Jung Kyung Ho and wanna see him here!

so for people who wanna watch a saeguk right now, you can watch Empress Chun Chu which I'm enjoying a lot. Totally agree with hot_saranghae about Chae Si Ra, but you have other reasons to watch this drama (Gang Jo and Kim Chiyang <3 <3 )

I force myself to like it, It's beautiful but dayummm it's sooo boring. I discourage watching this until it finishes airing and all subtitles are out. I can't figure out what could happen in 50 eppisodes, whereasanother long running drama- EoE could make you think wat would happen. I think this was hyped up too much and I hate myself for disliking it. It's beautiful but the most boring saguek I have watched.

@14 I'd love to see that type of fusion saguek. May be there's a manhwa out there which is like that and is just waiting to be made into a drama :)

P.S I'm really glad that Queen of Housewives is finally getting the attention it deserved ! I hope the extension (if put on) will be nice and no senseless

Jeong Ryeo Won was in all of 2 episodes so far...

I think once the Love story starts to unfold we'll see the numbers jump...

AND
JRW acting abilities may be up for debate, but what you cant argue is her irresistible charm she has in front of a camera... it was true in MNIKSS, it held true in "What Star are you From" and even the her surprisingly enjoyable movie "Hello, Ani'... and I think being in a saeguk drama negates a lot of her charm...

"And I ask that as a real question, not in sarcasm..."
haha...that's a first. ;)

The previews were conspicuously fusion...but is it supposed to be a traditional sageuk? o.O

@asianromance - that would be great drama to watch - fun, lively...add a dash of humor and lots of kick-*ss female power

There was a special about it on Monday on TKC (ch 531) here in NYC. At first, I thought it was the first episode so I was watching it and it turned out to be a summary of the whole drama. I was wondering why they would do that BEFORE airing the drama. Anyway, now I know the whole story and it sounded interesting enough as a 15 minute summary. But when I found out the drama will run for 50 episodes, I thought they were stretching it too much there. I don't think there is enough plot to keep people engaged to it for that long.

P.S.: To my surprise, I am liking Cain & Abel.

I'm watching Ja Myung Go with the help of chinese hardsubs, and well it's no wonder the ratings are so low... the whole prologue/childhood thing covers all 13 episodes that have been aired so far! ~__________~ Way too long if you ask me, even if the kids are cute... not even Jumong had such a long prologue! Anyway, Jung Ryeo-won only appeared at the end of ep13 for a few seconds and marking the end of that first phase *phew* But at this rate I suspect a lot of ppl have turned away from the show entirely due to the slow speed. Well, the ratings ought to improve somewhat now that the adult characters are finally step into the scene for real. Still... it would have been so much better if wasn't set to be 50 episodes but something like 24 episodes.

@ Pretendingtobe

I agree, I've only seen Jeong Ryeo Won in MNIKSS and compared to other actresses, she has charisma. That makes you want to watch her. I was actually surprised b/c I haven't seen a lot of actresses w/ that kind of charm...even if their acting is on the wow level.

Forgive me for my ignorance, but could someone tell me what drama MNIKSS is?

Thanks

I only watched 2 episodes of PJMG so far due to school constraints, but I really, really love it. Mainly because I have a weakness for reworked mythologies, and star-crossed lovers. It's sad that it's getting such low ratings, this drama deserves more

to answer your question: none that I know of....

Except its lead actress, I don't think anyone really cares about this drama....it's..like..boring........................

One of the reasons I don't watch it: No English subs available beside ViiKii, and I don't watch streaming videos, the quality is just terrrrible!!!

Another reason is the cast. I've seen them in other dramas and just don't see them in sageuk with such characters.

Having said all that, I'm kindda worry for them when Queen Seon Duk starts on the same time slot. It would be horrible if they have to cut it short.

Should there be another article "Who's watching Cinderella Man?". It's suffering the same fate as Princess Ja Myung Go.

If there were some male eye candy, I would probably give it a shot. As it is, I'm not interested in any of the male actors and I really don't care for any of the female actresses or the story line.

I am still waiting to watch Queen Seon Duk when it comes out and will probably pick up Return of Iljimae once it is out on DVD.

Just finished watching the Immortal Yi Soon Shin and am still breathless over the hot guys.

Yeah if this show wasn't so long I would probably watch it. I just saw an MV of it and it looks really compelling. I really like Jung Ryeo Won and Jung Kyung Ho is such a cutie - they are the main reasons I'm interested. For me, eye candy isn't the problem here (Lee Mi Sook and Kim Sung Ryung are gorgeous veterans) but rather, do I really want to slog through 13 hours to get to the good stuff?

I love JRW and I'm quite disappointed that her drama isn't getting the ratings that it deserves. But, I would have to say that I love seeing her in a comedy romance genre. I hope that after Jum-Myung that she would be able to go back and to a comedy romance. I have watched "Which Star Are you FroM?" many times because she is hilarious!!!!!

At the start of 2009 this was my most anticipated show mainly because of PMY (also JRW) and after practically begging (hoping) for someone to sub it - and when it did - I couldn't get past episode 1.

The story is just MEH, the characters are weak, and the costumes are horrible; they look power rangers. I probably would've continued just for PMY had this been 16 episodes, but not even eye candy can save this one. 50 episodes for a series like this is just pretentious.

On the other hand....I've been watching Empress Cheon Chu and to my surprise it's a LOT better than JMG (so far anyway). I love the characters, especially Kim So Eun's portrayel of the young Cheon Chu. She's such a feisty little tomboy yet cute and compassionate. There's even more eye candy here, but I have a feeling I won't like it once the adult actors take over.

"they look power rangers."

REALLY?!!!? Okay now I MUST watch Ja Myung Go. It's mighty morphin time -- aja bitches!! *does that hand thing that makes me one with my latex robot. ooowweeee!!!!*

(true story: the Red Ranger was in one of my classes during high school, pre-Mighty Morphin Power. He was auditioning, so he was rarely around.)

"I love the characters, especially Kim So Eun’s portrayel of the young Cheon Chu. "

Come to think of it -- Kim So Eun sometimes looks like the Yuri to Park Min Young's Yoon-A. They should do a clip of Gee, just so the ratings would go up for both shows.

Oh and Kobe, good luck tomorrow Thursday.

im watching the drama and really loving it. i definitely think its a fusion. its more fast pace compared to a traditional saeguk. im also worried whether or not these past 13 episodes will be enough to carry on the plot. it really seems like they have necessary chunks and pieces that were left out. i like how quick everythings moving along and the actors/actresses are really good

Just knowing that it will take 50 episodes makes me give up already…as much as I want to watch coz able to see MNIKSS, What Star Are You From including some of her film like Two Faces of My Girlfriend makes me her fun, but Princess Jumong is to long. Only my curiosity takes me when I watch the earlier episode but it’s really not my cup of tea it makes me think not another Jamong, Jewel in the Palace nor Yisan…(I didn’t watch this) yes the story is great and the acting is beyond compare but it’s to long…..(and not to mention those tragedy, ratings gosh that’s a big blow I mean I hope they can take it positively hope things well be better soon. Wish them luck!

"(true story: the Red Ranger was in one of my classes during high school, pre-Mighty Morphin Power. He was auditioning, so he was rarely around.)"
Aigoo, you ARE my hoobae!!! LOL. I wasn't your student aide, was I? O.o

@#21 Stella - MNIKSS is My Name Is Kim Samsoon

i think you guys are biased. haha
you guys are missing something good : ]
it's not boring at all(except ep 1and special haha).
it is very well written and edited. and their actings are just WOW.
The reputation of this drama is as good as 'story of a man' (except articles i don't know why) in korea.
i know i can't force you to watch some programs. but seoriosly

little HoDong
(watch 5:50)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eu0sOYLlnSs&feature=channel_page

HoDong and his teacher
(watch 7:10)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hOFkR5PaWE&feature=related

little LaHee
(watch 6:00)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMcmYdqDu3U&feature=channel_page

LaHee's mom
i've never seen this kind of woman character in sageuk dramas
(watch 0:00)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yrczn6QxxJo&feature=related

King MuHuel
i've never seen this kind of king in sageuk dramas,too.
(watch 4:40)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-G-9MDnsE8&feature=channel
(watch 1:00)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my0c2eg4THc&feature=related

@anon,

I think what attracts me about the JMG project is that it looks like a Korean version of TW-style idol wuxias. I'm just kinda hoping somebody a fansub community will take it up.

The show's started airing on SBS-LA here this week. If I only had time to watch it.

@hjkomo,

"Aigoo, you ARE my hoobae!!! LOL. I wasn’t your student aide, was I? O.o"

LOL My high school was so Korean, our junior high was called PARK Junior High.

My high school was so Korean, our two best sports were tennis and golf. :D

My high school was so Korean, they had to add new rules so that the kids wouldn't smoke cheap ciggies in the hall, while -- wait for it -- squatting. And what's weird is that you and the other Real Korean Guys would like hang out but not like talk at all. Just smoke, look real sleepy, and uhhh prepare to go poopoo in the quad area(?) And we would just laugh at how stupid they looked . . . while we were all pining for ASB/Key Club/President of Church Group Prez Steve Kim Oppa.

Friend 1: "OMG did Steve Oppa carry your books? He's SO good looking. Like he's SO GQ, you know? His mom told my mom that he's serious about his applications for Princeton."

Friend 2: "Don't you think he looks like Lee Jung Jae? Just a little when he smiles."

Friend 1: "OMG did you see that episode of Friends last night when Jung Jae oppa . . . "

All: "SSQQUUUUEEEEEEEE!!!!!!"

Sigh.

^LOL! They really instituted a no smoking in the halls rule? While I don't recall anyone squatting, I do remember hanging out in "the boat." 2nd gens only...don't know where the FOBs hung out. ;)
It's amazing how demographics can change so quickly. There weren't very many Koreans there when I was younger...now, they're EVERYWHERE, and I get claustrophic when visiting. I got out just in time. My husband finds it all quite amusing.

@28 Kobe - "Power Ranger": A perfect word to describe this drama. Especially Hodong's white armor on Eps 1. It cracked me up when I saw it. I couldn't believe they made him wear such costume.

@31 jdb - "Princess Jumong": LOL, you really meant Princess Ja Myung Go? Jumong is a King.

@hjkomo,

"I do remember hanging out in “the boat.” 2nd gens only…don’t know where the FOBs hung out."

I think that's why I like Jung Ryeo Won so much. Many of my friends, like her, were 1.5ers. Some of the things she talks and her sensibilities and life experiences sounded a lot like my friends.

I joke about it a lot, but like you said, it did feel claustrophobic. Especially after the LA Riots. Yikes, that was really uncomfortable at my school. Getting used to the nationalism, Catholicism, image consciousness, K-male alienation, the BRIGHT LIPSTICK . . .

@ 36
Yap sorry about that.…I kindda messed up with my letters…sorry guys.

@selva

HEY!!~~ Nice to see you here^^~
I guess the soompi empress cheonchu thread is not enough....so we gotta come here and spread the Kim Chiyang love over here too....hahahaha...

So I may be one of the few that is watching this.. I've been watching the episodes but kind of fast forwarding through the episode since i'm watching it with Chinese subtitles (i'm not korean so i don't understand korean) . I kind of get the overall picture of the drama so far up to Ep 13 which aired this Tuesday, but the story is moving wayy to slow. It should pick up a little now that the kids have grown up and the story is getting a little bit more interesting?

I think the reason I'm still watching this is the costumes, scenery, fighting scenes and the love story that goes with it, but its 50 episodes!! I mean, its not hit halfway yet and its going super slow. I'm also disappointed on how they portrayed King Daemusin since I watched Kingdom of the winds.

So I hope that it gets better, I know its a tragic story, but waiting to see how everyone encounters each other and how the tragic love story will unfold.

Thanks for listening. :D

Ive been watching it recently, and actuallly i cant complain. children actors are really good, eventhough their part seems soo long. bt considering the fact tht this dramas got 50 eps... the grown ups got lot of time to show wat they want.

anyway i think its not a bad drama, i always look forward to it every week

hi i have been watching it on mysoju and iv been chekin every week for more updates! theres somthing abt the drama i just like atm coz i am not getting into any other drama cept this one! hope they upload more than eppy 4 soon!!!

for me i never like ja myung go , i tried to watch 5,6 times but .. i just don't like , and i think is quite bored..

i've been following this drama since day one, and the first five or so episodes really drew me in (especially the idea that they were willing to turn a legendary drum into a real person and spin a fantasy off of that). but then when it really focused on the historical aspect, it started losing me. i still follow it but now using gom player i ffwd through most of the scenes that don't deal directly with the three main children.

one aspect of the drama is being done brilliantly - and that is the gradual character build-up of Jeong Kyeong-ho's character Ho-dong. when you watch the first eps you wonder why he was willing to use and sacrifice la-hee (nak rang gong-ju) when he clearly loves ja-myung, but through the 11/12 some episodes of his childhood, you see his character develop and you start to understand his obsession with conquering nak-rang and in essence, staying alive.

however, this drama made a serious mistake. it was planned to be 50 episodes. no matter how you see it, the story CANNOT be drawn out into 50 episodes without being rendered completely boring and strained. in the end, a bunch of adults sat around for 5 episodes and drew up plans on how to kill/conquer each other without actually taking action.

it's sad really because the scenes with the children were fun and well-made. it's just when the drama aimed to be too political that it became boring. and i'm all for sa-geuk and political stuff (i've sat through ju-mong, yi-san and all that good stuff). but this drama aims to be a love story that could possibly do well with a younger audience but definitely wouldn't pull in the kind of ratings that epic sa-geuks can and are known to (the aforementioned 2 plus dae-jang-geum, heo jun, etc.). so they try to draw in the adults who love watching historical pieces and convolute the plot with political mumbo-jumbo. but in essence, it still wants to be a love story at heart, and so it loses both audiences.

jeong ryeo-won just recently made her first "real" appearance (excluding episode one) in episode 11. i'm hoping to see some improvement now that the adults are taking over (ironic, because usually i love the child actors part, and i like most of the child actors this time, too, but the overall pace of the drama was seriously dragging).

i wish it well because i am still (vaguely) intrigued by the lahee-hodong-jamyung triangle.

My mom and I were talking about this, and we agreed that the drama is beautifully filmed and the older veteran actors are doing a great job. It's the younger cast that has yet to pull their weight. Jung Ryeowon and Park Minyoung just don't fit into a sageuk setting, and I blame it on their plastic faces. They're passable in modern day dramas but in sageuks... Questionable to say the least! I just don't think they have the charisma to be the leads in such a big production.

I beg to differ with some regard to Jung Ryeo Won's acting. I think she's one of the few whose acting is natural and unforced. Extra kudos to her for not being afraid to appear weird, crazy and ugly in front of the camera (WSAYF, 2 Faces of my GF, Castaway on the Moon). I like her acting in MNIKSS which I thought was subtle, spontaneous and NOT over-the-top. She's not a typical beauty but exudes style, class and charisma which makes her a joy to watch!

As for JMG, i'm pretty surprised at the ratings because I've watched all 13 episodes and excluding the 1st episode, I really enjoyed all of them. The plot has has potential (though I have to admit that several things seemed really "out-of-the-blue" and unbelievable, like how a newborn could survive 3 deadly situations), the costumes are amazing and the cast (kids and older veterans) are doing mighty fine jobs. I've watched Iljimae, a similar sort of series and the plot/acting isn't half as commendable or exciting as JMG. I agree with the length of JMG as a drawback factor though and wouldn't mind if they cut down some episodes and pick up the pace but without sacrificing important details of the plot. Hopefully the main leads will impress when they appear proper.

P.S. JRW's appearance at the end of episode 13 shouldn't be used as a deciding factor as to whether she has the capability to carry off the leading role in a grand production. In her defense, she appeared for a grand total of less than a minute. It will be amusing if one were to use that as a gauge of her acting skills and portrayal of character ;)

Hey, I'm a lurker and I just have to say that this is the first and ONLY Saeguk(sp?) I've been able to watch and enjoy. It's gotten really interesting now that the kids have met each other and become adults. I love this show.:)

okay......................well
I LOVE THE SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
just amazing acting....love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When I first saw Jung Ryu Won In MNIKSS, I didn't really like her acting. But, when I watched What Star Did You Come From, I was amazed. I liked watching her as the leading character. I think Princess Ja Myung Go is interesting and her acting is really good so far....so as the other characters....go Princess Ja Myung Go!!!!!!!!:)

I am watching and i am hoooked