Latest news with #KimHyeJa
Pink Villa
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
Our Unwritten Seoul's Park Bo Young tops buzzworthy actor list, here's how Son Suk Ku manages to appear twice
Our Unwritten Seoul debuted in the buzzworthy drama and actor list after the airing of its second week's episodes. Dear Hongrang also made it to the actor list, weeks after the conclusion of the multi-genre drama. Check out how the South Korean series fared in the domestic sphere, as per Good Data Corporation's latest report for the week spanning May 26 to June 1. Our Unwritten Seoul's Park Bo Young, who impressed as twin sisters Yoo Mi Rae and Yoo Mi Ji, debuted in the buzzworthy drama list at No. 1. She is followed by Heavenly Ever After's Kim Hye Ja. The series concluded last week with its highest recorded ratings, making it currently the most buzzed about drama. Its male lead Son Su Kyu made history by featuring in the actor list twice. He clinched both No. 4 and No. 5 spots with Heavenly Ever After and Nine Puzzles respectively. His Nine Puzzles co-star Kim Da Mi is one spot above him in the actor list. Among the debutants, we have Our Unwritten Seoul's Park Jinyoung and Dear Hongrang's Lee Jae Wook and Jo Bo Ah at 8th, 6th and 10th spots respectively. Among dramas, the new show A Head Coach's Turnover made its first appearance at No. 10. The Haunted Palace held its place in both the drama and actor list ahead of its finale's premiere. Tastefully Yours and GOOD BOY rounded off the top 5 of drama list. Check out the top 10 lists below. Top 10 most buzzworthy K-dramas of this week: JTBC's Heavenly Ever After tvN's Our Unwritten Seoul SBS's The Haunted Palace ENA's Tastefully Yours JTBC's GOOD BOY tvN's Second Shot at Love KBS2's For Eagle Brothers KBS2's Pump Up the Healthy Love SBS's Spring of Youth MBC's A Head Coach's Turnover Top 10 most buzzworthy K-drama actors of this week: Park Bo Young (Our Unwritten Seoul) Kim Hye Ja (Heavenly Ever After) Kim Da Mi (Nine Puzzles) Son Suk Ku (Heavenly Ever After Son Suk Ku (Nine Puzzles) Lee Jae Wook (Dear Hongrang) Yook Sungjae (The Haunted Palace) Jinyoung (Our Unwritten Seoul) Han Ji Min (Heavenly Ever After) Jo Bo Ah (Dear Hongrang)
South China Morning Post
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Netflix K-drama Heavenly Ever After midseason recap: jumbled with no real story
Lead cast: Kim Hye-ja, Son Suk-ku, Han Ji-min, Lee Jung-eun Advertisement Latest Nielsen rating: 6.89 per cent Those who have pondered what awaits us after we shuffle off this mortal coil probably should not look for answers in Heavenly Ever After, a fantasy drama that imagines the afterlife as a version of Korean society overrun with bureaucracy and pastel colours. There is an episode halfway through the series that brings us on a tour of hell and all its fire and brimstone, which is nothing like the world we live in. Yet for those who have been good during their mortal lives, the heaven that awaits them in this show must surely be a disappointment. The afterlife in Heavenly Ever After revolves around the Heaven Support Centre and its myriad rules and programmes. Not following these rules earns you a one-way ticket to hell. No matter how good you were to get into heaven, you need to be even better to stay there.
Forbes
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
‘Heavenly Ever After' Review: A Heartwarming And Terrifying K-Drama
One of this year's most unique and original K-dramas is Heavenly Ever After, a quirky romantic fantasy from Studio Phoenix and SLL that vividly imagines life after death. Directed by Kim Seok-yoon (My Liberation Notes, Law School) and co-written by Lee Nam-kyu (Daily Dose of Sunshine) and Kim Su-jin, the 12-episode series features a star-studded cast led by the legendary Kim Hye-ja (Mother, Our Blues), Son Suk-ku (A Killer Paradox, My Liberation Notes), Han Ji-min (Love Scout, Yonder), Lee Jung-eun (Parasite, Miss Night and Day) and Cheon Ho-jin (Beyond Evil, My Liberation Notes). After an accident leaves her husband Ko Nak-joon paralyzed and bedridden, Lee Hae-sook (Kim Hye-ja) spends most of her adult years working as a loan shark to support her family. She passes soon after her husband's death and enters Heaven, where she's given the option to choose the age she'd like to appear as while living there. Hae-sook decides to remain as her 80-year-old self, since her late husband had mentioned that she was the prettiest at that age. But when she reunites with her husband in Heaven, she's mortified to find him as a 30-year-old. Nak-joon (Son Suk-ku) is also initially shocked at their age gap but nevertheless shows her unwavering affection. With his help, Hae-sook learns to adjust to her new life in Heaven. Along the way, she meets some of its other residents, including some familiar faces from her past. Many other K-dramas have also addressed the afterlife, but Heavenly Ever After sets itself apart by incorporating a wide variety of genres like comedy, slice of life, romance, fantasy and even horror while nimbly alternating between extremes. You might find yourself bawling at a heartwarming scene in one episode, while another episode (ahem, Episode 5) might have you shrieking from terror at watching people being tormented in Hell. The series invites viewers to contemplate questions about the hereafter. What might happen to us when we die? What might Heaven and Hell be like? What sorts of regrets might we carry with us when we pass away? Would going to Heaven give us a second chance at life and an opportunity to realize our unfulfilled dreams? And perhaps most importantly: Do all dogs really go to Heaven? What if people could reunite with their pets in the afterworld, and what might that look like? One particularly touching moment in Episode 2 explores this to great effect: (I dare you not to cry while watching this!) When Netflix posted this clip on its official Facebook page, thousands of netizens—many of whom weren't even previously aware of this K-drama—commented on its emotional impact. The scene itself is only a little over three minutes long, but it apparently reduced many viewers (including myself) to a puddle of tears. And it's not the only scene in the show involving our furry four-legged friends that will likely melt your heart. Heavenly Ever After portrays the afterlife in clever detail, drawing heavily on earthly references to make it more relatable for audiences while also injecting some humor into an otherwise mysterious and often dreaded subject. Who knew you could ride the subway or take a taxi to Heaven or Hell, for instance? Or that Heaven would have security checkpoints like the ones found at airports? When Hae-sook asks the man who arrives at her funeral if he's the Grim Reaper, he remarks, 'They used to call us that, but not anymore' before wryly adding that everything in the great beyond is also automated, 'so they don't need Grim Reapers anymore.' Though the show has plenty of amusing moments (including some hilarious puns that unfortunately get lost in translation), it also offsets this levity through its nightmarish, morbid depiction of the underworld in the fifth episode. Graphic scenes of the condemned being crushed to death, having their tongues ripped out repeatedly or falling into a boiling cauldron of molten metal—all of which are based on the major hells of Buddhism—are more gruesome and terrifying than Dante's Nine Circles of Hell or anything found in Christianity. As with many other K-dramas, Heavenly Ever After also features sharp commentary on some of South Korea's thorniest societal ills, including voice phishing scams, religious cults, corrupt politicians and familicides (which often occur when parents take their lives along with their children's to prevent them from being orphaned and neglected). No critique of modern-day South Korean society would arguably be complete without at least mentioning celebrity suicides and cyberbullying, which the show addresses at length towards the end of Episode 5. In fact, King Yeomra, the lord of the underworld in Korean mythology, has even reserved a special place in Hell for those who engage in cyberbullying. Even journalists who destroy the reputations of public figures aren't spared punishment, as seen in the scene below: What ensues is an ingeniously creative yet shockingly gory sequence showing a giant King Yeomra crushing their faces with his fingertips as he taps away on a human keyboard. As a journalist myself, I have to admit that this scene cut really deep. It provides a glimpse into why the press are often loathed in South Korean society and why journalism—especially entertainment journalism—as a profession is still frowned upon by many (but not all) Koreans. Even though I've personally never written a hit piece (and would never think of doing such a thing), it's still painful to be lumped together in the same category in the minds of some Koreans. But anyway, I digress… It's also worth noting that the show suggests that suicide doesn't automatically condemn one to Hell. Instead, punishment is reserved for those who take another's life without consent or cause someone to commit suicide. (In South Korea many people have a different perspective on suicide than those in the West; for a detailed explanation, check out this insightful essay by Korean American writer YJ Jun.) Aside from painting a disturbingly lurid portrait of Hell, Heavenly Ever After comes across as very quirky and a bit slow-paced at times, but it's a deeply heartwarming and thought-provoking show overall. For anyone who's ever lost a loved one, the series is definitely worth watching. Just keep a large box of tissues nearby. Heavenly Ever After is currently streaming on Netflix in select regions.
