MBN jumps back into the drama game with Yeonnam-dong 539

16 December 16, 2017

MBN jumps back into the drama game with Yeonnam-dong 539

by tipsymocha

It’s been several years since cable channel MBN has had drama programming (its last drama was 2014’s Tears of Heaven), so it’s a nice surprise to hear that they have a new drama offering in the works, tentatively titled Yeonnam-dong 539. The upcoming drama has confirmed that one of the lead roles will be played by Lee Jong-hyuk, who is himself making a drama comeback, his last dramaland project being tvN’s Bubblegum in 2015.

Yeonnam-dong 539 sounds like an interesting slice-of-life, omnibus type of show, where the focus in each episode will shift between different housemates who all live in the same sharehouse. Lee Jong-hyuk’s character is a detective on the cyber investigations team who specializes in voice phishing. Unlike most detectives we come across in dramaland, though, he sounds like a big ol’ teddy bear inside and out, with endless sympathy for the underdogs of society and a strong sense of responsibility, while also being more soft-hearted than most.

The show has done some lightning-fast casting, and the supporting cast includes Oh Yoon-ah (Saimdang, Light’s Diary), Lee Moon-shik (Nothing to Lose), Go Woori (Begin Again), and stage actor Choi Woo-hyuk. I’m familiar with Oh Yoon-ah and Lee Moon-shik, who are both veterans in dramaland, but I’m not sure what to expect with Go Woori and Choi Woo-hyuk, the latter of whom is making his television acting debut with Yeonnam-dong 539. It’ll also be interesting to see how the MBN show will format the housemates’ vignettes, and whether they’ll be more independent of each other, or if it’s going to be more of an ensemble framework, with a general theme highlighting each episode.

MBN hasn’t set an exact premiere date for its latest foray into the dramascape, but Yeonnam-dong 539 is preparing for an early 2018 broadcast, so we can expect the show to come on the airwaves sometime in the first few months in the new year.

Oh Yoon-ah, Lee Moon-shik, Go Woori, Choi Woo-hyuk

Via Seoul Kyungjae (1), Sports Chosun, Seoul Kyungjae (2)

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1 giocare 🌻💛

December 16, 2017 at 5:55 PM

Here I was thinking that they only had 6 channels.

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Kender

December 16, 2017 at 8:28 PM

Haha it does seem like that sometimes, doesn't it? It's just that most channels either don't do original programming or are specialized offshoots (sports, gaming, drama reruns, etc.) of the Big Three, so overseas viewers don't really see much of them.

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2 Flightey Gazelles

December 16, 2017 at 6:46 PM

Sounds interesting. Isn't Lee Jong Hyuk in the upcoming drama You Who Forgot Poetry, the one with Lee Yubi?

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⭐ Sera The Ms Temper ⭐

December 16, 2017 at 10:12 PM

That one is Lee Joon-hyuk. 😊

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Flightey Gazelles

December 18, 2017 at 2:09 PM

Ah, I see. Got them mixed up.

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3 Tom

December 16, 2017 at 7:07 PM

That is such an interesting development.

I wonder if the weeknight ratings now hovering in mid single digits means they saw an opportunity to steal the jump on established rivals. (A good show could see them lead the time-slot with out having to break double digits)

I wonder if this news made the other station execs do a spit take of their morning coffee?

Ouch - more competition in a shrinking market...thats going to lead to some super intense programming meetings. I just hope it leads some to push for quality to gain ratings....but I fear the race to the bottom with squeezing production cost/time.

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tummy

December 16, 2017 at 7:39 PM

It seems that they've selected actors not on the top paid lists so they've already saved a few million dollars there. The setting appears to require a few fixed sets (home and offices presumably) and probably minimal location shoots as he is a cybercrime detective and likely works in an office not running around on the street.

But I agree that in a flat market (until China lets up), many execs may opt for safe and conservative products that skew towards the commercial rather than artistic/controversial.

But consider something similar like BTIOFL - they had 4 main sets/locations (the apartment, rooftop studio, restaurant, SH's office). Not a heckuva lot of location shoots - and those they had were not expensive. (parks, beach, bus stop) Still managed a pretty good product.

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Tom

December 16, 2017 at 8:04 PM

@tummy

Agreed. The best dramas will be inventive within the new milieu.

I think with both BTIOFL and FoS, the writing (+ story) attracted the quality of cast and crew. Seriously, for what could have been a small scale basic rom-com, BTIOFL had an amazing cast.
@alert posted translations of the leads' interviews...(ep16-thread#123). These are rich and thoughtful and I think give a good indication of why LMK and JSM both signed up.

Maybe the next period in Kdrama will once again be defined by iconic writers who know how to craft a story that lifts dramas above their restrictions.

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tummy

December 16, 2017 at 10:25 PM

I second that motion!!

A good story, acted well, meaningful dialogue and shot with care beats a gratuitously cinematographic drama with a superficial plot, cheesy dialog, one dimensional characters and stuffed with popular celebrities.

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Noona

December 16, 2017 at 10:31 PM

For a writer that copied the same story from another source we can't call her a good writer, I mean BTMFL writer

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Tom

December 16, 2017 at 10:54 PM

@Noona

I am curious as to which source are you referring to? Do you mean the Japanese drama: "We Married as a Job" or is there an other drama I am not familiar with? (if there is another, that would be great...I need to add that to my watch list)

At the beginning I also thought BTIOFL was a WMaaJ retake, but quickly realised it became its own drama.

BTIOFL branches out to constructs a retelling of "THE GRADUATE". However, it's the degree of nuance, exploration of subjective truth, and gender roles is where it becomes a good piece of writing...regardless of its similarities at setup.

I would be happy with a couple more retellings if they had something new to say and the writing, cast and production were of that quality.

4 Nessa (Bebe) 🌹

December 16, 2017 at 11:54 PM

I seriously thought this was Eric Nam for a sec, and thought, "Eric Nam is now going into acting?! Really?!?" Not that I'd be disappointed about that, because the guy is a sweetheart (and sometimes a weirdo--just check out Amber Liu's Official Youtube channel and watch all the vids he's in with her, then you'll understand XD) and think that it would be interesting hehehehe

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5 Abbie

December 17, 2017 at 12:19 AM

I love Lee Jong-hyuk so that automatically makes me excited for this!

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6 spazmo

December 17, 2017 at 12:51 AM

ouch! did someone say Lee Jong Hyuk isn't an actor "on the top paid list"??? he's fabulous! he was my favorite/handsome/dashing "bad guy" in Chuno!! i loved him in Gentleman's Dignity, Cyrano Dating Agency and variety show, Appa Odiga with his son Junsu....