BY DZIREENA MAHADZIR
South Korean singer Jaejoong will be appearing in his first drama post-military service. Photos: C-JES Entertainment
Come Aug 9, I will be glued to the screen watching a Korean drama.
To be honest, I am not really a Korean drama fan. The only series I’ve completed watching is Autumn In My Heart. That was way back in 2000 and the lead actress, Song Hye-kyo, remains to this day, in my mind, the most beautiful South Korean actress.
I watched it with my mum then, and it aired on TV around dinner time, and I remember my dad saying, “I think there’s too much crying at the dinner table”. Talk about feeling emotionally overwrought!
I attempted the famous Winter Sonata (2002) but couldn’t get through it, skipping here and there because it was so tragic. I mean, why doesn’t anyone have a happy-ever-after? And that was the end of my K-drama feels.
Later on I found out that, sometimes, there is a running theme/trend for these series, and I was obviously watching the tragic drama era. Since then I’ve tried (and failed) to watch recommendations from friends or hits like the 2014 drama that sold out a YSL lipstick, My Love From The Star.
Now I am once again going to attempt to watch a series to the end because my favourite South Korean star, singer and actor Kim Jae-joong (known as Jaejoong), is making his acting comeback post-military service.
Jaejoong is not just any singer – he’s got a huge fandom that dates back to 2003, and he’s a prolific songwriter, whether as a group member (he’s in the group JYJ) or solo singer (he’s one of the top-selling solo singers in South Korea).