Asian Drama

Princess Jung Myung was the only direct descendant of King Seonjo still alive and when she was born, her birth was celebrated around the palace. She had the sweetest smile a baby could have. Queen Inmok was relieved that she had a baby girl instead of a boy. According to the seer Nam Sa Go, the baby she carried would become the true ruler of the Joseon Dynasty, a king of kings and have a princess proved the prophecy to be wrong. But the turbulent times took a heavy toll on Princess Jung Myung. Upon the death of King Seonjo, Gwanghae ascended the throne and his first order of business was to eliminate Prince Yeongchang and banish Queen Inmok from the palace. Then his next target was Princess Jung Myung. When Inmok learned that her daughter’s life was in danger, she sent her into hiding. But assassins tracked Jung Myung down. Through the heroic sacrifice of her bodyguard, Jung Myung was put on a boat that sailed adrift in the sea. Meanwhile, the bodyguard and nanny set their boat ablaze and died to fool the assassins. Jung Myung witnessed her nanny and bodyguard consumed by the flames. Adrift on the boat, Jung Myung lost consciousness and was picked up by a merchant boat crossing to Dejima in Japan. She was sold as a slave.

To survive in the hostile environment she hid the fact that she was a princess. She also vanquished her memories of ever being a princess so that she could focus on how to get revenge. Posing as a boy, Jung Myung worked as a laborer in the sulfur mine. But she discovered hope in the depths of her despair. It was a friendship between Ja Gyung that helped her cling to life. But she never lost her focus on returning to Joseon one day and brings the downfall of Gwanghae who had taken everything away from her. Then an opportunity arose. She began peddling information and secrets in the sulfur mines. Leveraging her strategic location, she followed the Joseon delegation visiting Japan back to Joseon. Finally, her dream to return to Joseon had come true…

Born to a family of established court painters, seven-year-old Yun Jeong is a young girl gifted at painting. However, the pressure is on her brother to carry on the proud family tradition, as women aren't allowed to become professional painters. While her brother trains to take his place in the court, Yun Jeong helps him out by secretly painting for him. The little girl's life is turned upside down when her brother kills himself. In order to preserve the family honor, she is forced to take her brother's name and lives as a man. Yun Bok's genius and talent capture the heart of another great master of the time, Kim Hong Do.

But her daring depictions of women are condemned by the royal institute as obscene. Yun Bok meets Kang Mu and falls deeply in love. For the first time, she feels the strong desire to abandon everything she has built and simply be a woman in front of the man she loves. Kang Mu sacrifices all for his love as well. Kim Hong Do, who loved the genius of his best student, ends up loving everything about her, and Seol Hwa, a Gisaeng at the courtesan house, possesses a love for Hong Do that turns into fatal jealousy. The secret behind Shin Yun Bok's masterpiece, Portrait of a Beauty, is finally revealed after 250 years of silence.

"My Girl and I" features the well-known plot of an ill-fated couple. Su-ho (Cha Tae-hyeon) is a plain high school boy, and Su-eun (Song Hye-kyo) is a bright and beautiful girl in the same school. For some unknown reason, Su-eun has a crush on the boy, and for equally mysterious reasons she rescues Su-ho in the sea (though he doesn't know who actually saved him). In the process, Su-eun loses her pager. When she discloses the relationship with Su-ho at school, despite envy and disbelief from other classmates, she asks Su-ho to buy her a pager so that they can communicate with each other through voice messages - a secret communication channel since So-eun's parents are quite strict. The way the couple develops affection is bearable, helped by images of a beautiful seaside village and equally enchanting coastlines. Supporting characters like Su-ho's grandfather (Lee Soon-jae) jazz up the otherwise too simplified storyline.